Ch.61Chapter 8. The Lives of Others (3)

Camilla seemed to read my discomfort and deliberately adjusted her clothes to catch Fernando’s attention.

“Is this an interview?”

“It’s a bit more casual than that. You asked how we can guarantee the market is stable? We have evidence.”

So what is it, then?

Fernando took a sip of coffee and remained silent for a moment. He seemed to be organizing his thoughts, so I waited.

“Our Continental is part of a larger ‘group.’ The group extends not just throughout Hampton City but across all of Elza. You may have noticed that the ‘commodity prices’ you saw in the search window are the average prices for all of Elza.”

Of course, ‘group’ refers to a syndicate. It’s like hiding behind your fingers. But as I listened, a question came to mind.

“Fernando, I heard that hotel networks use internal communication systems. How can you search for prices across all of Elza?”

“Ah, the internal and external networks are separated. We take the regional price data received from the external network, save it to a USB drive, and transfer it to a PC connected to the internal network.”

Network separation makes sense. The military does the same thing. To prevent hacking attempts or virus infections through the internet, the military strictly separates internal and external networks. Yet incidents still happen in the military.

“Wait a minute. Doesn’t that mean the figures can be easily manipulated?” Camilla pointed out.

“They can.”

“…What did you say?”

Fernando smiled broadly, seemingly amused by Camilla’s reaction.

“We don’t corner the market or hoard goods. We simply monitor supply and demand and control price ‘information.’ Everything else follows naturally.”

That’s just market manipulation.

“But even we leave one indicator completely untouched. It’s an item you’re already familiar with, and it’s very useful in everyday life.

The manager said that if you can guess what this item is, he’ll grant you access privileges. Considering what we owe you, we should rightfully give it to you… but we have our own procedures. We need to determine if you agree with our values and vision.”

Is this some kind of interview? I answered curtly.

“That’s too vague.”

“Let me give you a hint. Among various indicators, this one responds sensitively to changes in the market and political climate. You could call it a leading or predictive indicator.”

“Are you playing word games?”

Camilla frowned. Fernando leaned back, as if refusing to take the bait.

But I concentrated. If I could solve this man’s riddle, I would be able to understand what the Elza government and these gangsters were thinking just by checking the price window. In other words, I could anticipate how the world was turning.

‘Responds sensitively to market changes and situational changes.’

‘An item I know well.’

‘Predictive.’

That means it’s an item whose value changes significantly when the world becomes more dangerous or safer. Something people stock up on when it’s dangerous and care less about when it’s safe.

Food?

No. People need to consume a certain amount of nutrition daily, but they can’t eat indefinitely. Just as no one eats five meals a day just because the economy improves.

Medicine?

Medicine is always necessary. No one anticipates when they’ll need it and prepares in advance. Unless they’re planning to call in sick, who knows “I think I’ll be sick tomorrow”?

I think again. In a world where zombies roam the streets and lawlessness prevails, changes in the market and situation mean big conflicts are brewing. What would you need to prepare “in advance” if you anticipated a major conflict…

“Bullets.”

Fernando pursed his lips with an “Oh.” Camilla looked at Fernando and me alternately with bewildered eyes.

“Do you understand why?”

“It’s what you need to prepare first if you’re going to fight. By seeing which types of ammunition sell well, you can also figure out who you’ll be fighting.”

Hollow points might be sufficient for fighting zombies, since zombies don’t wear bulletproof vests. But if you’re fighting opponents wearing body armor, the demand for armor-piercing rounds would increase.

But there’s a flaw in this logic.

“But Fernando, the military is the organization that consumes bullets systematically and in large quantities. The military wouldn’t buy bullets on the black market, would they?”

The world is flooded with bullets. The market wouldn’t fluctuate just because some gang buys or sells a bit more. Especially if the price is “the average value for all of Elza,” as this man claims, it makes even less sense.

“That’s exactly right. The military doesn’t buy bullets from the black market. If anything, it’s the opposite.”

The opposite?

Camilla and I exchanged glances. Camilla’s face twitched in disbelief. My reaction probably wasn’t much different.

“Are you saying the military supplies bullets to the black market?”

“I told you our organization is very ‘broad.’ We don’t want chaos. We don’t want complete suppression either. The people of Elza rise up more in such situations.

Do you think the military doesn’t know the national character of Elza’s people? Do you think Römer doesn’t know? They do. That’s why they chose ‘management’ instead of ‘resolution.’ Using all available means.

A decrease in the supply of armor-piercing rounds means the military is planning to crush some armed group. Conversely, if HP round supply decreases? It means they’re planning a major zombie extermination.

For your information, we provide not only overall transaction prices for all of Elza but also regional market prices. Recently, HP round supply has decreased in Chimera Province, where Hampton City is located. This means the military in this region is planning to kill zombies.”

“…Rotten bastards. Now they’re even diverting ammunition through backdoor deals.”

Camilla chewed on her hatred. Fernando, as if he had been waiting for just that reaction, was extremely pleased.

