Test (3)

Captain Fowler raised his hand.

“Although we established a siege, weren’t we in a deadlock due to the resistance of the remaining Chinese forces? Why did the prey leave their nest?”

Chadwick answered.

“Our operation hasn’t been compromised. It seems more likely they got swept up in a factional struggle… We haven’t yet obtained precise information. There’s an extensive purge happening on that side. Our informants are keeping their heads down. Well, a few of them have probably become fish food already.”

“So you have no information at all? You don’t even know when or where the breach happened? How do you even know the prey escaped?”

“Whoa, whoa—one question at a time, please. I’ll answer them in order. First, we do have some intelligence that needs verification. Namely, ‘Point Charlie 172’—it’s said that Rear Admiral Lei Yanlie newly took command of the destroyer Kunming. As you know, Charlie 172 is like the command tower of the Haiyingtang sector.”

Gyeo-ul flipped through a few pages of documents. He didn’t have the “Speed Reading” technique, but he quickly located the relevant section—an entry about the former Chinese military force that had absorbed refugee groups and criminal organizations.

Charlie (C) was the initial from “China.”

Thus, point Charlie meant a Chinese stronghold. Haiyingtang was one such place, controlling the waters east of San Francisco International Airport.

“Three destroyers, five frigates, and numerous other vessels. The armed personnel is estimated at over 30,000.”

Reading through, it was basically a warlord’s private army.

Its scale was immense, but the frontline teams were described as being armed with batons and knives. Still, sheer numbers were a threat. After all, the difference between soldiers and thugs was more about discipline than weaponry.

Chadwick continued, explaining the background not found in the documents.

“Lei Yanlie was originally with the General Political Department but moved to the position of Navy Political Commissar. He’s more a pure-blooded Communist Party member than a soldier. So, there’s been tension with the mainstream commanders. Honestly, I thought he’d get purged soon. But things have taken a strange turn. If this is true, there must have been a sudden coup.”

“And the Long March 9 is the opposing faction?”

“That’s only speculation, but they must have been in turmoil. There was probably a mutiny aboard. If Rear Admiral Lei was in his right mind, he’d have planted his own people aboard Moby Dick. The nuke is the core of their bargaining power. Lose Moby Dick and they lose authority. They have to seize control at any cost.”

The intelligence chief kept referring to the Long March 9 as Moby Dick. Gyeo-ul found it odd that no one minded. It wasn’t a mismatched metaphor—both the whale in the novel and the Chinese nuclear submarine were elusive prey. However…

‘You never catch it in the end.’

Not only is it never caught, it also sinks the whaling ship chasing it. Only one survivor. In that sense, the metaphor could portend the deaths of most people here.

“We’re still unsure of the time and method of the escape. The bay’s interior is pure chaos. However, just past midnight, a Japanese submarine that stopped by here captured Moby Dick’s acoustic signature while returning to Angel Island, so it must have been outside the blockade.”

The “acoustic signature” meant the unique sound profile of a specific ship—it was like a vessel’s fingerprint.

What a coincidence; of all people, it had to be Jinryu. Captain Umehara was a good man. From a long-term perspective in this world, the more people like Umehara, the better.

Would he remain safe? Gyeo-ul focused on the briefing.

“So why didn’t they sink it then? That would’ve ended this tiresome mission.”

A complaint arose from someone other than the two men leading the Q&A. It was a first lieutenant from the Blue Skull team—a person Gyeo-ul hadn’t met before, whose face showed deeper fatigue than the others.

Chadwick, the team leader, answered.

“They claim they missed it due to a malfunction.”

“A malfunction?”

“That ship—Jinryu, or whatever it’s called—defected before officially being commissioned. It was still in trial operation, with regular commission scheduled for the first half of the year. Its specs are good, but it’s bound to have lots of malfunctions. It’s kind of funny that it had an engine failure at exactly the wrong moment, but that’s what they say.”

“Sounds like you don’t believe it.”

“There are quite a few Japanese ships in the bay.”

The water inside the bay was shallow. Any torpedo explosion would inevitably affect the surface. Underwater explosions have a smaller effective radius than in air but are more powerful within that radius, especially vertically.

“So they hesitated?”

“The possibility of causing a massacre among their own civilians, and the possibility the torpedo could miss—considering both, I’d expect they decided to be conscientious fools.”

