Chapter 1219. Transforming (4)

Chapter 1219. Transforming (4)

“They are back.”

Vator’s voice sobered everyone up, and they stared at the ship’s bow. Their gazes contained a mixture of emotions, mostly fluster, anticipation, and anxiety.

The fate of everyone on this ship depended on what those men said, after all!

The Japanese warriors got to organize their thoughts while Kang Jin-Ho and Akinori left for a chat, and their various expressions indicated their current states of mind.

While under their intense gazes, Kang Jin-Ho, Akinori, and Lee Hyeon-Su boarded the ship. Naturally, everyone tried to get some hints of the meeting’s conclusion from the trio’s expressions, but getting a read proved impossible.

That was because the trio’s expressions didn’t differ much from when they were leaving the ship.

The three men walked up to the center of the deck.

Akinori stopped and silently scanned his surroundings. His emotionless eyes finished studying the faces of his fellow Japanese warriors, then he turned his head to look at the executives from the Korean Martial Assembly behind him.

Finally, he briefly glanced in Kang Jin-Ho’s direction before focusing his attention on the Japanese. He addressed them in a resolute voice.

“Everyone, listen.”

The gazes of everyone on the ship fixed on him.

Akinori raised his voice so they could all hear him. “We have lost.”

His opening salvo was provocative. And even extreme. The Japanese warriors failed to hide their fluster as more news hit them without a moment’s respite.

“The first and second waves that landed ahead of us in Korea have already been annihilated. On top of that, the Korean Martial Assembly has even taken over Tokyo. It has brought us the severed head of Shinichi-kai’s Iemoto as proof.”

Akinori simply stated the truth as it was. But that truth was far more terrifying than any threats or instigation.

“And now, only we remain.”

Akinori stopped talking there and let the news sink in. These Japanese warriors needed time to think. More correctly, enough time to process what they just heard.

They all probably had a gut feeling regarding this situation, but hearing the confirmation directly from Akinori’s mouth was a different matter altogether, after all.

Akinori’s expression hardened as the gazes of mistrust and resignation landed on him. That was when a sharp light flickered in Akinori’s eyes.

“This war is already over. You can struggle all you want, but the outcome will still be the same. It’ll be one of the two outcomes. One, we exhaust all of our combat potential here by suffering incalculable losses and return to our homeland, only to enter a bitter and bloody civil war... Or we simply all die here tonight.”

Again, he spoke of provocative and extreme possibilities. Even then, the Japanese knew he was only speaking the truth. They could tell that no other paths existed for them.

Even if they luckily escaped from here alive and returned to Japan, what would be in store for them? The Assembly wouldn’t mind letting its prey escape, since it could leisurely form an army to conquer Japan later. With Shinichi-kai and Yamashiro-gumi gone, Japan wouldn’t have enough wherewithal to resist the Martial Assembly’s invasion.

When that happened, the ensuing event would be a bloody purge with no room for negotiations.

What these Japanese had left to look forward to was... dying tonight, or returning to Japan and dying there.

“Neither of those outcomes is what we truly want. Thankfully, the Assembly Master has offered us a third option. He promised to open a new path toward prosperity if we swear allegiance to him.”

The faces of the Japanese listening to Akinori crumpled in an instant.

Despite the attempt to beat around the bush, what Akinori said was basically telling them to surrender and submit to the Koreans. In return, they should beg to be spared.

Akinori narrowed his eyes. “That is why, we will...”

“Do you even understand what you’re saying, Commissioner?!”

Akinori turned to look at the person who shouted at him. Gohei was glaring right back, his eyes bloodshot.

“Gohei, listen until the end so that I...”

“There is no need, sir! Have you lost your mind, Commissioner?! Are you seriously telling us to bow down and beg for our lives to these Joseon bastards?!”

Akinori furrowed his brow.

Gohei had never been a decisive or a particularly motivated person. He was usually fidgety and couldn’t make up his mind, which made him rather ill-suited to becoming a top-tier warrior. Even then, he still managed to board this ship as Akinori’s adviser simply because of his unusually intense hatred toward South Korea.

Since his intense hatred led him to know more about Korea, the planners of this war figured Gohei would contribute in some shape or form to the war effort and picked him for an advisory role. That thought process was not wrong at the time, but it came back to bite Akinori in the rear at the most unexpected moment.