“It also means the military is that desperate and urgent. Just like everyone else in the world.”

I felt a strange sense of dissonance.

What was this conversation for, anyway?

There are no meaningless conversations in the world. Even completely useless talk can be given meaning if you try. Even trivial jokes between friends can maintain and connect their friendship.

What is this Fernando trying to tell us? That the syndicate has connections with the military? Even if he boasts about that, what benefit does he get?

No.

They’re not trying to benefit from us. From the beginning, this conversation was not one between fair and equal people.

I recalled the hotel room where we stayed. All rooms are monitored by CCTV. Using their communication network means information is passed to the state or syndicate. They provide convenience in exchange for controlling and restraining our actions.

They’re trying to tame us.

“You want to establish a new order.”

Camilla looked at me with puzzled eyes, but Fernando flinched, his eyebrows twitching. He quickly regained his composure, but perhaps feeling awkward himself, he finally burst into laughter.

“We don’t predict the future. We design it. A safe and orderly Elza. The zombie outbreak will be a new beginning. Just as hungry predators hunt weak and sick herbivores to make the entire ecosystem healthier, Elza will become the same.”

Fernando smiled contentedly. It was the posture of someone flaunting their superiority. He was already a winner. Or rather, he thought of himself as one.

“That’s grandiose.”

It was meant as mockery, but Fernando was very serious.

“No. It’s possible. The Cybele Group has shown that it’s possible. That massive corporations are indistinguishable from nations, and sometimes become nations themselves. We’re still modest compared to Cybele from that era, but someday we’ll get there.”

Cybele Group? Why is that coming up here?

But Fernando didn’t say more. He took out a USB drive and a PC connection cable from his pocket and passed them to us.

“Do you have mobile phones?”

“Both of us do.”

“You already have a laptop… Inside that USB are a mobile phone initialization program and an app installation program for connecting to the black market. The version provided to you can also access the ‘special market.’ Ah, I almost forgot. Take these too.”

Fernando pulled out two more USB drives.

“What are these?”

“Empty USBs. They’re for backing up the existing contents of your phones. You can keep the USB and cable I gave you.”

Fernando put down his coffee cup. The click sound signaled the end of the conversation. Camilla and I exchanged glances and stood up.

“Let’s consider the debt paid with this, Fernando.”

“Understood, Caesar.”

“By the way, you really trust the market.”

Fernando nodded at my words.

“It’s a way of life proven through various eras. It’s also a means familiar to everyone.”

Fernando grinned. We shook hands.

“But, Fernando?”

I had something to ask him.

“Go ahead.”

“You mentioned predators earlier.”

“Yes, I remember.”

“If the predators are still hungry after eating all the old and weak ones, what happens next?”

Fernando’s face stiffened slightly. He seemed deep in thought. We left him and exited the room. The lobby looked exactly the same as before.

Poke.

Camilla jabbed my side.

“You were kind of cool back there?”

“Was I?”

“Surprisingly smart? I like smart people.”

Camilla flashed a beautiful smile. I answered solemnly.

“Surprisingly? This much is basic for a gallant angel.”

“…”

So Camilla can make such a sour expression too.

* * * * *

Back in our room, we opened the laptop and installed the program. We connected Camilla’s phone first.

“Thank you for purchasing the mobile phone support program. Please select one of the following options:

1) Restore

2) Initialize

※ Note – Be careful of data loss. We recommend restoring before initializing. Please insert a backup USB in advance.”

“What do you think?”

“Just delete everything. There’s nothing to see. You’re the only person I want to contact anyway.”

Camilla said coldly and selected option 2. The initialization finished quickly. Two apps appeared on the screen with unusual names.

“Scale. Scale plus… impressive.”

I inserted my mobile phone instead of the disgruntled Camilla. It’s the phone I brought from Mini Bell village.

“Option 2 for you too?”

Then I remembered that guy Hans had installed spyware and wiped all the information inside.

“No, option 1.”

After entering 1, a new window appeared.

“Please select a restore point:

1) Full restore

2) After last initialization”

“I’ll press 1 for this too.”

Camilla looked at me meaningfully. I shrugged.

“When Hans installed the spyware app, he deleted everything inside. I want to know what it was.”

“Are you saying you want to peek into someone else’s life?”

For some reason, Camilla’s voice had sunk.

“What’s wrong with that? It might help us.”

I answered casually. The phone’s owner might be dead or alive, and there might be useful information. But Camilla lowered her head.

“What’s wrong with you?”

Looking closely, not only was her head down, but her fingertips were trembling too. Is she really sick? But before I could ask, Camilla pressed 1.

“Full restore is starting. Estimated time: 5 minutes… 10 minutes… 1 hour… 1 hour 32 minutes…”

For some reason, the time keeps increasing. Camilla awkwardly tried to get up from her seat.

“…Looks like it’ll take a while. Johan, sorry, but I need to rest a bit.”

I gently held her wrist as she was about to leave.