21st century Goguryeo

Chapter 528: Season 2 Book 21 Shadow of War 2 -3-8 The Eve of the Storm

January 20th, 2024, 09:00

B2 bunker in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Namju (Joint Chief of Staff at the Armed Forces Joint Command Control Center).

The Joint Chiefs of Staff, trying to launch a massive offensive starting at the Onon River at 1:00 pm tomorrow, were deeply troubled after receiving a report from the commander of the 1st Army in charge of the northwest front.

According to the report, there was enough snow to break the all-time record, making it impossible to continue with the planned operation, and it had to be halted. Furthermore, the weather forecast for the foreseeable future was not promising, as it predicted continued heavy snowfall in the Javaikal region.

“If the 7th Mobile Corps had the same hover system as the Panzer Corps, they would have been unaffected by the weather.” Deputy Joint Chief of Staff Youn Gi-youn said regretfully.

“That’s exactly what I was thinking. The 20th Armored Division should have been the first to be introduced…”

When even Army Chief of Staff Lee Eun-hyung expressed his regret, head of the Operations Planning Division Brigadier General Lee Hun-sang, who was sitting on the other side, ran his hand through his hair and looked sorry.

“I’m sorry about this.”

“Oh, Brigadier General Lee! I`m not blaming you.”

“But still, I feel sorry.”

“Then I shouldn’t have said that.”

When the hover system was first introduced, the Ministry of National Defense began the task of determining which units would be equipped with it. At the time, the 20th Panzer Division (Decisive Battle) and the 3rd Marine Mobile Division were put up as the final candidates. However, Brigadier General Lee Hun-sang, the then commander of the Marine Corps, strongly requested that the 3rd Marine Mobile Division (Hwaryong) be equipped with the hover system instead.

That was the reason why Brigadier General Lee Hun-sang felt sorry.

After a while, the screen in the operation conference room showed a reconnaissance satellite video of the South Korean military camp deployed in Javaikal region.

There was nothing but white, as if the entire world had been painted with white paint. Soldiers from different camps attempted to sweep the snow off the tops of tanks and armored vehicles, revealing the vehicles’ distinctive color, but they were quickly covered due to heavy snowfall.

“I’ve been serving in the military camp near Paektu Mountain, but I’ve never witnessed such heavy snowfall.”

Even though the heavy snowfall in North Korea was similar to that of Siberia, the heavy snowfall that was currently falling was a rare sight even for Youn Gi-youn, Deputy Joint Chief of Staff.

Only the turrets of all tanks and armored vehicles were visible at the time. In other words, the snow had reached up to the waist.

“Then as requested by the 1st Army, we will have to postpone the operation tomorrow.”

Finally, when chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Shin Sung-yong made the conclusion, military commanders and staff nodded in agreement.

“We can’t, however, just postpone it. The later the operation starts, the more time the Russian troops will have to plan their defence strategies.”

Upon hearing his opinion, the commanders and staff nodded again. Then, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Shin Sung-yon replied,

“Deputy manager Kim is right. Being late won`t be good for us. However, let’s trust the decision of our first army commander, as there is a significant difference between watching the situation on the field and watching it on video.”

Once again, Shin Sung-yong, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, went over the current situation.

“The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is right. The field commander’s judgment is the most accurate of all.”

“Lieutenant General Yang, please inform the Commander of the 1st army of our decision. Also, make it clear to him that his assessment of the situation is of top priority.”

“Yes, I will.”

“Also ask if the soldiers require any supplies, and if so, send it to them right away.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“Good! Let’s end talk of the Northwest Front with this and move on to the Pacific Fleet”.

“Yes.”

The image on the screen changed at the same time as the head of the operation division, Lieutenant General Yang Min-choon, responded.

“Based on the current routes of the Pacific Fleet’s 3rd and 7th fleets, it appears to be sailing 200 kilometers southeast of the sea rather than the joint point at sea we expected earlier.”

