Eh? You want to try the humanoid girl's iron fist too?

"Whenever it rains, it's rainwater with a high concentration of collapse radiation."

Raphael nodded and added, "That's the most conservative estimate."

"In addition to the high-concentration collapse fluid cloud in the sky, there is also high-concentration collapse fluid moving with the North Pacific Current. Canada and the west coast of the United States are also doomed."

"A world-class catastrophe, man-made."

Raphael uttered a leisurely remark as he sat cross-legged in the broadcast van, browsing the firsthand information relayed by the CIA.

Asuka stared at the lifeless little face in front of her. Even though they looked exactly alike, she just couldn't stand it, couldn't stand that tense face.

"Yes, it was man-made."

Volume 1: The World Before the Great War: Chapter 141 The Second Korean War

Following the Shinbosan Ruins incident, the Korean Peninsula was within the range of the collapse fluid spreading in the troposphere.

Fog clouds formed by collapsing liquid condensation and water vapor clouds crossed the Sea of ​​Japan and fell onto the plains in the south and mountains in the west of the Korean Peninsula.

The high concentration of collapse fluid directly caused heavy casualties in the area, with approximately 1000 million South Korean and North Korean people dying directly from high-energy radiation.

Before the explosion at the ruins, relations between North and South Korea were at a low point.

On the day the disaster broke out, the headquarters of the Eighth Division at Camp Humphrey began to move toward the vicinity of the 38th parallel, and the combat forces belonging to the Eighth Division also began to assemble.

While most people were still fast asleep, a fierce barrage of artillery fire suddenly erupted along the 38th parallel.

The muzzle flashes illuminated almost half the sky.

The South Korean army pulled out all the stops, from old-fashioned towed artillery to advanced self-propelled howitzers, all aimed at the enemy's lines of defense in the north.

We must fire relentlessly, even if the cannon barrels are red-hot and glowing.

They either died on the battlefield or broke through the indestructible defenses that the Korean People's Army had painstakingly built up along the 38th parallel for decades, hoping to gain a chance to survive.

At Camp David, the presidential retreat, the president had just finished lunch and was watching CNN's midday news broadcast.

Like most Americans, he doesn't take naps and rests for at most half an hour after lunch.

After becoming president, he slept less than six hours a day.

Without boundless energy, don't even think about living in the White House.

When Defense Secretary Alexander Whitman arrived, television was broadcasting footage of what had just happened, taken by reporters on the scene.

Fires spread through the city, and hundreds of wounded were carried out of the ruins by the military and police. Many more civilians helped each other leave their homes destroyed by the shelling.

The road was littered with broken glass and rubble, and several cars, their frames twisted from the aftershocks of the explosion, lay on the roadside.

Firefighters set up a cordon around the heavily bombarded city, and several armored vehicles and a large group of people armed with K2 rifles set up checkpoints on the highway to strictly check vehicles and fleeing civilians attempting to pass.

The president pressed the mute switch and let Alexander sit down.

"CNN reacted pretty quickly."

"Minister, don't you think this deviates somewhat from the plan?"

The president tossed a folder with the Pentagon logo in front of Alexander.

"Before the South Korean army launched its artillery battle, we bombed the headquarters of the Korean People's Army, and one of our bombers was shot down."

"Perhaps it was shot down."

"Perhaps?" The president's tone was full of doubt.

"Indeed, a B-2 'Spirit' crashed in North Korea after completing its mission, but our intelligence is very limited, and we cannot determine the cause of the crash for the time being. After all, the aircraft's flight path happened to be covered by the collapse radiation cloud... Of course, it won't be long before there is no need to find out."

Alexander smiled, showing little concern for the technical safety of the "Spirit" bomber.

Furthermore, a significant portion of the Korean Peninsula has become contaminated with collapse fluid, and no life can survive in such a harsh environment.

Want to recover the wreckage of the B-2A "Ghost"?

First, try to withstand the collapse radiation from the readings. If he can handle it, then he'll accept it.

Besides, the B-2 series bombers are outdated, and the Air Force and the Department of Defense have long wanted to develop new bombers.

"Undeniably, some unexpected events did occur, but the situation is still under control. The ROK 707th Special Mission Regiment has already departed, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, they should have picked up the pilot by now."

"Minister, you are far too confident."

Alexander coughed twice and said rather reluctantly, "The 707th Special Mission Regiment was trained by our special forces, they are all..."

"Yes, rescuing the pilot is important, but cleaning up this mess is even more important!"

"The situation is not out of control yet, and it is very favorable to us."

"Is that so?" The president crossed his arms, waiting for his defense secretary to continue.

"After the shelling along the 38th parallel began, the Korean People's Army launched a strong counterattack, shelling Seoul. The South Korean army then expanded the scope of its counterattack. If handled properly, it could be said that the Korean People's Army shelled Seoul first, and we were forced to retaliate. After all, we hold the power of discourse."

"So they even bombed the residence of the North Korean leader?"

