Talulah's Blunt Approach

The rain did indeed help many Infected avoid the threat of the disease, but Talulah also knew how much trouble and chaos the paralysis of the industrial system would bring. However, she was one of the least flustered people present.

Chernobog's core energy supply does not rely on Originium, but on the Sarcophagus of Doctor. Agasa. According to Mizuki's speculation and Kal'tsit's account, that Sarcophagus can supply the city's operation for at least a thousand years. Under these circumstances, the Reunion has a greater advantage than other forces.

"At this stage, the situation in Terra is far more dire than we thought, and I think we need to prepare for the worst."

"Indeed, the most important thing now is to figure out where this rain came from. It can suppress Originium, but it can also be used to our advantage. Perhaps it can be used to treat Oripathy and resolve some conflicts."

Laterano's representative Salvador's words made Viet, representing Ursus, somewhat embarrassed. The conflict between Ursus and the Infected was the most serious. The new emperor had always wanted to learn from the Great Yan's management regulations for the Infected, but the internal divisions in Ursus were too severe, and the infighting was endless. Even this time, the emperor had to personally select the people to attend the meeting in order to keep others quiet on the surface.

"The reason we invited you all here today is largely because we actually know more than you do. At least we know that this rain was not Catastrophe, but man-made."

Kristen, standing beside the Emperor, immediately drew everyone's attention with his first words: Was this torrential rain, which nearly regressed Terra to a primitive age, man-made? What kind of person could cause such rain to fall across all of Terra?

"Ms. Kristen, I think you should be the real representative of Columbia, rather than that penguin. If that's the case, why weren't we informed of such important information beforehand?"

"Because of pollution."

Kristen seemed to steer the conversation elsewhere, taking some documents from her briefcase and distributing them to everyone present.

"I'm sure everyone is curious: Higashi is unable to attend due to internal strife, Victoria's situation is special, so why didn't Sami send a representative? That's because... Sami currently has no way to communicate with the outside world."

Candela didn't immediately look at the thin piece of paper in front of her; instead, she observed the expressions of the other attendees.

Minos and Sargon have never gotten along, and their representatives exude similar auras. Both are countries that have just tasted the sweetness of modern civilization. Although the impact of losing their modern industrial system would not be too great, it does not mean that they would be willing to let their previous efforts go to waste.

But upon seeing this document, even the seemingly most composed representative from Kjerag showed a look of astonishment. What exactly was on it...?

Candela picked up the document and carefully examined every word and sentence. The more she read, the more she felt something gripping her heart. The terms "Barrier Layer," "civilizational break," "Seaborn," and "underground calamity" were all unfamiliar to her.

But the possibility of Kristen making this up is extremely low. Would he really make such a nasty joke at a meeting like this? Impossible.

This document also explains why Sami couldn't attend the meeting, because the main battlefield of the Northern War was Sami, and even with the help of the Sea Siren, they couldn't let their guard down. Wei Yenwu and Viet, as representatives of Great Yan and Ursus, also knew this. Great Yan and Ursus were also fighting against the Demons, and it could even be said that they had staked most of their resources on it.

"So this rain is someone whose very name is known to the other party? Ha, such characters often appear in some of Sargon's stories meant to scare children."

The bandaged Sand Bone laughed, some of the sand trapped inside the bandages falling onto the table. The Emperor tapped the table in annoyance.

"Shut up, you little brat. I don't have time to discuss scary fairy tales with you. It's not worth my time. If you want to die, I won't stop you, but don't drag us down with you."

The Emperor has lived a long time and has had a lot of contact with the civilizations of this season. Sand Bone doesn't think he would make up any low-level jokes to fool him, but the things described in this document are still too unrealistic, giving him the illusion of "Am I dreaming?"

In just a few thousand words, the true nature of this world revealed is hard to accept: the starry sky is an illusion, the Demons in the north haven't taken things seriously yet, the calamities underground could break through the blockade at any moment, Originium and Seaborn are remnants of ancient civilizations.

"This very land we live on... is actually in such danger?"

This was quite different from what Candela had initially thought. She had assumed the meeting would only involve the rain, but she hadn't expected to receive so much explosive information.

Seriously speaking, if this information were leaked, the entire Terra would be thrown into chaos.

