The Establishment of the Great Japanese Empire Space Force (Part 2)

April 1919

Soryu graduated from Imperial University in two years and, along with several comrades from his Gakushuin days, was commissioned as a founding member of the Space Force.

The commissioned members were as follows:

Takashiro Soryu

Arima Katsumi

Ikeda Masanobu

Ōmisaki Taro

Shirotsugu Ratato

Miyake Yasumasa

Morikawa Izumi

Yonekura Tomozane

All held the rank of lieutenant, but among them, Takashiro Soryu was the de facto leader by unspoken agreement.

Immediately, they began implementing their long-planned strategies.

"Lieutenant Ikeda, I need you to head to America and establish a trading company. Follow Plan Ha as we discussed. No changes for now."

Soryu had outlined seven plans, labeled Plan I through Plan To, to be implemented alongside the establishment of the Space Force. He had thoroughly drilled Ikeda Masanobu in 21st-century economics, making him one of the most economically knowledgeable individuals in the world at the time.

Plan Ha involved setting up a trading company in America to serve as a base for the Space Force's activities. By controlling the company through several holding companies, they would cleverly conceal Japanese involvement.

After the Great War in Europe, the NY Dow (stock index), which had been declining, rose almost linearly until October 1929, despite some adjustments, reaching about six times its original value.

Similarly, New York real estate prices began to rise sharply during the war and continued to climb until 1925.

For Soryu, who knew these "facts," making money in America was child's play.

"It's a simple job of buying and selling stocks. If we trade with maximum leverage, we can pool funds equivalent to Japan's national budget in five years. When October 1929 comes, we'll sell off everything and make an even bigger profit."

"Sell off everything... You're ruthless. The Great Depression will drive many people to suicide. Do you realize that?"

"I know, but there's no way to prevent the American bubble from bursting. The best I can do is minimize the impact on Japan. If Japan avoids a severe depression, we might prevent the military from running amok and isolate Japan from the world. Besides, making money from stocks isn't the goal. With the profits, we'll buy up bauxite and iron ore mines in Australia and China. Right now, aluminum demand isn't high, so we can buy them cheap. We'll also stockpile rare metals like cobalt and neodymium. And we'll need to purchase oil fields in Manchuria along with their underground resources."

"I see. So, you're securing rights to underground resources."

"Exactly. Even if we develop high-performance weapons, it'll be hard to produce them in large numbers. There's also the issue of training personnel. Even if we produce 100 high-performance jet fighters, they'll eventually be overwhelmed by 2,000 propeller-driven attack planes in a saturation attack. Plus, the more advanced the weapons, the harder it is to replace losses. The same goes for personnel. That's why I'm thinking of a high-low mix strategy—10 standard-level weapons for every high-performance one. But that requires abundant resources."

"Lieutenant Miyake, I'll leave Plan Ro to you."

Miyake Yasumasa had a talent for mechanical engineering, so Soryu provided him with technical materials and extensive knowledge, appointing him as the head of Plan Ro.

Plan Ro involved creating a technical officer course at the Space Force Military Academy, recruiting talented students from industrial high schools across the country to learn and develop new technologies.

The plan also included establishing standard industrial specifications, improving foundational technologies, and gradually disseminating these technologies to private companies. Additionally, products developed at the academy would be produced and sold by external organizations under the Space Force.

Miyake would nurture many individuals who would become the backbone of Japan's industrial strength.

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A/N: Thank you for reading Chapter 15!

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