In addition to drone technology, there was also the aircraft engine upgrade technology that the thoughtless Castle had casually developed. Originally intended to help Northrop Grumman secure a contract to upgrade the B-2 strategic stealth bomber, this unplanned innovation had also caused a significant impact.
Just look at what happened to Rolls-Royce.
Pratt & Whitney and General Electric, two of the world's top three engine manufacturers (alongside Rolls-Royce), had obtained Castle's technology and, within just over a year, had squeezed Rolls-Royce into a dire situation. The British engine maker was struggling to survive to the point where it even sought help from MI6, hoping to get its hands on Castle's technology—technology that he had flatly refused to share with them.
And that's not even mentioning the game-changing "Jericho" missiles and "Ex-Wife" missiles.
The latter, in particular, was a small yet powerful missile that dramatically increased the number of missiles U.S. fighter jets could carry. This, in turn, significantly boosted their combat effectiveness.
Think about it—before, a fighter jet taking off for a mission could only carry four to six, at most eight, air-to-air missiles, whether beyond-visual-range, medium-range, or short-range dogfight missiles.
Now, thanks to the specially designed "Ex-Wife" missile racks, a fighter jet could carry dozens of these compact yet highly lethal missiles. And the best part? Despite their smaller size, these missiles had comparable range, speed, and power to traditional air-to-air missiles.
That was practically cheating.
All of these unplanned technological developments had already made the U.S. military far more powerful than in Castle's previous life.
Now that Castle had realized just how serious the consequences of his actions could be, how could he possibly agree to Lockheed Martin's latest request so easily?
Besides, at this point, he had already built a solid foundation for himself. He had enough capital and influence to say no to these military contractors. There was no longer any need for him to hand out advanced technology so freely, as he had in the past when he was still establishing himself.
And let's not forget—Lockheed Martin was already fully occupied with upgrading the Air Force's AC-130 Ghostrider gunships. Did they really have the time and resources to chase after the next generation of optical stealth technology?
Castle also knew that Lockheed Martin wasn't the only player in the game. Boeing, for instance, was currently modifying the A-10 Warthog attack aircraft for the military—another subsonic aircraft like the AC-130.
And Castle was certain that once modified, the A-10's battlefield performance would be even more impressive than the AC-130's.
After all, the U.S. military had not developed a next-generation dedicated ground-attack aircraft. Instead, it had reassigned the A-10's role to multipurpose fighters like the F-15 and the in-development F-35.
But let's be honest—if the A-10 were retired entirely, the U.S. military would lose the world's most fearsome subsonic attack aircraft.
By upgrading the A-10 and significantly extending its service life, the military could ensure continued battlefield dominance—making such modifications highly appealing.
Now, if Castle casually agreed to Lockheed Martin's request, wouldn't Boeing and Northrop Grumman follow suit?
That would be asking for trouble.
So, Castle flatly rejected Lockheed Martin's request with a half-hearted excuse: "Technology development isn't something that happens overnight."
To Castle, Lockheed Martin's inquiry was nothing more than a test.
They were probing him, trying to understand how he always seemed to pull advanced technology out of thin air—because to the outside world, Castle's technological breakthroughs seemed almost magical.
Of course, there was no real research process behind them—Castle was simply copying and pasting from his past knowledge.
But now that he had realized how suspicious this appeared, he couldn't afford to be as reckless as before.
Hadn't he already deliberately taken months to develop his flight simulator, despite having the full technical blueprints in his head?
That delay wasn't due to technical difficulties—it was to dispel growing doubts and scrutiny from outsiders.
Castle had already decided to lay low for a while, keeping a low profile and diverting attention away from himself.
And right now, he was completely focused on taking care of his newborn son.
With such a perfect excuse, why wouldn't he use it?
In the end, the Lockheed Martin representatives left empty-handed, while Castle continued his life as a stay-at-home dad.
Of course, the world didn't stop moving just because Castle was enjoying fatherhood.
While Castle was busy looking after his baby—who only cried when hungry, wet, or simply unhappy—other events were unfolding elsewhere.
For instance, after failing to locate Kincaid in Honduras, Dukhovich's men had flown to South America once again.
Dukhovich was well aware that Interpol was also searching for the man who could testify against him in court. He knew that if he didn't find Kincaid first, and Interpol got to him instead, he would be in serious trouble.
So, he issued an urgent order to his subordinates: Find Kincaid before Interpol does—and silence him permanently.
Meanwhile, Interpol had also launched a large-scale manhunt centered in Honduras.
Kincaid, having received Castle's warning call about being Dukhovich's top target, had immediately fled Honduras with his girlfriend, Sonia.
From there, he moved to a safe house in Guatemala.
A few days later, he secretly crossed into Mexico and disappeared into the chaotic streets of Tijuana.
At this point, nobody knew where he was—except Castle, who had Jarvis tracking him 24/7 using the Eye of God surveillance software.
And even now, Kincaid wasn't staying put. He seemed to be planning yet another move.
His paranoia was understandable—Castle's direct call had left a deep psychological scar on him.
So, he continued to move from place to place, never staying still for too long.
Castle, on the other hand, watched the whole situation unfold with amusement—like watching a comedy film.
And Dukhovich's desperation to eliminate Kincaid only confirmed one thing: the man was cornered.
Could this mean he knew his trial was imminent?
Curious, Castle had Jarvis hack into the Hague's International Court system to check the latest case files.
Surprisingly, the records showed that the evidence collection against Dukhovich was still ongoing.
In particular, the most critical evidence—the mass graves of ethnic minorities slaughtered under his orders—had yet to be uncovered due to an ongoing civil war in his home country.
So why was Dukhovich in such a panic?
The only possible explanation was that he blamed Kincaid for his exposure.
And Kincaid?
He had no way to explain to Dukhovich that he wasn't the one who tipped off the authorities.
Even if he could, his pride wouldn't allow him to grovel for forgiveness.
Having figured this all out, Castle was very pleased with the way things were playing out.
After all, if Interpol managed to capture Kincaid—or, worse, took his girlfriend hostage to force his cooperation—the case against Dukhovich would move too quickly.
And Castle wasn't ready for that.
His son wasn't even a month old yet.
Christmas was just around the corner.
Did he really want to fly to Manchester right now for a high-stakes trial?
No, thank you.
For now, he'd continue enjoying fatherhood.
Meanwhile, tensions in Turkey were spiraling out of control.
With Britain and the U.S. openly backing Turkey's enemies—including a bankrupt European state with territorial disputes and Kurdish militant groups spanning Turkey, Syria, Iran, and Iraq—the region was engulfed in war.
However, the Turks weren't backing down.
With covert support from Japan, they were holding their ground—fighting their adversaries to a standstill.
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