The Billionaire Heir's Revenge

Chapter 14: The Man Who Claimed to Be My Father

The underground conference hall remained silent.

No one dared speak.

No one dared move.

The Black Phoenix Leader stood before the giant screen.

Ethan's face stared back at him.

The words he had spoken moments ago still echoed through the room.

"It is finally time to meet my son."

The elders exchanged shocked glances.

One of them finally gathered the courage to ask:

"Leader... are you certain?"

The man's eyes remained fixed on the screen.

"I have never been more certain."

Another elder frowned.

"But the records indicate Ethan Blackwell is the son of Alexander Blackwell."

A dangerous smile appeared on the leader's face.

"The records indicate many things."

The room fell silent again.

No one dared question him further.

Because everyone knew one thing.

The Black Phoenix Leader never joked.

Never lied.

And never spoke without reason.

Meanwhile...

Blackwell Global Headquarters.

Ethan sat alone inside the chairman's office.

The building had finally calmed down.

Most employees had gone home.

Security teams continued sweeping every floor.

The attack was over.

Yet Ethan couldn't relax.

Too many questions remained unanswered.

The half-key rested on his desk.

Beside it lay the file mentioning Subject Zero.

Ethan stared at the words.

Subject Zero.

What did it mean?

A person?

A project?

An experiment?

Every instinct told him it was important.

Very important.

Suddenly—

Knock.

Knock.

Knock.

"Come in."

The door opened.

Leonard Pierce entered.

His expression was unusually serious.

"Chairman."

"What is it?"

Leonard placed a file on the desk.

"We identified the source of the transmission."

Ethan immediately sat up.

"Who?"

Leonard hesitated.

Then answered.

"The signal originated from Executive Floor 87."

The room became quiet.

That floor contained offices belonging only to senior executives.

People Ethan personally interacted with.

People he trusted.

Or thought he trusted.

"Names."

Leonard handed over a list.

Ethan scanned it.

Ten names.

Nothing surprising at first.

Until he reached the bottom.

Then his eyes narrowed.

Sebastian Cole.

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Ethan reread the name.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

His expression darkened.

"No."

Leonard sighed.

"I didn't believe it either."

Sebastian had protected Ethan.

Guided him.

Served the Blackwell Family for decades.

Accusing him felt absurd.

Yet the evidence pointed directly toward his office.

Ethan slowly closed the file.

"Keep this confidential."

"Understood."

"And don't confront anyone."

Leonard nodded.

Then left.

The office became silent again.

For the first time since inheriting the empire...

Doubt entered Ethan's heart.

At the same moment.

Sebastian stood inside a private archive room.

His expression was grim.

A hidden phone rested in his hand.

The screen displayed a single message.

The Leader is moving personally.

Sebastian's face changed immediately.

"No..."

The old steward clenched his fists.

For the first time in years—

Fear appeared in his eyes.

The following morning.

News spread throughout the city.

Blackwell Global had survived a major attack.

Nobody knew the details.

Rumors exploded everywhere.

Stock markets reacted.

Investors panicked.

Journalists hunted for answers.

Meanwhile, Ethan attended an emergency shareholders meeting.

The massive auditorium was packed.

Thousands of shareholders watched.

Media cameras lined the walls.

Questions flew nonstop.

Then suddenly—

The auditorium doors opened.

A man entered.

The atmosphere instantly changed.

No one knew why.

Yet everyone felt it.

An invisible pressure.

An overwhelming presence.

The newcomer wore a black suit.

Nothing flashy.

Nothing extravagant.

Yet his appearance commanded attention.

His hair was streaked with silver.

His eyes were calm.

Cold.

Dangerously cold.

The moment Ethan saw him—

Something strange happened.

A feeling.

A sensation he couldn't explain.

The man walked calmly toward the stage.

Security immediately moved.

"Sir, you cannot—"

The man simply looked at them.

For reasons nobody understood—

The guards stepped aside.

As if instinctively afraid.

The auditorium fell silent.

The stranger stopped before the stage.

Then looked directly at Ethan.

Their eyes met.

Time seemed to stop.

Neither spoke.

Neither looked away.

Finally—

The man smiled.

A faint smile.

Not warm.

Not friendly.

Almost sad.

Then he spoke.

His voice echoed throughout the entire hall.

"Ethan."

The room froze.

Most people were shocked because the stranger knew the chairman's name.

Ethan was shocked for a different reason.

The man's voice felt familiar.

Terrifyingly familiar.

As though he had heard it before.

Long ago.

In a forgotten memory.

The stranger continued.

"You've grown."

Silence.

The entire auditorium watched.

Nobody understood what was happening.

Ethan slowly stood.

"Who are you?"

The man smiled again.

Then answered with six words that shook Ethan's world.

"I am your real father."

Boom.

The auditorium erupted.

Shareholders jumped from their seats.

Reporters nearly dropped their cameras.

Executives stared in disbelief.

Ethan himself froze.

His mind went blank.

His father?

Impossible.

According to every record...

His parents were dead.

The stranger seemed completely calm.

As though he expected this reaction.

Then he reached into his jacket.

Security immediately tensed.

But instead of a weapon—

He produced an old photograph.

A photograph nobody else could see.

The moment Ethan saw it—

His pupils contracted.

Because the picture showed a baby.

A woman.

And the man standing before him.

The baby was Ethan.

The woman was not his mother.

And the man...

Was unmistakably the stranger himself.

The entire world seemed to tilt.

Nothing made sense anymore.

Nothing.

Then the stranger spoke one final sentence.

A sentence that chilled Ethan to the bone.

"Before your grandfather died..."

He told me one thing."

The man's eyes became incredibly serious.

"He said that when the Phoenix awakens..."

The world will burn.

And for the first time since this journey began—

Ethan wondered if everything he believed about his family was a lie.