novelraw Chapter 91 : Were You Thinking of Catching the Sea Whale?
Chapter 91 : Were You Thinking of Catching the Sea Whale?
Chapter 91: Were You Thinking of Catching the Sea Whale?
By the time the drinking session with Han Do-gyeong broke up and I left the villa, the eastern sky had already begun to brighten faintly.
My head felt heavy from the conversation that had lasted all night, yet my heart felt lighter instead.
It felt as if the final puzzle piece of every plan had clicked into place. Now, all that remained was to put that plan into action.
After returning to Deokhwaru, I grabbed a brief nap and then immediately contacted Oh Chung-seong again.
This time, the meeting place was not yesterday’s shabby coffee shop, but a private room in a high-end restaurant overlooking Yongdusan Park. When a relationship changed, the meeting place had to change first.
As soon as we sat down, Oh Chung-seong spoke first.
“I didn’t expect you to contact me this quickly.”
“Yes. I called because I need your help, Section Chief.”
“Go ahead. If there’s something I can help with.”
“Section Chief. Do you have any intention of catching the Sea Whale?”
At my blunt question, Oh Chung-seong’s eyes widened. He sucked in a sharp breath and hurriedly opened his mouth.
“The Sea Whale? What do you mean by that? Have you identified its true nature?”
“I know that when you interrogated Jin Tae-rim, you tried to pry information about the Sea Whale out of him.”
“…….”
“A ghost that dominates the waters off Busan. If you catch that bastard, it would more than make up for the loss of face from this black market crackdown in one fell swoop. It would be a golden opportunity to clearly demonstrate your capabilities to Deputy Director Noh Gi-tae, and to the people above him as well.”
Oh Chung-seong swallowed his dry saliva. In his eyes, flames of greed and ambition began to burn.
He knew well that capturing the Sea Whale, that ghost-like organization, could become a huge opportunity for him.
“……Is there a way?”
“Of course. I’ll draw them out for you. All you have to do is set the trap and wait.”
Oh Chung-seong nodded eagerly. The sight of him looked like a well-trained, obedient dog.
“Good. From now on, what you’re about to hear must not be told to anyone. Even if that person is Deputy Director Noh Gi-tae.”
I began explaining the plan I had devised together with Han Do-gyeong. Of course, I thoroughly concealed Han Do-gyeong’s existence.
“Section Chief. Do you have subordinates you can trust?”
“……All together, three are possible.”
“Three people.”
That was a variable. The number of personnel available was far too small. I thought for a moment, then asked again.
“Is the use of firearms possible?”
“It is possible, but…… it’s a bit tight.”
“What about a joint operation with the Coast Guard?”
Looking displeased, Oh Chung-seong slowly shook his head.
“Wouldn’t information leak? They’re an organization that’s been prowling the Busan sea like their own backyard for years. There’s no way they don’t have connections with the Coast Guard.”
“Leaving that aside, is it possible?”
“Hmm……. Yes. There’s no legal basis, but with the current authority of the KCIA, even the head of the maritime police wouldn’t be able to refuse a request for cooperation.”
“Then let’s do it this way.”
I changed the plan on the spot. Since it had come to this, it seemed better to make the board bigger and clean everything up in one go.
After hearing my revised plan, Oh Chung-seong’s face turned pale. The stakes had grown far beyond imagination, so it was only natural for him to be afraid.
“Is it possible, Section Chief?”
“Yes. I’ll do it.”
But in the end, he nodded. He had decided to stake everything he had on this dangerous gamble.
“Good. The operation is at midnight five days from now. Finish all preparations by then. There must not be a single mistake. My life is in your hands, Section Chief Oh.”
Oh Chung-seong nodded with a stiff expression.
After parting with Baek Min-woo, Oh Chung-seong headed straight back to the safe house of the Busan branch.
Inside his head, a storm was raging due to the massive plan Baek Min-woo had thrown at him.
An extremely dangerous gamble. But if it succeeded, the reward would be beyond imagination. He hesitated no longer.
“Assistant Manager Kim, Assistant Manager Park, Chief Choi. Gather everyone in my office. Within five minutes.”
At his summons, a sharp tension spread throughout the safe house. The three men he had called were not simple subordinates.
From the early days, they had handled all kinds of dirty work together with him. They were his hands and feet, and the only close aides he could entrust his back to.
A moment later, the three men entered his office with stiff faces. Oh Chung-seong locked the door and carefully drew the curtains over the windows.
“From now on, what I say is only to be heard and buried here. Your lives are on the line.”
At his resolute voice, the three men’s faces hardened.
