Actually, the outside world already knew about what happened to the Santiago on the same day it occurred.
The crew member on the bridge at the time managed to send out a distress signal, and many people on board had satellite phones, so they were bound to be discovered quickly after losing contact.
So, by now, there might even be rescue teams heading to where the Santiago sank to start salvage operations.
The most obvious sign of this was the stock prices of all the holding companies under Charles plummeted, and the companies owned by the billionaires on the missing list also saw varying degrees of decline.
America's stock market even experienced a small crash because of this. Who knows if someone got the news and started shorting the market.
But none of that had anything to do with Roy. He was still on the tanker, sailing towards Antarctica.
All this information was what Jack told Roy after contacting the outside world using a satellite phone.
In short, a terrible storm of public opinion was waiting for Charles. Hopefully, he could withstand it.
However, Jack told Roy that Charles hadn't shown himself yet, so he likely hadn't returned to land.
As dusk settled, Roy stood on the deck, watching the sunset in the distance, filled with mixed emotions.
Just then, a voice came from behind him.
"In two more hours, we'll reach the offshore drilling platform."
It was Janice speaking.
Ever since Roy woke up, Janice had been constantly showing him concern and asking about his well-being, clearly showing interest in him.
This made Roy very awkward. Although he was indeed a womanizer, he wouldn't go after the wife of someone who had helped him; that would be truly low-class.
But Janice was just too forward, which left Roy feeling quite helpless.
Fortunately, Jack knew that Roy was Serena's boyfriend, and Roy's attitude towards Janice was very cold, so he didn't suspect anything.
This time was the same. Roy completely ignored Janice, but the woman still came over, practically pressing against him, trying to get a reaction.
Of course, it might also be that she wanted to press something else against him.
"Roy, do you know why Jack is rushing to the offshore drilling platform? I heard the workers on that platform are on strike, which is why Jack is hurrying there to negotiate with them."
Janice didn't seem to mind Roy's cold attitude. She blinked and continued talking.
"He was just throwing a tantrum inside because the drilling platform wasn't answering his radio calls."
Roy's heart skipped a beat. Could something else have happened?
These incidents seemed to be happening a bit too frequently! He had only been awake for a few hours!
Janice went on.
"Jack says the workers on the drilling platform are trying to show him who's boss. Good thing he brought security from the military company. Roy, do you think there will be bloodshed when we get to the platform?"
"I don't know."
Roy definitely didn't want any bloodshed. Right now, he just wanted to get back to dry land safely and didn't want any more accidents.
But Janice's attitude seemed like she was looking for a show, which made Roy a little confused about what she was thinking.
A woman's heart is especially hard to guess. After all, Roy's success with women mainly relied on his looks, not on guessing.
Janice chatted with Roy for a few more minutes, but Roy remained distant and indifferent. Janice felt she was getting nowhere and left, looking a bit unhappy.
It was spring in the Southern Hemisphere, and daylight hours weren't too long yet. Dusk quickly ended.
After dark, Roy returned to the cabin and didn't stay outside exposed to the wind.
But there was no one in the cabin. Roy searched around and found everyone gathered in the mess hall.
He saw Jack, fists clenched, giving a pep talk to the oil tanker crew. Behind him stood two men in black that Roy hadn't seen before.
These two men in black must be the military company security Janice mentioned earlier. They seemed to dislike being seen by others and had stayed in their rooms the whole time.
Even when they spotted Roy, they didn't show themselves.
Their appearance now must be to lend Jack some support.
Roy listened by the door for a while. Jack's main point was that he hoped the tanker crew would stand with him when they reached the offshore drilling platform and prevent the striking workers' actions.
Unfortunately, the crew members were uninterested in Jack's words. Even if he spoke with passion and saliva flying, it wouldn't help.
The wages Jack paid weren't enough for the crew members to moonlight as riot police. No matter how much he said, it was useless.
Helpless, Jack could only promise the crew members an extra bonus, which finally sparked their interest.