“Commissioner! Have you forgotten your

Bushido

?! Did you sell your

Yamato-damashii

to a passing mutt?! Are you not ashamed to call yourself a warrior of the Great Japanese Empire?!”[1]

Gohei roared like a madman.

“Rather than surrendering to these Joseon bastards, we’d rather commit

seppuku

right now and prove our unyielding spirit! We might have lost the war, but we must show them our spirit will never be defeated!”[2]

Lee Hyeon-Su grimaced while staring at Gohei.

He was well aware of how the Japanese warriors would sometimes spew nonsense, but what that moron said went beyond the realm of nonsense. What was even scarier was the fact that Gohei shouted that crap with an utterly serious face.

Then again...

One of the Japanese generals during a certain war in the past brazenly shouted that the Japanese people were herbivores and could survive only with grass found on the roadside. With a precedent like that, Gohei’s shouts didn’t seem all that crazy.

Even though the Japanese viewed themselves as the most rational people on Earth, it was not unreasonable to think that some individuals among the Japanese populace were the types to reveal their true insane nature when facing a dead-end. Which would make them pretty much the same as people of other nations, then.

Gohei was probably one of those insane types.

“Seppuku?” Akinori muttered, his expression crumbling. “What will change by doing that? You will still end up dying, anyway!”

“How foolish! Sir, it matters to a warrior how he dies! Not all deaths are the same! How could you even suggest that an honorable death meant to prove our honor, our commitment to

Bushido

, and our loyalty to the emperor is meaningless!”

“What? You...”

“There will not be any surrender, sir! The Great Japanese Empire does not surrender!”

Vator couldn’t help but chuckle in dismay at this scene, then whispered to Lee Hyeon-Su. “Hey, didn’t the Japanese surrender at the end of the Second World War? And that’s why it doesn’t have a standing army?”

“Sir, it’s a waste of time to argue logic with a madman.”

“I get that, but that fool is so forthright with his nonsense, you know?”

“That’s how the Japanese usually operate, sir,” said Lee Hyeon-Su with a deep groan.

Gohei running his mouth was not the most concerning problem here. No, the real pressing issue was with the other Japanese beginning to agree with his nonsense.

It seemed things like the emperor, Bushido, and Yamato-damashii had some kind of unknown power capable of stimulating the Japanese warriors. Only a few seconds ago, these warriors had been filled with resignation and had begun accepting their defeat, but now?

Now, the hints of determination about

something

had begun taking over the light in their eyes.

“There is no surrender for us?”

Akinori growled, anger distorting his face.

“We came this far because we surrendered! If we hadn’t, Japan would’ve been wiped off the face of the earth!”

“No, sir! We are in this wretched state because our predecessors surrendered back then! If they hadn’t surrendered and kept fighting, our empire could’ve become something even greater! Even more honorable!

“We must not leave yet another stain of surrender for our future generations to endure! If you call yourself a son of Japan! If you wish to call yourself a man who has inherited Yamato-damashii, you must prove your commitment to never surrendering and fighting till your final breath!”

“What? You foolish little...!”

Akinori was left speechless and could only glare at Gohei.

“He’s right!”

“How can we even consider surrendering?!”

“We didn’t come this far to just surrender without fighting our enemies at least once!”

“Commissioner?! Just what did they promise you?! Hah? And you dare call yourself the proud warrior of the Great Japanese Empire?!”

In the blink of an eye, the public sentiment turned in favor of Gohei.

If they completely turned now, it’d be the end for them. Because Akinori knew that the Japanese people did not dissent.

Once the Japanese people sensed that the popular sentiment had tilted one way, they would never dare go against the flow, regardless of how they viewed the situation.

Throughout history, Japan kept pushing for more and more war. That wasn’t because it lacked the ability to figure out how poor its odds of victory were. No, it was because no one dared to speak the truth in front of everyone.

This behavior wasn’t because the Japanese didn’t care about common sense. Simply put, the Japanese placed far higher importance on ‘solidarity’ than sticking to common sense!

“You...!”

Akinori’s face reddened considerably.

There should be a limit to how stupid one could get!

Resisting despite being weaker meant you wanted to get yourself killed. If dying like that could bring something to the table for the Japanese, then sure, one could praise such a mindset. However, dying here would earn them nothing.

In that case, why would anyone wish to kill themselves? This was no different from rushing into a wildfire while strapping dried-out straw all over you.

