A-Girl knocked and entered the room again, bringing a pot of coffee and momentarily interrupting Simon's thoughts. After the assistant left, Simon turned his attention to Ivana Antonenko, who sat on the couch like a timid quail. She shared a similar beautiful face with Yulia, characterized by the distinctively delicate features of Slavic women, with light blonde hair, fair skin, and a long neck. Wearing only a tight-fitting coffee-colored top and white fitted pants in the warm room, her tall, slender figure stood out. Unlike Yulia's youthful thinness, Ivana exuded a faint sense of maturity, like a ripe fruit.
Sensing Simon's gaze, Ivana's pale blue eyes darted around nervously, unable to settle on a spot. She lowered her head slightly.
Simon smiled briefly and looked back at the documents on his lap, casually asking, "Yulia mentioned last night that your child is sick?"
Ivana froze for a moment, like a small animal caught in a trap, then realized Simon was speaking to her. She quickly responded, "Yes, a fever."
As she spoke, Ivana's mind wandered back to the events of the previous night.
Her child had been very ill, and she and her mother were at the hospital bedside. Then, in the middle of the night, they were suddenly informed that her father had been released from prison and, due to his poor health, had been taken to the same hospital for examination.
Their current situation was all because of her father's choices, even leading to the collapse of her marriage. But after all, he was still her father, and they couldn't just ignore him.
After a long night of chaos, the hospital's leadership personally arranged everything—not only ensuring her father was settled but also transferring her child to a private room for better care, with nurses on hand.
This sudden turn of events left her family feeling both grateful and anxious.
Later, they learned it was Simon Westeros who had made the arrangements. The families of the other two girls who were involved with Yulia were also released from prison, but they didn't need hospitalization and had returned home.
Ivana's mother made further inquiries and discovered that not everyone received the same treatment, especially not the governor's family.
Something significant must have happened.
But regardless, it was a good thing for them.
That morning, Yulia called from the villa, explaining what had transpired. The sister who had once been abandoned by Westeros had regained his favor, which led to Ivana being called to the villa.
Ivana wasn't naïve—she understood what this meant.
For some reason, Simon Westeros had taken an interest in her as well.
And not just her, but her sister too.
How could this be?
Yet, since stepping foot into this legendary lakeside villa, with its grandeur, expensive decor, proud servants, and now being in the presence of the powerful man often seen in the news, she found herself unable to resist.
Simon's voice interrupted her thoughts again, "If it's serious, we can transfer your child to the UFMS hospital, or even to Kyiv."
Ivana quickly shook her head and stole a glance at him. "He's getting better. The doctor said he just needs a couple more days of observation before discharge."
Simon nodded, then asked, "What work are you doing now?"
Ivana felt a pang of guilt at the question. After a brief hesitation, she answered, "I help my sister with the shop."
At 23 years old, Ivana had seen her education disrupted by the collapse of the Soviet Union. After a series of societal upheavals, she dropped out of school early and married a classmate she had dated in school. Due to the chaos of the times, neither she nor her husband could find stable work, and they even considered smuggling themselves into Western Europe for a better life. However, two years ago, her pregnancy delayed those plans, and after the birth of her child last year, her life became even more complicated as Yulia became involved with Simon, leading to a rise and fall in their family's fortunes.
So at 23, Ivana had yet to hold a proper job.
Until the previous night, Ivana, her mother, and Yulia survived on the income from a small hat shop on the northern side of Rivne. The shop had been doing well due to the scarcity of goods in Ukraine, and with Yulia's connections, they didn't even need to pay rent. Though Yulia had fallen from favor, she still held the highest status in the family.
Simon continued flipping through his papers as he asked a few more questions, and then pointed to the coffee on the table. "Hand me the cup."
Ivana obediently stood, carefully picked up the coffee, and brought it to him. But Simon pointed to the side table. "Put it here."
