Empire of the Ring

Rain on dry land was a blessing, and even on barren land, a lot of rain could make a huge difference.

On top of more rain, there was another reason why the wheat crop was 350 percent the previous year’s crop. The farmland had tripled as more land was distributed to the Kurds.

Youngho laughed to hear about the unexpected good crops of wheat.

“Your Highness, I don’t think we can afford to increase our farmland area anymore.”

“There is no guarantee that next year will be as good as this year. There are a lot of places to export. Why are you worried about everything?”

“There’s no place to store wheat harvested just now. And we have to make more silos to keep the surplus wheat, which is quite expensive.”

“Is there any law that we should keep it in Kazakhstan? Grain silos in Greece, Azerbaijan, and Turkey will be empty now. Also, we can send some to the Vodka factory in Krasnoyarsk. And if we distribute the grain to the Kurds in advance, there’s no need to build additional silos.”

If the Kurds, who had been starving in the midst of the fire of war, were given a year’s worth of food, all their worries would disappear.

“Oh! That’ll do.”

“Min-seok, you’re a smart guy. These days, it seems like your mind is somewhere else.”

“It’s been hectic because the Kurds came all at once.”

“Why don’t you take a vacation?”

“No, it’s all right now.”

“No, you couldn’t even go on a summer vacation. The Black Sea is still in summer, so go to Batumi and take a few days off. Since the harvest is over, it’s not going to be that busy. I don’t know what else will happen at the end of the year, so rest in advance now.”

“Alright, I’ll do that then.”

Being Youngho’s secretary was not an easy job.

It would not be fun if Min-seok had to work for 365 days.

Although Kurdish migration had officially ended, the Syrian crisis was not yet over.

It was still unclear now what would happen in the near future, so he would better rest at his leisure like now.

“Your Highness, do I have to go to Batumi for vacation?”

“Didn’t you and Kim In-hwa say you like Batumi? That’s why I recommended it. Our hotel can save your money on vacation as well. If you want somewhere else, you can take care of it.”

“I don’t want to just play around on my vacation, so I’d like to go to Siberia to look around our work site.”

“You don’t have to do that. Don’t worry about anything. Everything will be fine while you’re gone.”

“I heard September is the perfect time to travel to Siberia. I’m going to take a look at the vodka plant and the lumber mill that is going into operation.”

“Oh, you act like a faithful servant. Tell me honestly. Is it not about Krasnoyarsk?”

“In-hwa has been talking about the Trans-Siberian Train for a long time. I’d like to take a short ride, too.”

“How are you going to take your child on a trip like that? It’s an inconvenient trip even for adults.”

“I’m leaving my child with my parents.”

“Well, if it’s just you two, it’s worth traveling on a cross-train.”

It had been a long time since Youngho visited the Siberian work sites, and if Min-seok went, he would not have to visit.

“Take bodyguards with you instead. Shouldn’t the chief secretary of the Kazakh royal family be with some guards at worksites? It’s for the sake of your safety and the face of the Kazakh royal family. I’ll give you plenty of money for the trip. Okay?”

“Phew, I shouldn’t have told you that I wanted to go to Siberia.”

“The executives of the Royal Secretary Office are going on vacation without telling the location? Hey, you two are not common employees now. Since you two know all sorts of royal family’s secrets, you could be the main targets of enemies. Even if you go on vacation from now on, you have to be guarded by the security office. Keep in mind that you cannot travel in private now.”

“I guess I was short-sighted. I’ll be careful from now on.”

“You are now members of the royal family. If it helps, just think of yourselves as celebrities.”

***

“Hey! Sir Secretary. It must be great to travel with bodyguards.”

“Oh, stop teasing me, Chief. I heard you’ve assigned all the bodyguards we’re going with.”

“Of course, I chose only very tough ones. This trip will be very tiring. As soon as you get out of their guard lines, you’ll get stares, so stay alert.”

With Kim Il-kwon’s stern comment, Suh Min-seok did not know what to do. He had no idea whether Kim Il-kwon was teasing or flattering him.

“I have no idea why this is such a fuss.”

“Man, you’re the one who’s assisting the Queen and Duke of the Kazakh royal family. Think about it, you know all the secrets of the royal territory.”

“...”

