"Mr. Mayor, there is one more thing I need to tell you in advance," Ethan said, placing a report on Leo's desk.
"What is it?"
"The average price of gasoline in Pennsylvania has already broken past five US dollars a gallon. Basic groceries like bread, milk, and eggs have surged by over fifteen percent just this week."
Ethan took a deep breath, his tone laced with anxiety. "The other mayors in the Industrial Revival Alliance have been blowing up my phone these past few days. Ron from Erie and Byers from Scranton are all asking the same question: when are we going to tap into the reserve supplies? The citizens are on the verge of breaking."
Ethan pointed to the last few pages of the report. "Isolated protests have already broken out in some neighborhoods. Everyone is demanding to know why, despite working overtime at the factories and seeing their wages increase, they still can't even afford rent at the end of the month.
