Sea's Counterattack
Her bold yet impeccably polite demand turned the U.S. Embassy in Japan upside down, like a hornet's nest kicked wide open. A few hours later, Kim Sea—Sea—sat in the embassy's deepest sanctum, a secret conference room shielded from any eavesdropping, perfectly soundproofed.
Before her sat men who held the fate of the world in their hands: the U.S. Ambassador to Japan and the CIA's East Asia Division Chief. Their faces were a mix of exhaustion, excitement, and deep wariness toward this unknown entity. They offered her the finest coffee and pastries, but Sea touched nothing.
"My name is Kim Sea," she began in fluent English. "But that name no longer matters. You may regard me as the sole emissary speaking for my master, the Crow Mage."
She maintained her impeccable posture in her pristine white suit. Her ash-brown eyes no longer belonged to a frightened girl. They burned with absolute certainty in the being behind her—and the arrogance of one who wielded his power by proxy.
"To business. My master desires a partnership with you."
She laid out the first demand. "First: All official communication regarding my master will henceforth go exclusively through me. Any payments due to him will be deposited into the anonymous Swiss bank account I designate."
She paused to catch her breath, then dropped the most audacious demand of all. "Second: My master trusts in the 'good faith' of the United States and Japanese governments. As proof of that trust, he demands dual citizenship in both nations for me, along with full legal rights equivalent to a diplomat."
The room's air froze solid. This was no mere request. It was a blatant demand for protection—making her a citizen of their nations to shield her from any power, including the Korean government—and a token of alliance.
Finally, she lifted the pure white coral briefcase from beside her onto the table. "And third: This is the first product my master offers you."
Opening it revealed three bizarre items nestled inside.
"This is the Guide Compass. Even in the twisted spaces of nightmares, it points to the path of highest survival odds. This is the Repellent Scent Pill. When swallowed, it makes most predatory monstrosities perceive you as unpalatable prey, removing you from their primary targets. And this is the Mental Stability Patch. It will prevent your fragile minds from being crushed and utterly destroyed by nightmare terrors."
She swept a cold gaze over the men at the table, as if explaining civilized tools to primitive natives. "Of course, this is just the beginning. Depending on your sincerity, my master may bestow even more powerful and wondrous items."
She rose gracefully, bowing with perfect courtesy. "That concludes my proposal. I trust you will make a wise decision."
While Sea shook the world's order from within the U.S. Embassy, the outside world descended into utter chaos.
"The U.S. Embassy?! Why the hell did she go to the Americans first instead of our own foreign ministry?!"
Vice Minister Sakamoto couldn't hide his fury at the fiasco that had unfolded in his absence. His office was filled with top officials from Public Security Intelligence and the Foreign Ministry, standing like criminals with heads bowed.
"The Crow's first stage, his fox partner's bloodline—they're all tied to Japan! Yet his so-called emissary sets foot on our soil, ignores us completely, and knocks on the Americans' door first! This is a blatant diplomatic humiliation and a total failure of our intelligence!"
He slammed his fist on the desk. "Right now! Tap every communication around that embassy! Don't miss a single word of what's being said inside! Find out what that bitch is offering the Americans and what they're promising her! Everything! And contact Elder Kusanagi immediately. See if he can analyze her intentions remotely, even from afar! We must uncover that woman's true nature and her master's intentions before the Americans do!"
To them, this went beyond diplomatic insult—it was a dire national security crisis that could cost them leadership in a new era.
"She... she chose us!"
The President grinned with ecstatic delight as he received the urgent briefing from his National Security Advisor. The massive screen in the Situation Room displayed live feed from the secret conference room at the embassy in Japan.
"Not Japan, not China, not Russia—us! Immediately! Assemble everyone from State, Defense, CIA—review every demand from that 'emissary' and prepare reports on everything we can offer her... no, her master. Leave no possibility unexplored!"
One advisor spoke cautiously. "Sir, the Russians... they're citing her Russian-Korean heritage and requesting a 'humanitarian' meeting with Miss Kim Sea."
