The Danielson headquarters used to look like a monument. Now it looked like a man who had stopped eating.Ethan stood across the street in plain jeans and a dark shirt, hands in his pockets, face calm. Morning light hit the building’s glass, but the shine didn’t hold. Dust clung to the corners of the windows, and a long crack ran through one of the entrance panels like a scar nobody had bothered to fix.The parking lot told the truth faster than any report. Whole rows were empty. A few tired cars sat near the side, and one delivery truck idled with its back doors open like it was waiting to be told to leave. Near the gate, a security guard leaned on the booth with his cap pushed back, looking more bored than alert.Two employees stood outside the main doors, smoking like the air inside was worse than the air out here. Their suits weren’t pressed. One of them had his tie loosened and his sleeves rolled up, as if he’d given up on pretending.“You heard the rumor?” the first man asked

The first receptionist’s rude question didn’t shock Ethan. It only confirmed what he already knew about dying empires. When people felt powerless, they grabbed the smallest power they could find and squeezed it until it felt like control. Ethan met her eyes without anger, without apology, and that calm made her frown harder.A clock ticked somewhere behind the desk, slow and loud in the quiet lobby. Ethan noticed how the receptionists’ smiles were not real smiles. They were shields. The kind people wore when the ground under them was already cracking.He also noticed the small things. A “WELCOME” sign with peeling edges. A donation box for “staff welfare” sitting near the counter like a silent apology. A row of chairs with torn leather that had not been replaced.This company was not just losing money. It was losing dignity.“I’m here to see Lord Victor Danielson,” Ethan repeated, steady. “Please let him know I’m in the lobby.”The first receptionist didn’t even reach for the phon

Victor Danielson’s shout hit the lobby like a whip.“What is the meaning of this?!”His voice did not sound like the tired executive they were used to seeing on news interviews. It sounded sharp. Urgent. Almost afraid.The authority in it made even the security guard straighten his back.People who had been whispering seconds ago suddenly found their throats dry. It was the first time in months that Lord Victor had sounded like a man who still had something to lose.And everyone could feel that whatever that “something” was… it was standing right in front of him.Every laugh died instantly. Even the air-conditioning felt louder when the room went quiet. The two staff members still had their hands on Ethan’s wrist and elbow, and they froze like children caught stealing.The first receptionist snapped out of her shock first. Relief rushed into her face like she had been waiting for a rescue. She pointed at Ethan as if she’d found the cause of every problem in the building.“Sir, thank

Victor didn’t wait for Ethan to answer in the lobby. He moved like a man who feared time more than shame.“Please, Master Ethan,” he said again, voice low. “Come upstairs.”Ethan looked at him for a second, then nodded once. He didn’t smile. He didn’t act like he had “won.” He simply accepted what was already true.Victor turned sharply toward his enforcers. “Clear the path,” he ordered. “Nobody follows unless I say so.”The three men moved fast, cutting through the crowd. Employees stepped aside like the floor had become fire. Some of the staff lowered their heads completely. Others stared openly, confusion fighting fear on their faces. No one had seen Lord Victor move like this in months. He had become distant, guarded, almost tired. But now he moved with urgency. And that urgency was not for himself.The receptionists stood frozen beside their desk. Their eyes were red, their mouths were closed.As Victor led Ethan toward the elevators, whispers followed them like smoke.“That’s

Victor’s face tightened. “Yes,” he said. “When you lay off men who have children, they don’t cry quietly. They come to the gates of your residence. They shout. They throw stones. They look at you like you murdered their future.”Victor rubbed his forehead slowly, like he could still hear the noise outside his gates. “One man brought his son,” he added quietly. “The boy couldn’t have been older than ten. He kept asking his father why he lost his job.” Victor’s jaw tightened. “I had no answer for him.”He stared at Ethan with raw frustration. “And the humiliating part is this,” Victor said. “I’m not even sure I deserve to blame anyone but myself. I mean all this is because I didn't respect myself by keeping my mouth shut there at the Khagan council.”Ethan let him speak. He didn’t interrupt.He watched Victor the way a surgeon studies a patient before cutting them open. Calm. Detached. Not cruel, but unwilling to soften the truth.Victor’s voice turned harder, like he needed to hold o