Aria had never been to the Vanderbilt Hotel before. Right from the entrance, she could see that the lobby still kept its classic Art Deco charm. There were massive marble columns, intricate details everywhere, and water features flowing through the space. It was a nice blend of Ignisian and Glacian style. The attendant led them down several hallways until they finally reached the banquet hall doors. The attendant pushed the doors open, and they all filed in. They'd barely gotten inside when someone piped up with obvious sarcasm. "Oh, look, it's Mr. Pratt. Aren't you a bit past your prime for these parties?" That person was trying to make it clear that Sawyer didn't belong here. Everyone within earshot turned to stare. "That's true. The Pratts don't have the standing for this kind of event. How'd he even score an invite?" "I bet it's fake. You can't just show up to something like this." "Maybe Mr. Benton threw him a bone since he's technically in the Chamber. He probably
There was a saying about how players should never mess with the home team. But Chauncey didn't buy it. Indeed, families like the Gallaghers might be powerful. But he figured that as long as he held their lifelines in his hands, it didn't matter which family it was. They'd all bow down. In the banquet hall, things had gotten quiet after Curtis arrived. Almost every eye focused on him. These weren't ordinary people—they all knew the Gallaghers' power. A while back, the Gallaghers had announced that their family head was unwell and had retired to live out his days in peace. Nobody expected him to suddenly return and kick his own son out of the house. Lots of people speculated that his son had wanted the family head position. When Curtis' health took a bad turn, the son seized the chance to grab control."Mr. Gallagher Senior, what an honor to have you here." A voice approached from a distance. When the speaker got close, they could see it was a foreigner. It was Chauncey, who'd
Clarence said, "I see." He then patted Curtis' back gently. "I'll follow your lead, Grandpa. Since you think our savior is someone special, maybe we'll bump into her at this banquet." "Look at you, thinking things through from all angles." Curtis beamed with pride. "Once this banquet's over, the road I've paved for you is yours to travel. Make it or break it—that'll be on you." Clarence nodded hard. "I won't let you down, Grandpa!" …Outside the window, the sun gave way to the moon, leaving a faint wash of white in the sky. Aria and Landon were already dressed for the banquet. Even Sam's outfit had been personally designed by Aria. He looked like a cute little tiger cub, though the formal wear made him seem more grown-up. "Whoa! Boss, this feels so comfortable." Sam kept checking himself out in the mirror, like he'd found some treasure. Aria smiled. "Of course it fits. I made it specifically for you." She had full CEO vibes today, holding her own next to Landon witho
On the other hand, Chauncey had called together the members of the Portfall Chamber of Commerce in his role as their leader. Chauncey wore a full face mask this time. He stood up and looked around at everyone. "I brought you all together because there's something I need to tell you." The people below glanced at each other. "Mr. Benton, you can just tell us anything." "That's right. You're the president of the Chamber." Others chimed in with their agreement. "Good. Then I'll be straightforward with you." Chauncey's eyes narrowed. "You're all my people, and you've made plenty of money by following me over the years. But this time, there's a big score coming. Are you in or not?" "A big score? How much are we talking?" "That's perfect timing. I've been tight on cash lately. Surely nobody's going to turn down more money!" "Mr. Benton, quit beating around the bush. Just tell us already." Everyone's eyes gleamed with greed. Chauncey's lips curved into a smile. "You've all
Chauncey's words made everyone's eyes fill with doubt. "You're kidding, right? It's not that easy to crash Portfall's stock market." "Are you actually going to waste more time on stocks? When Athara and Krowo tried to crush Farshya's gold market, don't you remember how much money they lost? Farshyans are lunatics! They'll buy up everything!" "Shut up!" Chauncey massaged his temples. "That was Athara and Krowo's operation. They didn't think it through, so of course they'd fail. But I've already finished planning everything!" The people on the call all started talking. "Really?" "Why didn't we know about this?" "You mean you've already got Portfall's stock market in your pocket?" "Just wait till the market opens next week." Chauncey sounded relaxed. "The stocks for MIRXES and Sunhall have only been going up, but I'm actually the one manipulating them. "Everyone's thrown their money into these two stocks. When the market opens next week and these stocks tank, they'll be wi
Firth couldn't take it anymore. He coughed up blood and collapsed flat on the ground. "I'm sorry for offending you!" Aria waved her hand. "Sam, that's enough." Sam pulled all the energy back inside himself. Now, he looked just like a sweet kid again. After the pressure disappeared, Firth stared at Sam in terror. "Why do you have—" "Shut up." Aria cut him off. "Do you want to feel that pressure again?" Firth shook his head. "I couldn't handle it even if I wanted to. My Decator Essence is already shattered." "Now it's time for questions and answers." Aria's voice was light. "What do you know about the foreign organizations?" Firth paused to think. "The foreign organization came to me. They wanted me to help find the sacred relic. But my people have been searching for a while now and still don't have any leads." "That's it?" Aria blinked slowly. "I'll kill you if you leave out any single detail." A chill ran through Firth. "Actually, I didn't agree to help them at first.