Kapitel 666: Chapter 666: We Must Move Quickly
When Jessica woke up, she didn't tell the commander who came down to pick us up about what had happened inside.
Not a single word escaped her lips as we drove to the Black Bear's Iraq branch in the vehicle provided by the U.S. military.
As soon as the Americans dropped us off, she began venting her frustrations.
While she apologized with her mouth, I let her complains flow in one ear and out the other.
"It's really unfair, Charlie. What did you talk about without me? This matter cannot be left like this…"
No matter how long she rambled on, I couldn't help but smirk at the sight of someone standing in front of the Iraq branch building.
"Charlie. Are you listening to me?"
Noticing my lack of response, Jessica began to murmur again, but more importantly, I was eager to greet someone.
"Igor."
At the mention of Igor's name, Jessica halted her tirade and turned her head to where I was looking.
Igor approached slowly, bowing his head.
"Boss, it's good to see you. It's been a while."
I lightly patted Igor's shoulder as he saluted formally.
"Yeah, it has. Did you get enough rest?"
"Thanks to you, I had a nice time with my family. Thank you, Boss."
I had entrusted my island in Greece to the mercenaries.
I hoped they could enjoy a pleasant break with their families after completing arduous missions.
"Everyone enjoyed it."
Seeing Igor respond brightly reassured me that they were pleased.
Indeed, when someone rests, it should be done properly.
"Let's head inside for now."
As I was about to enter the room with Igor, I noticed Jessica in my line of sight.
Her pouty face still held her arms crossed tightly.
"I'm sorry, but I'll be calling Jessica back later. She's just going to take a quick break."
"Charlie."
"Are you trying to interrupt a long-awaited reunion?"
"…I have a lot to say, so you need to call me quickly."
Nodding, Jessica shot a glance at Igor before turning abruptly.
"Is that woman Jessica?"
As Manager Ma closed the door firmly, Igor asked. I sat down with Igor and replied.
"That's right. Let's sit down for now. Time is tight."
Including myself, Manager Ma, Igor, and Yuri all took a seat.
"I just met Hussein."
"I've heard about it. What kind of person was he?"
After pondering Igor's question for a moment, I replied.
"He has an excellent eye for people. Upon seeing Manager Ma, he immediately labeled him as a human butcher, recognizing the blood on his hands. If he had properly governed instead of resorting to dictatorship, who knows how much Iraq might have progressed."
Well, no matter how well one governs a country, if they fall out of favor with the U.S., it's all over anyway.
Yuri, who had been quietly listening, responded to my remark.
"Come to think of it, before he became president, there were stories about him being capable."
I also vaguely remembered hearing that Hussein was capable when he was vice president.
But as soon as this capable person became president and seized power, he opted for a bloody purge.
That's why money and power are terrifying. They don't want to share with others and harm people.
"Hussein is already finished, so let's stop discussing him. You've heard the gist of things, right?"
"Yes. I got the information from Yuri."
Looking back at Manager Ma, he pulled out a notebook from his pocket.
I took it and handed it to Yuri.
"Yuri. Contact the person listed in the notebook and proceed with the negotiations."
"Who is it?"
"I was told they're the contact for a terrorist group. If you mention Hussein's name, they'll be eager to help. Tell them we'll pay a ransom of $500,000 per person. They may demand more, but negotiate as much as possible without provoking them."
Furrowing her brows, Yuri memorized the name and number in the notebook.
"Boss, are you really considering paying the ransom?"
"After successfully rescuing the hostages, I plan to take revenge. By attaching a tracking device to the ransom money, we can locate them. At that point, Igor's team will eliminate all of them."
I received the contact through Hussein's help.
Thus, securing the safety of the hostages by paying the ransom was my first priority.
After that, when handing over the ransom, I would attach a tracking device to identify the location of the kidnappers and annihilate them.
That was the operation I had in mind.
"Won't the kidnappers notice?"
