21st Century Goguryeo

January 4th, 2024, 02:10 (New China time: 01:10)

Outside the northeast end of Industrial Complex 15, Beichen District, Tianjin, New China

The sounds of gunshots and laser beams firing were constantly heard in the vicinity of Area 15 and occasionally, huge explosions occurred, brightening Tianjin's night sky.

The less than 300 Red Barn Swallow members were defending the area outside the factory area, where rescue operations were in full swing, using their advantageous street fighting strategies and tactics.

On the other hand, the Tianjin Defense Command Department seemed to gather all the troops of the mobilization division and they flocked to the factory area of District 15.

Therefore, Lieutenant Colonel Kang Min-joon, who was receiving reports from the regional commanders of the 707 Special Brigade engaged in the street fight about the appearance of the New China army, gave the order to sortie the MV-100 Skybus to join in the fight as well.

If even one sky bus was to be shot down during the battle, a major problem could arise during the retreat, but that was a problem for the future. The top priority now was to ensure that the engineers could safely rescue the personnel who needed to be rescued.

As such, the 20 CMV-100 sky buses, excluding the command and medical sky buses, took off one at a time, making loud whooshing sounds. They quickly activated TCS mode and flew over the city to join the fight.

The main mission of the CMV-100 Sky bus, which was outfitted with a hover system, was to transport personnel and various equipment after infiltrating the enemy camp using TCS mode. However, it was also outfitted with several self-fighting weapons.

There were about 20 tube launchers armed with 50-millimeter activated carbon bombs equipped on both sides, and an 8-millimeter Vulcan laser at the front of the lower end.

With the CMV-100 sky buses being dispatched to assist in the street fight, the only forces left to defend the factory area were Foreign Intelligence agents and approximately 40 armed engineers, excluding the engineers operating the heavy equipment.

They used the fence as a cover, it was their last line of defense.

<Kwang! Kwang! Kwang!>

A laser light flashed through the dense yellow dust, causing continuous explosions in the area where the CMV-100 sky buses flew.

The CMV-100 sky buses that flew along the road between the buildings seemed to have launched a full-fledged support attack.

In the last hour, the Capital Heavy Armored Assault Squadron, which flew in the sky flashing from east to west in the front line, and the 707 Special Task Force were performing ambush attacks while in TCS mode. Besides that, the CMV-100 Skybus Squadron, which spewed out powerful firepower, gave it their all in the street fight. However, due to their numerical limitations, they were unable to completely obstruct the New Chinese Army, which was swarming the small alleys.

As a result, some of the New China soldiers were able to approach 50 meters from the fence, carrying AK-74 rifles.

"Many enemies have appeared at azimuth angle 0-8-5!" An engineer who identified the soldiers through his shield glasses reported through the communication network.

In response, the foreign intelligence agents and the armed engineers, who were waiting inside the fence, fired at once.

<Jjuungjjuungjjuungjjuung~ Jjuungjjuungjjuungjjuung~>

The red laser beams poured out from the fence and toward the New China soldiers who had just escaped from the alley and were looking for cover.

<Argh! Argh!>

Each of them curled up on the floor, shrieking and covering their chest, abdomen, and face, which had been pierced by the laser beam.

<Tatatang! Tatatang! Ta-ang!>

The New Korean infantry who were running in behind fired indiscriminately at the fence as they saw their colleagues in the lead rolling on the floor.

"Aha! There are a lot."

Team Leader Youn Tae-jin, who was leaning under the partially ripped fence due to the gunshots, raised his face and looked through his shield glasses at the situation ahead.

There were clusters of brightly colored figures with various personal firearms coming from the various alleys connected to the main road in front of the fence.

<Pat Pat Pat!>

Bullets hit the top of the fence, where team leader Youn Tae-jin had raised his head.

"Oh!"

Team Leader Yoon Tae-jin, who bowed his head at that moment, breathed a sigh of relief and spoke through the communication network.

"Everyone, be careful! They are at least at an intermediate level!"

"I think the team leader should be more careful. Haha!"

Assistant manager, Oh Hyuck-soo, who was shooting at a close distance, smiled and replied as if he had seen what had just happened.

"You! Instead of focusing on me, just take care of what's in front of you."

"Yes, yes. Even without your advice, I'm still shooting."

Meanwhile, the excavator, which had dug 40 meters deep inside the factory area, came to a halt for a brief moment, and several rescue engineers rushed down. They had the impression that they had found something. And as such, the rescue work was nearing its completion.

"What is it? Did you find them?" Team Leader Park Gi-oong approached Captain Ahn Sang-hee and asked.

"Yes, it seems that they are just below the steel structure."

"Are you sure?"

"Please take a look at the video."

The engineer showed him the screen of the tablet he was holding. It was a video shot with a helmet camera by an engineer deployed at the scene.

A doll-like shape was seen at the bottom of the tangled steel structure. Therefore, the rescue engineers began using plasma cutters to cut through the steel structures.

After a few minutes, all of the steel structures that were blocking the path were removed and the presence of the two managers was confirmed.

"They aren't conscious, but they're still alive. The issue now is that we must remove the building debris that is supporting the structure." The engineer on the scene poked his head through the gap to assess the situation and reported what he saw via the communication network.

"How long will it take?"

"It will probably take about five minutes."

"Five minutes…Please hurry up."

"Yes, I will."

They didn't have much time. The gunshots that had been heard from afar were already ringing vigorously near the fence.

After a while, all the remains of the building were removed and the two managers, covered with dirt and dust, appeared.