"Otherwise, they wouldn't have invited us."

Minos, the representative of the group, spoke very little. Her bright, clear eyes were her way of expressing emotions. She didn't know much, but she could understand the danger Terra was facing.

"So this is the truth behind those strange creatures, a remnant of an ancient civilization... environmental modification of life?"

Rim Billiton situated by the sea, and representatives from various countries had some understanding of the threat posed by these Seaborn and Demons. But who could have imagined that these were threats capable of destroying the entirety of Terra?

"Mizuki, Mizuki ~"

Exusiai reached out and grabbed Mizuki's face, bringing him back to consciousness.

"You're spacing out again, are you okay?"

Exusiai remembers feeling nervous for the first time after accidentally blowing up Pope Ivan XI's beard while planning to bomb the school. The last time she felt this way was after she found out she was pregnant.

She's a carefree person, so she rarely gets nervous, but Mizuki always manages to make her heart race.

After learning that Mizuki's memory was somewhat confused, she now worries every night before going to sleep whether Mizuki will remember her the next morning; she's incredibly timid.

"It's nothing, I was just focusing on something else. Finished the delivery?"

"There wasn't much cargo to begin with. Our team will mainly be responsible for transactions with Rhodes Island from now on. Other teams will handle things on the Lungmen side. Penguin Logistics has never had just one team."

Penguin Logistics was originally established simply because the Emperor took in Texas and gave her a job. Gradually, it grew and expanded. The Texas team is the face of Penguin Logistics, but the positive feedback rate of other teams is also basically 100%, because no one dares not to give a positive review.

"Let's go home and eat! I want apple pie!"

"Okay, I'll make it for you when we get back. You drive, I need to keep my attention for a bit."

After all, the sky over Terra couldn't remain gloomy forever. Mizuki decided to send down another rainstorm and then conceal the existence of the Sea of Life outside the Barrier Layer. This way, even if the Observers noticed something was wrong, he could hide Terra immediately.

The first and second times could be attributed to illusions, but after the third time, the Observers would likely launch a devastating attack on the galaxy centered on Terra, leaving him with no choice but to take Terra elsewhere.

"What are you going to do now?"

"Well, I just want it to rain again, and this time there won't be a power outage."

Mizuki climbed to the back seat, thought for a moment, and then lay down on the laps of Texas and the other two. After a brief hesitation, Mizuki's head to cushion her chest. Exusiai and Texas wouldn't say anything to her, and she felt a kind of indescribable excitement.

Mizuki couldn't say anything about Kong's little tricks, since he wouldn't suffer any losses anyway. He simply closed his eyes, listening to Wei Yenwu and the others' discussion while communicating with the Sea of Life to issue commands.

Exusiai started the car, large raindrops pelted the windshield. She glanced back at Mizuki, whose face was completely hidden by the hollowed-out chest, and felt a sense of unease. This unease stemmed from the realization that she could no longer do anything for Mizuki, and that there was not much she could do to help.

She wanted to do something to help Mizuki, but there were limits to her abilities, and she didn't have much power.

Mizuki had no idea what Exusiai was thinking. His gaze wandered to many places, back and forth between different offspring. The entire life of Terra had become his eyes and ears without him even realizing it. However, Mizuki would not pry into other people's privacy; that was basic courtesy.

"I think the current situation is quite clear. We've been mired in this small piece of land for too long, focusing only on immediate gains. Now danger is imminent, and time is running out for Terra."

Wei Yenwu was well aware that such a meeting could not produce results in a day. Today, he was just explaining the situation to the people in front of him. To put it bluntly, people like Candela were just elected representatives and did not actually have the ability to interfere with the whole of Bolivar.

Terra, in the end, can't truly unite as one.

With a sigh, Wei Yenwu recalled the letter from home yesterday and felt an indescribable anxiety. He felt he should do something, but thankfully, Great Yan was actively involved in this cause.

Everyone fell silent. The Emperor, Dario, and Wei Yenwu, as the initiators, had naturally made preparations long ago, but the situation in other countries was not as harmonious as it seemed to them.

The Great Yan is united, Columbia is balancing internal and external affairs, and Iberia is working together. All three countries do have their own troubles, but this does not prevent them from existing as a whole.

