Black Corporation: Joseon

King Sejong’s 20th year (1440, Gyeongshin year)

When August arrived, merchant ships flocked in with the monsoon winds.

These incoming merchant ships dropped anchor at the waiting area established on Dallido, a little distance from the Mokpo Naval Base.

This was one of Joseon’s measures to prevent the landing of infectious diseases.

Merchant ships docked at Dallido, regardless of nationality, had to undergo a mandatory five-day quarantine period before they could enter the trading port built near the Mokpo Naval Base.

The coming and going of these merchant ships was a spectacle for the local residents.

Ships with strange shapes and hulls painted in all sorts of vibrant colors were excellent eye candy. They were also good customers.

Locals in small wooden boats approached the merchant ships to sell fresh fruits, food, and alcohol. The sailors, who hadn’t had proper food during their long voyages, warmly welcomed the locals. As a result, veteran sailors who had made several trips to Joseon not only carried Joseon currency but could also engage in simple Korean conversation.

Though “conversation” mostly consisted of just “Alcohol!” and “Expensive!”

Among the residents watching the ships entering Dallido, Chiseok nudged his companion’s side.

“What?”

His companion, who had been observing other ships, asked with a disinterested face. Chiseok asked back:

“Did the Challenger go out, have babies, and come back?”

“Is the Challenger some runaway goat? Having babies and coming back? Are you talking nonsense after eating well?”

At his companion’s rebuke, Chiseok raised his voice, pointing to one side:

“Open your eyes properly and look over there!”

Seeing what Chiseok was pointing at, his companion muttered with a dumbfounded expression:

“You’re right?”

Behind a Challenger-class warship heading towards Dallido, three ships of similar shape but much smaller in size were following closely.

Although their hull lengths were shorter, the ships with high prows and sterns were almost identical copies of the Challenger-class warship.

“Where are those ships from?”

The ships following the Challenger-class warship were from Portugal.

***

“Prince, we have arrived in Joseon.”

At the captain’s words, Prince Henry came up to the deck.

“It looks lively.”

The captain nodded at Prince Henry’s impression as he looked at the distant Mokpo Naval Base and the adjacent trading port.

“Indeed. It seems full of vitality.”

Nodding at the captain’s words, Prince Henry clenched his fist and muttered:

“Having come to the ‘Land of Flowers’, we must achieve results. We must do our best in negotiations. Negotiation is the only way.”

There was an inexplicable desperation in Prince Henry’s words as he tried to steady himself.

***

Recently, Prince Henry had found himself in an almost cliff-edge situation.

‘Outwardly rich, inwardly poor.’

This was Prince Henry’s current state.

To stay ahead of other competitors like Spain, England, and France – especially Spain – in the race to circumnavigate Africa, Henry had invested enormous funds.

The problem was that it was too much for the Kingdom of Portugal to support all this funding.

As a result, Henry had to join hands with Florence capital, symbolized by Cosimo de’ Medici.

However, as the competition intensified, more and more funds were needed, and Henry had to borrow money from other capitalists – mainly Portuguese nobles.

But unlike Cosimo, these new investors had less patience. Due to the constant demands for results from these investors, Henry had to distribute the territories of colonies acquired through exploration to them and supply them with slaves.

The nobles began to reap considerable profits by operating large numbers of slaves on the lands they had been distributed.

However, Henry was still just maintaining the status quo. He had gained the reputation of being a “reliable patron of explorers,” but he didn’t have much to show for it in his hands.

As this situation persisted, even the royal family began to look at Prince Henry with critical eyes, and the merchants sent by Cosimo de’ Medici began to scrutinize the ledgers more meticulously.

“To break through this difficulty, only the ‘Land of Flowers’ is the answer!”

Prince Henry, firmly resolved, headed for Suez across the desert. He was waiting for the fleet that had circumnavigated Africa to arrive in Suez according to the pre-arranged plan. And the timing of that fleet’s arrival would be when ships sent from Joseon were staying in Suez.

“Go to Joseon with Joseon’s ships! If we can obtain exclusive trading rights with Joseon, we can solve everything!”

This was Henry’s plan.

“With the power of our Portugal, we can obtain exclusive trading rights as much as we want!”

Henry was even prepared to use force if necessary.

However, Henry’s confidence began to crumble little by little as time passed.

***

Henry’s confidence began to crumble from the moment he saw Joseon’s ship anchored in Suez.

-Hull length 120 to 140 cubits (about 62m).

Although he had known about it through rumors collected in Alexandria and later through reports summarizing what he had personally observed in Suez, the Joseon warship he saw in person was massive and looked solid.

Henry was slightly intimidated seeing the hull rising so high that he had to crane his neck upwards, but he still tried his best to think positively.

“Seeing that they send at most two ships, it means they don’t have many of these large ships. If we form a proper fleet, we have a chance.”

While he was making such positive judgments, the fleet he had been waiting for arrived.

While the Portuguese fleet that arrived in Suez was resting, Henry, accompanied by an interpreter, sought out the Joseon people.

“I would like to follow you to Joseon along with my fleet.”

