“The last people Melchor met were the rebels?”
“Yes. They say he met and spoke with the rebels because of the previous rebel suppression operation in Mindanao.”
Celeste was tracing the president’s final moments through a different route from Bituin’s.
The president’s schedule was a state secret, but such things posed no problem for Celeste.
“Then it was the rebels who made Melchor like that?”
“That does not appear to be the case. They say the negotiations ended well. However, on his way down afterward, he slipped on the stairs, and that was what went wrong. From the rebels’ standpoint, the negotiations had gone well, but President Melchor suffered an accident and the agreement could not be implemented, so they feel wronged.”
Celeste did not believe that excuse.
To be honest, none of that mattered at all.
What mattered was that Celeste’s fortune had disappeared, and she could not find where it was.
What did it matter whether Melchor fell over, pitched forward, or slipped?
What meaning was there in whether the rebels had negotiated or not?
Laksa, who knew the most important information at this moment, could not be found at all.
Bituin seemed to be doing his utmost to find him, but there was no trace whatsoever.
But she could not simply sit by and do nothing.
In the meantime, Melchor’s fortune might vanish.
Judging by their style of work, the people who hid Melchor’s assets were professionals.
They ran the money through one laundering cycle, and the funds disappeared.
Imagine if they ran it through several more times.
It would never be found.
The only chance to find that fortune was right now.
The fortune Melchor had lost was no longer the shared property of La Camara.
It was Celeste’s fortune.
Once the single-term system was changed to allow a second term, she would be the one to become president, so naturally Celeste should be the one to take it.
At least, that was what Celeste believed.
That was why she had to find it even more.
To do politics in the Philippines, money was necessary.
Celeste had plenty of wealth herself, but that was her own fortune.
She could not do politics with that money.
Politics was supposed to be done with other people’s money.
After thinking carefully, Celeste arrived at one question.
‘Why did he meet the rebels? Was it simply for negotiations? If it was negotiations, why did he meet them alone?’
It seemed there was something connected to the rebels after all.
If she crushed the rebels first, wouldn’t something come out?
They were rebels anyway.
No matter how hard she crushed them, no one would say anything.
If anything, they would say she did well.
But she could not enter Mindanao, the rebels’ stronghold.
Her power did not reach Mindanao.
In Mindanao, neither the military nor the police listened to her.
So that was out. Instead, Bohol.
There was a place suspected of being the rebels’ source of funds.
If she crushed that place, she thought some clue might emerge.
She picked up the phone.
“Bituin, there’s that casino in Bohol, isn’t there? The place suspected of being connected to the rebels. Raid it.”
— Pardon? There are no charges against them yet.
“Just pin something on them and raid it. If you dig, something will come out.”
— Understood.
.
.
.
“We’re from the DOH, Department of Health. We will be conducting a sanitation inspection.”
“We will check your business permit, sanitation-related documents, and employees’ health certificates.”
“We’re from the fire department. This is a regular inspection of your fire safety facilities.”
“We will check the sprinkler water pressure records and inspection sheets.”
“Open the emergency exits. We’re checking whether any passages are blocked.”
“The fire extinguisher refill date has passed.”
“The brightness of the guide lights is weaker than the standard. That is a violation of regulations.”
“We’re from PAGCOR. We will conduct an inspection in accordance with casino operating regulations.”
“We will check whether the slot machine levers respond abnormally. We will leave a record. Please record this.”
“We will check dealer shift records and CCTV footage.”
“Submit the revenue and log records for each machine.”
The fire department, the Department of Health, and even PAGCOR, which managed and supervised casinos, descended on Emerald Resort all at once.
And they brought the police with them.
Nothing like this had ever happened before.
Of course, it wasn’t as though Emerald Resort had never undergone inspections.
It had received every inspection it was supposed to receive.
Inspections had come, and crackdowns had come, but they had always given advance notice, and even when they came to crack down, they would drink a cup of coffee, hand out a few simple tickets, and leave.
That was how things were done in the Philippines.
But today was different.
It was strange enough that they had come without prior notice, but they had brought the police, and things that were not wrong were being called violations.
“Your documents are incomplete.”
“We submitted them last week.”
“We never received them. Due to incomplete documents, we will issue a one-month suspension of operations for the hotel restaurant.”
“This is a violation of fire safety law. Correct the insufficient areas and undergo reinspection. Until then, we will suspend operations. In its current state, the resort’s fire safety equipment does not meet the standards required to receive guests.”
“We see several serious violations of casino law. We will suspend operations until they are clearly investigated.”
And the police went to the representative’s office.
“We need the representative’s statement for the investigation into administrative violations. We will escort you to the police station for a moment.”
The police who came to the representative’s office demanded that Sandro accompany them to the police station.
