amaotonovel Chapter 4573 The Day of Brightest Day (32)
Chapter 4573 The Day of Brightest Day (32)
Chapter 4573 The Day of Brightest Light (Thirty-Two)
Deathstroke truly convinced himself countless times that "they are the same person." But the problem is that their actions constantly overturned this premise.
“Are you serious?” Deathstroke asked. “You want me to send someone to hunt you down? What’s the point?”
Schiller was about to speak when Deathstroke raised a hand to stop him, saying, "I know you're going to say this is just another form of self-confrontation. But I beg you, when you're undertaking some kind of spiritual self-renewal, can you, like a normal person, limit the scope to your mind? To be precise, to your mental world, instead of dragging the entire real world down with you?"
They stared at each other, wide-eyed. Undoubtedly, they both thought the other was abnormal. Schiller said, "I did this to force him to switch places with me."
Deathstroke frowned. Schiller continued, "He doesn't like dealing with his pursuers. If there are enough of them, he'll find a way to switch places with me. That way, he can go find something."
“I really don’t understand,” Deathstroke said, breaking down. “He made this thing, and he brought it to Egypt. Why would he help you find it? What’s your relationship? Who’s the good guy and who’s the bad guy?”
"I'll say it again. We are one person..."
Seeing that the bell's hand was already on the hilt of the sword, Schiller sighed and said, "Why do you think he made this thing? And why did he bring it to Egypt?"
“That’s exactly what I wanted to ask you,” Deathstroke said.
"You think this is meant to trip up the Justice League. But actually, if the artifact were real, then it could be considered a way to cause trouble for the Justice League. But this thing is fake. All the research data and legends related to it are fabricated by him. If he hadn't made it up, the Justice League wouldn't even have had the chance to discover anything."
"You mean, he was actually providing clues to the Justice League? Then why didn't he just build it and leave it where it was? Why did he have to transport it to Egypt? Was he simply trying to give the Justice League something to do?"
"While he may have genuinely wanted to find me some work to do, that's probably not the main reason."
"What is the main reason?"
“Wouldn’t we only know if we found the mural?” Schiller shook his head and said, “He must have left clues in there. But if we don’t find them, no one will know what they are.”
Deathstroke sighed, took out his phone, and said, "Okay. I think he'll be willing to switch with you soon."
"You're going to find your colleagues?" Schiller raised an eyebrow. "They're not cheap, are they?"
“I wouldn’t spend my own money to hire them,” Deathstroke said. “There aren’t many full-time hitmen in this world. Not because they don’t want to be, but because there aren’t enough jobs. They’d starve if they only took that. Most of them make a living off the side. They’ll jump on any opportunity that comes their way and see if they can get a piece of the action.”
“I don’t need to hire them, I just need to spread some word. They will choose to follow you.”
"What news?"
Deathstroke thought for a moment and said, "No one knows what kind of deal you made with Hessinag. But that Haiven is quite famous locally. Wouldn't someone he sent to hunt down have some secrets? Maybe it's the whereabouts of some treasure, or maybe it's something Haiven can use against. If we can find it and get our hands on it in advance, it'll be a pretty good gain."
Schiller understood. These mercenaries weren't as glamorous as people imagined. Or rather, there were indeed some extremely ruthless and professional killers, like Deathstroke. But their numbers were very small, only a tiny fraction at the very top. Most mercenaries did dirty and arduous work, chasing profits in the gray world. Like sharks smelling blood, they went wherever there was a chance to make money, hoping to get lucky.
In this situation, an American being hunted by a local bigwig would be a very good target. If you've only offended a local bigwig and don't have any real skills, you'd have no chance of leaving Cairo. Being chased all the way out proves you must have some serious abilities.
Moreover, he's an American. People in places like this generally don't want to mess with Americans, because the CIA is indeed notorious. Although things seem completely out of control here, the title of world police still carries weight. Nobody wants to add another formidable adversary to their list.
A skilled American is most likely a spy or law enforcement officer. If the assassination attempt succeeds, all is well; but if it fails, or if they're discovered halfway through, that would be a real problem. Therefore, unless it's something extremely important, no one would be willing to do it.
For the director of the Egyptian Museum, there aren't many things important enough for him to do something like this, but they must all be extremely valuable. Once this news leaks out, the hyenas, always eager to pounce, will swarm in.
This could also cause some trouble for Haivin. While he is powerful and influential, it doesn't mean he can do whatever he wants. A high-profile manhunt for American agents is probably not in the interest of the Egyptian authorities. Someone will likely try to put him in a difficult position.
Schiller was fairly satisfied with the arrangement, so he said, "Your son should be arriving soon, right? Shall we go to the airport to pick him up?"
Deathstroke glanced at his phone and said, "It should be soon. Let's go."
