What he had given up was nothing more than a few dirty, copper-stained financial interests.
By the time Kennedy was brought back by the President again, the man wore an obviously unhappy expression, yet still had to force a smile onto his face. It was so unusual that even the way he looked at Killian carried a trace of resentment.
It made Killian sigh inwardly. As expected, those in power really could crush people by sheer rank alone.
Still, the President also seemed aware that what he had done had gone a bit too far. So for the rest of the evening, aside from occasionally asking Killian a few questions, he spent the entire time pulling Kennedy into lively conversation.
Even when it was time to sit down, he arranged Kennedy beside him instead of following the original seating plan.
Killian had originally intended to sit at another table and avoid getting dragged into their discussion, but Ellis spotted him immediately and pulled him over without hesitation.
At that moment, the President looked like a high-spirited emperor, with two unwilling consorts beside him.
Of course, both men were only putting on that attitude for Ellis to see.
After all, the President had inserted himself out of nowhere and sliced off a portion of the利益 they had been about to divide. Agreeing was one thing, but they still had to make their attitude clear.
He might be the President, but that did not mean he could act however he pleased.
And as someone who had risen all the way to the Presidency through public elections, Ellis was naturally no fool. So during the rest of the evening, he gave Kennedy's work the highest level of praise and even decided to increase federal funding support for Florida.
On Killian's side, he also gave AIM and its accomplishments this year heavy public praise, then expressed his hope that Killian would set aside time at the end of next month and make a trip to the White House, because a major surprise would be waiting for him there.
The meaning behind that was obvious.
For the President to say something like that in a public setting meant the "surprise" waiting for Killian was absolutely something huge.
At that moment, many of the people present were already wondering whether Killian was about to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
After all, that was the highest civilian honor in the United States, and President Ellis had the authority to award it to anyone who had made exceptional contributions to American society.
By every standard, Killian now clearly qualified.
Then, after Ellis exchanged a few more casual pleasantries with everyone, his secretary urged him once again, and he finally began shaking hands in farewell.
Even during that, though, he still pulled both Killian and Kennedy over with a kindly expression.
"Senator Kennedy, you've done excellent work here in Florida. I see it, and so does everyone else. I hope you maintain your current results and keep pushing forward."
"I'm leaving AIM in your hands. Make sure you watch over it carefully. As long as there are no issues of principle, then for the sake of supporting enterprise development, we can open every green channel available."
"After all, when companies do well, our national GDP rises. And when GDP rises, the treatment and benefits enjoyed by ordinary citizens rise with it."
"So I'm leaving it all to you."
Under everyone's gaze, President Ellis spoke with a faint flush on his face, as if leaning into the effects of the alcohol, and addressed Kennedy in a heavy, meaningful tone.
After saying that, he let his secretary support him as he walked outside. Once he got into the car, he headed straight back to the airport.
At that moment, after hearing those words from the President, everyone present immediately began raising their glasses and walking over to toast Killian.
If the praise Ellis had given Killian and AIM earlier at AIM headquarters in front of the cameras could be interpreted as public performance, then what he had just said now was unmistakable.
That was the President openly declaring his position.
So from that moment on, everyone wanted to establish a relationship with Killian, hoping that someday he might speak even one favorable sentence about them in front of the President.
An hour later, after the drinking had gone on for a while and most people no longer seemed interested in continuing, Killian decided not to stay much longer and headed straight outside.
What he hadn't expected was that Kennedy was already there waiting for him.
"Killian, now that everyone's gone, how about we take a walk?"
Kennedy smiled as he spoke.
"Of course, Senator Kennedy. After you."
Killian looked at him for two seconds, then smiled and gestured politely.
The two of them began walking down a quiet path nearby.
"I received what you sent me. It works very well."
"I have a few friends who wanted me to ask... is there any more?"
Only after walking far enough to be sure that there were no other people around and no chance of listening devices did Kennedy finally speak.
Having personally experienced the effect of the drug, Kennedy knew perfectly well how fatal its attraction would be to men like him.
And because Killian had simply gifted it to him, without asking for even a cent, Kennedy had understood from the beginning that it was bait.
A Pandora's box.
Still, no matter how hard he had his people extract samples and attempt to analyze the liquid, all they could conclude was that it enhanced biological function and might truly extend lifespan.
But the amount kept decreasing.
And Kennedy knew he could not afford to wait.
He was already approaching sixty. His body had begun to age. If things continued like that, retirement and a quiet life reading newspapers at home would be all that remained for him.
So in the end, he injected the drug Killian had given him.
The result was shocking.
His whole body became visibly younger by several years. Even the bones that had begun to bend and weaken with age seemed to regain vitality and straighten again.
And when doctors later reexamined his bone age, they discovered that it had become at least five years younger. His cellular activity had improved too, and DNA tests showed that even his telomeres, which had been worn down to near nothing, had been significantly repaired by something.
It was nothing less than a miracle in medical history.
And from that moment on, Kennedy had deeply understood one thing.
He could no longer separate himself from Killian and the great ship called AIM.
Originally, he had not intended to approach Killian this soon.
But... he had not been the only one to receive and use those injections.
Now enormous pressure had settled on his shoulders, almost enough to suffocate him.
"Heh. Are you referring to the T-0 antiviral formula? Of course there's more, my friend."
"But it is extremely expensive to produce. Even if AIM devoted itself to full-scale production, there would still only be a handful of doses."
"The four T-0 serum doses I gave you before were because you were one of our earliest allies, and in the spirit of mutual support, I chose to gift Senator Kennedy four T-0 serum doses."
"But if you want more, I'm afraid that will be difficult. We haven't even fully met the needs of our own allies yet. We can't possibly start supplying outsiders."