Unlike the police, who were clearly tense, Sandro was very relaxed.
Sandro, who had been sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed, took a cigarette from his pocket and put it in his mouth.
Click.
His secretary at his side lit it for him.
Sandro took a very deep drag of the cigarette.
The police and Sandro’s men alike merely watched him.
An unknowable force could be felt from Sandro as he leisurely smoked his cigarette.
No one could easily approach him.
Until Sandro finished the entire cigarette, no one made a sound.
Throughout that time, Sandro smoked slowly and deeply.
Before long, Sandro stubbed out the cigarette and asked the police officer back in a low voice.
“What did you say?”
“We… we asked you to accompany us for an administrative investi… investigation into violations.”
Pressed down by Sandro’s presence, the police officer could not speak properly.
Sandro was quiet, but powerful.
“And if I don’t go?”
“Pardon?”
“What will you do if I don’t go?”
“We… we could arrest you for obstructing the execution of an inspection or obstructing official duties.”
The police officer barely managed to speak.
At that, the expressions of the Sandro Group members surrounding the police turned fierce in an instant.
Their eyes flashed, and their hands moved toward their weapons.
They looked ready to rush the police at any moment.
“What did you say? You’re going to take hyungnim away?”
“Have these bastards lost their minds?”
One gang member pushed through the others and spoke to Sandro.
“Hyungnim. Just say the word and I’ll bury these bastards today and turn myself in. Please give me the chance.”
Another member stepped forward and said,
“No, hyungnim. I’ll do it. Hyungnim, just close your eyes for a moment and I’ll take care of everything. You won’t have seen a thing.”
Then someone shouted from the back.
“Let’s each stab them once. If we each stab them once, they won’t know who did it, right? So we can all stab them.”
“That’s a good idea.”
“Even if we go to prison, we’ll all go together, so it won’t be lonely.”
“Meals will be fun too. It’ll remind me of cafeteria food.”
“Hahahaha.”
The gang members were laughing as they spoke, as if this truly were the end.
An atmosphere formed as though they really might tear the police to pieces right there.
The faces of the police officers listening to them were turning deathly pale.
That was how grim and resolute the gang members looked.
The police knew as well.
They knew what kind of influence Sandro had in Bohol.
They knew very well that he was a giant they could not touch.
But the operations chief of the Bohol Police Office had said it.
There would soon be a large-scale sweep operation.
So there was no need to be afraid.
They simply had to bring Sandro in.
That was the mission the police had received today.
But no matter how they thought about it, today seemed impossible.
They were about to turn back, thinking today was not the day, when—
“Where are you going? You said you needed my statement. Let’s go.”
Sandro, who had been sitting on the sofa, stood up.
As Sandro moved, the gang members who had filled the area in front of the representative’s office opened a path.
They made way so Sandro could pass.
Sandro took the lead, and the police followed behind him.
And so Sandro headed to the police station.
.
.
.
“Boss, we’ve got a serious problem.”
Scott came running over, his fat body huffing and puffing.
If Scott was running, then it really was a serious problem, wasn’t it?
“What is it? What are you making such a fuss about this time?”
I asked Scott back as I watched the kids play basketball in Unity Town.
While thinking that it would be nice to build them a gymnasium.
“Sandro hyungnim has been taken in.”
What Scott said was something I had never expected.
Sandro had been taken in.
Was that even possible?
If anything, the police would have escorted Sandro respectfully, not taken him in.
For a moment, the world seemed to stop.
I couldn’t sort out my thoughts.
By my common sense, it was a story that made no sense.
I must have misheard.
“Huh? What did you say?”
“Sandro hyungnim was taken by the police.”
It seemed I had not misheard.
“How? Why? For what reason?”
“I don’t know the details. They say they suddenly conducted casino, sanitation, and fire safety inspections, then took Sandro hyungnim away.”
That was a relief, at least.
I had thought he was caught at the scene while doing something bad.
If that had been the case, things would have been more complicated, but for something like this, he only had to take responsibility as the representative.
Whether paying a fine, suffering a suspension of operations, or closing down the business, it was something he only had to take responsibility for as the representative.
It wasn’t a big deal.
But the fact that he had been taken in made me even more bewildered.
For something like that, a written explanation later would have been more than enough.
It seemed there was something hidden behind it.
I would know once I got there.
“Let’s go.”
Having a private jet was convenient at times like this.
I didn’t have to wait for the next flight.
If I hadn’t had a private jet, I might have had to wait until tomorrow.
Before boarding the plane, I summoned the Sandro Group.
The Sandro Group belonged to Sandro.
Normally, I would never touch it, but now I had to borrow it for a moment.
I didn’t know what would happen.
