The city's most elite area is 'Golden Heights.' Here, the price of every single brick is equal to an ordinary person's lifetime income. In the heart of that area, inside the conference room of 'Athena Tower,' there is pin-drop silence. Seven powerful individuals of the country, who control the entire nation's economy from behind the scenes, are sweating today.
Staring at the old silver key kept on the table, one of them whispered, "It's been ten years. Is he even alive?"
Another person slammed the table and said, "He must be! Whoever possesses this key holds the title of 'Greatest Lord.' And without his instruction,
"...we won't be able to move even a single step forward in this project."
At that very moment, far away from the city where royal elegance cannot reach, the light of dawn had begun to break. A dog lying next to a dumpster started barking.
A young man pulled up the rusted shutter of a dilapidated roadside garage. In his hand was a cheap plastic mug filled with steaming tea. His shirt was covered in dust and burnt engine oil. The owner of the neighboring tea stall, he's name was osker, called out, "Hey Kai, aren't you going to work today? The owner of your garage is plotting to kick you out!"
The young man—whose name was Kai—did not answer. He simply took a sip of the tea in his mug. There was such depth in his calm eyes that anyone who looked into them would feel a sense of fear.
But the people of this slum know him only as a lazy and poor mechanic.
Suddenly, a shiny black Mercedes came to a halt in front of the garage. This car was completely out of place in the filthy environment of the slum. A gentleman wearing a suit and tie stepped out of the vehicle. His face was filled with contempt. He walked up to Kai and threw a file at him---
"I sent word to your boss, but he isn't here. You take this. The land this garage sits on now belongs to our company. You all will be evicted. Just sign it."
Kai did not pick up the file. He calmly finished his tea and looked into the man's eyes. Who knows what was in that gaze, but the well-built man suddenly began to tremble. Kai said in a low voice, "This place is not for sale.
You may leave now."
The man laughed mockingly and said, "As a mere mechanic, you're giving me orders? Do you know who owns this file? He is the kingmaker of this city!"
Kai gave a crooked smile. He pulled a broken old phone out of his pocket and typed a command on the screen. Within a few seconds, the man's Phone began to vibrate violently.
His boss—who was sitting in that meeting at Athena Tower—was calling him.
A scream was heard from the other end of the phone, "Turn the car around!Get out of there right now! Our stock market is crashing! Someone has frozen all our accounts in a few seconds!"
The man looked at Kai in stunned silence. Kai was calmly fixing the chain of his old bicycle. There was no arrogance in his eyes, only a profound mystery. Before leaving the alley with his bike, he said in a low voice, "To sit on a king's throne, one doesn't need a crown; one needs the right time."
He pedaled away and disappeared into the crowd. No one knew that the man who had just bankrupted billionaires with a single click .....who is he?
When Kai parked his old bicycle on the ground floor of Athena Tower, the security guard tried to shoo him away with contempt. Kai didn't protest. Instead, he pulled a simple card— looking much like a membership card—from his pocket.
When the guard held it against the scanner, instead of the red light turning green, a slow, blue light flooded.. the entire lobby. The guard's eyes widened in shock—
"this wasn't an ordinary card; it was the building's 'Master Access."
Kai stepped into the elevator. In the mirror, he caught a glimpse of his ordinary, grease-stained face. He whispered to himself, "Today, it's time to end the drama."
Inside the Conference Room:
The tension inside was at its peak. Those seven businessmen were shouting at one another. Right at that moment—The tension inside was at its peak. Those seven businessmen were shouting at each other. Right then, the heavy oak door opened silently.Everyone turned toward the door. They expected an aristocratic person in an expensive suit to enter.
Instead, a young man walked in, wearing a simple shirt and dust-covered shoes.
"Hey kid! How did you get in here? Where is security?" someone yelled in anger.
Kai didn't say a word. He walked slowly toward the table. The cold air from the room's AC began to dry the sweat on his body. He stood before the rusted silver key placed in the center of the table.
The entire room erupted in laughter.
"Oh, it's just a common mechanic! Kick him out—"
Kai calmly picked up the key. The moment his fingers touched it, a faint mechanical sound resonated from within. The rust on its surface vanished, and it began to emit a light as brilliant as a diamond. Everyone's laughter was instantly silenced.
Looking directly into the eyes of the elderly man, Kai said, "Ten years ago, when I left this key here,
I said—this throne belongs only to the one who knows humility. In the last ten years, you have known only greed."
A deathly silence filled the room. The most powerful of the seven influential men, who had been boasting moments ago, was now trembling. He realized that ,,
This ordinary mechanic standing here is that very legend—The Greatest Lord.
Kai pulled out a chair, sat down, and rested his feet on the table. He said,
"You say the empire is collapsing? I say the empire is merely being purged.
Now tell me, whose names should I strike from my list?"
The silence in the conference room was broken by the cries of one of the seven businessmen. The man who, only a few minutes ago, had ordered Kai to be thrown out, was now "kneeling at Kai's feet."
"Lord! Please forgive us! We did not recognize you,"
One by one, the other six lowered their heads as well.
Kai leaned back in his chair, his cold gaze sweeping across everyone.
"Forgiveness?
Ten years ago, when I left this throne, you swore to me that you would use this power to serve the common people. But today? Today, you are trying to auction off this city."
Kai pulled the files kept on the table towards him. There, the name of their proposed new project was written in large letters...
"Project Orion: The New Dragon City."
The project involves seizing all the land belonging to the city's middle and lower classes to build an ultra-modern city exclusively for the wealthy. Seven major companies are behind it,
each with a distinct role:
"Li Jiahui": Owner of 'Xingyuan Construction.' He is responsible for the entire infrastructure of the project.
