2025-06-23 04:27:45Two days had passed since the gala, and the headlines hadn’t stopped. “Orphan to Overlord: Aiden Remington-Cole Declared Sole Heir.” “From Fired to Fortune: The Cinderella Story of a Corporate King.”
Aiden stared at the digital articles glowing across his penthouse wall. He’d barely slept. Between PR briefings, press interviews, and legal signatures, his life had become a machine of constant motion. Yet even in the heart of wealth, his instincts screamed: You’re not safe.
At 9:00 a.m. sharp, Evelyn strode into the boardroom, her heels clicking like gunshots. “Lang just initiated an emergency vote to block your executive authority over RemCore Industries,” she said without preamble, Aiden blinked. “RemCore?”
“Energy division. Largest branch. Controls fifty-two percent of the consortium’s liquid cash flow.”
“Wait, they can block me?”
“If you fail the vote, yes,” she said. “The clause allows the board to challenge your decisions if they believe you're… 'compromised or incompetent.'”
Aiden's stomach dropped. “And Victor Lang controls the vote?”
“Most of it. He’s leveraged proxies, old allies, scared executives. If he wins, he cuts your power in half.”
“And if I lose that much...?”
“You become a puppet heir.” The board meeting began in the RemCore Tower sleek, cold, hostile. Aiden entered wearing the black suit from the gala, shoulders straight, jaw firm. He had no idea what he was doing, but he wouldn't let them see that.
Victor Lang was already there, smiling like a wolf. “Mr. Cole,” Victor said, standing to shake his hand. “We appreciate you taking the time to join us.”
Aiden didn’t move. “Save the fake civility.” Victor’s smile widened. “Bold. But bold doesn’t pay dividends.” The vote started. One by one, names lit up on the digital panel:
Lang – No.
Zhu – No.
Ashcroft – Yes.
Silva – Abstain.
Kim – No.
Ivanov – Yes.
The count was tilting. Aiden’s heart pounded. When the final vote hit the screen… Majority: Against, Victor stood. “Effective immediately, Mr. Cole will no longer have unilateral control over RemCore’s strategic operations. The board will appoint oversight.”
Aiden’s jaw tightened. “You just gutted the heart of the company.”
Victor turned to leave. “No, Mr. Cole. I just reminded you, money doesn’t make you powerful. Knowledge does. Connections do. You? You're still playing catch-up.” Back at the estate, Aiden exploded. “They kneecapped me! They’re not even pretending anymore!”
Whitmore remained calm. “The board is testing you. They need to see if you’ll break.”
“I’m already breaking!” Aiden growled. “This isn’t business, this is war.” Evelyn spoke quietly. “Then start fighting like it.” Aiden looked between them. “How?” She tapped a case onto the table. It unlocked with a hiss. Inside were files. Dozens of them.
“Remington left you something,” she said. “Not money. Not weapons. Secrets. Dirt on every major board member. Hidden accounts. Illegal deals. Insurance policies.”
Aiden picked up one labeled Lang, V. and opened it. Inside: high-resolution images of Victor in a private room… shaking hands with known foreign arms dealers, Aiden’s hands trembled. “This is blackmail.”
“This,” Whitmore said, “is survival.” Later that night, Aiden sat on the rooftop of the estate, the wind tugging at his shirt, He opened his phone and scrolled past the missed calls, the emails, the chaos, Then one message stood out.
Sender: Unknown Subject: You’re Not Alone. “Careful, Aiden. They want more than your crown. Some of them want your blood. If you’re ready to know the truth, meet me. Alone. Midnight. Pier 7.” Aiden stared at the screen. He knew it could be a trap. But something inside him whispered: Go.
At Pier 7, the water was black, the fog thick. Aiden stepped carefully along the wooden planks, heart hammering, A silhouette waited at the edge. It was her, the woman from the gala. The one with mismatched eyes. She turned slowly as he approached, moonlight slicing across her face. “You came,” she said softly.
“Who are you?” Aiden asked. She held out a file. Inside: photos of Victor Lang... with Jason, Aiden’s cousin. “Your cousin isn’t working alone,” she said. “And your inheritance? It wasn’t an accident.
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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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