"Click, click!"
"Hey, what are you doing?"
"I'm just passing by."
"Oh, so you're just passing by..."
After using his hypnosis ability to deal with the patrolling guards, Lafitte continued taking photos and collecting evidence.
He had pretty much explored every place in Base 88 that stored archives and records.
This even included Colonel Hammond's private vault, and what was inside was truly eye-opening.
Tonight was the last night.
There were no more secrets left in the entire base.
"Time to head back and report," Lafitte said, stretching lazily. He never would have imagined that his job after quitting as a sheriff would end up like this.
Still, it was pretty interesting.
Nothing like what he had imagined the Marine to be.
He was confident that life from now on wouldn't be boring at all.
...
A few days later, the noncommissioned officer (NCO) auction sent the entire base into a frenzy.
Everyone got involved, whether they had money or not.
After all, it was a blind bidding process. Everyone wrote down a number, and if their bid won, they paid up and
walked out no longer a soldier, but a sergeant or above.
Those who succeeded were beaming with joy; those who failed looked utterly defeated.
But the real eye-catchers were the unfamiliar faces no one had seen before.
Each one strutted around arrogantly, snatching up the NCO ranks with ease.
And this wasn't even their limit.
Their real target was the upcoming officer auction in a few days!
The situation was looking great.
Colonel Hammond, who had managed to recoup a good portion of his losses, was finally smiling again.
Even though the payment to the Donquixote Family had nearly emptied his personal fortune and made his heart bleed
as long as he remained Colonel of Base 88 and held power, he was confident he could earn it all back.
And here he was, effortlessly making a huge profit.
The officer auction in five days would be the real payday.
A business with zero cost and high return, what could be better?
It was just a shame he couldn't do this too often...
And this time, it had been a bit risky.
After this haul, it was probably best to lie low for a while.
In addition, because of the two failed arms deals,
The trust between Colonel Hammond and the Four Mafia Families had deteriorated severely. Both sides were now suspicious of each other, and all cooperation had been temporarily suspended.
The Bonanno Family even went as far as to threaten revenge!
This made Colonel Hammond extremely frustrated
Especially since it was clearly the Capone Family that had killed Bonanno Petrov!
He was also one of the victims, and yet somehow, the blame was being pinned on him. It was simply unbearable.
After enduring the pain and reflecting on it, Colonel Hammond decided he wanted out, he no longer wished to be involved in the conflict between the Capone family and the other four Mafia families.
If he had made that decision from the start, perhaps he could've escaped the whirlpool.
But now, it was too late.
The Capone family would be the first to come after him.
Not to mention, Jay was already prepared to accept him as a "valuable package of experience."
Another five days passed.
The lieutenant officer auction was in full swing.
Still on vacation, Jay continued to watch coldly from the sidelines.
Many people sent him looks of sympathy, or ridicule.
Because he wasn't even qualified to participate in the auction.
What they didn't know was that Jay was giving them the same kind of look.
"Laugh while you can. Soon, it'll be your turn to cry."
In an unnoticed corner, Lafitte was quietly using a Den Den Mushi camera to capture the entire scene.
That very night, Lafitte flew out of the base.
Carrying a trove of photographic evidence, he arrived at the printing factory of the West Sea Newspaper Company.
He hypnotized all the workers and swapped out the original news pages with ones Jay had carefully prepared.
Just like that, fresh-off-the-press newspapers with shocking headlines rolled out one by one.
To ensure nothing went wrong, Lafitte stood guard there all night. Only when the news birds flew off with the stacks of freshly printed newspapers the next morning did he finally smile, spread his wings, and take to the sky.
He couldn't wait to go back and watch the show.
That day, as usual, Colonel Hammond slept in until noon. He then enjoyed a hearty lunch by himself, followed by a post-meal cigar.
While enjoying the cigar, he casually picked up the newspaper delivered to his office by the news bird.
He was in such a good mood that he even tipped a little extra.
But as soon as the news bird flew away and he glanced at the front page, his expression froze instantly!
"Wha... what?! This can't be happening!"
Thud!
Overwhelmed with disbelief and panic, Colonel Hammond knocked over his chair and collapsed to the ground.
On the fallen newspaper's front page, there was a clear photo of him.
In the background: a scene of a weapons deal between the Marine and the Mafia.
And that photo was taken personally by Capone Bege.
To make sure no one missed the point, the photo even had labels with the names and backgrounds of several key people.
The rest of the article was even more explosive, it exposed Colonel Hammond's entire shady history.
Even the recently concluded "special auction" was fully detailed, complete with photographs.
It was over.
Colonel Hammond's face turned pale, his body trembled.
With the things he had done, even ten hangings wouldn't be enough.
But what puzzled him most was how this confidential evidence had been leaked?
And how could the newspaper have dared to publish such a story, one that would disgrace the Marine?
He didn't dare think too deeply...
But it was clear, someone was out to get him.
What to do?
Colonel Hammond immediately got up, grabbed the Den Den Mushi. At this point, if he wanted to save himself, he had to act fast.
The first step, immediately, right now, was to intercept and destroy every copy of that day's newspaper!
It must not spread any further.
If he could still contain the situation to some extent, he might have a chance at redemption.
However... it was already too late.
The news birds had begun their deliveries early in the morning.
And by the time Colonel Hammond saw the newspaper, it was already noon.
In just one morning, at least ten thousand people had already read the paper.
And with each passing minute, that number was soaring.
It was out of control, completely out of control!
Even after he managed to get in touch with the newspaper via Den Den Mushi...
The editor-in-chief, upon hearing the news, burst into tears, he had no idea what had happened.
All the original articles had been replaced!
This cosmic-level, crushing scandal, no one could bear the weight of it.
Out of options, Colonel Hammond began contacting every one of his allies, trying to pool their influence to find a way out.
But all he got were responses like...
"It's hopeless. Prepare to die."
"If you're smart, take the fall for everything yourself."
"Remember, keep your mouth shut."
"Before the Marine Headquarters sends someone to investigate, run, run as far and fast as you can."
The scandal was so massive that even if Marine HQ were blind and deaf, there was no way they wouldn't catch wind of it.
And once the investigators arrived, there would be no way to cover up what he had done.