"Now, go prepare some clubs. When we reach the offshore drilling platform later, just follow my command, understood?"
"Understood."
The crew members answered Jack weakly, then dispersed.
At this point, Roy came over to Jack.
"Jack, do you need my help?"
Jack waved his hand, a smile on his face.
"I've handled many similar worker strikes. It'll be resolved quickly and won't affect our return trip."
Jack thought Roy was in a hurry to get back, which was why he offered to help.
Roy shrugged. He genuinely suspected something might have happened on the drilling platform and wanted to help, but unfortunately, Jack didn't know his capabilities.
Since that was the case, he would just find a way to repay this favor after they reached the drilling platform.
An hour later, they could already see the lights of the offshore drilling platform in the distance. Jack sent another radio message, but there was still no response.
Offshore drilling platforms are usually high above sea level. After the tanker docks, people can't just climb up directly; they need to communicate with the platform and have an elevator lowered.
Jack was furious. He ordered all the crew members on the ship to gather and prepare. Then, after the tanker approached the offshore drilling platform, he sent a signal requesting entry to the platform, but there was still no response.
(Offshore Drilling)
Now, Jack was absolutely livid.
"A bunch of damn poor folks, daring to pull this stunt on me!"
Calling them "poor folks" insulted most of the people present. On the tanker, apart from Mr. and Mrs. Davis and Roy, there were probably no rich people.
As a result, the crew members' eyes towards Jack became less friendly.
Jack realized he had said the wrong thing and quickly corrected himself.
"I've already given those workers sufficient wages, but they still want to strike. It's just too much! Captain, is there still no signal from the platform?"
The captain wiped the sweat from his brow, the situation making him nervous.
"Yes, not a sound. There isn't even anyone greeting us."
Jack clenched his fists, glaring at the offshore drilling platform through gritted teeth.
"Damn it! They're actually that united! No more waiting, we'll use the lifeboat to get onto the platform directly!"
Normally, there are also stairs leading up from the bottom of a drilling platform, but a large ship definitely can't get close, so they can only use a lifeboat.
The problem is, if they use a lifeboat to get onto the offshore drilling platform, they certainly can't bring many people.
Jack started to suspect this was exactly what the drilling workers intended.
"What a bunch of cunning guys!"
Excluding the two mandatory military company security guards, Jack could only take a maximum of 7 more people onto the offshore drilling platform.
Janice wanted to join Jack's team and go up to the platform to watch the excitement, but Jack didn't want his wife involved in this matter.
Even though Janice kept pestering and begging him cutely, Jack didn't agree.
After that, Roy also suggested going up to the platform together.
"Jack, take me with you. I also want to see what the offshore drilling platform looks like."
Jack looked at the burly Roy. At least his build was very intimidating.
But Roy was a guest after all, and Jack felt uncomfortable asking him for help.
"Roy, once I deal with those workers, you can come up to the platform and see. There's no need to go up at this moment."
After some consideration, Jack still refused Roy.
Roy felt helpless but couldn't do anything about it.
Finally, Jack carefully selected seven of the most robust-looking crew members with the fiercest appearances. Each of them grabbed a wooden club and got into the lifeboat, heading towards the offshore drilling platform under the cover of night.
"Hope nothing has happened."
Roy looked at the quiet offshore drilling platform, feeling a vague sense that something might have already happened there.
"Roy, what are you saying hasn't happened?"
After Jack left, Janice started approaching Roy again, certain areas with obvious advantages brushed against his arm subtly.
"Nothing, I just hope nothing happens to Jack, since he helped me."
Hearing this, Janice started pouting prettily.
"Roy, you're so mean! You call Jack by his name but call me Mrs. Davis. Are you deliberately trying to distance yourself from me?"
This made the surrounding crew members' gazes even more ambiguous.
Roy was truly speechless. His attitude was already very clear, yet Janice was still asking something she clearly knew the answer to.
"Mrs. Davis, I think..."
