Chapter 177 – Episode 21. Plan B.
It’s a pity that Han Yu-kyung has gone to her parents’ home, but since she came to Korea, she has to do what she planned as Plan B.
The plan B I came up with is to travel by rail on the route Seoul → Pyongyang → Hamheung → Kraskino (Краскино).
During the Third World War, which ended 8 years ago, North Korea collapsed and was unified into the Republic of Korea. Each company that wanted to speculate rushed to rebuild Pyongyang, which was completely devastated by numerous missiles and shelling and became a flat land.
As a result of development based on desire without any particular urban planning, Pyongyang became a complex, cyberpunk-like city overflowing with neon signs. Of course, it was gorgeous because it was full of the latest technology, but the city was overly complicated and, unlike a new city, the alleys were tangled like a spider’s web.
It was a city with a cyberpunk atmosphere and many factions flocking to it, so of course Megacorp’s youngest son had quite a few events going on in the city, so I thought I’d take a look around as well.
Hamheung was just a stopping place before going to Kraskino, and Kraskino was Russian territory ceded to Korea during World War III. To Russia, Kravtsovka (Кравцовка) and the Leopard Land National Park to the west were ceded, and to China, the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Region was ceded, greatly expanding the territory.
“Sorry… ! “Next time I’ll go to Japan.”
“There is nothing we can do since such a big incident has occurred. Who would have thought the building would collapse?”
After Han Yu-kyung and I finished packing our bags, we said goodbye at the apartment parking lot exit. Han Yu-kyung had to go to her parents’ house and I had to take the train to Pyongyang, so we both packed our bags and came down. Han Yu-kyung took something out of her pocket and held it out to me. It was like some sort of identification card.
“Because there was a terrorist attack, train traffic may be restricted. So this…”
“What?”
What Han Yu-kyung gave me was a Vanguard employee card. When did you hire me? Due to the recent poor security situation in Korea, it seemed like an employee ID card from a security company that was treated as a quasi-security organization would be an exception to the restrictions on people going out of Seoul.
“Thank you.”
I put her Vanguard employee ID card in her pocket and hugged Han Yu-kyung tightly. And then I lightly kissed Han Yu-kyung on the lips. Perhaps because Han Yu-kyung shed tears, the taste of her kiss was salty. As she was kissing, a car driven by Dixon arrived.
“Mr. Jin, please proceed carefully. “Pyongyang is not like Seoul.”
“People in Pyongyang should be careful about me.”
At my answer, Dixon and I fist bumped each other, and Dixon picked up Han Yu-kyung. I told Dixon to take good care of Han Yu-kyung, kissed her and Han Yu-kyung one more time, and then the car with Han Yu-kyung left.
I also went out to the street and caught a taxi. I went straight from Han Yu-kyung’s house to Seoul Station and headed to the boarding gate to board the train I had reserved in advance. As expected from Han Yu-kyung, armed police officers carrying rifle-shaped stun guns were asking people for their IDs and reasons for leaving Seoul.
About two-thirds were allowed through, but the remaining third were not allowed to board the train. Is it because something is suspicious? It seemed like they were filtering things out very strictly, probably because there was an accident where a building collapsed.
Of course, people were very dissatisfied, but armed police officers with stun guns were carrying out official duties. If you interfere with the execution of official duties, you may be subject to summary disposition. He said in a dry voice. No matter how dissatisfied they felt, the citizens who were excluded from boarding were grumbling and holding up their smartphones to cancel their tickets, as if they did not want to get electrocuted in front of others.
“Excuse me. “Please show me your ID and train ticket.”
“Oh, yes.”
I showed the armed police the Vanguard employee ID card I had in my pocket and the train ticket to Pyongyang on my smart phone. The armed police looked at my employee ID card and my face, checked the destination on my smart phone, and asked me.
“Why are you going to Pyongyang?”
“I’m leaving because I have some work to do. “It’s a business trip.”
The armed police officer nodded at my words and let me through, then asked the person behind me for an ID card. I was worried something like this might happen, so I made a reservation with plenty of room to spare, but I almost missed the train as they were inspecting each and every person. I finally got on the train to Pyongyang and looked out the window.
Estimated arrival time was 4:20, two hours later. I felt a little excited watching the moving scenery outside the train.
We are now heading to the most cutting-edge city in the world. A cyber city tentatively named Neo Tokyo is being built in Japan, but it is still about a year away from being fully built.
Although discussions about new cyber cities were taking place in other countries, it was natural that South Korea, which is obsessed with being the first in the world, quickly created Cyber Pyongyang. The problem was that it had many shortcomings because it was made in such a hurry, but the atmosphere was that it should have been the first in the world.