The Joseon person who heard Henry’s request through the interpreter discussed with others. After exchanging opinions in incomprehensible Korean, the Joseon people seemed to reach an agreement, nodded, and conveyed their answer through the interpreter.

“It’s a treacherous journey, but you can follow if you’re confident.”

At the interpreter’s words, Henry immediately replied.

“I’m confident. Thank you.”

Returning to his quarters, Henry smirked and mocked the Joseon people.

“If you’re confident on the treacherous journey? These are people who have endured the triangular waves at the tip of Africa. They’re really underestimating us.”

The triangular waves created by the meeting of Atlantic and Indian Ocean currents were predators that devoured ships carrying inexperienced sailors. The fleet over there had broken through such seas.

Trusting his sailors and ships, Henry felt the Joseon people’s words were absurd.

Three days later, the Joseon ships departed from Suez.

***

As the Joseon ships that left Suez via Aden moved further east, Henry’s confidence crumbled more and more.

The first factor that shattered Henry’s confidence was the large Joseon ships leisurely cutting through the sea ahead.

The large Joseon ships, which he had expected not to be many, increased by three more in Chittagong.

“Five that we’ve seen so far, considering maintenance and supply, at least ten…”

As he roughly estimated the numbers, Henry shook his head slightly.

“Ten such large ships… Is it possible? Ships aren’t something you can make cheaply… And if you think about recruiting sailors…”

Relying on the experience gained while supporting the explorations conducted so far, Henry recalculated the numbers and concluded:

“More than ten is impossible. Ten is the limit.”

Although he reached this conclusion, Henry’s expression was not good at all.

“Ten such large ships… We’ll have to mobilize at least 1/3 of our fleet. This could lead to a deficit if we’re not careful.”

However, not long after, Henry had to recalculate.

What made Henry recalculate was the firepower of the Challenger-class warships.

Before departing from Chittagong, Henry hired a guide for a large sum.

“You say you know the way to Kitai and Joseon well?”

“I know it very well.”

The Kitai guide answered very confidently.

“We want to go to Joseon along with those Joseon ships.”

At Henry’s words, the guide immediately frowned.

“There are many pirates on the way from here to Joseon. Is your armament solid?”

At the guide’s question, the captains’ expressions sharpened, and they all slightly drew their swords.

However, despite the captains’ menacing attitude, the guide snickered and burst into laughter.

“Swords aren’t enough. Got cannons?”

“We do.”

“Many?”

“Enough.”

“You’ll need a lot. Joseon ships have so many cannons that even pirates don’t mess with them. But they instinctively rush at weak ships. Of course, Joseon ships do step in to stop them, but still, a few get eaten. Well, it’s like a school of sharks.”

“We have cannons, and we have arquebuses too.”

“I don’t know what that is, but you should be prepared. Especially the route from Chittagong to Malacca is full of pirates.”

***

The guide’s words were no joke.

The moment they entered the narrow strait heading from Chittagong to Malacca, pirates lying in ambush rushed in from all directions.

As the pirates rushed in, the fleet of the Arab merchant Mansur, which had been moving along with the Joseon ships, gathered in one place, and the Joseon ships began to surround them.

“Hurry, get in there! Quickly!”

At the guide’s urging, Henry’s fleet gathered with Mansur’s fleet. And outside, a battle broke out as Joseon ships surrounded them.

And seeing the firepower of the Joseon military displayed there, Henry had to recalculate again.

Five Challenger-class warships formed a circular formation, but the gaps were quite wide.

Therefore, the battle’s aspect was entirely about pirate ships trying to break through these gaps to take merchant ships hostage, and the Challenger-class warships’ response to prevent this.

Thanks to constant fighting since the start of Joseon’s long-distance trade, both the Joseon military and the pirates were battle-hardened experts.

“Impressive. Both sides…”

Both the pirates trying to break through the gaps with amazing maneuvering skills and the Joseon military blocking them and firing incendiary shells were beyond Henry’s imagination.

As a result, as the battle progressed, Henry’s face began to turn increasingly pale.

“We have to face such opponents?”

Both the pirates, who were as cunning as sharks in looking for gaps, and the Joseon military, who were tearing these pirates to shreds, were a notch above the competitors and Arab pirates that he and his subordinate captains had faced so far.

“Even if the way to Joseon opens up, the pirates are a concern.”

As Henry nodded at his captain’s words, a strange noise was heard from a nearby Joseon ship.

Tatatatatatang!

With this unfamiliar noise, a pirate ship that had tried to break through the blind spot of the Joseon cannons instantly turned red. It had been stained with the blood of the pirates on board.

And Henry could see it. A peculiar-looking cannon installed on the deck of the Joseon ship was raining bullets on the unfortunate pirate ship.

The fierce battle that had unfolded like this ended with the pirates retreating, unable to break through the Joseon military’s defense network.

The guide, who had been hiding during the battle, suddenly reappeared and said to Henry:

“It should be safe until Malacca.”

“Is that so?”

That night, sitting at the desk in his cabin, Henry muttered while recording the day’s events:

“Would it be possible if we mobilize the entire fleet?”