Chapter 67
1.
Doctor Space was a man who had changed the history of Humanity, and furthermore, the history of Space.
Therefore, no one questioned the brilliance of his abilities.
"Just how brilliant is Doctor Space?"
Instead, there were those who questioned the extent of that brilliance.
"What Doctor Space has revealed to the world now is likely only a tiny fraction of what he has achieved."
It sounded absurd.
Doctor Space had already introduced the Gate and other unbelievable things to the world, yet that was merely a fraction.
"Doctor Space definitely does not have a good personality. And he is absolutely not the type to sacrifice himself for the prosperity of Humanity. Would someone like him really release all of his creations for Humanity's sake?"
However, considering Doctor Space's personality and his track record, he was more inclined to withhold his technology rather than reveal it.
The Gate was the same.
The reason Doctor Space revealed the Gate to the world was never for Humanity.
He had said it himself.
"Go out into Space through the Gate and bring back whatever you can find. I set the stage for you, so you should at least do that much."
Doctor Space was that kind of person.
A man who didn't do things for Humanity, but moved for intensely personal reasons.
That was why quite a few people said this.
"Doctor Space is building secret research labs and conducting research all over Space. In those places, there are inventions that cannot even be compared to what has appeared in the world now."
Those treasures created by Doctor Space existed in Space.
"Doctor Space's masterpiece exists."
And there were even those who roamed Space professionally aiming for that masterpiece of Doctor Space.
Of course, Doctor Space never left those who touched his belongings alone, but human greed is endless, and they are bound to repeat the same mistakes.
Space was overflowing with those who hid their greedy eyes, desperately hoping for an opportunity to arrive.
China was the same.
No, China had been running a nation-level project to secure Doctor Space's masterpiece for a long time.
They did everything they could, and they waited for the right time.
They waited for a time to come when they could steal Doctor Space's masterpiece without any repercussions.
And that golden opportunity had arrived.
Gate 7 had stopped.
A moment had come when even the great Doctor Space could physically do nothing, and in that moment, the Chinese headquarters situated on Planet Kingclench of Gate 7 immediately made its move.
They raided the secret research lab that Doctor Space had set up on Planet Kingclench and secured the item.
It was an obvious scenario.
So Kim Seojun and everyone else knew.
"It probably isn't the Core Cube."
The likelihood was low that Doctor Space's item mentioned at the Chinese Third headquarters base on Planet Kingclench was the item they were looking for.
"We still have to rob them."
Even so, there was a high chance it was no ordinary item.
If it were Doctor Space's masterpiece, it would be an item capable of creating a miracle in any situation.
"There is absolutely nothing good for us in having Doctor Space's item in China's hands."
If they let China do whatever it wants like this, Kim Seojun's next premonition might show his lifespan shortened rather than extended.
"And the Chinese side definitely must have robbed Doctor Space's secret research lab."
But the truly important part was that China likely knew the location of Doctor Space's secret research lab, which could be anywhere on Planet Kingclench, a planet 2.88 times the size of Earth.
"There is a possibility that something related to the Core Cube is there."
They couldn't miss that clue.
In fact, that was the core issue, and so Kim Seojun spoke.
"I will kidnap a key figure."
Kidnapping someone who would know the information took priority over robbing the armory.
"So who?"
Brigadier General Lee Yeong-Jun asked that question, and Kim Seojun answered it.
"A star."
2.
Planet Kingclench was, in many ways, a good place to live among the various planets in Space.
To show just how good a place it was to live, one had to pay money to reside on Planet Kingclench.
Considering that one had to receive money to reside on most other planets, this was a massive deal.
Even that cost was by no means cheap. In areas where land was expensive, the land prices were similar to those in Seoul Gangnam.
It was also one of the few planets where corporate real estate brokerage firms had established branches.
It was a good place to live in many ways.
However, after Gate 7 stopped, Planet Kingclench truly became a living hell.
It wasn't simply because people felt panic over a situation like, We can't go back to Earth anymore! What do we do!
On the contrary, when Gate 7 stopped, the residents of Planet Kingclench let out sighs of relief.
Planet Kingclench was safer than anywhere else, and although self-sufficiency wasn't entirely possible, it had extremely abundant supplies and a stationed military.
Therefore, the reason for the chaos was a physical one.
"It's the Mogs!"
An absurd number of Mogs began attacking Humanity's bases on Planet Kingclench.
And under that attack, the headquarters bases on Planet Kingclench crumbled more easily than expected.
There were several reasons.
