This was Hyang’s analysis of the situation:
- —England, just like in the history before Hyang’s intervention, had experienced the Wars of the Roses. For the time being, they lacked the capacity to focus outward.
- —England’s serious overseas expansion began during the reign of Elizabeth I—at most, there were still about 100 years remaining.
- —France had begun to show interest in overseas expansion through its alliance with Portugal. However, it still suffered from the aftermath of the Hundred Years’ War.
- —Portugal had grown faster compared to the history before Hyang’s intervention, but still lagged behind Spain.
- —While Portugal had naval superiority over Spain due to its dominance of African routes, it was overwhelmingly outmatched in terms of land forces, territory, and population.
- —If Spain’s progress could be hindered and the discovery of the New World delayed as much as possible, it would take Europe longer to shift its focus away from Africa.
- —The longer it took for Europe to turn its attention to the New World, the more time the Empire would have to assimilate New Frontier.
After organizing the situation to this point, Hyang muttered to himself.
“The conclusion is that binding Spain’s feet is the best option. And the best card for binding Spain’s feet is Gibraltar. The problem is that it seems to have fallen into Spanish hands earlier than expected. Could this be the butterfly effect I brought?”
This was Hyang’s suspicion, but it was indeed true.
***
The fall of the Granada Emirate, Islam’s last stronghold at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, occurred in 1492.
The earlier-than-expected fall of the Granada Emirate was an aftershock of the international war fought over Suez.
The international conflict between the Portuguese alliance and Spain—more precisely, the United Kingdom of Castile and Leon—led to the mass deployment of gunpowder weapons.
Although Spain had retreated after signing a humiliating treaty that amounted to defeat in the war over Suez, they still possessed large numbers of gunners and artillery.
Spain used these forces to bring about the fall of the Granada Emirate.
Gibraltar, acquired after the defeat of the Granada Emirate, began to gain even greater value as a strategic point.
To export goods and slaves obtained by Portugal in Africa to the eastern Mediterranean, or to export the Empire’s goods arriving at Suez to Northern Europe, passage through the Strait of Gibraltar was necessary.
The problem was that Spain’s control of Gibraltar endangered Portugal’s maritime transportation routes.
The Spanish fleet stationed at Gibraltar began to harass Portuguese merchant ships at every opportunity.
Of course, having accepted the Pope’s mediation, they couldn’t openly cause trouble. However, Portuguese merchant ships traveling alone became prey for Spanish naval forces.
As a countermeasure, Portugal formed large convoys, but this was highly uneconomical.
Another proposed solution was to use land routes across the African continent or to send goods to Northern Europe through Italy. However, these weren’t good options either.
The African interior was a place with absolutely no available information. There was a route following the North African region from Western Sahara, but all the countries along that route were hostile to Portugal.
The only fortunate thing was that these countries disliked Spain as much as they disliked Portugal.
Using Italy presented an even bigger problem. Already, a significant portion of profits was going to Italy, especially to the Medici family of Florence. Using Italy under these circumstances would be foolish.
Thus, Gibraltar had become shackles impeding Portugal’s growth.
***
With this background, Hyang was confident that Portugal would cooperate with the Empire.
“Portugal would think they have nothing to lose. After all, we’ll be the ones doing the fighting. But once we seize Gibraltar, Europe will have to be mindful of us from then on. Hmm…”
As if something suddenly came to mind, Hyang fell silent for a long while.
After considerable time had passed, Hyang smiled slightly and murmured.
“If we play our cards right, we could pull off a massive con. Originally, Columbus moved westward to find another route to India, right? But with the situation changed, this time it would be to find the Empire. So when they arrive—no, when the Empire comes from the west…”
Hyang’s eyes began to gleam dangerously.
“Until Spain discovered the New World, Europe was unaware of its existence. Even Columbus believed he had found India, right? Then, whether it’s Columbus or someone else coming from the west, if the Empire’s fleet stands firm and blocks them, they’ll immediately believe it. Kuk kuk kuk!”
Hyang began to laugh mischievously.
If they could make Europeans believe they hadn’t reached a new continent, Europe’s imperialistic expansion would be delayed far beyond expectations.
“To us it’s New Frontier, but externally it’s the Federation Empire! Kuk kuk kuk! This could also reduce Admiral Shin’s concerns. I should discuss this with him again tomorrow.”
The next day, after hearing Hyang’s story, Shin In-son slapped his knee in admiration.
“What a marvelous strategy! People generally don’t easily accept new things. Even when seeing something new, they tend to fit it into their existing framework, seeing only what they want to see and believing only what they want to believe. Therefore, it will take Europeans considerable time to discover the truth!”
Confirming Shin In-son’s strong support, Hyang immediately modified the plan.
“Then I shall inform Seoul of this as well.”
As a side note, the evaluation given by later foreign historians about this modification was as follows:
—The Great Federation Empire’s first international scam.
