Dragon Raja 3; Chapter 46: Heart of the War Drum (3)

Dragon Raja 3

Carl put on a noble expression. “If we wanted to surpass them, we could easily do so by giving up activities beneficial to our physical and mental health, focusing entirely on work, and becoming workaholics. But which outstanding student would give up the chance to play in a band just to compete with bookworms? The pace at which we work now is ideal in the long run and will maximize our creativity.”

“Creating more dangerous bombs? Alright, alright, let’s get back to the point. Did you communicate with the Japanese branch?”

“The Ganryū Research Institute has taken over the Moniakh and is currently exploring that area of the sea. They are desperate for that embryo.”

“Are you sure ‘desperate’ is the right word?”

“Yes, desperate. The Japanese are like maniacs, sending faxes day and night asking us for data and analysis results. Everyone can tell that they care a lot about the embryo, as if it were their illegitimate child.”

“Your rhetoric truly reaches new heights…” Anjou said.

“In short, the opinion of the Gear Department is to deal with the embryo as soon as possible, but those people in the Japanese branch are hesitant. They say they need further analysis to confirm it is a dragon embryo.”

Anjou nodded slightly. “The Japanese branch’s opinion is not without merit. Trying to attack a dragon hidden in the depths of a trench, even if it is just an embryo, carries immense risks. You’ve ruled out the possibility of sharks or whales, but how can you be sure that the dragon embryo isn’t some kind of unknown deep-sea animal?”

“It’s not a deep-sea animal,” Carl said. “I believe you remember, Principal—this isn’t the first time we’ve heard a heartbeat in the depths of the sea.”

Anjou’s expression turned solemn.

“We compared this heartbeat signal to the one previously recorded. It is an exact match, which is how we confirmed it as a dragon embryo.”

Anjou remained silent for a full minute before speaking again, “Do we have an absolutely safe way to eliminate the embryo?”

“In theory, an absolutely safe method does not exist,” said a Gear Department officer as he stood up. “But we do have some ideas with a high safety margin for your consideration.”

Anjou rarely showed a look of joy: “Do you have a reference plan? Truly beyond my expectations—usually you guys just hand me a bomb and say the Execution Bureau can send specialists to detonate it.”

“Ah… well… it’s a pity, but our preliminary Plan A is still to blow it up. However, we won’t need to send any specialists; we can remotely detonate it,” said a researcher.

“Let me introduce him—this is Researcher Mathur, a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology, specializing in underwater blasting,” Deputy Director Carl said.

“What’s the difference? All of you are bomb maniacs.” Anjou muttered in a voice no one else could hear.

Researcher Mathur displayed a look of superiority; evidently, he was the top expert in underwater blasting. “At the moment, we can only observe the target via sonar, and pinpointing its exact location is impossible—it could be within a circle with a 12-kilometer diameter. Therefore, precise blasting is out of the question. The only solution,” Mathur swung his arm dramatically, “is to flatten the entire seabed!”

“I’m so glad that embryo didn’t choose New York as its incubation site; otherwise, with that wave of your arm, Manhattan Island would be submerged,” Anjou quipped. “But I don’t oppose detonating explosives in the deep sea—go on.”

“Principal, do you remember the U.S. military’s Blu-117 bunker buster?”

“I remember—can penetrate up to 61 meters into granite, but it can’t break through your Valt Alheim,” Anjou replied.

“We can modify that type of bunker buster, adding a torpedo propeller to launch it into the deep sea,” Mathur used his ballpoint pen as a prop to demonstrate the launch process. “Boom! Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh… that’s the sound of the torpedo launcher in the water… pop! That’s the sound of the secondary jet thruster disengaging…” He made popping and crackling sounds with his mouth while letting the pen fall repeatedly onto the table.

“Alright, alright, I don’t care if it sounds like boom-whoosh-pop-bang or oh-yeah-oh-yeah underwater—I only care about the outcome.” Anjou interrupted.

“At a depth of 7,500 meters, the warhead separates, and the deep-sea version of the Blu-117 bunker buster descends, finally penetrating the seabed,” Mathur said. “We launch 16 of these bunker busters simultaneously, and then detonate them all together… Boom, boom, boom, boom…”

“Stop! I don’t want to hear ‘boom’ sixteen times in a row.” Anjou said, “Are you sure the bomb’s power is enough to destroy the embryo? And will there be any negative consequences from such an explosion?”

“Absolutely enough to destroy an Ancient Dragon in the embryonic stage!” Mathur said confidently. “As for negative consequences… if mishandled, Japan might sink.”

“How could that happen?” Anjou was shocked.

Mathur shrugged casually. “You know Japan’s geological foundation is quite unstable. Geologically speaking, it’s located on the boundary between the Asian Plate and the Pacific Plate—volcanoes and earthquakes are frequent. This underwater explosion is of nuclear magnitude, and it could trigger a massive plate collapse, causing Japan’s four main islands to slide into the ocean. But even without our intervention, considering how fragile the foundation is, Japan might sink anyway. So why not let us take the first shot?”

“Stop, stop, stop!” Anjou raised both hands. “We are the Secret Party that slays dragons, not terrorists! Only Bin Laden would approve such a plan!”

“But Bin Laden doesn’t hate the Japanese. If he wants to sink the United States, I have other solutions for him to consider…”

“Alright, alright! I’ll write a letter to Bin Laden’s successor recommending you for Al-Qaeda. Now tell me, what is Plan B?” Anjou had to cut him off.

“If Plan A doesn’t pass, Plan B is still shaky… It might affect the Korean Peninsula… but what’s the difference? At least it won’t affect North American headquarters.”

Anjou took a deep breath. “Thank you very much, Researcher Mathur. I feel honored to have you at Cassell College, and I now understand that the College already possesses the ability to destroy the world. If the next U.S. president doesn’t issue us an educational license, I will use that to threaten him. Now, please return to your seat. Let’s think differently—how long would it take us to manufacture an underwater robot capable of detecting the embryo? Would three months be enough?”

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