Chapter 177 The Virus Spreads Like Wildfire
A viral video exploded on the internet. It was seen by millions of people worldwide and the various global leaders started to take matters seriously.
The people were curious about the incident and some people even speculated that the woman in the video was a zombie. This statement was only meant as a joke, but many also believed that this incident might not be so simple.
In the afternoon of the same day, Lieutenant General Rivera and Rex De Guzman visited the Malacañang Palace to inform the highest officials about the zombie virus.
"General, what do you mean? A zombie virus? That's impossible. The Pakistan government already said that it was only a case of mental illness." An old senator remarked while shaking his head.
The other officials were silent, but they also thought that Lieutenant General Rivera's claims about a zombie virus was ridiculous.
"How can you be so sure about that? Have you seen the patient in person?! What if I'm right?! Are you prepared to face the consequences?!" Lieutenant General Rivera lost control of his emotions because of the officials' opposition.
The old senator sneered. "General, just leave this matter to the experts and please stop embarrassing yourself. Did you think that bringing Mr. De Guzman will help you?"
Looking at the arguing crowd, Rex De Guzman sighed in his heart. He knew that this was going to happen and he believed that Arlan also predicted the same thing. Now, he understood how difficult it was for Arlan to convince them about this matter. Even now, he was still skeptical about the entire thing since the evidence shown wasn't conclusive enough.
After the meeting concluded, Lieutenant General Rivera stormed out of the conference room with a dark look on his face. He came here to warn everyone about the dangers of the virus, but he never thought that he would actually be treated as a lunatic.
Rex De Guzman said to the fuming general. "General, without the government's support, we won't be able to reach out to the citizens. We might as well follow Mr. Roa's suggestion and prioritize the safety of the experts. We will need their help to research a cure for the virus."
Lieutenant General Rivera sighed and nodded his head. "Alright. Thank you for helping me out, Mr. De Guzman."
Rex shook his head and replied. "I'm only following Mr. Roa's arrangement. Let's go. We don't have time to dawdle. Mr. Roa sent a list of people to me. We have to escort them to Last City before things get chaotic."
Lieutenant General Rivera nodded his head. "I understood. Give me the list. I'll take care of it."
***
The next day, Pakistan announced to the world that they would temporarily close their borders. No one knew why they issued this order, but there were rumors about a contagious virus spreading like wildfire in the country. There were also numerous videos on the internet about mentally disabled people attacking others. The increasing number of related cases made everyone doubt if those people were truly mentally ill. Their suspicions intensified when the Pakistan government announced the cancellation of international flights and the temporary lockdown in the country.
Meanwhile, the US, French, and Japanese governments suddenly announced that they were also closing their borders. The announcement of the three countries stunned the public, but they later announced that this was related to the virus currently spreading in Pakistan.
***
"The number of infected people in Pakistan is increasing exponentially. By tomorrow, the infected count should be in the millions and the virus will soon spread in the neighboring countries. I also discovered that there are similar cases in Thailand, Russia, Sudan, Mexico, and Australia. It is only a matter of time before the virus reaches Maharlika." Winter reported while showing Arlan some recordings of infected people attacking others.
"How are our preparations?" Arlan asked while rubbing his chin.
"The commanding general's suggestion to create a community for the civilians was rejected by the highest officials of Maharlika. At this moment, the commanding general is leading the military in escorting the experts in various fields to Last City. Laurence Finn managed to persuade the US government to make necessary preparations. Morgan..." Winter reported the actions of everyone in his organization.
"As expected, the commanding general failed to persuade the government." Arlan muttered as he leaned on his chair. Although the faction of the Maracas Family had already disbanded, there were still many corrupt officials in the country. The commanding general's idea of creating a shelter that could accommodate millions of people would consume a huge portion of the national budget. This would significantly affect the corrupt officials' profit-making scheme so they are strongly opposed to this plan.
"Even at a time like this, those idiots are still planning to suck the country's money for their own benefits." Arlan shook his head in disdain. He didn't have a good impression of Maharlika's government.
"Proceed as we had planned and make sure that all newcomers will be inspected by our health experts. Inform the human resource team to record the information of the new arrivals and place them under a three-day surveillance. They aren't allowed to step out of the room until their surveillance period is over." Arlan said while looking at Krizia who was seated beside him.
"Yes, boss! I'll inform our people immediately!" She nodded her head and hurriedly made a phone call.
After dealing with this matter, Arlan grabbed his phone and dialed a number.
"Hello, Mr. Roa. Is there anything you need from me?" A calm voice drifted into his ears.
"Rear Admiral Fuliand, please come to my office as soon as possible. There is something I wish to discuss with you." Arlan said in a serious tone.
"Alright. I will be there shortly."
Arlan disconnected the call afterwards. When he claimed the battleship, Poseidon 001, he discovered that Rear Admiral Fuliand and his soldiers came from another world. He asked them how they were transported to Earth, but there was a restriction that didn't allow him to know about the matter. The app also said that he would only have access to the information after he claimed his 100th daily reward.