Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

Master Smith Under Ministry of National Defense

114 – Let’s Get Serious

“I believe I’ll do well…”

With the encouragement of Soo-jeong…

Slowly, Myung-jun stepped onto the platform.

Then, facing the national leaders looking at him, he spoke.

“As you all know, today you have visited here to purchase the new product developed by our Liberal Clan. What’s most important to all of you right now is undoubtedly that. ‘Does the product listed in the catalog actually exist?’ So, let’s skip the tedious explanations.”

As Myung-jun flicked his finger, the floor of the platform began to slowly open.

A thing revealing its identity from head to toe under the platform.

It was a 10-meter large robot, exactly the same as the one depicted in the catalog, the Knights-Marine Type.

‘That’s it!’

‘It certainly looks strong.’

‘If we can mass-produce it, conquering the gates won’t be a problem!’

In their eyes, the Knights-Marine Type was not just a strong equipment.

It was a product that handed over everything from the design of the equipment to the processing and production of the parts needed for production.

It was like selling a UFO containing all sorts of alien technology, including the factory in the blueprint.

A product containing the opportunity to take the lead in the world after the Gate Incident and to rise as the most powerful country in the world.

However, they overlooked one important thing.

The man standing in front of them.

Cha Myung-jun, the leader of the Liberal Clan, was by no means an easy person.

Myung-jun slowly opened his mouth while looking at the greedy eyes of the leaders.

“By the way, I must mention that even if you have all the equipment we provided, it is impossible to independently produce the Marine Type Knights you see here.”

“What?!”

“Are you saying this now?”

“Are you trying to deceive us?!”

Protests erupted from all sides, but Myung-jun continued to explain with a calm expression.

“Just because we build a car factory doesn’t mean we also include a tire factory, right? Conversely, just because we build a computer factory doesn’t mean we include a semiconductor factory. What we promised only extends to the factory that can turn all the materials into finished products when they are gathered.”

“But that’s not what was discussed…!”

“If you don’t like it, you can leave and return to your country. And you should listen to people’s words to the end. The key materials I mentioned are not items that can be made simply by having the equipment. They are materials that can only be made by awakener artisans of at least rank 8 Blacksmithing.”

As soon as Myung-jun promised that the Liberal Clan would supply major components until the awakener artisans of the corresponding rank was fostered in the bidding country, the complaints that were erupting instantly subsided. If the major components could only be made by the Liberal Clan forever, it might have been a bad condition, but since securing other means of supply afterward was possible, it didn’t seem like a bad deal.

Thus, the curiosity of the attendees naturally filled with ‘what the bidding conditions were.’

‘It would have been easier if it were just money.’

Regardless of anything else, everyone shared the common thought that it was definitely not about money.

And such thoughts were stirring competition in everyone’s mind except for the U.S.

If money were the main issue, no one could beat the United States, which held the most valuable currency in the world. However, if what the Liberal Clan wanted was not money but something else, then they might have a chance too.

Especially Ishida, the Prime Minister of Japan, who participated in the bidding as a representative of the Asian Union along with Xi Runfeng, deeply regretted rejecting the Liberal Clan’s proposal in the past.

At that moment, it was impossible to refuse the Liberal Clan’s demand, which was to tear off a part of the territory, solely as the Prime Minister. However, he had faced immense criticism from numerous Japanese citizens when the demands of the Liberal Clan were revealed later.

From criticisms like, ‘Even if we give away a dying provincial city, the benefits we could gain are astronomical. We should have accepted the demand and chosen a way to coexist together,’ to ‘If the Prime Minister had accepted the proposal back then, Japan would have become the country with the strongest awakener clan in the world. But because of the Prime Minister’s refusal, now Japan can’t even persuade the Liberal Clan even if it sells the entire country.’

Prime Minister Ishida, who suddenly received international X-treatment, was determined this time to definitely attract the headquarters of the Liberal Clan to Japan, even if it meant giving up a part of the Japanese territory.

Since all agreements regarding these conditions had already been reached with the opposition party, Ishida awaited Myung-jun’s next announcement with a confident expression.

However, what Ishida didn’t know was that most of the attendees here were thinking similarly, that all nations were likely to propose similar conditions even now, as the most recent thing the Liberal Clan wanted was autonomy for a part of the territory.

Therefore, the dominant expectation was that they would propose similar conditions even now.

The opinions of the aides responsible for negotiations from each country were also similar.

As they had taken the Liberator, a huge battleship, as their flagship, it was likely that they would want land in coastal areas adjacent to deep seas for easy operation of the flagship. And as they had the ability to repair such a huge battleship in such a short time, it was more likely that they would want a vast amount of materials needed to construct infrastructure rather than direct infrastructure construction support.

Literally, the common opinion among the aides from each country was that if they handed over authority over the land and construction materials, the Liberal Clan would take care of constructing all the necessary facilities such as airports, roads, ports, and residential areas in the territory.

And following such opinions, Myung-jun set the same conditions as what he demanded from the Japanese government in Tokyo as the basic conditions for this bidding.

