LOGINThe plan was to land thirty miles away from the Showa Research Base. Aside from transporting Goro and the twenty negotiators, they were provided with two snow vehicles without armaments.The flight crew was moving those vehicles into the cargo hold, after which they would be fastened in place.While Goro, his assistant, and the team of negotiators were ready to board, Kohei and Barlin were closing in on McMurdo Base."Three hours until we arrive, my lord.""Good," Barlin nodded. "Nothing will stop us once we get inside."However, McMurdo Base was aware of the Japanese crew's mutiny, having been warned by the Pentagon earlier.They weren't armed, but they had access to cutting-edge technology. Their radars were running 24/7 at full power, and there were officers constantly on the lookout.Tensing up when they noticed Barlin's convoy approaching, they promptly sent a message on the radio, "This is McMurdo research base! Unknown convoy, be warned that you are approaching American sov
Meanwhile, Barlin was meditating in one of the snow tractors.He was preparing to mind-bend the two-hundred-odd members of the research crew at McMurdo Base, not knowing that the Pentagon and the Japanese Ministry of Defense were already discussing countermeasures against a suspected mutiny.They were just a two-day journey from their destination, too…However, even after the Pentagon confirmed that the Japanese Antarctic research crew was committing treason, they only warned their own bases about the Japanese mutineers, but otherwise didn't do much.It was the JMOD that, intent on not letting this incident destroy them, sought to minimize the damage.After a day of discussion with the Pentagon, the latter offered an initial plan to pacify the mutineers.The Secretary of Defense himself spoke to the JMOD representatives over a video conference and explained, "We will be requesting a group of negotiators from your nation, who will be flown over to the Antarctic on a LC-130. There,
Thirty minutes later, the staff who reported the buoy inconsistency earlier returned to the conference room. "We've reached out to whom we can get, but thus far, every family confirmed that they had seen their relative on video call without any hint of impersonation or coercion."The minister sighed. "Oh, fantastic…"Having no casualties was a huge load off his shoulders, and he was certainly relishing in the relief of dodging a bullet.Putting his hands together, he exclaimed, "Alright! Since they're alive, let's find out more about what they are doing. Also, let's try to ask the Americans for assistance—ideally with eyes on the ground.""Yes! That would be wise!" Someone promptly exclaimed in approval. "I mean, they have hundreds of their own over there, so they have every reason to be concerned. Let's leave no stone unturned!"The minister nodded. In that case, let's report this to the Ministry of Defense too. Ask them to request assistance from the Americans!"-However, the
Hence, despite their usual nine-to-five routine, even the Japanese ministry officials were all working overtime.Within the closed-off conference room, they all fiercely debated what that buoy reading meant.The staff who noticed the issue first said, "I personally believe deliberate sabotage is involved. The crew and researchers are up to something behind our backs, using national equipment and resources to do something beyond national interests. It's sufficient grounds to suspect treason!"The minister of the Japanese Ministry of Science and Cultural Development was feeling a major headache.He could see the gravity of the situation, but since he was in charge, he was in denial.Nobody would want something like this grave to show up in their dossier, after all. What would they write in the report? How would they look to the public, if not directly removed from office? As such, he tried to play things down. "Let's all calm down for a moment, as we have no other evidence to prov
Otherwise, none of their vehicles would cover the 1,800-mile distance.The harsh cold also meant more fuel consumption to keep the heaters and other equipment on—either way, they were burning through whatever fuel they had left.After some final checks as the fuel truck joined the convoy formation, Kohei finally approached Barlin. "We can depart now, my lord."Barlin nodded. "Then let's go!"With that, four snow tractors and a single oil tanker departed in a U formation along the Antarctic Coast, heading southwest before turning northwest.The two-way trip would take sixteen days, and since Charlie had the fuel tanker bugged, he could track their movements in real time.Four days after Barlin's departure, Charlie called Heiji again. "Repair the buoy now.""Yes, sir. Right away, sir," Heiji promptly replied, and hung up.Hearing straight to the ship's fuel reservoir, he rewrote the microcontroller program for the buoy sensor system, and then returned to his cabin.Five minutes
Charlie thought about asking Nanako to inform the Japanese government directly, but soon decided against it since it would leave a clear paper trail.He didn't want Nanko to be exposed in case their enemies decided to track down the information.After thinking long and hard, he told Vera, Ruby, and Penny, "Let's work on the Japanese research crew. Do something that would expose them to their government.""Any specific ideas?" Vera asked. Charlie nodded. "They have been mind-bent to hide what they are doing from their families and the government. If I mind-bend any of them to leak the news, the elder might be able to tell… So I believe we should let their equipment do the talking instead.""Equipment?" Vera repeated. "As in, their vehicles and such?""Yes—to be specific, their research ship," Charlie replied, nodding again as he proceeded to explain, "The comms system on the ship is the only communication system they didn't sabotage, while they had already removed the trackers an
Jayden knew very well that Charlie had ordered Hebron to be a restroom attendant at the nightclub as his punishment. If he openly helped him, it was the same as going against Charlie.He clearly did not have the guts to do so, hence, the only solution he could think of was to quietly and appropriatel
After Edmund had said that, he turned around and left the ward.Doris trembled uncontrollably out of anger and frustration as she stared at Edmund’s back as he left.Her mother, Faith, walked forward with tears all over her face as she took Doris’s hand. She choked up and said, “Forget it, Doris. Just
Charlie smiled faintly. “I understand what you mean. Blood is, after all, thicker than water, so it makes sense that you want to spare their lives. However… there’s something you should know.”Jasmine hurriedly asked, “What is it, Master Wade?”Charlie answered, “You want them alive, sure, no problem.
Reuben was immediately relieved when he found out that his father had a complete solution to this matter.What Reuben and his father wanted was not to become the so-called head of the Moore family. However, they simply wanted a big portion of the Moore family’s assets.After removing Jasmine from the






