After retrieving the stone tablet, Dr. Makimoto gave the order to return to port. He had a strong feeling that this tablet held an earth-shattering secret. After all, it was in the same area where he had previously detected the presence of a massive lifeform. Although Dr. Makimoto didn't know what kind of creature it was, he was certain that uncovering the truth would shock the world.
However, just as the ship was about to head back, several speedboats intercepted the yacht. Dr. Makimoto then saw a few Americans in suits climb aboard from the boats.
Seeing these foreigners suddenly appear before him, Dr. Makimoto had a bad feeling. After all, he was just a regular university professor—and there were countless people like him across the country.
Normally, people like this wouldn't show up at his doorstep, especially dressed so formally. The only thing different about today was that he had discovered something potentially extraordinary.
With that thought, Dr. Makimoto clutched the suitcase containing the mysterious tablet tightly.
"Hello, Dr. Makimoto." After confirming the yacht was under their control, a man—who appeared to be Asian—pushed through the Americans and stood before Dr. Makimoto. He spoke in Japanese.
"Yes, that's me," Makimoto replied, feeling slightly relieved that this man could speak his language. At least he was easier to communicate with than the Americans.
"My name is Ichiro Serizawa. I'm a scholar specializing in ancient lifeforms," the man introduced himself.
"I don't know why you're here, but boarding my vessel like this is a violation of my personal property," Makimoto said with a hint of defiance, although his hand, holding the suitcase, subtly moved behind his back.
Serizawa noticed the movement, but chose not to react. Instead, he simply glanced at the suitcase and handed over a business card. "Here is my card."
When Makimoto looked at the card, he was surprised by how minimal it was. The front only had Serizawa's name, and the back had just one word in large capital letters: MONARCH.
Just then, an American who had gone to gather intel from the crew returned to Serizawa and whispered something in his ear.
After listening, Serizawa smiled and said to Dr. Makimoto, "Dr. Makimoto, would you mind handing over the contents of your suitcase? It's very important to us."
His subordinate had learned from the crew that Makimoto had indeed pulled a stone tablet from the water, though none of them could make out the carvings clearly due to the time it had spent underwater.
From this, Serizawa immediately knew: this was what they had been looking for.
The reason Serizawa had returned to the area was because their satellite had detected signs of a massive lifeform moving beneath the sea. With decades of research into ancient organisms behind him, Serizawa sensed this could be a major breakthrough.
But unlike typical paleontologists, Serizawa didn't study dinosaurs or megalodons. He studied beings more mysterious—creatures that could be considered gods.
"It's mine! I went through a lot of trouble to retrieve it!" Makimoto exclaimed emotionally, holding tight to the suitcase.
"Forget it. Bring them all in," Serizawa said after seeing how protective Makimoto was. He suspected that Makimoto knew more than he let on and hadn't stumbled upon the tablet by accident.
As soon as Serizawa gave the order, several agents surrounding Makimoto grabbed him and escorted him to one of their speedboats.
"Hey! Why are you doing this?" Makimoto shouted as they pushed him aboard.
"Let's bring the two crew members as well," Serizawa added, glancing at the two nervous crewmates standing nearby. Since the operation had already begun, he figured it was safer to take them too.
"Don't take us—we don't know anything!" one of the crew shouted, trying to jump into the sea to escape. But before he could leap, someone yanked him back and pinned him to the deck.
After Makimoto was taken away, Serizawa opened the suitcase and looked at the stone tablet inside. A satisfied smile appeared on his face. He closed the case again and returned to his boat.
"Let's go back."
Three hours later, the yacht was found adrift in the middle of the sea by Japan's coast guard. Upon boarding, they discovered no one aboard. Everything on the yacht was neat and untouched, with no signs of a struggle—understandable, given that Serizawa's team had overwhelmed them with ease.
Upon investigation, the authorities learned that the yacht had been rented by a man named Goro Makimoto, a researcher conducting a deep-sea environmental study. He had also requested two certified salvage divers to assist with the mission.
But now, all three individuals—Makimoto and the two crew members—had mysteriously vanished.
The coast guard reported their findings to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, which opened a missing persons investigation and began tracking the movements of Goro Makimoto and his companions.
Banner only learned about Dr. Makimoto's disappearance later that night. He had tried calling Makimoto to confirm their travel plans, but someone from the lab answered and told him that Dr. Makimoto was missing. Only then did Banner realize something serious had happened.
"He's gone missing?" Banner muttered to himself after hanging up, staring at his phone.
Thinking back to the radioactive element and mysterious giant creature that Makimoto had mentioned, Banner began to realize—this was no ordinary disappearance.
After a moment's thought, Banner pulled out his phone and called Clark.
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