But what about the others?

The three Kjerag families are not united, the two major political parties in Ursus are engaged in open and covert struggles, the three Bolivar factions are in constant conflict, not to mention the Higashi and Victoria, who couldn't even attend the meeting.

If things continue like this, it will be really difficult to manage if we push everyone a little.

Chapter 230 Talulah's Straight Strike

"So this meeting was unsuccessful, right?"

With one hand stirring her coffee, Mizuki gently supported her head with the other, her bright eyes filled with a hint of helplessness as she looked at the young woman in front of her who only knew how to stuff all sorts of things into her mouth.

"Uh, cough cough, well, it didn't work out. You can't expect to succeed on the first try with something like this."

Talulah picked up the coffee and drank it down in one gulp, ignoring how hot it was, swallowing it along with the cake she had just eaten. She was so hot that she could practically breathe fire from her mouth, so drinking some hot water wouldn't bother her at all.

"I certainly didn't expect a single meeting to unite Terra. People's hearts are too complex, but some things will never change, you understand?"

In this high-rise restaurant, which is rare even in Lungmen, Mizuki looked out the window. The light rain was still falling, making the colorful neon city seem somewhat dreamlike, and the rain outside the window made the private room feel exceptionally quiet.

"Of course I understand. It's all about interests. To put it bluntly, 90% of the conflicts in this world stem from interests."

Talulah was not surprised to meet Mizuki. Half a month ago, when the rain started, Alina, who had the heart given to her by Mizuki, already knew the truth behind the rain. She also knew that every drop of rain would become Mizuki's eyes and ears.

Considering the meeting, Talulah realized that it was all Mizuki's doing behind the scenes. She had originally planned to ask about it when she got to Rhodes Island, but Mizuki had actually come to her on her own initiative, which was quite a strange thing.

"Being the leader of the Reunion isn't easy, is it?"

"It's quite difficult. The main problem is that as the organization has expanded, I can no longer do everything myself like before. I spend more time sitting at my desk. If it weren't for Alina helping me discover a lot of talent, I really don't know what I would do."

"What's the situation in Kazdel?"

"It's going well. About half a year has passed, and the Sarkaz in Kazdel aren't hostile towards us. After all, there are quite a few Sarkaz in the Reunion, so communication isn't too difficult. We've also reached an agreement with the Rusthammer organization."

Mizuki knew things wouldn't be as easy and simple as Talulah made them out to be. Kazdel had been destroyed so many times, and the Sarkaz living on that land built from ruins were extremely hostile to others. The Reunion had avoided Ursus's wrath, but what they had to face was the hostility of the Sarkaz.

It must have taken a long time to eliminate this hostility, and perhaps even now the Reunion cannot be considered to have taken root there.

"Let's just leave it at that. By the way, didn't you eat over there?"

Mizuki looked at the empty plate in front of him. He remembered that Talulah's appetite wasn't this big; this was almost half his size.

"Don't even mention it. I haven't had a proper meal on the way here, and I had to prepare all sorts of materials for the meeting as soon as we arrived last night. Who's in the mood to eat after the meeting is over?"

Talulah touched her stomach and felt that she could still fit a little more in; she had only eaten breakfast from yesterday to today.

Talulah picked up a plate of Siracusa pasta and shoveled it into her mouth. She wiped her mouth and carefully looked at the boy in front of her, who looked no different from any other day.

"I often think, if you had come with us back then, would many things have been different? The Reunion might be a completely different thing."

"And what about the truth?"

"If only I had confessed to you back then, now you're someone else's fiancé. Sigh, why was I afraid of Alina back then?"

Talulah couldn't help but sigh when she talked about this. She had always had feelings for Mizuki. At first, she was grateful to him for saving Alina and even giving her a piece of his heart. Later, she was grateful to Mizuki for being willing to treat and help everyone in the camp to delay Oripathy and for helping her with various official duties.

This gratitude then changed somewhat as they spent more time together. Talulah was at the age of youthful passion, but she just didn't have a suitable person by her side, so it was natural that she liked Mizuki. Alina felt the same way. They both knew what the other was thinking, yet they both thought the other didn't know what they were thinking.

