With a heavy and ominous aura, Langgeng approached us.
Just before he reached us, Kambali looked like he was about to run, but I stopped him by placing my hand on his shoulder.
"Calm down," I said, trying to reassure him.
"Are you crazy? He looks like he's going to beat us up!" Kambali panicked.
"Trust me," I said with a slight chuckle.
Still visibly frightened, Kambali reluctantly stayed put.
Moments later, Langgeng was standing right in front of us.
Langgeng Kusumo. On the outside, he appeared arrogant, constantly in a bad mood, and harsh. But deep down, he was actually a kind and responsible person. He always put up a tough, unapproachable front, mostly due to his status as the son of the leader of the country's largest dockworkers' union—a group notorious for its rough and corrupt environment. While on the surface it functioned like a typical labor union, Langgeng's organization operated more like a criminal syndicate.
"You got business with me?" Langgeng asked in a sharp, threatening tone.
Kambali instantly hid behind me, along with Najam who also looked panicked and scared.
"Yes," I answered, smiling slightly.
Langgeng fell silent and stared at me intently. He looked puzzled and lost in thought. Of course, you'd be confused. I know enough about you—how you tried to change yourself and protect your friends during the Purification Program. That's why I couldn't bring myself to be afraid of you.
"What is it?" he asked, now in a softer tone.
"I wanted to ask—are the seniors from Class 95 doing okay?" I replied with a question of my own.
"As far as I can tell, there's no problem. Why are you asking?" he responded, still sounding suspicious.
"Lately, the school environment has been rather concerning, so I'm curious how the senior classes are handling it," I said with a worried expression.
"Hm... any other questions?" he asked again.
"Have you noticed anything suspicious, either inside or outside the school?" I asked seriously.
"Suspicious? Aside from the increased presence of security officers stationed outside the school, I haven't noticed anything else," he answered, looking concerned.
"Security officers?" I asked, surprised.
"Yes. If you look closely, you'll see them positioned at several street corners," he explained.
"Oh... I didn't realize that," I replied, intrigued.
Okay, I think that's enough small talk.
"What about you personally, senpai?" I asked.
"Huh?" he responded, confused.
"Has the school's situation affected your environment? The dockworkers' union?" I asked curiously.
"I don't think so. But recently, the district members have been fighting, threatening each other, and getting into brawls over suspicious reasons," he said seriously.
"Suspicious reasons?" I asked.
"Yeah. After some digging, it turned out they were fighting over inconsistencies in container management quotas—information that should've only been known by a few people," he explained.
"Was it leaked?" I followed up.
"Most likely yes, and I don't think it came from our side. The people who have that kind of info understand how dangerous it is and the kind of damage it could cause if it gets out. Even though the members are generally loyal, most of them are poorly educated and easily misled when sensitive information like that reaches them," he said with concern.
"So what are you doing to resolve the issue?" I asked, curious.
"Me? Not much. I just find the provocateurs who incited the conflict—and execute them on the spot," he said flatly.
"E-execute o-on the s-spot?" Najam stammered, shocked.
"Yes. Honestly, I don't like hiding important information, whether or not it has negative consequences. If that info leads people to betray or abandon the group, I'd rather have it happen. It's easier to fight a known enemy than one hiding within," he said seriously.
"But... does it really have to be solved with violence?" I asked, worried.
"Don't get me wrong. When I say 'fight,' I don't necessarily mean physical violence. It's more about confrontation—about defeating them," he clarified.
"Oh, so when you say 'execute,' you actually mean capture, right?" Kambali asked, relieved.
"No. Execute means execute—you know, taking someone's life," he said in a flat tone.
"Sahabi, this guy is terrifying. Let's get out of here," Kambali whispered, trying to pull me away.
"Relax," I said, turning back to him with a small smile.
I looked at Langgeng again. If he really is the same person as the Langgeng from the future, then there must have been a strong reason for him to do what he did.
"By the way, why did you go as far as executing the provocateur?" I asked curiously.
"When I met him face to face, he seemed... strange," he answered, recalling the memory.
"Strange?" I repeated.
"Yes, the person who became the provocator was someone I knew. But when I met them, it felt like I was meeting someone else. Their mind seemed controlled or hypnotized. And they committed the most sacred betrayal—killing a fellow member of the group," Langgeng said with a dark expression.
Alright, I need to mark that. I feel like this information could be useful for the upcoming parade.
"It must have been difficult for you to make that decision," I responded sympathetically.
"Yeah. If I hadn't acted quickly, I think more of my members would've lost their lives," he replied.
His decision wasn't entirely wrong. If what Langgeng said about the provocateur's condition was true, then his actions really did minimize further damage. His ability to make effective decisions and his willingness to do whatever it takes are what make him so dangerous in the future. When he becomes one of the most dangerous individuals, he successfully executes groups and individuals holding key roles, sending the world—and especially the Matahari Organization—into disarray.
Honestly, seeing him now, it's hard to believe someone like him could become a criminal. Not just him—Uda, Sabrina, Dinda, and the others too. I'm curious what exactly caused them to turn evil.
"So, is there anything else you want to ask?" he asked.
"Oh right, one more thing," I replied, making a gesture as if I had just remembered something.