"That's why we have to move quickly. For now, we've narrowed down a few areas where they could be. We need to collect the ransom and observe their escape route to move swiftly. For positioning, I plan to seek assistance from the U.S. military since they're superior in technology."
Yuri's face stiffened, revealing her tension.
Once regaining her composure, Yuri extended the notebook again and stood up.
"I'll go out now and make contact right away, then report back to you."
"Understood."
After saluting, Yuri went outside. Igor, who was staring blankly at the notebook on the table, asked.
"Boss, when we locate them, will we kill them all?"
"Yes. We must eradicate them with overwhelming firepower to ensure they never think of kidnapping Koreans again."
In the future, many projects would be undertaken by Koreans in Afghanistan and Iraq.
If we lose this time, it was clear there would be frequent attempts to kidnap Koreans.
I intended to instill a substantial fear in them, showing the consequences of messing with Koreans.
If the government couldn't handle it, I had to look after my employees myself.
"Understood. I'll go out and prepare the operation."
"Oh, Igor. Wait a second before leaving."
I pulled out the paper Hussein had given me and handed it to Igor.
Igor looked at the numbers on the paper, his eyes asking for clarification.
"Don't tell Yuri, just discreetly send one trustworthy person to confirm the location."
"Is it enough to just confirm the location?"
"Yes. Just confirm the location and return. I'll go personally."
"Where is this place?"
"It's where Hussein has collected artifacts and artworks over the decades. It's commonly referred to as the Hussein Collection."
Upon my explanation, Igor's expression sharpened.
"Security will be crucial."
"Exactly. That's why I'm giving this task to you. The fewer people who know about it, the better. Just confirm the location. Report back with what is there and what's around it."
"Understood."
After Igor left, I massaged the back of my neck and took a light stretch.
Perhaps due to the tension all day, my body felt stiff.
I smiled at Manager Ma, who looked at me with worry, and said.
"I'm just a bit tired; it's nothing major. Please let Jessica know she can come in now, Manager."
A little while later.
As soon as Jessica entered the room, she immediately started questioning me about earlier events again.
It might have been okay to repeat something once or twice, but hearing the same dislikeful words over and over began to annoy me.
"Enough. What's done is done. I can't disclose what was said, but I assure you it won't affect U.S. interests in any way, so let's just drop it."
"Charlie!"
"If you have complaints, take it up with someone higher up. I won't stop you."
I had been too distracted during the crucial conversation to absorb it properly.
Knowing that reporting this would only bring her more trouble, Jessica frowned.
"Then let's start a constructive conversation now. It seems that with Hussein's help, things might go a bit smoother."
I explained my plan to her.
Throughout my explanation, Jessica's expressions changed but she remained silent.
"What do you think? Does it seem difficult?"
"So, you're saying you'll pay the ransom?"
"Yes. Of course, I'll cover the ransom for the Koreans, but I won't take responsibility for the Americans' ransom."
"…Washington will absolutely not pay the ransom. Even if they eliminate them afterwards."
Negotiating with the kidnappers is against their principles, so Washington would never pay the ransom.
"I know. I'll make sure to get what we need from the Americans, so please don't interfere."
"Well, if that's the case…"
"What do you think? Igor's team will directly eliminate them. The Americans are already aware of Igor's team's capabilities."
There were several mercenary teams within Black Bear as well.
Among them, Igor's team was exceptional in their operational capabilities.
They had successfully completed every mission from Afghanistan to North Korea without a single failure.
"If it's Igor's team, their skills are guaranteed. The real question is what will happen if we pay the ransom but fail to eliminate them."
"Let's worry about that when it happens. Report it to the higher-ups. We need to explain the operational outline and request support for the tracking devices and reconnaissance equipment."
"Got it. I'll come back later."
Jessica stood up and walked towards the door.
After she grasped the doorknob, she hesitated for a moment and then turned around.
"Charlie, please don't proceed like this next time. I'm not your subordinate; I'm your partner. If you want a partnership, treat me like one."
She has a point. I nodded and smiled.
"Understood. I'll ensure this doesn't happen again next time."
