Kamman's uncle, Chen Qishan, was seated behind a large desk in his study. The room was dimly lit, yet its prestige was evident even with the minimal illumination. Before him stood two of his men, there to deliver a report. Several pictures of a young man, taken in different locations, were spread across the desk.
"We've been keeping an eye on him for two weeks now. Those are the places he goes to mostly."
One of the men said as Chen Qishan meticulously reviewed the pictures, a stern look etched on his face.
"What about his address and personal details?"
"We have it here, sir. His name is Asia Song, age 25. We can't find any information on his parents or relatives, though. He stays with a male roommate, a university student."
"What does he do for a living?" Chen Qishan pressed.
"We don't have an accurate source, sir, since he doesn't stick to one job," one of them answered.
"Find out. And don't draw attention while you're at it."
He ordered, placing the pictures in his drawer and rising to leave. The men bowed and followed him out, leaving the office empty.
Ray, who had been hiding in a cabinet at the far corner of the office all that while, cautiously emerged from his hiding place. He double-checked to ensure they had truly left, then began to search through the office. He swiftly brushed his eyes over documents in drawers and cabinets, one by one, constantly checking for anyone approaching. He went through several documents before finding the one he was looking for.
He pulled a single paper from the folder and slipped it into an inside pocket of his coat. Then, he carefully placed the remaining documents back exactly as he had found them and hurried toward the door. Just as he reached it, he remembered something and went back. He opened the drawer where he had seen Chen Qishan place those pictures and took one photo from the pile.
He glanced at it briefly. The man in the picture was strikingly good-looking. Even from the poorly taken photos, his handsome features were quite noticeable. Ray took a quick picture of the photo with his phone, confirmed no one had seen him, and disappeared into the dark.
"Ray, where are you off to in such a hurry?"
A voice called out to him just as he was about to leave Chen Qishan's premises. He froze.
"What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost." Chris, one of Chen Yujing's bodyguards, stopped in front of Ray.
"Uh... It's nothing. I was just heading out for a tiny errand," he answered nervously. Chris tapped him on the back, not suspecting anything, and laughed.
"Cheer up, bro. Don't be too serious, huh. See you around," he said playfully and walked away.
Ray breathed a sigh of relief, exited the premises, and got into his car. When he had put a safe distance between himself and the mansion, he stopped the car in the middle of a deserted area and made a phone call. Rei picked up.
"Ray? Is there a problem?"
"Hey Rei, I'd like to speak with the Phoenix. Is he around?"
"Hold on," Rei said, followed by a brief moment of silence. Soon after, Kamman's voice came through the line.
"Ray, what is it?"
Ray, still nervous, kept looking around. He spoke in a rush.
"Sir, I found the title deed of the coal mine in Indonesia. I thought he had hidden it outside the country, but later I overheard his conversation with Mr. Omar and found out its location."
"You have it with you at the moment?"
"Yes, sir. How should I proceed?" he asked.
"It's too dangerous. They'll find out soon that you're responsible for it, so leave the country tonight. Go and find Manu and give him the document; he will know what to do. He will also get you out of Thailand."
"Right away, Sir."
Kamman had sent Ray to his uncle's mansion four years ago as an undercover agent to monitor his uncle's movements and report them back. Ray had managed to infiltrate the mansion without anyone's knowledge and had been spying on him ever since.
From the moment Kamman took over the Bronze Orchid, he began investigating all families under the organization. He had developed a habit of not trusting anyone, even those closest to him, and had placed agents in every family.
Everybody knew that Kamman's identity as a leader was not welcomed by almost the entire organization, and one wrong move would be the end of him. So, he collected all the dirt on them as leverage to keep them under control and off his throat.
A few months ago, news about a disaster caused quite a rampage when a coal mine in Indonesia collapsed, taking the lives of over seventy miners. This led locals to go on strike, demanding that those responsible for the negligence take accountability. When the case reached the authorities, it was swept under the rug, heavy damage control was carried out, and the title deed of the land disappeared, so no one was ever held accountable.
Kamman was initially not concerned about it until a close friend, deeply connected to the Indonesian government, mentioned a subtle involvement of the Bronze Orchid.
Kamman could accept blame for any crime, but crimes born of stupidity and carelessness infuriated him most. If those idiots were going to use his name, they should have at least tried to be more creative.
He easily discovered that his uncle was allying with the other four families under the Chen name behind his back. They were probably scared that he wouldn't permit it, and they were right.
The entire project was like trying to touch hot coal with bare hands. Beneficial, but bound to burn in the process. The mines were unstable, and the area was currently a battlefield. It was safest for the Bronze Orchid to keep their hands off that one, but these fools only ever thought of money and had no common sense.
He secretly sent his men to look for the title deed, pretending he was an oblivious little boy who knew nothing.
He moved to end the call, but Ray remembered the photos and rushed to notify him.
"Before you go, Sir, I have something else to report."
