Chapter 41: The Meeting Concludes

Morales had a point. Although Vilak was not truly in the same camp as the Equality Society, he still felt concerned for their future and did not wish to see these passionate, unarmed young people with clear eyes mercilessly gunned down in the streets during the government's next large-scale crackdown.

The coping strategy Vilak had consistently adhered to was to voice as few opinions as possible, minimizing errors in the process. Yet, with Morales bringing up this topic, and knowing full well it could invite a great deal of trouble upon himself, he nevertheless spoke up of his own accord: "If we arm ourselves, we will invite even greater suppression from the government. If we expand our influence, we will likewise invite even greater suppression from the government. In truth, no matter what choice we make, we will face the most arduous and difficult circumstances. So why not choose to become stronger?"

"That would escalate the nature of the situation too severely..." Some conservatives hoped to prevent the situation from deteriorating further and sliding into an irreconcilable standoff with the government.

"Since we have set foot upon this path, we must understand that there is no turning back. We can only bite the bullet and walk it to the very end." Vilak thought of his own journey to Lezein, his voice rising slightly. "This is not a world where whoever has reason on their side obtains justice; if it were, many things would never have happened. If you want to gain the attention and respect of others, you must become strong. Only by becoming strong can you calmly reason with the other party at the negotiating table, and only then will they calmly reason with us in return."

Morales stared at Vilak without a word.

The words he had spoken today were originally meant to target Chris, because Chris had previously been reluctant to let things grow complicated, unwilling to have everyone risk their lives just to seek equality. The consequence of that approach was that when government troops raised their guns, everyone could only shout about an equality that no one would ever listen to, only to have bullets pierce their hearts. Yet after that crackdown incident, "Chris" seemed to have changed.

Vilak spoke from the heart, inspired by everything he had experienced, which bore some similarity to the current plight of the Equality Society. "I agree with Morales's idea."

"Seconded," Bowen was the first to support "Chris."

"Seconded."

"Seconded."

The others also realized the importance of arming themselves, as this would directly determine whether the government would genuinely listen to what they had to say.

"However, arranging this matter will be quite complex. Let's leave it to Morales to draft a detailed plan and present your results to everyone at the next meeting." After slightly intervening in the development of the Equality Society, Vilak began to push the matter further down the line. In any case, once it was pushed a month or two into the future, it would have nothing to do with him whatsoever. "Let's continue discussing other matters."

...

Everyone knew that "Chris" was pressed for time, and having thoroughly prepared for the meeting's agenda, proceedings moved swiftly. Over ten minutes later, the subsequent development plan for the organization was finalized, essentially moving forward just as Vilak had suggested.

"Then this meeting is concluded." Vilak capped his fountain pen and scanned the meeting minutes he had recorded. "The specific time for the next meeting is to be determined. Everyone must continue to exercise caution in your actions hereafter. Chloe, in particular, must be extremely strict and prudent when recruiting new members; we cannot afford a repeat of last incident."

"Understood," Chloe nodded.

Vilak folded the paper containing the meeting minutes and tucked it into his pocket. "Be careful when dispersing shortly. I'll take my leave first."

"Goodbye, Comrade Chris," everyone stood up.

"Goodbye."

Stepping out of the garage, Vilak retraced his steps out of the alley and beckoned to Daniel, who was keeping watch at the alley entrance. "The meeting is over. Let's go."

"Alright, Mr. Chris." Daniel followed behind Vilak as they headed toward the underground fighting arena.

"The naming of the organization has been finalized. From now on, our organization will be called the Equality Society, and I will serve as its president." Walking along the road, Vilak filled him in on what could be shared. "However, you must still maintain the habit of calling me 'Mr. Chris' no matter where you are. After all, you're always by my side; if you were to slip up, it would cause huge problems."

"Understood, Mr. Chris," Daniel replied.

The meeting had lasted a little over twenty minutes. Factor in the travel time, and about half an hour had passed in total. When Vilak returned to the VIP spectator seats of the underground arena, Colin, who had been on the verge of losing his patience, immediately stood up and pulled him back to the sofa. "How could you take so long just to use the restroom?"

"I had an upset stomach..." Vilak explained with an awkward smile. "How about you? How much money did you win?"

"Win my foot, I lost every single cent in the very first round, and I've been sitting here doing nothing for nearly half an hour," Colin lowered his voice.

"Why didn't you split the money into five separate bets?" Vilak found Colin a bit hard to understand. He didn't have all that much money to begin with, yet he had staked the entire sum on the very first round.

Colin made a face, dropping his voice even lower so that it was barely audible over the din of the fighting arena: "It was only a thousand gold marks in total. How could I possibly have the nerve to split that up..."

"..." Vilak didn't know what to say and could only ask about something else. "Which round are they on now?"

"The fourth round just started," Colin said.

"It'll be over soon, and the money's already gone. Let's head back," Vilak's task was complete, and he had no desire to keep Colin company any longer.

Colin grabbed Vilak's arm. "That makes no sense! We agreed this was for relaxation, and you want to leave before I've even started playing? And you—you didn't even watch a single match when you came over, you just went to the restroom. Did you think I came here specifically to keep you company while you used the washroom?"

"Fine." Realizing he would likely be dragged out by Colin frequently in the future, Vilak had no choice but to pull out another thousand gold marks. "You can play one more round, alright?"

"Alright, alright." Colin wasn't really listening; he called over a waiter and promptly dumped all the money onto a fighter he fancied. "By the way, today's money cannot count toward my investment in the business. I've invested so much, the least you can do is bleed a little to pamper your major financial backer, right?"

"Alright, alright," Vilak smiled wryly and helplessly.

Compared to forty thousand gold marks, a thousand or two was no longer all that significant. As long as Colin had a good time and didn't pester him with questions about the business's progress, it was a price worth paying.

Colin had a decent eye for the fourth round, picking the winner and netting over four hundred gold marks, but unfortunately, he lost it all again in the fifth round.

Seeing this, Vilak secretly vowed never to touch gambling again, because no amount of money would ever be enough.

"Forget it, let's go. This is boring." Colin shook his head and stood up to leave on his own before the others had even dispersed.

Vilak led Daniel behind him. "Don't worry, just a small setback. We'll come back next Saturday night, and you're bound to make a huge profit then."

"Just as long as you're footing the bill." Colin waved a hand despondently. "I'm heading out first."

"Goodbye." Watching Colin get into his car and drive away, Vilak grinned. "Daniel, let's go too."