And Hyang and Wan earned the following infamous reputation:
—Those who hindered the development of geography.
Whenever such remarks were made, the Federation Empire’s spokesperson responded with:
—It wasn’t a scam, but a legitimate covert operation to protect national interests.
—Information about the New Frontier wasn’t withheld from other countries; it was already widely known internally. You simply found out late.
If criticism continued, the spokesperson would counter:
“How dare you insult the Empire’s great emperors? Do you want to die? Do you want to perish? Do you want to get killed? Are you prepared for a declaration of war?”
***
Although Hyang had formulated and decided to execute the plan against Europe, there was something he needed to confirm first.
The artillery testing ground in Area 52.
Hyang, Shin In-son, and naval officers brought by Shin gathered at the testing ground.
They had assembled to recheck the strength of ship hulls made from New Frontier’s timber.
“This might be like ‘building a roof on top of a roof’—unnecessarily repeating the same task—but shouldn’t those who will command these ships feel assured for everything to proceed properly?”
At Hyang’s words, Shin In-son and the naval officers all nodded.
Seeing this, Jang On bowed to Hyang.
“It is certainly a wise decision.”
But Jang On’s true feelings were exactly the opposite.
‘No! What about your previous statement?’
He wanted to raise his voice and question, but Jang On forcibly restrained himself.
Whether aware of Jang On’s feelings or not, Hyang appeared slightly excited.
‘No matter how I think about it, I can’t just pass up such an interesting opportunity! And the justification is good too!’
Hyang had found an excellent excuse to satisfy his enthusiasm.
“Then let us begin the experiment!”
Thirty mock hulls were set up—some constructed according to the original design’s thickness and assembly method, others with thickness reduced in five-fen increments, ultimately reducing the original thickness by 30 percent—and artillery pieces were fired at these hulls as targets.
The experiment was conducted under various conditions, using not only the Imperial Navy’s standard artillery but also newly deployed modern artillery, from simple iron solid shot to incendiary shells filled with gunpowder.
Subsequently, experiments continued with artillery pieces from Ming and Europe.
Finally, experiments proceeded to firing artillery at the thinnest mock hull until it was penetrated.
After confirming the experimental results, Hyang turned to Shin In-son and the naval commanders.
“What do you think? In my opinion, even with a 30 percent reduction, the strength seems more than sufficient.”
“This humble one also thinks it is sufficient.”
“Any differing opinions?”
No commanders expressed opposition to Hyang’s question. Despite the hull being constructed with timber reduced by 30 percent, it demonstrated adequate defensive capability.
With their concerns resolved, the commanders’ expressions actually brightened.
“With more space, we can load more drinking water and provisions, which is beneficial.”
“Indeed! Given New Frontier’s characteristics, we will frequently engage in long-distance voyages, and having abundant water and food supplies will enable us to employ more diverse tactics.”
“With increased space, we can store gunpowder and incendiary shells more safely.”
Seeing the commanders’ positive reactions, Hyang turned to Jang On.
“Then proceed according to the original plan. Thank you for your hard work.”
“I am deeply honored. I shall execute as commanded.”
***
Having resolved one concern, Hyang moved on to the next issue.
“How is the matter of growing vegetables on warships progressing?”
“We are experimenting with various options. For now, green onions and lettuce have shown the best results, so we will begin cultivating these onboard first.”
“Those two alone seem quite insufficient.”
“That’s why we continue to experiment.”
After pondering briefly at Shin In-son’s response, Hyang continued.
“There might be useful vegetables among New Frontier’s plants as well, so please investigate them. You should be able to get answers by asking the natives.”
“I shall do so.”
As long-distance voyages from the Korean peninsula to Suez became commonplace, maintaining the sailors’ health became crucial.
While it was beneficial to stay at intermediate stops like Southwest Islands, Malacca, and Temasek to recover health, the importance of diet during voyages was immediately highlighted.
The water issue was somewhat resolved through purifiers and distillers, born from Hyang’s enthusiastic research, but preserved food remained problematic.
While preserved food didn’t spoil easily, it was discovered that health couldn’t be maintained on preserved food alone, leading to the proposal of growing vegetables onboard ships.
When this proposal emerged, Hyang suggested mung bean sprouts and soybean sprouts based on memories from the internet, but this proved impractical.
Water was the issue.
While it was possible to supply drinking water using distillers and purifiers, growing soybean and mung bean sprouts was excessive.
Of course, additional distillers and purifiers could be installed, but space was limited.
So, this aspect was still under research.
“When advancing from the New Frontier to Europe, we might face the worst-case scenario of having no intermediate stopover. So, do your best to find alternatives.”
“I shall obey your command.”
As a side note, Europeans referred to Challenger-class warships as “Sea Brigands.” The biggest contributor to this nickname was the Challenger-class warships built in the New Frontier and deployed to Europe.