Conscientious “fools”? It was an odd word choice but wasn’t a mistake. The field chief of the intelligence service flashed a smile that revealed discolored teeth.

“I’ve contacted Angel Island. They’re running a thorough inspection. If they were deceiving us, they’ll pay for it. Since we’ve already lost the whale, let’s at least get a lesson out of it. It’ll be a good warning to any remaining collaborators.”

Mmm. A low and quiet groan—it was Joanna.

As for the rest of the people present, half seemed to agree with Chadwick, half showed no expression.

If the malfunction wasn’t real, how much must Captain Umehara have agonized? Gyeo-ul wondered.

The necessary knowledge oozed from accumulated episodes. At one time, Gyeo-ul faced his end aboard a submarine that had become humanity’s final bastion. Person after person hanged themselves in despair, inside that massive iron coffin. The end was the crew’s suicide. After recalling, the boy erased emotion and kept only the experience.

A torpedo is a weapon that homes in on sound. It cries out and traces its own echoes to find a target.

However, this is very much affected by the environment. In shallow water, sound is easily scattered by reflection. The bay’s uneven bottom. A floating city made up of ships. Even in the late hours, the urban noise of a devastated city would probably overwhelm a submerged submarine.

‘I’ve heard it before—submarines running at low speed are quieter than vacuum cleaners.’

The fresh water flowing in from the river into the bay was another problem. Fresh and salt water form separate layers and don’t mix quickly. Sound waves could be distorted at their boundary.

Therefore, there was a high chance of the torpedo missing. A torpedo that loses its target automatically seeks a new one. If it hits, it’s a disaster; if it misses, it’s a catastrophe. To raise the odds of a hit, multiple shots would be necessary—

Or, you all die together.

If the torpedo was wire-guided, a single shot would be enough. But you couldn’t hide after firing—complete exposure until the end.

It was an act of double suicide to minimize civilian casualties.

What kind of choices are these? He could picture the captain grimacing and running a hand over his ship. “Enough about that. Which direction did the target head? Do we need to relocate our base?”

A natural question. Chadwick switched the display. The map showed the predicted movement path of the Long March 9. The indicated range wasn’t far from the operations center’s position.

“As you can see, there’s no need to pack up. The last confirmed course was southeast… not many allied factions around there. It isn’t far from the areas where we have ops rights. Even joining the furthest group—Point Charlie 989—wouldn’t require abandoning this place.”

Gyeo-ul found Charlie 989 in the papers. Changbaishan—A 25,000-ton freighter. Another stronghold of a Chinese warlord faction.

“Even whales have to surface to breathe. No way their provisions, taken from starving refugees, will be enough, especially since they escaped in a hurry. So, crew, let’s get our harpoons ready for when the beast surfaces.”

A nuclear submarine could last for years without refueling. Even so, it had to surface frequently for food. Given the floating city’s situation, no matter how much they looted, it wouldn’t be enough.

At the same time, it seemed likely that controlling provisions was the warlord leader’s way of keeping the submarine’s crew in check. Just Gyeo-ul’s speculation, but still.

The briefing continued for some time. However, the deeper it went, the less Gyeo-ul could understand at this point. The number of documents was substantial, and there was a limit to how much he could both listen and search simultaneously.

Joanna seemed to be faring better. Of course—she must have reviewed the material beforehand.

In any case, they wouldn’t be deployed immediately.

After the briefing ended, Captain Fowler called to Gyeo-ul.

“You’ll be assigned to my team from now on. And as I said earlier, I and my men only trust what we see for ourselves. Rank alone isn’t enough to gain respect. If you don’t want even the most junior members to look down on you, prove yourself.”

Gyeo-ul tilted his head.

“How can I prove myself? There are parts that only show in actual combat.”

“Let’s see the fundamentals first. Like marksmanship or mock combat. The rest we’ll figure out as we go.”

The captain then addressed the FBI agent.

“You may step out, supervisor. As I said, average skill isn’t enough. Don’t take it personally—there’s a minimum standard needed to function as a unit. Sorry for acting out of line before.”

Joanna replied calmly.

“Well, I’d like to check my own skills as well.”

“… If you insist.”

Let’s go. The captain took the lead. Chadwick waved his hand in a playful manner.

