Little King of The South Part 3 is the twenty-third chapter of the Black Lagoon spinoff series Eda Initial Stage. It was originally released on February 19, 2024.
Plot[]
Watching the military bomb the village from the outskirts using binoculars, Melgar is frustrated that President Duarte has taken a hardline approach toward the guerrillas, positing that General Tovar must have influenced him. Unsure how to respond to the deployment of troops, he mutters that he is unprepared and will have to figure out a solution. Worried about the attack, Enrique Gasol pleads with Eda to let him go to the village. Retorting that the army is attacking, she warns that they would be in the middle of it if they go. Unconcerned, the boy demands that she let him go because he has people in town, the same place where he will build his kingdom. Eda tells him that he needs to be in reality, to which Enrique tells her to shut up and claims that she cannot lecture him like she knows what she is talking about. Annoyed with his stubbornness, Eda lets him go and says he can die on his own if he wants. Warning her not to insult him, Enrique responds that he will not die. Although Jaden calls for Enrique to come back, Eda advises him to drop it since it is no longer their business. He tries to dissuade her, but she reasons that they are not friends with Enrique merely because they ate together, reminding him that his primary allegiance is to the "Stars and Stripes." Jaden asks what they should do, and Eda proposes that they not make any moves until the fighting has subsided in order to discover what is happening.
Running toward the town, Enrique hurries up to find his friends and is shocked to see troops gunning down guerrillas and unarmed civilians around the corner. Similarly, soldiers enter the nearby bar and act hostile toward the residents. The bartender pleads with them not to attack because he is merely a shopkeeper, but the troops immediately kill him and his customers. As the military begins to round up the townspeople at gunpoint, Enrique assesses that they are not distinguishing between guerrillas and civilians. Outside her place, Casilda is pushed to the pavement by a soldier. As her granddaughter Mayte tries to help her, the soldier grabs her by the hair and demands to know where the guerrillas in their house are. Although the girl pleads with them to stop because she does not know anything about it, the soldier punches the child in the face, knocking her to the ground. He warns them that he will make them tell him, causing Casilda to beg for mercy on her granddaughter. Suddenly, Enrique hits the soldier with a tool and yells at Mayte to run. As the boy helps Casilda stand, another soldier appears and shoots at them, scaring them.
Before the soldier can shoot again, Luciana shoots the man in the head and warns her grandmother and sister to run. Enrique begins to help Casilda up again when he is disheartened to discover that she has been shot in the left shoulder. Mayte frantically suggests taking her to a doctor, but Enrique notes that the town is still full of soldiers. Though in pain, Casilda advises them to flee without her, but the three adamantly decline to do so. Luciana wonders how they could possibly bring her grandmother to the city for medical treatment. Panicking for a few seconds, Enrique comes up with an idea and asks the others to follow him. Meanwhile, outside the attacked town, Eda continues watching and informs Jaden that the fight will likely not stop for a while. He asks what they should do given that they would need to go through the town to get back to the city. Jaden adds that they could talk to the soldiers since the two of them are basically diplomats. Rejecting the idea, she responds that it is not a good idea to talk to a soldier focused on battle, saying that it would be too late to regret the idea when the soldiers pull the trigger.
Revealing that she has firearms in the car's glove compartment, Eda emphasizes that Jaden will need to protect himself when things get tough. Seeing his reluctant face, she asks if he really cannot shoot a gun, to which he confesses that he is somewhat trained but did not receive good grades. Jaden clarifies that he does not like bloody work, but Eda retorts that preference does not matter in their current situation. Hearing a loud noise, the two agents immediately point their guns toward the nearby forest. Yelling that it is only himself, Enrique pleads with them not to shoot. Nonetheless, Eda commands him to put his hands up, so Luciana agrees while Mayte helps her grandmother. Enrique pleads with them to hurry since the soldiers are close by. Behind the surrenderers, Eda spots two soldiers and quickly takes them both down with her pistol. More soldiers appear and shoot at them, so Luciana and Eda shoot back while the latter tells the others to use the car door as a shield since it is bulletproof. Getting into the car, Enrique prods Jaden into giving up his firearm because he is not using it anyway. He quickly helps the women, and they soon kill the three soldiers without suffering any injuries.
Eda gets a shaky confirmation from Enrique that there are no more soldiers pursuing them, and she and Luciana exchange glares. Mayte pleads with them to get Casilda to a hospital, so Enrique asks Eda and Jaden to help him out. Pointing her rifle at Eda, Luciana orders her to freeze and threatens to shoot her if she refuses. Explaining that it is an exchange, she claims to know a detour up the mountain road, demanding that Eda get them out of town without going through the village. She begrudgingly agrees, but Luciana yells at her to hurry up since they are running out of time. As Jaden drives, Enrique complains that he has to stay in the trunk, to which Eda yells back that their vehicle is already over seating capacity. Whispering to her, Jaden wonders how the elderly woman will fare, but Eda silently tells him that she probably will not survive. In the backseat, the crying Mayte assures her injured grandmother that she will be at a hospital soon. As the grandmother utters their names, Jaden accidentally hits a bump on the road, causing the elderly woman to cough up blood. Frustrated, Luciana warns the agents to be careful, to which Eda sternly reminds her that they are on a mountainous road. Traveling further, Jaden assures them that they are finally on a paved road. With her last words, Casilda tells her granddaughters to get along well, praying that Mother Mary will bless them. In tears, Mayte holds her grandmother's hand and pleads with her to stay alive.
Soon, the group stops on the side of the road to quickly bury the elderly woman. To her protest, Mayte shouts that they cannot just bury their grandmother in the ground, with Luciana also opining that she wants to give Casilda a proper burial. Rhetorically asking if she has a particular place in mind, Eda reasons that it is better to bury her now than to just leave her corpse on the ground. Replying that it would be difficult to find her body, Luciana asks how they will find her later. Exhausted, Eda nonchalantly repeats that she and Jaden have already given them a ride out of the kindness of their hearts. Knocking on the car frame, Enrique pleads with them to let him out. Climbing out, the boy assures them that he can handle the matter, specifying that there is a safehouse in the area where they can bring Casilda's body and then find a mortician afterward. Addressing Mayte, Enrique asks her if that is okay, and the girl asserts that she will do whatever it takes to bury her grandmother. Accordingly, he asks Eda to help him move Casilda into the car trunk. Smiling, Mayte blushes and thanks Enrique, causing him to blush and declare that he has it covered.
As they resume traveling, Enrique asks Luciana about the state of the fort. Recalling what happened, she tells him that it ended badly and the fort was burnt to the ground, admitting that is more accurate to say she escaped instead of going in to save him. Angered, Luciana curses General Tovar for carrying out his sudden heavy attacks. Unfamiliar with the name, Eda asks who he is. Luciana elaborates that he is a hawkish military general who has been in office since the previous administration and has advocated for crushing the guerrillas at every turn. Enrique additionally states that Tovar was quiet for a while ever since Duarte took office but he heard rumors that he is approaching the president in recent times. Confused, Jaden remembers that the military needs the president's approval to attack, wondering why a hardline attack would be signed off by Duarte despite his low approval ratings. Assessing their plan, Eda announces that the plan to leverage with the guerrillas will be put on hold. Subsequently, Jaden drives the car to the city so that they can report the news to the American embassy as soon as possible in order for a proper response to be formed. As he arrives in town, he notices the amount of traffic. To their surprise, they see a roadblock up ahead, and they are ordered by several soldiers to stop their car.