"Boss, my condolences..." said the underling softly as he walked over.
The death wasn't in his own family, so a breezy remark cost him nothing and did no harm.
Gustavo knelt on the ground, fiercely clutching a handful of scorching dirt; his bloodshot eyes revealed despair and madness!
"Victor ruined my family, and for that, he must die too! I want him dead!!!" he screamed, grasping the shoulder of a trusted follower.
"Boss... Victor, it seems Victor has no family," said the underling with difficulty.
Stunned by these words, Gustavo felt breathless, his vision darkened, and he collapsed on the ground amidst the underling's cries of alarm.
He had passed out from anger.
Tijuana. Inside the Governor's Mansion.
Victor was listening to a report from the Drug Enforcement Department.
"Drug cultivation within Mexico has decreased by 65%! Due to our hard-hitting attacks, drug traffickers can only move their plantations and labs to other locations, and Central America has become a new hotbed of drug proliferation," reported the DEA official. "United Nations Drug Control Agency staff in Central America confirmed that drug abuse has increased by 200% compared to the same time last year, with over two million people joining various drug-related organizations!"
"Besides Central America, Haiti in North America is the worst affected. Jean-Bertrand Aristide's regime was overthrown, and the newly appointed Raul Cedras, a military figure, is also a seasoned drug trafficker," he continued. "He controls local gangs to trade drugs, forcing over 100,000 farmers to grow narcotics for him, and is publicly amending the constitution to legalize drugs!"
"He smuggles drugs into the United States to generate funds."
"And it's said that he is also trafficking people to the United States."
Upon hearing this, Victor looked up, "Haiti wants to be a frontrunner?"
The first nation to legalize drugs had appeared!
Just appointed as the Head of Drug Control Agency, and you pull this? Not giving me any face at all, are you?
Victor was considering whether to send "troops" to Haiti—in the end, the fight against drugs required fists, not words.
As a proponent of "physical drug prohibition," Victor's dream was a drug-free world!
But... Haiti seemed a bit too far.
The knock at the door interrupted Victor's musings. He glanced at the DEA officer, signaling him to set aside the documents, and then called out for the visitor to enter.
The secretary burst in, looking very anxious.
"General, Spanish warships have landed on the Revillagigedo Archipelago!"
Victor's eyes narrowed.
This was getting interesting.
The Revillagigedo Archipelago, west of Mexico in the Pacific Ocean, under the jurisdiction of Colima, covers a total land area of 830 square kilometers (320 square miles), consisting of volcanic islands like Socorro Island, San Benedicto Island, Roca Partida Island, Clarion Island, and others.
Socorro, the largest, is 39 kilometers long and 14 kilometers wide, with its highest point at 1130 meters above sea level. Two warships flying the Spanish flag were anchored here, and hundreds of men disembarked from them.
A middle-aged man wearing the insignia of a Brigadier General was surrounded by several military officers standing on a protruding rock, taking a deep breath.
"The smell of the sea!" Rudy Fernandez said with a smile, looking relaxed. "The smell of home."
The officers beside him were nervous, "General, won't this… provoke a reaction from Mexico?"
"But Mexico originally belonged to the Spaniards! We're just returning to our own land. Besides... I've brought 300 soldiers, and I want trenches dug overnight. As long as we're stationed here, no one can make us leave. Send a telegram to the homeland requesting support!"
"What if the Mexicans ask questions?"
Rudy Fernandez glanced at the inquiring officer, "Our ships... broke down! They can't move! We are requesting to rest here. Does Victor really expect us to swim back? Once support arrives, they'll want us to leave, and we just might not."
Although it was a feeble excuse, it was an excuse nonetheless.
In 1859, the United Kingdom declared war on the United States citing only the death of a British pig at the hands of Americans.
So, do not be surprised.
What should be surprising is where the Spaniards got the confidence to think Victor was a reasonable man?
It seems that Franco's iron fist hasn't taught them the meaning of humility.
Mainly, they've just become too urbanized.