The place they moved to was an automated shooting range inside the ship. It was very different from the facilities at Fort Roberts. The targets were never more than 21 feet (6.4 meters) away. Instead, they were complex in shape, designed to move on their own, and equipped with a timer on this side.

‘So they emphasize reaction speed in tight spaces and short ranges.’

Depending on how things went, a skirmish could break out inside Long March 9. Even if they fought the warlords, the key would be close-quarters fighting inside the ship.

Captain Fowler spoke to Gyeo-ul.

“The engagement environment here, in San Francisco Bay, is similar to urban warfare. Obstacles everywhere, and enemies can appear from any direction. Plus, it’s difficult to distinguish between enemies and civilians. So keen observation and rapid reactions are crucial. A margin of 0.1 seconds decides life or death.”

That meant fast draw under varied conditions was both basic and essential. No matter how outstanding your other abilities, if you failed this test, you wouldn’t go into the field. That was the gist.

For Gyeo-ul, it was a favorable requirement—a chance to measure his improved combat skills.

The captain motioned with his hand.

“Let’s begin, then. Skylar, you’ll instruct from here.”

Then he stepped back with his arms folded.

The man called Skylar held the same rank as Gyeo-ul—first lieutenant. However, Gyeo-ul couldn’t discern his chain of command. After all, force Recon platoons were led by captains. This strike unit seemed reorganized for the mission type. He would need time to review the organization.

As acting instructor, skylar explained the first test to Gyeo-ul and Joanna.

“Supervisor, you probably don’t even need to see, but First Lieutenant, you might not have had the chance for this kind of training.”

That wasn’t necessarily true.

“The first stage is the rear shooting test. In short, you shoot while turning around. We’ll start with stationary targets, then progress to letter targets and moving targets.”

When he pressed the remote, a timer beeped. Beep.

“When you hear this sound, turn and shoot at the target immediately. If it takes you more than a second, you fail. Even if you don’t hit a vital point, you fail. For your reference, no one on our team takes more than 0.8 seconds on a stationary target. For example, no matter how sneakily an enemy attacks from behind, if you can’t shoot within 0.8 seconds, he’s the one who dies.”

It was a boast, with some exaggeration. The enemy wouldn’t announce, “Here I come,” after all. Still, in an environment where everyone fights on equal terms, reaction speed really did matter most.

‘Put simply, someone who can shoot in 0.5 seconds could handle two people who take a second each.’

Gyeo-ul was reminded of old Western shootouts.

—————————= Author’s Note —————————=

#Moving

The author is moving house today.

Yes, today. If I fall asleep now, I’ll have to wake up in two hours.

…ㅠㅠ

The next update might be a bit late. I apologize and ask for the understanding of my fiendish readers.

#Q&A

Q. by 월하의이면: @By the way, after hearing “three weeks with a bullet in the head,” it made me wonder… How sophisticated is the pain system here?

A. It varies based on personal settings. Gyeo-ul currently only uses shock-prevention options. Pain is one of the conditions for realistic sensation, after all.

Q. by 라우넬리스: @Come to think of it, I’ve always wondered—why don’t insects or animals show up in zombie stories, author? Is it because humanity would be at an even bigger disadvantage?

A. Well… that might be part of it. Zombie mosquitoes, now that’s hardcore.

Q. by 밥에는칫솔: @My goodness… Am I the only one who noticed that “Justin Bieber” joke! You sly author, brainwashing the pure-hearted Joara readers. Tunguska is really dangerous, people.

A. You can avoid brainwashing by clicking the recommendation button. The same goes for reading Wind and the Milky Way.

Q. by 가식적썩소: 이래 뵈도 〉 이래봬도

A. Thank you, corrected.

Q. by 페팅입은페로: @For the restoration of the author’s childhood innocence, I throw a month’s worth of coupons! Save them up and buy chicken. RIP chicken!

A. Yes, thank you very much. I welcomed Chicken God with gratitude. Hahaha.

Q. by 음란마귀F: @So is misfortunate Gyeo-ul going to go on a “one-man rampage” in a submarine like MW3? He always seems to negotiate with stronger enemies, and always has a 50% chance of talks breaking down.

A. Hmm, you make me sound like such a wicked old writer… But I’m not! I am a kind elder. I believe all my readers know that.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep