Rise of the Zillionaire Star

Chapter 26: Dr. Carver Strikes Back (Setup)

The notification exploded on Jaylen’s phone like a bomb.

“TRENDING: #JaylenUnhinged - 328k Tweets in under two hours.”

He didn’t even have to open the article to know what was coming. The headline came from every entertainment blog, talk radio segment, and morning show feed, "Leaked Therapy Notes Reveal Dark Truth About Jaylen Cruz"

Several Screenshots of typed session logs were plastered all over social media. All the snippets were describing violent outbursts, severe narcissism, and delusions of musical supremacy. As Jaylen checked them out, there was one line that hit the hardest, ‘Patient believes the world will kneel before his music. Prognosis: dangerous egomania.’

Jaylen’s jaw clenched. He hadn’t spoken to Dr. Carver in almost two years, and those words had never crossed his lips.

Before he could even call Zee, the System pulsed to life in his mind.

“SYSTEM ALERT!!!

Questline Activated: Break the Mask

Objective: Expose the truth behind Dr. Carver’s fabricated notes.

Intel: Data fragments suggest the files are 100% forged. Cross-reference shows Dr. Carver’s recent transactions linked to Blake Harrington’s PR proxy.

Time Limit: 72 hours before the smear cements in public consciousness.”

Zee’s voice crackled through his earbuds before Jaylen even dialed.

“Tell me you’re not looking at that garbage right now.”

“Too late,” Jaylen muttered. “They’re everywhere.”

“That’s because it’s coordinated. Look at the timestamps from the three gossip blogs, one cable network, and two verified music insiders. They all dropped the leak within ten minutes. That’s a PR blitz.”

Jaylen slammed his water bottle onto the counter. “And Carver just went along with it?”

“Not just went along,” Zee said grimly. “The System’s digging shows he got paid. Offshore account, Mauritius Bank and transfer came from an LLC tied to Harrington Media. Blake’s fingerprints are all over this.”

The betrayal hit harder than expected. Dr. Carver had been the one person Jaylen had confided in back when the eviction happened and when the world thought he was a washed-up wannabe. And now? The man was cashing checks to call him unstable.

“Then I’ll bury him deep to the ground,” Jaylen said flatly.

By noon, talk show hosts were dissecting Jaylen's mental instability with smug sympathy. Clips of old performances were being replayed with dramatic voiceovers about erratic behavior.

One morning panelist smirked, “You can see the signs. Look at how he grips the mic stand here, like he’s about to snap it.

Jaylen switched off the TV before the System had to remind him his blood pressure was spiking.

The problem wasn’t just the lie. It was how believable it would seem to people who had only seen him as a song artist. In a business where perception ruled, instability was a career poison.

Zee was already pacing in front of three screens when Jaylen walked in. On one display, she had the forged notes side-by-side with his real archived sessions. On another, there was a financial trace line crawling across a world map and ending in a bright red dot over a Caribbean account.

“The first move is public pushback,” she said. “We have to release a statement calling the notes fake, and demand a retraction.”

Jaylen shook his head. “That’s defense. I’m done playing defense. We hit him before he can spin this into a crusade.”

Zee smirked. “Good. Because Dr. Carver just booked himself a prime-time interview tomorrow night on The Spotlight Hour. You know what that means.”

“That he wants to go viral,” Jaylen said.

“That we’ve got twenty-four hours to hijack his narrative,” Zee corrected.

The System chimed again, “Optional Sub-Quest Unlocked. "Record the Truth" – Capture Dr. Carver admitting the fabrication. Reward: +2 PR Nodes, +1 Talent, unlocks Crisis Immunity passive.”

Jaylen leaned over the desk. “How do we get him to slip?”

Zee tapped a key, pulling up a video feed from a security cam outside Carver’s clinic. “He’s predictable. He goes to the same coffee shop every morning at 8:15. He always sits alone, checks emails, and calls his lawyer. We will plant the bait. Something he can’t resist reacting to.”

Jaylen’s eyes narrowed. “Bait like what?” He asked.

“A fake text leak from Blake saying he underpaid Carver. The System can spoof it to look real. Then we catch his reaction on camera.”

It was risky. If Carver caught on, they would lose their shot and he would double down on the smear. But if it worked… everything will spin right in their favor.

“Do it,” Jaylen said with flinching.

The next morning, 8 AM. Jaylen sat two tables away. His hoodie shoved backwards and his coffee untouched. Zee’s phone fed him a live transcription from the System’s mic feed.

Carver entered, ordered his usual chai latte, and took his seat. The System pinged Zee’s signal, the “underpayment” text had just been sent.

Carver’s brows knit together. “Underpaid? Are you kidding me?” he muttered under his breath, already dialing a number.

Jaylen’s pulse quickened.

“Yeah, Blake, it’s me,” Carver said quietly, glancing around. “Listen, that wasn’t the deal. You said thirty-five, not twenty-five. I put my neck out. I falsified everything for you.”

Bingo!

Zee’s eyes lit up from her booth across the room. The System flagged the audio as evidence-grade.

By noon, Jaylen had the clip trimmed and watermarked. But releasing it immediately would be too easy. They needed the maximum sting.

“Hold it,” Jaylen told Zee. “We will drop it while he is live on Spotlight Hour tonight.”

“You want to nuke him on air?” See expressed wildly.

“Exactly.” Jaylen replied with a nod.

In the evening at the studio Lobby around 8:47 PM

Jaylen didn’t have an invite to the taping, but Zee had secured him a “technical consultant” badge. The studio buzzed with different sets of people like producers, interns, and makeup artists darted between dressing rooms.

Inside, Dr. Carver was already in the hot seat with smiles on his face and a faux concern.

“I cared about Jaylen,” Carver told the host. “But when a patient starts talking about dominating the industry, about silencing rivals… you have to warn people.”

The host nodded solemnly. “You believe he’s dangerous?”

Carver leaned forward. “Absolutely.”

Zee’s text came through, “Drop in 3… 2… 1…”

The studio screens behind Carver flickered and suddenly, his own voice filled the air. Everyone was in shock. ‘What’s that?’ Dr Carva muttered.

The voice played, “I put my neck out. I falsified everything for you.”

The audience gasped. The host’s jaw fell open.

Carver’s face was drained of color. “That’s… That’s not…”

Jaylen stepped into the wings, just far enough for the cameras to catch his figure.

The System’s quest tracker blinked in his vision, “Objective Progress: 85%.”

Security moved in as producers shouted, and the feed cut to an emergency commercial break.

But the damage was done. Within minutes, T*****r was ablaze with split-screen clips of Carver’s live denial and the incriminating audio.

The hashtag, #CarverCancelled was climbing.

……….

…..

Back in the alley behind the studio, Jaylen exhaled slowly, the night air was cold against his skin.

Zee handed him her phone, the headlines were already updating in real-time.

“You’ve got maybe twelve hours before Blake makes his next move,” she said.

Jaylen’s eyes hardened. “Then we will hit first.”

The system buzzed in, “SYSTEM UPDATE!

Questline Break the Mask — Stage 1 Complete.

Rewards: +2 PR Nodes, +1 Talent.

Next Objective: “Expose the Mastermind.”

Time Limit: 48 hours.”

Zee’s phone buzzed with a live feed alert. Blake’s private account had just posted a mysterious message:

“Tomorrow night, the world learns who Jaylen Cruz really is.”