That Night
The feast was in full swing. Drums thundered through the hall while torches flickered against the stone walls. Platters of roasted pig, fresh fish, and overflowing jars of rice wine made the long tables groan under their weight. Laughter and music filled the air, but beneath it all was a nervous energy.
The three old datus were drinking harder than anyone else, laughing too loudly, trying to drown the fear I had planted in them earlier that day.
I barely touched my cup. I had work to do.
I pulled Hiraya into a shadowed corner of the hall, away from the noise.
"I need your help," I whispered.
Her eyes sharpened instantly. "Name it. Should I kill them tonight?"
"No beheading," I sighed. "Not yet. Gather your best stealth warriors. While everyone is drunk and distracted, search their boats and their guest huts. Look for anything suspicious — letters, seals, foreign gifts, anything that doesn't belong here."
Hiraya grinned like a wolf. "Consider it done."
The Trap
I made my way through the crowd and approached Datu Maku. He was sitting on a woven mat, cheeks flushed from wine, staring into his cup.
"Uncle Maku!" I called warmly, slapping him on the back like an old friend. "Why so quiet on a night of celebration?"
He forced a nervous laugh. "Just… reflecting on your wise words from earlier, Datu Kalayaan."
I sat beside him and leaned in close, as if sharing a secret between allies.
"You know," I said casually, "when the white men come, they can be very convincing. They offer titles. They promise to make local chiefs into governors under their king. Power. Respect. Protection."
Maku's eye twitched. His fingers tightened around his cup.
"Is that so?" he asked, trying to sound uninterested.
"Oh yes," I continued, nodding. "But it's all lies. Once they take control, they turn even the proudest datus into servants. They take your land, your gold, your women… everything."
I placed a firm hand on his shoulder and squeezed.
"So if anyone here is thinking of betraying us… I won't kill them quickly. I'll make sure their end is slow, painful, and remembered by every soul in these islands."
Maku's face drained of color. For a moment, I saw real terror in his eyes.
I smiled, patted his shoulder, and walked away.
The Discovery
Barely an hour later, Hiraya slipped back into the hall like a shadow. Her face was stormy. She grabbed my arm and pulled me into a dark corridor.
"We found these," she growled, pressing a rolled-up letter and a small silver mirror into my hands. "Hidden inside Maku's personal chest on his boat."
I unrolled the letter. The Spanish script was unmistakable. As I read it, cold anger settled in my chest.
"To the Captain of the Great Ships,
The land here is rich and ready for the taking. The man who calls himself Datu Kalayaan possesses strange weapons, but he is weak and surrounded by fools. Show me the favor of your King and the book of the true God, and I will deliver him to you. In return, I ask only to rule in his place."
I crumpled the paper in my fist.
"Perfect," I whispered.
The Trial
I strode back into the main hall and raised my hand. The drums fell silent.
"Everyone, listen!" My voice echoed off the stone walls. "There is a snake among us!"
I threw the letter and the silver mirror at Maku's feet. They clattered loudly on the floor.
The entire hall gasped.
"You wanted to sell us to the foreigners?" I shouted. "Before they even set foot on our shores, you were ready to open the gates for them?"
Pagbuaya drew his massive sword with a metallic ring. "Traitor!" he roared.
Maku dropped to his knees, trembling. "This is a lie! He planted it! That letter is fake!"
I looked down at him with ice-cold eyes.
"Did I also plant the Spanish mirror in your luggage? Did I plant the treason in your heart as well?"
I turned to the crowd, then slowly to Datu Liham and Datu Tapa, who were both shaking where they sat.
"Maku acted alone," I declared loudly. "Unless… the rest of you are also guilty?"
Both men immediately dropped to their knees, foreheads touching the ground.
"No, Datu! We are loyal!" they cried in unison. "We knew nothing!"
The Sentence
I stared down at the broken man before me. Killing him would have been simple. Satisfying, even. But it wouldn't send the right message.
"Death is too easy for you," I announced, my voice calm but carrying through the entire hall. "From this moment, you are stripped of your title. You are no longer Datu Maku. You are no longer a noble."
A stunned silence fell.
"All his lands, his gold, and his possessions will be taken and distributed among the loyal people of our alliance. His slaves will be freed and given land of their own."
I stepped closer, looking straight into his tear-filled eyes.
"And you… you will work the rice fields like any common man. You will learn what it truly means to live by the sweat of your own hands. Only then, if you work hard and show genuine change, may you slowly earn back a sliver of respect."
For a proud man like Maku, this was a fate worse than death — to lose face completely in front of everyone he once ruled.
[System Notification]
[Political Stability Increased!]
[Loyalty of the People: MAX]
[Title Acquired: The Just Judge]
Aftermath
As warriors dragged the screaming, begging Maku away, the other chiefs approached one by one. They knelt before me — not out of ancient bloodlines or fear of my cannons, but because they now understood the new reality.
Power in this land would no longer be inherited.
It would be earned.
And it could be taken away.
Mei emerged from the shadows, a satisfied smile on her lips. "Well played. You shattered the old order in a single night."
I looked at Hiraya, Pagbuaya, and Mei — my real inner circle.
"The internal threat is gone," I said quietly. "Now we are truly united."
I turned toward the dark sea visible beyond the open doors of the hall.
"Let the Spaniards come."
"We'll be ready."
To be continued...
Next Chapter:
Chapter 8: White Wings on the Horizon