"Alright. I won't report this matter separately."
After Jessica left, only Manager Ma and I remained.
Feeling more relaxed, I involuntarily let out a deep sigh.
As I stood up and removed my suit jacket, Manager Ma took it from me with familiarity.
"I'm tired. I think I'll call it a night."
"What about dinner?"
Perhaps our meeting with Hussein took longer than expected, or maybe it was just getting late. I suddenly felt drained. I had no appetite.
"I'll just rest today. You should head out too, Manager."
After sending off Manager Ma, I collapsed onto the bed.
Though my body was tired, my mind was racing, making it impossible to sleep.
I forced my eyes shut and slowly organized my chaotic thoughts.
Yuri had been negotiating with a man named Kamis, who worked at the Red Crescent Society, for two days.
In the meantime, the Black Bear intelligence team gathered information about the Red Crescent Society and Kamis based in Turkey.
"They offered a ransom of $500,000 per hostage, but the kidnappers are demanding $2 million each."
Yuri briefed me on the progress of negotiations.
"If we pay what they demand, the total ransom will be $10 million, right?"
One Korean and four Americans… No, three Americans and one British-American. There were a total of five hostages.
"That's right. And I heard that the British government is also inquiring about us from where they got their information."
It seemed that the U.S. government had conveyed the details to the British government through unofficial channels.
"The family of the British-American hostage is willing to pay the ransom."
Unlike the U.S., the UK doesn't prohibit families or companies from negotiating ransoms with terrorists.
"Willing to pay the ransom…"
Originally, I planned to get the ransom from the company that employed the hostages.
Since they were kidnapped while on duty, it was only right for the company to take responsibility.
Of course, I also intended to extract some extra compensation.
"Tell the British government that we can handle this ourselves. Advise them not to interfere unnecessarily."
"Yes. I'll do that."
"Tell them we'll pay the ransom of $10 million in total. What's the method of transaction?"
"We're discussing a method to exchange hostages for the ransom through a middleman."
Having a middleman exchange the ransom and hostages is the most traditional and reliable method.
"Didn't you say Kamis is in Turkey?"
"He plans to enter Iraq today."
I nodded and asked Igor.
"Have you prepared the operational plan?"
"Yes. With the help of the U.S. military, we have secured tracking devices and even satellite support. We're already learning how to operate the equipment we've received."
"Seems Jessica put in some effort."
"If it was just paying the ransom, the U.S. wouldn't have assisted. Since Black Bear is stepping in to eradicate the terrorist group, they've seemingly committed to providing full support."
From the U.S.'s perspective, it makes sense not to hold back support when they're able to maintain neutrality.
"Also, the U.S. wants at least one kidnapper to be captured and handed over."
"That's a bit greedy. They've already received one."
We had already handed over one of the kidnappers to the U.S. military.
But they still wanted more? I wondered where their conscience had gone.
"It's fine. We'll eliminate them all according to plan. I want to show them a lesson so that they'll never think of attempting another kidnapping against Korea."
The weight between an annihilation operation and a capture mission was vastly different.
If we execute a capture mission, it would elevate the pressure on Igor's team.
There was no reason to take risks to capture them just because of the U.S.'s requests.
It was right to exchange the ransom for the hostages as initially planned and then track them down to eliminate them.
"Now, the most important thing is to minimize variables."
If things go even slightly awry, it's fair to say that the hostages will be as good as dead.
We discussed and considered various angles for quite some time.
Currently, most of Black Bear's forces were stationed nearby, preparing to reclaim Fallujah.
Withdrawing those troops would essentially be revealing our tactics in advance.
So, we couldn't allocate many personnel.
Ultimately, Yuri would support Igor's team from the rear while Igor would lead the annihilation mission himself.
"We must be extremely cautious not to draw blood, but we must also ensure their complete annihilation. Let's show those madmen who think they can seek our strength what we're capable of."
With my resolute words, the eyes of everyone gathered for the operation glimmered coldly.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein