"They're leaving Earth's orbit, heading 249.7.
They're leaving."
In the Global Defense Agency's surveillance room, Donald spoke with his usual slightly wooden expression. Perhaps he was gradually coming to terms with being a cyborg; his face had grown less and less expressive lately.
"Don't jinx it."
Cecil stared fixedly at the screen, likewise trying to keep his face as expressionless as possible.
On the screen, the massive spaceship's engine output kept climbing. Soon, with a tremendous roar, it vanished from view in an instant.
"All personnel, stand down..."
At last, everyone who had been on edge for so long let out a sigh of relief and slumped into their chairs. Even Cecil himself dropped heavily into his seat.
"Finally... he's finally gone. Thank God..."
Cecil wanted to cry, but to preserve his dignity, he had to force back his tears of joy.
In the past, he might have been happy at a moment like this because Earth was free of Viltrumites for the first time in over twenty years.
But now, none of that mattered anymore. What mattered was that bastard Zuo Ci had finally left.
Goddammit, that bastard had been putting the screws to him whenever he had a spare moment, constantly demanding money in the name of the war against Viltrum. And he did it anytime, anywhere.
That included, but was not limited to, meetings, meals, bathroom breaks, showers, and sleep...
The fucker had even shown up in his dreams to hound him for money. Cecil was practically on the verge of a nervous breakdown!
Of course, all that pressure had paid off. Zuo Ci had successfully squeezed who knew how many years' worth of the Global Defense Agency's future funding out of Cecil, totaling over two trillion US dollars.
That figure was higher than the entire annual