And I contacted the soldiers of Bohol Province as well.
I told them to stand by.
I also contacted Simon.
I told him to be ready to cross over at any time.
Simon immediately put the rebels on standby.
Just from my putting the units on emergency standby, a sinister air began to circulate through Mindanao and Bohol.
As soon as I landed at Panglao Airport, I headed to the Dagohoy Police Headquarters in Tagbilaran.
It was the police headquarters of Bohol Province.
Sandro was probably there too.
Around the police station, members of the Sandro Group had already gathered.
They had gathered after receiving word.
One of Sandro’s subordinates greeted me.
“You’ve arrived?”
“Until we come out, don’t let a single police officer or civilian enter or leave.”
My words were very stiff and rough, and the gang member understood what I meant.
“Understood.”
Scott and I entered the police station, and the gang member shouted loudly.
“From now on, nobody gets in or out of here. Got it!!!!”
“Understood!!!”
The gang members answered and formed a human wall.
And not just one layer, but two and three layers, firm and tight.
When I entered the police headquarters, the officers saluted.
But I had no room to care about that.
I rushed straight into the police station.
“Who was it!!! Which bastard took Sandro in!!!”
As soon as I entered the police station, I shouted.
There were many police officers working in the station,
but not one answered, and all of them only lowered their heads.
“I asked who it was!!! Are you not going to answer? If I burn this whole place to the ground, will you talk then? Huh??”
At first, I had only thought, Isn’t this strange?
But the more I thought about it on the way, the angrier I became.
If I put myself in his position and I had been taken to the police station, I probably could have waited with a smile.
I would have said it was fine, that they could come later.
But when our positions were reversed, my actions changed too.
When I thought of Sandro being held at the police station, all I could think about was getting him out as quickly as possible, even a minute or a second sooner.
Even if I had to smash this police station apart.
“Where is Sandro? I asked where Sandro is!”
“And where is the bastard who brought Sandro in?”
“Fuck, are you all going to keep your goddamn mouths shut like that?”
No matter what I said, the police officers all kept their mouths tightly closed and remained still.
That made me even angrier.
I could not hold back.
I began to raise hell in the police station.
I snapped a mop handle in a corner and began smashing the equipment.
There was no reason.
It was just what I happened to see.
I was just angry.
After that, I swept away everything in sight.
I hurled chairs and smashed every computer to pieces.
Behind me, Scott, with his swollen body, was breaking furniture right along with me.
The police officers, rather than trying to stop me, edged away little by little.
Even after smashing everything like that, my anger didn’t subside.
Fuck, they had to give me some kind of answer, didn’t they?
I picked up a file folder without even knowing what was written in it.
“Scott. Lighter!”
Scott threw me a Zippo lighter.
I flicked the Zippo to life and held the flame to the file.
I might as well set this place on fire.
Then they’d say something.
“What are you doing?”
Just as the file was starting to catch, a voice came from behind me.
I turned around and saw Sandro standing there.
A cigarette in his mouth, his jacket slung over one shoulder.
“What are you doing? Playing with fire?”
“What the hell? Why are you coming out of there?”
“I was talking to the Commissioner, but with all the noise, we couldn’t exactly have a conversation.”
“Ah! Fuck, hot.”
Because Sandro startled me, I hadn’t even realized the file had caught fire.
I threw the burning file onto the floor.
Scott brought over some water and poured it on, putting the fire out completely.
In the meantime, the Commissioner came over and apologized politely.
“I’m sorry. This was my negligence. I should have kept my people in line, but it seems one of the middle-ranking officers got a little greedy.”
“Who is it? That bastard.”
“Operations Director Raymond.”
“Where is that bastard?”
“When I reprimanded him for ordering an operation without my confirmation, he disappeared after that.”
This wasn’t something I could just let slide.
“Scott.”
“Yes, Boss.”
“Bring Raymond here within the hour.”
“Thirty minutes will be enough.”
Scott waddled out quickly.
“And…”
The Commissioner continued.
“There is something I’d like to tell the two of you as well. Could we move somewhere else and speak for a moment?”
Sandro looked at me and nodded, and I nodded too.
Before we moved.
I apologized to the police officers.
“Sorry for causing a scene just now. I wasn’t in my right mind earlier. You’d lose it too if you lost a friend. Anyway, I’m sorry. I’ll take care of the mess here after we finish talking. Sorry~”
The police seemed to roughly understand the situation too, and told me it was all right and not to worry about it.
We moved to the Commissioner’s office and continued the conversation.
The Commissioner checked once more to make sure the door was closed, then cautiously began to speak.
“The reason I asked to see the two of you separately is that I wanted to tell you about an organization that could perhaps be called the power behind today’s incident.”
“The power behind it?”
