601.From this point on, the war begins at sea and ends at sea.
Yun Dam entered the command hall before the supply ships had even finished docking.
He did not bother to brush the dust from his clothes.
He pulled the table to the center and laid out bamboo slips, ledgers, maps, and rosters in a single line.
"From this point on, the war begins at sea and ends at sea."
Yun Dam's words were closer to a declaration than a report.
The officials and officers in the hall drew a collective breath.
He spread out a complete map of the southern sea.
Tsushima, Iki Island, and the waterways between them came into view at a glance.
Tracing the sea lanes with his fingertip, he continued.
"The expedition will be divided into three branches."
"First, transport."
"Second, strike."
"Third, recovery."
Without lifting his head, Yun Dam went on.
"If these three do not move simultaneously, the expedition fails.
If even one lags behind, the other two collapse with it."
He marked the transport routes in red ink.
"Departure from Jinju."
"Passing the mouth of the Nam River to rendezvous with the main supply fleet."
"Gunpowder, sulfur, and saltpeter coming in from Jiangnan will be handled exclusively by this convoy."
Turning a ledger page, he added,
"Transport ships will carry minimal armament.
Speed and concealment take priority.
They do not fight."
As someone began to speak, Yun Dam raised a hand.
"The fighting is elsewhere."
In black ink, he drew a mark off the waters of Tsushima.
"The strike fleet.
Five warships.
Mounted artillery.
Mixed formations of archers and crossbowmen."
Yun Dam looked directly at Park Seong-jin.
"This fleet must be commanded by the general in person."
Park Seong-jin nodded briefly.
"That is correct."
Yun Dam accepted the answer as self-evident and continued.
"The strike must be short and concentrated.
Once the lord in the tenshu or honmaru is seized, the battle ends.
We place great expectations on the Middle Commander's unmatched force."
"Go on."
"We pound this side with artillery, then land cavalry to smash the enemy's armor.
Those with absolute martial dominance advance to the tenshu and honmaru and drag the lord out.
Then it is over."
"And after that?"
"Secure the harbor."
"Control the shipyards."
"Seize grain stores and supplies."
The command hall fell silent.
There was no emotion in Yun Dam's voice.
He was stacking calculations, nothing more.
"Third is recovery."
He drew the return routes last.
"Prisoners.
Prisoners of war become slaves.
We increase this land's labor base."
"Oarsmen and technicians are the most critical assets for local procurement.
Do not slaughter them indiscriminately.
Through them, we acquire what we need on site."
A low cough sounded.
"And ships.
Our firepower is superior, but we lack hulls.
We must capture Japanese vessels and put them to use.
Assign serial numbers by size and employ them for troop transport and supply."
"We return with people and materials.
The profit of this war becomes the material for the next."
Yun Dam picked up another ledger.
"Available forces at present."
"Seven hundred former naval troops."
"Five hundred expected from local gentry militias and private forces."
"Oarsmen and sailors organized separately."
He paused, then said clearly,
"The total number is not large.
Which is why precision is essential."
Yun Dam began writing the formation plan.
He assigned commanders to each fleet, separated officers from technicians, and clearly divided supply personnel from combat troops.
"The expeditionary force must move like a machine, not an army."
"Each man performs only his role."
"We do not expect heroes."
At that, Park Seong-jin's gaze paused briefly.
Without lifting his head, Yun Dam added,
"One general is enough."
A low current moved through the hall.
Neither burden nor praise—only fact.
Yun Dam gathered the papers and concluded.
"A temporary integrated force under royal command."
"Disbandment conditions for private troops explicitly stated."
"Immediate return to respective districts upon expedition's end."
He set down his brush.
"With this formation plan, we can block the court's suspicions."
Park Seong-jin spoke slowly.
"Sending people back is harder than gathering them."
Yun Dam nodded.
"That is why the road must be set from the beginning."
Outside the hall, the sound of waves carried in—the creak of ropes tightening on the supply ships.
Listening to it, Yun Dam finished.
"Preparations are complete."
"All that remains is to sail."
From the day supplies arrived, Park Seong-jin mounted a single horse and visited the influential clans around Jinju one by one.
He wore no armor.
Only a plain martial robe.
He knocked quietly at their gates, bringing few attendants and almost no guards.
He made no show of authority, yet his presence alone pressed down on those around him.
The many titles trailing behind him became the force that persuaded them.
One major clan leader hesitated at first.
"General, releasing private troops is no small decision.
There is great concern over whether they will be returned."
Instead of answering, Park Seong-jin drew his sword just a fraction.
Light flashed briefly.
What was revealed was a resolve sharper than the blade.
"I will return them.
Not a single man will be wasted.
I swear to strike the objective and return them exactly as they were."
The clan leader swallowed.
A cold, cutting presence severed words in the room.
Refusal became not a matter of speech, but of resolve.
"…I will comply.
I will provide fifty able-bodied men and thirty seok of grain."
When Park Seong-jin bowed repeatedly, the clan leader did not lift his head.
That day, the boundary between cooperation, submission, and reverence blurred.
Before another powerholder, Park Seong-jin spoke plainly.
"I alone am not enough.
For this land, for our people, stand with me."
After a long silence, the man rose and bowed deeply.
"…I will contribute ten warriors.
We will fight with full commitment."
The maritime clans were even more rigid.
"This is an age of hiding private forces.
And you ask us to reveal them?"
Park Seong-jin answered without hesitation.
"If you hide them now, later there will be no land, no homes, no people left to use them for.
The Japanese have not come to farm.
They have come to conquer."
After a long silence, the clan leader nodded.
"…One hundred.
Elite forces with naval capability.
We will entrust them until the strike on Tsushima."
On the road back from several estates, Park Seong-jin murmured softly from horseback.
"They will not come from Gaegyeong.
They know the circumstances.
I bear no resentment."
He lifted his gaze over the fields of Jinju.
"Then we build it here."
What was lacking, he filled with what existed.
What was insufficient, he joined as it was.
What he possessed were his sword and the trust of people.
That was enough.
When he returned to Jinju Fortress, Yun Dam and Jang Sa-ui were already waiting over a map.
Yun Dam drew a straight line across the southern sea routes.
"General, Busanpo to Tsushima is a straight line."
Jang Sa-ui immediately added,
"With the saltpeter and sulfur that just arrived, we can finally fight properly."
Park Seong-jin fell silent for a moment, then said lowly,
"Tsushima is a base.
A raid that stabs and retreats is insufficient.
We make sure they never cross again.
We dispatch our own local magistrate."
At those words, tension and anticipation rose together on the two men's faces.
The direction of the war had decisively turned.