I looked toward the far end of the corridor. Though it was blurry, I could see someone peeking from around the corner. Yes, that was Lia—Jamalia Lintang. The person Langgeng specifically requested to be saved in the future. Honestly, I don't fully understand the nature of their relationship. What I do know is that Jamalia is Langgeng's bodyguard, and they've been trying to keep that relationship a secret from their classmates. On one hand, Jamalia only listens to or speaks with Langgeng. So, maybe it's easier to get an explanation about her directly from the boss himself.
"What's your relationship with Jamalia?" I asked directly.
"Huh? Um, she's my classmate. Why are you asking about her?" he replied, sounding a bit panicked.
"Before you came out, we saw her standing at the door for quite a while, and just before you came out, she suddenly ran off," I explained, still puzzled.
"Oh, I see..." he said briefly, looking worried.
"Is something going on between you two? Any issues?" I asked.
"I don't know. As far as I remember, nothing has happened. But lately, I do feel like she's been avoiding me," he admitted, clearly bothered.
"Maybe you should try talking to her," I suggested.
"Yeah... I guess I should," he agreed.
"If you don't mind me asking, what kind of person is Jamalia?" I continued.
"Why are you asking me that?" he asked back, sounding a bit suspicious.
"I'm just curious. From a glance, she seems like someone hard to talk to. So maybe, as her classmate, you could give me some insight," I replied with a friendly tone.
"She's more or less the same as the other girls—just quieter and pretty athletic," he said.
"Oh, okay," I responded, slightly disappointed.
It seems like he gave me a generic description on purpose. I thought their relationship might have been public by now. But if it's still a secret, then there's probably nothing more I can do for the time being.
"Alright, thanks. I think that's all I needed," I said, wrapping up and thanking Langgeng.
"Yeah. By the way, what's your name?" he asked.
"Oh right, sorry—I forgot to introduce myself earlier. My name's Sahabi, Sahabi Pratama from Class 96. And the two behind me are Najam Firmansyah and Kambali Wibowo, also from the same class," I answered, pointing to each of them in turn.
"Kambali?!" he responded, suddenly serious and glaring at Kambali.
"Eh? What's wrong with Kambali?" Najam asked in a panic.
"Hey, you haven't forgotten the name Ranita Kusumo, have you?" Langgeng asked with a threatening tone.
"Eh—Ranita?!" Kambali responded, stunned.
He fell silent, looking lost in thought. A moment later, his expression turned pale.
"Oh God, wait—please forgive me!" Kambali said in a panic.
"I assume you understand the consequences of meeting me, right? You've got guts," Langgeng said, clearly angry and looking ready to attack Kambali.
"W-wait a second, Langgeng—what's actually going on?" I asked in a panic, trying to step in between them.
"He owes one million dollars to the dockworkers' union for deceiving my younger sister, Ranita. I already told him: if you meet me without bringing the money, be prepared to face the consequences," he said furiously.
"What?! One million dollars?!" I shouted in shock.
"What the hell did you do, idiot?" Najam added, completely baffled.
"I swear I didn't know the person Sahabi wanted me to meet was you. Please forgive me—I don't have the money right now," Kambali said while falling to his knees in a bow.
This was an unexpected situation. Kambali once told me he had a large debt out there, but I never imagined it was with Langgeng's organization. And to make it worse, the person he deceived was Langgeng's sister. No wonder Kambali had seemed familiar with the name Langgeng earlier.
"Langgeng, please, forgive us. Let this one go—I truly had no idea about any of this," I pleaded, looking at him seriously.
He stared at me for a moment. Then, after a few seconds, he let out a deep sigh.
"Hmph. Let's just pretend we didn't meet today," he said, turning around and walking away, though still visibly upset.
A few steps later, he stopped, turned back, and looked at me. Our eyes met, and all I could do was respond with a friendly smile. He stared for a few seconds longer, then turned again and walked off.
Once Langgeng disappeared from the corridor, Kambali got up from his bow, looking relieved.
"Man, you really have a talent for getting into trouble," Najam said in disbelief, looking at Kambali.
"Seriously, I didn't expect to run into anyone from the Kusumo family," Kambali replied, still visibly shaken.
"Oh right—I forgot to mention, Langgeng's full name is Langgeng Kusumo," I said with a chuckle.
"You almost got me killed, Sahabi. Seriously," Kambali replied, clearly upset.
"Let's forget about that for a second. By the way, I didn't expect you to speak so casually with him, buddy. I mean, considering your condition," Najam said, impressed, tapping his temple to refer to my memory loss.
"Um, it's just that I happened to know a lot about him before I entered Starlight," I answered, a bit flustered.
"Ho..." Najam responded, still skeptical.
"Anyway, we need to move quickly," I said, looking in the direction Langgeng had gone.
"Don't tell me you want to follow that guy?" Kambali asked, clearly terrified.
"Um, no—we still need to meet one more person," I replied.
"Oh! Don't tell me... you mean Jamalia?" Najam asked, suddenly excited.
"Yeah," I said shortly.
I failed to get any useful information about Jamalia from Langgeng. So I guess going to meet her directly might not be such a bad idea.