Roy hadn't finished speaking when Jack's voice suddenly came through the captain's walkie-talkie.
"Monster! There are monsters on the drilling platform! Come save me..."
Roy immediately ran to the captain, snatched the walkie-talkie, and asked.
"Jack, what's happening? Hello! Hello!"
There was no more sound from the walkie-talkie, no matter how much Roy called out.
Then, Janice suddenly pointed at the sea outside the window and gasped.
"Look! The ocean below the drilling platform is glowing!"
Everyone rushed to the windows to look at the sea. Indeed, the ocean below the drilling platform was emitting a colorful, eerie light.
This sight was actually quite beautiful, if they hadn't just heard Jack's scream.
Now, there was only fear in the hearts of the others in the cabin.
"What on earth is happening?"
The captain was at a loss, unsure what to do for a moment.
The boss's life was uncertain, and the only one seemingly in charge now was the boss's wife, Janice.
But Janice had never encountered a situation like this and was staring blankly at the glowing sea.
Finally, Roy stepped forward.
"Captain, I'll go up to the drilling platform and take a look. You move the ship further away and wait for me!"
"Huh? By yourself? How about we make a satellite phone call for help and wait for rescue instead?"
The captain still wanted to be more cautious, but Roy's attitude was very firm.
"Do as I say! Is there another walkie-talkie? Give me another one!"
"Mr. Black, but how will you get up? There's only one lifeboat on the tanker!"
"Of course, I'll swim over!"
With a splash, Roy had already jumped into the sea. The deck of the tanker, over ten meters high, was no problem for him at all.
Janice finally snapped back to reality at this point, rushing to the railing and shouting to Roy with tears in her eyes.
"Roy, be careful!"
Roy, who had dived into the sea, didn't hear Janice's words, but even if he had, he wouldn't have responded.
This sea area was surprisingly warm, not at all like the ocean near the Antarctic Circle.
As he got closer to the drilling platform, Roy could see a large amount of tiny, mysterious substances in the seawater. These substances seemed to be floating up from the seabed. The glowing ocean Roy saw earlier was actually the effect of these things gathered together.
To be safe, Roy formed his Nephilim form and materialized a protective film with Chaos Energy to avoid direct contact between his body and these mysterious substances.
This was a very wise choice. As Roy passed through the ocean filled with these mysterious substances, he could feel them attaching to the protective film like living creatures, seemingly trying to devour the Chaos Energy.
Fortunately, the protective film formed by Chaos Energy was very strong. Until Roy reached the bottom of the drilling platform, these mysterious substances couldn't penetrate the film.
Then, Roy tore off the protective film made of Chaos Energy, wrapped the mysterious substances inside it, and put them into his inventory, planning to take them back for research later.
Exiting his Nephilim form, he immediately transformed into Ghost Wolf form. The Ghost Wolf's powerful sense of smell allowed Roy to detect a strange odor.
A stench that was difficult to describe in words. Roy had never smelled anything like it before.
He should find Jack first.
Roy didn't dwell on the smell but pulled out his revolver and started climbing the stairs.
The reason he didn't pull out the Executioner's Blade was mainly because he was afraid its appearance would scare others.
However, Roy soon realized he had worried too much. When he reached the lower level rooms of the platform, he found they were completely dark and empty. There was no sign of Jack or his group.
Roy took out the Hound Ring and started tracking Jack's location, discovering that the hellhound was running towards the largest building on the drilling platform, which was the main structure.
Crew quarters, offices, and the mess hall were usually in this building, but to reach this building, he first had to get to the upper platform of the drill rig.
Passing through the dark, empty lower-level rooms, Roy quickly reached the upper platform.
It was as if a world war had taken place here. Various equipment and supplies were scattered haphazardly on the ground, and some areas were even on fire.
What happened here?
Just as he was thinking, Roy suddenly heard some strange sounds.
Adapted from the horror game "Still Wakes the Deep," a pretty good game.