-The next station is Pyongyang Technology Special City. The door you get off at is…
As I thought about it, I arrived in Pyongyang. When I got off the train, people with cyber implants, which were rare to see even in Seoul, were walking around. I don’t know about tourists like me, but I heard that it is a very cyber city, so it would be inconvenient to live there unless you have a few cyber implants.
Hmm, it’s a city I can’t live in, as it has the characteristics of praising purity, which requires no modifications.
“We are selling a disposable wristwatch-type device!”
There were stalls selling cheap disposable watches that could be connected to Pyongyang’s VR network aimed at tourists, but I didn’t even look at them. This is because I reserved a high-end device in secret while coming to Pyongyang. The VR devices sold at these stalls could have been fraudulent, or even worse, your account could have been hacked, so it was advantageous to pay a little more money and purchase the VR device from a certified seller in the dark.
Tiring.
When I picked up my phone, I saw a message from the Dark App. If you were transacting directly with the seller, it was quite useful because it also supported chat.
Rjtkd9wls0123: Mr. Rita, I came to the entrance of Pyongyang Station. Where are you?
竜太: Standing next to the cheap device stall holding a gray suitcase.
As soon as I sent the message, a thin woman came up to me, waving her hand happily. It was a woman with one arm made of machinery, and she was quite a beauty. Pyongyang was a city with many artificial beauties, as cyber implants and plastic surgery were available at will. This girl also I don’t know if she had plastic surgery or not but she was so skinny her face was pretty but she didn’t look that good.
“竜太…? “Ryuta?”
“Ah yes. I…”
“Please just call me Colossus. “If you change it to Korean-Young key, you become a great merchant.”
Oh, I see. This seemed to happen often, as she immediately recognized that I was embarrassed by her name.
“Yes, Geosang. The thing… ?
“Here you go.”
The VR device was VR goggles shaped like a watch and sunglasses. I received the VR device and pressed the receipt confirmation button on the Amsang app. I confirmed receipt and the point was confirmed to have been deposited. Geosang smiled brightly and nodded her head.
“Thank you! “Can I help you set it up?”
“I would appreciate it if you could do it.”
Geosang connected it to a smartphone, watch, and sunglasses. Putting on sunglasses, I could see the true face of the cyber city of Pyongyang.
Whenever I focused on an item, the item’s information appeared and the price also appeared. It’s like a game. I saw a cheap disposable VR device next to me. Then a warning screen appeared.
This is an uncertified illegal device. Please report it to the Pyongyang Autonomous Police immediately. Pyongyang Autonomous Police Number 112)1213-112
It was a scam after all. When I first saw it, the seller was a bit annoyed, but he still kept selling it! I screamed. As I looked at him dumbfounded, the giant smiled slightly and opened his mouth.
“Even if you report it, you will not be punished or anything. “I pay bribes every month to the local police or something.”
“So, they must be doing business with such confidence.”
“Hehe, there are a lot of scammers like this in Pyongyang, so please be careful. If you use a VR device, you won’t be caught by a scammer. Then it’s time to part ways. Thank you for using it! “If you need anything in Pyongyang, please find this great merchant~!”
The great merchant said hello and disappeared into the crowd again. I also took a step. Since I was only planning to go sightseeing for a day, I put my mouth to the device and said it was a luxury hotel, and something like a mini-map appeared in the upper right corner of my sunglasses. It was amazing. It’s like some kind of game.
For some reason, I thought my luggage would be stolen in regular hotels, so I searched for luxury hotels. Well, the only things I had as luggage were clothes and my passport, but I still feel bad if it gets stolen.
I chose one of several suggested hotels and was given directions. There were arrows on the road, so I could easily get there without getting lost.
When I entered the hotel I was guided to, there were two bodyguards with guns guarding the entrance. Is this Korea? It was definitely foreign. When I went to the counter, the hotel staff greeted me politely and handed me a menu-like menu right in front of me. When I looked closely, I saw a rate table showing how much it was per night.
I chose a room with a mid-price price of 367,000 won per night and received guidance. As soon as I made my choice and held out my wrist, I felt the smartphone vibrate as if the payment had been completed.
My room was room 703. The hotel staff who had manipulated something in front of my visit kindly explained it to me.
“The room information has been registered on your wrist device, so you can use it as a key. “Please be careful not to lose your device.”
Oh! You can open and close the door with this? That’s interesting. I left my suitcase in the room and sat down for a moment. I need to search for a good restaurant. Since I had work to do after dinner, I would have to eat a big dinner.
