SUPREME TYCOON SYSTEM

Chapter 5: Phoenix Citadel Mall, Here I Come!

Chapter 5: Phoenix Citadel Mall, Here I Come!

That night, Viraj Agnihotri had returned to the office to collect several important files.

The entire building was almost empty. Most of the lights had been switched off, and a deep silence surrounded him.

Only the cabin inside the Administration Department remained illuminated.

As Viraj approached the cabin, he heard the company owner shouting from inside—

“If you refuse to listen to me, there will be no place for you in this company starting tomorrow!”

At the time, even Viraj had thought that the rumors circulating throughout the office might be true.

But what the owner said a few seconds later revealed the whole truth.

“You haven’t eaten anything since morning. You’ve worked late into the night for four consecutive days!”

“If you continue ruining your health like this, I’ll force you to take leave.”

“I’m your cousin. I cannot stand by and watch you become sick before my eyes.”

The company’s owner was actually Ananya Kapoor’s cousin.

He had not been threatening to dismiss Ananya. He had been ordering her to stop working and go home.

However, Ananya was not even in a condition to rise from her chair.

A short while later, the company owner left the cabin to answer an important phone call.

He saw Viraj standing in the corridor, but hurried toward the elevator without saying anything.

Viraj looked through the cabin’s small glass window.

Ananya was hunched over her desk.

One of her hands was pressed against her stomach, and faint groans of pain escaped her lips.

Her face had turned pale, and tiny beads of sweat covered her forehead.

She was in considerable pain.

It was already quite late.

A man and woman being alone in an empty office might have appeared inappropriate, but after seeing Ananya’s condition, Viraj could not ignore her.

He gently knocked on the door.

“Ananya Ma’am?”

Ananya raised her head with difficulty.

“Viraj? What are you still doing here?

“I came to collect some important files.”

He immediately approached her.

“You don’t look well. What happened? It’s nothing serious.”

Ananya attempted to appear normal.

“My stomach hurts a little. I’ll feel better after resting for a while.”

Viraj glanced at her desk.

Two empty coffee cups and several files were lying there, but there was no food.

“Did you have dinner?”

Ananya did not answer.

Her silence was an answer enough.

“Have you eaten anything since morning?”

“I ate a little in the afternoon.”

Viraj frowned.

“If you work for so many hours on an empty stomach while drinking coffee, stomach pain is inevitable.”

“I’ll take you to the hospital.”

“No.”

Ananya refused immediately.

“There is no need to go to the hospital. I have experienced this pain before. It will subside shortly.”

“But your condition doesn’t look good.”

“I told you not to worry.”

Ananya gestured for him to leave.

“Take your files and go home. I’ll call my driver after a while.”

Viraj stepped back, but even after leaving the cabin, his conscience would not allow him to walk away.

We work in the same office.

Now that I’ve seen her suffering like this, how can I leave her alone?

Ananya was unwilling to visit the hospital.

Unable to think of another solution, Viraj went downstairs and ran toward a nearby pharmacy.

He explained Ananya’s condition to the pharmacist and purchased omeprazole for her acidity and stomach pain.

He also bought a light meal and a bottle of water.

A short while later, he returned to the cabin.

“You still haven’t left?”

Ananya asked weakly.

“Please take the medicine first.”

Viraj placed the water bottle and medicine before her.

“But don’t take it on a completely empty stomach. I brought some light food as well.”

Ananya stared at him for several moments.

Perhaps she had not expected an ordinary colleague to remain there for so long merely to help her.

Without arguing, she took the medicine.

After resting for a while, her pain gradually began to subside.

Seeing color return to her face, Viraj breathed a sigh of relief.

“How are you feeling now?”

“Much better than before.”

Ananya leaned back against her chair.

“Thank you, Viraj. If you hadn’t come tonight, I might have remained in this condition all night.”

“There is no need to thank me. We work in the same office.”

“Everyone who works in an office is a colleague, but not everyone would help someone like this.”

A faint smile appeared on Ananya’s face.

Perhaps that small act of kindness had created a special place for Viraj in her heart.

The distance between them diminished that night.

To distract herself from the lingering pain, Ananya initiated a conversation with Viraj.

During that conversation, Viraj learned several things about her that none of the other employees knew.

The Truth About Ananya

Ananya was not some beautiful woman who had been handed a senior position solely because of personal connections.

She had graduated from one of the country’s prestigious management institutes.

After completing her education, she worked for several years in her family’s company.

