Chapter 58: Countermeasures

Chapter 57: Countermeasures

"Kamans, are you trying to shirk responsibility?" Right then, someone immediately stood up and questioned him. Now that the central computer had been taken over by someone else, he still dared to claim that everything was fine in the short term.

Kamans cast a calm glance at that person, then slowly stood up. He swept his gaze around the room once more and said, "Gentlemen, have any of you ever considered what kind of formidable hacker could possibly infiltrate and tamper with the Starmand main system?"

Hearing Kamans say this, everyone frowned. Such a hacker was indeed utterly unimaginable.

Without waiting for their reply, Kamans continued, "The Starmand mainframe system is a computer control system built by hundreds of thousands of the Federation's top scientists over the span of several decades. Its complexity has reached a historical peak, and furthermore, the Starmand mainframe is capable of automated upgrades, continuously elevating its own security coefficient. Every single upgrade involves a complete rearrangement, possessing a might that no other system can rival. Let alone an ordinary hacker, even if those scientists from the past were to be resurrected, they would still have no chance of breaching Starmand's system."

"Then why was Starmand's system still replaced with a fake one?" someone immediately demanded. Since Starmand was supposed to be invincible, yet it had now been compromised, wasn't this a blatant contradiction?

Upon hearing this question, Kamans replied unhurriedly, "Starmand's system cannot be breached from the outside, but after all, Starmand is merely a computer system; she is ultimately controlled by humans. If someone possesses the corresponding clearance and knows certain critical passwords to Starmand, then destroying Starmand is not entirely impossible. And the people who hold such clearance and know these passwords are very few. If they exist at all, they can only be among us sitting right here."

The moment Kamans said this, everyone fell abruptly silent. Kamans's words undoubtedly implied that Starmand had been destroyed by an insider, and moreover, this insider was sitting right among them.

Seeing that everyone had gone silent, Kamans continued his analysis, "As Marshal Rena just mentioned, this matter cannot be the work of the Empire's military. Because if the Imperial military had already gained control of our computer mainframe, they would have long since launched an attack against us, rather than exposing this ultimate trump card simply to steal a set of camouflage skins. Therefore, this person can only be someone from within our own ranks, and the motive of this person is not hard to guess—they undoubtedly want to take control of the Federation."

Kamans paused here for a moment, swept his gaze across the room once more, and then continued, "Replacing Starmand is merely their first step, and it has to be the first step; otherwise, Starmand would uphold the Federal Constitution and prevent this person from succeeding. However, to control the Federation, merely replacing Starmand is not enough. Control must also be established across all other aspects, including the military, the parliament, and so on. This is not something that can be accomplished in a day or two. Clearly, that person is not yet fully prepared, which is why, up until now, that person has not yet made a move to subvert the Federation."

"Although we have now discovered this secret, since that person is not yet prepared, we have no immediate way to take action either. Acting prematurely would only expose them entirely and lead to their utter failure. Therefore, this person will definitely choose to maintain a low profile, keeping others from noticing while continuing to bide their time. In this way, the Federation will remain safe for a temporary period, and we will still have plenty of time to handle this matter." With these words, Kamans thoroughly untangled the entire situation and arrived at this conclusion.

After listening to Kamans, everyone remained silent. His reasoning was watertight, and the truth of the matter was highly likely to be just as he described.

Indeed, the enemy was likely not from the Empire, but rather originated from within the Federation itself. This individual must hold a lofty position and harbor immense ambitions.

If their guess was correct, this person's ambition was likely to completely control the Federation and transform it into a dictatorship far more absolute than the Empire.

This person could be anyone, including President Haffrey.

Everyone looked at each other, their eyes filled with suspicion. At this moment, they could trust no one.

After finishing his words, Kamans sat back down. A heavy silence persisted in the room.

Haffrey's expression at this moment was truly unsightly. This kind of situation was something he had never anticipated. He too had ambitions and numerous plots of his own, yet he never imagined that someone else's ambitions were far greater than his—by this much—and that they had already put them into action and reached this stage.

"Minister Kamans is entirely correct. The person capable of destroying Starmand is among us, perhaps a single individual, or perhaps several. I dare not suspect anyone at present, but I am forced to suspect everyone. The Federation has stood for hundreds of years, enduring countless storms, yet ultimately weathering them all safely. This might be our greatest crisis yet, but I believe that as long as the initial democratic spirit of our Federation remains, and as long as we stand united as one, this person's conspiracy will undoubtedly be shattered." In the end, Haffrey delivered these official, formulaic remarks.

Although they were clichés, uttered in Haffrey's extremely solemn tone, they also conveyed his inner fury and resolute determination to crush the conspiracy.

