Empire of the Ring

Copenhagen on the eve of the wedding was all in a festive mood.

The city was crowded with broadcasting companies and reporters from all over the world, countless tourists, police, and soldiers from all over the country trying to maintain security.

In particular, young backpackers who came out of curiosity and jealousy were everywhere. The story in the fairy tale was about to actually unfold in front of their eyes, so they were there to make a good memory.

The curiosity was multiplied by the marriage of the princess of a well-known country and the princess of a Grand Duchy, who came alive from a legendary story. In addition, the prince of the mysterious state had a lot of money. People said that Princess Isabella had become Cinderella.

For the Danish royal family, it was fortunate to be rumored like that since marrying into a rich, royal family saved its face. It was also an impressive point that the Arirang Autonomous State was actually governed by the Archduke and the prince consort—whereas other European royal families were merely symbolic nowadays. Princess Isabella, who was marrying into a powerful Archduke family was the object of envy by many.

Gossipers even referred Szechenyi and Isabella living together in Denmark after their wedding as an invasion of the Arirang Autonomous State.

It was now an open secret that the Arirang state had established an investment company in Copenhagen and become a major shareholder of the Danish shipyard.

It was hard to imagine how much money that the autonomous state had after it had ordered seven ice breakers which cost about 100 million dollars each. It was impossible to invest in such an amount to the shipyard that was going bankrupt if the state was not willing to take over the shipyard.

Moreover, the rumors were amplified when Szechenyi was appointed as an executive officer of the Royal Motor Company not long ago. It was not malicious to describe it as an invasion of the Arirang Autonomous State. These days, even Denmark was suffering from the high unemployment rate, so foreign investors were highly welcomed.

Due to Szechenyi’s wedding, the existence of the Arirang Autonomous State was clearly imprinted on people’s minds.

***

The streets were full of people, that there was no room for any more people.

To see the bride and bridegroom riding in a fancy carriage, so many people had come to the city. Youngho worried that there might be a crushing accident due to the crowdedness.

People’s showed almost a frenzy of enthusiasm when the fancy-clad policemen on horses took the lead, followed by the newlyweds’ carriage.

Szechenyi and Isabella, who came out of the cathedral after the wedding, waved to the crowd joyfully. People shouted and blessed the newlyweds as if their relatives were getting married. Envoys from each country who attended the wedding ceremony at the cathedral had to be trapped inside the cathedral because of the crowds outside that did not leave the cathedral even after the wedding carriage passed by them already. The cafes and bars on the streets started to give away, so they were waiting for the treats.

“Shall we walk, too? How long are you going to stay here?”

“The queen and king are still waiting here. We can’t leave before them. Also, if we go out in this attire, all the people outside will flock around us like clouds.”

Youngho was formally dressed for the wedding ceremony, so anyone could tell that he had been invited to the wedding if he stepped outside the cathedral.

“They’ve gathered so much, I don’t understand why they’re so excited for other people’s party.”

“It’s curiosity that the media created. That TV camera’s still working, we’ve also been in the shot a few times.”

“Oh, it will be sent to Korea, too.”

“I suppose so.”

“I’m sure all our friends are watching. Man, we’re going to get a lot of phone calls.”

“I don’t think they’re going to recognize us on TV.”

“Hey, there are only a few Asians here, maybe about ten. Don’t you think we might stick out from the crowd?”

Yun-suh, who had been listening to Youngho and Jong-il’s conversation, suddenly shouted.

“Oh! Oh, my God, I’ve advertised to my friends from college that I’m going to attend the wedding.”

“Well, then they’ll recognize our faces too.”

“No, the girls who dated Jong-il oppa must’ve seen this. Some of them still talks about him.”

Jong-il’s face turned yellow at her remark.

“Jeez, Yun-suh, you decided to put me into trouble, didn’t you? Why did you tell them that?”

“Obviously I didn’t think about you being on the air too. When they reach out to me, I have no choice but to give them your number. You do the rest because you deserve that.”

The look on Yun-suh’s face indicated that she was making fun of Jong-il, but Jong-il seemed to be frustrated to think about those girls he had hurt. What he did when he was young and stupid was still haunting him.

“Youngho, if I leave the state without a word, consider it as Yun-suh’s fault.”

“Well, you son of a b*tch, what did you do to make those innocent girls cry?”

“Anyone who’s never been in a passionate, burning relationship will never know what I’m feeling.”

