Chapter 134: Defense Industry

“This is ridiculous.”

Director Cha Dong-hyuk shook his head with a wry smile.

“A Taurus penetration simulator? This isn’t just an earthquake test—it’s practically a full-scale combat experiment.”

Park Cheol-jin looked equally stunned as he chimed in.

“The Taurus missile wasn’t even on the list for this technical review.”

The KEPD-350, also known as the Taurus, is a German-made precision-guided cruise missile.

It’s a beast equipped with a 500kg bunker-buster warhead.

This weapon can penetrate up to 6 meters of reinforced concrete and dozens of meters underground—a cutting-edge missile still under consideration for domestic adoption.

It seemed they intended to decide on its adoption through this test.

“I understand this decision caught you off guard, but we’d appreciate your cooperation as it’s the Ministry of Defense’s call.”

Major General Kim Dae-hoon, the head of the Defense Facilities Management Headquarters, approached quietly and spoke.

I glanced at him before replying.

“Does this mean we’ve secured the contract for this round?”

“Of course. This fifth test will proceed separately from the technical review.”

Honestly, I was curious too.

Could the bunker I designed really withstand a direct hit from that monstrous missile?

But there was something I needed to address first.

“From what we’ve confirmed, the concrete used in Ahsung’s bunker seems to differ from the specifications they submitted. Can you verify this?”

Major General Kim’s expression hardened momentarily before he slowly nodded.

“Actually, we’ve also found it suspicious. After verifying whether the submitted specs match the construction materials, if there’s an issue, the company will face disqualification from the review and future bidding restrictions.”

“In that case, I’ll fully cooperate.”

As Major General Kim nodded, several military officers nearby began exchanging radio communications and moving swiftly.

The observation stands, which had encircled half the test site, were emptied.

Ahsung Construction’s personnel quietly boarded their vehicles and left the scene.

They had already been eliminated in the fourth test.

This fifth test would be conducted privately, involving only a few of us and Ministry of Defense officials.

[The fifth test is classified as a military-level combat simulation, so all general observers must vacate the test site.]

The announcement continued over the speakers.

[Only personnel from the Ministry of Defense, Defense Acquisition Program Administration, and the Agency for Defense Development are permitted to attend. All video recordings will be classified as Ministry of Defense confidential.]

Soon, the lights in the spectator stands dimmed, and the cameras surrounding the test site were powered down.

Information security officers were stationed throughout,

and the test site transformed instantly into a military operation zone.

“Wow, the atmosphere… it really feels like a military drill,” Seong-hwan muttered, swallowing hard.

Director Cha Dong-hyuk stood beside me, his expression grim.

“If this bunker withstands the test, we’ll likely have a monopoly on all bunker-related projects from the Ministry of Defense moving forward.”

It would prove that domestically designed technology could resist the penetration power of a Taurus-class missile.

At that moment, the ground rumbled.

At the southern end of the test site, a sealed entrance automatically opened, revealing a long towing trailer.

“…Is that the simulator?”

On the trailer sat a gray mock warhead resembling the actual Taurus.

Though it lacked a real warhead, its impact and penetration capabilities were set to combat levels.

Every detail—warhead weight, fuselage mass, and descent acceleration—was identical, a “monster with only its lethality removed.”

“Just looking at it is terrifying.”

Seong-hwan shook his head.

His eyes were filled with worry about whether the bunker could truly withstand such a fall from the sky.

Others shared the same concern.

If it really holds up, that’s incredible.

I, too, was curious about the outcome.

My heart was racing wildly.

Amidst the tense atmosphere, Major General Kim’s radio transmission crackled.

[Fifth test warhead ready for deployment! Airspace above the drop path secured. Airspace lockdown in effect.]

Soon, the Air Force radio network buzzed,

and the aerial surveillance radar activated.

All civilian air traffic within a 5-kilometer radius of the test site vanished.

From the south, the faint roar of a supersonic engine began to echo.

[F-15K has entered the zone.]

A control officer reported over the radio.

[Mock warhead carrier is functioning normally. Ejection in 3 minutes.]

The test site was suffocatingly silent.

No one spoke.

No one moved.

Only the bunker stood steadfast in the center of the site.

Its surface was coated in dust,

and its massive steel doors seemed ready to face the heart of the blast.

I unconsciously clenched my fists.

This bunker was a project I’d been involved in from the initial design to construction.

According to design simulations, it couldn’t withstand the impact of a Taurus.

As far as I knew, no existing bunker could survive a direct hit from a Taurus (KEPD-350).

However, with Midas’s abilities pushed to their maximum, the outcome was unpredictable.

[60 seconds until ejection.]

Director Cha Dong-hyuk held his breath.

Park Cheol-jin, his face stern, fixed his binoculars on the airspace above the bunker.

Seong-hwan’s palms were sweating as he clenched his fists tightly.

“…How fast will it be falling?”

In response to a question from someone in the Ministry of Defense, the test supervisor answered.

“When dropped from 10,000 meters, the terminal phase velocity reaches approximately Mach 1.2, or 1,400 kilometers per hour.”

