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Chapter 123: When It Rains, It Pours
Chapter 123: When It Rains, It Pours
On July 5th, 2031, a massive meteor shower was observed in the skies of various places around the world.
The first ones to detect this meteor shower were the United States and Russia, but they did not think much of it.
It was a common occurrence for meteors to explode in the upper atmosphere and drop fragments on the ground.
However, things started to get weird when NASA claimed that there were no explosions at all.
Also, a farmer in Michigan reported finding an unusual meteorite to the police.
The police officers who arrived at the scene were baffled by what they saw.
The sphere that was lying in the middle of the crater did not look like a meteorite at all, but rather like a metal object.
“Is this really a meteorite? The surface is so smooth, it looks like someone made it...”
“Let’s report this to the higher-ups first. And deal with those cameras over there.”
The media smelled something fishy and the radio was noisy.
The onlookers crowded around and took out their smartphones.
The government confirmed that the meteorite was a metal sphere and tried to control the press, but it was too late.
The news had already spread.
One of them even fell in the middle of New York, causing some minor injuries.
People flocked to the sphere and took pictures with their smartphones and uploaded them to MyTube.
—Have you ever seen a meteorite so smooth? That’s an alien artifact.
—Run for your lives! It’s the alien invasion!
—Today is the day of the Earth’s doom.
As this happened all over the world, it was impossible to hide it.
The media sent broadcast vehicles and aired live coverage.
The government had to set up barricades to stop the people from getting closer.
In the midst of this, the French government decided to reveal the sphere to the public.
They could not withstand the pressure from the restless Parisians.
—This is not a meteorite, no matter how you look at it. And it’s not made on Earth either.
—Today we have confirmed that there are other beings in this universe besides us. What is this thing for? And why did it come here?
Of course, no one could answer that question.
Some people waited for Yu Ji-ha to make an announcement, but even they seemed shocked by this event and kept silent.
—Maybe they have something to do with that sphere.
—Let’s keep an eye on them. Don’t let them steal it.
Yu Ji-ha did not pay much attention to the Aether core at first.
It did not matter that it arrived on Earth instead of Mars or that there were more of them.
They had plenty of Aether cores on Settler as well.
But they felt a much stronger Aether from the core than expected and ordered to retrieve one of them.
Coincidentally, one of them fell near Dama Island and the nearby base went into emergency mode.
Also, that day was when Japan held an international fleet review near Sasebo.
Several countries’ warships participated in this event to commemorate the establishment of the Japanese Navy.
Of course, Korea and United Human Federation did not participate at all, and neither did Russia.
The only thing that saved Japan’s face was that a Zumwalt-class ship from the Pacific Fleet participated.
It was a rare occasion for a fleet review to be held, so nearly 60 warships lined up in front of Sasebo, creating a magnificent scene.
But they had to stop the fleet review and evacuate to Sasebo Harbor.
The sky lit up brightly and then a meteorite fell nearby.
A weak tidal wave occurred, but thanks to Sasebo Harbor’s unique terrain, there was no major damage.
At most, a French warship that was evacuating late to the port wobbled for a moment due to the wave.
But thanks to that warship, they learned an important fact.
That dark ships were approaching them.
On Earth’s seas, dark ships meant United Human Federation’s ships.
Matsuda Prime Minister and Japan’s naval leaders who evacuated to Sasebo Harbor were embarrassed.
“Should we respond? It’s not our territorial waters, but it’s our EEZ so we have the right to tell them to leave.”
“Wait a minute. Let’s find out why they came here first.”
Matsuda Prime Minister’s remark was cautious.
He had a different sense of responsibility than when he was just a party leader.Fịndd new updates on
He could have been more assertive since dozens of countries’ warships were gathered here, but he shrank back because Earth Fleet’s power in the Indian Ocean was too shocking.
A ship that was unscathed by a nuclear explosion? How could anyone believe that?
Of course, the hull was intact, but some of the equipment had melted down, rendering it unable to sail. But it was clear that it was a threat that needed to be guarded.
To put it bluntly, the current Japanese navy was powerless to stop their actions.
As they watched nervously, two brave warships stepped forward.
They were destroyers from Britain and France.
They broke away from the Sasebo naval base without any control and sent a shocking message.
—A ship belonging to the Earth Fleet is diving. It seems to be trying to salvage something from the seabed.
—That’s an alien artifact that fell in various places. This is Japan’s sea. Are we just going to watch?
Normally, when a foreign warship appeared in the EEZ, they would respond immediately. But Prime Minister Matsuda hesitated.
It would be troublesome if he provoked a conflict with the Earth Fleet here.
If a battle broke out, he would be responsible for everything, and he didn’t think any other country would help him.
At least France and Britain showed their enthusiasm, but they didn’t seem to be much help with only two warships.
Prime Minister Matsuda bit his lip slightly as he watched the video of the Earth Fleet salvaging something while anchored.
“I will never forget this humiliation...”
The navy’s top brass was also furious.
The EEZ was not territorial waters, but it could be said that it was a sea managed by Japan.
But those warships of the United Earth Federation came in without any notice and worked leisurely.
