But the lawyer’s business card on the table was real.

What Smith didn’t know was that he hadn’t just signed a civil complaint.

It was the first live round Leo Wallace fired at Thomas Moretti.

It was the first domino to fall, destined to bring down Pittsburgh’s entire old bureaucratic system.

From this moment on, that document would no longer belong in this dilapidated apartment.

It would fly to the courts, to the media, to the conference tables of the City Council, and ultimately transform into a legal storm that would sweep the entire city.

Meanwhile, in an office at City Hall.

Leo stood by the window, looking at a text from Ethan: "It’s signed."

Roosevelt’s voice echoed in his mind.

’Very good.’

’The first victim is in place.’

’Now, bring on the storm.’

...

「Pittsburgh City Center, Grant Street.」

This was the city’s main artery of power, and ordinarily, it was the most orderly place in Pittsburgh.

But today, the main thoroughfare was in chaos.

More than a dozen news vans occupied the roadway, their satellite antennas raised high, piercing the narrow strip of sky hemmed in by skyscrapers.

An arsenal of cameras and microphones, like rifles and cannons, formed an impenetrable wall within the massive shadow cast by City Hall.

Camera flashes strobed wildly, their lenses all focused on one spot on the ground.

There was a pothole.

Its edges were jagged and it was filled with black, stagnant water, an ugly scar on what was supposedly the public face of the city.

Three people stood beside the pothole.

In the center stood Leo Wallace, the Mayor of Pittsburgh. He wore a dark wool overcoat with a golden city emblem pinned to the lapel, his expression grave, even tinged with sorrow.

To his left was Smith Gaiter.

The unassuming sanitation worker wore a faded jacket, wringing his hands nervously. His eyes darted about, clearly unaccustomed to being in the spotlight.

And to Leo’s right was a wheelchair.

Mary Gaiter sat in the wheelchair. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Her right leg, encased in a heavy cast, was stretched out straight.

Her face had the pallor that comes from chronic pain, but at this moment, a strange glimmer of excitement shone in her eyes.

"Members of the press, fellow citizens."

Leo began to speak. His voice was steady, and through the bank of microphones before him, it carried clearly across the entire block and into the homes of thousands watching on television.

"Take a look at this pothole."

Leo extended a hand, pointing to the unremarkable hazard at his feet.

"It was here three months ago. Two months ago, Mr. Gaiter submitted a repair request to the Bureau of Street Maintenance. One month ago, our Department of Public Works confirmed yet again that it was a hazard."

"But, until today, until Mrs. Gaiter broke her leg here, until this family was plunged into an abyss of debt—this pothole is still here."

Leo paused, his gaze sweeping over every reporter present.

"As the Mayor of Pittsburgh, I stand here today, looking at this scar, looking at this dilapidated street, and I feel a profound sense of shame."

A stir went through the crowd of reporters.

But Leo didn’t stop.

"I feel ashamed because I hold the title of Mayor, I wield executive power, yet I cannot fill a single, small pothole."

"I feel ashamed because our bureaucracy is busy passing the buck, and our legislature is busy playing political games, while our citizens are forced to pay the price."

Leo’s voice rose, laced with fury.

"I want to fix the roads. I have the blueprints for the ’Pittsburgh Revitalization Plan’ on my desk. I have the workers, I have the materials, and I have the will."

"But I have no money."

"To be precise, I have the money, but I can’t spend it."

Leo looked straight into the cameras, his eyes sharp.

"The City Council’s finance committee, in the name of a ’procedural review,’ has frozen the entire maintenance budget. Speaker Moretti tells me we have to follow procedure, be meticulous, and take our time."

"Fine. We’ll follow procedure."

"But Mrs. Gaiter’s leg can’t wait for procedure. This pothole won’t fill itself just because we’re ’following procedure.’ And the law of gravity doesn’t stop working just because the City Council is in recess."

"Since the administrative path has been blocked, since I cannot fulfill my duties as Mayor by fixing the roads..."

Leo took a deep breath and made an announcement that stunned everyone.

...then I must fulfill my obligation to the citizens in another way."

"I will support the victims in defending their rights."

"I will stand with the plaintiffs."

"I, Leo Wallace, Mayor of Pittsburgh, will give my full support to the Gaiters as they sue the Pittsburgh City Government and the Pittsburgh City Council for the compensation they deserve!"

The crowd erupted in an uproar.

The reporters looked at each other, wondering if they had heard him correctly.

’The Mayor is supporting a lawsuit against his own city government?’

’This meant he was helping to drain his own government’s coffers.’

"Mr. Wallace!" a reporter from the Pittsburgh Chronicle shouted. "Do you realize what you’re saying? The City Government’s settlement money is also taxpayer money! You’re wasting public funds!"

"Wasting?"

Leo scoffed.

From an inside pocket of his overcoat, he pulled out a document.

The Pennsylvania Political Subdivision Tort Claims Act.

He unfolded the document, displaying it for all the cameras to see.