Chapter 199 - 196: France’s Boldness

Although the investigation into the Magic Mirror incident failed to produce satisfactory results, the mirror itself had been taken away by the Dawn Association. They likely had more experience dealing with it than the Super Research Department. So, while the supernatural incident wasn't completely resolved, the current tasks of the Super Research Department and the Paris police were essentially just mopping up.

Those who had lost an exaggerated amount of weight were all taken to a research medical center for treatment, with the costs fully covered by the government.

As for the less severe cases—for instance, those who had only seen Mrs. Ruby's social media feed once and lost a few kilograms—they were kept in the dark about the truth. At most, they received a single visit from the police, who compelled them to undergo a full physical at a hospital. The official reason given was that an anonymous tip had been filed suggesting drug use, based on their weight loss and mental state.

Since the police were insistent and offered to pay for the examination, most people cooperated and went for the check-up.

A minor episode occurred during this process: one of them actually was a drug user. After this was discovered, a search of their home turned up a stash of drugs, and they were promptly taken into police custody.

...

「Three days later.」

The peripheral investigation into the Magic Mirror incident continued, but the focus of France's top military and political leaders had shifted to an important meeting.

The meeting itself was no longer the deciding factor in its own outcome. In the two days prior, crucial information had already been circulated among the top leadership, and numerous small-scale discussions and debates had already been held.

By the time the incumbent president agreed to hold the meeting, the outcome was all but certain. Such conferences served more to ensure mutual understanding and fill in details. The resolutions would focus on how to implement the new plan, not on whether to approve it in the first place.

As the superior bodies of the Supernatural Research and Response Department, the Ministry of Defense and the General Planning Agency were the nominal organizers.

The attendees included the leadership from all of France's key departments, covering the economy, the military, public welfare, and other vital sectors.

「Paris's 14th Arrondissement. The Ministry of Defense's High-Level Conference Center.」

Attendees had already begun to file into the conference hall. The staff from the Super Research Department had long since made all the preparations and were waiting inside.

Kodell gave the documents one final check for completeness, occasionally greeting familiar military and political officials as they passed by.

Henry from the General Planning Agency—a politician Kodell had once despised—came to his side. The two men shared a look of tacit understanding and shook hands firmly.

The president was the last to arrive. Five minutes after his arrival, the conference center was sealed under the highest security protocols.

The president took the stage at the central podium of the semi-circular conference hall to deliver a brief address.

The prepared speech in his hands felt somewhat heavy. The old man simply placed the papers face down, deciding not to read them.

"Ladies and gentlemen, our topic today may be a heavy one. I don't want to waste time with official jargon, so let's get right to it!"

The president scanned the room. All the key departments were present.

"I assume everyone here is aware of our country's Supernatural Research and Response Department? If not, please raise your hand now, and you will receive a special briefing through your earpiece."

No one raised a hand.

"Very good. It seems you've all done your homework, taking into consideration that my age makes me unsuitable for long speeches."

A rare ripple of light laughter spread through the hall.

Smiling, the president raised a hand for silence before continuing.

"Over the next three years, France's fiscal expenditures will pivot from a focus on the economy to the military and disaster-preparedness facilities. I will leave it to the experts to explain the specific details."

Despite having been somewhat prepared, the president's words still caused a small stir in the audience.

The president nodded toward Kodell and the Minister of Defense, then stepped down from the podium.

Kodell immediately strode to the podium.

On the screen behind him, several data tables appeared, arranged side-by-side in separate frames.

"Good morning. I'm Kodell Mambaf. I believe most of you here already know me."

"I report to the Ministry of Defense and am the Director-General of the Supernatural Research and Response Department."

Raising a laser pointer, Kodell indicated the first chart on the large screen.

As the red dot moved, the first chart instantly enlarged to fill the screen, now showing textual annotations, analytical notes, and several hyperlinks.

"On February 19th of last year, the first suspected supernatural incident was discovered within France."

The laser pointer hovered over the first bar of the graph.

"From then until this August, we have discovered an increasing number of supernatural incidents. Overall, the situation remains manageable, but I ask you all to look at this bar chart."

"The number of supernatural incidents has been in a state of constant growth, and the rate of that growth is accelerating."

As the laser pointer touched several of the red bars, linked images automatically appeared, including footage of the infamous Death Illusion Barrier and the spontaneous combustion incident near the Philier Family's home.

"High-risk supernatural incidents are also on the rise. We have even encountered phenomena that we cannot comprehend, such as the Death Illusion Barrier and the Magic Mirror incident we discovered just last week."

