📍 Day 31 – Crane Dominion, Executive Vault Lounge – 6:00 A.M.
Ethan Crane sat alone, legs crossed, in a leather chair carved from obsidian-black steel and velvet. A single digital clock ticked above a touchscreen table that fed him real-time updates on 37 companies—all touched by his hand, his money, or his will.
He wasn't just rich anymore.
He was untouchable.
And today, he'd send a message.
[System Update]
New Mission: "Carve the OrionEdge Path"
– Objective: Acquire controlling interest in OrionEdge without alerting government regulators.
– Bonus: Uncover hidden traitor within OrionEdge's R&D department.
– Reward: +10 Power Points, Skill Upgrade: [Technocrat's Dominion Lv.2]
Accept?
→ Yes
📍 7:45 A.M. – Seoul Tower Café
Lila sat across from her best friend, her espresso untouched. For weeks, she'd heard whispers:
Anonymous takeovers. Silent fund drains.
Big names crashing under invisible pressure.
And one name kept surfacing:
Crane Dominion.
"You look pale, Lila."
"Have you ever heard of Elijah Crane?"
"That reclusive billionaire? The one no one's seen?"
"Yeah. I think… I think I used to know him."
Her voice trembled.
"Are you okay?"
"No. Because if I'm right, I didn't just betray a man. I betrayed a god before he knew he was one."
📍 9:02 A.M. – OrionEdge, Internal Server Hub
[Skill Activated: Digital Phantom Lv.1]
Infiltrate secured networks without detection. Gain access to blueprints, employee histories, and hidden IP transfers.
Lines of code danced across Ethan's vision. From a luxury penthouse, he accessed the OrionEdge database through a proxy bank he technically owned.
[Target Flagged: Joo Tae-sik – Head of R&D – Leaking patents to Langford]
He smiled coldly.
"You're the traitor."
"Let's see how much loyalty costs you when everything burns around you."
📍 12:00 P.M. – Langford Holdings – David's Private Office
David Langford slammed the papers on his desk.
"We lost the Deukjin contract. Outbid. Again."
"By who?"
"No name. Just… 'EC Group.'"
The assistant paused.
"Sir… Lila tried to warn you."
"Warn me about what?"
"Crane."
David grabbed his phone and dialed Lila.
"What do you know?"
"I know he's coming for everything. And you deserve it."
Click.
📍 2:00 P.M. – Crane Dominion, Vault Server Room
[Trait Evolved: Asset Proxy Network → Financial Hydra Lv.1]
You now control 22 shadow entities. Use them to execute hostile takeovers, stock surges, or collapses with zero traceability.
Ethan watched as a stock crash triggered.
OrionEdge's shares plummeted 13%. Panic erupted in the tech world.
But behind the screen, Ethan tapped once.
"Initiate White Knight Protocol."
EC Holdings offers bailout for OrionEdge at 31% controlling stake.
📍 5:30 P.M. – Crane Dominion, Rooftop Suite
A storm rolled in. Ethan stood, wine glass in hand, his reflection staring back at him through the glass wall.
"They took everything from me. Laughed at me."
"Now I'm the ghost they can't trace. The hand they can't block."
"And I haven't even started."
His system buzzed again.
[Mission Complete: OrionEdge Acquisition]
– Power Points +10
– Skill Upgrade Unlocked: Technocrat's Dominion Lv.2
– New Title: Architect of Collapse
– Passive Gained: Whispered Reputation (Your name causes unease in financial sectors. Enemies lose composure.)
📍 Late Night – Lila's Apartment
She couldn't sleep. She stared at an old photo—Ethan before the power, before the suits, before the silence.
Her phone buzzed.
Unknown Number: "You'll regret hurting me."
Her chest tightened.
"No… not a threat."
"A promise."
She dropped the phone.