The 3rd and 7th fleets’ expected and newly changed expected routes were marked with red dotted lines and green lines, respectively.

The 3rd Fleet changed its expected route from the 9 o’clock to 8 o’clock direction, and the 7th Fleet changed its expected route from12 o’clock to 1 o’clock direction.

“It seems that they have grasped the movement of our Allied Fleet and have changed their course.”

“Well, how far they are from our Allied fleet?”

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Shin Sung-yong asked, shifting in his seat.

“Expected to be 600 kilometers away.”

“If it’s 600 kilometers away, that means they’re 200 kilometers closer than they were before. I’m wondering why.”

“We are currently figuring that out.”

“Because of our allied fleet, the American people must have been scared. Don’t you agree? Hahaha.”

Deputy Joint Chief of Staff Youn Gi-youn said with a sly smile.

“That may be the reason, but we still have to figure out their definite intention.”

“Yes, the strategic analysis team is currently analyzing the Pacific Fleet.”

“Have you confirmed their submarine’s power?”

“At the moment, two Ares patrol satellites and 12 different patrol reconnaissance aircraft are patrolling a radius of 400 kilometers, but we have yet to detect any evidence of a US Navy nuclear submarine.”

“Detecting the US Navy nuclear submarine is more important than anything else, so I want the commander of the aerospace force to deploy more patrol forces.”

“Yes. We’ll add two more patrol satellites.”

Captain Choi Jin-gook, the Chief of Staff of the Aerospace Forces, nodded and answered.

“Let’s do that. In addition, there was a message from Minister Kang stating that a special order had been issued by the Blue House.”

When the Blue House was mentioned, all eyes turned to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Shin Sung-yong, who was speaking.

“What’s the order?”

The Head of the Operations Division asked.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Shin Sung-yong, motioned to his assistant after checking the commanders and staffs of each military unit, who were seated in two long lines. The assistant then started handing out the documents he was carrying.

After a while, the facial expressions of each military commander and staff member who read the documents distributed changed.

“Oh, my! This, this! This is a very good order. Haha.”

Unlike Deputy Chief of Staff Youn Gi-youn, who gave a smirk, the other commanders’ faces were filled with disbelief.

“Is this an order from the Blue House?”

Deputy Chief of Staff Kim Yong-hyun held the document and asked again. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Shin Sung-yong, nodded quietly as his answer.

“It seems that the Blue House has finally picked up the sword.”

Commander of the Marine Corps Lieutenant General Lim Kyung-soo, who read the document to the end with a serious look, muttered as if talking to himself.

“We should’ve done that before.”

Deputy Chief of Staff Youn Gi-youn, who still had a smile on his face, tapped the document on the table and said.

“Lieutenant General Lim. I think we need to completely revise the existing countermeasures plan.”

“Yes, we should.”

“In accordance with this order, you must develop a new operation plan with Lieutenant General Yang.”

“Yes, I will.”

When Lieutenant Generals Yang Min-chun and Lim Kyung-soo answered at the same time, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Shin Sung-yong, turned his head and looked at the screen.

The commanders of each military operation appeared on divided segments on the screen. Lieutenant General Ahn Sang-hee, the Commander of Air Force Operations, was seen among them.

“I believe we require air power the most; how many bombs do our air forces currently have on hand?”

Blue House order documents were also scanned and sent to all commanders who took part in the video conference.

“I’ll have to consult with the logistics commander for specifics, but I believe we have more than enough.”

“Okay. We can use this opportunity to clear out our bomb stock.”

“Yes, I will report the detailed inventory quantity separately.”

The Blue House order documents were so shocking that even the bombs piled up in the warehouse were discussed at the meeting.

Japan, which lost the Korea-Japan war that erupted in 2021, was engulfed in a war that destroyed numerous industrial facilities and resulted in an astronomical war damage compensation. In order to use Japan as a second domestic market, the Republic of Korea had taken steps to help them overcome the economic crisis by promoting large-scale restoration projects of basic industrial facilities and various infrastructure.

