Castle had come to realize that despite his advantage of foreknowledge from his past life, allowing him to handle many situations in a god-like mode, his intelligence-gathering abilities were seriously lacking. Take the situation with Dr. Bailey, for example—his interference had completely disrupted the original course of events, leaving him without a reliable source of information. Even though he and Fatty were both excellent hackers, there were still many things that simply couldn't be found online.
As he drove toward the Continental Hotel in New York to ask Winston about the latest intel on Dr. Bailey, Castle mulled over two possible solutions. Should he use the system's reward and finish coding the artificial intelligence that could truly excel in online intelligence gathering? Or, should he simply use his vast amounts of money to build his own intelligence network?
As he pondered this, Castle's attention was suddenly drawn to the car's radio, where a breaking news report blasted through the speakers.
"...Breaking news! Just five minutes ago, a massive explosion occurred in the eastern region of John Bull, in the town of Lowestoft. The explosion is highly suspected to be a nuclear detonation. The entire town has been leveled, and the current death toll is impossible to estimate, but it's expected to be over 50,000. The John Bull government has confirmed that the explosion was caused by wanted criminal Edward Bailey. Stay tuned for more updates as our reporters head to the scene!"
Castle almost bit his tongue in shock.
What the hell? Wasn't Dr. Bailey supposed to be waiting for Bakkawi in the mountains of Finland to sell that red mercury bomb? How did he end up in John Bull's home territory?
Lowestoft? That's just east of London. If he traveled by sea from Finland via Sweden and Norway, he would have landed right there.
Could it be that Dr. Bailey decided not to sell the bomb after all and instead took it to John Bull himself? But hadn't he been dead set on blowing up London? Why would he detonate it in Lowestoft instead? Was he backed into a corner and acted out of desperation? Or was this a premeditated act to make a grand statement and attract more buyers for the weapon?
The more Castle thought about it, the less sense it made. Without reliable intel, he couldn't make the right judgment, so he pressed harder on the accelerator, eager to reach the Continental Hotel and ask for inside information.
When Castle arrived at the hotel—which wasn't far from the Twelfth Precinct—he noticed that the atmosphere inside was off. As Karon approached and quietly filled him in, Castle learned that the whole world now knew about the explosion in John Bull. The Continental Hotel's unusual vibe stemmed from the fact that some of their operatives in Finland had been among the first to track down Dr. Bailey's whereabouts.
However, since they hadn't been ordered to capture Bailey, they merely passed the information on to the John Bull and White Eagle agents, who had rushed to Finland to apprehend him.
But, as always, Bailey had managed to slip away. This genius doctor, once again, evaded capture by two of the world's top intelligence agencies. Thanks to the presence of these agents, Bailey could no longer leisurely wait for Bakkawi in the Finnish mountains. Instead, he fled to the coast, crossed the North Sea by boat, and landed in Lowestoft with his red mercury bomb, intending to head west to London to fulfill his lifelong dream of blowing up the Tower of London.
However, Bailey's luck ran out in Lowestoft. Cornered by agents from both John Bull and White Eagle, he realized that he wouldn't make it to London. In a fit of desperation, he detonated the bomb right there, leveling the town and killing tens of thousands of people in an instant.
As Castle listened to Karon recount the details, his eyes nearly popped out of his head. Dr. Bailey really went that far? After realizing he couldn't fulfill his dream of bombing London, he chose to detonate the bomb in Lowestoft, right in the middle of a standoff with intelligence agents?
So, Bakkawi didn't get his hands on the bomb after all?
That means the reason Bakkawi, who nearly wiped out the world's leaders attending a funeral in London in Castle's past life, didn't act sooner was because he couldn't buy the bomb from Bailey. This forced him to come up with a new plan years later, culminating in the events of "London Has Fallen."
Is this deviation due to Castle's interference? Or is it the world's correctional force at work?
In any case, the bomb had gone off in Bailey's private plane over the North Sea in the previous timeline, causing no other casualties. Now, it had detonated in a John Bull town, killing tens of thousands of people. That red mercury bomb was comparable to a 200-kiloton nuclear warhead. The town's population must have been wiped out.
Castle couldn't help but admire Dr. Bailey's determination. Even though the doctor hadn't fulfilled his dream of putting on a grand fireworks display in London, setting off the bomb on John Bull's home turf was still a notable achievement. Castle thought sarcastically, What a shame. It would've been something to see that firework in London!
Wait—after such a major incident, wouldn't John Bull's intelligence agencies hate those who helped Bailey escape from the Tower of London? How could that old bald guy in his sixties, who's been flirting with danger, possibly survive London now?
As Castle thought about these irrelevant matters, he entered Winston's private elevator. When the doors opened, Winston was already standing there, looking unusually serious. "Rick, you little rascal, you really screwed Frank and his team this time!"
Castle was confused by Winston's words. "Uncle Winston, what are you talking about? How did I screw over Frank and his team? If I hadn't told them Bailey was still alive, they wouldn't have known until the CIA came knocking on their door!"
Winston shook his head. "Your father already arranged to extract Frank and his team from John Bull's MI6 surveillance right after the explosion, but they've still been marked for revenge. MI6 is furious with them, and the John Bull Prime Minister has ordered that Frank, Marvin, and the others be eliminated. Even Victoria has been added to their kill list. All of this because you had to open your mouth."
Castle defended himself. "Uncle Winston, you're blaming me for nothing. If I hadn't warned Frank in advance, given Bailey's ability to stir things up, don't you think the CIA would've hunted them down once the Dragoncress Project was exposed online? Frank's team would've been the first to get targeted."
"And besides," Castle added, "it's actually a good thing that the bomb went off. Now, not only do White Eagle and John Bull miss out on the bomb's tech specs, but neither Bear nor Bakkawi will get their hands on it either. Think about it—a bomb exploding in John Bull is way better than Bakkawi smuggling it into New York and setting it off there. Who cares how many John Bull citizens die? It's not our problem."
Winston was left speechless by Castle's twisted logic. After taking a deep breath to calm himself, Winston finally said, "The bigger question now is, how much were you involved in this incident? And will the CIA be coming after you?"
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Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 256)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 336)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 542)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 924)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
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