2026-07-31 06:44:20The entrance fell silent.
The two security guards stared at Manager Lewis in disbelief.
One of them blinked several times, thinking he had heard wrong.
“Manager… did you just say he’s the new owner?”
Manager Lewis’s expression hardened.
“That’s exactly what I said.”
He turned to Ethan and bowed again.
“My name is Lewis Carter.”
“I’m the general manager of Golden Spoon Restaurant.”
“It’s an honor to meet you, Mr. Cole.”
Ethan nodded.
“It’s nice to meet you too.”
The two guards looked at each other.
Cold sweat formed on their foreheads.
Just a minute ago, they had mocked this young man because of his cheap clothes.
Now they found out he owned the entire restaurant.
The taller guard hurried forward.
“M-Mr. Cole…”
“I’m sorry.”
“We didn’t know.”
His voice shook as he spoke.
Ethan looked at him calmly.
“In this world, do you judge every customer by their clothes?”
The guard lowered his head.
“No, sir.”
“I made a mistake.”
“I hope you can forgive me.”
The other guard also apologized.
“We’re really sorry, Mr. Cole.”
“We promise it won’t happen again.”
Ethan remembered something.
In his previous life, people had looked down on him everywhere he went.
Restaurants.
Hotels.
Shopping malls.
Even banks.
Nobody cared about his character.
They only cared about how much money they thought he had.
He looked at the two guards for a few seconds before speaking.
“Everyone deserves respect.”
“Whether they’re rich or poor.”
“If you remember that, you won’t have this problem again.”
Both guards nodded repeatedly.
“Yes, sir.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Manager Lewis smiled.
“Mr. Cole, please come inside.”
“The management team has been waiting for you.”
Ethan followed him into the restaurant.
The moment they entered, several employees stopped working.
Waiters.
Chefs.
Receptionists.
Everyone turned to look at the young man walking beside the manager.
Some whispered quietly.
“Who is he?”
“He looks so young.”
“Is he a guest?”
Manager Lewis clapped his hands.
“Everyone, gather here.”
Within a minute, nearly thirty employees stood in the main dining hall.
Manager Lewis looked at them with a serious expression.
“I have an important announcement.”
“As of today, Golden Spoon Restaurant has a new owner.”
The employees immediately started whispering.
“What?”
“The owner sold the restaurant?”
“I didn’t hear anything about this.”
Manager Lewis raised his hand for silence.
He then turned toward Ethan.
“Allow me to introduce…”
“Mr. Ethan Cole.”
“The new owner of Golden Spoon Restaurant.”
The entire hall became quiet.
Every employee looked at Ethan in shock.
They had expected an older businessman.
Someone in his fifties.
Not a young man who looked no older than twenty-five.
A few seconds later, everyone applauded.
“Welcome, Mr. Cole.”
“Congratulations, sir.”
“We’re happy to work with you.”
Ethan smiled politely.
“Thank you.”
“I hope we’ll work well together.”
Just then, a loud voice came from the back of the hall.
“I don’t accept this.”
Everyone turned.
A man in an expensive gray suit walked toward them.
He looked to be in his forties.
His face was filled with arrogance.
Manager Lewis frowned.
“Mr. Barnes.”
“What are you doing?”
The man stopped in front of Ethan.
He looked him up and down before laughing.
“This kid is our new owner?”
“You’ve got to be joking.”
The atmosphere instantly became tense.
Manager Lewis spoke in a cold voice.
“Mr. Barnes, watch your words.”
Barnes ignored him.
He continued staring at Ethan.
“I’ve worked here for twelve years.”
“I know every part of this business.”
“And now you’re telling me I’ll be taking orders from a boy?”
Some employees lowered their heads.
They knew Barnes.
He was the restaurant’s operations director.
He was good at his job, but he was proud and difficult to work with.
Barnes folded his arms.
“Tell me, Mr. Owner.”
“Do you know anything about running a restaurant?”
Ethan remained calm.
“I’ll learn.”
Barnes laughed loudly.
“Learn?”
“This isn’t a classroom.”
“This is a business.”
“One mistake could cost millions.”
Several employees looked nervous.
Nobody expected Barnes to challenge the new owner on his first day.
Manager Lewis stepped forward.
“That’s enough.”
Barnes shook his head.
“No.”
“If he’s really the owner, then prove he deserves it.”
He pointed toward the dining area.
“This restaurant’s biggest problem is Table Twelve.”
“We’ve had a VIP customer sitting there for nearly an hour.”
“He’s angry because his food hasn’t arrived.”
“Our head chef walked out this morning.”
“None of the replacement chefs can prepare his favorite dish.”
Barnes smirked.
“If the new owner is so capable…”
“Why doesn’t he solve it?”
The employees exchanged worried looks.
Everyone knew the customer at Table Twelve.
He was one of the restaurant’s biggest investors.
If he left unhappy, Golden Spoon would lose an important business partner.
Manager Lewis looked embarrassed.
“Mr. Cole…”
“I’m sorry.”
“I was planning to tell you after the meeting.”
Ethan stayed silent for a moment.
Then the familiar voice of the system echoed inside his head.
[New Mission Activated.]
Mission: Save Golden Spoon Restaurant’s reputation.
Reward: Master Chef Skill.
Bonus Reward: $500,000.
Ethan’s eyes lit up.
A slow smile appeared on his face.
He looked at Barnes and said calmly,
“Take me to Table Twelve.”
Barnes smiled coldly.
“Good.”
“Let’s see what our new owner can do.”
Previous Chapter
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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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