It would have been different if it was only the Japanese navy, but they had to be angry when everyone else was watching.
Usually, when a senator visited Korea, they arranged all schedules in advance.
But they didn’t get any answer from Korea and their visit was postponed indefinitely.
The situation had changed a lot from before when they treated a senator like a state guest.
The four leaders who were embarrassed by this coldness contacted naval officials, but they didn’t get any good response either.
The commander of the Seventh Fleet was typical.
“Of course, we are soldiers and we follow orders. But I wish the politicians would solve the problems they caused. Korea is a traditional ally of the US Navy.”
The navy was in a ridiculous situation. Until last year, they had participated in various exercises, including RIMPAC, but suddenly they were pressured by the politicians.
The 7th Fleet was armed with railguns and iron beams provided by Korea.
It was also equipped with fighter jets and hypersonic anti-ship missiles, but it was undeniable that it was a fleet that symbolized the friendship between the two countries.
The Baldwin administration could not stand it anymore.
—We understand your anxiety, but it is an abuse of power to go to the naval command and demand pressure. Please restrain yourself.
The Senate was surprised and announced that it was not their intention.
They backed down for now because of the fierce criticism from the media and experts.
Anyway, President Baldwin made it clear that he had no intention of exercising military options against Korea.
He did not want to risk anything by pressuring Korea, which was already noisy with the stock market crash and the alien artifact.
On Reddit and other sites, conspiracy theories continued to emerge about the relationship between the artifact and Yu Ji-ha.
—He is definitely an alien who lost his memory. The artifact that came to Earth is a kind of greeting from his colleagues. They are telling him to return quickly.
—What if something happens when we collect all the artifacts and give them to Yu Ji-ha?
—What if he suddenly regains his memory and leaves Earth?
While the imaginative conspiracy theories were rampant, Yu Ji-ha remained silent.
He was meeting with a special envoy from the White House who visited Korea.
***
President Baldwin decided that he could not ignore the situation any longer while stopping the Senate’s reckless actions.
He had reached a conclusion after consulting with his staff.
He wanted to avoid the worst-case scenario.
Before sending the special envoy team, he gathered them and said this:
“Some people’s actions have caused great damage to the United States, and they will continue to do so. We can’t eliminate the damage itself. So we have to focus on minimizing it.”
There was no way to avoid damage when there was a fire.
He just wanted to prevent a complete breakdown with Korea, or more precisely, with Yu Ji-ha.
He could not choose the worst option of using military force.
He said this to the senators who secretly hoped for the 7th Fleet’s pressure.
“The navy is not there to take responsibility for you. The 7th Fleet will not move.”
This created a rather hostile atmosphere.
“Do we need to be so weak against Korea? They won’t be able to survive if we just restrict the food exports to North Korea.”
President Baldwin frowned, but the senators did not budge.
“It wouldn’t be bad to break Korea’s nose this time. They even entered Japan’s EEZ and stole the artifact, or rather, the meteorite. They didn’t care about international etiquette either.”
Thanks to that, Japan, France, Britain and other countries were angry and criticized Korea.
They could understand entering the EEZ for work, but they should have at least notified them.
Of course, Japan would never agree and they couldn’t stop them anyway, so they just came in openly.
President Baldwin rolled his tongue at the absurd perception of four senators, including James.
“Do you want war in the end? You criticized President Yu’s belligerence so much, but do you want war?”
“...We don’t want war. We just want pressure.”
The senators did not change their position until the end, and President Baldwin’s patience was running out.
He left the Capitol and ordered the entire 7th Fleet to stand by.
He did not want them to run into the United Federation’s fleet and cause a real disaster.
The navy obeyed obediently, but Congress was very dissatisfied with this measure.
—Baldwin is too weak and only suffers in this minor conflict situation.
—Bryant should have been president.
As the conflict between the US administration and Congress continued, the special envoy team arrived in Korea.
They met with Yu Ji-ha, but they did not expect a fruitful negotiation.
The outcome was obvious.
Grover, the chief of staff, explained earnestly about the administration’s position and the situation of the companies, but his indifferent attitude did not change.
“What does the US want? Do they want to import the Eshil processors or save their companies?”
“President Baldwin said he wants both if possible.”
“What if he has to choose one?”
“...Saving the companies.”
“Then he has to give up on shipping the Eshil processors.”
Everyone knows that is impossible.
It would be a huge cash cow in the future, but it was an impossible demand even for Grover, the chief of staff.
He had no choice but to back down a step here.
“Please help the companies produce the Eshil processors. We will pay you well.”
“Do you mean the 500 billion dollars of tariff reduction and the resignation of the senators?”
“I don’t know about the latter, but the former was promised. However, the period needs to be adjusted...”
“I clearly told you that condition was only valid until June.”
Grover broke out in a cold sweat.
There were hardly any people in world history who could pressure the US like this.
It might be because President Baldwin’s policy was to never go to war, but his maneuvering space was narrow.
Yu Ji-ha thought for a while and then said.
“I’ll accept 500 billion dollars with one condition.”
“What is it?”
“Stay out of East Asia. If you stop meddling with Japan, I’ll consider it positively.”