"Are we heading to Nigeria?"
The question came from the officer sitting in the front left, a man in his thirties with a short, light beard.
Though the officers here hadn't introduced themselves, Long Zhan recognized him from his memory of the TV drama—he was the commander of the AB operation group—Captain Eric!
"We're not going to Nigeria, we're heading to Liberia. Samir doesn't trust Boko, so he would never go into their territory."
Mandy dismissed Eric's guess and pressed a button on the remote to change the projection photo.
She then continued, "The intelligence indicates that he will be meeting with General Lionheart outside Monrovia, where General Lionheart will ensure the safety of the meeting. The agency's 24-hour surveillance via drones has confirmed that Samir is in Monrovia and is expected to begin meetings within the next two days. Therefore, we must leave by tomorrow morning at the latest."
She paused for a moment before adding, "This is a simple HVT operation. Your mission is to capture this high-value target alive and bring him back to the agency."
"I'm curious," Jason spoke up. "When we face Abu Samir, this fanatic who spreads suicide attacks in the name of martyrdom all over the world, do you think he will martyr himself for this?"
"Martyrdom is for children," Mandy replied dismissively. "Samir is a smart man. His talent for self-preservation is the reason he's survived for over 20 years in this war. If he were really a martyr, he would have died 20 years ago."
Mandy seemed to despise people who constantly demanded others sacrifice themselves, while cherishing their own lives above all else.
She then changed the topic and became serious. "Samir uses the idea of jihad to amass wealth. He's collected gold for over 20 years, and the agency needs not only the intelligence Samir possesses, but also the enormous fortune he has hidden. So, you must make sure to capture him alive, if possible."
"Enormous fortune? Gold?"
Long Zhan's heart skipped a beat upon hearing this. He quickly thought to himself, *Has the storyline changed? Or did I miss something when watching the drama?*
"If there is indeed a massive fortune in gold, and if I can get my hands on it... wouldn't that be...?"
The thought made Long Zhan even more excited, secretly plotting.
---
The next day, at 6 a.m., Long Zhan and Clay arrived at the airport half an hour early, as instructed by Team B.
A C-17 transport plane was parked at the assembly point, with several ground crew members conducting final pre-flight checks on the aircraft. Behind the cargo door, a military truck was unloading supplies, with logistics personnel working swiftly.
Diaz, the logistics sergeant of Team B, was the first official member of the team to arrive. She stood by the truck, directing the unloading process and ensuring the supplies were properly loaded into the aircraft.
"Good morning," Clay greeted, still unfamiliar with the team and its environment, speaking in a shy, reserved manner like a bashful young man.
Long Zhan, however, was the complete opposite. He was as smooth as ever, approaching Diaz to help unload the cargo and casually saying, "You know, the biggest surprise and unexpected pleasure I've had since joining Team B these past two days?"
Diaz's curiosity was piqued as she put down her tablet and asked, "What is it?"
"It's you," Long Zhan replied, catching Diaz off guard. She thought he was making a pass at her right away.
Clay was also stunned.
But Long Zhan quickly changed his tone and continued, "The most important part of any army is its logistics. And for any team, the logistics sergeant is the most crucial member. You're the most professional and hardworking logistics sergeant I've ever seen. Team B is fortunate to have you, and with someone like you on the team, I'm even more excited to have joined."
What is praise? What is flattery?
This was it!
With his smooth and subtle flattery, Long Zhan managed to make Diaz smile so broadly her eyes nearly closed. Her opinion of him skyrocketed, and her favorability shot up to the level of an official team member.
And that was exactly what Long Zhan wanted!
Logistics sergeants were responsible for preparing the team's equipment. Every gun, every bullet used by the members had to be prepared by her hands.
You could have an average relationship with the team leader, but you needed to have a good relationship with the logistics sergeant. That way, they would take extra care in preparing your gear, ensuring that you had the best equipment and that no detail was overlooked.
So, cultivating a good relationship with the logistics sergeant was like buying insurance for your life.
After all, no one wanted a malfunctioning rifle.
This was one of the most valuable lessons Long Zhan had learned during his two years in the Navy SEALs.
From talking to Diaz as much as possible the day before, to now using compliments as a way to get on her good side, Long Zhan had one goal in mind.
And judging by Diaz's expression, it was clear his methods were working.
In comparison, Clay seemed too young and naïve. He didn't notice Long Zhan's intent and thought he was just flirting superficially.
Of course, if they developed into "friends" with similar interests, Long Zhan wouldn't be opposed.
It wasn't like this was his first time doing something like this.
"You don't need to help with this part. Come with me to get your gear. If you have any specific requests, let me know and I'll do my best to accommodate you."
Normally, foreign personnel were assigned standard gear without the opportunity to make requests, but Diaz, in a good mood, used her position to offer Long Zhan a small privilege.
Clay managed to catch a free ride and benefit from this.
It felt different when your favorability went up.
Clay, having experienced the convenience brought by Long Zhan's "sugar-coated bullet," finally understood what was going on.
As they followed Diaz into the cargo hold, Clay sneakily gave Long Zhan a thumbs up.
Long Zhan winked proudly, flashing a sly smile that hid his achievements.
At that moment, inside the C-17, which had a maximum capacity of 60 tons, a variety of gear and supplies for the operation had already been loaded.
Three prominent vehicles stood out in the center of the cargo hold.
Four all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), a light armored vehicle produced by Mark Defense, and a military Humvee equipped with an M2HB heavy machine gun.
"These are some good things. No wonder it's DG—when you have the money, you can afford luxury," Long Zhan thought, admiring the vehicles.
Looking at the special military vehicles, which were airlifted to cover all types of terrain, Long Zhan couldn't help but compare them to the broken-down vehicles he'd had to use in the SEALs during his missions. The difference was like night and day.
As he felt a mix of envy and jealousy, he couldn't help but sigh, *Money really does make all the difference.*