The President scoffed. "Predictable Russian ploy. Out of the question. She's no longer the 'beautiful survivor.' She's the most critical asset shaping humanity's future. And that asset just walked right into our hands."
His eyes gleamed at the image of Sea, poised confidently in her white suit on the screen. "Grant her every demand. Dual citizenship? Diplomatic immunity? Done. Make her the perfect 'American daughter' so no one—especially those sneaky Russians or backstabbing Japanese—dares touch her. And those 'products' she brought... Mobilize our top scientists for analysis and reverse-engineering. This could be... the new era's Apollo program."
Thus, a single girl named Kim Sea was no longer a pitiful victim. She had become the most vital—and dangerous—queen on the chessboard where superpowers clashed, shaking the world beyond her own will.
The next morning, the White House Situation Room in Washington D.C. buzzed with the heat of an all-night emergency meeting. The President and top national security officials debated fiercely how to handle the 'Kim Sea' typhoon.
The screen showed detailed analyses of every word and gesture from her embassy visit. Samples of her three 'products' had already been secretly shipped to a Quantico research facility.
"The conclusion is clear, Mr. President," the Secretary of State began. "This is an opportunity. The 'Crow Mage' may be far more rational and amenable to 'deals' than we thought. Through this sole conduit, Kim Sea, we can build friendly ties with him—and potentially bring his power under our control. A historic chance."
Most nodded in agreement. But one man—the CIA Director, cornered since prior blunders—harbored different thoughts. He needed to salvage this humiliation and prove his agency still mattered.
"Mr. President, gentlemen," he stood, flashing a confident yet faintly nervous smile. "I agree with State's analysis. But... you're overlooking one crucial fact."
He paused for dramatic effect, scanning the room. "Do you really think it's mere coincidence that Kim Sea's emissary came to our embassy first, not Japan's?"
All eyes locked on him.
"This was all..." He puffed out his chest. "...the result of our CIA's meticulous operation."
"......What?"
Congressman John Connor's brow furrowed. The CIA Director pressed on undeterred. "Since the Arizona incident, we've recognized the Crow's potential threat and value, attempting unofficial contact. In particular, our agents 'protected' Kim Sea—his sole link—from afar on humanitarian grounds. We analyzed her psyche, her plight, and strategically induced a situation where the Crow had no choice but to return to her."
His voice swelled. "Our operation was a perfect success! The Crow moved exactly as we intended, and his emissary walked straight into the safe, trustworthy arms of the United States—like a magnet! This was no accident. This is the CIA's invisible victory!"
Silence fell like ice over the room. Everyone stared at him with expressions of utter disbelief, as if watching a bad comedy sketch.
"......Pfft."
The Secretary of Defense broke the silence with a stifled snort. It ignited suppressed laughter across the room.
"Pff... kahahaha!"
"Operation? Ha! William, that's the best joke you've heard all year."
The Situation Room devolved from solemn chamber to cheap comedy club in seconds. The CIA Director's face flushed from pale to purple.
"Are you... laughing right now?!"
"How could we not?!"
John Connor shot to his feet, face crimson with rage. "Your 'meticulous operation' was just baiting an innocent girl, lurking around her until the target's 'partner' showed up and your six agents got dogpiled like mutts—and a police chopper shot down?! That's your 'strategic inducement' and 'invisible victory'?!"
The Director blanched at the roar.
"That 'emissary' bitch was delivered by the mage himself—not to us, but our embassy door happened to be there! And now you claim full credit?! Are you kidding me?!"
Connor advanced, jabbing a finger like he might grab the Director's tie. "Citizens are dying to monsters, our military's mocked by mystery terrorists, our allies laugh at us while seizing the new era's reins! And you try covering your incompetence with this childish lie?! Step down now! You no longer deserve to lead this great nation's intelligence!"
Bathed in fury and his colleagues' scornful laughter, the CIA Director could only bow his head in silence. His botched ploy had only proven his incompetence—and how far behind the CIA lagged in this new game.