"I don't need your approval."
The Minister of Defense waved his arms and sneered. "I only need the approval of two-thirds of the cabinet to force the resolution through, regardless of your objection. What can you do about it?"
Kitajima Maki's heart sank. Of course she knew they could force the resolution through, and she also knew the Minister of Defense would most likely succeed.
The Intelligence Division in Area 11 had discovered long ago that Fang Cheng and his group of Vampires were behind the coup in Machine City.
They hadn't retaliated immediately partly because they hadn't yet confirmed whether Fang Cheng was in the city, and partly because the Area 11 government had been busy fighting among themselves for power, leaving no time for revenge.
Now the power struggle had ended, the conciliatory faction had been utterly defeated, and the hardliners had taken power. At last, Area 11 could spare the resources to prepare its retaliation against Fang Cheng.
During the Tokyo Incident, Fang Cheng's actions had crossed the Area 11 government's bottom line, leaving all the top officials deeply uneasy and afraid.
So they were determined to strike back at Fang Cheng as punishment, lest others follow his example.
As long as they killed the target who frightened them, they wouldn't stop, even if they had to massacre civilians and face the consequences.
The Minister of Defense wasn't acting alone. All the hardline officials stood behind him, and his actions reflected the consensus of the Area 11 government.
Kitajima Maki realized that she had already done all she could by blocking the proposal seven times.
"If you could do that, why come to me?"
Her voice was low. "Whatever happens, I won't sign the authorization. If you don't like it, you can remove me from my post."