Chapter 79
The exchange with the United States began in earnest, and within six months, Pohang’s old port welcomed a container ship from America.
Massive American supplies started flowing into Gyeongju through Pohang, while in return, magically enhanced weapons developed in Pohang began making their way to the United States.
This situation, which positioned Pohang as a midway point for the two trade routes, was not unwelcome news.
“Missing persons who were not recorded in the administrative network are gradually returning.”
“That’s fortunate news.”
The abundant supplies entering through the United States also brought benefits to Pohang, which had just begun its reconstruction. Some of the materials heading to Gyeongju were being utilized in Pohang as well.
Especially for Pohang, which had just started economic reconstruction, America’s reputation and the Balhut Cult’s consideration enabled the introduction of a currency-based economy.
The private sector economy also began to rapidly activate.
As a result, those missing from the administrative network began to gradually reappear, allowing Pohang to swiftly restore its population.
The recovered population could then be immediately employed in reconstruction projects.
“The United States has also made a strong request.
They wish for Pohang Steelworks to be operational as soon as possible to produce steel there.
They assured us there’s no issue with iron ore, so we can use it freely.”
With this request from the United States, Pohang could derive tangible benefits from Gyeongju’s reconstruction initiatives.
The operation of the steelworks, a key project, progressed swiftly with Gyeongju’s support, and job opportunities were created for Pohang’s workers who had lost employment due to the apocalypse.
“Haha. It seems even America recognizes the value of Pohang’s steel.”
Upon first hearing this, Ha Jin-woo proudly remarked that Pohang’s steel had gained recognition from the United States.
“No, what they actually want is for God Bahamut to mint coins with the steel produced there.”
“Ah… I see.”
Baek Seol-hwa, dismissing the idea, explained that the United States was more interested in having the steel processed into coins by Bahamut.
Through Steven, the White House was able to understand the awakened weapons used by the Balhut Cult, as well as the materials involved, including Bahamut coins, which required further study.
Thus, they sought to import a large quantity of Bahamut coins through Steven, and in exchange…
“In return, we’ll receive advanced American technology. So, work hard.”
“…Understood.”
This allowed Pohang to acquire advanced technologies from America and secure some business rights.
If the Balhut Cult could obtain the preserved technologies of the United States despite the apocalypse, it would undoubtedly enable further growth.
‘With this, Pohang will ascend to paradise. Haha.’
Looking at the massive container ship entering Pohang’s old port, Baek Seol-hwa thought that everything was finally returning to normal.
Unfortunately, good news is often accompanied by bad news.
“Seol-hwa, numerous complaints have been filed from the harbor.”
“Are they unhappy about the trade with the United States?”
“No, not at all. On the contrary, the trade is key to Pohang’s reconstruction and revival. There’s no reason for residents to oppose it. However, an abnormal phenomenon has occurred in our fishing zone in the East Sea.”
Twenty days after proper trade with the United States began, numerous complaints from Pohang residents were reported.
At first, Seol-hwa assumed the residents were dissatisfied with the trade.
However, since the trade was critical to Pohang’s reconstruction efforts, there was no reason for such discontent.
Seo Un-jae firmly denied any possibility of opposition from the residents and explained that the issue stemmed from an abnormal phenomenon in the East Sea.
“An abnormal phenomenon, you say?”
“A ghost ship has appeared.”
Seo Un-jae calmly stated that a ghost ship had been sighted.
Seol-hwa found nothing particularly strange about this.
Rather, she looked at Seo Un-jae with a perplexed expression and spoke.
“Well, it’s rare, but it’s not exactly unprecedented, is it? Ghost ships adrift at sea are something I’ve heard of even before the apocalypse.”
While rare, stories of missing sailors and captains aboard derelict ships were not unheard of, even in Pohang.
Though eerie, it wasn’t unheard of for ownerless ships to drift across the ocean even before the apocalypse.
Given the current state of the world, it seemed even more likely that ghost ships would be left to wander aimlessly.
While the sentiment behind reporting such sightings was understandable, there was no reason to take them seriously.
“Yes, most reports involve fishing boats whose sailors and captains went missing. It’s a phenomenon that existed even before the apocalypse. In fact, most of the current complaints are about such ghost ships.”
“It’s a common occurrence during the apocalypse.”
“Yes, it’s quite common. The awakened individuals dispatched from the Balhut Cult investigated the logbooks aboard these ships and found that most of them were fishing vessels that had gone out shortly before the apocalypse.”
Because it was so common.
In fact, the awakened individuals who responded to the reports discovered logbooks on the ghost ships.
These logs revealed that they were operated by fishermen who had gone to sea just before the apocalypse.
As tragic and gruesome as these stories were, they could easily be dismissed given the circumstances of the apocalypse.
“The problem is that after the Balhut Cult’s investigation, a real ghost ship appeared. Yes, an actual ghost ship.”
“What?”
But the real issue came afterward.
After resolving the harbor complaints, a genuine ghost ship appeared.
“To be precise, it’s a ghost ship operated by intelligent zombies.”
Indeed, it was a ghost ship directly operated by zombies with intelligence.
“What? That’s… I don’t know, it’s scary.”
Seol-hwa expressed her fear.
Although they had recognized that mutant zombies possessed intelligence, if asked whether that intelligence could navigate a ship, Seol-hwa would have immediately given a negative answer.
They may have intelligence, but it was no more than that of a newborn baby in most cases.