First of all, the number of Mogs that raided each headquarters base was far greater than anyone had anticipated.
On Planet Kingclench, where it was hard to see a Mog group of over a thousand due to frequent eradication efforts, Mogs suddenly appeared in units of tens of thousands.
On the other hand, the military stationed on Planet Kingclench mostly consisted of those who had grown complacent in peace.
That wasn't the end of it.
"It's a terrorist attack! A terrorist attack has occurred!"
The moment the Mogs breached, acts of terrorism occurred in the headquarters bases of various nations, as if the Mogs had been waiting for it.
Making a proper response in such a situation was practically impossible.
Of course, it went without saying, but that was no accident.
It was part of an operation that the Chinese headquarters situated on Planet Kingclench had been preparing for a long time.
Thus, China had succeeded in its operation surprisingly well, and thanks to that, the atmosphere in the Chinese headquarters was festive.
Only one place, the Chinese Third headquarters base, could not smile.
‘There are no results.’
Out of the five headquarters bases, only the Third headquarters base was currently failing to produce proper results.
From the perspective of Major General Liu Hai-Bin, the Commander of the Third headquarters base, every single day was truly a taste of death.
Of course, he had his own circumstances.
‘Those damn Resistance bastards.’
Of all places, an unexpected Resistance force had gathered in the region where Major General Liu Hai-Bin was located.
However, from the perspective of the high-ranking officials, Major General Liu Hai-Bin's circumstances didn't matter at all.
From his standpoint, if he couldn't produce military achievements within the given time, the two stars attached to his shoulders would disappear, and that was all there was to it.
He was backed into a corner.
A situation where he had to do anything and everything.
"You found Doctor Space's research lab?"
"Yes!"
In that situation, a Subordinate Executive suddenly delivered urgent news.
"How?"
"Well, I don't know the reason, but a staff member from Doctor Space's research lab went outside. Our surveillance equipment confirmed it."
"Are you sure? Isn't it a trap by those Resistance bastards?"
"We need to investigate further, but I feel the probability is very high."
When he heard that news, Major General Liu Hai-Bin's mind quickly began to weigh the options.
In truth, the operation to find Doctor Space's research lab had been ongoing for a long time.
Just discovering it was a massive achievement.
Just reporting this fact would be enough for Major General Liu Hai-Bin to somewhat make up for his lacking military achievements.
And normally, he should have reported it here.
It wasn't a matter to weigh.
"What will you do? Shall we attack?"
Therefore, he shouldn't have chosen an option like invading Doctor Space's research lab here.
First of all, messing with Doctor Space itself was an extremely dangerous act.
If a problem arose, even before Doctor Space stepped in, China would send Major General Liu Hai-Bin—who caused the problem—to a human anatomy exhibition at the national level, and then voluntarily confess, saying, We took care of it, we're sorry.
Furthermore, to enter Doctor Space's research lab, they had to risk tremendous strategic sacrifices.
In a situation where they were already suffering headaches because of the Resistance, they couldn't waste that precious combat power.
The executive speaking also knew that fact.
Even so, the reason he said this was simple.
"If we recover Doctor Space's masterpiece, then everything will be over."
They could reverse the current situation in a single breath.
Moreover, Gate 7 was currently not operating.
‘Gate 7 is in a destroyed state.’
It was a fact known only to the general officers and not reported to the subordinates, but it was in a state of complete destruction, beyond just a shutdown.
That meant no matter how great Doctor Space was, direct retaliation was impossible!
There was no need to fear the aftermath.
At that point, Major General Liu Hai-Bin thought.
‘The heavens have given me an opportunity.’
He had to bet his life on this gamble here.
He finished weighing his options like that, and immediately gave the order.
"Recover it."
He sent troops to Doctor Space's secret research lab, and heard news from them very quickly.
- Recovery successful!
"Oh!"
He heard the welcome news, and from then on, Major General Liu Hai-Bin's face brightened more than ever.
Now, Major General Liu Hai-Bin didn't need to care about the Resistance.
"Open the box as quickly as possible!"
He only needed to focus on opening the box containing the recovered masterpiece of Doctor Space.
Of course, it wasn't an easy task, but Major General Liu Hai-Bin was confident he could wait as long as it took.
It is the same now.
"Major General, it seems it will take a little more time."
At the words of the subordinate who visited his office, Major General Liu Hai-Bin patted his shoulder instead of spewing anger and said.
"You can take your time; just make sure it's done right."
"Yes!"
At that encouragement, the subordinate saluted and left the office, and now alone, Major General Liu Hai-Bin thought with a smile on his lips.