Alexander nodded and said, "It's just that a few bombs deviated from their intended flight paths, so... it was an accidental bombing."

"Minister, have you forgotten that our bombers are deployed in Guam?"

"I've thought of that problem too."

The president shrugged, leaned back in his leather chair, and gestured for Alexander to continue.

“When we are making propaganda, we can say that we received information before the incident that the Korean People’s Army ruthlessly refused to open the border, refused to accept South Korean refugees, and at the same time held a large-scale live-fire exercise.”

"So, they sent bombers into North Korean airspace to carry out retaliatory bombing immediately after the Korean People's Army shelled Seoul?"

"It wasn't exactly immediate, but the response was very quick."

Alexander coughed twice, then, still wearing that unperturbed smile, said:

"The chaos on the Korean Peninsula perfectly aligns with our interests. The outbreak of war will create more refugees heading north, eventually dragging the country to the north into chaos as well."

In this way, even if we lose the island chain in the Western Pacific due to a disaster, we will not be at a strategic disadvantage.

"Instead of considering strategic gains and losses, you should think about whether reporters will believe your story."

"So far, the North Korean authorities have not released any information related to the bombing. In terms of propaganda, we have gained the upper hand and can release information in advance."

Alexander paused briefly, then continued:

"Whether the reporters believe it or not, or whether they believe it or not, it doesn't matter. As long as North Korea continues to remain silent, the information we reveal will not be questioned."

The president nodded thoughtfully, but did not immediately express his opinion.

"The draft of the speech has been prepared"

"It's been drafted," Alexander said, handing a document to the president. "It's just a first draft; some wording needs to be revised."

After glancing at his prepared remarks, the president said, "Minister, the current situation is completely different from what you initially described."

"But the result was exactly the same."

Alexander knew how to persuade the president.

"I did say that back then..."

“You know I’m not talking about the war.”

The president took off his glasses, pinched the bridge of his nose, and said:

"All previous strategic deployments were based on the Fukushima nuclear accident, but now it seems that you already knew about the Nobuoyama ruins, right?"

“Regarding this…” Alexander lost his composure, but he quickly regained his composure, “I can neither confirm nor deny it…”

The president wore an expression that said he knew this would happen, and finally shook his head helplessly.

"You know I was a lawyer before I entered politics, right?"

"Ok?"

"As a lawyer, I firmly believe that a bad start often means a bad outcome."

P.S.: Happy National Day everyone!

Book 1: The World Before the Great War: Chapter 142 Uncertain Future

Regardless of the outcome of a war on the Korean Peninsula, it is of no importance to the United States across the ocean.

The key to the Nobuoyama Ruins incident is never the outcome, but rather the series of subsequent events it triggered.

After all, the outcome was already predetermined.

The collapsing cumulonimbus cloud is the sword of Damocles hanging over their heads, and it will inevitably fall one day in the future.

Whether it's a torrential downpour or a gentle drizzle, anything that falls from the sky can destroy all life.

As for the eighth episode of the army, their fate rests on whether they can break through the North Korean People's Army's defenses as soon as possible.

Only those who demonstrate sufficient value deserve to be rescued, right?

After all, evacuation operations also involve huge economic expenditures. Although the United States can still use the dollar to reap profits from the world, the impact of huge war expenditures is far more severe.

With a sudden influx of huge war funds, they were left with only two options.

Either reduce government spending, or, given the current state of the federal government, it may face the embarrassing situation of shutting down in two months;

Either severely punish corruption and waste, cutting off people's source of income is like killing their parents. It's not just politicians who are sucking blood from this, but also the factions behind them. If we really do that, the one with the most brains will be the president.

Alternatively, they could pass the burden onto all Americans by raising taxes.

The former involves interest groups and even high-level leaders, making it extremely difficult to implement and unlikely to produce immediate results.

Of course, there are other methods besides raising taxes, such as issuing excessive amounts of currency. However, with any of these methods, the public will ultimately pay the price for this disaster that has nothing to do with them.

Alexander was escorted out of the Camp David resort area by the president. He stood next to the Secretary of Defense's car, glanced back at the villas that were partially hidden in the woods, and then turned and got into the car.

If it's this difficult to make a decision right from the start, the owner of this villa complex will have to change after the next election.

The war on the Korean Peninsula alone was not enough; he had already set his sights on the Japanese refugees being taken in by the Okinawa Islands.

He's planning to have the country across the street take over this place. Don't they always like to say "since ancient times"? Then let's fulfill the wishes of the people of East Asia.

Forced to swallow the fruits of chaos, coupled with the impact of the destruction of the main grain-producing areas, and having to accept refugees with deep-seated hatred, it must be enough to cause East Asians a great deal of trouble.

Of course, it's okay if you don't accept it.

A host of non-governmental organizations controlled by the United States would be happy to jump out and exaggerate the many problems facing East Asia, thereby damaging its international reputation.

After all, it wasn't a war, but a sudden "natural disaster." If it were a war, this kind of operation would be meaningless.