As Ivana blushed and placed the cup down, Simon gently grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his arms. Her face, already flushed, turned deep red, the color creeping down to her neck.
Feeling her warmth, Simon glanced at her long legs draped over the armrest of the sofa, her height making it awkward to sit comfortably. Stroking her slim waist, he asked, "How tall are you?"
Ivana, nervous, wanted to hide her face but feared angering him. Trembling slightly, she whispered, "179 cm."
Simon smiled. "Very nice. You've got a great figure, tall and beautiful. Have you thought about becoming a model? You'd definitely be a top one."
"I… I can't."
"You can learn. Modeling is mostly walking and posing for photos. You could easily make a few million dollars a year."
Ivana thought he must be teasing her, but the idea of earning millions was hard to resist. She softly replied, "Okay."
Seeing her agreement, Simon grinned mischievously. "Just kidding."
Ivana turned her head slightly, not out of anger but out of shyness. His changing expression made her heart race.
So, he was just teasing.
Simon, seeing her stay quiet, continued, "A girl as beautiful as you should be kept hidden, like a little bird in a cage. What would you prefer, a golden cage, a silver one, or maybe wooden?"
Hearing Simon's words, Ivana felt no resistance to the idea of being treated like a pet.
It must be her fate.
But as his words confused her further, Simon noticed her puzzled expression and laughed. "Alright, you probably don't get the reference. But your blushing face is adorable. Let me see how far down that redness goes, huh?"
Flustered, Ivana weakly tried to stop his hand from slipping under her top. "No, please…"
Simon relented. "Alright, later then. For now, be good and keep me company while I finish these documents."
Soon, it was noon.
Simon had arranged lunch with Sergey Komorov to discuss some matters, with no women at the table this time.
Before lunch, Simon had A-Girl take Ivana to the villa's third floor. She was too shy to mingle with the other women, and Simon wanted her to get acclimated before enjoying her company later that evening.
After lunch with Komorov, the two left the villa and visited a furniture factory in the northern part of Rivne. They also checked in on the progress of Katerina Company, which had recently established connections with Viktor Meresis, the manager of the African coffee plantation.
Before leaving the villa, Simon instructed A-Girl to personally meet with the group that had been released from prison the night before.
This was a one-time leniency.
However, reinstating them was out of the question.
Simon had no tolerance for betrayers.
A-Girl's presence was meant to crush any lingering hopes and serve as a warning—live peacefully, or they would be sent back to prison just as easily.
The three girls who had left the villa wouldn't be returning either. Simon planned to send them to the UK for high school. How far they would go from there was up to them.
As for the Antonenko family, they were luckier.
Simon had taken a liking to a certain gentle, water-like woman and intended to keep her.
In a small town on the northern edge of Rivne, near a vast forest, the furniture factory working for IKEA had entered full operation.
With strong performance and high-quality output, IKEA recently increased its orders.
However, Sergey Komorov wasn't content. He had never forgotten Simon's advice: creating their own brand would bring longer-term success and greater profits. As such, Komorov was dedicated to growing Katerina Company. Leveraging connections within the Westeros system and top-quality materials from Africa, the company had already received some custom orders from select clients. With time and persistence, its reputation would grow.
After finishing his work for the day, Simon spent one more night in Rivne before leaving Ukraine the next day.
It was November 3rd, a Friday.
In North America, Danelys Entertainment had completed its acquisition of Metropolis ABC Group. The company was now fully under Danelys Entertainment, and its new stock would reopen for trading the following Monday.
Meanwhile, the first week of the Halloween box office period, which began on October 27th, had concluded.
From October 27 to November 2, The Conjuring 2, the third installment in the Conjuring Cinematic Universe, produced by Danelys Entertainment's New World Pictures, opened on 2,781 screens and grossed $46.13 million in its first seven days. While the opening weekend per-screen average of $16,500 was slightly below the $17,800 of the first Conjuring, the expanded screen count allowed The Conjuring 2 to surpass the first film's opening weekend gross of
$42.39 million, leaving its competition, Miracle of Lightning, far behind.