Akinori was even more enraged by the fact that he couldn’t even decide his own fate now. Besides, he’d be disobeying Kang Jin-Ho, too!

“Why, you foolish little...!” Akinori gritted his teeth loudly.

“Sir! Disembowel yourself!”

Akinori was left stunned by what he heard and stared dazedly at Gohei.

“Rather than insulting our Yamato-damashii and trampling on your loyalty to our emperor, disembowel yourself and wash your sins away, sir! This is my final display of loyalty and respect as a man who used to serve you as a loyal subordinate. I give you my word I shall behead you cleanly and painlessly.”

Akinori’s glare burned even fiercer just then. There was no doubting his loyalty to Kang Jin-Ho. He had sworn to serve Kang Jin-Ho as his master, after all. However, this was a different type of problem from that.

How could anyone be this idiotic?

Times had changed. And the world had changed, too. It made no sense to stick to the old ways as if the era hadn’t changed at all!

Besides, the methods the

Bushido

had demanded from its practitioners hadn’t brought them flawless victories, anyway.

Akinori chewed his lip while noticing all the madness rapidly filling up the eyes of the Japanese warriors.

Maybe he should cut off a few heads to...

“Get out of the way.”

“...”

Akinori looked behind when he heard that. Kang Jin-Ho was using his chin to signal that it was time for Akinori to step aside. Without saying anything else, Akinori did as told and made way for Kang Jin-Ho.

Clomp!

Kang Jin-Ho stepped forward and scanned the Japanese.

Utter silence suddenly descended on the crowd, the boiling atmosphere instantly dying down. Even then, Gohei still glared at Kang Jin-Ho, his eyes filled with venom and determination.

“Disemboweling yourself to prove your beliefs...”

The corners of Kang Jin-Ho’s lips curled up suspiciously.

“Sounds good.”

Lee Hyeon-Su began translating what his boss said.

“Then, go ahead.”

Gohei’s expression stiffened while his glare sharpened. “...What are you saying?”

“Go ahead and do it. That

seppuku

thing.”

“...!”

The faint smirk on Kang Jin-Ho’s face grew more distinct.

“Didn’t you say you will choose how you die to prove your beliefs and honor?”

Gohei grimaced. “...That’s right!”

“Then do it,” said Kang Jin-Ho, sounding rather casual about it. “No one’s gonna stop you.”

“But I...”

“

Huh

? You need to talk some more?”

“...”

Kang Jin-Ho bared his fangs in a ferocious smirk.

“Didn’t you say you’ll prove yourself through action? So, why are you still talking? Hurry up and do it. Can’t you see that everyone’s waiting on you?”

“...!”

“Who knows? Maybe I could have a change of heart if you prove your beliefs and whatnot. Your action could impress me, and I might let the rest of your allies go.”

Gohei’s eyes subtly trembled just then. Almost unnoticeably so.

However, Kang Jin-Ho didn’t criticize the Japanese for getting shaken up.

Choosing to die was never an easy thing for anyone. Getting shaken up by doubt was fine. What mattered was if they remained true to their goal despite getting shaken up.

Shu-ru-rung!

As Gohei grimaced in pure determination, the noise of a sword being drawn echoed lazily in the air. He held the weapon in a reverse grip and knelt down where he stood.

Several things were required according to the custom, but he knew it’d be impossible to demand them in this situation.

Gohei gritted his teeth while glaring murderously at Kang Jin-Ho, but the latter’s expression remained uninterested as he looked down on the kneeling Japanese.

The tip of the blade touched Gohei’s abdomen. This impeccably maintained blade was so sharp that merely being in contact was enough to cut open the fabric of Gohei’s clothes and stab into his skin.

“...!

Huff, huff!”

Gohei’s breathing grew faster and shallower.

His beliefs and survival instincts entered into a desperate struggle for supremacy in his heart.

Kang Jin-Ho disinterestedly observed this spectacle and muttered, “Now, gut yourself.”

1. Bushido is a Japanese term denoting the warrior’s way/spirit, a moral code concerning attitudes of samurai. Yamato-damashii means Japanese spirit, denoting cultural values and characteristics of the Japanese people. ☜

2. Seppuku is a form of suicide ritual considered honorable among the feudal Japanese samurai class. It traditionally consists of stabbing oneself in the abdomen with a short sword. ☜