The fear that had seeped into his father's heart was a more satisfying meal than any Raj had eaten. For days, he watched through the digital peepholes he'd created as Suresh Mathur scrambled, making panicked calls, shuffling assets, and behaving not like a titan of industry, but like a cornered animal.
But fear alone was not the goal. The goal was annihilation.
Raj stood before the massive interactive screen in his penthouse. It displayed a complex web diagram of his family's corporate holdings. At the very center, glowing with a brighter light than all the others, was one name: 'Mathur Gems & Jewels'.
It was their flagship. The source of their name, their social standing, and their pride. His mother, Anjali, was its public face, its brand ambassador. Her image was on their advertisements, her neck draped in the very diamonds she would deny her son the money for food. This, Raj decided, would be his next target. He would not just break their bank; he would shatter their legacy.
His morning check-in felt different, charged with anticipation.
[ Daily Check-in Complete. ]
[ Reward Received: ₹5,00,00,000 (Five Crore Indian Rupees) ]
[ Bonus Reward: 25% Ownership Stake in 'Global-Trans Logistics' ]
[ System Note: 'Global-Trans Logistics' is a multinational freight and supply chain management corporation with priority access to major sea and air routes. ]
Raj's cold smile returned. A logistics empire. The perfect weapon for the war he was about to wage.
His plan unfolded with the deadly precision of a virus.
Phase 1: The Supply Chain.
Using Digital Phantom, Raj infiltrated the network of Mathur Gems. It was child's play. He found the details of their most crucial upcoming shipment: a multi-million dollar consignment of raw, uncut diamonds from a mine in Botswana, scheduled to arrive in Surat for processing. It was the centerpiece of their new "Ethereal Dreams" collection, which his mother was set to unveil at a high-profile gala in two weeks.
With his controlling influence in Global-Trans Logistics, Raj's instructions were simple. Through a series of untraceable orders, the shipment was flagged mid-transit due to a "customs discrepancy." It was re-routed to a secure warehouse in Dubai owned by Global-Trans. Then, using one of his many shell corporations, 'Mr. R' purchased the entire consignment legally from the confused and frustrated shipping agent for a premium. To the Mathurs, their diamonds had simply vanished into a black hole of international bureaucracy.
Phase 2: The Reputation.
While Suresh and Anjali were frantically trying to locate their shipment, Raj activated his second weapon: Apex Media & PR. A new campaign, far more insidious than the last, began to spread online. It wasn't an attack; it was "investigative journalism." Professionally produced articles and short documentaries appeared on popular news portals and social media, questioning the ethical origins of diamonds in the Indian jewelry market. They spoke of "conflict minerals" and fraudulent certifications. They never mentioned Mathur Gems by name, but they used images of storefronts and jewelry designs that were strikingly similar. The poison was subtle, planting a seed of doubt in the minds of their wealthy clientele.
Phase 3: The Irony.
The final move was one of pure, psychological warfare. Amidst the new "ethical concerns," there was a string of minor, suspiciously timed robbery attempts at other high-end jewelry stores in Mumbai and Delhi. Citing these events, Titan Security—Raj's company—used its new, aggressive reputation to push out the existing security providers for Mathur Gems' flagship showrooms.
Suresh Mathur, desperate to prevent any actual theft on top of his other crises, was forced to sign a massively inflated security contract with the very same 'Mr. R' who was tormenting him. Raj's men now guarded his family's most valuable assets.
The Mathur mansion in Ludhiana had become a pressure cooker.
"The diamonds are gone, Suresh!" Anjali shrieked, her usual poise completely shattered. "The gala is in a week! All my friends are whispering about these horrible articles! They're asking if our gems are tainted! My reputation—our reputation—is being destroyed!"
"What do you want me to do?!" Suresh roared back, his face flushed with impotent fury. "The shipment vanished! The media is out for blood! And to top it all off, I'm paying that monster 'R' a fortune to protect the very stores he's helping to ruin! We are trapped!"
The foundation of their marriage, built on wealth and status, was beginning to crack under the relentless, invisible assault.
In his penthouse, Raj watched the stock ticker for the Mathur Group on his screen. It was a waterfall of red. He had cut off their supply, poisoned their name, and was now charging them for the privilege of watching them bleed.
He took a slow sip of water, the city lights twinkling below him. The crown jewel of their empire was tarnishing, and he was the one polishing it with sandpaper.