“We currently suspect that the ghost ship in question is a fishing vessel that went missing after the apocalypse. Based on the information we’ve received, it seems that the crew onboard turned into zombies, and the entire crew became infected. Subsequently, one of the captain or crew members turned into a mutant zombie, gained intelligence, and the ship became a ghost ship.”
Seo Un-jae explained the situation succinctly, summarizing the report to relay it to the Gyeongju headquarters.
It was a plausible theory that made sense even to Seol-hwa, and the fact that it seemed so likely based on their experiences made it all the more terrifying.
“It sounds like something straight out of a movie.”
It was truly like a story from a movie.
However, even if it was a horrifying tale, it represented an enemy disrupting the East Sea.
“Does the main headquarters know about this?”
“If it’s Jung Dong-gun, he might know. We also learned of this through complaints from Pohang residents, so it’s possible that he, stationed along the coastline, may have encountered it.”
Thus, it was necessary to inform the main headquarters in Gyeongju.
Seo Un-jae speculated that while the headquarters might not know yet, Jung Dong-gun, who was in the field, could potentially have encountered it.
“In that case, I’ll report it to the headquarters.”
“Please do.”
Still, Seol-hwa judged that even if Jung Dong-gun was aware of the situation, the main headquarters might not yet be informed.
She promptly used the Mirror of Perspective to report the matter to Choi Yuna.
“Sister Yuna, an actual ghost ship has appeared in the sea.”
“Well, it’s the apocalypse. Ownerless ships could appear, right?”
At first, Yuna also dismissed it, saying that it wasn’t unusual for ownerless ships to surface during the apocalypse. She didn’t pay much attention.
Feeling a tinge of bitter amusement at the similarity to her own initial reaction, Seol-hwa wore a serious expression and conveyed the meaning with slightly more force.
“No, I mean an actual ghost ship being operated by ghosts has appeared.”
“What? That’s… I don’t know, it sounds scary.”
Yuna, too, was visibly shaken and looked at Seol-hwa through the mirror with a frightened expression.
Following Seol-hwa’s report, Choi Yuna immediately summoned Jung Dong-gun, who had gone to stabilize the eastern area of Gyeongju.
“We’ve spotted one from a distance. The problem is that it appeared to be a foreign vessel rather than a South Korean one, so we did not engage with it.”
Summoned to the main headquarters, Jung Dong-gun reported that he had also observed a ship suspected to be a ghost ship from afar.
However, to avoid any unforeseen complications, the Balhut Cult had refrained from making direct contact.
“What’s your assessment?”
“Though it’s slow, it seems operational. However, I don’t believe it could function effectively in its primary role as a ship.”
Jung Dong-gun testified that, as per the complaints from Pohang fishermen, the ship indeed appeared to be operational.
However, he judged from his distant observation that it couldn’t fully perform its intended functions as a ship.
“The patrol boats and fast attack craft stationed in Pohang should be sufficient to subdue it.”
At that level, the Pohang Marine Corps and patrol vessels should be enough to handle the situation.
“The issue is that there are also military ships from Pohang that went missing after the apocalypse. If one of those has turned into a ghost ship, it could pose a significant threat.”
The problem was that Pohang’s navy wasn’t entirely intact.
Taking advantage of the chaos during the apocalypse, some military ships had silently gone missing.
If one of those ships had turned into a ghost ship, the Balhut Cult could lose its ability to control the East Sea.
In the past, it would have sufficed to secure the coastal and fishing zones. However, with trade now ongoing with the United States, such exchanges were bringing significant wealth and revival to the Balhut Cult.
From the Cult’s perspective, they couldn’t simply overlook the unidentified ghost ship appearing in their waters.
“This is troubling. Inform Steven immediately. Summon the Special Envoy Steven David to the headquarters.”
“Understood.”
Recognizing the seriousness of the situation from Jung Dong-gun’s report, Yuna promptly summoned Steven David, the Special Envoy at the temporary embassy.
Steven David arrived at the headquarters where Yuna was, with his usual composed demeanor.
Steven, pleased with the success of the trade between the Balhut Cult and the United States, assumed the sudden summons was for a formal greeting to celebrate the successful exchange.
“A ghost ship has appeared in the East Sea.”
“Before the apocalypse, such incidents were rare, but now it’s a common occurrence. It’s tragic but not unheard of for ships to go missing at sea and become ownerless vessels. My condolences.”
However, contrary to his expectations, Yuna spoke with a serious expression about the ghost ship in the East Sea. Steven dismissed it as a common occurrence during the apocalypse.
Ownerless ships drifting across the vast ocean were rare in the United States but not entirely unheard of.
Thus, Steven responded only by acknowledging the tragedy of the situation.
“No, not that kind of ghost ship. I mean, a literal ghost ship.”
“…Excuse me?”
Steven, realizing he might have misunderstood, asked Yuna to clarify.
What exactly was she saying?
“So, by ghost ship… do you mean, explicitly, a ship operated by ghosts?”
“Yes. If the reports we’ve received are accurate, it’s truly a ghost ship being operated by ghosts. Given the apocalyptic events in East Asia, it might be more fitting to assume it’s operated by zombies rather than ghosts, though.”
When Steven asked if she meant a ship literally operated by ghosts, Yuna confirmed that the reports suggested an actual ghost ship in the East Sea.
Of course, given the zombie apocalypse plaguing East Asia, it was more likely that the ghost ship was operated by zombies rather than literal ghosts.
But in essence, the two carried similar implications, and the explanation didn’t differ much.
“What? That’s… I don’t know, that’s scary.”
However, Steven, his face pale, could only respond by admitting how terrifying it sounded.
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