This should have been massive news, a story that would shake the entire world to its core.
But alas, while America may have been showing signs of political decline in recent years, it remained far ahead of the rest of the globe in "information" technology and media suppression. It was just a few small, isolated coastal towns wiped out. It was just a matter of scrubbing the records of the frontline soldiers who didn't return. As long as the powerful figures at the top were still in control, America would officially remain "peaceful."
Of course, a massive cover-up was still necessary.
"A nuclear leak?" Yusaku Kudo's expression suddenly turned strange after watching the federal emergency broadcast on the news.
America's ability to manipulate information and instantly control public opinion remained unmatched. He couldn't help but click his tongue in sheer amazement as he turned off the television in his study.
He turned around to look at the "acquaintances" who had just urgently arrived at his door: Shuichi Akai, Father Howard, Lovecraft, Sheriff Gray, and FBI Director Joseph.
Yusaku nodded knowingly to Sheriff Gray, while the others' lingering confusion clearly required a detailed explanation. This was especially true for Akai. Yusaku and Akai were old acquaintances. What a cold, proud, and composed man the Silver Bullet used to be! Now, however, the federal agent looked entirely exhausted, sitting on the sofa as a picture of dejected, hollow despair.
"Mr. Kudo, do you know what they are?" Director Joseph asked hastily, almost impatiently.
But Yusaku simply shook his head. "No. In fact, I know absolutely nothing about Innsmouth."
If they were being serious, Akai was currently the human who knew Innsmouth best. And now, the American government was utterly terrified by it. The terrifying fish-man monsters, the dreadful misty town, the rapid biological evolution—it was too much to process.
The American government's official designation of the Innsmouth area as a highly radioactive "nuclear leak" zone was tantamount to legally treating it as a permanent forbidden zone for humanity. This naturally caused a huge uproar internationally, and even drew widespread environmental condemnation domestically.
But this was truly the only way it could be handled. It was better for the government to embarrass themselves on the world stage with a fake nuclear disaster than to face another apocalyptic fish-man zombie outbreak. This time, Innsmouth voluntarily backed down; next time, who knew what would happen?
Director Joseph sighed with lingering, bone-deep fear.
The mysterious and eerie Innsmouth. And then there was that chilling hint from his old friend, Sheriff Gray, back at headquarters…
'God…' Joseph thought, shivering. 'Could it really be as I've been guessing…?'
"So, do you know why they stopped?" Director Joseph pressed impatiently, leaning forward.
"Baron Lionheart," Akai replied, his voice raspy.
He pulled out a lighter and lit a cigarette—a rare sight for him indoors—his eyes filled with a profound, haunted weariness. But the subtle, uncontrollable trembling of his right leg revealed that his emotions weren't nearly as calm as his stoic face appeared.
"They're wary of Baron Lionheart."
"…I think it might not just be Baron Lionheart," Yusaku offered his own sharp insight.
This supernatural world was far too unfamiliar. Like any mortal geopolitical landscape, it was highly unlikely that only one or two factions were locked in conflict; the complexities of international relations applied to the mystical world as well. Therefore, the appearance of Innsmouth must have triggered a cosmic "balancing" mechanism currently unknown to them.
"Could it be… that you knew Baron Lionheart a long time ago?" Director Joseph asked the question that concerned him most.
The psychological pressure radiating from the Innsmouth incident was simply too immense. It was so vast that the entire military might of America had to bow its head and make way for it. So vast that Director Joseph felt a literal dark cloud hanging over his soul.
He stood up, extremely agitated, and paced back and forth across Yusaku's study. The mere thought of Baron Lionheart and Innsmouth sent shivers down his spine. It was far beyond the comprehension of ordinary people. The advanced technological weapons that mortals constantly marveled at were a pathetic joke in their eyes.
Especially since his old friend, Sheriff Gray, had subtly hinted that they—no, it was them—were very likely connected to the "Gods" that mortals blindly worshipped. Perhaps they were even identical to "Gods"...
This terrifying conjecture nearly made Director Joseph, a lifelong devout believer, choke on his own breath. Could "Gods" be so easily identified in reality? The physical existence of "Gods" could completely overturn the current world order.
The more Joseph thought about it, the more frightened he became, almost delirious with panic. It wasn't that he was overthinking; rather, the implications were truly terrifying. After all, most of the gods recorded in ancient mythology were not benevolent, peaceful figures...
Take the most widely known Old Testament God, for example. His acts of flooding and world destruction were not uncommon.
Thinking of this, Director Joseph's expression froze in horror. He hadn't thought much of it before, but now... was it inappropriate to harbor such resentment towards entities that could flood the world? His hands trembled violently, and he quickly made the sign of the cross over his chest.
"Yes, we did indeed know Baron Lionheart a long time ago, and we personally witnessed his oath," Yusaku said smoothly.
Yusaku wasn't one to boast without reason. But such cosmic matters needed a set, authoritative procedure to prevent these powerful government officials from having wild, dangerous ideas. He silently lit his own cigarette.
Noticing the subtle, measuring glances exchanged between Akai and Director Joseph, Yusaku couldn't help but nod subtly with satisfaction. His primary purpose in saying all this was to firmly establish his and Gray's "status" within this new hierarchy in advance. Perhaps it carried a hint of a mortal "power struggle," but as he deduced, such things definitely needed a set procedure to maintain order.
He knew some things couldn't be stopped. For example, Yusaku absolutely couldn't stop Hahn Cliff's impending social connections. That would clearly be overstepping his mortal bounds. So, it was far better to guide the current than to block it; his current "job" was dealing with these kinds of trivial, secular matters on His behalf.
Of course, while Yusaku could remain elegantly calm, Sheriff Gray was a naturally flamboyant person.
Hearing Yusaku say this out loud to the Director of the FBI, Gray's face instantly lit up with a radiant, smug smile. Even his chest puffed out straight with pride. Noticing the intentional or unintentional looks of pure "envy" from Father Howard, Lovecraft, and his old boss Joseph, Sheriff Gray was even happier.
He and Hahn were old buddies... Want to be friends with Hahn? Sure.
'Get in line!' Gray thought gleefully.
"..." Director Joseph was completely stunned, stopping his pacing. "And... you have a 'God' as a friend?"
"…No, I think you've misunderstood something fundamental," Yusaku corrected, his voice turning deadly serious. "Hahn isn't a God. He is merely being watched by a God."
Forcibly suppressing the electric, tingling sensation spreading across his scalp, Akai's hand holding the cigarette trembled so hard he almost dropped it. His brilliant deductive mind instantly extracted a tremendous, terrifying piece of information from this single sentence.
Hahn Cliff wasn't a God. But the confrontation between Hahn Cliff and Innsmouth was clearly an equal, balanced relationship. Therefore, neither of them were the "True God."
'Then... what kind of True God is sitting directly above them...?' Akai thought, his blood running entirely cold.
Howard suddenly tensed up, desperately clutching the silver cross at his chest, repeatedly making frantic prayer gestures.
'God, God... Your greatness is truly, truly unfathomable...'
For a long moment, Howard was completely speechless, only able to mechanically repeat the prayer in his mind to ward off the encroaching madness.
Perhaps out of sheer cosmic awe, or perhaps out of an instinctive, primal fear of drawing That entity's attention, the atmosphere in the study suddenly became deathly quiet. No one dared to speak.
The silence was absolute, save for the occasional sound of someone's rapid, choking breath, or someone taking a deep, trembling gulp of air as they desperately tried to process the new cosmic reality.
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Give me powerstones.
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