Miracle of Lightning, a sci-fi thriller produced by Disney, earned just $9.16 million in its opening week.
The "80/20 rule" and the growing polarization between winners and losers were becoming increasingly apparent.
As Danelys Entertainment continued to grow, its production quality and marketing capabilities were pulling ahead of other Hollywood studios. Franchises like the Conjuring Cinematic Universe had become massive hits, giving the studio an edge over original films. Just the brand name alone guaranteed a significant box office boost.
What's more, the Conjuring Cinematic Universe continued to maintain a high level of quality, ensuring its success.
People always went to the movies for Halloween.
Given the choice between unknown films and The Conjuring 2, audiences naturally gravitated toward the latter.
With a $46.13 million opening, Danelys Entertainment's marketing team projected that The Conjuring 2 would likely match the $129 million domestic box office of the first film.
Due to early planning and long-term contracts, The Conjuring had a production budget of just $15 million. Despite its success, The Conjuring 2 was made for only $25 million. Under the tiered revenue-sharing system, the film had already recouped its entire production budget within its first week.
To keep the franchise running, Simon had also voluntarily offered the key creatives a generous profit-sharing deal outside of their original contracts.
After leaving Ukraine, Simon didn't return to North America immediately. Instead, he flew to Italy.
While Danelys Entertainment had completed its acquisition of Metropolis ABC, over in Italy, on the afternoon of November 3rd, the Rome Universal Studios project was officially announced.
Simon personally attended the press conference held by Danelys in Rome.
The total investment for building Rome Universal Studios was projected at $2 billion, similar to the Osaka Universal Studios. Through prior negotiations, Danelys Entertainment had already secured most of the land between Rome and Da Vinci International Airport. The remaining parcels would be acquired through negotiations, with the planned construction area covering approximately 200 acres—twice the size of Osaka Universal Studios.
This was possible due to the lower cost of land in Italy.
Moreover, unlike the Osaka project, this time Danelys Entertainment was undertaking the entire project on its own, holding 100% ownership.
This wasn't because Simon didn't want partners but because Italy, wary of repeating the failure of Disneyland Paris, was hesitant to invest. They feared the project would suffer the same fate, leaving them with a mess to clean up.
For Danelys Entertainment, $2 billion was not a problem.
Still, Simon chose to finance the project by issuing long-term corporate bonds in Italy.
This wasn't to take advantage but rather a gesture of goodwill.
Danelys Entertainment's corporate credit rating was AAA, the same as U.S. Treasury bonds, with extremely secure repayment terms. The bonds also offered higher interest rates than U.S. Treasuries, making them attractive to pension and insurance funds seeking low-risk, fixed-income investments.
The official timeline projected that, if everything went smoothly, Rome Universal Studios would open in the year 2000, with a five-year construction period.
These were the official details.
Behind the scenes, there were countless complexities to manage. Fortunately, the Westeros system had cultivated strong relationships in Rome, both in official and unofficial circles, allowing Simon's team to handle any potential issues.
This was also why Simon chose Rome over Barcelona, despite Spain's geographical and linguistic advantages.
Disneyland Paris had failed not only because of poor operational strategy but also because Disney had failed to manage its relationships with France's various factions. From its inception to its opening, Disneyland Paris faced constant attacks from all sides, even receiving public opposition from then-President François Mitterrand, leading to French customers viewing the park with hostility.
In contrast, after years of effort, the Westeros system had ensured that Rome Universal Studios would not face the same challenges.
On the day of the project's announcement, not only did the Italian Prime Minister and the Mayor of Rome attend the press conference, but prominent figures from Italy's business, fashion, cultural, and artistic communities also came to show their support. Italian media coverage in the following days was overwhelmingly positive, a stark contrast to the challenges Disneyland Paris faced with France's widespread criticism.
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