They both wanted to give the other a chance, but in the end, neither of them succeeded, making Exusiai the biggest winner. Talulah herself found it quite funny.

"Because you couldn't beat her back then. Besides, it wouldn't hurt for you to find someone else now, especially since you're much prettier than before."

Two years ago, Talulah would have blushed, but now she just smiled casually and gently pressed herself on the table in the same pose as Mizuki.

"Well, I can't help it, I'm Ursus's most wanted criminal, and... this is the first time you've ever complimented me on my looks, isn't it?"

"The third time." Mizuki picked up a biscuit and took a bite. "The first time I praised you, you blushed and ran away. Later, I told Alina about it, and she asked me to praise you in front of everyone. Then the second time, you stuffed your half-eaten meat chop into my mouth to shut me up."

"I was conflicted about it all night, but that was still considered an indirect kiss."

"But the night before that, you got drunk and forcibly kissed me. That's when we both lost our first kiss."

Talulah's face immediately turned a little embarrassed. Even though there was no one else in the private room except her and Mizuki, she couldn't help but stick her foot out and gently kick Mizuki's leg under the table.

"I'm really... starting to regret it. Is it too late for me to regret it now?"

"If it were before, I would definitely have found an excuse to leave by now." Mizuki ate another cookie. "But now I feel completely indifferent. Why should I stay here?"

This development and these words were completely unexpected by Talulah. She thought she knew Mizuki quite well; Mizuki wasn't the kind of person who was fickle. Why did she seem so self-destructive and proactive tonight?

"Ahem, let's forget it, we have meetings to continue tomorrow, we'll talk about it next time."

Talulah didn't say no, she just looked at Mizuki.

"What exactly happened to you to become like this?"

"... It's a long story, but when you continue the meeting tomorrow, sit a little further away from Viviana."

"Is there something wrong with her?"

Talulah reviewed Viviana's performance throughout the day in her mind, but she didn't notice anything amiss. She had only heard of the Candle Knight's name before, and this was their first meeting. Apart from Viet and Wei Yenwu, everyone else present was a stranger.

"It's most likely someone in disguise; the Reunion was attacked, wasn't it?"

"I was thinking of telling you about this at a more suitable time." Talulah was surprised that Mizuki knew about it. "So you did?"

"She was probably just trying to verify something, like why the Doctor woke up early—it wasn't Kal'tsit."

"I believe you." Talulah stated her position in one sentence. "Well, how do you know that this Viviana is fake?"

Mizuki didn't really want to answer this question because it involved a place he didn't particularly like: bars.

Ever since that absurd and embarrassing incident at the bar, Mizuki has developed a certain aversion to places like bars, but only such a mixed and chaotic place can justify his presence.

"Guest, only want water?"

"Hmm, I don't really like drinking alcohol. Juice would be better."

Mizuki sat at the bar, opposite Talulah. He was the same person sitting here as he was sitting in Lungmen. This situation was unusual, but better than expected.

"Then let's drink this."

Martin took a can of Coke off the shelf and handed it to Mizuki. Sea Siren 12345 didn't dare to come to the bar today. It's like a middle school student skipping class in the afternoon to go online, only to find that the player next door who is dominating the game is their homeroom teacher.

However, someone else did come.

"A Deep Blue Moon, please." Viviana sat down next to Mizuki, took off her hat to reveal her golden hair as bright as the rising sun, and smiled gently at Mizuki, "Good evening."

Good evening, Miss Viviana.

Unlike her helplessness last night, Viviana felt that Mizuki's kindness towards her was much more obvious, but the reason for this change was puzzling.

The person in front of me is indeed Viviana. Given the distance from Mizuki, it's unlikely I'd mistake her for someone else. That means Kazimierz sent someone else to the meeting, someone else took her place... Hmm, there's no way to confirm that.

The road from Kazimierz to Lungmen is long. Mizuki had hoped to find the newly discovered corpses, but he soon discovered that there were at least several dozen, and he didn't know which of them were sent by Kazimierz.

(Never mind, at least I know the one in Lungmen is definitely fake, that's enough.)

Mizuki was drinking his cola when he noticed that Viviana's gaze kept glancing at him, almost imperceptibly. To be honest, he was a little flustered. The last time he encountered this kind of gaze at a bar was from Huang.