Thursday — 7:45 AM, Sentinel BioTech HQ, Manila
The morning sun cast long rays across the conference room as Matthew Borja stood before a wall of screens, arms folded. On one monitor played drone footage of Aurora Line's initial construction sites—steel columns rising, concrete pilings being laid, and survey teams walking along the cleared corridors. Another screen displayed real-time social media trends and news updates. The tags #AuroraLineProgress and #BorjaBoldMove were still trending.
But it was the national sentiment dashboard that caught his attention.
Public approval was shifting.
Slowly, yes—but meaningfully.
Angel entered the room with her usual calm energy, holding a coffee in one hand and a tablet in the other. "Morning, sir. You should see the reactions out of Pampanga. Local leaders are organizing their own community info sessions to keep residents updated."
Matthew glanced over. "Voluntarily?"
