Marcus believed the beads. This stone wasn’t random—it contained something powerful, something the bracelet recognized as pure gem energy. He could feel it calling to himm Ignoring the growing mockery, “I really want this,” he declared calmly, his voice steady despite the tension crackling in the air. Sancho’s laughter echoed through . “! Still proving stubborn ehn. You don’t want to admit you are just a pure novice? I can bet that stone contains nothing. I don’t even know why I’m wasting my breath telling you this, poor fool.” Marcus turned to face him directly, eyes locking with Sancho’s in a challenge. “You sure it contains nothing?” Sancho puffed out his chest, his malicious grin widening. “One hundred percent! Even if it contains something at all, maybe just some little worthless gem that won’t even cover your losses. Because that stone right there? It’s two million dollars to buy. Two million! You’d be throwing your life away on a shiny rock that’s probably hollow inside.

Sancho nearly wet himself.His eyes bulged so wide they looked ready to burst from their sockets as his scream echoed through the gemstone shop. His entire body trembled violently, but after a few seconds, he suddenly realized something was wrong.There was no pain.His eyes slowly drifted downward, only to discover the knife buried deep into the wooden counter barely an inch away from his fingers.Sancho instantly sucked in a huge breath and collapsed against the counter in relief. Cold sweat soaked his expensive shirt as his heart pounded wildly inside his chest. He had genuinely believed he was about to lose a finger.Marcus looked at him with an expressionless face. "Consider this your warning. If I ever hear that you threatened Julia into marrying you again, I won't miss next time."He then pointed at Sapphire."And you. Stay away from her too. Don't ever come back here to harass or disturb her."Sancho nodded repeatedly like a frightened chicken."Y-Yes... yes. I understand. Ple

"Aww... you know my name?" Sancho laughed mockingly over the phone. "I'm flattered." Marcus' face darkened. "How the hell did you get Jessica's phone?" he demanded. "Where is she?" Before Sancho could answer, a terrified scream echoed through the speaker. "Marcuuuus!" Jessica's voice was filled with panic. "What the heck have you done now? Tell him we're not a couple anymore! We broke up! I have nothing to do with him!" Marcus frowned in confusion. "Wait... you abducted Jessica?" Sancho's laughter turned cold. "You think you can humiliate me like that? Threaten me? And I'll just let you walk away?" Marcus clenched his jaw. "Look, you're making a huge mistake. Jessica and I broke up a long time ago. She has nothing to do with me anymore. Just let her go." "Oh?" Sancho sneered. "So you really don't care about her?". He paused for a second before saying casually, "Then I guess I'll just kill her." Suddenly Jessica let out another piercing scream. "They... they just pointed

Sancho's eyes remained glued to the screen. The smug expression that had covered his face only moments ago slowly disappeared, replaced by utter disbelief. Every major news outlet was carrying the same headline.It had become the biggest breaking news in the entire city. According to every report, AQSA Group was only one step away from complete bankruptcy after a massive leak exposed thousands of confidential company documents to the public. Files that should have remained locked away inside the company's highest security servers were now circulating freely across the internet. Internal financial reports, confidential agreements were spreading faster than anyone could delete them. His heartbeat accelerated when another headline caught his attention. The secret offshore accounts that AQSA had spent years hiding had also been exposed. The account numbers, login credentials, passwords, security questions, and every detail required to access them had somehow found their way onto the int

Marcus frowned slightly, sounding genuinely confused. "Behind all what?"Jessica took a deep breath before speaking. "AQSA. The entire company has collapsed. They suddenly went bankrupt, and from the timing of everything, I just wanted to ask... are you the one behind it?"Marcus couldn't help but scoff."Jessica, how could I possibly be behind something like that?" he asked with a helpless laugh. "You're talking about one of the biggest companies around. Do you really think someone like me could bring down Mr. Derek's entire empire overnight?". Jessica became silent.When she thought about it carefully, she realized how ridiculous her question sounded.Marcus struggled just to make a living.How could someone like him possibly bring down a business empire worth billions?It simply wasn't possible.Marcus' voice softened."Anyway, Hope you are okay?"Jessica quickly snapped out of her thoughts."No... no, don't mind me." She forced out an awkward smile even though Marcus couldn't see