There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 254

It’s often said that Joseon [historical Korean kingdom] lacks significant natural resources, and there’s some truth to that.

Even the Unsan gold mine and the Dancheon silver mine barely suffice to support a small nation like Joseon.

However, they are still resources. Limestone, actively used for industrial purposes, boasts reserves abundant enough to last over a millennium.

“Although Joseon is small, limestone and iron veins are scattered throughout the land. These are the lifeblood of our nation’s development. Explore where these resources lie and map them.”

While Crown Prince Lee Je is a man from the modern era, he can’t possibly remember the locations of every mine in Korea.

Therefore, whenever he hears of a promising rock discovery, he dispatches people to excavate it.

Still, there’s no reason for Choi Hae-san, a high-ranking official in the Military Supplies Command, to involve himself directly.

He came down to Gampo-hyeon in Gyeongsang-do simply to avoid responsibility.

‘If I err, they’ll blame me.’

So, he fled to Gyeongsang-do to make himself difficult to find.

‘Even so, it would be nice if something had turned up.’

Clearly, there were no remarkable resources.

The discovery of some graphite was welcome, given the increased demand for pencils, but nothing else stood out.

‘Is this a waste of time?’

Choi Hae-san sighed.

‘The rock is a bit soft.’

It was so soft that powder rubbed off on his fingers when he touched it lightly.

Choi Hae-san, having handled countless materials in the Military Supplies Command, recognized the rock.

It’s used as plaster for building walls or, more commonly, for making braziers [small, portable heaters].

Choi Hae-san, losing interest, dropped the rock fragment he was holding.

‘It can be ground and used to make clay for braziers or for kneading.’

Then, something flashed through Choi Hae-san’s mind.

‘Wait.’

Clay, clay.

The word ‘clay’ triggered a connection to his recent stray thoughts.

Chungnyeong Daegun’s [Prince Chungnyeong, later King Sejong] gunpowder had clearly failed.

The cotton soaked in the substance Chungnyeong Daegun created exploded without the detonator controlling it.

But what if it wasn’t cotton?

Chungnyeong Daegun reached for cotton, the most obvious choice, while seeking something to absorb the ‘monster substance,’ but clay is also well-suited for absorption.

Choi Hae-san’s gaze returned to the rock fragment he had just dropped.

‘Could this work?’

He ran away to avoid involvement in crazy schemes, but now he had to step up and do something crazy again.

===

It wasn’t long before news of Chungnyeong Daegun’s explosion experiment reached my ears.

Choi Hae-san sent a letter to inform me and then fled to Gyeongju before I could respond.

‘I wondered why I’ve been hearing explosions so often lately.’

In Joseon, that alone would have caused a great stir.

There were quite a few coups before and after the founding of the country. My grandfather and father’s sins run deep.

Initially, the people of the capital were in an uproar, thinking a riot had broken out, but as they heard the sound of gunpowder exploding from the Military Supplies Command from time to time, they all became accustomed to it.

In fact, the explosions of this era are only about as loud as construction site noise.

The real problem is that my brother is conducting explosion experiments.

‘Treason?!’

I could imagine the officials’ eyes widening in alarm upon hearing the news.

‘No, that’s not the problem.’

If my father heard about it, my head could be cut off.

Traditionally, if the younger brother errs, the eldest son is scolded as well.

I felt goosebumps on my back and hurriedly started to control the situation.

“This is a secret experiment being conducted by the Military Supplies Command under my orders. Do not reveal it to the outside world.”

After silencing those involved, I finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, sulfuric acid and saltpeter are expensive, but they aren’t items that are completely forbidden to obtain.

After taking quick action, I summoned my brother to the East Palace [residence of the Crown Prince].

“So, do you have anything to say?”

“~~~.”

When I asked, looking at the rice chest, I heard a thumping sound from inside and someone shouting something.

Do cautiously revealed his face as I opened the lid of the rice chest.

“Brother.”

“Yeah.”

“Wasn’t this thrown away?”

“His Majesty told me to leave it there.”

I never imagined that I would be the one to retrieve the rice chest that Lee Bang-won [King Taejong] had stashed in the East Palace’s storage room in preparation for a possible situation.

“How did you live here, brother? It’s really frustrating.”

“If you want to live, you’ll live. Reflect in there.”

I spoke while looking at my brother trapped in the rice chest, which he was using as a thinking space.

What would have happened if he had made a mistake while manufacturing gunpowder and caused an explosion?

“You also took a hit from Madu [a type of explosive device] directly, didn’t you, brother?”

“······.”

I had nothing to say since he was hitting me with facts so shamelessly.

“Don’t worry. Did you think this brother didn’t think that far ahead? I only made a small amount myself, and I had others do the manufacturing.”

As expected of a prince, he never does anything himself.

Well, I don’t personally grab a hammer and tell people to make this and that either.

Do was looking for ‘someone who’s willing to risk their life to see something amazing,’ and surprisingly, many people volunteered.

They seemed like romantic guys.

“Didn’t you directly watch the explosion experiment?”

“That couldn’t be helped. I had to check it myself.”

I took the memo pad that he handed out of the rice chest and read it. As expected of a model student, he had faithfully written down his research notes.

He checked the ignition process and explosive power, and recorded comparisons for each process and material.

According to this, Chungnyeong [Grand Prince Chungnyeong, later King Sejong] didn’t seem to have intended to use sulfuric acid from the beginning.

He experimented by mixing various things, and that’s how he got his hands on sulfuric acid.

‘Isn’t gunpowder made by mixing saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur?’

‘That is correct.’