“Whoa…”

The person who asked inhaled sharply.

That sound filled the silent test site like the only background noise.

[Mock warhead ejection in 30 seconds. All personnel stand by.]

The clouds above stirred.

A massive transport plane emerged in the distance, its silhouette unmistakable.

Behind it, two F-15K escort fighters circled.

This was no ordinary test.

It was a trial to gauge the limits of my Midas abilities.

[10 seconds until ejection.]

[9…]

[8…]

[7…]

I could hear my own heartbeat.

A tremor unlike anything I’d felt when using Midas’s abilities on lenses, camera modules, or smartphones.

[3…]

[2…]

[1…]

[Eject!]

Thud—!

It sounded as if the very air itself was tearing apart.

A massive gray object began its descent from the sky.

What first appeared as a mere dot

plunged through the atmosphere with a deafening roar in the blink of an eye.

Kaboom—!

The Taurus penetration simulator, plummeting at hundreds of meters per second, struck the bunker’s central blast-resistant apex with its immense speed, weight, and inherent penetration force.

In that instant, though the test site didn’t explode, it felt as if it had.

Sandstorms and shockwaves ripped through the ground,

and fierce winds swept across the site’s perimeter.

Vibrations traveled up my spine from the floor,

and steel structures groaned under the strain.

Everyone held their breath.

High-speed cameras analyzed the scene in real time, displaying the footage on the control monitors.

After the high-speed descent and collision,

The mock warhead burrowed into the bunker’s outer wall.

Contrary to expectations, the core’s crack propagation halted.

[100% impact force confirmed.]

[Bunker outer wall deformation: 2.3%.]

[No internal core collapse.]

[Residual vibration damping rate: 76%.]

[Central support structure undamaged.]

[Control room electronic systems functioning normally.]

[Dummy survival rate: 100%.]

As the final statement echoed,

no one spoke, yet everyone felt it.

Our bunker had withstood the onslaught of that terrifying monster alone.

“Unbelievable…” Director Cha Dong-hyuk murmured.

His words were laced with astonishment, admiration, and fear.

Park Cheol-jin turned to face me.

“…Is this really possible?”

I smiled quietly.

“You saw it with your own eyes. What’s there to ask?”

“As I said, you’ve got magic in your hands, brother.”

Seong-hwan’s voice echoed through the silent space.

Then, the review chairman’s voice rang out.

“Records show no precedent for such structural integrity after a Taurus simulator drop.”

He continued,

“With this test, Dojin Frontier has elevated the standard of domestic bunkers… no, leapfrogged several stages ahead.”

The chairman’s final words

were a declaration aimed at the high-ranking military officials filling the test site.

Applause erupted soon after.

Someone quietly removed their hat and bowed toward us.

And shortly thereafter,

a document was placed before me.

[Priority Negotiation Partner for Comprehensive Defense Facility Construction Project: Dojin Frontier]

It bore a bright red seal.

A few days later,

the temporary conference room at the Ministry of Defense buzzed with quiet proceedings as relevant officials and the priority negotiation partner finalized their agreement.

I stepped away for a moment, standing by the window.

Outside, heavy machinery was still busy cleaning up the test site, including the test bunker, days after the event.

“Sir.”

Park Cheol-jin handed me a cup of coffee.

“Thanks.”

After taking a sip, I kept my gaze fixed outside and asked,

“…What about Ahsung?”

“The Ministry of Defense just made an official announcement. They confirmed fraudulent construction.”

I turned to look at Park Cheol-jin.

“Confirmed?”

“Yes. As we suspected, they found widespread use of high-strength metal resin concrete in the bunker’s construction, which didn’t match the submitted specifications. It was detected in samples and confirmed through real-time sensor logs showing strength discrepancies.”

“…What a foolish move.”

I shook my head.

“Resin concrete has strong earthquake resistance but is defenseless against electromagnetic pulses.”

“That’s why it was completely destroyed in the EMP test. Of course, even without that, they would’ve failed in the third round…”

Park Cheol-jin shook his head as he continued.

“The Ministry of Defense has suspended their bidding qualifications for three years. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration is considering bidding restrictions, and word is… they’re essentially out of the bunker business.”

I took a deep breath.

“Chairman Joo Eun-cheon didn’t seem so careless, despite his loose talk.”

“It looks like Chairman Joo wasn’t involved in this incident.”

“Hmm?”

“Rumors among reporters today suggest the original designer and the actual construction supervisor were switched. There’s also talk of unauthorized material changes to compress the schedule.”

Still,

there was no way Chairman Joo Eun-cheon wouldn’t have known about the use of metal resin concrete.

If he stepped back despite knowing,

it must have been a directive from above, regardless of his intentions.

An order directly from Chairman Cheon Ho-tae.

The thought of shattering Chairman Cheon’s plans filled me with an indescribable thrill.

And now, with Ahsung’s participation in Ministry of Defense projects disrupted,

I planned to seize every opportunity that came my way.