“Oh, yeah? I’ve never had a flaming love affair, so I don’t have to worry about it.”

“Jeez, as a friend you are supposed to be supportive when I’m in pain.”

Karajan did not understand a thing they said because they talked in Korean, but if she did, she would have plucked out all of Jong-il’s hair.

The serious royal wedding experience ended with teasing Jong-il.

***

“Please participate in the development of offshore gas fields. We’ll provide you with unlimited supplies for your needs. Please send a working group as soon as possible. I’m giving you a wedding present because Denmark is now in a relationship with us, Kazakhstan.”

“This is too much for a wedding gift. The Danish government won’t turn it down, Mr. President. Please let us know if you need a technical partnership. I’ll return your favor with that.”

Danish Prime Minister Rasmussen replied to President Nazarbayev with a bright smile. Denmark, which was only a one-fifth of the Korean Peninsula in its size, had 5.6 million people. The resources that the nation consumed per year were not much, but it was still a great gift for the country.

“Although Kazakhstan is behind Denmark for many years, we have hope since the young talents of our country are working hard. In particular, the Arirang state is creating a fresh breeze. Please help us a lot. I’m looking forward to work with the Danish government.”

“Of course. The Arirang Autonomous State and the royal family of Denmark are now bound with a marriage. If you tell the Duke of the state what you need, we’ll add our strength to Kazakhstan. When the working group goes back to your country, we will bring a gift package from Denmark.”

“I’ll look forward to it.”

Perhaps because Youngho was there, the dialogue between two leaders of the two countries went quite amicable.

President Nazarbayev also flattered Youngho by saying that he was a good friend who brought good fortune as he tapped on Youngho’s shoulder.

The old my president was smoothly doing diplomatic sales based on the overflowing underground resources of Kazakhstan. Prime Minister Rasmussen also responded to him pleasantly.

Now that the two leaders had reached a general agreement, Youngho would be in charge of the details of their business. Political remarks between the leaders were bound to be a feast of words. If they come down to the working level, they would have more to contend with, which could lead to unpleasant results depending on their interests. Youngho was responsible for coordinating that.

Today’s conversation would soon be announced to the royal palace, and it was self-evident that it would spread to political circles. The thought of the aftermath made Youngho smile. Denmark would soon realize how beneficial it was to take Szechenyi as the husband of Princess Isabella. Thanks to this, not only Szechenyi but also Youngho would quickly emerge as indispensable to Danish government officials.

Nazarbayev’s visit to Denmark was going as intended.

He was getting a flurry of requests for a meeting from politicians and foreign ministers from all over the country as a congratulatory delegation for the wedding. Most of the envoys who attended the wedding were ministers who worked on practical affairs or influential politicians.

President Aliyev of Azerbaijan was also seen meeting with politicians and foreign ministers from around the world to make and build connections.

In that political gathering, Youngho screamed in joy in his mind since he was called around busily. This was because the two presidents were engaged in sales diplomacy using their connection to Youngho. In the process, he greeted foreign ministers and politicians of each country, creating awareness that Youngho was a necessary person if other countries wanted to get involved in business with the two countries.

“Prince consort, I have a call from the Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom who would like to meet you. He asked when it would be a good time for you.”

“Really?! He’s one of the busiest people in the world. Why would he want to see me? You didn’t hear him wrong, did you?”

“The secretary of the Foreign Secretary came in person and asked me.”

“The high man wants to meet me, I should, of course, accept his request. Did he have any special comment?”

“No, he just wanted to see you.”

The Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom was quite a reputable position with high power and authority. He was the head of the MI6, which was an intelligence force like the US CIA. Even without the Prime Minister’s permission, he had the power to move the force.

A person in such a high position was seeking to meet the head of the Arirang Autonomous State, which was a huge mystery. Youngho had already exchanged greetings and business cards with him at the wedding and reception. Since there was no reason to say hello again, there must be a good reason for the meeting.

“Can you tell them that I’ll leave tomorrow free of schedule. The Foreign Secretary must be one of the busiest people in the world. I have to let him pick the time of the meeting.”

“I see. I’ll get in touch with you right away.”

“Suh Min-seok, find out who the British Foreign minister has been meeting with. Contact the reporters. They must know.”

“If you ask the reporters about that, they’ll ask for a deal.”

“Get in touch with a smart reporter and tell him I’ll give him a good exclusive later. Then he’ll find out about it with all of the resources he got.”