As soon as he heard Kennedy's question, Killian curved his lips upward and replied without turning around.
"But aren't we allies?"
"What more do you want?"
A sharp glint appeared in Kennedy's aged eyes as he asked the question.
"Not enough."
"Those people merely hold AIM stock. That does not make them true allies."
"If one day we face a major crisis, they will not try to help us. They will try to tear us open and divide our flesh among themselves."
"What I want is a real alliance."
"And for the details... I think Senator Kennedy should take a look at this proposal."
For the first time, Killian openly revealed his fangs to Kennedy.
As he said the last sentence, he handed over a smartphone with the proposal already open on the screen.
Kennedy had been about to say something else, but his attention was immediately drawn to the contents on the screen. He took the phone and began reading, and the very first page already left him inwardly shaken.
"AIM Life Foundation."
To join the foundation, a member had to contribute thirty percent of their total assets under the foundation's name, after which shares would be distributed at a rate of five-thousandths of equity per one million dollars invested.
Each company under a member's control would also be required to ensure that thirty percent of its core business shares were held by the foundation. The company would be allowed to purchase the necessary shares from partners, spouses, shareholders, and anyone else holding them, and the relevant parties could not obstruct that process in any way and would have to cooperate.
In other words, after paying nearly a third of your total wealth, you would still be required to place thirty percent of your company's shares into the foundation's hands.
If this plan were really carried out as written, then anyone who joined would truly become an insider in the deepest possible sense.
At that moment, Kennedy fully understood what Killian meant when he talked about "allies."
Not only would members need to invest and buy in, but they would also have to exchange equity and bind themselves to the foundation and to each other so tightly that their interests could no longer be separated.
If one member's interests were harmed, then the foundation's interests were harmed. And if the foundation's interests were harmed, then every member's利益 was harmed.
Which meant everyone would move.
Because all of them would have invested heavily in it with real money.
This was a true offensive and defensive alliance.
And precisely because of that, Kennedy felt even more deeply shocked by the scale of Killian's ambition. It was enough to send a chill down his spine.
If Killian truly succeeded in putting this structure together, then there would be no need for anything like the Illuminati or the Freemasons, those deeper and more hidden organizations.
Of course, AIM in its current form was still a tiny ant compared to powers like that.
But in Kennedy's eyes, if Killian really implemented this plan to the end, the result could easily be enough to overturn the government of an entire nation.
Or rather, for forces of that level, the modern approach was not to raise armies and rebel openly.
It was to take the presidency itself and seize state power in the open.
The old method of launching coups and armed uprisings had long since been discarded by people like them.
To them, that sort of thing was just childish play from fools.
"Are you serious?"
After a long silence, Kennedy finally raised his head from the plan and asked in a low, serious voice.
"Of course."
"In this world, there are no eternal friends, only eternal interests. Isn't that right?"
"So what I want is to condense the entire interest group into one single body."
"To create a true fortress of interests."
Killian answered with a faint smile.
"And why would they agree? Just because of a T-Series antiviral serum? I don't believe they'd willingly give up that much of their wealth just to follow you."
Kennedy asked immediately.
"Keep reading. That's not the end."
"What you're seeing right now is just the organizational structure. The real plan comes afterward."
Killian's smile took on a mysterious edge as he motioned for Kennedy to scroll further.
And just as he expected, the moment Kennedy reached the next section, he sharply drew in a breath. Before he had even finished reading, he looked from the screen to Killian with open disbelief, as if asking whether something like this could possibly be real.
"Eden, Tree of Life Plan."
"In the most ancient stories, God created man in His own image, Adam, and then created woman, Eve, from one of Adam's ribs. In the end, He placed them together in the Garden of Eden, where there was no pain, no suffering, and no aging."
"And in the Garden of Eden stood the Tree of Life. According to legend, whoever ate its fruit would gain longevity, even great power."
"And this plan is a true longevity plan."
"It includes multiple paths to extended life for foundation members to choose from: chemical longevity, altered-body longevity, artificial intelligence, and even machine ascension."
"Chemical longevity can instantly add decades to your lifespan and restore your body to the state of youth."
"Altered-body longevity will turn you into a different kind of lifeform, grant you at least two hundred years of life, and give you extraordinary physical power."
"Artificial intelligence. You would become something like Skynet. As long as there is a network, you would be a god in the virtual world. You could do anything you wanted, create any virtual reality you desired, and live any life you wished. There would be no exaggeration in saying that inside such a world, you would be divine."
"Machine ascension. We would preserve only your brain, place it in a nutrient medium, and after specialized enhancement, you would have at least four hundred years of life. Beyond that, your entire body would become something like a Terminator T-800, retaining human touch and sensation, but without human fragility or weakness. What you would have instead is overwhelming strength."
"You would still be able to experience everything it means to be human."
"Well? My dear Senator Kennedy, as long as you desire it, the foundation will be able to realize any dream of longevity you have."
"And most importantly, AIM has existed for less than ten years."
"So what happens after fifty years? A hundred? Two hundred?"
"At that point, will AIM and the Life Foundation's longevity plan perhaps become immortality itself?"
At that moment, Killian's voice was like a whisper from hell itself, sliding into Kennedy's ears with irresistible temptation and sinking deeper and deeper into his soul.
And as Killian continued describing it, Kennedy's breathing grew heavier and heavier.
By the end, he was almost panting like a bull, rough breath bursting out of him in waves, while his clouded eyes had become bloodshot with excitement.
Any person.
Any single person.
Placed in that situation, after hearing Killian say all of that, would have been unable to remain calm.
(End of Chapter)
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