Starting from South America, speeding through the world

Chapter 12 The advantage is mine
[Official Mission: Fulfill Gina Lopez's Wish]

[Official mission duration: 30 days]

[Official mission activated]

[Countdown: 719:59:58]

As Gina finished speaking, the system finally activated the official mission.

Zhou Yi stroked his chin: "If he's shot dead, will that fulfill your wish?"

"Death? That's far too good for him!"

Her voice suddenly rose.

“A death that is downplayed will only be packaged as some kind of sacrifice by the politicians who inherit his political legacy.”

"I want him to be utterly disgraced, I want his secrets exposed, and I want everyone to know what kind of bastard he is."

Gina spoke faster and faster, her voice revealing a long-suppressed resentment.

“I want to see him despised by those who support him, exposed by the media until he has nowhere to escape, and finally lose everything—status, power, money, and even his self-respect.”

Zhou Yi remained calm, his gaze sweeping over her disheveled appearance: "I can help you."

Gina's emotions, which were about to spiral out of control, were interrupted, and she stared blankly at Zhou Yi.

This is the umpteenth time I've heard this phrase.

For the first time, the man before her gave her a feeling of being unable to understand him.

Biting her lip, Gina hesitated for a moment before finally unable to hold back her question: "Why? You and I are complete strangers, why do you keep saying you want to help me?"

“I come from the north,” Zhou Yi lied without batting an eye, “and your goal just happens to be helpful to my mission.”

"Which department? The conspirators up north have a million ways to interfere here, why should it be my turn?"

"Does the name really matter? The CIA, DHS, NSA, DIA, USAID, and even OAS all have significant interests here. Ultimately, many of these things have nothing to do with national defense and security."

"Then why Alvaro of all people?"

“I’m just an executor.” Zhou Yi shrugged, then added meaningfully, “By the way, you’re being hunted down because you know too much, aren’t you?”

Gina's gaze flickered slightly.

Yes, she does know too much, and that's precisely why she's in such a desperate situation.

The man before her might be her enemy, but at this moment, he was the only one willing to "help" her.

Even if there are countless schemes behind it.

Her throat felt tight.

After a long silence, he finally nodded slightly.

Seeing that the woman had finally come to her senses, Zhou Yi smiled and stood up: "Hand over the recording."

“I don’t have the recording.” A barely perceptible hint of embarrassment flashed in Gina’s eyes.

Zhou Yi's brows furrowed instantly: "What do you mean, 'not in your hands'?"

"At the time, I thought this thing was too dangerous and there was no point in keeping it."

"So after much deliberation, I decided to hand it over to a helpful person in the bureau."

"He promoted me before, and I thought he would help me this time, at least protect me. But I was wrong. He pocketed the spoils and threw me out to take the blame."

"Is that your only evidence?" Zhou Yi showed no interest in her thought process whatsoever.

Gina's face darkened further, as if she were annoyed by her own foolishness: "Yes."

Zhou Yi couldn't help but sigh: "Think carefully, is it possible that there are any undeleted records, traces, or recoverable items left on the device?"

Taken aback by what was said, Gina frowned, seemingly trying to recall.

After a few seconds, she spoke uncertainly: "Maybe I did record the audio with a listening device at the time."

"The equipment was issued by the bureau. The standard procedure is to copy and then delete the files, but the one I'm using is newer and has an internal caching function."

"To be precise, the device will temporarily store the audio files."

"Even if you delete it manually, the contents of the cache can still be recovered in a short time if there is no overwrite."

"However, I'm not sure if the files have been completely deleted or overwritten, since several days have passed."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yi clapped his hands, interrupting Gina's recollection, "That's easy to say. We'll take action this afternoon and retrieve the recording before tonight."

"Wait, what do you mean by 'afternoon operation'?" Gina asked, completely bewildered. "You don't expect the two of us to go against the entire intelligence agency, do you?!"

“The bureau usually has more than 50 special agents, divided into four groups in shifts, patrolling armed all day long. With the addition of rapid support troops, how could we possibly let the intruder come out alive!”

"You don't need to worry about that," Zhou Yi casually reassured Gina. "I'll take action later, and you'll provide support."

"Besides, it's one against fifty, the advantage is on my side!"

Lucas Enrique Pereira da Costa stared listlessly at the computer screen in front of him.

It was his first afternoon after officially starting work, and it was only a little past two o'clock, but he was already starting to feel a bit bored.

Marcos was his mentor, a veteran employee who had worked in the position for ten years and was very familiar with everything behind the reception desk.

In the morning, he patiently explained the work process to himself. The procedure was rigorous, but it also felt mechanical and boring.

We had lunch in the staff canteen in the main building.

A simple set meal: a roast chicken with rice, plus a small bowl of bean soup.

He even treated Marcos to a cup of coffee as a way of expressing his gratitude.

But the other person just smiled and said, "You'll see later that this place isn't so mysterious."

Lucas sighed softly.

Although he already knew that the host's duties would not involve core secrets, he still held a sliver of hope.

A receptionist at the National Intelligence Agency sounds cooler than a regular company receptionist, right?

However, so far, apart from swiping ID cards, issuing visitor passes, and verifying appointment information, his job duties do not seem to be anything special.

There was no secret handover, no emergency alarms, no mysterious visitors, just an ordinary office atmosphere.

The computer screen in front of me went black for a few seconds after no activity was detected for a long time, and then quickly came back to normal.

Lucas habitually clicked the mouse, only to find himself once again stuck with nothing to do.

"I'm wondering if they really need to hire real people to do this job."

"Or is it simply to spend the federal budget?"

Lucas couldn't resist taking out his phone and secretly sending a rant to a friend.

Many people came and went, but none of them had anything to do with him.

Occasionally, a few staff members would pass by the reception desk, walking briskly.

As he leaned back in his chair, waiting for his friend's reply, he looked towards the door again.

Sunlight streamed through the glass doors onto the marble floor, reflecting dazzling spots of light.

Perhaps the next person to walk in here will bring about some changes.

Lucas thought to himself, trying to find some humor in his predicament.

At least, it will make his "first time" more memorable.

Just then, he saw an Asian man dressed like a color palette.

Worn sneakers, blue jeans, floral shirt, brown baseball cap.

The brim of his hat was pulled low, covering most of his face.

The man walked with a relaxed gait, his hands in his pockets, straight toward the reception desk.

Lucas straightened his back instinctively, his gaze following his figure.

Just as the other person approached, he smelled a very faint scent.

Very familiar with it.

It has often appeared in my memory since childhood.

That looks like gunpowder?

Trying to regain his senses, he saw the man raise his head and give him a friendly smile.

"Hello, I'm here to report a crime."

Lucas heard the man say.

(End of this chapter)