"Alright, where was I?" Bell paused mid-sip, collecting his thoughts before continuing. "The world was reeling from a post-magical calamity era, with the ring of fire split in two, monsters running rampant, and a prolonged volcanic winter nearly driving that world to extinction. When the remnants of the old world began to rebuild, this was the result."

Despite the harsh conditions, Bell remained in service to the cabal, knowing that abandoning them would mean certain death. Even attempting to flee with the F-15A would have been futile, as he'd be executed the moment he left their ranks, with the Confederacy likely to shoot him down using more advanced aircraft like the F/S-15 and Su-37SM. So, he resigned himself to working with the cabal until his eventual demise.

However, fate had other plans. During a dogfight over the Malacca Strait against the Confederacy, Bell lost his F-15A to another fighter jet. Unlike his previous encounter when he was shot down in his F-4, the F-15A proved more resilient, allowing him to get a visual on the mysterious jet—a dark aircraft adorned with canards. Despite sustaining significant damage, his F-15A managed to limp back to Oceania before Bell made the decision to eject over Karratha, Western Oceania.

Following the loss of his beloved F-15A, Bell spent six months serving as a WSO for F-15E pilots until he saved up enough funds to purchase a cheap F-111 Aardvark. With the help of a pilot-turned-WSO from a black market dealer, he acquired the Aardvark as a temporary solution until he could afford another jet. Returning to his familiar bombing runs with the Aardvark, Bell's fortunes changed when he received an opportunity to assist a covert operation on Palawan, Northeast of Borneo, Republic of the Philippines. It was there that he obtained a prototype called the PL-XX, and with assistance from the North African Republic, he acquired the AIM-200.

After that special mission, Bell finally amassed enough funds to upgrade to a superior fighter jet, handing over the F-111 to his WSO. He purchased a Rafale from the Concordat, complete with advanced weaponry and electronic warfare equipment. Bell then divulged his involvement in supporting a rebellion in what was once California within the Confederation. Their objective? To reunite with the United Republic of America in the East.

During the ensuing conflict, Bell gained considerable renown as a mercenary, piloting his Rafale and utilizing the formidable AIM-100 missiles. He downed countless enemy aircraft, fighting alongside a diverse mix of Western and Eastern hardware. In the Eastern Seaboard conflict, he fought for their independence while generously allocating 75% of his profits to the cabal.

Bell and his fellow mercenaries fought valiantly until the Federation unleashed a Spell-Imbued Aether bomb on the Portland Autonomous Republic in Oregon. The devastation was immense, unleashing monsters from the depths of the earth and providing further justification for the Eastern Seaboard Coalition to rejoin the URA. As regular forces pushed Confederate soldiers back into the sea, Bell was tasked with combating the relentless onslaught of monsters emerging from the earth.

In this battle, he faced creatures ranging from colossal worms to dragons capable of leveling entire city blocks, reminiscent of those in his own world. The threat escalated to such an extent that the Western European Concordat authorized the use of ASMP-A missiles on Portland to quell the relentless waves of dragons. Bell launched two from his Rafale while other mercenaries deployed a variety of nuclear weapons. Eventually, the monster infestation in Portland was eradicated, although the city bore little resemblance to its former self.

With the coalition reuniting with the URA, Bell concluded his service with them, having earned a substantial sum of money in the process.

With his newfound wealth, Bell invested in an F-35A from the URA, parting ways with the Rafale and selling it to a fellow mercenary who had been stuck with a MIG-29. Transitioning to the F-35A, Bell found himself working with the cabal seamlessly. He had never truly appreciated the advantages of stealth until he experienced them firsthand.

The F-35A's stealth capabilities allowed Bell to operate undetected, flying as far as Ulanbaatar without triggering radar. His favorite mission with the jet involved hunting bombers. With its stealth features, Bell could take down one or two bombers per sortie without their escorts even noticing. Bombers were lucrative targets provided by the Confederacy, making these missions highly profitable.

"Despite everything going smoothly, why did the cabal ultimately lose?" Lisa inquired.

"Because the Confederacy no longer saw their secession problem in the North as a significant threat, prompting them to launch a major offensive against us," Bell explained.

"Hmm, how severe was the damage?" Lisa pressed.

"Devastating... They launched major assaults on our airbases while I was airborne. By the time I returned to my home base, it was nothing but a smoldering ruin. There were rumors of them deploying sixth-gen bombers and fighters, but I couldn't even concern myself with that. The moment I reentered Oceania airspace, I found myself being pursued by multiple J-20s and F-22s," Bell recounted solemnly.

“Holy shit, and how did you survive?” Lisa asked.

Bell's story was teeming with the kind of suspense and adrenaline that kept everyone around him on the edge of their seats. "I almost didn’t make it," he began, his voice steady but with an undercurrent of intensity that hinted at the gravity of his experience. "An F-22 shot down my F-35."

Sylva, always keen on military hardware, couldn't hide her surprise. "This is my first time hearing about an air force having both a J-20 and an F-22," she commented, her curiosity piqued by the unusual combination of aircraft. It was a rare occurrence, indeed, for such advanced machines from different nations to be mentioned in the same breath.

“Shush, quiet, please continue,” Hanna added.

Bell then continued the story. After an F-22 shot him down, he landed on the outskirts of Sydney and from there, he walked to the nearest air field without any water and so on. Eventually, he stumbled an escaping squadron and with a little bit of convincing, snatched an F-15S from them.

The squadrons escaped safely while Bell acted as a decoy and flew towards a thunderstorm. Then, all of a sudden, a thunder stuck his aircraft and all he knew, he was flying above Saven. Then, he contacted the ATC then requested permission to land at Frostwood.