Chapter 220 Meeting of Global Leaders
According to Terrence, the construction project might be extended to another month. This was because of the presence of the evolved creatures. They have been causing a lot of trouble lately and this negatively affected the workers. Karl's army was consuming a lot of bullets to eliminate these pesky creatures. Not to mention that zombies would occasionally attack them as well.
Arlan wasn't disappointed by this. He knew that it was inevitable. He couldn't blame Terrence or Karl for this since it wasn't their fault.
"Just continue at a safe pace and prioritize the safety of our men." Arlan told them. Building this residential district wasn't urgent. Last City could still accommodate more people and the underground bunker could also hold 20 thousand people.
After discussing the construction project, the three headed to the cafeteria to grab some snacks and drinks.
While they were eating, Terrence sighed emotionally. "If not for this sh*tty virus, I would have already played in the NBA and become the first full-blooded player from Maharlika. I would have earned millions of dollars and dated pretty models. Such a shame!" He shook his head with a regretful smile.
Arlan patted his shoulder. "Cheer up, buddy!" He knew how badly Terrence wanted to become an NBA star. He was a very talented basketball player, but the zombie outbreak happened and destroyed his future.
Karl also shook his head. He also had plans before, but he couldn't do them because of the zombie virus outbreak.
"Who knows? Maybe you can play basketball again in the future. Never lose hope and just keep on practicing. If you want, you can host a basketball tournament in the base. This can also relieve the tension of the civilians and make them more comfortable in the territory. Most of the people are just cooped up in their homes with nothing to do. Doing some physical activities would be great for their mental health." Arlan uttered with a smile. He also wanted to see his friend play in the NBA, but that was impossible now.
Hearing his words, Terrence's expression eased up. "That's a good idea! The people are working so hard so we should set up a sports tournament from time to time to keep them active."
"That's the spirit!" Arlan chuckled. "Where did you get this drink?" He changed the topic.
"Ah, you mean that? I stole it from my dad's collection." Terrence replied as he laughed lightly.
The trio chatted about random matters. They rarely have time to do this so they treasured whatever little time they had at the moment.
It was already 7 p.m. when Arlan returned to Last City. He got home drunk so he immediately went to bed to get some sleep.
The next day, he got a video call request from Manuel Chavez. Arlan just woke up and he didn't even have time to fix his hair. He accepted the video call request.
He saw Manuel Chavez sitting upright behind his desk. He looked incredibly formal in his white barong (the national dress of Maharlika). "Good morning, Mr. Roa! I'm sorry for calling you this early in the morning, but I have something important to tell you."
"Good morning, Mr. President." Arlan adjusted his posture. He still had to show some respect to this man. After all, he was the acting president of the country. "It's fine."
"Mr. Roa, the global leaders will have a video call meeting later at 1 p.m. What should we do during the meeting?" Manuel Chavez asked. In the last meeting, he only acted as a bystander. He didn't even have the chance to speak. In front of the leaders of the big countries, he felt like he was just a small figure. However, things were different now. He had seen the military power of Last City and he was aware that it was only a fraction of its power. With Arlan behind him, he believed that Maharlika could now stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the big countries.
Arlan furrowed his eyebrows upon hearing this. "It's not yet time for us to reveal ourselves. Don't underestimate those big countries, Mr. President. They are powerful enough to control the crisis caused by the zombie virus. At this moment, everyone needs more resources and once they know that we have what they need, they might come and take it away from us. We don't have the energy to fight against our fellow humans when we are still busy dealing with the zombies and the evolved creatures. Just act like a background character and don't expose our strength to anyone." He suggested.
Manuel Chavez's expression turned solemn upon hearing his words. "I was muddled. I almost let my arrogance get the better of me. Thank you for your warning, Mr. Roa."
Arlan shook his head. "We can offer assistance to our close allies, but we can't send too much of our troops. You can also send some resources, but you have to make sure that you won't make the other countries suspect us."
"I understand. Thank you for your time, Mr. Roa! I will give you an update after the meeting. I'll take my leave first." Manuel Chavez was glad that he called Arlan before the meeting.
"Alright." Arlan disconnected the call. He then took a bath and changed his clothes.
After eating some light breakfast, Arlan headed to Winter's office. It was already 10:48 a.m. when he arrived in her office. She was working on the updated version of the virtual reality system. She wanted to add some missions with the zombies and evolved creatures they had fought. This would make the soldiers more accustomed to fighting these monsters, preventing unnecessary deaths from happening.
Arlan waited patiently for almost half an hour before Winter finally laid her eyes on him. "What do you want?" She asked in a cold voice.
"The global leaders will have a meeting later. I want to see their meeting." Arlan wanted to find out the intentions of the other countries. He also wanted to know the situation in other parts of the world.
"Just keep your phone close to you." Winter calmly replied.
"That's it?" Arlan asked in surprise.
"What's hard about infiltrating their meeting?" Arlan seemed to have felt the contempt in her cold voice. This made him speechless.
"If you have nothing else to say, then leave. I still have to finish this program." Winter said.
"Alright. Alright." Arlan raised his arms in midair. He then left like a scared employee who was chased out of his boss' office.
Arlan returned to his home and had a heavy meal. He ate some beef ribs and rice. He felt like he would need some more energy so he added more rice to his plate.
After lunch, he checked the time. It was almost 1 p.m. Arlan headed back to his room and waited for the meeting to start.
At exactly 1 p.m., the meeting began. It was hosted by the president of the United States. He spoke some pleasantries before he went into the topic.
"80% of our population were infected with the zombie virus. Among the 20% who survived, we managed to save 8% and we moved them towards the base we created. We also started researching the zombie virus, in hopes that we could find a cure. Unfortunately, all our tests failed and we aren't even close to uncovering the secrets of the zombie virus." The president of the US uttered in a solemn voice. "I suggest that everyone should share their research findings. We don't have a choice now. We need to stand together to fight this virus. We need to act fast before it's too late."
Some of the leaders frowned upon hearing his words. Their research data was their closely guarded secret and they still have some conflict with other countries. They didn't want to share their research with the others.
"We will show you our findings, but you have to show us the results of your research first." The president of China suddenly said. His words gained the attention of everyone. They all know that there were some conflicts between these two powerhouse countries. They wondered how the US president would respond to this.
To their surprise, the US president nodded his head. "Alright. Tomorrow, we will show you the results of our research. You guys should bring some researchers with you so that we can exchange our findings."
The president of China was also surprised by his quick response. He didn't expect his former rival to readily agree to his demands.
The exchange between the two leaders made the others feel relieved. If both countries fought, many of them would be affected.
Arlan who was secretly eavesdropping furrowed his eyebrows. "It seems like the US is also stumped by this zombie virus, but this is also good. If we exchange our research data, we might be able to discover more about the virus." Arlan uttered.
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