The old session hall had never been so packed. Reporters filled the aisles, their cameras clicking nonstop. Activists waved placards outside the windows: "Stop the Corruption!" and "Clean Water, Clean Government!" Even curious citizens squeezed in, standing shoulder to shoulder, sweating in the humid air.
The special committee hearing on procurement was about to begin. And everyone knew this wasn't just another dry government proceeding. This was a reckoning.
Rafael sat quietly at the back, folder on his lap. Maria and Jericho flanked him, their faces set. Antonio Reyes, the prosecutor, stood at the front with his team of lawyers. The Codex glowed faintly in Rafael's vision, mapping out probabilities and tactics, but he didn't need to speak them aloud. He only had to hold the line.
The chairman struck the gavel. "We will now hear testimony regarding allegations of tampering, bribery, and sabotage in procurement related to AquaPure Technologies and rival suppliers."
HydraCorp's representatives were already seated, their suits impeccable, their expressions bored — as if the outcome was already theirs. But Rafael noticed the stiffness in their posture, the way one lawyer kept tapping a pen. They smelled trouble.
The first witness was the truck driver. He stepped forward nervously, wringing his cap in his hands. "I… I was delivering AquaPure shipments," he began, voice trembling. "Then some men stopped me on the highway. Said the crates were theirs now. When I refused, they… they hit me. Left me on the road."
"Did they identify themselves?" the chairman asked.
The driver hesitated, then nodded. "One showed me a badge. Not police. A private security firm… contracted by HydraCorp."
Gasps rippled through the gallery. Reporters scribbled furiously. HydraCorp's lawyer immediately objected, but the chairman waved him down.
Next came Maria, bringing forward the carbon filter samples. She held up two sacks — one AquaPure's, one tampered. "Here are the lab reports. Here are the chain-of-custody documents. One is functional. The other was designed to fail." She locked eyes with the councilors. "And this—this was planted in our shipment to make us look incompetent."
Behind her, Mara's broadcast from the week before played on a mounted screen: the incriminating recording of the middleman's voice, naming officials and shell companies. The room buzzed like a hive.
HydraCorp's counsel rose, smiling thinly. "Your Honors, these are circumstantial at best. Anyone can fake a voice recording. Anyone can forge a receipt."
Antonio stepped forward, dropping a stack of affidavits on the table. "Dozens of sworn testimonies. Drivers, warehouse workers, NGO observers. All consistent. All pointing to one conclusion: systematic sabotage and bribery."
The gallery erupted in shouts. "Shame!" some activists cried. "Justice!" others answered.
The chairman hammered the gavel again. "Order! Order!"
But it was too late. The tide had shifted.
One councilor leaned into the microphone, his face pale. "In light of this evidence, and given the seriousness of these claims… I move that we suspend all HydraCorp-related procurement until further investigation."
The room froze. Then erupted again.
HydraCorp's lead lawyer shot to his feet. "This is outrageous! You cannot—"
The chairman cut him off, voice steely. "This committee serves the people. Not corporations. The motion stands."
Cameras flashed. Reporters shouted questions. "HydraCorp suspended!" blared the first live tweet.
As the chaos swirled, one official — the very councilor who had once sneered at Rafael during the Cebu hub setup — quietly slipped out of the chamber, phone pressed to his ear. By evening, his resignation letter would appear on the news, citing "health reasons." But everyone knew the truth: the wall had cracked, and the flood was rushing in.
Outside, the activists cheered, waving AquaPure filters like banners. "We won! We won!" they shouted. For them, this wasn't just about water anymore. It was about justice.
Rafael remained seated, calm amid the storm. Maria leaned close. "Boss… we did it. HydraCorp's losing their grip."
He shook his head slowly. "This is just the beginning. Cutting off their contracts hurts them, yes. But HydraCorp isn't dead. They'll regroup. They'll come at us another way."
The Codex pulsed coldly in his mind:
"System Update: Public Reckoning Achieved. HydraCorp procurement influence: crippled. Threat vectors shifting to political infiltration and corporate proxies."
Rafael closed his folder and stood. Around him, the room still buzzed with outrage and triumph. But his eyes were steady.
"They thought paper bullets would kill us," he murmured. "But words, witnesses, and truth? Those cut deeper."
And as the crowd outside roared, Rafael stepped into the sunlight, knowing the war had just entered its next phase.