‘Sulfuric acid is made by extracting only the fire energy from sulfur, so wouldn’t it be better? How about mixing this in?’

But this was the right answer.

Mixing sulfuric acid and saltpeter can create nitric acid. And if you heat a mixed acid made by combining sulfuric acid and nitric acid and then soak cellulose in it….

‘That’s nitrocellulose.’

Of course, it’s a terribly unstable substance like the one Do made.

It catches fire even with minor friction.

The combination ratio must also be a mess, so it will be much more unstable than the nitrocellulose created in the original history.

Still, success is success.

He proudly wrote ‘success’ in his memo pad.

“Why do you think it’s a success? Isn’t it something that explodes on its own without even having a chance to detonate properly? Is it a success because it exploded?”

Do answered my question.

“But it leaves less residue.”

My eyebrows twitched as Do suddenly hit the nail on the head.

The gunpowder I made exhibits almost the maximum explosive power that black powder can produce, but even so, the residue problem cannot be solved.

When you fire a matchlock gun, acrid smoke rises, and sticky residue sticks to the gun.

That’s why it takes so long to reload a matchlock gun.

If you want to fire again, you have to clean the inside of the gun beforehand.

‘If you think about it, it’s definitely a strength.’

Choi Hae-san also strongly expressed his intention to catch people off guard by beating around the bush.

In his eyes, with his ‘practical’ mindset, the gunpowder Do made would be something he couldn’t use at all.

But Do brushed all that aside and expressed the opinion that it was an achievement just to have created something new anyway.

He’ll think about how to use this later.

That’s a great mindset befitting my brother.

‘Well, the Five Elements theory that fire energy is like this and that is wrong, but.’

Still, this is quite a feat for a first step.

I was only going to use him as an administrative official, but who knew he had this kind of talent.

‘Of course, it’s thanks to the research methodology I created.’

I can say that about half of the credit is mine.

‘Still, well done.’

I reached out to him and took him out of the rice chest.

Do groaned and stood up.

I was in there for several days, stop exaggerating.

“But why gunpowder of all things?”

Like, some prism experiment or something peaceful?

Then Do dusted off his knees and said.

“It’s cool.”

······My sin is deep.

What can I say to my brother?

He only observes the experiments and makes his subordinates do them, so I should tell him to follow safety rules well.

“Is the explosion experiment proceeding safely?”

“Hehe, don’t worry.”

When Do gave a signal to his servant, the servant cupped his hands and shouted loudly.

“Explosion!”

As soon as that sound was heard, Do threw himself.

In less than a second, Do rolled and rolled and went under the floor of the East Palace.

“How was it?”

I was dumbfounded by his professional demeanor.

He must have seen somewhere how to dig and enter a trench when conducting explosion experiments at the Military Supplies Command.

I shook my head.

“At this rate, there’s no need to worry about him dying anywhere.”

I should get him a helmet from the Training Command later.

===

I’m getting off work late these days.

‘Wasn’t the emperor originally a work-from-home job?’

To not be able to leave work even while working from home, isn’t this just living at work instead of working from home?

‘It’s all because of the regency.’

Only after washing up in hot water and finally returning to my room in the East Palace did I feel like I was finally off work.

The Crown Prince Consort Creation Project cannot be stopped even at this hour.

Therefore, Consort Ju was waiting for me without sleeping.

‘I don’t think there’s any need to rush.’

But that’s just my perspective, and Consort Ju, who is always in the inner court, will feel differently.

Even the royal elders will be waiting for good news without showing it.

After finishing my overtime work and washing up again, Consort Ju was already fast asleep.

“Hehe, that’s embarrassing······.”

“Pfft.”

A small laugh escaped my lips at Consort Ju’s sleep talking.

I wonder what kind of dream she’s having.

Ah, lying here like this, I feel like I’m falling asleep······.

===

When I came to my senses, the world was on fire.

The Gwanghwamun Square [main plaza in Seoul] where I am now has long been engulfed in flames.

What is it? Did a war break out?

So, did napalm bombs set Seoul ablaze?

But the enemy was not some insignificant modern army.

“Wh-what is that?”

My pupils shook as if an earthquake had struck.

What was destroying Seoul was the statue of King Sejong the Great floating in the air.

– Weeeng!

The laser that shot out from his eyes swept around, and flames soared.

What is going on?

Without realizing it, I pinched my cheek,

“It doesn’t hurt at all.”

Ah.

It’s a dream.

“Fire, fire!”

The missiles fired from the fighter jets in the sky bombarded the Mecha King Sejong.

“D-did we get him?”

The explosion covered the statue, but King Sejong the Great was unharmed.

– Pitiful and pathetic beings.

The laser spread out in all directions, and the fighter jets were shot down one after another.

King Sejong, having chased away the flies, turned his head and looked in my direction.

– The Hall of Worthies [group of scholars under King Sejong] will no longer tolerate your troublesome behavior!

No, what did I do?

But King Sejong, gathering the laser in his eyes, did not wait.

Wait, wait, stop.

Chungnyeong [King Sejong’s birth name], you weren’t originally that kind of character.

Just as the laser was about to hit me, my body floated up.

“What are you staring blankly at!”

“G-Grandfather!”

Yi Seong-gye [founder of the Joseon Dynasty], with a halo above his head, snatched me up and ascended into the sky.

But wasn’t this old man dead?

Well, it doesn’t matter since it’s a dream.

Then Yi Seong-gye shouted cheerfully.

“There’s no time to explain! Hurry and hold on!”

Since you say so, as a man, I can’t help but follow,

······What the heck is this dog dream [absurd dream]?

< Flame Man (2) > End

ⓒ Pitkong