To the north of Saint-Michel Mountain, Luo An, Reesi, Evelyn, and Conrad were fleeing at full speed, with several agents from Division 7 in hot pursuit from a distance.
However, despite the running, neither side had opened fire on each other.
When Reesi wanted to shoot, Conrad pushed her down, stating that it was a rule: not shooting was one thing, shooting would take things to another level.
Reesi suddenly realized the reason why the agents of Division 7 never picked up their chase speed and just trailed them from afar.
After explaining to Reesi the unspoken rules among CIA and European Union agents, Conrad turned to Luo An and asked:
"I understand what you said earlier, about letting Rupert and his crew escape in order to catch them, given that the situation was indeed not in our favor.
The question is, they left on a motorboat, how are we supposed to catch them? Where can we get a quick..."
Before Conrad could finish speaking, Luo An and Reesi, who had already reached behind Saint-Michel Mountain and deep into the woods, lifted a cover on the seaside, revealing an old motorboat.
"?"
"!"
Seeing the motorboat, Evelyn's eyes widened in amazement, and Conrad's face was filled with disbelief:
"When did you find out about this motorboat here?"
"Get in first and we'll talk!"
Reesi threw the cover aside, Luo An started the motorboat, leveling the bow with the water's surface, and shouted:
"The agents from Division 7 are about to catch up, and the tide will soon recede. We don't have much time!"
"OK! OK!"
Conrad and Evelyn nodded repeatedly, quickly leaping onto the motorboat. As the Division 7 agents approached, Luo An immediately turned the boat around, engaged the gear, and the motorboat shot off into the distance.
Choosing to ignore the shocked and perplexed expressions on the faces of the Division 7 agents behind them, Luo An piloted the motorboat around the shallower tidal flats area, following the direction Rupert and his people had taken earlier, heading straight for the distant English Channel.
Not long after the motorboat got on course, Luo An handed control to Reesi and returned to his seat to organize the weapons. Facing the questioning looks from Conrad and Evelyn, he smiled and replied:
"I initially thought Rupert or Zakaria might want to blow up the only bridge."
On a previous reconnaissance trip here, Mona discovered surveillance footage in the parking lot, and Luo An noticed a highlighted feature of Saint-Michel Mountain prominently displayed – the rapidly changing tides.
If someone can blow up the only bridge connecting to the outside world at high tide, then for the hour or so while the tide is in, the entire Saint-Michel Mountain would effectively become a "true island."
With sufficient preparation during that hour, it's entirely possible to commit arson or murder, eliminate any traces, and leave calmly.
"That's why I had Reesi prepare this motorboat in advance."
Pulling out an AR-15 automatic rifle from under the seat, chambering a round, and preparing it, Luo An grinned:
"Now, it seems my preparation was indeed foresightful."
"..."
Evelyn's eye twitched, and Conrad's eyes narrowed slightly. He thought of some other possibilities but remained silent, simply giving Luo An a thumbs-up before starting to organize his own weapons too.
"We've spotted Rupert's motorboat!"
Before long, Reesi excitedly exclaimed:
"It's not far ahead!"
"Good."
Luo An nodded with satisfaction and said:
"Chase them!"
"Understood!"
Reesi's face showed excitement as she immediately twisted the throttle to the highest gear. Leaving a turbulent trail in the water, the bow of the motorboat raised, and its speed surged again, darting forward like a blade.
The distance between the two motorboats quickly closed. While Reesi, Conrad, and Evelyn, weapons in hand, were focused on the boat ahead, Luo An suddenly sensed something, looked back, and frowned:
"Watch out! Someone is catching up from behind!"
"What the fu-k?"
Evelyn and Conrad, startled, quickly turned around and indeed saw a new motorboat emerging not far behind them, swiftly gaining on their pursuit.
"What's going on?"
"Which side? MI6 or Bureau Seven?"
Luo An picked up the AR-15 scope, took a close look for a few seconds at the people in the speedboat behind, and then handed the rifle to Conrad with a slight frown, saying:
"It looks like they're from the De Republic?"
Conrad took the rifle, peered through the scope intently for a few seconds, and his expression darkened immediately:
"Square faces, high noses, deep-set eyes, predominantly blue-green eyes, typical De Republic citizens."
Luo An smiled as he took back the rifle:
"It seems that the people from the last shop are indeed theirs."
"Damn it."
Evelyn frowned, also recalling the earlier discovery by Reesi that three shops had closed their doors ahead of time.
The MI6 and Bureau Seven agents had been spotted earlier, and now this group of De Republic people chasing them, if all goes to plan, should be from the Federal Intelligence Bureau of the De Republic, BND.
"No, what the hell is happening today?"
Hearing the conversation between the three, Reesi, at the helm of the speedboat, found it hard to keep her composure and complained:
"Is something wrong with us, or is it Rupert or Zakaria?
Why are intelligence agents from the British Empire, French Republic, and De Republic—the 'same old trio'—all popping out? Is there a meeting or what?"
Luo An glanced at Conrad, smiled, and said:
"Perhaps the intelligence agencies of these three countries wanted to unite against the CIA this time.
But then the MI6 guys fell into their old habits, acting as shit-stirrers as usual, so the three organizations didn't end up joining forces but instead got into a mess, each doing their own thing."
"..."
Hearing Luo An's words, Conrad and Evelyn's faces were filled with speechlessness, but they couldn't refute him either.
Because, in order to prevent the unification of the European Continent that could eventually threaten the island nation itself, the British Empire had been following the policy of being a shit-stirrer for centuries, causing unrest across the European Continent—a fact known worldwide, with their notorious reputation firmly etched in people's hearts.
After listening to Luo An, Reesi's mouth twitched, and she forcefully suppressed the urge to retort, asking:
"What do we do next?"
Luo An turned to Conrad and asked:
"The 'no shooting' unwritten rule you mentioned to Reesi before, does it apply in this situation?"
Click—
Without speaking, Conrad silently disengaged the safety on the weapon he held in his arms.
"Good."
Luo An nodded, pulled out a stun grenade from his lower back, and said:
"Reesi, keep moving forward, we need to catch Rupert and his group first!"
"Understood!"
Reesi nodded firmly, no longer hesitating, and pressed the throttle of the speedboat all the way down!
On the other hand, on the leading speedboat, Zakaria was already bound hand and foot, was knocked out, and lay slumped in a seat.
The white man with a square chin and stubble looked back at Luo An and the others in hot pursuit, changed his previous subordinates' style, and gestured with a wave of his hand, commanding:
"Rupert, get the box under the chair."
The previously boss-like Rupert nodded, immediately bent over and pulled out a metal box, opened it, and revealed over a dozen blood bags.
The square-chinned man handed Rupert a dagger, and said in an impassive voice:
"Puncture them, and when I give the signal, you throw the box into the sea."
"No problem."
Rupert immediately began puncturing the blood bags as ordered by the square-chinned man, and a rich, pungent blood scent immediately spread out.
After a quick estimation of the distance, the square-chinned man began to slow down the speedboat, and then turned sharply, drawing a huge semi-circle on the surface of the sea.
As the speedboat completely turned around, the square-chinned man slammed the throttle to the max, steering the speedboat straight towards Luo An and his group!