Chapter 432 - 404: When Two Giant Corporations Take Interest in the Same Thing

The boss of Roxon Energy wasn’t a dunce but a greedy and crafty fellow.

Having monopolized all the oil reserves, he certainly reveled in everyone developing an almost addictive demand for oil, impossible to shake off.

However, technically speaking, the cost of oil was bound to increase as existing reserves dwindled, and humanity would eventually have to look for alternative sources of energy.

Therefore, CEO Dalio chose for his company the name "Energy Group" and not an oil company.

Oil was merely the choice of the era; his real intent was to monopolize all forms of energy that powered the workings of society.

If it was the Stone Age, Dalio would surely have tried to monopolize all the torches of the cavemen.

[Lille: It’s proven that our opponent, after consolidating the company, has begun attempts to monopolize the sources of nuclear material.]

[Lille: We have support from the African Union, but they... Uranium Ten is a state-owned enterprise, and this country might lean towards establishing good relations with Roxon.]

[Lille: In an acquisition case, the worst thing is when both you and your competitor are very wealthy, because then, it’s impossible to settle the bids forever, resulting in ownership being determined by some other factors...]

[Otto: Are you saying they would attack us directly because of this? But...]

But that didn’t make sense!

Weren’t they afraid of public backlash?

This question had just surfaced in Otto’s mind when his hesitation interrupted it: were they truly afraid? Was this logic really nonsensical?

In the Virtual Space, Lille paced back and forth with his head slightly lowered.

[Lille: I’ve already sent an email to Uranium Ten, but their response wasn’t very positive.]

[Lille: On the other hand, because the uranium price has not reached the expected level, they decided to delay mining a few years ago and haven’t started mining officially, so no associated fees have been paid.]

[Lille: Therefore, the African Union and Tanzanian government are considering revoking their mining rights.]

The whole situation was very clear.

Everyone’s expressions began to look strange—

As people from Mei Country, they clearly identified the source of this weird feeling:

Theoretically, adhering to national laws wouldn’t be a problem since everything was stipulated in the contract.

But not meeting the mining standards could allow the rights to be transferred to another company to maintain operations. Now with Lille stepping in, the African Union would definitely support him.

This felt like using state power to bully private companies, a scenario often broadcast on TV channels in Mei Country, and normally, Mei Country citizens would sympathize with the affected companies...

Lille was very upfront about the potential scenarios, yet they found the world too complicated, and thought it was better to just focus on research.

Realizing his team’s thoughts, Lille stopped, looked at them, and said:

[Lille: If you have no objections to this direction, the company will begin to take over the mining area. The Tanzanian government might compensate Uranium Ten, and we’ll handle a part of it.]

Everyone looked at each other and shook their heads.

Overall, they didn’t see any issues with Lille’s approach, although it slightly differed from their ideal "rule of law" society.

But in such cases, the once supreme law seemed a bit... feeble.

This feeling caused some subtle emotions to emerge.

[Lille: Very well, then I will inform Frank to change routes. Dr. Tums, we need to make some temporary modifications to the equipment, I’ll need you online during this period.]

[Lille: Meeting adjourned.]

...

Bang, bang, bang.

Suez Canal.

Two-meter-tall Unmanned Mecha patrolled the port, their heavy footsteps intimidating to behold.

These Iron Soldiers followed orders to patrol the area, ready at any moment to intercept and inspect passing vessels.

Weeks ago, the Sixth Fleet from Mei Country had dispatched several teams from Naples, Italy, to Africa on a mission.

Their orders were straightforward: strike the Somali pirates, and find out where the missing warships were.

However, secretly, only senior officers knew that this mission was a stroke of luck for the African command:

Their real goal was to occupy a region in Somalia and establish a permanent base there.

Since Somalia had been near a stateless condition since 1991, this task was easily accomplished by the Sixth Fleet.

Once they forcibly stabilized the area, making money was easy.

Without this excuse, such actions would not have been possible.

Of course, they didn’t know by what means the Pentagon had convinced the Egyptian government to allow such scrutiny, but the extra income was relentless.

Standing at the port, an officer watched as the unmanned robots and soldiers once again began inspecting a ship. Though his expression didn’t change, he was inwardly elated.

I never imagined there would come a day when I had such an opportunity.

The stronger the control of the army, the more likely these soldiers were to find extras on the side.

However, he soon received new orders:

[Headquarters: Second Armored Division, prepare to board, you need to head to Tanzania for a mission.]

...

In Somalia, inside a shabby hut, a young black man was intently listening to world news:

"The Sixth Fleet will soon land in Somalia to enforce occupation."

"Major General Kenway of the Sixth Fleet stated that they will find the missing ships and strike hard at the terrorists."

"He also mentioned that the Somali region had been in a state of lawlessness for many years, posing great threats to the safety of civilian ships and seriously endangering the economic development of Africa."

"If possible, they will maintain the stability of the shipping lanes in the region and help its development."

"Roxon Energy Group has expressed great interest in this proposal..."

The young black man suddenly leapt up and ran outside barefoot!

"The people from Mei Country are coming! The people from Mei Country are coming!"

The older black men who had been dancing around the fire changed their expressions immediately upon hearing this and scattered in all directions—

Remarkably, although they looked like a headless swarm, they were all uniformly running in one direction.

It was as if they were gathering.

Beyond the forest, the coast was not far away...

And on the coast in the bay, a decrepit destroyer was moored.

The voices of the natives echoed through the jungle—

"The people from Mei Country are coming!"

...

On the Tanzanian border, a convoy was moving through the mountainous area.

The sky might show unmanned drones accompanying the troops, providing career guidance and navigation.

With a splash—

Vehicles bearing the Atlas Group logo drove through a wetland.

The combat personnel in the vehicles rested in their seats, supported by exoskeletons.

Frank was driving, with the combat support AI feedback reflected in the HUD—

All normal.

After traveling several hundred kilometers, they had been attacked several times already, but most were hit-and-run, not daring to confront the Atlas Group directly.

In the co-driver seat, Captain Carter had already donned an African-style ragged cloak.

"...Sometimes I get the feeling that I am still fighting wars in Europe..."

"Europe has jungles like these?"

"Not really," Captain Carter sighed while looking at the scenery outside, "So after that, Mei Country fought a few more wars."

Frank shrugged: "Just because I have been in so many wars doesn’t mean this is everything."

Through the trees, Mount Kilimanjaro loomed in the distance, partially obscured.

"Frozen for nearly 100 years, then waking up to be sent to Africa..."

"Trust me," Frank smiled, "you definitely wouldn’t want to go back."

"Why not?"

"You see, I heard that some people choose to take a year off after finishing college to decompress. You were in the midst of a world war before you fell into a coma, so it’s nice to have a break like this."

"You call fighting a break?!"

Frank nodded—before it wasn’t considered a break, but now it might as well be.

But honestly, this notion had arisen because Frank completely underestimated how smoothly Captain Carter had it on the European battlefields.

Frank had served for many years and had seen too many comrades die or become crippled, but Captain Carter?

Probably less than ten people.

But before he could speak, he received new information:

[Lille: Change course.]