2026-01-24 04:19:54Viviane sat still for a long time. She glanced at the wall clock, then opened the stock app on her tablet and searched for PetroX Energy. The chart was still calm and green. The news feed was clean. No sign of disaster.
“You’re completely insane, Matt,” Viviane murmured into the silence of the night. Yet, deep down, for the first time in a very long while, Viviane Lane felt a sliver of terrifying hope. She set her alarm for 8:40 a.m. She had to see it with her own eyes.
Meanwhile, in the dark guest room, Matthew stood before the mirror.
[MISSION ACTIVATED : WIN THE MONOLITH LAND AUCTION.]
[CHALLENGE : INSUFFICIENT LIQUIDITY.]
[SOLUTION : SHORT-TERM SYSTEM LOAN OPTION OR POST-AUCTION ASSET LIQUIDATION?]
“System ARC,” Matthew whispered. “Display Emergency Tactical Funding options.”
[EMERGENCY TACTICAL FUNDING : AVAILABLE AS ANONYMOUS BOND INSTRUMENTS. REPAYMENT DEADLINE : 24 HOURS. INTEREST : 50 PERCENT EXPERIENCE POINT REDUCTION.]
Matthew grinned at his own reflection. “XP interest? Cheap. Prepare the funds for tomorrow morning. We’re going land hunting.”
That night, Matthew slept soundly, while Viviane, lying beside him, could not close her eyes for even a second, waiting for the sunrise that would decide the fate of her marriage and her company.
8:44 a.m. Inside a black Mercedes-Maybach limousine gliding smoothly through Manhattan traffic, the silence felt suffocating.
Viviane Lane sat stiffly in the passenger seat. Her eyes were locked on her tablet screen, her index finger tapping the frame in a nervous rhythm. The Bloomberg financial news app was open, showing PetroX Energy stock still glowing a calm green.
“One more minute,” Viviane murmured, barely audible, then glanced at Matthew sitting casually across from her.
Matthew Thomas looked different this morning. He wore a jet-black suit, one of his impulsive purchases from the day before, perfectly tailored to his solid frame. His hair was neatly styled, and the predatory aura he had radiated at home the night before now felt even sharper, as if he had been born for this battlefield.
“You look nervous, Vie,” Matthew said calmly, gazing out the window at the approaching buildings of Rockefeller Center.
“Nervous? I’m betting the life of the company on the weather forecast of a man who just woke up from a coma,” Viviane hissed without taking her eyes off the screen. “If this stock doesn’t crash, the driver is turning this car straight to a psychiatric hospital.”
Matthew smiled faintly. “Be patient.”
The moment the digital clock on the dashboard flipped to 8:45, a red notification flashed onto Viviane’s tablet screen.
BREAKING NEWS : PETROX ENERGY’S ‘NORTH SEA GIANT’ MAIN PIPELINE SUFFERS MASSIVE LEAK. EUROPEAN OIL EXPORTS HALTED.
Within seconds, the green chart plunged into a vertical free fall of blood-red lines. Minus five percent… minus eight percent… minus twelve percent.
Viviane gasped, her breath catching as she stared at the screen in disbelief and awe she could not hide. “How… how did you know?” she asked, looking up at her husband.
“I told you, Viviane. I see what others don’t,” Matthew replied, leaning forward. “Now we have a deal. You get me inside, and you let me take control.”
Viviane swallowed hard, looking at her husband with new eyes. Fear of failure slowly gave way to adrenaline, and at last she nodded.
“Alright. Don’t make me regret this, Matt.”
***
Christie’s Auction House at Rockefeller Plaza was packed with New York’s elite. The room smelled of old money, mahogany, and tension hidden behind polite smiles.
Real estate developers, investment bankers, and hedge fund representatives sat in rows of velvet chairs, holding their bidding paddles. In the front row sat a heavyset man in a pinstriped suit that was slightly too tight. Reginald Holt.
Reginald was laughing loudly with the man beside him when he spotted Viviane entering. His laughter paused, then turned into a mocking grin when he saw Matthew walking at her side.
“Well, look who’s here,” Reginald called out, loud enough to draw attention. “Lane Corp’s Sleeping Beauty and her pet dog. I heard you almost died yesterday, Matthew. Too bad that truck missed by a few inches.”
Viviane stiffened, about to respond, but Matthew placed a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.
