Dictator From Outer Space

Chapter 20: The Awakening of the Assault Armor

―The new cannon is so impressive that it inspires awe. The Chief of Staff expressed his admiration, and the Deputy Commander of the 7th Fleet shouted that we should mount that Big Gun on Zoomwalt.

“It seems pretty good.”

―It’s not just good. This cannon salvaged a whopping 10 billion dollars from the trash for us. Don’t you agree?

“10 billion dollars… Ah, that must be the construction cost for three Zoomwalt-class ships.”

―You probably already know, but Zoomwalt is a combat ship based on new weapon systems like railguns and HVP. It can’t operate alone.

“I understand. So, did Congress approve it easily? It seemed like they didn’t want to spend a single dollar more on Zoomwalt.”

―We’ll have to convince them from now on. Even the congressional investigative team got fired up when they saw Zoomwalt mentioned in the report.

“I would have done the same.”

Assistant Secretary Martin’s voice was quite enthusiastic.

Not only was the Black Metal Cannon perfectly installed without any margin of error, but it also passed multiple tests without any issues.

Although there was a slight overload in the middle, it wasn’t the cannon’s fault but rather an issue with the generator’s cooling system.

―I’m currently writing the report, but it seems like I’ll be able to visit Korea again soon.

“That would be nice.”

After the call ended, Arma reported.

[Master, the repair of the Assault Armor you instructed before has been completed.]

“Oh, already?”

“It’s currently being transported to the hangar. I’ll display it on the screen.”

The Assault Armor is a small-sized powered exoskeleton created by humanity.

Although it’s called small-sized, it’s larger and heavier than most modern fighter jets.

The mission of this powered exoskeleton is simple: delivering the infiltrator reaction warheads to the Plague Fleet.

That’s why the pilots of the Assault Armor are often referred to as couriers.

“It’s been a while…”

He looked up at the screen with a nostalgic expression on his face.

He commissioned at the age of 15 and started piloting the Assault Armor within a year, recognized for his talent.

He had experienced many close brushes with death and had become a hero of humanity, feeling a proud sense of fulfillment.

Although he was living on Earth now, he had felt truly alive when he flew through space in the Assault Armor. 

Only a pilot could understand the exhilaration of piercing through the barrage of bioweapon projectiles and ether laser bombardment, breaking through the Plague Fleet, and successfully obliterating the Plague flagship with the reaction warhead.

He asked with a trembling voice, “Can I pilot it now?”

[Unfortunately, Master, your physical condition cannot withstand it. Additional procedures are required.]

Yu Ji-ha’s physical body surpassed that of a human, but it was still too much to handle the Assault Armor.

“How long would it take for that?”

“We estimate about four days inside the treatment capsule. You should take a break or something.”

“Once I handle all the backlogs, I should be able to spare that time.”

With a tinge of regret, he dialed the number provided by the Blue House Secretary and contacted the President.

“I was actually about to call you first, but it seems we’re on the same wavelength.”

“Apologies, but what is it?”

—Since there’s no urgent matter, please go ahead, Chairman Yu. Is it about the situation in Japan?

As expected, he already knew.

He shared the story of being mistreated in Japan, and a hollow laughter came from the speaker.

—Can something like that happen… even if one’s pride is hurt? Anyway, you’ve been through a lot.

“After that, we decided not to do business with Toyota and Panasonic. I assume they have the same intention as well.”

–Hmm…

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President Lee Hyun-seong’s voice revealed a sense of embarrassment.

—I believe you won’t accept the apologies from those two companies.

“It’s really difficult. To be honest, let me be frank. I received a call this morning through the Japanese Embassy. It was from the Prime Minister.”

The Japanese Prime Minister called the President of South Korea first.

It was strange for Japan, which had consistently rejected summit talks and ignored all contact attempts, to reach out first.

—Perhaps it’s because of Black Metal.

“Ah, you mean the Fukuoka Black Metal, right? There are rumors that the catch limit is being restricted.”

—That’s correct. The catch in Fukuoka has completely recovered. It means that Black Metal doesn’t propagate there.

—That’s a big problem. Personally, I have no intention of forcing Chairman Yu’s hand. Although in my heart, I want to attach various conditions…

“Just in case, I’ll mention it, but I have no emotional attachment to Japan. I’ve excluded only Toyota and Panasonic.”

—But those two companies will desperately cling to you, so in the end, the three of you are in the same boat. The Japanese government can’t afford to give up on them either.

