In River City, Patriarch Karon Smith stood waiting by the grand double doors of his estate as a heavy delivery truck rumbled up the long, paved driveway. The air was thick with tension. The driver stepped out from the cab, briskly opened the rear cargo doors, and pulled out his battered, wheelchair-bound nephew, Kim. The driver tipped his cap slightly and announced, "He was sent straight from Metro City, and he left a strict message for you. You better hear it out before you do anything rash."
Karon fumed with hot, bubbling anger, his face turning a deep, dangerous shade of crimson. He rushed forward, picking up his trembling nephew with his own hands and carefully settling him onto the soft living room couch. "Who did this to you?" Karon demanded, his voice shaking with suppressed fury. "Did you not tell them that you are a proud member of the Smith noble clan?"
Kim started crying openly, his shoulders shaking with genuine, lingering terror as the painful memories of Metro City rushed back. "Uncle... they crippled me completely, and I lost my job just like that! He even looked right into my eyes and said he’s coming after our entire family next!"
Hearing those words, Karon snapped. He grabbed a crystal glass filled with water off the nearby table and hurled it against the solid wall, shattering it into a thousand sparkling, wet pieces. "He dares to challenge the Smith noble clan?!" He paced back and forth across the rug, breathing heavily, before he suddenly stopped, his expression shifting from blind rage to a chilling, calculated caution. "Wait... keep your voice down. Don’t let word of this get out to the higher-ups. If ’Sir’ finds out about this humiliation, he might stop backing us. He’ll think we don’t hold any real power anymore and decide we aren’t worth his time."
The surrounding servants and Kim nodded frantically, desperate to appease their terrifying patriarch. "Okay, Uncle, I will keep quiet about everything," Kim whispered through his tears, while a nearby servant bowed low and added, "Yes, sir, you have my word. We wouldn’t let any outsider know what truly happened to Master Kim."
"Uncle, he crippled me without a second thought, you must take absolute revenge for me," Kim sobbed, grabbing Karon’s sleeve.
Karon patted his nephew’s shoulder grimly, his eyes narrowing into cold slits. "Don’t worry, I will. There is no doubt about that."
Meanwhile, back in Metro City, my shadow chief escorted me through the heavy oak doors and into the quiet, polished sanctuary of the ground-floor study. The room was peaceful, lit by the warm afternoon sun filtering through the sheer curtains. "Boss," the chief began, standing at crisp attention, "Kim has been safely delivered to the Smith estate, and he even delivered our warning message. But... how did you know all of this would unfold just like this, sir? I must apologize, but I did something without your direct permission—I assigned one shadow soldier to tail Kim all the way so we could get every single bit of live intelligence on the inner workings of the Smith estate."
I looked at him calmly, leaning back in my leather chair with a faint, amused smile. "Why are you apologizing? You did a good thing, Chief. Initiative is a valuable trait. Did you find anything important during the surveillance?"
The shadow chief nodded, stepping a bit closer. "Yes, sir. As you know, all of us shadow soldiers are internally connected through our tactical network. Through our operative inside, I overheard Patriarch Smith talking anxiously about some mysterious ’Sir’ who is secretly backing the Smith clan. Apparently, if the news of his nephew’s crippled state leaks to this benefactor, this powerful figure might completely abandon them."
I rested my chin on my hand, coming to a logical, strategic conclusion. "Chief, there could only be two real possibilities here. Either it’s one of the two biggest noble clans—the Harringtons or the Kensingtons—or it’s some ambitious foreign power trying to shake the delicate balance of Dreamland and seize the top spot currently held by the Kensingtons."
"What if it’s the Kensingtons?" the chief asked, his brow furrowing deeply.
"Then there might be a much bigger game being played than what we are seeing on the surface right now," I replied, my voice steady. "Otherwise, the Kensingtons wouldn’t even look at the Smiths, let alone spit on them. To ordinary people, they might be a noble clan, but to the Kensingtons and Harringtons, they are nothing more than second-class commoners."
I looked at him thoughtfully, tapping my fingers on the desk. "System, what was the reward for crossing the 1 trillion Stardollar milestone?"
A soft, melodic chime echoed in my mind, granting me a partial strategic plan and preliminary evidence regarding the illegal operations of the Smith family.
I smiled, feeling the pieces fall perfectly into place. "Chief, do we have world-class hackers within our shadow organization?"
"Yes, sir, we do," the shadow chief replied instantly.
