Arc 1: The Wealth Momentum (2016)Part II: The Digital Savior
Chapter 17 — Employee Anand Mishra: A Future Tycoon
Empires are not built with money first.
They are built with people who understand the hunger of having none.
The Loneliness of Being at the Top (Too Early)
Vikram Choudhary discovered an uncomfortable truth within weeks of registering V-Tech Industries Pvt. Ltd.
Money was flowing.
Systems were stable.
Cover stories were airtight.
Yet—
He was alone.
Not emotionally.
Structurally.
A company without employees wasn't a company.
It was a shell.
And shells attract suspicion.
The blue holographic panel flickered faintly at the edge of his vision, its neon-blue glow reflecting off the glass walls of his Worli penthouse office space—an apartment that had already begun to feel like a command center.
STATUS:
Enterprise Structure Incomplete
RECOMMENDATION:
Human Capital Acquisition
Vikram exhaled slowly.
"So even you're telling me this now," he muttered.
An engineer could automate machines.
But businesses?
They required people who believed in the vision—or at least needed the salary badly enough to sell loyalty.
The First CEO Problem
Vikram sat behind his desk—solid teakwood, unnecessary but symbolic.
Laptop open.
Job portal tabs blinking like judgmental eyes.
He stared at the empty fields.
Designation?
Salary?
Experience Required?
He laughed quietly.
"I don't even know what my company really does," he said to the room.
But that wasn't entirely true.
V-Tech Industries was officially a consultancy for mechanical optimization and industrial efficiency.
Unofficially?
It was a wealth engine disguised as a firm.
What he needed wasn't blind obedience.
He needed brains.
Preferably hungry ones.
Filtering for Hunger, Not Pedigree
Vikram did something unusual.
He filtered candidates downward.
No IIM tags.
No fancy foreign MBAs.
No entitlement.
He wanted—
• Intelligence
• Desperation
• Ethics under pressure
The last one was the hardest.
His eyes stopped on one profile.
Anand Mishra
Age: 26
MBA – Operations & Finance
Tier-2 B-School
Current Status: Unemployed (11 months)
Vikram clicked.
Anand Mishra: The Resume That Bled
The resume wasn't flashy.
But it was dense.
• Gold medalist in Operations Simulation
• Internship at mid-sized manufacturing firm
• Published paper on cost-efficiency models
• Recommendation letters—unusually detailed
And at the bottom—
"Actively seeking opportunity to apply skills in real-world enterprise environments."
That line wasn't written.
It was pleading.
Vikram leaned back.
"This one," he said quietly.
The Interview Invitation
He sent a simple mail.
Subject: Interview – V-Tech Industries
Time: Tomorrow, 11 AM
Location: Worli
No HR fluff.
No corporate nonsense.
Within three minutes—
"Thank you for the opportunity, sir. I will be there."
The speed told Vikram everything.
First Impressions Matter (More Than Clothes)
The next morning, the doorbell rang at exactly 10:48 AM.
Vikram opened the door.
Anand Mishra stood there.
Not nervous.
Not confident.
Just… controlled.
He wore—
• Slightly oversized formal shirt
• Polished but old shoes
• A backpack instead of a briefcase
Middle-class armor.
"I'm Anand," he said.
Vikram gestured inside.
"Relax. No HR. No panel."
Anand blinked.
"That's… comforting."
No Resume Questions
They sat across from each other.
Vikram didn't look at the resume.
Instead, he asked—
"If I give you ₹1 crore today, what do you do?"
Anand froze.
This wasn't a textbook question.
"Legally?" he asked carefully.
Vikram smiled.
"Yes."
Anand thought for a long moment.
"Nothing," he said finally.
Vikram raised an eyebrow.
"I'd park it in fixed instruments," Anand continued. "Study markets. Build models. Understand cash flow psychology."
Vikram leaned forward.
"Why not invest immediately?"
"Because money without understanding becomes arrogance," Anand said simply.
Silence.
The blue panel shimmered faintly.
POSITIVE EMOTION DETECTED:
Intellectual Resonance
The Hunger Question
Vikram changed gears.
"Why are you unemployed?"
Anand didn't hesitate.
"I refused bribes."
That was unexpected.
"During internship," Anand explained. "Supplier kickbacks. Fake invoices. I reported it. The company didn't renew my offer."
Vikram studied his face.
No bitterness.
Just fact.
"And no one hired you after?"
"Background checks," Anand shrugged. "They don't like whistleblowers."
Vikram felt something shift.
This wasn't just an employee.
This was a constraint-free mind.
The System's Whisper
CANDIDATE EVALUATION:
High Integrity | High Intelligence | Low Current Leverage
RECOMMENDATION:
Immediate Acquisition
The system approved.
That was rare.
The Offer
Vikram folded his hands.
"I don't have an HR department," he said. "So I'll be direct."
Anand straightened.
"I'm offering you a role," Vikram continued. "Operations & Strategy Lead."
Anand's breath caught.
"Salary," Vikram said, "₹1.2 lakh per month."
Anand's eyes widened.
"That's… above market."
"Performance-linked growth," Vikram added. "No politics. No nonsense."
Anand swallowed.
"And equity?" he asked carefully.
Vikram smiled.
"Not now," he said honestly. "But someday—if you prove indispensable."
Anand nodded.
That answer earned respect.
Why Anand Accepted
"Why me?" Anand asked.
Vikram answered truthfully.
"Because you're hungry but not reckless."
Anand stood up.
"I accept."
No negotiation.
No drama.
Just decision.
The First Employee Moment
Vikram extended his hand.
Anand shook it firmly.
In that handshake—
A future empire quietly aligned.
SYSTEM UPDATE:
Employee Count: 1
ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED:
Founder Status Confirmed
REWARD:
Mental Load Reduction
Vikram felt lighter.
The CEO's First Assignment
"Your first task," Vikram said, "is to question everything."
Anand smiled.
"That's my strength."
"Good," Vikram replied. "Because nothing here is normal."
Anand laughed lightly.
"I suspected that when I walked into a penthouse for a startup interview."
Anand's Inner Monologue (Unspoken)
Anand Mishra didn't know why—
But this job felt different.
Not flashy.
Not corporate.
But intentional.
This wasn't a stepping stone.
It was a foundation.
That evening, Vikram watched Anand set up spreadsheets.
Flowcharts.
Risk models.
He worked quietly.
Efficiently.
No wasted motion.
Vikram realized—
This was the first time he wasn't alone since the system appeared.
The Engineer's Realization
Money created freedom.
But people created scale.
And scale created power.
An IAS officer ruled districts.
But companies?
They ruled futures.
The Name That Will Matter Later
The system logged quietly:
KEY INDIVIDUAL REGISTERED:
Anand Mishra
POTENTIAL:
High
NOTE:
This individual will alter trajectory.
Vikram didn't see the note.
But history would.
Nightfall Over Worli
As Mumbai slept, two men worked.
One had money without limits.
The other had hunger without fear.
Together—
They formed the most dangerous combination in capitalism.
A Silent Promise
Before leaving, Anand turned back.
"Sir," he said, "I won't waste this."
Vikram nodded.
"I know."
Because hunger never lies.
Chapter Close
V-Tech Industries now had its first employee.
Not a clerk.
Not a yes-man.
But a future tycoon in disguise.
And Vikram Choudhary—
Lazy by reputation, lethal by design—
Had just taken his first true step as a CEO.
End of Chapter 17
Empires don't begin with buildings.
They begin with one right hire.