The Billionaire Heir's Revenge

Chapter 21: The Betrayal of Sebastian Cole

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Nobody in the Phoenix Archive chamber moved.

Nobody breathed.

The words written inside the black notebook seemed impossible.

THE BLACK PHOENIX WAS CREATED BY SEBASTIAN COLE.

Ethan slowly raised his head.

His eyes landed on Sebastian.

The old steward stood frozen.

His face had become pale.

For the first time since Ethan met him...

Sebastian looked afraid.

Very afraid.

Ava took a step backward.

Victor narrowed his eyes.

Even Adrian looked shocked.

The man who had protected Ethan.

The man who had guided him.

The man who had served the Blackwell Family for decades.

The founder of Black Phoenix?

Impossible.

Yet the evidence was right there.

Written inside the Phoenix Archive itself.

Ethan finally spoke.

His voice was ice cold.

"Tell me this isn't true."

Sebastian remained silent.

The silence itself was an answer.

Boom.

The room seemed to shake.

Not from an explosion.

From the weight of the revelation.

Outside the laboratory.

The Black Phoenix Leader calmly walked through the mountain facility.

No one stopped him.

No one could.

Elite operatives followed several steps behind.

Their faces were filled with respect.

And fear.

The Leader's presence alone was enough to suffocate people.

A soldier approached.

"Leader."

"The Archive has been opened."

The man smiled.

"Excellent."

His pace never slowed.

For twenty-one years he had waited.

Now the truth was finally surfacing.

Exactly as planned.

Back inside the Archive Chamber.

Sebastian slowly removed his glasses.

His hands trembled slightly.

Then he sighed.

A tired sigh.

The sigh of a man carrying a burden for decades.

"It is true."

The room exploded.

Ava gasped.

Isabella stared in disbelief.

Adrian clenched his fists.

Victor looked furious.

Only Ethan remained silent.

Dangerously silent.

Sebastian lowered his head.

"Black Phoenix began with me."

Boom.

The confession hit harder than any bullet.

For a moment, nobody could process it.

Then Ethan asked the question everyone wanted answered.

"Why?"

Sebastian closed his eyes.

Pain crossed his face.

"When Project Phoenix was created..."

"We believed we could change the world."

The room became silent.

"We discovered the Phoenix Gene."

"We discovered its potential."

His voice became bitter.

"And we became greedy."

Memories flooded the giant screens.

Old footage appeared.

A younger Sebastian.

A younger Victor.

Scientists.

Government officials.

Business leaders.

All gathered inside the original laboratory.

The atmosphere was filled with excitement.

Hope.

Ambition.

Then the footage changed.

Arguments.

Conflict.

Division.

Sebastian continued speaking.

"Some of us wanted to protect the discovery."

His eyes moved toward Victor.

"Others wanted to control it."

Victor lowered his head.

Because he knew it was true.

Sebastian looked away.

"Project Phoenix split into two factions."

The room fell silent.

"One became Project Phoenix."

"And the other became Black Phoenix."

Boom.

The pieces finally fit together.

Black Phoenix hadn't invaded the project.

It had been born from it.

Ethan's expression darkened.

"Then why stay beside me?"

Sebastian smiled sadly.

"To protect you."

Nobody spoke.

"After your parents died..."

"I regretted everything."

His voice trembled.

"The war we started destroyed countless lives."

The old steward looked exhausted.

Like a man who had spent decades seeking redemption.

"I stayed because I owed your family."

Ethan stared at him.

Trying to decide whether to believe him.

Trying to decide whether to hate him.

Then suddenly—

Clap.

Clap.

Clap.

Slow applause echoed through the chamber.

Everyone turned.

The Black Phoenix Leader stood at the entrance.

Smiling.

Behind him stood dozens of armed operatives.

The atmosphere instantly became suffocating.

The final boss had arrived.

The Leader slowly entered.

His eyes swept across the room.

Then settled on Sebastian.

"Old friend."

Sebastian's face darkened.

"I stopped being your friend a long time ago."

The Leader laughed.

"Did you?"

His gaze moved toward Ethan.

Then Adrian.

For the first time—

His smile widened.

"The twins."

The room became silent.

He looked genuinely pleased.

As though seeing something precious.

Something valuable.

Not people.

Assets.

Adrian stepped forward.

"You're the one who destroyed our family."

The Leader nodded calmly.

"Correct."

No denial.

No excuse.

No remorse.

Just the truth.

The room froze.

The sheer confidence was terrifying.

Then Ethan spoke.

"Who are you?"

The Leader smiled.

"An excellent question."

For twenty-one chapters, everyone had searched for his identity.

Now the answer was finally coming.

The man slowly removed his gloves.

Then his watch.

Then his glasses.

And finally—

He revealed his face completely.

Victor's eyes widened.

Ava gasped.

Sebastian nearly collapsed.

Because everyone recognized him.

Everyone.

Ethan felt his blood run cold.

The man standing before him wasn't a stranger.

He wasn't some hidden billionaire.

He wasn't a forgotten scientist.

He was someone the entire world knew.

Someone considered dead fifteen years ago.

The founder of Blackwell Global.

The man whose death had triggered everything.

Ethan whispered the name.

"...Grandfather?"

Silence.

Absolute silence.

The Black Phoenix Leader smiled.

A terrifying smile.

Then he delivered the truth that shattered everything Ethan thought he knew.

"No, Ethan."

"I am not your grandfather."

The smile widened.

His eyes gleamed with madness.

"I killed your grandfather."

Boom.

The world stopped.

And Chapter 21 ended with Ethan facing the man responsible for the destruction of the Blackwell Family.

The man who had hidden behind countless identities.

The man who had orchestrated twenty-one years of lies.

The true mastermind had finally stepped out of the shadows.