"Yes, I have a plan..."
"But whether they cooperate or not remains to be seen."
"If all goes well, I can defeat Oedipus. Then everyone will be happy."
"But even if things don’t go smoothly... I believe my plan can at least keep Turing alive."
Merka gazed into the distance where the horizon of the sky and earth met, the setting sun immersed in the darkness of the night, determination shining in his eyes.
--------------------------------------------
Another seven days had passed.
In a swift transition, Merka and the shadow arrived at Red Port airport.
Merka followed a group of well-dressed individuals who had come out of the Galleher family's residence all the way to the airport.
Watching the figures of those people boarding a plane in the distance, Merka silently followed suit.
The shadow behind Merka asked, "Is this your plan?"
"Do you think the Galleher family is colluding with the outside world?"
Following behind Merka, they arrived at the desolate airport, devoid of people.
The airport wasn’t large, with only a few airplanes.
Due to Oedipus's exclusive policies, the entire airport appeared particularly bleak.
"It's not what I think, it's a fact," Merka stated.
"When I competed for Turing in Erisburg before, the Galleher family had a constant flow of foreign equipment."
"It's obvious they were colluding with foreign entities."
"Now that Oedipus has tightened control over foreign relations, the foreigners associated with the Galleher family are definitely withdrawing."
As Merka explained to the shadow, he spread his wings, soared out of view of the airplane's windows, climbed along the aircraft's edge, and reached the plane's door, where he paused.
"They may think the Galleher family lacks potential..."
"But I can take advantage of this opportunity to establish contact."
"As long as... I have what they desire."
He attempted to pull the door handle several times but failed.
Although he considered using magic to blast open the door directly, it would surely provoke strong resistance from the other party, making negotiation impossible, so he refrained.
"Calm down... being a mage is not about difficult magic."
Merka carefully recalled how he cast spells when using Bastet's magic, how his body responded.
After all, Bastet's magic wasn’t high-end magic; it was merely an enhancement for a mage's hand.
Therefore, with Merka's efforts, before long, he conjured three cat claws on the opposite side of the plane door.
Using his magical sight, Merka surveyed the environment on the other side of the door and controlled the three cat claws to grasp the door handle simultaneously, pulling it open with force.
"It's open!"
In that split second of opening the door, Merka rolled into the airplane's interior following the trajectory of the flight.
Several guards sitting in the front row inside the plane suddenly sprang into action, raising their guns at Merka as if facing a major threat.
"Who are you!"
One of the guards raised his gun, questioning Merka loudly.
"Don't threaten me... you should know bullets are useless against mages."
Merka replied calmly, his face stern.
"What kind of mage are you, you're not even a woman!"
In the middle of the plane, a man who looked like a leader, reading a newspaper and eating lunch, raised his head upon hearing the commotion, calmly setting down the newspaper.
Placing the fork with a fried egg back on his plate, he glanced at the blue cat claws behind Merka, then folded the newspaper and gestured to the surrounding guards.
"He's right, lower your guns."
"Young man, who are you?"
He smiled, amicably asking Merka.
"I mean no harm, I just want to make a deal with you."
"Strictly speaking, I'm offering you assistance in this troubled time."
Merka watched as the several guards obediently lowered their guns. He then shifted his gaze to the man, speaking up.
"Interesting... offering assistance in a time of trouble, you certainly have a way with words."
"It's the height of summer right now. What snow, what charcoals are you offering in such a season? Care to explain?"
The man smiled knowingly. He elegantly picked up a champagne bottle from the table, took a sip, waiting for Merka's response.
Furrowing his brow, Merka knew the man wasn't taking him seriously.
People from the outside world often held such biases; they viewed Acadia as a barbaric land, Acadia people as a savage race, and their interactions with Acadia people were always colored by these prejudices.
A drop of sweat trickled down Merka's neck. He knew breaking through this man's preconceptions and gaining his trust with just a few words would be incredibly challenging.
"...In 1945, Germany was defeated."
After a moment of contemplation, Merka began.
"But far from collapsing, it rose from the ashes post-war despite colossal war debts."
"You victorious nations, including the UK, the US, China, and others, feared Germany's resurgence, thus covertly balancing each other, leading to a perpetual Cold War."
"Eventually, through fortuitous research, you discovered that Acadia's magic at the world's borders was not magic but remnants of ancient high technology."
"Understanding the potency of magic, you swiftly began avidly pursuing this advanced technology present in Acadia."
"You countries, covertly sponsoring participation in Acadia's labs, interfering with Acadia's sovereignty issues, all to gain the opportunity to study Acadia's magic."
"You initiated an arms race in your research concerning Acadia."
"You all knew the importance of not letting other nations achieve breakthroughs first."
"If Germany were to decipher magic's mysteries, warfare would engulf the earth again, with Germany unstoppable."
"If your victorious nations obtained the secret of magic, you would pull far ahead in technological superiority, leaving Germany no chance."
"Am I guessing correctly?"