Deathstroke's operation was indeed very effective. Before the two even reached the airport, Schiller leaned back in the taxi, let out a long sigh, threw away the broken gun that the agent had been holding, took out his revolver again, and began loading bullets into it.
Deathstroke sized him up. He could sense that someone else had taken over. However, considering that the other person had been chased by the people he had summoned, he decided it was best not to speak.
“Don’t go to the airport, let’s go somewhere else,” Schiller suddenly said, looking up.
"What?" Deathstroke didn't react for a moment.
“His plane probably won’t be able to land in Cairo. We won’t be able to pick him up at the airport.” Schiller shook his head.
Deathstroke's eyes widened instantly. He picked up the phone again to call Joseph, but there was no response. This wasn't because there was no signal on the plane—Joseph's plane had internet. Then Deathstroke called Holly, because even if Joseph didn't want to tell him his itinerary, he should at least let Holly know he was safe. But Holly hadn't received anything either.
Deathstroke immediately realized he was in deep trouble. He grabbed the taxi driver by the neck, forced the car to stop, jumped out, and looked up at the sky. They weren't far from Cairo Airport, so there should have been planes taking off and landing. But strangely, the area above the airport was completely silent; not a single plane could be seen.
Something was definitely wrong. Deathstroke looked towards Cairo Airport in the distance. He picked up his phone. A news alert had just appeared on his feed: "Cairo International Airport has been seized by anti-government forces; all planes are being diverted to Hegada for emergency landings."
Deathstroke was taken aback. He couldn't understand how Cairo airport had come to be under control. Even if Saudi Arabia or Israel attacked, would they really take control of the capital's airport? What was the difference between this and a full-scale war?
Schiller, however, wasn't surprised. First, the world situation in the main universe was utter chaos. It appeared to be a unipolar world with multiple superpowers, but in reality, it was one big madman leading a bunch of smaller madmen. There were constant big projects in the US, and plenty of smaller ones around the world as well.
This is also determined by the nature of the universe. After all, mysterious forces and superpowered individuals have existed since ancient times. The evolution of history will inevitably lead to subtle differences. People will also take different measures when dealing with geopolitical issues.
In places like the United States, where there is still a government, this difference isn't as noticeable. But in the midst of chaos in the Middle East, this difference is magnified many times over. A prime example is the fierce struggle for control of the Red Sea amidst various armed conflicts.
Imagine if the leader of an armed group wasn't an ordinary person, but someone with superpowers; many things would be different. First, decapitation strikes would become virtually useless. No one has ever heard of a decapitation striker daring to kill Magneto. Second, in various armed conflicts, the level of weaponry would decrease. In other words, whether a country is a major power or has advanced industrial capabilities would become less important. Instead, people would become the priority. Whoever has stronger people would be more powerful.
While large countries have larger populations, increasing the likelihood of producing strong individuals, people are not mere tools; they possess their own emotions and thoughts. Being born and raised in a particular country does not necessarily dictate one's allegiance to that country. On the contrary, there is a significant possibility that one might become part of an anti-government force or embark on a path of independence and struggle for supremacy.
This has resulted in the Red Sea of this universe being able to produce dozens of episodes of "One Piece" every day. All sorts of extraordinary characters and ingenious tricks are on display. Even regional powers can't keep up; they're lucky if they can even ensure the safety of their own shipping lanes.
This has led to many armed conflicts escalating to a significant scale. It's not as simple as just blowing up a ship. If you dare displease the Pirate King, he'll really take you down.
Egypt has clearly messed with the wrong people. To be precise, it's a pack of wolves that have been driven to the brink of desperation. The armed group, whose negotiations failed and whose leader was killed, is at its wits' end. Desperate, they've taken advantage of Egypt, leaving it vulnerable to a vicious bite.
Clearly, simply increasing security in Hegada wasn't enough. Cairo's response was also rather slow. Their leader died on their own turf—that's a huge liability. Instead of trying to deflect blame or tighten security, they clung to wishful thinking. And that's how this happened.
With no planes taking off or landing at Cairo airport, all air traffic control towers are paralyzed. Even though there are no planes visible to the naked eye, most are circling overhead. But they won't be circling for long, as Hegada is quite a distance away. They'll run out of fuel if they don't leave soon.
There are other airports in northern Egypt, but none are safe enough. The Greater Cairo area is interconnected; if one prospers, the other prospers. We have to head south. Hegada is currently under martial law, so it's relatively safer. These planes have no choice but to make an emergency landing there.
“Listen. I know the mural you’re looking for is important, but…”
“That mural is not important. I can recreate it anytime.”
Deathstroke was speechless. Although Schiller was so understanding and perfectly resolved their current conflict—that Schiller's mission required him to stay in Cairo to find the murals, while Deathstroke had to go to Hegada to find his son—the reasoning was still strange.