“Yes. Have you ever heard of La Camara?”
“Isn’t that a scholarship foundation? I sent them some donations too.”
Sandro answered.
“On the surface, it is a scholarship organization. But that’s a kind of disguise to hide their gathering.”
“Then?”
“The real thing is the true president and parliament of the Philippines.”
“The president and parliament? Is that even possible?”
“Think about it. How many people could get today’s fire inspection, health department inspection, and casino inspection all moving at the same day and hour?”
Now that he mentioned it, that was true.
Even when inspections came out, did they ever all happen on the same day like this?
And the police on top of that.
It was an extremely rare case.
There was a high possibility that some invisible force had been at work.
“Raymond was probably given orders, threats, and persuasion by them as well. He is greedy, but he isn’t such a bad man, so I would appreciate it if you dealt with him moderately and let him go.”
“We’ll decide what to do about that. Keep talking about this La Camara.”
I was the one who answered.
They had touched Sandro, so I had no intention of dealing with it moderately and letting him go.
“Yes. I don’t know the exact details myself.”
“What?”
“I was once a member of La Camara too. They said it was a scholarship foundation and that they did good work, and recommended that I join, so I did. I went around doing volunteer work, delivered scholarships, and so on. But there is something a bit unusual about La Camara.”
“What is it?”
“There are an unusually large number of gatherings among the members. They make appointments under all sorts of excuses. As you keep meeting like that, bonds form between the members. They exchange information there. You become extremely well-informed. As you continue attending the gatherings, you get to know new people as well.”
“Is that really all that strange? Isn’t it just people getting friendly with each other?”
“That’s right. The strange part starts after that. That new person takes me to another gathering. There, instead of the people I’d been meeting, there were higher-ranking officials. When I went to that gathering, we naturally began talking about major current issues, and they subtly gave me guidelines. To be honest, they were guidelines on issues where it didn’t really matter which choice was made, like whether you eat jajangmyeon or jjamppong at a Chinese restaurant. So I went along with what those people said, with their guidelines. It wasn’t a big issue.”
“Hmm…”
“That was how things went smoothly. Maybe because I had access to information, my promotions were fast too, and everything seemed perfect. That day as well, we were having a simple meal and talking about current issues. But that day, opinions opposite to what I thought started coming out. I thought that could happen. People have different thoughts, after all. In any case, I was the one who had to make the decision. So I did it my way. It was a matter I had to decide. When I went to the next gathering, they criticized me fiercely. So I said I would handle my own work myself. Not long after that, I was transferred here. Haha.”
“Ohh~~”
It seemed to be an organization that was very clear about rewards and punishments.
They had decisiveness too.
“So I looked into it. What on earth La Camara was. I was curious. First, they use the pretext of a scholarship foundation and volunteer work to get people to join the organization. First-stage members end there. Most people end there. That’s why La Camara can remain a scholarship foundation. And among them, those who are useful, those who are needed, are pulled up to the second stage. That’s why the people I met in the middle changed. I didn’t know it at the time, but looking back later, I realized I had gone through that process too.”
“Oh, that’s fucking efficient.”
Honestly, I was a little surprised.
They could manage a huge number of people while also finding talent.
The fact that they could hide the organization behind a disguise was a bonus.
“In that way, they select people and push policies according to their tastes, filling positions as they go. The truth is, I don’t know how many stages there are, or who is at the very top. But it is certain that there is a gathering of people who can get people like me promoted or transferred far away. There must be some very high-ranking people involved.”
“But why are you telling us this?”
“Though I don’t know the details, I heard that you gentlemen had trouble with the government. La Camara will not stop until they get what they want. Today’s inspections were probably just a poke. To see how you would respond.”
After listening to the Police Commissioner, the situation seemed to make sense.
It also aligned with what Sandro and Patrick had said last time.
“But why are you telling us this? That’s what I’m asking. Even if our relationship with the government is bad, that’s our problem. I’m curious why you, Commissioner, are going out of your way to tell us this.”
That was what I was most curious about.
Why the Commissioner was telling us.
“Because if La Camara represents the future of the Philippines, then that future is far too bleak. While they have been moving the government from behind the scenes, the Philippines has become poorer and more difficult to live in. We cannot entrust the Philippines to La Camara. To be honest, if anyone can stop La Camara, I believe it is only the two of you. I told you with that small hope. La Camara must disappear.”
Deep concern could be felt on the Commissioner’s face.
He truly seemed to be thinking about the future of the Philippines.
But I couldn’t trust the Commissioner one hundred percent either.
The first thing to do was obtain information on La Camara.
“Then shall we look into La Camara? But before that, let’s deal with that bastard first.”
When I turned around, Scott was dragging Raymond in.