“First, let me explain the basic conditions, but this is a non-negotiable condition, so I would appreciate it if countries that cannot meet this condition would withdraw from the bidding.”

A few lines of text messages were displayed on the large floating screen beside Myung-jun.

Although the screen itself was an item with crazy technology applied to show the text in the language used by the viewer without any equipment, the people watching it were completely unaware that the message being viewed by representatives from various countries was being outputted in their native language.

More important than the technology used to display the content was the situation in which the content displayed by that technology was far more crucial. There, a message written in characters visible to everyone read as follows:

1. A self-governing territory in a circular shape adjacent to a minimum area of ​​300 km2 of coastline.
2. Basic materials such as steel and concrete necessary to construct infrastructure in the area.
3. Priority in dealing with Gates or Overflows occurring within the country.
4. Diplomatic rights to independently determine whether to attack the country in the event of a conflict with the Liberal Clan and other countries’ institutions or to conduct diplomatic negotiations with other countries without the permission of the homeland.
5. Independent judicial authority to impose penalties within the occupied territory regardless of the laws of the host country.

There were a few more conditions, but the claim the Liberal Clan wanted to make was very straightforward.

That is, ‘Just give us the land and don’t even think about touching it.’

If it had been usual, there wouldn’t have been many countries willing to establish a self-governing autonomous state on land equivalent to half the area of Seoul. However, the new proposal from the Liberal Clan, which not only provided the equipment but also the facilities and technology for mass production, was making even such an unreasonable demand seem like something that could be fulfilled at all costs.

Moreover, it was a situation where if I didn’t take it, someone else could.

Amidst everyone in the auditorium thinking that way, one person raised their hand.

“Yes.”

“I am Xi Runfeng , Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the People’s Republic of China. Mr. Cha Myung-jun, as representative of the Liberal Clan, may I ask a question?”

“Of course.”

“Most likely, if the conditions you just mentioned are all there is, everyone here thinks it’s worth a try. Of course, our Chinese government can meet such conditions. Then the important thing is discrimination. How exactly will you select the country to be awarded the bid?”

Upon receiving the question, Myung-jun smiled and flicked his finger.

At that moment, the floor beside Myung-jun rose up like a pillar and transformed into a chair-like form. Then, Myung-jun, sitting on that chair, leaned back with a relaxed attitude, placing both hands behind his head, and spoke.

“It’s simple. From now on, those who have participated will explain to each other why the Liberal Clan should hand over equipment and facilities to them.”

Xi Runfeng ‘s expression distorted upon realizing the meaning behind Myung-jun’s words.

What Myung-jun demanded was no different from asking all the leaders gathered here to humiliate themselves in front of him.

However, the seasoned Xi Runfeng  quickly concealed his displeasure and responded to Myung-jun with a smile.

“Very well. Shall we begin then? How shall we proceed?”

“Oh, we won’t start right now. Today, we’ll just finish confirming our demands, and for now, let’s return to the prepared accommodations. You’ll need some time to think about what additional rewards to offer on top of the conditions we requested.”

As Myung-jun sat in the chair and flicked his finger, dozens of machine spheres with screens flew towards the negotiation team.

[This is Support AI 33, assigned to guide you. I will now guide you to the waiting area.]

Xi Runfeng naturally stood up and attempted to move towards the area where the Japanese Prime Minister was located. However, the Japanese Prime Minister was being directed elsewhere by another machine sphere.

Seeing this, Xi Runfeng realized the true reason Myung-jun had given them time.

‘Is he trying to make us betray each other?’

Though it would require seeing it to know for sure, it was likely that in the waiting area, free movement and communication would be impossible.

Myung-jun deliberately separated all the representatives of the formed alliances. His actions hinted at a bidding method that was both too obvious and fearful.

‘Most likely, each country will receive separate proposals.’

Of course, in most alliances, it would have been suggested to fairly distribute the blueprints and equipment regardless of who won the bid. However, with the production of essential components only possible by the Liberal Clan, it was obvious that the country attracting the Liberal Clan’s headquarters would seize the lead in negotiations, regardless of alliances.

And the leaders gathered here were well aware that agreements made between nations in such competitive situations were nothing more than scraps of paper.

At that moment, Xi Runfeng’s eyes caught sight of the interior of the Liberator as he followed the machine spheres.

It was something that could hardly be believed to be created by human technology. The interior facilities resembled spacecraft from the future, arriving via a time machine.

Upon seeing this, Xi Runfeng instructed his aide, who stood by his side like a shadow.

“Zhai Tianlin…”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“Summon all the aides we brought. Start the meeting immediately. We must find merit for the Liberal Clan to settle in Chinese territory, even at the cost of sacrifices.”

“What about negotiations with the Japanese Prime Minister…?”

“Ignore them. What’s important for now is winning the bid. Even if negotiations between countries have been completed. Being in a position to ‘bestow’ production facilities and being in a position to ‘beg’ with hands stretched out are completely different matters. And the Republic of China will never be in a position to beg.”

As Xi Runfeng spoke, his eyes glittered with greed for the grand future of the Republic of China, which would wield the leadership of the world in the future.

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