Anyway, Japan’s dream of becoming a great economic power was once again in vain.

The contents of the order document from the Blue House was as follows:

It was the complete abolition of the Japanese reconstruction project and the demolition of industrial and infrastructure facilities that had been promoted in Japan for free. In other words, the Blue House intended to return them to the defeated Japan of 2021.

The word demolition was used in the document, but the Joint Chiefs of Staff interpreted it as permission to launch a massive attack on Japan.

The reason for the Blue House to draw its sword and take such harsh measures was the sudden attack on the second Vice Minister Kim Myung-hwan, in Riga, Latvia by CIA agents. As a result of the attack, President Choo Un-hee declared that Japan could no longer be trusted.

Under the “declaration of an independent state, the Japanese cabinet was secretly colluding with the United States.

* * *

On January 20, 2024, at 15:00 (17:00 local time),

Pacific Ocean (Third Fleet).

The aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) and the Ford-class Carl Vinson (CVN-80), which inherited the retired Calvin’s name, were centered on approximately ten frigates as well as various amphibious assault ships and support ships. They were speeding through the sea.

A few hours ago, after hearing from the various reconnaissance forces that South Korean naval ships were entering the East Sea of Japan one after another, they modified the point of confluence with the 7th Fleet and changed their course to 2-5-0 azimuth.

On the bridge on the third floor of the aircraft carrier and the flagship of the 3rd Fleet, Gerald R. Ford ship (CVN-78), Admiral Jimmy Douglas, the Commander of the 3rd fleet, leaned backward and looked at the far horizon.

“What’s the current location of the 7th Fleet?”

As soon as Admiral Jimmy Douglas asked, Operational Officer Nick Leeman who was standing next to him responded immediately.

“We are currently sailing at 20 knots in the sea, 440 kilometers southwest. We expect to join the 7th Fleet by tomorrow morning.”

The joining with the 7th Fleet was hastened because the expected point of confluence at the sea was moved back 200 kilometers to the southeast.

“It’s sooner than I expected. Operational Officer?”

“Yes, admiral.”

“What do you think of the Korean Navy forces that are blocking our way?”

Despite the sudden question, operational officer Nick Leeman answered without hesitation.

“We didn’t know much three years ago but based on the current situation I think it is worth a try.”

“Really? On What basis?”

“Haha. Don’t you know, Admiral? It’s not the 3rd Fleet from three years ago.”

“Keep talking.””

“We suffered greatly three years ago as a result of Korea’s EMP bomb, but the situation has changed, and we will not suffer in the same way again. All Pacific Fleet ships have been outfitted with EMP defense systems. In addition, they can intercept various ballistic weapons with speeds less than Mach 30. Furthermore, all ships are outfitted with 128MJ-class railguns with significantly increased range.”

Operational Officer Nick Leeman showed off the 3rd Fleet capabilities.

“Operational officer?”

“Yes, admiral”

“What do you think Korea was doing while we were developing technologies over the last three years? Do you think they were sucking their thumbs in the meantime?”

“That’s right, they must have made some progress, but I believe the difference in military technology between the two countries is minute.”

Admiral Jimmy Douglas wore a glum expression, in contrast to Operational Officer Nick Leeman who exuded confidence.

“Yes, it may be a small difference, but in modern warfare, small differences play a significant role in determining whether the war is won or lost.”

“What?”

“Anyway, when did Admiral Rubin Scott say he’d come?”

“His arrival had been delayed to tomorrow morning.”

“Well, he will arrive when we join the 7th Fleet. Okay.”

Captain Rubin Scott, the Pacific Fleet commander, decided to fly to the 3rd Fleet this afternoon after attending an operational meeting at the Pentagon. Due to the emergence of the South Korean Navy on Japan’s eastern coast however, operational meetings were held for longer than expected, delaying his arrival..