The Discarded Heir's Billionaire Vengeance

Chapter 7

The next week felt heavier.

More students stopped talking to Daniel in the hallways. Some still nodded, but most looked away. Liam’s story was winning in quiet corners of campus. The line people repeated was simple: “The card is real. The owner is not.”

Daniel kept his head down and went to class. He did not argue with the whispers. Arguing would only make them louder.

On Friday afternoon the business department held a short open talk in the main hall. Students and a few guests filled the seats. Daniel sat near the back. Liam sat closer to the front with Maya and his usual group.

After the talk ended, people stood up and started talking in small groups. Daniel packed his bag slowly. He wanted to leave without trouble.

He did not get the chance.

Liam walked over with two friends. Maya stayed a few steps behind, watching.

“Leaving already?” Liam said. His voice was calm, but his eyes were cold. “I thought someone with a special card would stay and talk to the important guests.”

Daniel zipped his bag. “What do you want this time?”

Liam smiled without warmth. “I want you to stop pretending. My father finally got a small piece of information. There’s no record of any Daniel Reed in the main Reid family line. Not even a distant one. So the card is real, but it doesn’t belong to you. Someone is letting you hold it. Or you took it. Either way, the story you’ve been selling is a lie.”

Students nearby turned to listen. Phones came out again.

Daniel felt the familiar heat in his chest. He reached into his pocket and pulled the black card out. He held it up so the light from the hall windows caught the gold crest.

“You’ve said this before. You still want to look?”

Liam did not take the card. He just stared at it.

“I’ve looked enough. Looking doesn’t fix the missing records. Explain the gap, or admit the card isn’t really yours.”

The hall grew quieter. More people stopped to watch.

Before Daniel could answer, an older man in a dark suit walked over from the guest area. He had silver hair and the calm face of someone used to being in charge. Several professors straightened when they saw him.

It was Mr. Harold Greer. He was a senior advisor to the university board and also sat on the board of a major private bank in the city. He knew the Reid family name well.

Mr. Greer noticed the tense group and the black card in Daniel’s hand. He stepped closer.

“May I see that?” he asked in a steady voice.

Daniel handed it over. Mr. Greer turned the card under the light, checked the crest, and felt the weight. His expression grew serious.

He looked at Daniel for a long moment, then spoke clearly so the students around them could hear.

“This is a genuine Reid Consortium executive card. Highest level. I have only seen three of these in my career. The material and crest are correct.”

He gave the card back and nodded once to Daniel.

“I don’t know your full story, young man. But the card itself is real.”

Then he walked away toward the other board members.

The hall stayed quiet for a few seconds. Whispers started again, mixed and confused.

Liam’s face had gone tight. Another confirmation. The sixth one. Every time it happened in public, it became harder for him to control the story. But his pride would not let him stop.

He looked at Daniel with hard eyes.

“Six people now. Still doesn’t explain the missing records. I’m not finished. My father is still digging. Sooner or later we’ll find the real owner of that card. And when we do, everyone will see you for what you are.”

He turned to the watching students and raised his voice just enough.

“Remember this. A real card in the wrong hands is still a problem. Don’t be fooled just because important people look at the plastic.”

Then he walked off with his friends. Maya followed more slowly. She glanced back at Daniel once with a strange look, half worry and half doubt, before she left.

Daniel put the card away. His hands were steady, but his chest felt tight. The public confirmations kept coming, yet the pressure on him only grew. Liam was learning how to twist every good moment into new suspicion.

He left the hall and walked toward the dorms. The late afternoon air felt cool on his face.

His black phone buzzed once. A message from Alexander:

Young Master. Liam Baxter’s father has paid two former mid-level officers for old contact lists. He is getting closer to restricted names. Shall we shut the doors now?

Daniel stopped under a tree and typed back.

Not yet. Let him spend more money. Let him think he is winning.

He put the phone away and kept walking.

Across campus, Liam sat in his car with the door closed. He was on the phone with his father. His voice was low and sharp with frustration.

“Another board member just confirmed it in front of half the department. I don’t care. Keep pushing the records. Someone out there knows who this Daniel Reed really is. Find that person before this gets any bigger.”

He hung up and stared at the steering wheel. His pride hurt. Every public confirmation made him look less in control. Fear of losing face pushed him harder than anger.

He opened a new private message and began typing a longer request to a contact who worked in quiet information circles.

The sixth confirmation had not ended the fight.

It had only made Liam more careful — and more dangerous.

Daniel still chose not to strike first.

But both of them could feel the ground shifting under their feet.