“If I kidnap you, I can tell you all the secrets of the Kazakh royal family, and do you think the enemies will want to leave you alone? How can we let you go out there without any protection?”

At the mention of ‘kidnap,’ Min-seok’s face turned white. He had no idea that he was such an important person.

Il-kwon seemed not confident that Min-seok could endure tortures.

“Do you think I have a big mouth?”

“Ha! Look at you. Are you confident of enduring torture? For you, not even torture is necessary. You will blabber when you’re stuck in a closed room for 10 minutes.”

It was not that Il-kwon did not trust Min-seok, but anyone who did not receive torture training would not be able to endure such a situation.

“Don’t worry. I’m not a tough person, but my loyalty is as big as yours. Even if a knife comes into my throat, I will keep royal secrets.”

“These days, torture is not necessary. They have a shot of drug that can make you spit words.”

“Do you have such a drug?”

“Is there such a thing?”

“Oh, that’s just a start. Anyway, be careful all the time. Also, keep this capsule with you and return it when you get back safely later.”

When Kim Il-kwon popped out a capsule the size of a pill, Min-seok freaked out.

“This isn’t a poisoned capsule, isn’t it?”

“Oh, you imagine too much. You think I’d ask you to bite a poison pill and kill yourself in an emergency? Don’t worry because I never expect that. It’s an electronic device for location tracking. If you get kidnapped, swallow this. Then we’ll go and get you. We can just make some lies and earn some time until we get there. Okay?”

“Oh, jeez. I shouldn’t go on a trip or anything. How can I like this? It’s too scary.”

“Man, that’s why you’re so important. And does Kim In-hwa know the secrets, too?”

“No, we haven’t talked about classified matters in a long time.”

“Great. Don’t tell the secrets of the royal family even to your wife unless it’s shared officially. That will put her in danger, too.”

“Okay, please don’t scare me.”

“I mean be careful anyway. If you follow the orders of the bodyguards, you’ll be fine.”

In the very worst situation, even bodyguards could not prevent, the two would have to be dealt with according to the rules of security, which would be sacrificing the two. This would sound shocking, but the two, especially Min-seok, knew so many things the world should not know, including the location of the royal vault and the amount of gold, not just the information about nuclear weapons.

Kim Il-kwon did not mention that.

This was because the weak-minded Min-seok and Kim In-hwa would go crazy if they heard it.

“Rule one. Never act individually. Rule two. Don’t get out of the way of the guards. Rule three. When kidnapped, swallow the capsule unconditionally.”

“Wait a minute. What if it comes out of my body when I poop?”

“We’ll get to you before that. It’s traceable by satellite. It’s made by the British Intelligence Service.”

“Ha...”

“Listen to the end. You’re not the only one going through this procedure. I recite this to the Duke all the time before traveling.”

“And yet he stays still?”

“It’s a promise we make for his security. Of course, he cooperates.”

“Okay, go ahead. Please let me know the rules I have to follow.”

When Il-kwon told him about the security rules for about half an hour, Min-seok took his tongue out and asked,

“I’d rather stay in prison than go on a trip.”

“Hey, this is also a drill. I’ve been trying to educate you before, but I’m only doing it now since I didn’t want to pressure you. Everyone in the royal family should know the basics. You can tell your wife because I’m afraid she’d be too shocked to hear this. I bet other countries would do the same for their leadership and families. With China and Russia surrounding us, we need to be extra careful.”

“I’ll keep that in mind and cooperate from now on. I’m sorry I have been acting childish.”

Min-seok finally knew how hard the security office was trying to keep the royal secrets from leaking.

“You’ve been very helpful because you’ve been around the Duke all the time, but Princess Zeynep is something. She always gives our guards a hard time.”

“Well, that’s understandable. She’s such a free-spirited person and also she’s been a student.”

“Of course. She always keeps the royal dignity even if she seems to act childish. So you should also act with the weight of the royal family in mind. Don’t be so hard on me because I give you an earful.”

“Oh, I won’t. Come to think of it, you look like you’re born to be a security guard.”

“No, you just learn when you face death a few times.”

“Again, don’t scare me. I will have to cancel my trip if you continue.”

“Oh, please don’t go. It’s such a hassle.”

“Hahaha... I’ll have to go just to give you a hard time.”

“Jeez...”