Concealing Baek Min-woo’s existence, Oh Chung-seong began explaining the outline of the plan, saying it was information obtained from a reliable informant.
“In five days, off the coast of Busan, the Sea Whale will move directly. There’s an operation to transfer a large sum of dollars using a smuggling ship. The information is that the Sea Whale will raid that smuggling ship.”
“The Sea Whale, you say?”
Assistant Manager Kim, a veteran who had been through thick and thin, widened his eyes.
“Are you saying you’ve grasped its true form?”
“We’ve caught its tail. This time, I intend to catch the body as well.”
Oh Chung-seong explained the revised operation plan to them.
They would infiltrate the smuggling ship undercover and wait for the Sea Whale to attack. Once the attack came, they would arrest everyone. On the outside, Coast Guard vessels would form an encirclement to block any escape routes.
It was a perfect sting operation, but as they listened to the explanation, the expressions of his subordinates grew increasingly grave.
“Section Chief.”
Chief Choi, the youngest, cautiously opened his mouth.
“That informant…… can he be trusted? If this is a trap, we’ll be isolated in the middle of the sea. We could be the rats trapped in the jar.”
“That’s right. They’re not people without connections to the Coast Guard. The moment information leaks, the operation fails and only our lives will be in danger.”
Assistant Manager Park also voiced his concerns. Their worries were reasonable.
Oh Chung-seong took out a cigarette from his desk drawer and lit it. Soon, whitish smoke covered his face.
“I know it’s a dangerous operation. But we have to bet everything we have on this board.”
He exhaled a long stream of cigarette smoke and looked at his subordinates one by one.
“Director Kang is finished now. Soon, a bloodstorm will blow through the KCIA. There’s only one way for us to survive. We must build merits that no one can ignore and lend strength to Deputy Director Noh. The Sea Whale…… will be the best sacrifice for that.”
Faced with the ambition and resolve clouding his eyes, the three men could not say anything.
They were people who knew that Oh Chung-seong’s success would become their own success.
“The agents participating in the operation are only you and me. Do not share the operation with anyone. Even if it’s family.”
“Not even reporting it to Deputy Director Noh?”
Oh Chung-seong stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray and nodded.
“We’ll report after the fact. So that even if something goes wrong, it won’t bring harm to Deputy Director Noh.”
Oh Chung-seong, who had wrapped desire and greed in loyalty, spoke his final words.
“Prepare yourselves. Mobilize everything necessary for the operation. Failure is not an option.”
“Yes, understood!”
After sending his subordinates away, Oh Chung-seong climbed into a jeep.
The place his car headed for was the Coast Guard Headquarters near Pier No. 1 of Busan Port.
This was not something that could be settled over the phone. He had to go in person, look those bastards in the face, and settle it decisively.
After arriving at the Coast Guard headquarters and revealing his identity, he was immediately escorted to the office of the Coast Guard Chief.
“Heh heh, Section Chief Oh. What brings you all the way to this humble place?”
Commissioner General Kim Tae-hoon, the Coast Guard Chief who had been sitting at his desk, set down his fountain pen as he greeted him.
The eyes of the seasoned bureaucrat who had lived through the Korean War looked gentle, but within them lay a stubbornness that would not bend easily.
“I don’t have much time, so I’ll get straight to the point, Chief. I’ve come to request a joint operation.”
“A joint operation, you say…….”
Kim Tae-hoon pointed to the nautical chart on his desk and narrowed his brows.
“Which waters are we talking about? If the KCIA is getting involved, is there some kind of anti-communist suspicion?”
“A sweep operation targeting the smuggling organization in the waters off Busan — the Sea Whale.”
At the name Sea Whale, Kim Tae-hoon’s expression stiffened subtly.
“Heh, those guys have been giving us headaches for years as well. They’re ghosts, after all……. Has the KCIA managed to grab even their tail?”
“We’ve pinpointed the location of the body. All we need is your cooperation for the operation.”
“Oh my, Section Chief Oh. You have to consider our situation too. We’re short on manpower, and our equipment is outdated, so it’s difficult. If you submit a formal request through proper documentation, we can review it…….”
Kim Tae-hoon openly showed his displeasure, using paperwork and procedure as a shield to back away.
As if he had been waiting for it, Oh Chung-seong dug into his true intentions with a cold voice.
“Is that so? I was worried that you might have received some under-the-table money from the Sea Whale bastards.”
“W-What did you say! Section Chief Oh, what are you implying right now!”
Kim Tae-hoon sprang to his feet. His face flushed red.
“Isn’t that an insult to the honor of our Coast Guard!”
