In less than three minutes, the office looked like a battlefield.Steel pipes lay twisted across the floor. Men groaned, some clutching broken legs, others lying motionless in spreading pools of blood. The stench of iron filled the air. The walls, once polished and white, were now smeared with red handprints.Gideon’s breath caught in his throat. His whole body trembled as he slid down the side of the broken desk. His eyes darted across the scene — his “elite” men, the thugs he’d handpicked and trained himself, now sprawled out like discarded trash.Impossible… This is impossible, he thought, his heart pounding so hard he could hear it in his ears. What the hell is he? A demon?Gideon’s mind raced. He knew his men. They weren’t amateurs — they’d crushed rivals, scared loan sharks, even made police officers look the other way. And yet, this one man had dismantled them as if they were children swinging sticks.He swallowed hard, his throat dry. The thought sent chills down his spine. Wh

A few of Michael’s lieutenants—men quick on reflex and quicker to obey—stepped forward as if to haul him up. Michael snapped at them without lifting his head. “Get out. All of you—out!” His voice had the brittle edge of a man terrified of being overheard. The men hesitated, then melted back into the shadowy corridor, suits rustling like dead leaves.Sandra’s mouth hung open. She watched Michael on his knees, the most powerful underground lord in Brentwood, bowing and murmuring “forgive me” like a penitent. Her mind scrambled for an explanation: why was he doing this? What had she missed?Michael did not stop. He prostrated himself with the practiced desperation of a man whose instructions had come from the only mouth that mattered that morning—Logan Vane’s. Logan had warned him tightly: do not let any blind, reckless subordinate confront Ethan the Phoenix. Keep your people in check. And yet here he was—face in the carpet, begging the man they were meant to kill.Everything a man like

“We…” Sandra wanted to explain, but Ethan interrupted directly, his tone cold and steady.“What’s with your attitude? Is this how you serve customers? Call your manager.”“Haha, you? Customer?” Linette sneered, folding her arms. “Also, you want to talk to my manager? What do you think is going to happen when the manager comes here? Someone like you, who can’t even afford to buy a house, wants to have me fired?”A cold glint flashed in Ethan’s eyes. “Indeed,” he said evenly, “today I want to buy a house and fire you.”Linette burst out laughing, mockery thick in her voice. “Haha! Bro, did you forget to take your medicine today? Talking nonsense here? Okay then, you want to buy a house? You want to fire me? Try it. I’m standing right here. If you can accomplish one thing today, I’ll kneel down and call you grandpa.”“Miss Lane, don’t be like this… It’s my fault for introducing them to you. They’re also not easy,” the receptionist, Jenny, said softly as she walked over with two cups of w