‘I'm lucky!’
It was that moment.
"Mmph?"
Suddenly, something blocked his mouth and eyes, and at the same time, something began to pull him.
"Mmph! Mmph!"
Startled by that fact, Major General Liu Hai-Bin struggled, but his body was already bound, and when he came to his senses, he was sitting on a hard iron chair.
Right then, Major General Liu Hai-Bin had an intuition.
He had been kidnapped.
‘What is this!’
He was terrified by that fact, but at the same time, Major General Liu Hai-Bin knew what he had to do here.
Still, as a soldier, and one wearing stars at that, he was not a naive man.
Soon, a group of Humans appeared before his eyes, and the moment he saw them, Major General Liu Hai-Bin spoke with a more resolute expression than ever.
"There will be no talking!"
With an expression full of resolve.
It wasn't a bluff.
He was quite sincere.
It was that moment.
One person came before him holding a plate, and when Major General Liu Hai-Bin saw it, his expression stiffened.
He immediately noticed.
"No matter what torture you use!"
It was a tool for torture.
"No matter how much you torture me, you won't get the information you want! I am a soldier of the great People's Republic of China!"
Of course, even as he spoke, he was extremely tense.
‘Damn it, what did they bring?’
He somehow tried to figure out what that torture tool was.
Soon, Major General Liu Hai-Bin could see it.
The cup placed on the plate, the black liquid filling that cup, and the pitch-black lumps placed next to it were visible.
The moment he saw it, Major General Liu Hai-Bin's pupils began to shake more violently than ever.
‘Poison? Truth serum? Drugs?’
A man approached the startled general and said.
"Cold or hot, choose."
The moment he heard those words, Major General Liu Hai-Bin's pupils trembled even more.
Because he thought he was being told to choose between fire torture and water torture.
At that point, Major General Liu Hai-Bin clenched his teeth.
"Hehehe!"
And then he spoke with a laugh.
"Try both. Both of them!"
He showed his spirit, and the moment he heard those words, the man answered.
"An Iced Americano then."
"Ah, yes."
At those words, another person moved swiftly, and Major General Liu Hai-Bin could soon see it.
What was poured into the cup along with ice?
At that point, Major General Liu Hai-Bin felt something strange.
He couldn't help it.
‘Could it be?’
Because what was placed in front of him right now was, to anyone's eyes, exactly that.
And the man who had appeared resolved that question.
"It's coffee and chocolate."
At that answer, Major General Liu Hai-Bin looked at the people gathered here with a dumbfounded expression, and to him, the man, Kim Seojun, spoke.
"They are things that help with memory, because you'll have to remember a lot of things from now on."
With those words, Kim Seojun looked at Jo I-Hyeon, and Jo I-Hyeon nodded.
A moment later, they could hear it.
"I found out everything—the location and all the information!"
Given that fact, Major General Liu Hai-Bin made a dumbfounded expression.
However, that surprise did not last long.
Exactly five minutes later, Major General Liu Hai-Bin could see it.
"Huh?"
Things were coming into the vast space he was in, one by one.
"Th-that!"
And Major General Liu Hai-Bin could tell that they were none other than the weapons from the Armory.
"H-how?"
Faced with a completely incomprehensible situation, Major General Liu Hai-Bin's mind went blank.
His reason began to crumble.
And in that situation, the decisive blow landed.
Rumble!
A massive black box, a box measuring 5 meters in width, length, and height, was brought in on a truck.
Doctor Space's Masterpiece had appeared, and the moment he saw it, the light faded from Major General Liu Hai-Bin's eyes.
On the contrary, the rest of them were different.
"An item of Doctor Space? That's a rare sight."
They harbored more anticipation than ever.
"I wonder if there's a masterpiece or a dud inside this."
Of course, since they didn't know what was inside yet, there was no need to get their hopes up too high.
To all of them, Kim Seojun answered.
"It's a suit."
"Huh?"
"There is an enormously large suit inside. If worn, it looks like it would be roughly 5 meters tall."
The moment she heard that answer, Noah Winston replied.
"...It's a masterpiece."
This meant they had obtained something unbelievable.
Kim Seojun's thoughts were the same.
The items that he saw with Clairvoyance inside would need to be examined closely, but they were no ordinary things.
He could tell by intuition the moment he saw it.
‘It's a thing meant for combat.’
It was created to fight.
However, at this moment, Kim Seojun did not think about that part.
Because that wasn't what was important right now.
"Then, from now on, we will destroy the Chinese Third Headquarters Base."