"Go ahead."
"Well, I overheard your uncle and his men talking. He had sent them to spy on a certain guy, and he seemed to make him pretty anxious. I feel like there's something important about him. Do you think that man is important?" he asked.
"If my uncle takes an interest in someone, then the person is certainly important," Kamman answered thoughtfully, wondering who the man was.
"What is his name?" he asked further.
"I heard them call him Asia Song. He is currently in South Korea," Ray answered.
Chen still had that thoughtful expression on his face. He had never heard of that name before, so he was even more curious about him and why he made his uncle so nervous.
"Oh, I almost forgot. I managed to take a picture."
Ray retrieved his phone from his pocket, unlocked it, and sent the picture. Minutes later, the phone chimed.
Kamman held his liquor in one hand and his phone in the other. He lowered it to look at the screen.
In the next moment, the glass dropped to the ground, echoing throughout the study. Everyone was startled; even Ray on the other end of the call asked in concern,
"Sir, is everything okay?"
The phone hit the surface of the table with a loud bang, and Kamman's already snow-white skin grew paler, as if all the blood had been drained from his face.
The commotion caused Rei and Liang, who were close by, to rush to his side, greatly concerned. They both hurried over to Kamman. Kamman, still staring at the photo on the table, was unable to speak. The two bodyguards rarely saw their boss in such a state.
"Young Master, are you okay?" Rei questioned, looking at Kamman, then at the phone on the table. Liang, also confused, followed his gaze, and his eyes landed on the phone.
Rei dragged it over to his side for a closer look, and when he saw the face of the guy in the picture, his eyes widened. He stared back at Kamman with almost the same expression.
"Sir...isn't that...Dian?!"
He exclaimed, finally understanding why his young master had reacted in such a way.
However, Ray grew more confused, as he had never seen that face before.
"Ray, you said that they were investigating the man in this picture?" Kamman asked, trying to steady his voice but failing.
"This was the photo those men handed your uncle, sir,"
Ray said carefully, wondering if he had done anything wrong.
"That's okay. I won't keep you any longer. Find Manu immediately." Kamman said, and with that, he hung up.
Ray was confused, but he couldn't waste any more time pondering. He got back into the car and raced towards the city.
"I want you to follow them. Confirm if the man they are after is the one in the picture I sent you, then report to me as soon as possible," Kamman said in a later call with his other unit.
He didn't believe it. It couldn't be true. They had to be mistaken. How could it be him? How could he look exactly the same? Several thoughts ran through his head, and he looked utterly distracted.
"Sir, are you going to be okay?" Liang asked worriedly after he got over his own shock.
"I'm fine. Go over the plans again."
Kamman answered, and they both nodded and bowed before leaving the room. Kamman stayed, his head a mess and his heart beating like a drum.
******
Long after Kamman had retired to his room, Liang went to find Rei who was standing on the balcony, smoking a cigarette. He came up to him silently and tapped him on the back, causing him to jump.
"Damn you! I almost had a heart attack," Rei snapped when he looked back and saw it was Liang. Liang laughed at him.
"Pssht! And you call yourself a bodyguard. You're even scared of me," he teased, coming to stand beside him.
"If it were a real battlefield, you'd be dead by now," Rei bragged.
"You're the one who would be dead by now, since you don't watch your back," Liang teased further. Rei rolled his eyes.
"By the way, what was that back there?" Liang inquired.
"A ghost," Rei answered simply, placing the cigarette back to his lips.
"A ghost?! For real?! No way. How can someone take pictures of a ghost? It's probably a look-alike, right?" Liang said, brushing off his statement.
Rei knew how superstitious Liang was. The matter was probably scaring him more than anyone involved.
"You should ask yourself that, since you believe it already," Rei joked.
"But even I am wondering about it myself...how can someone really take pictures of a ghost?" He continued to mutter to himself, wondering how Dian appeared in that photo, but Liang heard him.
"He is really a ghost?! Hey! Don't scare me." Liang exclaimed, looking around as chills ran down his spine.
"It makes sense, since the young master seemed so shaken up by it, and he's usually not afraid of humans. So, the man must be a ghost," Rei teased Liang further, knowing how delicate he usually was when it came to myths about spirits and ghosts.
"You're just trying to scare me. I don't believe you," Liang said, not buying his narrative.
Rei leaned very close to his face and said to him in a scary voice,
"You better believe it, because we saw him die with our own eyes. And boss, he killed him with his own hands." He then leaned back, satisfied after seeing the horror on Liang's face.
"How can a dead person come back to life?" Liang asked in a serious voice, even more scared.
Rei laughed and walked away, not wanting to scare the poor man even more. Liang ran after him, afraid of being left alone after that.
But what Rei told Liang was not just a scare; that night on that cliff, they really saw him die with their own eyes, and Kamman shot him with his own hands.
How could he still be alive? It was impossible, unless he was really a ghost.