After the robot's voice fell, the sound of thrusters suddenly whistled from outside the window.
Then, a man dressed in black armor slowly descended onto the balcony outside the suite. When his helmet visor opened, Mercer's somewhat tired face was revealed.
"Mercer? Has the problem been solved?" Rebecca was genuinely worried.
Mercer shook his head gravely: "The situation is far more troublesome than we thought..."
At this, Mercer suddenly turned his head and looked at Miles.
This was the first time the two had met in person, yet when they saw each other's faces, neither felt unfamiliar—having seen each other's files and photos many times, they almost simultaneously displayed a 'natural' smile the moment they locked eyes.
"Nice to meet you, President Miles. I'm the current administrator of Dog Town, Mercer."
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Mercer. Thank you very much for reaching out to help us during our crisis."
They smiled and shook hands lightly, but then Mercer's expression turned stern: "You're welcome. Now, let's talk about the trouble concerning this event."
"What in the world did you hide in the Little Beidou Facility?" Mercer asked sternly, as if accusing: "The rogue AI said it would stop only if I handed over the stuff, but what exactly is it she wants?"
President Miles showed confusion: "Little Beidou Facility… as far as I know, it's just an old facility for researching AI network technology, shut down a long time ago... How did you know about the Little Beidou Facility?"
Mercer simply curled his lips expressionlessly, smiling yet not smiling: "Okay, since President Miles doesn't know what's inside..."
He turned his head to look at V, who had arrived late and landed on the balcony: "You go bring those two agents from the Intelligence Bureau."
"What about the one from Military Science?" V asked, still catching his breath.
Mercer expressed indifference: "Notify Military Science to come for their personnel, and bring compensation."
V nodded, then flew off the balcony again; it took less than two minutes for him to return, each hand carrying an unconscious agent.
Miles glanced at them; who else could they be but Li De and Alex?
Seeing his dispatched agents now unconscious, Miles immediately wore a worried expression: "What's going on, Mr. Mercer? What's with them?"
"Three days ago, when they infiltrated the Little Beidou Facility, I found them, and considering their special identities and unfamiliarity with Little Beidou Facility, I chose not to alert them but to observe their actions secretly and gather evidence.
But unexpectedly, once inside, they started some kind of commotion, releasing a rogue AI—messing up the entire Dog Town network.
I just repaired things over two days, and now such a thing has happened again... There's no doubt the reason the rogue AI returned is definitely targeting one of you.
President Miles, I'm not one to pretend and deceive."
Mercer paused for a moment, then sharply glanced at Lark behind Miles, and then again at Miles: "On you, or within the Little Beidou Facility, there must be something the rogue AI wants.
Now, I want to know what that thing is—otherwise, facing the rogue AI's next attack, I can't guarantee your safety."
Miles continued playing dumb: "Thing? To be honest, I don't even know about a rogue AI in the Little Beidou Facility! You must know this facility has been around for fifty years, shut down and reopened several times.
There shouldn't be anything of value there—otherwise, why would we dump the entire underground facility in Dog Town and ignore it?
As for us... maybe they want to kidnap me? Or assassinate me to achieve some special purpose?"
Facing Miles' words, Mercer merely smiled slightly and then showed a chill in his expression: "President Miles, I suggest you tell me the truth."
"I really don't know..."
Before she could finish, Mercer coldly stared at her, bluntly interrupting her: "You know, Lilith has given me an ultimatum."
"What do you mean?" Miles realized the seriousness of the problem.
"24 hours, deliver what she wants to the Moon, otherwise, she'll send something down from the Moon... I have reason to suspect this damn rogue AI might even possess a Material Pusher."
Mercer spoke expressionlessly: "I don't want my home to be smashed by a meteorite in 24 hours, so, President Miles, we must cooperate now—give her what she wants, ensure your and my safety, it's good for us both."
Miles was silent for a moment, squinting, then slowly turned to look at the silent and taciturn Lark.
"Lark."
She called Lark's name, and Lark suddenly trembled, then, despairingly opened her mouth: "It's me..."
"This person called Lilith..."
"Needs me!"