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Winston continued,"In fact, the body is already growing cold—right here, within these walls."
The Adjudicator looked at Winston and said coldly,"I want to see him."
Winston nodded and led her to where Santino D'Antonio's body lay.
They walked all the way to the incinerator. Santino D'Antonio's corpse had been placed on a transfer gurney.
The Adjudicator looked at the body and said to Winston,"Newly appointed High Table member Santino D'Antonio was killed by Mr. Wick while seeking sanctuary at the Continental Hotel."
She then leaned forward, staring at the fatal wound on Santino's forehead."It appears to be a round fired from a Colt .45 automatic."
After confirming the cause of death was a gunshot, the Adjudicator straightened up and looked at Winston.
Winston met her gaze and began to explain,"I cannot control Mr. Wick's actions."
The Adjudicator immediately shot back,"But he's alive today because of you, isn't he?"
Winston admitted frankly,"Yes."
Seeing his admission, the Adjudicator continued,"You've known Mr. Wick for many years. It would not be an exaggeration to say the two of you are friends, correct?"
"You failed to stop him—and instead, you let him go."
"You stood by and allowed him to walk away, and as a result, he killed Santino D'Antonio right in front of you."
Hearing this, Winston sensed something was wrong and replied,"I removed him from the Continental Hotel."
The Adjudicator pressed on,"But you still gave him an hour to escape."
Winston's voice was no longer as confident as before, yet he said firmly,"He violated the rules of my hotel."
The Adjudicator said sternly,"And therein lies the problem—with your hotel."
"Where does your loyalty lie?"
Winston stared at the relentless Adjudicator and explained,"I have served for over forty years—"
The Adjudicator cut him off, saying solemnly,"Under the High Table, service and loyalty—everything—is under the High Table."
"I know you are loyal, but this cannot be ignored."
"I am stating this clearly: I am here to judge you."
"You will be given one week to deal with this matter."
Winston was stunned."What did you say?"
The Adjudicator continued,"At that time, your successor will be appointed."
"The rules are the only thing that separates us from everyone else—"
Winston finished the sentence quietly,"—from animals."
The Adjudicator nodded."Yes."
"You have seven days."
She turned to leave, but after taking two steps, she turned back and said,"During this interim period, if you require any assistance, you can find me in Room 217."
Winston looked at her and said,"I wish you a pleasant stay at the Continental Hotel."
The Adjudicator gave Winston a long, penetrating look, then turned and left without another word.
At that moment, Winston knew he was in serious trouble. Because he had helped John Wick, the High Table would strip him of his position as manager of the Continental Hotel. At best, he would be allowed to name a successor; at worst, he might pay with his life. He could not afford to sit and wait.
In the Conference Room
Smith Doyle was contemplating how to dismantle the High Table and carry out a complete purge of the twelve elders' families. Even the Assassins' Alliance did not have that many people.
After all, these twelve families were effectively the twelve most powerful criminal organizations in the world. Declaring war on all of them at once would only provoke fierce resistance. It was better to break one finger than to injure all ten.
The Assassins' Alliance could attack three forces simultaneously—but doing so would inevitably trigger violent retaliation.
Smith reviewed the list of the twelve organizations and began selecting three as primary targets.
Just as he was deciding which three to eliminate first, the door to the conference room opened.
Smith Doyle set down the documents in his hand and said to John Wick, who had entered,"Sit here."
John Wick walked over, sat down across from Smith Doyle, and looked at him quietly.
Smith Doyle asked,"Are your injuries healed?"
John Wick touched his shoulder and neck, then said,"They're completely healed. There isn't even a scar left."
"The recovery room here is truly impressive."
Smith Doyle nodded. He still had great confidence in the recovery facilities and said,"To resolve the High Table issue, we must completely eliminate the power controlled by the twelve seats."
"Simply killing the twelve elders will accomplish nothing. They will still appoint new elders from within their bloodlines."
"Even if we sever all the main arteries, new main arteries will grow from the branches and inherit that position."
"So we must completely strangle the organizations behind them."
Hearing this, John Wick nodded solemnly. The situation was far more serious than he had imagined.
"What do you need me to do?"
Smith Doyle replied,"We currently have intelligence on eleven of the twelve High Table seats, but we have not yet located the last one."
"We've just discovered that this elder's headquarters is located in the Casablanca desert."
"However, the exact location within the desert remains unclear."
"I need you to find them."
John Wick thought for a moment, then said,"I know there's a group of elders out there, but I don't know how to locate them."
"Still, if I go alone, the chances of encountering them are quite high. But if I bring everyone with me, they'll see us coming."
Smith Doyle wasn't surprised. He continued,"We'll accompany you to Casablanca, but you must search for the elders alone."
"You must find them—and protect yourself."
John Wick asked curiously,"It's the desert. How will you find me?"
Smith smiled slightly and said,"You only need to carry the Dragon Balls. They will guide us to your location."
Hearing that the Dragon Balls also had a tracking function, John Wick nodded thoughtfully.
Smith Doyle then took out a photograph and placed it in front of John Wick.
"This is the senior manager of the Casablanca Continental Hotel—and your friend."
"She currently possesses one Dragon Ball, which makes her one of the objectives of this trip."
John Wick was surprised when he saw Sofia's photograph. He hadn't expected her to be holding a Dragon Ball. However, when he remembered that he already possessed her blood-oath marker, the situation suddenly became much simpler.