“Then, all we can do is express our disappointment to other countries while watching the Black Metal catch deplete day by day.”

The main target will likely be Russia.

The United States will be overwhelmed with demand for their own industries.

However, the Russo-Japanese relationship was so hostile that the Korea-Japan relationship seemed smooth by comparison.

Due to China’s expansion last year, Russia sided with China in the Senkaku fishing boat seizure incident.

They had a history of conflict over the Kuril Islands, so the two countries engaged in fierce psychological warfare.

—Russia might approach us soon. Thanks to Chairman Yu, I have a lot of work to do these days, haha.

“Oh… by the way, President, I have something to tell you.”

—You mean the railgun, right? I heard it was tested in the United States. It would have been better if we hadn’t dismantled the TF.

“Wasn’t ADD conducting research on that?”

—Even though the US and China gave up, there’s no way we could afford it. Only negative reports kept coming, and one by one, researchers left. In fact, the budget was severely lacking…

He still seemed to regret it.

He considered proposing an acquisition of U-jin Industries but gave up on the idea. 

The facilities and equipment would still be there, so he could acquire Silla Hi-Tech and slowly bring them over.

“With just the railgun, we could significantly offset China’s maritime pressure.”

—If only we had more aircraft carriers… Oh, and the Army also joined the Black Metal competition.

“Why would the Army…?”

—Even if it involves redesigning the K-3 tanks, we need to incorporate Black Metal as armor. Not only for artillery but also for shells.

“I’m not sure if attending that meeting will result in the generals tearing us apart.”

—Not the Air Force generals. They have no relation to Black Metal, so they’re fine. Chairman Yu should have seen their gloomy faces.

The conversation ended warmly.

Then he had to deal with the municipalities throughout the country.

Everyone was clamoring to attract battery factories.

It wasn’t just one or two, but over 30 committees were formed, mobilizing the media and citizen organizations to shape public opinion.

Of course, Yu Ji-ha was not bothered by the municipalities.

He personally took the microphone and warned the local governments.

“I will make all decisions regarding site selection and factory construction. Any noisy complaints from the municipalities will be ignored.”

Some viewed him as too arrogant for just a battery factory.

But when Yu Ji-ha announced the scale of investment, the voices of objection quickly subsided.

“This year, the German Automobile Alliance has committed 4 billion euros in investment. Ford from the United States will invest 2 billion dollars. Let me reiterate that this is just the initial investment. We are currently considering investments up to the seventh phase.”

Given that most of the world’s top car companies were jumping in, the scale was enormous.

What was mind-boggling was that this was just the beginning.

There was an immense demand for Black Metal batteries in industries such as smartphones, laptops, tablets, and energy storage systems (ESS).

And he held a position that could coordinate the entire ecosystem he was building.

It was dubbed the “Super .”

“If you want to attract a battery factory, please offer me better conditions. I will select based on the conditions, employment status, and location.”

The municipalities turned everything upside down to review the conditions.

Meanwhile, in the Settler, the production of Arma‘s body was reaching its final stages.

Sssht.

As the hose came out of its mouth, an orange liquid flowed out.

Arma opened its eyes.

…

2180, Earth

In the United Human Federation, there were almost no restrictions on androids except for one case.

Artificial intelligence above a certain level should not possess a body.

That’s why there was a hidden corner in the United Human Federation’s androids that seemed somewhat lifeless.

They were hard to distinguish from humans externally, but as soon as you had a conversation with them, you quickly noticed.

However, the rules themselves did not apply to Yu Ji-ha and Arma.

The United Human Federation had already disappeared and no longer existed.

[Activation of the Body Manufacturing Device]

As the capsule opened, Arma slowly emerged.

She looked at her boss, Yu Ji-ha, and smiled brightly.

“How do I look? Do I seem well-made?”

“Except for being too flashy. Anyway, put on some clothes. There’s a lot to do from now on.”

“As you command.”

“And from now on, don’t call me ‘Master.’ Just call me ‘Boss.'”

“Yes, Boss.”

Arma, with her cream-colored hair, smiled brightly.

As he looked at her wearing the glasses, he saw a glimpse of Lucia overlapped with her.

“Is it because of the mental model? Even their habits are similar.”

Especially the gesture of pushing up the glasses with her fingers was undeniably Lucia.

Finally, Arma, fully dressed, stood in front of her boss.