She possessed considerable experience in human resources, procurement, and company administration.

She had also been married before.

But the marriage had failed.

After divorcing her former husband and enduring numerous difficulties in her personal life, she had distanced herself from her family business for some time.

That was when her cousin offered her the position of Administration Head in his company.

Ananya accepted the job.

However, no one in the office knew about her familial relationship with the owner.

Therefore, when she began working directly in a senior position, people started spreading rumors about her.

Some considered her nothing more than a beautiful face.

Others claimed that she had risen so high not because of her capabilities, but because of the company owner’s support.

Ananya knew about all those rumors.

But she never tried to defend herself.

She believed that the truth did not need to be proven before everyone.

If she continued performing her duties honestly and competently, the results would eventually reveal the truth themselves.

Viraj admired that way of thinking.

It was only natural to respect a woman who continued working in silence instead of allowing rumors to break her.

After that night, their relationship improved.

Inside the office, they maintained professional distance.

Ananya was his senior, while Viraj was an ordinary employee.

But outside the office, they occasionally chatted on W******p.

If Viraj arrived a few minutes late for a valid reason and risked losing his perfect attendance bonus for the entire month, Ananya would correct the erroneous attendance entry within company rules.

In return, Viraj helped her with small office tasks.

Sometimes, he prepared a report.

Sometimes, he delivered an important file.

At other times, he fixed a minor computer problem.

Over time, a good friendship developed between them.

But their relationship remained limited to friendship.

At that time, Riya was still part of Viraj’s life.

Therefore, he had never looked at Ananya with improper intentions.

Furthermore, he had always believed that a beautiful, intelligent, and successful woman like Ananya was far beyond his reach.

She was a senior manager.

She came from a good family.

She wore expensive clothes and travelled in a luxury car.

Viraj, on the other hand, was an ordinary employee earning a limited monthly salary.

His only reason for maintaining a good relationship with Ananya had been to make his office life slightly easier and receive help whenever necessary.

Ananya was also an intelligent and mature woman.

She had already been hurt in love and endured the pain of divorce.

She was not a naive young woman who would lose her senses merely because she saw a handsome man.

People often said that love did not distinguish between wealth and poverty.

If two people liked one another, then differences in social standing should not matter.

But real life was not that simple.

In adult relationships and marriages, family, money, responsibilities, and social status always play important roles.

Love could be beautiful.

But when there was not enough money to sustain everyday life, love became like a soap bubble—beautiful from the outside, yet fragile enough to burst at the slightest difficulty.

Now, however, the situation was different.

As the saying went—

Money straightened a man’s back.

Viraj now possessed ₹4,053,000, and the Do-As-You-Please System continued granting him rewards.

The arrival of wealth had not changed only his bank balance.

His mentality was also changing rapidly.

In the past, he had worried about everything—

What will people say about me?

What will happen if I lose my job?

If Riya leaves me, who will marry me?

If I spend money on myself, how will I pay for the wedding?

But now, he no longer needed to live in fear or consider every step so cautiously.

He looked again at Ananya, who was seated inside the glass cabin.

She held a coffee cup in one hand while examining a report on her computer.

Viraj thought—

No one could guess from looking at her that she had already been married once.

He immediately stopped himself.

Why am I thinking about her that way?

But in the next moment, a faint smile appeared on his lips.

Because I’m single now.

5:30 P.M.

Office hours had ended.

Viraj shut down his computer, cleaned his desk, and rose to leave.

Seeing him stand, Rakesh Sharma emerged from his cabin.

“Viraj, where are you going?”

“Home.”

Viraj answered casually.

Rakesh frowned.

“Can’t you see that everyone else is working overtime?”

Viraj surveyed the office.

Several employees remained seated in their chairs, but most of them were watching the clock instead of working.

They were also staying only because they feared Rakesh.

“I’ve completed all my work for today.”

Viraj said, “If my work is finished, why should I remain here for overtime?”

“The rest of the team is working. You should stay as well.”

“If you have unfinished work, then you can work overtime.”

Viraj picked up his bag.

“I will not stay.”

“And if you have a problem with that, ask the company to dismiss me.”

He smiled challengingly.

“If you have the courage, call Human Resources right now.”

“You…”

Rakesh’s words became trapped in his throat again.

The same situation!

He wanted to reprimand Viraj, but the threat of dismissal no longer worked on him.

Rakesh could not understand where Viraj’s sudden confidence had come from.

