2025-06-23 04:14:22The moment Aiden stepped into the back seat of the sleek black car, the door closed with a soft click, like the shutting of an old life, Inside, the vehicle was nothing like the world he came from. Soft leather seats, scent of cedarwood and luxury cologne, a touchscreen embedded in the panel beside him. A minibar. Ambient lighting.
Aiden sank into the seat, his mind racing. “Where are we going?” he asked after a long silence. Whitmore, seated across from him, adjusted his cufflinks without looking up. “To Remington Estate. Your primary residence as of ten minutes ago.”
Aiden blinked. “You’re serious. This isn’t a prank? A reality show? Something with hidden cameras?” The woman beside Whitmore turned slightly. She had sharp eyes, dark red lipstick, and a presence that demanded attention.
“Do we look like YouTubers to you?” she asked flatly. “My name is Evelyn Zhao. I’m your legal counsel. You’ll be working with me extensively.”
“Legal counsel?” Aiden repeated. “Wait… what exactly am I walking into here?” Whitmore handed him a leather-bound tablet.
The screen lit up: a sprawling document titled "Succession Protocol: Remington Consortium." Page after page scrolled by: asset lists, global holdings, security briefings, board member dossiers, real estate maps, offshore accounts, private armies “Wait,” Aiden interrupted, “did I just see 'submarine fleet' on page five?!”
“Yes,” Evelyn said. “One of seven. The previous heir had… ambitious projects.” Aiden dropped the tablet like it burned. “Okay. Okay, hold on. There’s no way I’m heir to this. I don’t know a thing about business. I’ve never even left the country! I’m just some nobody who used to bag groceries and fix broken copiers!”
Whitmore studied him with quiet amusement. “And yet here you are.”
“How?” Aiden asked, voice cracking. “Why me?” Evelyn pulled up a hologram image from her smart ring and tapped a small glowing icon. A photo appeared: a younger man, sharp eyes, dark hair, and a grin identical to Aiden’s.
“This is Caleb Remington, founder of the consortium,” Evelyn said. “Dead four days ago. No direct heirs.”
“Okay. So?” Whitmore folded his hands. “Caleb had a twin brother. Your grandfather. Who disappeared decades ago after… a disagreement. He changed his name. Lived in obscurity. But your DNA matched the old bloodline archives.”
“You’re his only living relative, Mr. Cole,” Evelyn said. “And according to the charter, inheritance flows by blood first, then board vote.”
“But if I don’t want it?” Aiden asked, heartbeat thundering in his ears. Evelyn stared coldly. “Then the board takes everything. Your cousin Jason becomes next in line. And you… probably won’t live long enough to regret it.” The car turned, and Remington Estate came into view.
It wasn’t a house. It was a fortress. Iron gates opened without a sound. Beyond them stretched manicured gardens, towering spires, a grand hall the size of a museum, and a private helipad with a chopper already warming up. Aiden could barely breathe. “This is insane,” he muttered.
“No,” Whitmore said calmly. “This is power.” They ushered him inside. Security scanned him. Staff in black suits lined the halls. He passed under chandeliers larger than his old apartment. Everything glowed with taste, elegance, and money.
A door opened into a long marble hall. At the end stood a conference room where ten men and women waited. Each wore suits that cost more than his entire wardrobe. One of them, a sharp-jawed man in his thirties with slicked-back hair, narrowed his eyes at Aiden with cold hatred.
Evelyn leaned in. “That’s Victor Lang. Board member. Formerly in line to take over if no heir surfaced.”
“And he’s not happy to see me,” Aiden muttered. “Understatement.” They entered.
Victor rose first. “So this is the ‘heir’?” His voice oozed contempt. “I’ve seen better-dressed interns at fast food chains.” The board chuckled lightly, Aiden stayed silent, Whitmore stepped forward, placing the succession document on the table.
“By Article 17-C of the Founding Protocol, and upon presentation of verified bloodline DNA, Mr. Aiden Cole is hereby acknowledged as sole heir to the Remington Consortium and granted executive authority effective immediately.”
The room fell still, Victor sneered. “This boy has no experience. No credibility. No connections. He’s a liability. I move to block the succession.”
“Motion denied,” Evelyn said before Aiden could open his mouth. “Article 19 overrides board consent in bloodline cases. Any obstruction is grounds for removal.”
Victor’s nostrils flared. But he sat, Aiden stepped forward, palms sweating, and signed his name on the final page of the document.
Aiden Remington-Cole, Back in his room, a luxury suite bigger than his entire building, Aiden stood alone at the window, staring out over the empire he’d just inherited.
This was real, He wasn’t poor anymore. He wasn’t invisible. He wasn’t broken. But as he turned to the mirror and saw himself in designer clothes he didn’t choose, in a palace that wasn’t really his…
He couldn’t help but wonder: Was he still Aiden? Or had he just become someone else’s weapon? Outside the Remington Estate, a car pulls up under the cover of night, Jason steps out, Aiden’s cousin dressed in a tailored coat, sipping expensive bourbon, and smirking as he watches the estate lights flicker, He dials a number. “Yeah. It’s me. He took the bait. Let’s begin.”
