2026-07-31 06:50:29The expensive crystal glass slipped from Ryan Crawford’s hand and shattered across the marble floor.
Red wine spread like blood.
Ryan didn’t even look at it.
His eyes were fixed on his phone.
“What did you just say?”
Barnes swallowed.
“The new owner of Golden Spoon Restaurant is Ethan Cole.”
Ryan’s face darkened.
“That’s impossible.”
“I saw him this morning.”
“He was still riding that broken delivery bike.”
“How could he suddenly own a restaurant worth millions?”
“I don’t know,” Barnes admitted.
“But Manager Lewis personally introduced him.”
“The ownership documents have already been transferred.”
Ryan remained silent.
His mind raced.
This wasn’t supposed to happen.
According to his plan, Ethan should still be a poor fool, working day and night just to survive.
Instead…
He had become the owner of one of the city’s most famous restaurants.
Ryan clenched his jaw.
“Keep watching him.”
“I want to know everything he does.”
“Who he meets.”
“Where he goes.”
“And most importantly…”
“I want to know where he got the money.”
Barnes nodded even though Ryan couldn’t see him.
“I understand.”
The call ended.
Ryan slowly looked out the floor-to-ceiling window of his office.
The city stretched before him.
For the first time in years…
He felt uneasy.
Something had changed.
And he hated not knowing what it was.
…
Meanwhile…
Golden Spoon Restaurant.
The atmosphere had completely changed.
The employees, who had been worried only an hour earlier, were now smiling.
Some customers even asked if the young owner could prepare another dish.
Manager Lewis laughed awkwardly.
“I’m afraid Mr. Cole has other responsibilities.”
One customer smiled.
“If he ever cooks again, let us know.”
“We’ll make a reservation.”
Everyone laughed.
Ethan politely thanked the customers before walking back toward the manager’s office with Lewis.
The moment the office door closed, Lewis let out a long sigh of relief.
“I thought today would be a disaster.”
“So did I,” Ethan admitted.
Lewis smiled.
“But you surprised everyone.”
“I’ve managed this restaurant for fifteen years.”
“I’ve seen many owners come and go.”
“But none of them ever walked into the kitchen themselves.”
Ethan sat down.
“I couldn’t let our first day end in failure.”
Lewis nodded.
“I’ve already informed the staff.”
“Morale has never been this high.”
He opened a folder and placed several documents on the desk.
“Mr. Cole, these are the restaurant’s financial reports.”
“You should have them.”
Ethan picked up the first file.
The moment he opened it…
The Master Business Management Skill activated automatically.
Numbers that would have looked confusing only hours ago suddenly became clear.
Income.
Expenses.
Profit margins.
Supplier contracts.
Employee salaries.
Everything made perfect sense.
Within a few minutes, Ethan finished reading the reports.
Lewis looked surprised.
“You’re done already?”
“Yes.”
Lewis smiled politely.
“If there’s anything you don’t understand, I can explain.”
Ethan closed the folder.
“I understand everything.”
Lewis looked doubtful.
“Everything?”
Ethan nodded.
“I’ve already noticed three problems.”
Lewis blinked.
“Three?”
“The seafood supplier is charging us almost fifteen percent above the market price.”
Lewis’s smile disappeared.
Ethan continued.
“We’re also wasting too much food because inventory isn’t being tracked properly.”
Lewis slowly leaned forward.
“And the third?”
“The VIP membership program.”
Lewis frowned.
“What about it?”
“It hasn’t changed in five years.”
“Customers have no reason to stay loyal.”
Silence filled the office.
Lewis stared at Ethan.
Everything he had mentioned…
Was correct.
The management team had been discussing those exact issues for months.
Yet this young man had discovered them in less than ten minutes.
Lewis couldn’t hide his shock.
“Mr. Cole…”
“Have you really never managed a restaurant before?”
Ethan smiled.
“This is my first one.”
Lewis laughed.
“I almost don’t believe you.”
Before Ethan could reply, someone knocked on the office door.
“Come in.”
A receptionist entered.
“Mr. Lewis.”
“There’s a young woman asking to see Mr. Cole.”
Ethan looked confused.
“Me?”
“Yes.”
“She said her name is Sophia Bennett.”
Ethan smiled.
“I’ll see her.”
…
A few moments later…
Sophia stood in the restaurant lobby.
She had changed out of her college clothes and was now wearing a light blue dress with a white cardigan.
She looked simple but elegant.
The moment she saw Ethan, she smiled.
“I hope I’m not disturbing you.”
“Not at all.”
“What brings you here?”
She held up a small paper bag.
“You left this at the jewelry store.”
Ethan looked inside.
His eyes widened.
It was the watch he had bought after receiving the system’s money.
In all the excitement, he had completely forgotten it.
“I can’t believe I left it behind.”
Sophia smiled.
“The store called me because I was the last customer there.”
“They remembered we left together.”
“So I offered to bring it.”
Ethan laughed.
“Looks like I owe you another thank-you.”
“You already thanked me.”
“But I still owe you lunch.”
Ethan smiled.
“I remember.”
Sophia looked around the restaurant.
“It’s beautiful.”
“I’ve always wanted to eat here.”
Ethan looked at her for a moment.
Then he smiled.
“How about today?”
She waved her hands quickly.
“No, no.”
“It’s too expensive.”
“I can’t afford it.”
Ethan chuckled.
“You don’t have to.”
Sophia tilted her head.
“What do you mean?”
Before Ethan could answer, Manager Lewis walked over.
He smiled politely at Sophia.
“Good afternoon, Miss.”
Sophia smiled back.
“Good afternoon.”
Lewis then looked at Ethan.
“Mr. Cole, should I prepare your private dining room?”
