I'm The King of Business & Technology in the Modern World-Chapter 81: Mending the Past

The early morning air in Manila was still thick with the remnants of last night's rain, the dampness clinging to the sidewalks and roads. As Matthew sat in the back of his Lexus LM500, scrolling through Sentinel Systems' latest cybersecurity reports, his mind wasn't entirely on work.

It had been a while since he'd thought much about family—but ever since he stepped back into their lives, it seemed like he couldn't shake it.

Marco had adapted faster than expected. Matthew had expected complaints, frustration, maybe even outright failure. But his younger brother had kept his head down, put in the hours, and wasn't riding his last name for any special treatment.

A part of him respected that.

The car pulled into the underground parking of Sentinel Systems' headquarters, its headlights casting a brief glow against the sterile, concrete walls. His N95 mask was already looped around his ears as the doors opened, and he stepped into the lobby, nodding briefly at the receptionist before heading straight for the executive floor.

Angel was already waiting in his office, flipping through her tablet. Her surgical mask was tucked under her chin, her foot tapping slightly as she scrolled.

"You're early," Matthew noted as he set his briefcase down.

Angel smirked. "So are you."

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Matthew didn't reply, instead pulling off his N95 mask and tossing it onto his desk as he sat down. "What's new?"

Angel leaned forward. "A couple of things. First—San Miguel wants to move forward with integrating Sentinel's cybersecurity into their toll road systems. We've got a meeting scheduled next week with Ramon Ang to finalize the deal."

Matthew nodded. That was expected.

"Second," Angel continued, "our stake in SM Prime is looking better than ever. Retail sales are recovering, foot traffic in malls is rising again—pandemic restrictions are still in place, but people are adapting."

Matthew smirked. "Like I said, it was the right move."

Angel gave him a knowing look but didn't argue.

Then she hesitated, tapping a few notes on her tablet.

"There's one more thing," she said, glancing up at him.

Matthew raised an eyebrow.

"It's about your brother."

Matthew leaned back slightly. "What about him?"

Angel exhaled. "Richard gave me a preliminary report on Marco. He's adjusting well—actually, he's doing more than that. He's picking things up quickly. Apparently, he's been staying after hours, reviewing security protocols, and has already identified two minor vulnerabilities in Sentinel's internal system."

Matthew frowned slightly. "That fast?"

Angel nodded. "Richard was impressed—which doesn't happen often."

Matthew stayed silent for a moment, processing.

It wasn't that he didn't think Marco was capable—he had given him the job for a reason. But he hadn't expected him to thrive this quickly.

Angel smirked. "Maybe talent runs in the family."

Matthew snorted. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves."

Still, the news sat in his mind as he turned back to his work.

November 6, 2020.

Marco was starting to feel something he hadn't felt in years—purpose.

For so long, he had drifted between mediocre IT jobs, barely scraping by, just doing enough to pay the bills. He had convinced himself that this was all life had to offer.

But working at Sentinel Systems was different.

The pace was brutal. The expectations were high. The work was relentless.

And he loved it.

Sitting at his workstation, he adjusted his N95 mask and pulled up the latest intrusion attempt logs. Most were just automated bots, but Sentinel had been targeted by more sophisticated threats in the past few months.

Marco had spent the last few days going over internal network defenses, looking for weak spots. He didn't want to just survive here—he wanted to prove himself.

As he worked, a voice snapped him out of his focus.

"You're here early."

Marco glanced up to see Richard Wong, his boss, standing behind him with a cup of coffee in hand.

"Yeah," Marco said, rubbing the back of his head. "Figured I'd get a head start."

Richard studied him for a moment. "You remind me of someone."

Marco raised an eyebrow. "Who?"

Richard smirked. "Your brother."

Marco scoffed. "Great. That's the last thing I want to hear."

Richard chuckled before nodding at Marco's screen. "I saw the report you submitted. Good work. The vulnerability you spotted in the database encryption protocols—we're patching that today."

Marco blinked. "Wait… you actually used my recommendation?"

Richard smirked. "Why wouldn't we? You were right."

Marco didn't know what to say to that.

Richard leaned forward slightly. "Listen, kid—you've got potential. But potential doesn't mean anything unless you prove it. Keep this up, and we'll see where it takes you."

Marco exhaled and nodded. "Got it."

Richard gave him a final nod before walking away.

Marco stared at his screen, feeling something he hadn't in a long time.

Pride.

November 7, 2020.

For the first time in years, Matthew found himself at a family dinner—and it wasn't awkward silence and forced conversations.

His mother, Teresa, had cooked a full meal, laying out a spread of food like she always used to before everything fell apart. The new house was still unfamiliar, but it was a home, and that mattered more than anything.

Marco was more talkative than usual, sharing stories from work.

"So, get this," Marco said between bites. "There was a botnet attack on one of the dummy networks in Sentinel's system, right? We knew it was coming, but the team was split on how to counter it."

Matthew listened quietly as Marco recounted the details, his technical understanding improving.

His mother smiled as she listened, clearly happy to see her sons talking again.

His father, Ramon Sr., was quieter, but he wasn't scowling or bitter. He mostly ate in silence, occasionally nodding along to the conversation. It wasn't much—but it was progress.

After dinner, as Matthew was getting ready to leave, Teresa pulled him aside.

"Matthew," she said softly, "thank you… for everything."

Matthew met her gaze. "You don't have to thank me, Mom."

She smiled, squeezing his hand. "I do. You didn't have to do this. You didn't have to come back… but you did."

Matthew exhaled. "Yeah. I did."

As he walked toward the front door, Marco stopped him.

"Hey," Marco said, rubbing the back of his head. "I, uh… I appreciate the job. Just wanted you to know that."

Matthew smirked. "I know."

Marco smirked back. "Guess I'll see you at work, boss."

Matthew shook his head, chuckling. "Don't make it weird."