"Oh! There they are!"

Team Leader Park Gi-oong couldn't help himself and dashed down to the rescue site as soon as he saw the two managers on the screen.

"Team Leader Park! It's dangerous. Please wait here!"

Despite Captain Ahn Sang-hee's objections, he dashed to the site and burst into tears as soon as he saw the two pitiful managers.

"Manager Lee! Manager Namgoong!"

While one engineer, who appeared to be in charge of the medical care, was checking the two managers with various equipment, Team Leader Park Gi-oong wiped their faces with the wet tissues he had brought.

"Team Leader Park!" Manager Lee Ja-sung slightly opened his eyes and said at that moment.

Surprised, Team Leader Park Gi-oong widened his eyes at the sound of a voice and asked, "Oh, manager! Are you awake?"

"Why did you take so long? I almost died because I had to pee."

"What? Is this the time to make such a joke…"

Team Leader Park Gi-oong had no choice but to shake his head at the strong mental power of Manager Lee Ja-sung, who was joking in such a situation.

"So! We have to move, please step back."

Their conversation came to an end with the words of the rescue engineer, and the two managers were placed on a mobile cot equipped with a hover system and immediately loaded onto a medical sky bus.

* * *

January 4th, 2024, 15:30

Underground bunker of the Blue House National Crisis Center, Jongno-gu, Seoul

"You did a great job."

President Choo Un-hee, who had been watching the Red Barn Swallow unit's rescue operation in the underground bunker for the past four hours, stood up from her seat and applauded her hands.

In response, Joint Chiefs of Staff Shin Sung-yong and General Kang Jung-hyun, who appeared on the screen, replied with a salute.

"Both of them are in good health, right?"

"Yes, that's right, Mdm. President! The local medical staff confirmed that they have no health issues."

"Okay. Send them to the Central Medical Center as soon as they return home. Top-notch medical staff are waiting for them there."

"Yes, okay."

"Okay. Once again, thank you for your hard work. Oh! Is the second stage of the unlimited retaliation attack against New China going well?"

"Yes, it is. We are currently preparing according to our plans."

"Well, even though I have given my approval, I hope there is as little damage to civilians as possible. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Yes, I am fully aware of the President's concerns. We will inform you of the details before proceeding with the second stage of the operation.

"All right. I'll trust you and wait for you."

"Yes, all right. Salute!"

"Yes, thank you."

President Choo Un-hee, who sat down after the video communication ended, told Director Lee Young-jin, head of the National Intelligence Service, who was sitting next to her. "They've done a lot for their country. So, please give them a vacation after treatment so that they can rest."

"Yes, Mdm. President. Thank you for your care."

"No, of course, I have to pay attention. It's not something they should be grateful for. It's something we should be grateful for," she replied in the most honorific manner possible, even though they were only public officers, to show how much she respected and appreciated Manager Namgoong-won and Manager Lee Ja-sung.

"Haha, is that so?"

"Of course."

At that moment, Chief Secretary Lim Jong-won intervened in the conversation. "Mdm. President! You have a press conference tomorrow morning, so please take a rest. It's already four o'clock."

"It's already that late. Okay, then, everyone go home and rest."

"Yes, thank you for your hard work."

* * *

January 4th, 2024, 04:30 (New China time: 03:30)

X-15 bunkers, Beijing, New China (President's Room)

<Crashing!>

President Wang Jing wi smirked and looked at Chief of Staff Yuan Xiaoqiao, who was standing in front of him, after throwing the orchid from his desk. Then he spat out swear words.

He had received a report stating that four hours ago, Korean special forces appeared in the Tianjin factory area. As a result, they had lost a large number of troops and among them were the engineers and regimental guards who were working to locate the servers containing the plasma core technology, as well as the 35th Motorized Infantry Brigade and the Mobilization Division who had been dispatched to stop them.

However, the real reason for his rage was not the losses among the troops, but the fact that the server containing the core technology of the plasma bomb had been completely destroyed.

The Red Barn Swallow unit who rescued the two managers had dropped an amplified plasma bomb onto the factory area before retreating. It wasn't the most powerful plasma-amplified bomb, but it was enough to turn the entire factory area into a fiery hell.

Currently, at Area 15, where the factory was located, everything on the ground was devoured as if a tectonic shift had occurred, and red flames gushed out from the cracks in the ground.

"Are you saying this is a report? What were you doing from the beginning to the end? Do you believe it is sufficient to have stars on your shoulders? What? Please tell me! You're no better than a cockroach!"

The term cockroach was a very big insult, but Chief of Staff Yuan Xiaoqiao, who bowed his head, silently accepted it without saying anything.

"I'm sorry. I have nothing to say…"

"Of course, you don't! Didn't you realize how important that location was to us...How could we have been subjected to such a surprise attack on our territory? We couldn't even protect the plasma core technology—our only hope during our war with them...Damn!"

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. As a result, he muddled his words and drank the whiskey straight from the bottle.

<Bolkok! Bolkok!>

He drank about half of the bottle and then he threw it on the floor as he had done with the orchid earlier.

<Paag!>

As the whiskey bottle broke, small pieces of glass flew everywhere.

President Wang Jing wi then glared with his bloodshot eyes and began to walk until he approached the Chief of Staff Yuan Xiaoqiao and said with a mean smile, "Right now! Use all the plasma bombs that we have on those freaking b*stards!"

"Mr. President! We must employ them as strategically as possible!"

"What are you talking about? Right now! Use them right now!"