“Save your energy,” Matthew whispered into her ear. “We’re here to buy land, not entertain a circus clown.”
Reginald snorted. “Buy? With what? Discount coupons? That Brooklyn Navy Yard land needs a twenty-million-dollar cash deposit up front, kid. Lane Corp can barely pay its electricity bill this month.”
Matthew looked Reginald straight in the eye. System ARC began scanning him through Matthew’s retinas.
[SCANNING TARGET : REGINALD HOLT.]
[FINANCIAL ANALYSIS : IN PROGRESS.]
[LIQUID ASSETS : $85,000,000.]
[WEAKNESS DETECTED : HIGH LEVERAGE IN NEVADA CASINO PROJECT. IF FUNDS EXCEEDING $90 MILLION ARE DEPLOYED TODAY, PRIMARY BANK LOAN DEFAULT WILL OCCUR.]
A thin smile appeared on Matthew’s lips. The information was a golden bullet.
“Worry about your own wallet, Reg,” Matthew replied calmly. “I hear your Nevada casino project is desperate for fresh capital. Be careful not to overspend here and go bankrupt there.”
Reginald’s face paled instantly. His eyes narrowed with suspicion. How does Matthew know about the Nevada casino? That project is confidential.
“Sit down,” Reginald growled, his humor gone. “We’ll see who’s crying later.”
The auction began. One by one, properties across Manhattan and its surroundings were sold. The auctioneer’s rapid, rhythmic voice filled the room, punctuated by the echoing crack of the gavel.
“Next, Lot 402,” the auctioneer announced.
The massive screen displayed an aerial map of a wide coastal plot in Brooklyn. A strategic location. An abandoned shipyard. But to trained eyes, it was a logistics gold mine. The heart of Project Monolith.
“Fifteen hectares at the Navy Yard. Heavy industrial and commercial zoning. Opening price, ten million dollars.”
“Ten million!” shouted a developer from the left.
“Twelve million!” countered a representative from a Chinese investment group.
“Fifteen million!” Reginald Holt barked confidently, raising his paddle marked with the number 88 high while turning toward Viviane with a mocking wink.
The room fell silent. Fifteen million was a fair market price for the disputed land.
“Fifteen million from Mr. Holt,” the auctioneer called out. “Any other bids? Sixteen?”
Viviane gripped paddle number 101 in her lap with trembling hands. Cold sweat coated her palms. She turned to Matthew, who remained silent and motionless. “Matt? We have to go in now. Our absolute ceiling from remaining company cash is eighteen million.”
“Wait,” Matthew said flatly.
“Wait for what? He’s about to close!” Viviane whispered in panic.
“Fifteen million, going once…” the auctioneer raised the gavel.
Reginald was already standing, straightening his suit, ready to claim victory with a smug grin.
“Fifteen million, going twice…”
Matthew’s hand finally moved. He snatched the bidding paddle from Viviane’s grip with a motion that was gentle yet firm.
"Going once, fifteen mill..."
Matthew raised the paddle. As he opened his mouth, a sharp pain struck him. It felt like a hot needle stabbing directly into his brainstem. This was the ARC System’s mechanism reacting to an unreasonable request.
Matthew suppressed a grimace behind a stone-faced expression. "One hundred million dollars," he said. He didn't shout. His calm voice cut through the air like a lightning bolt, a stark contrast to the cold sweat beginning to soak his back.
