Revenge Begins: Reincarnated as a Hated Idol!-Chapter 86: The Blame Shift

"The one who blacklisted Aren and Lisa.

The one who tried to block the evidence from airing.

The one who spread Lisa’s obscene clips and pictures—"

"was none other than Lucian’s father," he said, voice low and steady. "Second-highest shareholder of Titan Crest Entertainment, Caleb Pitts!"

Neil let the accusations settle in the silence, eyes locked on the camera like a man who had already won the war.

Only after a few long seconds did he speak again.

"It was Caleb," he said, his tone steadier now, controlled. "He used his authority within Titan Crest to protect his son."

A faint shake of his head, almost regretful.

"I didn’t even know about Lucian’s crimes until the evidence aired and exposed him."

He leaned back slightly, exhaling through his nose.

"I may be the chairman—but I do not interfere with the company’s day-to-day operations."

"Caleb has many employees by his side who kept all of this a secret, not letting any of us know about it."

He leaned forward slightly, gaze unflinching as he continued:

"However, as soon as I found out about Lucian, I persuaded Iris for divorce and announced my support for the victims, as you saw in yesterday’s press conference."

His voice faltered—just slightly.

"But..."

The word hung heavy. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

He paused, his expression changed as he clenched his fists, eyeing the camera with a hateful gaze:

"Lisa. Aren. And those three actresses..."

He spoke their names slowly, each one a blade turned inward.

"They chose to lie about me and Iris."

His jaw set.

"Those actresses never approached me or Iris for help."

A sharp breath through his nose.

"If they had—if any of them had reached out... if they had told us even a fraction of what happened..."

His voice dropped, firm with conviction.

"We would’ve helped them immediately and sent Lucian to jail ourselves."

The anger in his eyes cooled into something colder.

"As for the claim that we kidnapped Aren’s father..."

He let a small, incredulous smile touch his lips, the kind that said the lie was beneath him.

"Another convenient fiction designed to gut our reputation."

Then—

A shift.

Subtle, but unmistakable.

His expression softened, something almost paternal surfacing.

"And Lisa’s father..."

He exhaled slowly, eyes lowering for a moment before lifting again—gentler now.

"I understand your pain."

A pause.

"I have three daughters of my own."

His voice grew quieter.

"And there is nothing worse... than watching your child suffer."

For a moment, the anger disappeared completely—replaced by something that felt real.

Or at least—

Convincing.

Then, just as quickly, resolve took its place.

Steel beneath calm.

"Which is why," he said, voice firm once more, "I will not let Caleb Pitts walk away from this."

Each word was measured.

Deliberate.

"I will force him to relinquish his shares."

"I will remove him from the company."

"And I will personally file an official complaint to ensure he faces justice."

His gaze locked onto the camera—steady, unwavering.

"Do not worry."

A softer tone.

"I am with you."

The video ended there.

With Neil looking straight ahead—

Calm, sincere, and reassuring.

As if nothing he said could possibly be doubted.

The netizens who viewed the video were left confused and conflicted. They couldn’t understand who to believe at this point.

[After watching this video, I feel like he is telling the truth. But I also cannot doubt the actresses who claimed that he knew about Lucian beforehand. I don’t want to hate anyone innocent.]

[It makes sense. Lucian’s father would definitely try to shield his son, and he must be the one who wronged Lisa and the others. It’s just that Lisa didn’t know that it was Lucian’s father who was behind all this and thought that it was Neil Valcourt and Iris Valcourt.]

[But still, Caleb Pitts is also a part of Titan Crest Entertainment. Titan Crest Entertainment was the one to do those horrible things, and they should be punished.]

[I don’t agree. Why should the innocent chairman and his daughter suffer because of Caleb Pitts?]

Eventually, the opinions and direction of hate were again divided, causing Neil to relish in joy.

...

Inside Neil’s study,

"Hahaha... what a genius mind I have."

Neil’s laughter was light, almost indulgent—like a man admiring his own reflection.

Across from him, Iris smiled, her voice soft with admiration.

"Yes, Father. It’s such a simple idea... yet it never crossed my mind." She tilted her head slightly, eyes gleaming. "Of course Lucian’s father would try to save his useless son. There couldn’t be a better scapegoat."

Neil shook his head, the smile on his lips sharpening.

"That’s only part of it."

He leaned back, fingers tapping once against the armrest.

"With this," he continued, voice lowering with satisfaction, "I now have a righteous reason to seize Caleb’s shares."

A pause.

"I no longer need your marriage to Lucian to secure them."

For a brief second—

Iris froze.

Then understanding struck.

A spark lit behind her eyes, admiration deepening into something closer to awe.

"I’m impressed, Father."

She lowered her head slightly—a rare gesture of respect.

Neil accepted it without hesitation, his smile widening just enough to betray his satisfaction.

Then—

It faded.

Not entirely.

Just enough.

Because beneath it, something colder surfaced.

His eyes gleamed, sharp and merciless, as his thoughts turned inward.

Hmph... just you wait, Ember Sunburn... Aren Frost.

The names passed through his mind like targets already marked.

Once this storm settles—

His fingers curled slightly.

I’ll deal with both of you.

He was confident that after this clever response from him, Ember and Aren would be left speechless, unable to counter with anything.

After all, he only needed one fourth of the population to believe in his innocence to survive unscathed from this whole predicament.

Unless Titan Crest Entertainment was boycotted by everyone, this attack from Ember won’t be able to harm them greatly, and Titan Crest Entertainment will survive after enduring a few losses.

However, those losses could be recuperated in the future along with the vengeance Neil would exact on these liars who tried to bring his agency down.

****

In the night, in Aren’s hotel room, Lisa was held in Aren’s arms, her body touching his, sharing the peaceful warmth between them.

However, today, Lisa’s mind was in turmoil, her heart beating wildly in her chest.

For the past few days, she had slept with Aren in this position; however, she noticed that while he held her in his arms, he didn’t sleep.

Only after he thought that she had fallen asleep did he let her go and sleep with some distance between them.

She had been trying to make excuses of being scared to let Aren know that she wanted him; however, despite her hints, he seemed reluctant to make a move.

However, today, she was determined.

She knew that a man like Aren would soon become much more popular with his talents and looks. She knew that once that happened, numerous women would want to make him theirs.

She had to make her move while she still had the chance to be alone with him like this.

After everything Aren did for her, she knew that he at least cared for her deeply; otherwise, most men would jump at the chance to take advantage of a woman.

His reluctance was the proof that he didn’t want to take advantage of her in the heat of the moment.

However, her heart had already went to him, and she wanted to be with no other man than him.

Therefore, gathering her courage, suppressing her pounding heart, she purred, "Erm, Aren..."

"Hmm..." Aren’s chest vibrated as he replied without opening his eyes.

Lisa clenched her fists, closing her eyes tightly in anticipation as she muttered:

"Let’s date..."

Aren’s eyes snapped wide open in shock.

-----------------------------------

(A/N - From this point on, the story will begin to justify its R-18 tag. I suspect that many of you might have begun reading for this aspect only.

Sorry for delaying it for so long.

Lastly, any feedback would be highly appreciated.

Actually, I’m a very paranoid author—an overthinker. So I always want to know if the story is on the right track or do I need to improve on some aspects.

For that, I need to know your thoughts as a reader.

What you like, what you don’t like?

It will help the story become better so please share if you have anything to mention.

And thanks for reading. ^..^)