System S.E.X. (Seduction, Expansion, eXecution)

Chapter 315: Chapter 315: The Echoes of the Past

Inside the darkened office at Royal HQ, Ethan sat slumped in his chair, his chest heaving. The silence was heavy, broken only by his jagged breathing. The cold, ruthless mask he had worn moments ago had cracked, leaving behind a searing agony in his temples.

”What... what the hell was that, Crul? Why did I do that?” Ethan said.

[Those are the side effects of consuming the Black Flower of Resentment, Master. The flower is a concentrated mass of negative emotions—pain, hatred, and trauma. It amplifies your own darkest impulses. I did not anticipate that your psyche would be this unstable,] Crul said.

Ethan gripped the edge of his desk, his knuckles turning white. ”I felt like I was watching someone else use my voice. I wanted to hurt them. I wanted to see them break,” Ethan said.

[The flower found the cracks in your soul and filled them with its poison. If you do not control it, you will lose yourself to it. I strongly recommend you begin your meditation in total isolation. Your mind is currently a battlefield, and you must find the source of what is consuming you before it’s too late,] Crul said.

Ethan closed his eyes, the image of Hailey’s broken expression flickering behind his eyelids like a ghost.

Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, the convoy was cutting through a fresh layer of snow. The heavy trucks were reinforced now; a fresh detachment of Royal soldiers had arrived as reinforcements, their black armor glaming under the moonlight. They were closing in on the third facility—the Processing Hub.

In the lead vehicle, Jason sat behind the wheel, his eyes fixed on the road. Beside him sat Albert, the young man whose knowledge was currently their greatest weapon.

”You’re very quiet, Albert. Thinking about the facility?” Jason said.

”Thinking about my mother. And my father. Every time we destroy one of these places, I feel like I’m finally breathing for the first time in years. But I’m still a traitor to the people I grew up with,” Albert said.

”Traitor is just a word people use when they’re on the losing side. You’re doing what you have to for your family. I can respect that,” Jason said.

Albert looked out the window at the endless white. ”What about you, Jason? You seem like a man who has lost everything, yet you follow Ethan like he’s a god. Did you have to give up much to be here?” Albert said.

Jason’s grip on the steering wheel tightened slightly. The heater hummed, but a sudden chill seemed to settle in the cabin.

”Before I met Ethan... before any of this... I had a daughter. She was everything to me,” Jason said.

”Where is she now?” Albert said.

”I had to leave her. The people I was tangled with back then... they were going to use her to get to me. To keep her alive, I had to vanish. I had to become a ghost,” Jason said.

”But now that you have all this power—now that Royal owns half the world—why don’t you go find her?” Albert said.

Jason let out a short, hollow laugh that didn’t reach his eyes. He looked older at that moment, the shadows of the dashboard carving deep lines into his face.

”I don’t have the face or the courage to look at her, Albert. Not after abandoning her for all these years. Some things can’t be fixed with power or money. Sometimes, stayin’ away is the only gift you have left to give,” Jason said.

The radio cracked, interrupting the heavy silence of the cabin.

”Commander Jason, we are three minutes from the perimeter of the Processing Hub. Scanners show heavy resistance. Orders?” the scout said.

Jason’s expression changed instantly. The grieving father vanished, replaced by the hardened commander.

”Launch the drones. I want the gates down in sixty seconds. No survivors,” Jason said.

Inside one of the luxury residential towers owned by Royal, the atmosphere was far more peaceful, yet tinged with a persistent longing. Alexandria and Victoria, the Dean of Admissions, sat on a plush velvet sofa, sharing a bottle of wine. The two women, along with Ethan, had developed a unique and playful relationship, but the man at the center of their lives had become increasingly elusive.

”Do you think about going back to MIT, Alexandria? You haven’t stepped foot on campus since the kidnapping and that whole blackmail mess,” Victoria said.

Alexandria swirled the wine in her glass, her eyes reflecting the city lights. ”I’ve thought about it. I actually spoke with the future Governor, Thompson. He told me I have his full support to take over as the General Dean of the entire Institute,” Alexandria said.

”That’s a huge position. What’s stopping you?” Victoria said.

”My daughter. She’s become so sensitive since everything happened. She cries every time I leave her side for more than an hour. And my sister... her injuries were deep, she’s still recovering. Besides, Ethan doesn’t seem to have much interest in MIT these days. If he’s not in a hurry for me to be there, I’m not in a hurry to leave this apartment,” Alexandria said.

Victoria sighed, leaning her head back against the cushion. ”I’ve noticed that. Ethan has become like a ghost lately. It’s nearly impossible to see him. Even when he’s in the building, his mind is somewhere else,” Victoria said.

”I heard he traveled to the Arctic... Greenland, maybe. Somewhere freezing and remote,” Alexandria said.

”What could he possibly want with a block of ice?” Victoria said with a dry laugh.

”I have no idea. But I know the other girls are feeling it too. None of us have felt Ethan’s touch in a long time. It’s frustrating, but there’s no other way. He’s the only one who can lead this empire he’s building. Nothing about what he does is easy, so I suppose the least we can do is share his burdens by being patient,” Alexandria said.

Victoria nodded, a playful spark returning to her eyes despite the melancholy. ”True. But the next time he walks through that door, I’m not letting him leave for at least forty-eight hours. Empire or no empire, a man has needs—and so do we,” Victoria said.

Alexandria laughed, raising her glass in a toast. ”To the ghost king of the North. May he finish his business with the ice and come home to the fire,” Alexandria said.

In one of the most secure and luxurious offices of the Royal main tower, the rhythmic shuffling of paper was the only sound breaking the silence. Sarah, Ethan’s childhood friend, stood by the desk. Despite the high-tech environment, she still kept her youthful look with her signature braided pigtails, though her eyes now held the focus of someone handling state secrets.

Since what happened when she ran away from home, she hadn’t returned because she had fought with her parents, so Lena had taken her in as her assistant to help her manage all of Royal’s expenses.

Opposite her sat Lena Rossy, Ethan’s right hand. It was no exaggeration to say that in the hierarchy of Royal, Lena was only a step below Ethan himself and far above everyone else. She was the financial heart of the empire, controlling every credit that flowed through their veins.

”Do you have the papers ready, Sarah?” Lena said.

”Yes. They are all here, separated by clips as you asked,” Sarah said.

Sarah placed a massive stack of documents on the desk. Lena began to sign and review them. These were the contracts for the contractors, subcontractors, and the entire labor force currently building the residential and executive zone in the North End.

Following Ethan’s direct orders, Lena had not skimped on expenses. At that moment, Royal was paying nearly three times what any other construction company could quote or pay. As a result, almost the entire labor force of the state and nearly the entire East Coast was working in their district. With such attractive prices, no one wanted to miss a slice of the pie, and the construction was moving at incredible speeds.

The saying that something could appear ”overnight” was not an exaggeration here. Everyone gave their absolute best. Lena had offered million-dollar bonuses to all construction firms for meeting nearly impossible deadlines, which meant she had to pay out staggering amounts every day to maintain the pace.

”The outflow of cash is massive, Lena. Are you sure we should keep the bonuses at this level?” Sarah said.

”The money only calls more money, Sarah. The influx of wealth hasn’t stopped increasing. The pre-orders for the offices and luxury mansions are coming in faster than we can build them. We redirect that wealth to keep the speed. My job is to ensure that when Ethan returns, his city is ready,” Lena said.

Lena didn’t even look up as she stamped another approval. In this world, gold was just as powerful as lightning, and she was the one wielding it.