"Minister Kamans, as the Minister of Security, this investigation will be led primarily by you. Do not rush to replace the central computer system for now, because a hasty replacement might cause operational issues within the Federation and leak this secret. Furthermore, who knows, we might be able to discover more clues from it. Marshal Rena, from this moment on, I grant you supreme command of the military, empowering you to mobilize all military forces to safeguard the security of the Federation." Following that, Haffrey issued two critical orders.

Kamans and Rena both accepted the commands in loud, ringing voices, while the others remained silent, not uttering another single word.

Hearing Haffrey's words, Wang Hou merely wore a cold sneer on his face, saying nothing.

"From this moment on, everyone present, including myself, shall have all our actions monitored by the Federal Security Agency. Without the approval of over seventy percent of the people present, no one is permitted to leave Star Capital by even half a step; otherwise, it will be treated as treason." Finally, Haffrey issued another ruthless decree.

With that, Haffrey abruptly stood up and strode out of the conference room with an iron-cold expression.

Once Haffrey had departed, the others exchanged glances and slowly stood up to leave as well. In the end, only two people remained in the conference room: Minister of Security Kamans and Director Wei of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

"Minister, what are your thoughts on this matter?" Director Wei stood beside Kamans and asked cautiously.

Hearing Director Wei's inquiry, Kamans let out a cold snort. "Aside from Rena, anyone else could be the culprit. Even the President, who just issued those commands."

"Why is Marshal Rena excluded?" Director Wei asked, seemingly puzzled.

Kamans sneered, cast a glance at Director Wei, and said indifferently, "The Rena family has been reduced to the point where only young Raybin is left alive; what reason do they have to commit treason? If this conspirator wants to control the Federation, the first thing they must control is the central computer Starmand, and the second thing they must eradicate is the Rena family. Because as long as the Rena family exists, they will never be able to control the military, and their conspiracy can never succeed. At first, I also thought the deaths of the Rena family's descendants were merely the work of their political rivals. But looking at it now, it was undoubtedly the work of this conspirator, all for the sake of achieving total control over the Federation. Because if I were the one seeking to dominate the entire Federation, I would likewise have to eliminate the Rena family first."

"The President also saw this, which is why he completely handed over military power to Marshal Rena. That way, at the very least, the Federation won't plunge into chaos for the time being," Director Wei said, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Handing all military power over to Rena is, for now, the safest approach. As long as Rena is around, the Federation will not fall into chaos, and the military will remain loyal. Anyone can see this. However, my worry is that precisely because of this, those people will become even more wary of Rena and will go to even greater lengths to eliminate him," Kamans said, a hint of worry in his tone.

"Minister Kamans, you have always seemed to be at odds with the Marshal. Why do you suddenly sound like you genuinely care about him?" Director Wei asked in confusion.

Kamans let out a cold snort. "Although Rena and I do not get along, I do not wish to see him die at the hands of petty scoundrels. The Rena family has guarded the Federation for hundreds of years with absolute loyalty. If there ever was a chance for me to defeat Rena in a fair fight, I would gladly give him a thorough beating. But if it ever came down to choosing between my death or his, I would rather it be me, not him."

Hearing Kamans say this, a flash of astonishment crossed Director Wei's eyes, though he kept silent. Indeed, with Rena around, the Federation would not descend into chaos, which was why the conspirator would inevitably find a way to eliminate him.

If the Rena family truly fell now, it would benefit no one in the Federation except that conspirator. Although many people usually harbored deep jealousy toward the Rena family's lofty status and wished for their downfall, right now, no one wanted to see Rena fall. Rena was a towering tree that not only supported his own family but also upheld the entire Federation.

In times of peace, if Rena fell, others would gradually step up to take his place. But right now, the Federation's fate was hanging by a thread; if Rena were to fall as well, that thread would snap instantly.

"Then how should we go about finding this conspirator? With so many high-ranking and powerful individuals, it's going to be extremely difficult to investigate," Director Wei asked after a long silence.

"Start with the person who stole the camouflage skins," Kamans replied indifferently.

"Oh? Why start with them? They shouldn't have any direct connection to the conspirator, right?" Director Wei asked, feigning confusion.

"This theft of the camouflage skins indeed has no direct connection to the conspirator, because the conspirator would never expose their own secrets. However, the person who stole the camouflage skins must have known that the central system had been tampered with; that is the only way they would have dared—and been able—to steal them. Going straight after the conspirator right now would certainly be difficult, but if we start with the thief, it might become much easier. That person definitely knows a great deal of the inner story," Kamans said calmly.

"The Minister is right. Perhaps this person learned too many inside secrets and was consequently hunted down by the conspirator, which is why they stole the camouflage skins and used this incident to send us a warning." Director Wei's eyes immediately lit up.

Kamans nodded, but suddenly let out a cold snort. "Do they really think subverting a Federation is that easy? I want to see just who is hiding behind the scenes."