The chart then changed to a series of pie charts showing the distribution of risk levels.

In the sequence of charts, from last February to the present, the green and blue sections, representing lower-risk incidents, were clearly shrinking. By August, the red and yellow sections, representing high-risk incidents, had grown from less than 2% of the total to 8%.

There were few fools in the room; the breathing of many in the audience unconsciously slowed.

"Meanwhile, rumors have begun to spread online. Regulatory agencies have been forced to intervene when necessary, deleting and altering information that could incite public unrest."

Everyone understood this. After all, the government couldn't possibly detect and contain every single supernatural incident from the outset. Some would inevitably slip through. In today's hyper-connected society, completely preventing the spread of information was an impossible demand.

The subsequent data included further analyses, projections, response times for high-risk incidents, and extended case studies. It also referenced supernatural incidents occurring in other parts of the world.

The display then switched, suddenly showing a chart of the French economy, detailing GDP and the distribution of various market development investments.

'The audience was a bit lost. What was the purpose of this chart?'

Kodell glanced toward Henry, who was seated nearby. Henry nodded, stood up, and walked to the side of the podium.

"These are France's economic expenditures and fiscal plans for the past two years, broken down by month."

The charts flashed by one after another. Though they seemed unremarkable, everyone in the room, including the president, watched intently.

Henry rapped his knuckles on the podium, producing a sharp KNOCK KNOCK.

"Have you all spotted the issue?"

The laser pointer indicated an inconspicuous sliver of red in several of the pie charts.

"This is for government civil defense projects."

The chart magnified again, and within that red sliver, an even smaller sliver of green became visible.

"This is the Super Research Department's budget."

"Now, let's compare this to our allies."

Similar data charts for Hua Country and the United States appeared on the screen.

"Due to the high security classification of their special departments, we were unable to obtain their internal budget allocations. However, we can see their spending on civil defense projects."

As the images were enlarged, a gasp went through the audience.

On France's chart, even for the most recent month, the red section accounted for only 6.2%. And this was after discovering the Dawn Secret Place and establishing some communication with the special departments of China and the United States. In the preceding months, it was less than 3%.

But Hua Country's chart?

Beginning at the end of last year, the preliminary budget for their civil defense projects—which was not yet implemented—accounted for 5% of their total. That was the real figure. The publicly announced number was 2%.

Then, shortly after the start of spring this year, their so-called "Civil Defense Modernization" project was quietly launched. The budget allocation jumped to 12%, while the public figure was 5%.

Two months ago, the figure reached a staggering 28%. Construction of super-bases and various shelters and research facilities was in full swing, accounting for over a quarter of the government's total planned expenditures. The number released to the public was 10%.

Then the display shifted to the United States.

They started slightly later than Hua Country, and their initial allocation was lower, but the rate of increase was extremely rapid. Their current spending is also above 20%.

This intelligence was the result of comprehensive analysis based on both diplomatic exchange and espionage, and was unknown to many in the room.

"Do you see? Gentlemen, our two most crucial allies, for now and for the future, have long held a very clear assessment of the world situation!"

"Both nations have used their superficial trade disputes to divert global attention, while using strict policies like deleveraging and controlling bank credit to direct capital flow, all to conceal this massive economic pivot."

With that, Henry's portion of the presentation was finished, and Kodell once again took the lead.

"In this most recent Magic Mirror incident, the victim, Luna, was transported directly to an Otherworld... France can no longer afford to just wait and see!"

At this point, even those in the audience who initially had reservations were now thoroughly shaken.

Having won the tacit approval of the majority, the rest of the meeting proceeded much more smoothly. They moved on to the main agenda: debating the areas from which to pull fiscal spending and establishing a priority list.

On one point, Kodell and the representatives from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs were in clear agreement.

They believed that, aside from the few nations that had already formed or were about to form alliances, other countries—particularly large ones with strong domestic control—must have also begun to react to the changing situation.

However, most of these nations were currently in a state of "information isolation."

It had to be said that until their own country was sufficiently prepared, France—just like China and the United States—had no intention of sharing its intelligence.

After all, the "apocalyptic crisis" was still just an alert level. Humanity was always more progressive than its history suggested. As long as modern humans didn't actively seek their own destruction, and with the existence of Dawn, the probability of failing to overcome the crisis was still relatively low.

When the world's transformation became irreversible, it would most likely manifest as a shift in the global power structure. The countries that reacted fastest now would have the greatest advantage in the future.

Committing to a three-year trial period, with adjustments to be made along the way, was already a display of immense boldness on the part of the French.

*PS: First chapter for Thursday.*