Beyond the Bloodline-Chapter 227: The Rumoured Chairman

OmniVerge Industries Incorporated Headquarters

Efvahona Region (Elf) 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Neutral Continent

November 21st

Year 2018

The top floor of the conglomerate’s headquarters exuded opulence, with sleek marble floors, abstract sculptures, and walls adorned with high-end artwork.

Every inch of this space was polished to perfection, evidence of the corporation’s influence over global markets.

Walking down the expansive hallway, a group of men and women in impeccable suits—chief executives, board members, and their efficient, clipboard-clutching secretaries—moved toward the double doors of the conference room and the end of the hall.

Their footsteps echoed down the hall, and they spoke about the current economic upheavals rippling across the planet.

"Lupinora’s markets are fluctuating wildly again. If this keeps up, it could destabilize our foothold there."

"That’s the one place we CANNOT afford to lose our stand in, no matter the cause."

Two aged Executives spoke amongst themselves, while the younger one trailing behind them wondered why their seniors placed so much emphasis on Lupinora—the Werewolf Continent.

The CEO, at the front of the group, barely listened to the chatter. Instead, his gaze was on his secretary, a frown on his face.

"I told you to compile those reports before this meeting. Why wasn’t it done?"

The secretary paled, fumbling for an answer, but the CEO dismissed him with a wave of irritation.

As they reached the conference room, the security guards flanking the double doors opened them with military precision.

But as the executives entered, they all stopped short, eyes widening at the sight they met.

Seated comfortably at the head of the table, legs propped up, was an unknown man who seemed utterly engrossed in his phone.

The silence stretched for a heartbeat before the man looked up at the CEO and spoke casually,

"Nimon, don’t be so hard on the little guy."

His eyes flicked to the secretary, a hint of amusement in his voice.

The words snapped everyone back to the moment, and the security guards sprang forward, hands reaching to restrain this intruder.

At the same time, one of the secretaries shouted. "How dare y-!"

"Who are y-?!"

Before those words could fully escape their lips, the CEO raised a hand, and with a flash of magic, the guards and the secretary were forced facedown into the ground, silent and still.

The CEO and the senior executives dropped to one knee, bowing with a deference that shocked the younger board members.

From the corners of their eyes, the older executives sent silent but stern glares, signalling the younger ones to follow suit.

Awkwardly, they knelt as well, casting bewildered looks at one another. They couldn’t understand why their seniors who had run the conglomerate for centuries were showing deference before this unknown man.

"Greetings, my lord. Welcome back."

The chief executive spoke in a tone filled with reverence.

Finally, the stranger lifted his gaze, his lips curving into a light laugh.

"Oh, come on, everyone! Why so stiff?"

He spoke while waving a hand as if they were simply old friends meeting up for a casual chat.

"Let’s ease the tension here. Lighten up the atmosphere a little bit.

Sure, this isn’t exactly a social call and more of a Boss coming to check on how his subordinates have been running his business in the past few millennia, but there’s no need for all this formality.

Now, get up."

With that, he lowered his feet from the table and the Executives rose on command. Still, they did not speak a single word, waiting for what their long-absent master would say next.

The man seated in the CEO’s chair leaned back, spinning slightly to gaze out at the skyline stretching across the cityscape, lights twinkling as far as the eye could see.

"I was over in Pinecone for a while, and after getting back, I realized a few things I missed earlier.

Seems like you guys decided to change a whole bunch of things on Estea. Take the currency, for instance. The currency I remember being widely accepted is now... practically a collector’s item.

Now it’s ’Credits?’

Why’d you go and change that?"

The younger Executives were all confused. ’Credits’ have been the generally accepted legal tender on the Intergalactic Stage for thousands of years now—introduced to resolve most issues with currency valuing.

But this man spoke of a time when almost every planet had their own different currencies and changing them was a hassle.

Not knowing their thoughts, he waved a hand dismissively.

"Not that it really matters to me. But while I’m here for the next few weeks, I’d rather not have to jump through hoops every time I need something."

Nimon, the CEO, bowed his head respectfully.

"Don’t worry, sir. It’ll be handled immediately."

He turned to the Chief Financial Officer, who nodded and added.

"You’ll have as much as you desire, sir. After all, everything in this business empire belongs to you."

The younger executives, who had been listening in stunned silence, exchanged bewildered glances.

All their lives, they had believed the CEO was the ultimate authority, the undisputed leader of the company.

Rumours of a mysterious ’Chairman’ had floated around the halls for years, but they had been dismissed as nothing more than office lore.

Yet, here he was, in the flesh, the unknown figure to whom even the CEO and the chief executives deferred.

As they grappled with this revelation, the ’Chairman’ stood up, brushing imaginary dust from his impeccable suit, and turned back to face the executives.

"Oh, and I have a meeting with the Crimson Court guys in a couple of days. So I was thinking maybe I could run a similar check-in with all of you here. Think you can make that happen?"

Nimon responded without even a second’s hesitation.

"It shall be arranged, sir. I’ll call in the other chief officers from across the planet, and they’ll be here within the hour."

Within the hour, from across the Planet.

A simple-sounding yet very ridiculous statement.

Estea was an Apex World, and a commonality of 99% of Apex worlds was that they were ridiculously big.

Take Gnocyl Prime for example. That was a world as big as some Dwarf Stars.

That same Gnocyl Prime looked ’small’ in front of Estea.

Calling people over from across Estea within an hour was ridiculous, even with teleportation. Estea’s vast continents, sprawling islands, and immense oceans made traversing it no small undertaking, and some Deities themselves couldn’t teleport such vast distances in a single leap.

But Nimon declared with absolute certainty that he’d make sure the others arrive within the hour and hearing this, the man merely chuckled and shook his head.

"Nah, no need for all that. I just dropped by to check in and see how my business is running. Figured I’d go from place to place, but... well."

He paused, resting a hand on his chin thoughtfully, before continuing a moment later.

"You know what? I think I’d actually go from business to business, just not now but When I’m back from Pinecone.

I have to get to the Amphitheatre of Eternity when it opens."

Hearing mention of the Amphitheatre of Eternity, Nimon nodded, his expression shifting to one of understanding.

"All right, I’ll check back in with you later when I make my rounds. For now, just handle the funds and everything I mentioned."

Tossing his phone onto the table, he continued.

"The details are all in there—account info, and all the other tech you guys have been changed over the last 12,000 years. Handle it, and have the phone returned to me. I’ll be on Nightingale."

With that, he disappeared, leaving the room in a state of shock as they absorbed the weight of his words and the sudden, eerie silence that filled the space he’d just vacated.