Isabella Sterling had attended hundreds of business meetings in her twenty-one years of life.
She had met billionaires who treated everyone around them like servants, politicians who smiled while plotting against their rivals, and businessmen who would sell their own families for a profitable deal.
She thought she had seen almost everything.
Until Davis Blackwood walked into her office.
She sat behind her mahogany desk, looking at the acquisition documents for Sterling Tower.
The young man had purchased a property worth £320 million without displaying the slightest nervousness.
What bothered her wasn't his money.
It was his attitude.
Most wealthy men tried to impress her. Some sent flowers. Others invited her to expensive restaurants or purchased ridiculous gifts.
Davis had done none of those things.
He had negotiated, completed the transaction, thanked her, and walked away.
"Elena!"
Her personal assistant entered immediately.
"Yes, Miss Sterling?"
"Find out everything you can about Davis Alexander Blackwood."
Elena opened her tablet.
"That may be difficult."
Isabella raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
"His name appears in several old business records, but the Blackwood family disappeared from public business circles years ago. His parents died, and most of their assets were reportedly liquidated. There isn't much reliable information about him."
"Nothing about his education?"
"He graduated from Oxford with a business degree. His academic record appears genuine."
Isabella leaned back.
"So an eighteen-year-old graduate from a ruined family suddenly purchases Sterling Tower."
"That's correct."
"With what money?"
"We haven't established that."
Isabella tapped her pen against the desk.
Something about the situation didn't make sense.
She had reviewed the financial documents herself. Everything had passed the necessary checks, and the legal team had confirmed the transaction.
Still, she couldn't shake the feeling that Davis was hiding something.
"Elena, arrange a dinner meeting with him." Enjoying the story? Read on at g.com.
"Business dinner?"
Isabella hesitated.
"Business dinner."
Elena smiled slightly.
"Of course, Miss Sterling."
"And don't smile like that."
"I'm not smiling."
"You absolutely are."
Elena hurried out before Isabella could throw the nearest document at her.
Left alone, Isabella looked through the glass wall toward the city.
She remembered Davis's eyes when he had entered the conference room.
There had been pain in them, although he had hidden it behind his confidence.
She wondered what had happened to him.
For some reason, she wanted to find out.
Across the city, Davis was discovering that being wealthy was considerably more complicated than he had imagined.
He stood inside his new corporate headquarters, examining a financial report displayed on a large screen.
Blackwood Capital occupied the upper floors of a prestigious office building. The system had provided the company with an established legal structure, several investment assets, and sufficient capital to begin operations.
However, the business had been neglected for years.
Davis looked at the woman standing opposite him.
Elena Brooks was twenty-nine, with neatly styled black hair, sharp brown eyes, and the professional composure of someone who could manage a crisis without raising her voice.
She had agreed to become his executive secretary after reviewing his appointment documents.
"Mr. Blackwood, the company owns several commercial properties, but two require substantial renovation. Our investment portfolio also contains inactive accounts that need a complete review."
"How much money can we generate from the existing assets?"
"With proper management, the company could become profitable within six months. However, that depends on how much capital you're prepared to invest."
Davis glanced at the system interface.
[AVAILABLE SYSTEM FUNDS: £350,000,000.]
[CURRENT CASHBACK MULTIPLIER: 10X.]
[SPECIAL NOTICE: CASHBACK REWARDS MAY VARY BY TRANSACTION TYPE.] Get faster updates on g.com.
He smiled.
"Prepare a restructuring plan. I want the best legal, financial, and property-management teams we can hire."
Elena nodded.
"Understood."
"One more thing. I want an investigation into the circumstances surrounding my parents' deaths and the disappearance of the Blackwood family fortune."
For the first time, Elena's expression changed.
"Mr. Blackwood, are you certain?"
"Why wouldn't I be?"
She hesitated.
"Some of the records are unusually difficult to access. Certain companies connected to your family's former holdings no longer exist. Others were acquired by private investment groups."
Davis's smile faded.
"Which groups?"
"One of them is called the Meridian Consortium."
The system suddenly chimed.
DING!
[HIDDEN QUEST DISCOVERED.]
[QUEST TITLE: THE FALL OF BLACKWOOD.]
[OBJECTIVE: INVESTIGATE THE MERIDIAN CONSORTIUM.]
[REWARD: SEALED FAMILY LEGACY — FIRST KEY.]
Davis stared at the message.
His parents' deaths had always been described as an unfortunate accident.
But now, for the first time, he wondered whether the official story was a lie.
"Elena," he said quietly, "find everything you can about the Meridian Consortium."
"Yes, sir."
As she left the room, Davis turned toward the window.
He had acquired a fortune.
He had obtained a company.
He had a mysterious system capable of changing his life.
But perhaps his greatest discovery would have nothing to do with money.
Perhaps the system had chosen him for a reason.
And perhaps someone had spent years making sure the Blackwood family would never rise again.