“An insult? I merely relayed some rumors that are going around.”
Oh Chung-seong stood up and, looking out the window at Busan Port, spoke quietly.
“There are even suspicions in some circles that there may be high-ranking officials within the Coast Guard who are colluding with them. Of course, I believe those rumors are not true. That’s why I’m giving you this opportunity directly, Chief.”
“An opportunity?”
“Provide elite Coast Guard forces for this operation. Join our KCIA in wiping out the Sea Whale and seize the chance to wash away all disgraceful suspicions surrounding the Coast Guard with your own hands. What do you say? Is cooperation still difficult even then?”
It was an offer in name only — an inescapable threat. Kim Tae-hoon broke out in a cold sweat, at a loss for what to do.
“If you refuse, we’ll launch a full internal investigation into the Coast Guard. I trust you, Chief. Haven’t you protected the seas of Busan for a long time? But the fact that the Sea Whale has been running rampant in the waters off Busan like its own front yard for years without even its tail being caught…… honestly, isn’t that suspicious?”
At the insinuating tone, Kim Tae-hoon swallowed his dry saliva.
An internal investigation by the KCIA. Who in the Coast Guard hadn’t taken at least a single bribe from smugglers or fishing boats? It was only natural that the Sea Whale had scattered bribes throughout the Coast Guard as well.
Still, it was unfair. If he himself had taken money, it would have been one thing. To be suspected like this. Waving his hands, he desperately denied it.
“N-No. Absolutely not. I’ll cooperate. I’ll cooperate fully.”
“You should have done that from the start.”
A satisfied smile rose to Oh Chung-seong’s face.
Kim Tae-hoon bit his lip briefly in humiliation, but soon returned to the face of a bureaucrat and picked up the intercom receiver.
“Superintendent General Park Sang-gu. Come to my office immediately.”
A moment later, Superintendent General Park Sang-gu, the Busan District Coast Guard Chief with a solid build, entered. True to his field-hardened reputation, his eyes were sharp, and the moment he saw Oh Chung-seong, he revealed his wariness.
“From now on, the Busan District will fully cooperate with the Sea Whale sweep operation overseen by Section Chief Oh Chung-seong of the KCIA. On-site command will be handled by Section Chief Oh Chung-seong.”
“Chief! A joint operation with the KCIA? Without a concrete operation plan or intelligence sharing, not a single one of my men can move!”
Park Sang-gu spoke in the form of reporting to Kim Tae-hoon, but his gaze was fixed on Oh Chung-seong.
It carried a strong resolve that he would never hand over on-site command.
However, Oh Chung-seong had no intention of yielding either. With a cold, decisive voice, he cut him off.
“The operation details are classified. I will issue instructions directly on site.”
“Then we can’t do it. I can’t entrust my subordinates’ lives to the two words ‘classified.’”
“Superintendent Park. This has received approval from above.”
“Approval from above does not guarantee my subordinates’ lives.”
“Have you perhaps received under-the-table money from the Sea Whale? Why are you reacting so strongly?”
Suspicion settled into Oh Chung-seong’s eyes.
“I swear on my honor that I have never taken money from criminals. Don’t insult me.”
Park Sang-gu pushed back without yielding an inch. As tension hung thick in the air, Chief Kim Tae-hoon, who had been watching everything, spoke quietly.
“Section Chief Oh, Superintendent Park is right. It’s appropriate for the KCIA to design the big picture of the operation, but on-site command and the safety of our personnel are our responsibility. You must share at least the minimum information for us to move.”
Oh Chung-seong stared at the two of them for a moment. But he did not push recklessly. Their cooperation was essential.
“Commissioner General. Can you take responsibility if the operation leaks in advance?”
Kim Tae-hoon could not answer immediately. At that moment, Park Sang-gu spoke.
“I’ll take responsibility. There’s no one among my men who would provide information to criminals.”
“Very well. I’ll deliver the detailed operation plan only to Superintendent Park right before the operation. And as for on-site command, Superintendent Park will hold it unless there’s an emergency, but I’ll take it over if urgent changes are needed.”
Oh Chung-seong took a step back in appearance. Park Sang-gu still looked displeased, but at the Chief’s glance, he could no longer object.
“Superintendent Park, did you hear that?”
“……Yes, understood.”
“Engrave it in your mind. Halt order, warning shots, suppression. That order must be strictly observed. Our Coast Guard is not the KCIA’s hunting dog.”
With those final words, Kim Tae-hoon reinforced his subordinate’s position and brought the situation to a close.
Oh Chung-seong ignored their last shred of pride and left the office.