"I found this in the Red Queen Ranch by chance. When soaked in ordinary water, it can purify impurities and relieve ntal fatigue while enhancing physical strength when consud." Ann Vaughn placed the pendant in Cyrus Hawthorne’s palm, speaking earnestly, "You need to keep it safe and return it to when you get back."
The pendant retained so warmth from Ann Vaughn, gradually warming from Cyrus Hawthorne’s palm to his chest.
He raised an eyebrow and chuckled, "So it’s not a gift for ?"
Ann Vaughn retorted confidently, "Wishful thinking! You’ll have to co back intact for my precious pendant!"
Looking at her stubborn little face, Cyrus Hawthorne couldn’t help himself and once again captured her delicate lips, prying open her teeth for a powerful invasion.
Their breaths intertwined, two souls rging as one.
Ann Vaughn was kissed so thoroughly that she felt weak all over, her feet as if stepping on clouds, her breath becoming hotter and hotter.
After a long while, Cyrus Hawthorne released her, resting his chin on her shoulder, his voice hoarse beyond normal, "Wait obediently at ho for my return. If you behave, I’ll bring you a present."
Ann Vaughn’s eyes were misty like soaked water, her lips blushing as she asked in confusion, "What present?"
"Guess."
Just then, the door of the VIP lounge was knocked upon, and Mark Joyce’s voice ca through.
"President Hawthorne, it’s ti for boarding."
"Hmm." Cyrus Hawthorne replied nonchalantly, ticulously smoothing Ann Vaughn’s dress before helping her stand.
Ann Vaughn instinctively grabbed Cyrus Hawthorne’s sleeve, words she wanted to say stuck in her throat, finally just forming the sentence, "Don’t forget your promise to ."
Whatever happens, she only wishes for his safety.
Cyrus Hawthorne gazed at her and lowered his voice, "Alright."
Only when Cyrus Hawthorne’s figure vanished entirely at the boarding gate did Ann Vaughn slowly withdraw her gaze, rub her sore eyes, and turn to leave.
The drive back was much slower than the way there, yet it still left the other cars on the road far behind.
Wilder Sheridan, having been sick in bed for so long, felt his bones itching, his blood boiling.
The cool night wind battered Ann Vaughn’s face endlessly; the distant riverside hos illuminated, their shadows rising and falling, she watched slightly entranced.
"Sis," Wilder Sheridan turned to glance at Ann Vaughn by the window, face full of lancholy, teasingly said, "Cyrus has just left and you already miss him this much, how will you get through the days ahead?"
Ann Vaughn said nothing.
"If you really miss him that much, you could call or video chat once he’s there, couldn’t you? Besides, it’s not like he’s never coming back, right?"
"...Don’t talk nonsense."
"You’re just too nervous." Wilder Sheridan was slightly bitter; unsure if Nathan Hawthorne’s actions involved Cyrus Hawthorne, he wasn’t ready to let his guard down.
Ann Vaughn also felt she was overly tense. A re faint, elusive feeling, perhaps not worth worrying over too much.
...
The issue of the OX virus resurfacing in the Hesperian Region of J Country soon spread to all nations; even though authorities tried to suppress the news, it was already too late to stop it from spreading far and wide.
Initially, this wasn’t a huge issue; no deaths had been reported, and J Country had the antidote formula. Producing the antidote before the situation worsened shouldn’t have posed a challenge.
But unfortunately, the formula properly stored in J Country’s database went missing.
Not only did the main formula disappear, but backups and all related notes vanished as well!
The furious J Country President ordered a thorough investigation, hoping to find the culprit who infiltrated the database, but it turned out the deletion was an internal issue, not an external hack.
——And it can never be recovered.
Thousands of infected people in the Hesperian Region awaited the governnt to distribute the antidote and save them from their plight.
This mishap at such a critical juncture left the nation in turmoil, with everyone suspicious and accusatorial, each one seeing others as the culprit who deleted the formula.
After comprehensive screening and investigation, all evidence pointed directly to Minister Westmont of the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
No matter how much he protested his innocence, he was still taken away for investigation.
Just a few kiloters from J Country, across the Adamant Sea, gray mist dissipated, gradually revealing an erald island surrounded by sea, standing with a silver-white hardened shell at its center, a diamond-cut semi-circular base.
A blue-black flag fluttered in the wind atop the base, words barely visible.
ZEUS.
Zeus.
The growing waves drowned the sound of the base’s doors opening, and two figures in white coats erged.
"Just received news, Minister Westmont’s exposure risks involving the senator, which would reveal this base. From now on, extra caution is necessary."
"I recall no directive was given to him to delete the formula, who gave him the guts to do so?"
"Who knows, perhaps a sudden lapse in judgnt. Also, the small fry has been consud too quickly recently, have Butch catch more outside, quality isn’t important... it’s all Westmont’s fault though, the big fish from S Country had already fallen into the net, and now who knows when the next opportunity will arise."
"Rember to be extra careful this ti, don’t let those with ulterior motives infiltrate again, last ti angered ’that one’ terribly..."
"Failing to catch big fish will obviously anger ’that one’." The person on the right wore a sullen expression, "Might as well just nab the big fish straight away, after all, isn’t there soone we planted beside her?"
"What’s your plan?"
The two figures slowly disappeared, waves eventually cald down with no trace of disturbance.
...
The J Country President initially trusted Minister Westmont’s word, believing the infected’s sudden deaths were due to Dr. Vaughn’s faulty formula, thus allowing extra pressure on Dr. Vaughn and S Country, also harboring ulterior motives.
But now, Westmont’s actions proved Ann Vaughn was frad; if her formula had issues, Westmont wouldn’t have risked deleting everything.
His actions revealed a guilty conscience.
Understanding the stakes, with little hesitation, the J Country President imdiately contacted S Country for assistance.
Being pressured through threats, bribes, and dia, the S Country Foreign Affairs Office, having worked overti for two consecutive weeks, suddenly felt uplifted, sweeping away fatigue, feeling imnsely relieved.
Wasn’t Dr. Vaughn’s formula accused of being lethal?
Wasn’t Dr. Vaughn suspected of ill intentions towards J Country?
Didn’t they curse and scold right to our faces?
Now they’ve admitted defeat??
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