Viraj did not wait for his response.

He became the first person to leave the office.

The remaining employees secretly gave him a thumbs-up as he departed.

“Brother has done something incredible again.”

“How did the quietest man in the office suddenly become a lion?”

“It seems he lost all his fear after the wedding was cancelled.”

“I wish I possessed that kind of courage.”

Watching everything from her glass cabin, Ananya smiled.

He has completely liberated himself since cancelling his wedding.

She carefully observed the confidence that had awakened within Viraj.

The Idea of Buying a Car

After leaving the office building, Viraj booked a premium cab.

Within minutes, a brand-new Audi A6 stopped before him.

“Not a bad car.”

As soon as the rear door opened, Viraj climbed inside.

Seated comfortably, he carefully examined the interior.

Premium leather seats.

A large display screen.

Soft ambient lighting.

An excellent sound system.

Once the car started moving, outside noise almost completely disappeared from the cabin.

For the first time, Viraj considered purchasing a car of his own.

I never even thought about buying a car before because I didn’t have enough money.

But now, I should seriously consider it.

Booking a cab every time I need to travel isn’t practical. I should have a car for daily use.

Viraj had possessed a driving license for six years.

However, he had barely driven since obtaining it.

His family had never owned a car, and his salary had not been high enough for him to purchase one.

My license is six years old, but my actual driving experience is nearly zero.

I’ll have to practice for several days before buying a car.

The driver was approximately forty-five years old.

He had driven premium cabs for years and encountered numerous wealthy customers.

But at first glance, Viraj did not appear wealthy.

His clothes were extremely ordinary.

Neither his shoes looked expensive nor was there a luxury watch on his wrist.

There was not a single designer brand on his body that revealed his wealth.

And by designer brands, the driver did not mean ordinary sportswear companies.

In his eyes, genuinely wealthy people wore clothes, shoes, and watches worth hundreds of thousands of rupees.

Even so, one thing was certain—

Viraj possessed money.

Otherwise, he would not have booked a premium Audi cab.

More importantly—

His destination was Indore’s most famous luxury shopping center—

Phoenix Citadel Mall.

Ordinary people certainly visited the mall, but they thought several times before entering its luxury-brand section.

A single shirt there could cost more than an ordinary person’s entire monthly salary.

The driver thought—

Perhaps this young man is extremely wealthy but dislikes showing off.

He isn’t like other rich young men these days.

Phoenix Citadel Mall

Approximately half an hour later, the Audi stopped before the main entrance of Phoenix Citadel Mall.

The driver stepped out and opened the door for Viraj.

Viraj exited the car and gazed at the magnificent building before him.

Enormous glass walls.

Dazzling lights.

Luxury cars parked outside.

People dressed in expensive clothes entered through the main gates.

The entire place appeared to symbolize wealth and luxury.

Viraj had lived in Indore for many years.

He had heard the mall’s name countless times but had never visited it for shopping.

His former colleagues often joked—

If your monthly salary is below ₹50,000, don’t ruin your heart by looking at the price tags inside luxury stores.

Viraj had once believed that statement.

Entering a store, examining the products, and leaving empty-handed because of their prices felt humiliating to him.

But today, his bank account contained ₹4,053,000.

He took a deep breath as he looked at the mall.

“Today, I’ll discover how wealthy people shop.”

He had not come with any grand plan.

After suddenly gaining wealth, he first wanted to upgrade the ordinary necessities of his life—

Clothes.

Food.

Home.

And transportation.

As far as housing was concerned, ₹4,000,000 could purchase a good apartment in Indore.

But Viraj already had an apartment in which to live.

His next major desire was to purchase a villa.

However, the kind of luxurious villa he now wanted for himself and his mother would cost far more than ₹4,000,000.

Therefore, he temporarily abandoned the idea of purchasing a new home.

He also intended to buy a car soon.

But before that, he wanted to replace his wardrobe.

Viraj looked down at his simple shirt.

He had purchased it for ₹700 during a discount sale.

His trousers were also nearly two years old.

The edges of his shoes had begun developing small cracks.

People said that clothes could transform a person’s identity.

Now that I have more than four million rupees in my account, I can at least purchase some good clothes.

Excitement appeared on Viraj’s face.

“Phoenix Citadel Mall, here I come!”

A New World of Luxury

The moment Viraj entered the mall, he felt as though he had stepped into another world.

Shining floors.

High ceilings.

The fragrance of expensive perfumes.

