"Damn barbarians."
"Bandits."
"Bastards!!"
"Can you be any more shameless?"
"Any more shameless?"
At the entrance to the prime minister's office in the Island Nation, Sato Ryuichi and Kishida Honoo stood obediently outside. Through the tightly locked doors, they could clearly hear furious curses and the sounds of things being smashed.
The prime minister was furious, and they were no exception.
Only they knew how terrifying the impact of the CIA's press conference had been.
When Amaterasu was taken from them, they had already been enraged. The CIA had been involved as well, but they had not made it public and had chosen to swallow their anger.
That incident had put them in a standoff with Russia, with both sides at each other's throats. Yet at this critical moment, the Americans had personally stepped in and stabbed them fatally in the back.
They even demanded that they hand over the Amaterasu team and its source code.
The Americans' intentions were obvious. Their last attempt at seizing it had failed, and Russia had played them for fools, leaving them without the Artificial Intelligence program. This time, they had chosen such a shameless method to pressure them.
They had not spread the Intelligent Virus, so who had?
It was no longer important.
Perhaps Russia had spread it and the Americans were using the opportunity to pressure them, taking the Artificial Intelligence program and the Amaterasu team in the process. Or perhaps it had all been an act staged by the Americans themselves.
But they could not refute it. Murakami Shisui's team had indeed been conducting research, and the Americans had already obtained the relevant evidence. There was no way to explain it away.
Before long, the shouting and crashing inside the office stopped, and the surroundings fell silent.
"Come in."
A low,