“With this, don’t I look like a foreign secretary?”

Yu Ji-ha raised his chin and looked at her, then sighed.

“You stand out too much. It would have been better if you had some wrinkles.”

It wasn’t that her appearance was lacking. 

She was just too beautiful.

She wore high heels and stood over 180cm tall, with a toned physique like an athlete.

“Still, I like this appearance.”

Arma turned around to show herself to her boss.

However, he had a lingering concern that she had developed her chest too much.

“Well, if you like it, that’s fine. By the way, what about the weapons?”

“I currently possess these weapons.”

She demonstrated her weapons in front of Yu Ji-ha.

She had the standard Plasma Shield and Directional EMP Shockwave Generator, along with an Ether Laser and a Coil Gun.

Especially the Ether Laser boasted tremendous destructive power, only slightly lower in output than what the Plague used. 

In summary, Arma was armed with a small-sized but high-powered neutralizer, capable of facing off against military units head-on. 

The power source was a power cell, compact compared to those used in exploration probes, but with high output. 

Additionally, she had the strength to push aside tanks and possessed powerful regenerative capabilities, so there was no need to worry about danger.

Although one might think she could fly with such capabilities, unfortunately, such a feature did not exist.

“In addition, I can take selfies.”

Click.

The left eye, doubling as a high-performance camera, took a picture of a human and an android. 

Then, the right eye projected the photo as a hologram in the air.

Yu Ji-ha, nonchalantly looking at the hologram, said, “You look too Korean.”

“Recently, there seems to be a trend of foreigners becoming infatuated with Korea. It seems like they’re also earning a lot of money.”

“Enough about that. What about the others?”

He referred to the androids other than Arma.

Their appearances were set as ordinary Korean men to be able to pass as employees. 

Their personalities were somewhat introverted and reserved, with few words. 

To avoid giving away their android status, this was deemed the best option.

“We are currently working on synthesizing the neocortex. It will take approximately 500 hours to complete.”

“We’ll adjust until it’s ready to be deployed alongside space development. And what about my physical modifications?”

“We can begin immediately.”

To pilot the Assault Armor, one needed a superhuman physique and various modifications. 

Firstly, the control itself was not easy. It required complete synchronization between the brain and the armor’s computer through BMI (brain-machine interface). 

The central signal transmission fluid, which replaced cerebrospinal fluid, was used for synchronization.

This was only the first stage, and ultimately, one had to undergo seven stages of modification surgery to qualify for boarding the Assault Armor. 

However, as Yu Ji-ha was an Omega-level psychic, the final procedure of Ether Circuit insertion could be omitted.

[Medical Capsule Open.]

As Yu Ji-ha entered the capsule, the procedure began. 

Orange fluid filled the capsule, and a medical laser sliced through his abdomen, extracting organs. 

His eardrums and semicircular canals were replaced with fiber ceramic, and even his heart was dissected.

Although these procedures were referred to as surgeries, they were more like modifications to turn a human into a component of the Assault Armor. 

Despite undergoing such modifications, humanity met its end, defeated by the Plague in the late 22nd century.

“Biochip synchronization complete.”

Finally, the 1:1 synchronization between the biochip implanted inside Yu Ji-ha’s body and the Assault Armor was complete. 

He could now handle the armor as if it were his own limbs.

Lucia, the leader of the Artifact Analysis Agency Arc, referred to pilots as monsters.

―Controlling a dragonfly with your mind and flying through a torrential rain where you can’t see even a meter ahead for hours. It’s like facing death with every drop that hits you.

Among the pilots maintaining such skills, she was the best Uber pilot.

Throughout his 40-year career as a pilot, he had been shot down only a few times, and he had single-handedly annihilated the Plague Fleet more than ten times.

Nevertheless, he was still at a disadvantage when it came to facing the Plague swarms that descended from outer space.

They were simply too numerous and powerful.

“Recovery complete. Capsule opening.”

After four days of recovery maintenance, he emerged from the capsule.

Having replaced his right eye with an artificial one, he could now even zoom in and out.

Above all, he could now visualize the gravitational radar information transmitted by the flagship directly in his mind.

In other words, it meant that he knew what was around even with his eyes closed and ears blocked.

“Good job. The Assault Armor is perfectly prepared.”

“Let’s go.”

They rode the walker and headed to the hangar.

The Assault Armor, resembling a wasp, was confined in the containment cage.

“Long time no see, Dingo.”

…