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Chapter 107: Siege of the Vault
The first blast ripped through the air like a hurricane wrapped in fire. Steel beams twisted, molten rivulets streaming down the walls as the shockwave punched the breath from Jace’s lungs.He hit the ground hard, instinctively rolling behind a toppled server rack just as another shot vaporized the spot where he’d been seconds before.The armored behemoth clambered fully out of the core breach now, its legs drove like piledrivers into the collapsing vault floor, each step accompanied by a hiss of steam and a pulse of blue light deep in its joints. It was taller than the exo-suit, twice as heavily plated, and its front bristled with six rotating barrels already spinning to life.The other Jace didn’t run. He was grinning. “Finally,” he muttered, low enough for only Jace to catch.Then he moved, straight at the thing, The suited man swore and sprinted toward the far side of the vault, dodging debris and leaping over fractures like the collapsing steel was a well-mapped dance floor. “Jac
Chapter 106: Vault Collapse
The vault floor fractured like thin ice under a heavy boot. Sections of reinforced steel tilted and slid into the dark, yawning pit below. Molten cables spat sparks, lighting the fog in violent flashes.Jace barely managed to leap onto a still-solid platform, his breath ragged. His hand clamped tighter on the briefcase, it felt heavier now, not from weight but from the screaming awareness that every faction in this room wanted it.The other Jace moved like a predator, fluid and precise, leaping over collapsing panels with impossible balance. Each step he took seemed intentional, like he could read the vault’s death throes before they happened.The exo-suit, still limping from the earlier blow, tried to stabilize itself. Its clawed legs punctured through steel panels, anchoring it in place. “TARGET LOCKED,” it rasped through broken speakers, but before it could act, the other Jace ripped up one of the steel plates and hurled it like a discus. The slab smashed into the exo-suit’s torso,
Chapter 105: The Other Jace
The exo-suit hit the steel floor with the weight of a meteor, sending shockwaves through the room. The ceiling’s breach still rained debris as its cannon arm tracked between Jace, the suited man, and the glass cylinder.“IDENTIFY SUBJECT,” the machine’s voice boomed, a synthetic growl layered over a woman’s tone Jace swore he recognized.The suited man didn’t flinch. “You’re wasting your time,” he said to the machine, then flicked his gaze at Jace. “Step back.”Jace didn’t. His pistol was trained on both threats now, on the suit’s central optic and on the man’s smug, infuriatingly calm face.The cylinder hissed. A cascade of bubbles erupted in the shimmering fluid, and the other Jace inside opened his eyes fully. The pupils gleamed with a metallic glint. He pressed a palm against the glass from the inside, and a spiderweb of cracks bloomed outward.“Contain him!” the machine barked, yes, barked, like it knew exactly what would happen if the cylinder broke. The suited man smirked. “Too
Title: Chapter 104: Into the Pit
The instant the floor collapsed, Jace’s stomach lurched into his throat.Dust and splintered concrete swallowed him, the roar of crumbling steel drowning out every thought. Gravity yanked him down through darkness, the only light the faint, unnatural glow leaking from the bullet hole in the briefcase.Something heavy slammed into his shoulder mid-fall. A chunk of rebar, jagged and rusted, scraped across his arm, tearing fabric and skin. He gritted his teeth, twisting in the air, trying to avoid the rain of debris chasing him into the abyss. Then, impact.He hit hard, the air punched from his lungs. The briefcase clanged against the floor beside him. Pain rippled up his spine, but his survival instincts snapped him upright before he could even groan. The room around him wasn’t what he expected.It wasn’t rubble-filled or buried under tons of collapsed building. It was… intact. The walls were reinforced steel, the floor smooth, and the air unnaturally still, as though sealed from the ch
Chapter 103: The Fall
The world narrowed to wind and darkness, Jace’s body twisted in freefall, the blazing rooftop shrinking above him, flames licking at the night sky. The weight of the steel briefcase on his harness yanked at his shoulder, threatening to spin him midair.Below, the streets were a chaotic tapestry of sirens, honking cars, and the distant screams of panicked civilians. Somewhere down there, the ground was rushing up to greet him, and if he hit it, there’d be nothing left to scrape off the pavement.Instinct overrode fear. He yanked at the quick-release buckles on his rappelling harness, freeing the slack line he’d used to swing into the penthouse.The coil whipped upward, caught on a window frame three floors down, and jerked him sideways with bone-jarring force. His shoulder screamed in protest.Glass exploded around him as he crashed through a lower-level window.He landed hard on an office desk, scattering papers and a still-steaming coffee cup. The scalding liquid splashed across his
Chapter 102: The Whisper in the Contract
The whisper slithered into Evelyn’s ears like smoke, curling deep into her mind."Eliminate the heir before the seventh night, or you will forfeit your life."It was her voice, unmistakable but the tone was something else entirely. Darker. Colder.She staggered back from the table, knocking over a crystal vase. The shattering glass barely registered. All she could see was the faintly pulsing contract, its glow timed like a slow, deliberate heartbeat.Her assistant, pale and trembling, edged closer. “Ma’am… what was that?”“Shut the blinds,” Evelyn snapped, forcing steadiness into her voice. “Now.”He obeyed, fumbling with the controls, but before the mechanical shutters could seal the window, another explosion rattled the tower, closer this time. The floor vibrated beneath their feet.Evelyn’s eyes darted to the glass fracture where Jace had slammed the guard’s head earlier. Rain seeped through the hairline cracks, hissing against the warm marble, The intercom on her desk crackled to
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