Chapter 9 - The First Guillotine Falls

📍 10:42 A.M. – Crane Dominion Holdings – Sub-Level Boardroom

Ethan stood before a sleek, matte-black screen with a real-time display of asset flows, investor sentiment, and competitor weaknesses. The team sat in silence. Then—he gave a simple order:

"Begin the Silent Pullout Protocol."

Within seconds, ₩7.2 billion in assets tied to Langford's key subsidiaries vanished. Stocks trembled. Boardrooms froze.

[Skill Activated: Asset Proxy Network]

– Stakeholder Influence Applied: Langford Holdings, Tier C

– Board Manipulation: 1 Vote Swing Secured

No warning. No press. No leaks.

Just absence.

📍 11:15 A.M. – Langford Holdings – Executive Panic

David Langford's face drained of color. His CFO shouted across the room:

"Our liquidity pool is bleeding—we just lost half our Eastern funding chain!"

"Who pulled it?"

"It's… hidden. Cloaked under dozens of offshore proxies. But it's coordinated."

David's hands trembled.

"Crane."

The board demanded answers.

"Who is Elijah Crane?"

"Why does he own pieces of our subsidiaries?!"

"Why is the market reacting to a rumor?!"

David yelled, "SHUT UP!"

But it was too late. Panic spread through the board.

📍 3:45 P.M. – Inside the System Interface

[Power Points Gained: +5]

[Reputation Milestone: "The Phantom Guillotine" – Alias Status Updated]

[New Passive Trait Unlocked: Corporate Predator I]

– Enemies begin to make mistakes when under financial pressure you initiate.

"I didn't even have to swing the blade," Ethan murmured.

📍 8:00 P.M. – Private Investor Dinner – Seoul

Six billionaire investors attended. Two recognized Ethan instantly but said nothing.

The host smiled:

"You've certainly stirred things up. Langford's bleeding."

Ethan sipped red wine, silent.

A venture capitalist leaned forward.

"Tell me—are you building something new… or dismantling what exists?"

Ethan's gaze didn't waver.

"Both."

That answer alone got him ₩3.5 billion in new silent backing.

📍 Midnight – Langford Holdings – Emergency Filing

Langford's publicists issued a rushed press release to counter the rumors:

"No hostile activity. Business is steady. Deukjin division continues full operations."

It was a lie.

Behind the scenes, six division heads had already resigned.

David Langford stared at his screen—Ethan's name never appeared once. But his shadow was everywhere.

📍 Back at Crane Dominion – Rooftop Garden

Ethan stood alone, wind brushing his coat.

His phone buzzed. Lila.

["Are you trying to destroy my father?"]

He stared at the message. Then typed one line:

"I gave him a choice. He ignored it."

No reply.