Sophia froze.
She slowly turned toward Ethan.
“Private… dining room?”
Lewis nodded naturally.
“Of course.”
“It’s reserved for the owner.”
Sophia’s eyes widened.
She looked at Ethan in disbelief.
“You…”
“You really own this restaurant?”
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Chapter 109: Legacy Reawakened
The blue screen flickered.It was unstable.Unlike the flawless interface Ethan had relied on throughout his journey, this one was fractured.Tiny cracks spread across its edges as though the system itself had suffered tremendous damage.The familiar mechanical voice spoke again.It was weaker than Ethan remembered.Yet…He smiled.After everything that had happened…It still sounded like home.Legacy System…Emergency Restoration… 7% Complete…Warning… Core functions unavailable…Reason… Legacy sacrificed during the Final Convergence…Ethan’s heart pounded.“So…”“You survived.”The screen remained silent for a moment.Then…A new sentence appeared.Correction…This unit did not survive.This unit… was remembered.The words struck him harder than any attack ever could.Remembered.Not rebuilt.Not repaired.Remembered.The blue screen slowly continued.Human belief…Shared memories…Legacy fragments carried within countless lives…Emergency reconstruction successful.Ethan finally un
Chapter 108: The Sky Breaker
The crack spread across the blue sky.It didn’t happen all at once.Thin fractures crawled outward like veins across glass, stretching from one horizon to the other.Each new crack released a faint silver light.The peaceful meadow beneath Ethan’s feet trembled.Birds that had been singing moments before suddenly took flight.The gentle breeze vanished.An unnatural silence swallowed the world.Ren’s small hand instinctively reached for Ethan’s.His fingers were trembling.“They found us.”Ethan looked down.“Who?”Ren swallowed.“The ones who don’t want us remembered.”Another deafening roar echoed overhead.This time…It was closer.The sky shattered a little more.Chunks of blue light drifted downward before dissolving into countless glowing particles.Ethan had seen worlds collapse before.He had watched stars disappear.Yet…There was something uniquely terrifying about watching the sky itself come apart.Not because it looked destructive.Because it looked…Wrong.Like reality w
Chapter 107: The First Face
Every step echoed inside Ethan’s helmet.Crunch.Crunch.Crunch.The lunar dust compressed beneath his boots as he followed the countless footprints stretching toward the enormous black doorway.Mission Control remained connected through his communicator.“Ethan, your oxygen levels are stable.”“Heart rate elevated, but within acceptable limits.”Dr. Brooks’ calm voice filled the silence.Professor Orion spoke next.“Distance to the structure: four hundred meters.”“Proceed carefully.”“I will.”Ethan answered.He never took his eyes off the doorway.The closer he came…The larger it became.From orbit it had looked massive.Standing beneath it…It was overwhelming.It rose into the endless darkness above him like a mountain carved from midnight.Its surface reflected nothing.Not sunlight.Not stars.Not even Ethan himself.It was as though the doorway refused to acknowledge reality.Back on Earth…Sophia stood inside Mission Control.Her hands remained folded tightly together.She h
Chapter 106: The Man Who Walked Through Silence
By sunrise…Ethan had made his decision.He would go.Not because he trusted the beings beyond the black doorway.Not because he believed they meant no harm.But because he had seen something in the message that no one else seemed willing to acknowledge.They had asked.Twice.First…May we speak?Then…One may come.An enemy didn’t ask permission.An enemy simply invaded.Whatever waited beyond that door…It wanted to be heard.Whether that was a blessing or a trap…Only one way existed to find out.The launch facility came alive before dawn.Floodlights illuminated the enormous launch pad while engineers hurried around the silver shuttle.Unlike the bulky spacecraft used during the early years of space exploration…This one had been built after the Seven Days.Human technology had advanced dramatically with knowledge recovered from the Architects.Its engines were cleaner.Its shields stronger.Its navigation system could cross the distance between Earth and the Moon in less than th
Chapter 105: The Invitation
No one celebrated.Although the footprints had stopped appearing…Although the black doorway had remained closed…Not a single person inside Mission Control believed the danger had passed.If anything…The silence felt heavier.It was the silence of two strangers looking at one another across a great distance.Waiting.Wondering who would speak next.Dr. Elena Brooks stood beside the communications console, replaying Ethan’s transmission.“My name is Ethan.”“You asked if you could speak.”“You can.”She listened to it three more times before finally muting the speakers.“I’ve worked in aerospace for seventeen years.”She slowly shook her head.“I spent my entire career preparing for first contact.”She smiled weakly.“I never imagined it would begin with… permission.”Professor Orion nodded.“Neither did I.”Hours passed.The black doorway did not move.The Moon remained quiet.Scientists continued monitoring every satellite, every telescope, and every sensor aimed toward the far sid
Chapter 104: Beyond the Black Door
The three knocks echoed through Mission Control.Slow.Steady.Deliberate.Every person in the room froze.No one spoke.No one breathed.The sound wasn’t coming from the speakers anymore.It seemed to resonate through the walls themselves.Three knocks…Yet it felt as though something enormous had struck the fabric of reality.Then…Silence.Emergency lights flickered back to life.Rows of monitors rebooted one after another.Technicians hurried to their stations.“Power is returning!”“I’m reconnecting to the lunar station!”“Signal stabilizing!”Dr. Elena Brooks leaned over one of the consoles.“Get me visual confirmation.”The largest monitor flashed.Static filled the screen.Then the image cleared.Everyone stared.The giant black doorway still stood on the Moon’s far side.Exactly where it had been before.Silent.Motionless.Almost…Innocent.Kai slowly let out the breath he had been holding.“I hate doors.”Lyra looked at him.“You hate everything.”“I especially hate mysteri
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