"Perfect. Then tell them to release this information and this concrete evidence of their past crimes—including a hit-and-run car crash and massive tax evasion. I know this isn’t enough to secure a formal court conviction right away, but it’s more than enough to push heavy doubt into the public’s and investors’ minds. This will surely make their stock plummet and cause massive reputation damage. Tell our hackers that no matter what firewall they face, they must ensure our IP is completely untraceable so no one can ever trace it back to us, okay?"
"Understood, sir."
"And also," I continued, my voice turning firm and authoritative, "dispatch 500 men—no, send 1,000 shadow soldiers—and scatter them across every single border of Metro City. Make sure no men from the Smith clan or suspicious individuals manage to infiltrate our territory. If you find they are here to cross us, you have my standing order to extract information and then dispose of them quietly. I will handle the political aftermath."
I glanced down at my luxury wristwatch, noting the time. "Oh, it’s already 4:00 PM. Okay, handle those two tasks while I attend my reunion. Make sure they aren’t able to track us back, and double the security around my family and staff, okay?"
The shadow chief bowed respectfully. "Yes, sir, I will double the security detail for all the ladies, Miss Daisy, and every single staff member. I add If anyone dares to attack them, you have my authority to make that person permanently disappear from this world."
I stood up, smoothed out my jacket, and walked out of the study and into the grand living room. Clara and Sophia were sitting comfortably on the couch together, talking softly. I walked over to them, asking what they were up to.
"Not much, just watching a quiet TV drama," they smiled warmly.
"Good," I smiled, walking over to kiss both of them tenderly on the cheek. "Our life right now is no less than a drama." After kissing them goodbye, I added, "I am going out for my classroom reunion, and I might be a little late getting back. Okay, bye, love you two, see you later!"
I walked out to the expansive garage and climbed into my Valence & Co. Executive SUV. As I started the engine, a sudden, heavy wave of protectiveness washed over me, prompting me to call the shadow chief back on the secure intercom line. "Listen to me very carefully. If even a single hair on my family’s head is touched by anyone, I will burn this world down and turn everything to ashes. Do you understand?"
The sheer bloodlust and terrifying malicious aura leaking from my voice made even a cold, battle-hardened soldier like the shadow chief break into a cold sweat. "No, no, sir! I have already doubled the family and staff security. Even if an entire hostile army came, they couldn’t do anything to harm your family, sir. I’ve even dispatched 1,000 soldiers all around the Metro City borders. It will be the gravest and last mistake of any criminal, assassin, or thug to try and enter Metro City. Our people are stationed at airports, shipping ports, and even secret entry points—at least all around Metro City, and inside Metro City at least 10,000 soldiers are roaming right now. At this point, even an immortal cultivator would fear to even think of touching you or any of your people."
"Good," I nodded, feeling my tension ease.
I started the car, hit the main road, and played some soft, calming music to relax my nerves. If right now even the Smith patriarch dared to cross my path, I wouldn’t think twice before snapping his neck with my bare hands. But as the music started playing, my nerves began to settle into a peaceful rhythm. I looked over at the passenger seat, where the carefully wrapped luxury gifts for my old middle-school friends and their wives rested safely.
After a smooth drive of thirty minutes through the evening traffic, I reached The Seven Scenery Hotel. The valet saw my vehicle, hurried over, bowed respectfully, and said, "Sir, please give me the keys, I will park the car for you in your private executive garage."
I gave him the keys, handed him a check for 10k Stardollars, and said, "It’s your tip, man, continue to work hard, okay?"
He bowed even lower, a wide, appreciative smile lighting up his face. "Thank you, sir! The keys will be delivered by the staff straight to your room."
"Okay," I replied, then walked inside toward the grand reception desk.
The receptionist looked up, gasped in genuine shock, and stammered, "Sir... what are you doing here? Why didn’t you inform us beforehand?"
"It’s all right, no need to make a fuss about it, I am just here for my class reunion," I said with a warm smile.
The receptionist offered quickly, "Sir, let me personally escort you to your room, and allow me to carry those two bags for you."
"No, no, just lead the way," I answered gently.
She led the way through the pristine corridors, entered the private VIP hall with me, and asked, "Please, boss, this way. Are the gentlemen and ladies in there your classmates?"
"Yes, thank you," I said, taking out another 10k bill check and handing it to her. "This is your tip, take it."
She bowed gratefully and hurried out of the room. I turned around—and the faces of every single classmate in the room went completely pale with shock.