Decorative lights.

Enormous stores and English brand names everywhere.

Viraj had heard of some of the brands before, but many were entirely unfamiliar to him.

He did not even know which brands were famous for clothes, shoes, or handbags.

He had never paid attention to luxury brands before.

What was the point of learning about such things when he had no money to purchase them?

Riya must have known all about them.

She frequently spent her free time browsing the internet for bags, shoes, and jewelry from these very brands.

Purchasing many of those things had been her dream.

I worked day and night for three years, but I still couldn’t fulfill her desires.

Viraj fell silent for several moments.

Today, I can afford these things, but she is no longer part of my life.

He released a faint sigh.

Perhaps this was fate.

Our journey together was destined to end here.

Viraj reached the mall’s ground floor.

He did not feel like exploring the upper floors.

For now, he decided to purchase a good outfit from the ground floor.

However, he did not know one common rule of luxury malls—

The most expensive stores were often located on the ground floor.

The spaces near the main entrance were the most important and expensive.

Stores offering more affordable products became increasingly common on the higher floors.

Unaware of this, Viraj continued walking casually.

Sometimes he examined a suit displayed in a shop window.

At other times, his gaze fell upon a gleaming watch.

After walking for a while, he finally saw a luxury brand whose name he recognized—

Gucci.

Riya had shown him pictures of this brand’s handbags numerous times.

“Buy me this bag someday.”

She would say it jokingly.

But whenever Viraj saw the price, he changed the subject.

Today, for the first time, he stood before a Gucci store.

Without thinking too much, he stepped inside.

“Hello, sir. Welcome to Gucci.”The moment Viraj entered, a beautiful sales associate approached him with a smile.

Her uniform was clean and professional. Her expression was courteous, and her manner displayed complete confidence.

She introduced herself with a slight bow.

“My name is Kavya Sharma. I’m a sales associate here.”

“Please tell me how I may assist you.”

Viraj looked down at his simple clothes and then at Kavya, who had welcomed him so enthusiastically.

Mild surprise appeared on his face.

I expected the staff to mock my ordinary clothes, just like in stories and movies.

I thought someone might assume I was poor and ask me to leave the store.

But nothing like that happened.

Kavya continued waiting for his response with a professional smile.

Viraj surveyed the store.

Then he confidently said, “I need a completely new look.”

“Everything from clothes to shoes.”

Kavya’s eyes lit up.

“Certainly, sir.”

“Do you have a specific budget?”

Viraj thought for several moments.

Until only a few days ago, spending ₹5,000 on clothes would have felt like an enormous expense.

But today, he possessed the Do-As-You-Please System.

And at this moment, he had absolutely no desire to look at price tags.

He looked into Kavya’s eyes and said, “Don’t worry about the budget.”

“Just show me everything that will look best on me.”

Kavya’s professional smile deepened.

But in another corner of the store, someone suddenly stopped upon seeing Viraj.

He had recognized him.

And a mocking smile appeared on his face.

Writer’s Note

This chapter revealed the truth behind the rumors surrounding Ananya Kapoor.

The company’s owner is her cousin, and he was not harassing her. He was merely worried about her deteriorating health. Ananya is an experienced and highly capable senior manager who graduated from a prestigious management institute.

Viraj and Ananya’s friendship began on the night when Viraj brought medicine and food after finding her suffering from severe stomach pain.

In the present, Viraj once again refused to perform unpaid overtime. He then seriously considered purchasing his first car and transforming his simple lifestyle.

He arrived at Phoenix Citadel Mall to purchase new clothes and entered a Gucci store.

Viraj’s Current Status

[Name: Viraj Agnihotri]

[Mother: Sunita Agnihotri]

[Former Fiancée: Riya Malhotra]

[Administration Head: Ananya Kapoor]

[Manager: Rakesh Sharma]

[Gucci Sales Associate: Kavya Sharma]

[Current Bank Balance: ₹4,053,000]

[System: Do-As-You-Please System]

[Next Desire: A new luxury look and a personal car]

[Shopping Budget: Not yet determined]

[New Situation: An old acquaintance has recognized Viraj inside the Gucci store]

Viraj is about to experience luxury shopping without worrying about prices for the first time.

But who is the person who recognized him inside the store?

Will that person mock Viraj’s ordinary clothes?

And when Viraj begins shopping according to his desires, how great will the system’s reward be?

Viraj’s first luxury shopping spree—and a new confrontation—will begin in the next chapter.