INFINITE MONEY - I Will Buy Everything

"The one you 'TRUST' is not one to be trusted," Ramiel intoned, his voice subtly shifting in a way that did not escape the notice of William, Delmar, or most of his audience.

"Alright, my faithful viewers, I will take my leave for now but will return tomorrow, every day, right here on METRO Light News. Remember, METRO Light News will always bring you the most up-to-date information, and the news you can truly 'trust,'" Ramiel added, punctuating his statement with a wry smile.

"Goodbye, stay safe, and may the Gods bless the ever-brilliant Wiseburn Kingdom and its subjects. Long live the Sovereign." Ramiel concluded, reciting the customary oath as he cut the broadcast. Many of his devout followers echoed the pledge with fervor.

Meanwhile, back at their villa, William and Delmar's faces were clouded with dark expressions. If anyone were to encounter them at that moment, their instinct would be to flee as quickly as possible. Hearing the broadcast hadn't just soured their mood; it had steeped them in a deepening sense of unease.

William and Delmar were particularly incensed by Ramiel's puns involving the word "Trust." Even though it wasn't his real name, William had adopted it as part of his family identity, hoping the public would connect with its significance.

But now, thanks to one news anchor, that trust had been twisted into its antithesis— Distrust. The seeds of doubt were being sown slowly but surely, and they knew they had to uncover the root cause. The answer revealed itself in the form of a man they had come to despise: Ramiel Cang.

Ramiel was someone they had once considered insignificant, a man they believed incapable of causing more trouble than others already had. But now, after a few months, they were certain it had been a grave mistake to ignore him.

After a long, tense silence, William finally spoke. "What… can we do about him?" His tone made it clear this wasn't a question but a demand for a solution. He had reached a point of anger where his sense of right and wrong had blurred, leaving only cold, calculating resolve.

A stillness settled over him—the kind of quiet that precedes a decision capable of altering lives forever. At this moment, it didn't matter to him whether his decision cost a man his life; what mattered was silencing the noise this man was deliberately creating.

Delmar slowly shook his head and replied, "For now… nothing."

William looked at him, perplexed. Was this the same man who had once ruthlessly massacred a team of high-level assassins without a shred of remorse?

Delmar noticed the look and explained, "I'm not saying we can't do anything to him. It's just… now's not the right time." He sighed heavily, "If we act against him now, all fingers will immediately point to us. They'll ask why a famous news anchor suddenly died after targeting a family under suspicion of harboring illicit funds, especially under such dubious circumstances."

Delmar clenched his fists, feeling the weight of their predicament. "I hate to admit it, but we can't do anything to him right now—not beyond what we've already been doing.

If we escalate things, people will start scrutinizing us even more closely, and we'll find ourselves in a bad situation—particularly since I still haven't managed to launder that black money into something we can use without arousing suspicion."

William sighed as well, turning off the television. "When someone steps into the spotlight, they often become blinded by it. Some use it to highlight their brilliance, while others exploit it to expose the weaknesses one tries so desperately to conceal. In our case, the spotlight has caught us off guard in the worst way, and now they're probing for our vulnerabilities."

He fell silent, and Delmar, uncertain of what else to do, remained quiet as well. Then, something crossed Delmar's mind, and he looked at William, debating whether to bring it up now or later. Deciding it was best to address it immediately, he said, "Boss… there's something else."

"Is this more bad news?"

"Yeah… Do you remember Pedro?"

William paused, thinking, before recalling, "Pedro… Oh! You mean just Pedro."

Delmar understood the unusual naming and nodded. "Yes, that's the one."

"Wasn't he responsible for acquiring shops and businesses?" William asked.

"Yeah. That's what this is about, actually. A few days ago, he was pursuing an exclusive deal to acquire a large shopping complex at a remarkably low price, and in a prime location. But it's been more than five days, and we haven't heard anything from him."

"Could he have gone on vacation or taken some time off?" William asked.

"Yeah, that was my first thought too, but… knowing his work ethic, I highly doubt he would take time off when he's found something so significant," Delmar replied, his brow furrowing.

William considered this and asked, "Do you think something unusual might have happened to him?"

"Yes."

"And could this 'unusual' occurrence be directly tied to the seemingly too-good-to-be-true deal that was likely set up as a trap?"

"Given the circumstances, I think that's highly probable."

"Have you looked into his background to see if anything might explain his disappearance?"

Delmar shook his head, "I've looked into it, and I've also gone through his phone records and the list of people he's recently been in contact with. The last person he spoke to was the shopping complex representative, whose number is now unreachable."

"So not only is this guy an unusual character, but he's also meticulous in his dealings and doesn't appear to have any enemies who'd want to harm him… at least that's how it seems to me," William mused, before connecting another dot. "The only other factor that could be at play is me. It seems whoever took him knew he worked for me and wanted something from him. But what?"

William looked at Delmar and asked, "Does he know anything that could jeopardize us?"

Delmar responded, "No, he doesn't. But after handling so many deals for us, he's probably aware that we have a substantial stash of black money. And that might be the motive for his disappearance."

"What exactly do you think he knows?"

"Only that we have a significant amount of unaccounted-for money that's being used to finance various business ventures," Delmar explained.

"And if he were to reveal that to the wrong person, what's already a dire situation could become catastrophic," William said. "That is, if he confides in someone with authority."
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"Do you think he'll talk?"

Delmar shook his head, "Him? No. He's too much of a… special case for them to break."

"Even so, it would be better for us if we could retrieve him or… eliminate him."

William looked at Delmar, disturbed, "Do you really think we need to go that far?"

"If we can't recover him, then yes, we might have to kill him… unless you want to go for the rescue route."

William stared at him and asked, "Do you already know where he is?"

Delmar smiled, "Yes, and the good news is he's in a remote location where we can proceed without much interference."

"If you've known this all along, then what are you waiting for?"

"Just waiting for your permission, boss."

"Asking for my permission when you've already sent in your dogs." William remarked, as Delmar returned a dark smile.