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CHAPTER 170 : Internal Rebellion
Chaos erupted inside the Command Nexus. The moment the alarms began blaring, all communication with the outside world was completely severed. Caleb Foster, who was inside the palace server room, shouted through an emergency channel he had deliberately built using an ancient Earth frequency to avoid detection by the Aetherian network."Boss! Someone just cut root access from the High Council!" Caleb shouted, panic thick in his voice beneath the furious clacking of a mechanical keyboard. "They inserted a Vanguard override! They're hacking the palace systems!"Matthew pressed his communicator. "Caleb, isolate our network. Do not let Earth data leak. Nikolai, diamond formation!""Already in position, Boss!" Nikolai Sergeevich, the former intelligence operative who now served as Archon's head of security, immediately stepped in front of Seraphina and Matthew, his fusion rifle aimed at the main entrance of the command dock.General Vaelor instantly rose to his
CHAPTER 169 : Ruler of the Golden Fleet
Aetheria’s orbital dock was anything but silent. The deep hum of high-level energy filled every inch of the colossal space station.From the observation platform, Matthew gazed into the void of space, separated only by a transparent energy shield. Beyond it, rows of golden metallic giants floated with an arrogance that defied the laws of the universe.Matthew stood tall in a pitch-black suit specially tailored for him by Princess Seraphina’s royal designers, a striking contrast amid the thousands of Aetherian soldiers clad in silver and gold armor. Seraphina stood beside him, radiating an aura of nobility that made every soldier lower their head in awe and respect.Standing before them was General Vaelor, a massive Aetherian man with a scar stretching across his face, a relic of battles long past.“Your Highness, Crown Princess,” General Vaelor said, his voice heavy and resonant. He bowed briefly before turning a condescending gaze
CHAPTER 168 : Behind the Palace Doors
The glow of Aetherium crystals illuminated the master bedroom of the Grand Palace in a pale blue hue. The chamber was as vast as half of Matthew’s penthouse in New York City.Yet there was no warmth here. No thick carpets, no fireplace, and most importantly, no Viviane and Dominic.Matthew Thomas stood near the giant curved glass window, staring out across the landscape of Aetheria. Towers of pure energy pierced through the purple clouds overhead.Inside his mind, visions of bustling New York City, rain soaking the asphalt of Manhattan, and the tiny laughter of Dominic, only two months old when Matthew had left, continued to replay endlessly. His fists clenched tightly. He had to return to Earth, no matter the cost.The five-meter-tall double doors behind him hissed open. Crown Princess Seraphina stepped inside. Her ceremonial gown woven from strands of light had been replaced by a military uniform crafted from white-and-gold nano-fiber fabric.Her perfectly symmetrical face, a signat
CHAPTER 167 : The Thousand-Year Oath
The Central Plaza of Aetheria’s capital was an architectural miracle of light beyond human comprehension.Millions of Aetherian citizens gathered across the vast expanse that stretched endlessly toward the purple horizon, while billions of other eyes watched the sacred ceremony through the collective neural computation network.At the center of the plaza stood a magnificent altar shaped from a pillar of pure energy, rising through the dense clouds above and radiating a resonance that made the hair on the back of one’s neck stand on end.Upon that altar stood Matthew. His human body was clad in Aetherian Ceremonial Armor, a masterpiece of dark silver battle plating that felt as light as silk. Yet it radiated an aura of absolute and lethal authority.Beside him stood Crown Princess Seraphina, her entire being emanating the untouchable elegance of a queen born to rule the stars.The High Priest of Aetheria, an ancient entity with a half-tr
CHAPTER 166 : The Threat Beyond the Stars
The atmosphere inside Archon Global’s Command Center, located two hundred meters beneath the asphalt streets of New York City, was frantic with activity. Everyone looked panicked with their respective duties, yet everything remained under control.The massive domed chamber was illuminated by rotating blood-red emergency lights. Hundreds of personnel, ranging from data analysts and shadow military tacticians to scientists, rushed back and forth between rows of consoles, making sure their work continued without interruption.On the main wall, a gigantic screen displayed a map of the solar system alongside a digital countdown timer that continued ticking downward, currently reading 68:45:12.The number felt like the pulse of something dying. The smell of cold sweat, spilled coffee, and ozone from overheated servers filled the suffocating air of the room.Viviane herself stood motionless on the glass balcony above, staring down at the organized chaos be
CHAPTER 165 : Aegis-2 Protocol
A blizzard howled violently outside, slamming against the bulletproof glass atop Lane Corp Tower. New York City lay buried beneath a frozen white blanket, as though the universe itself were delivering an early warning of the apocalypse to come.Inside the main conference room, the temperature was maintained at peak comfort levels, costing thousands of dollars per hour. Yet the atmosphere around the circular table felt far colder than the storm outside.Viviane Lane sat upright in the CEO’s chair. Her face was a flawless porcelain mask, firm, elegant, and deadly. Beneath her light makeup, however, dark circles painted the exhaustion she could no longer fully conceal.Ever since her husband, Matthew Thomas, vanished into orbit aboard an alien vessel one month ago, Viviane had carried a burden capable of shattering an ordinary person’s sanity.She had to manage two global giants, Archon Global and Lane Corp, while raising Dominic alone. The suffo
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