The director of the North America CIA had been very irritable lately.
In just a few weeks, more than half of the soldiers stationed at bases in the Middle East had died for all sorts of bizarre reasons.
Some died in plane crashes during troop rotations, some were wiped out when the kitchen exploded while they were eating in the mess hall, some suffocated in their sleep due to natural gas leaks, and others were left stranded and baked to death when their fuel tanks leaked during field missions.
He knew Commissioner Smith would cut corners, but he didn’t think it would be shoddy to this extent.
The garrison, having suffered massive attrition in such a short time, could no longer maintain the intensity of the security operations.
Local resistance forces seized the opportunity to make a comeback, and their counterattack was already unstoppable before the new reinforcements could arrive.
Now, the congressmen were seizing the chance to attack him, and the President had strictly ordered him to find the culprit.
He first arranged for a spokesperson to denounce the resistance’s counterattack as “a declaration of war against the civilized world, hindering the civilized world’s reform of local feudal rule,” and then scrambled to contact the film crew secretly sent to the Middle East, ordering them to quickly shoot a film about the resistance forces massacring local residents to divert attention.
Afterward, he increased the workload for local intelligence personnel, ordering them to bribe more informants and use every possible means to dig up clues.
After doing all this, he let out a long sigh and slumped into his chair.
The game of chess in the Middle East had always been in their favor; North America had operated there for many years, and its lingering influence remained, so other major powers shouldn’t dare to act rashly.
So who did it?
He flipped through the submitted reports and tried to connect the times of the total destruction of each base in chronological order, but it was still a chaotic mess.
He dropped his pen and sighed; his intuition from years of intelligence work told him that there was a high probability that the truth would never be uncovered this time.
But someone had to take responsibility for this, otherwise, he would be the one held accountable.
Blame it on those Middle Eastern remnants?
Claiming that a group of scattered soldiers wiped out almost an entire force would just make him the laughingstock of the international community.
Accuse other major powers of secretly deploying troops?
That might have worked decades ago, but now that the tides of power had shifted, it wasn’t easy to throw around accusations like that.
The eerie nature of this incident was almost supernatural; he couldn’t possibly blame it on a supernatural resurgence, could he?
Wait, supernatural?
He slapped his thigh.
Case closed!
Wasn’t there the Honkai?
The existence of the Honkai had not yet been announced to the world, but it was no longer a secret among the high-level officials of various countries.
The shadows of major powers were behind the anti-Honkai organization, the Fire MOTHS, and intelligence was shared in real-time.
He just needed to submit a passable report to his superiors; the Honkai was undoubtedly the best excuse.
High-speed infiltration-type Honkai Beast, presumed to have primary intelligence, weak frontal combat capability, specializes in infiltration and sabotage; all departments are advised to be vigilant.
After writing thousands of words, he would print out the document, sign it, and wait a few weeks to report it with feigned grief, expressing that he had failed the President’s expectations and that this was beyond human capability.
Then, the matter could be put to rest.
As for the public explanation, wasn’t there the all-purpose “biochemical weapon”?
It could end now.
He lit a cigarette and took a puff, feeling refreshed.
It could end now.
Elysia put a cross on the last location.
A few weeks ago, she had first used wide-area perception to map out the locations of all the North America bases.
After marking them on the map, she adopted a method of random culling to avoid having her movement route predicted.
While infiltrating, she occasionally saw soldiers performing evening prayers, so Elysia granted their wish and sent them to meet God, and she was kind enough to use a more indirect and gentle method.
She was kind-hearted and couldn’t bear the sight of a gruesome death.
The resistance organization seized this window of opportunity to gather their strength and counterattack, advancing triumphantly.
Once they liberated the capital and regained power, other major powers would naturally follow suit and recognize them.
North America had kept too many players out of the chessboard in the Middle East; now, even if they were temporarily weak, there was no reason for the others not to kick them while they were down.
Now, a new, more balanced landscape would be established, and civilians would at least be able to find a glimmer of survival in the cracks.
After leaving the Middle East, Elysia arrived in Central Asia, a region that could be called a hotbed of terrorism.
Most of the governments here were incapable of controlling the situation, resulting in large power vacuums where various extremist organizations rose to power under the guise of religion.
Since the government was completely dysfunctional, it could only be up to the passing Elysia to kindly send them to meet their Lord.
“Answer me,” Elysia looked down at the man whose legs were broken and who was kneeling on the ground.
“Why launch terrorist attacks?” “Monster,” the leader spat out a mouthful of bloody phlegm.
“If I answer, will I live?
Won’t I still be locked in here and suffocated to death by you?” Elysia pulled out the confiscated pistol: “If you tell me, you can use this to die more painlessly.” The leader fell silent.
No one knew better than him—having spent years using waterboarding to torture his victims—how painful a death by suffocation was.
This monster, he cursed silently.
She had managed to indirectly wipe out all of his men in just one night without getting her hands bloody, and upon facing her, his legs had been crippled in a single exchange.
He could only bet that she would keep her word.
“Because of hatred,” he raised his head, staring directly at Elysia with bloodshot eyes.
“Why is it that they get to live peaceful lives in the city, while we have to be exiled to these desolate lands?
If we’re rotten, they shouldn’t expect to have it any better!” “Akmar,” she calmly recited the leader’s real name, ignoring his look of shock, and continued, “You have 1.2 billion Euros in personal assets in the European Union Central Bank and five villas under your name.
Do you want me to continue?
That spiel of yours only works on your underlings.” “Even at the end, you’re still lying.
Your mouth is full of morality, but your heart is full of business,” she seemed to be chanting.
Resistance organizations in nations destroyed by war might be radical, but they could still retain the original intention of saving the country and the people.
These terrorist organizations that spread in the darkness were rotten to the core.
“How did you know?” He tried his best to get up, but his shattered legs couldn’t support his weight, and he could only fall to the ground in a sorry state, vomiting a mouthful of blood.
“I have no obligation to answer you.
Goodbye.” Elysia turned and walked out.
After closing the door, she slid the bolt into place, locking the mechanism.
This secret room would become his burial ground.
Afterward, Elysia sighed as she faced the faint morning light.
“I’m a bit tired,” she muttered to herself.
Chaos, decay, slaughter—human malice eroded everything here without concealment.
Compared to this, the European Union was almost becoming a sanctuary in her heart.
When the world tour is over, I’ll go back and take a break.
However, at the next moment, a buzzing sound abruptly rang in her ears.
She had a bad feeling.
The originally calm world was shrouded in a background noise imperceptible to ordinary people.
Behind the curtain of reality, things became restless, as if something extremely profound and terrifying was about to break out of its shell.
The next moment, the curtain was torn apart, and a tide of destruction poured out.
Elysia looked up immediately and found the Pink Brilliance Dome trembling under the wave of purple light that filled the sky, continuously emitting cracking sounds.
The First Honkai Eruption had broken out.
There had been no warning from the Cocoon of Finality beforehand.
She hurriedly took out her phone to contact Vill-V, but the call kept showing as unable to connect.
A shadow gradually rose in her heart.
Just as she hung up and redialed, an urgent call came in.
She answered immediately, and Kevin’s anxious voice came through: “Elysia, Great Honkai has erupted!
Come back as soon as possible.
The location is…” Her whole body stiffened, her mind went blank, and her phone slid silently from her hand, falling to the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust.
The location of the First Honkai Eruption was, Lannington City.
“And If you’re enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!”