The JOJOLands - Chapter 21
Summary
Mack is in the Dolphin Bank office, enjoying a drink and some snacks. On a video chat with his wife, he tells her that he has to suddenly go on a business trip to the mainland due to an emergency at the company. Since he'll be gone for about a week, he'll have to cancel their plans to go with their kids to see a movie and eat at a Chinese restaurant in Waikiki. Disappointed, his wife asks him to say the usual magic words. Stressed out from not knowing what she's referring to, Mack's skin begins to crumble a bit, indicating that he is Charming Man disguised as Mack using Bigmouth Strikes Again. Charming Man tries telling Mack's wife that he loves her, but his wife reveals that the actual magic words were completely different; a comedic way of saying that he got turned on. They are interrupted by a secretary who enters the room, revealing that Mack is the division chief and his last name is Yokohama. As the secretary informs him that there are guests in the lobby there to see him, Mack's wife ends up forgiving him and lets him leave. The secretary shows concern about the shooting at the hospital, but Charming Man pretends that Mack wasn't there and that the pharmacy with his stomach medicine was at a different location. He then excuses himself, saying that the guests are the kids of his relatives. Charming Man meets up with Jodio, Dragona, and Usagi at the lobby, pointing out that he got direct orders from the bank's CEO to not mess up collecting Howler's loan. He also confirms to Dragona that he changed the security passcodes for their own use. When Howler deposits his assets, it will go into their own bank account.
The gang heads back to Meryl Mei Qi's office at Iko Iko, reuniting with Paco, as well as Lulu, who they brought back with them from the hospital as a hostage. Referencing The Walking Dead, Usagi threatens to crush Lulu's brain into paste as revenge for what she did to his brain. Jodio hands Lulu a water bottle, but she stays silent, so Jodio drinks it himself and tells her to sit down. Meryl points out that Lulu is 11 years old, but with the fraud and tax evasion crimes she committed by working for HOWLER, she could get a jail sentence of five to ten years. Meryl complains about the financial burden of sheltering Lulu and Mack. Housing Lulu costs her nearly $3,000 daily due to needing to have the boutique closed and her expensive tastes, such as demanding San Pellegrino water and marbled wagyu beef, while disliking mangoes. Mack requires $2,000 daily for his life support and medicine. Meryl expresses concerns about the legal risks if they are discovered, which could result in her losing her job and her family life being upended if her husband divorces her. She urges Lulu to provide information about Howler and any potential leaks regarding their group's identities or plans. Lulu explains that since Bobby Jean is dead, she is the only one with direct knowledge of the group, but suspects someone might have witnessed events at the hospital. Meryl redirects the conversation to the Lava Rock, asking if Howler was always looking for it. Lulu divulges that their job was initially only to learn who was browsing the land deeds, until Howler suddenly asked her to recover the Lava Rock. Meryl asserts that the Lava Rock works as their ally, ensuring that Howler's land worth $50 billion will come under their control. Meryl stresses the urgency of concluding their operation within seven days to minimize danger, and she will keep them posted on the plan. Lulu is baffled as to how the team will manage to do that.
Meanwhile, Howler is in a car with his lover, pouring dashi on his tongue. When the car suddenly stops, he berates his driver and issues aggressive orders, claiming that he's fired and will never get another job again. He calls a staff member on the phone, telling them to immediately purchase the road that he is on so that it becomes his property and is no longer a state road. However, his car is swarmed by a mass of protesters and reporters who confront him over his company's exploitation of land and water resources, accusing his family of acquiring property illegally through their connections to the munitions industry. Howler denies the accusations but the protesters and media scrutinize him, highlighting the alleged illegal acquisition of land on the northern slope of Hualālai. An elderly woman claims that her son lost both of his arms and legs then died because of the weapons HOWLER created. Howler tries denying that too, until he is interrupted by someone who announces to the crowd that Howler has no comment. Howler doesn't know who she is, but she reveals that she's a lawyer he hired. She informs the crowd that if they trespass on HOWLER's property, then they'll be arrested.
Inside a building, Howler is frustrated about the commotion outside, claiming his family got permission seven generations ago from the royal family to own the northern slope of Hualalai. The lawyer introduces herself as Key West, alongside two other allies, Laem Chabang, who is a police officer, and Ningbo, a firefighter. They went to Pearl General Hospital and found the corpse of their friend, Bobby Jean. Since they were not able to determine the cause of death, they deduce that a Stand user or multiple users are the culprits. The three of them ask Howler what Bobby Jean was investigating, but Howler refuses to tell them, instead ordering them to find Lulu and he'll reward them. Key and her team vow to locate Lulu or the culprit using Laem's ability; she has nematodes attached to her sunglasses capable of detecting the scent of stress. These creatures will create a "map" showing the location of fearful individuals, aiding their search. Key views Howler as the 'final boss' among their adversaries, advising him to stay composed to uphold that role while presenting themselves as his protectors. Key then remembers that although Bobby's phone had disappeared, they have a record of his search history. Shortly before dying, Bobby accessed the armed forces' military record information and searched for Paco Laburantes.
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