Merka finished speaking, and the man clapped in surprise shortly after.

As he clapped rhythmically, he nodded appreciatively and said, "...very interesting."

"I had thought people from Acadia were all foolishly content with their current situation, but you surprisingly hit the nail on the head," the man continued ambiguously, smiling. He was intrigued by what Merka had said, but his tone remained calm and composed, a characteristic of a top negotiator.

"However, you are right about the meaning of the snow, but do you have the coal?" he asked.

"Are you, a seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy, really carrying what we want?"

After hearing the man's question, Merka shook his head lightly.

"No, what I have is even better than what you want."

"But...it's not in my possession right now."

Upon hearing this, the man furrowed his brow slightly and asked Merka, "What do you mean, are you going to give me an empty promise?"

"Whether or not it's an empty promise, I can only tell you if you come closer," Merka replied without saying much. He then raised both hands above his head to signal that he was unarmed and slowly walked towards the man.

"Don't come any closer!" The guards around them grew tense.

They raised their firearms again, aiming at Merka as if they were facing a monstrous beast instead of a young boy.

Clearly, they were well aware of the power of magic users. For a mage, even raising both hands above their head could result in instantly killing a dozen people - it was entirely possible.

"I told you, bullets are useless against me."

"Don't you have more powerful weapons? Why aren't you bringing them out? Are you testing me?"

Merka scanned the men around him and noticed that they were only holding handguns, not even rifles.

However, in reality, Merka had just scanned the entire plane through his magical vision and had clearly seen not only guns hidden inside but also many futuristic laser weapons similar to those seen in sci-fi movies.

Merka knew that those were no toys; they were undoubtedly real.

"What are you talking about?"

This time, the guards were truly panicking, as they hadn't expected to encounter such a tough nut even when they were about to head home.

"You think people from Acadia are mindless insects?"

"I saw through it long ago."

"You have countless unmanned drones patrolling the skies over Acadia, don't you?"

"I suppose it's to prevent a sudden attack from Acadia on others."

"After all, Acadian people can easily gain air superiority, which is too dangerous for the outside world."

"But those drones are clearly not the kind of technology your current level can produce, right?"

"I believe...that level of technology is at least fifty years ahead of the present."

"I think the outside world is probably enforcing a technology blockade on us...are you trying to deceive us by uniting to prevent us from learning your technology and breaking free from your control?"

Merka's soft, smooth voice reached the ears of those present, cutting through them like the chill of a winter breeze.

He didn't do much; with just his words, he made people start breathing rapidly, leaving them feeling inadequate.

"Oh my God...what is this...?"

Upon hearing Merka's words, the guards, who felt their bluff had been called, immediately lost some of their momentum.

"Well done," the man remarked. "This young man is clever, confident, and courageous. Surely he is one of the outstanding individuals among the new generation in Acadia."

"In other countries, at your age...you should be thriving in a garden of flowers, but it's both admirable and pitiful to see you here!"

Unlike the guards who were starting to retreat, the man, with his hand supporting his chin, looked at Merka with interest and said, "Well, whatever you have, come and tell me."

"Even if I die, it will be for my country."

Merka glanced around at the guards who had lowered their guns again and, without hesitation or politeness, walked directly towards the man.

"Shadow, help me inject the memory using Aside, include the part about the Color of the Stars," Merka whispered to the shadow behind him.

"Hmm...I understand your plan," the shadow immediately responded.

Merka approached the man, touched his arm, and immediately flooded the man's mind with countless memories and indescribably twisted, bloody scenes.

The man, who moments ago appeared to be in control of everything, couldn't bear it and clutched Merka's sleeve, collapsing to the ground in agony, rolling around in pain.

"What...what is this?! Ah!!!"

The man wailed, and a guard tried to rush forward to help.

But before he could raise his gun, Merka, with his huge mage's hand, firmly gripped the guard's gun and body, pinning them against the ceiling of the plane.

Seeing this, the guards' faces changed drastically, some calling for reinforcements, others preparing weapons. However, before they could react, the man slowly began to regain his senses.

As he lay on the ground, he took a deep breath, his body covered in cold sweat, looking as if he had been dragged out of water.

"Haha...haha...cough, so that's it...the Cave of the Apocalypse?"

After a while, the man finally regained some composure.

Little did he know, his saliva had already dripped onto the ground, soaking the red carpet beneath him.

"Within Acadia, there exists a divine entity comparable to Kagtua...and it's intact!"

"Although damaged, it will undoubtedly be valuable material for research."

The man sat up from the floor, caught his breath, and said to Merka with relief, "Young man, you have greatly helped us."

Furrowing his brow, Merka replied to the man, "I never said I would help you for free."

"If you want to know the location of the Cave of the Apocalypse...you have to agree to a request of mine."