"Wang Chen": CEO of 'Huizhong Technology.' The city's drone surveillance and digital control are in his hands.
"Chen Zihao": Head of 'Fei Long Finance.' His job was to secure billions of dollars in funding for this project.
"Zhang Ming": 'Shanshui Energy.' The city's electricity and fuel supply are under his control.
"Lu Zhan": 'Tianlu Real Estate.' He handles all the legal complexities of the land.
"Xu Yan": 'Qingfeng Logistics.' Transport and supply chains are under his management.
"Sun Bo": 'Taishan Manufacturing.' The raw materials required for this city will come from his factory.
Kai closed the file and smiled faintly. "Li Jiahui, did you think that in my absence, you would build 'Xingyuan' upon my empire?
Wang Chen, do you intend to use your technology to keep people under surveillance?"
Suddenly, the sound of heavy boots echoed from the outer lobby. The large doors of the conference room rattled. The sound of security guards being pushed aside could be heard. The businessmen inside shrank back in fear------Three shadowy figures entered through the door. Their faces bore the marks of a long, ten-year wait___
First to enter was a massive man with a dragon tattoo on his shoulder—he is "Hax", Kai's personal bodyguard and former army chief.
Behind him was a mysterious woman holding a golden tablet—she is "Lin", ____Kai's chief information officer.
Finally, an old man entered named "Master Jin", who had been guarding the secrets of Kai's throne for ten years.
Hax walked up to Kai and stood with his head bowed. His booming voice resonated throughout the room,__ "My Lord! The Black Dragon Army awaits your command___
Kai stood up from his chair__
There was now a fiery glow in his eyes. He looked at those seven businessmen ______ ""For 10 years, I remained a common mechanic. From today, I am Lord once again. And the Lord's law is—those who snatch away people's dreams have no place in this world of mine.""
"While the seven businessmen inside the conference room trembled in fear for their lives, a mysterious man sitting in a luxury penthouse miles away from the city watched everything on a giant LED screen. Holding a glass of expensive wine, a diabolical smirk played on his lips. He whispered,
"So, you've returned, Lord? Ten years is a long time. But you don't realize that I've already crumbled the foundation of this empire___This return will be your final resting place."
________ save for a unique ring glowing on his hand.
Inside the Conference Room:
Kai looked at the seven businessmen, his anger masked by a thin smile. The silver key in his hand had now transformed into a large electronic blade. He walked slowly toward__
LiZehui.There is only one punishment for your greed," Kai's voice was as cold as ice.
"The death penalt"
My first gift upon returning to this city will be your blood."
At that very moment, Kai's longtime faithful companion, Hax, and the mysterious Lin came and stood on either side of him. Hax gently touched Kai's hand.
"Lord, stop,"
Hax's deep voice echoed throughout the room.
Kai stopped, but the fire in his eyes did not fade. He looked toward Lin. Typing something on her golden tablet, Lin held it up in front of Kai. ______
"Lord, let them go for now.
They are merely pawns. If you kill them, you will never find the real player.
There is an even greater evil force working behind this Project Orion, operating from the shadows..."
Kai's thoughts_______
..an evil force is at work, pulling their strings from the shadows_____I see
Master Jin stepped forward __ "Lin is right.
If these seven die, all information will die with them. We must find out who gave them the courage to dare lay a hand on your throne.
Our war of return, after ten years, has only just begun."
Kai remained silent for a few moments. The anger in his eyes slowly calmed, replaced by deep contemplation. He released Li Zehui's collar and stepped away.
"Fine," Kai said. "I grant you your lives. But remember, from today, all your companies, your assets, and your breath—everything belongs to me.
You will live only as my prisoners until I find the real culprit. It felt as though the businessmen had been given a new lease on life. They touched their foreheads to the ground, bowing to Kai in gratitude.
But Kai didn't even look at them. He turned to Lin and said, "Lin, reactivate our old network tomorrow morning. I want to know who that man in the shadows is______
the one laughing while waiting for my return."
As Kai left the room, the shadows of Hax and Lin stretched out behind him.
"My Lord"
"What happened, Hax?"
"You have returned after so long... now, will you return to the Palace? Everyone is waiting for you"
"Kai, in my opinion, you should return to your Palace. Many things have changed in these long 10 years, so now you have to set everything in order. Now that you have returned, I am finally at peace.
"Master Jin,"
during my absence you have stood by my family, protected this throne and maintained the secrecy—for this, I am forever grateful to you__now the time has come for me to return to my family.
No more hide-and-seek; from now on, whoever dares to cast an eye on my family or my empire, I will gouge their eyes out.....
"Hax," get the car out and inform the Palace that the Lord has returned...
"Yes! My Lord!"
"Lin"
-----Find out the identities of everyone who came to the conference room, identify who is behind this or who could be involved, and give me all the information about them.
"Okay, My Lord!"
Hax, opening the car door__
"My Lord"
____Kai went and sat in the car; Hax sat in the side seat.
Drive straight to the Palace.....
Aurelian palace:
Running towards them__
Your Majesty__ Your Majesty!
"My Lord" has arrived.
Send word to the Second Lord right now__
"Yes! Your Majesty."
"My Lord" we have arrived at the Aurelian Palace.
Kai, getting out of the car____
" The Palace is still the same as before"
The Lord has returned; immediately, the security guard opened the palace gates.
The security guards and all the staff members of the palace paid their respects to Kai.
Standing in front is Your Majesty_____
"With respect, Father, how are you?"
"Your Majesty,"why are there tears in your eyes??
"Have you really returned?"
"Yes, Father,, I apologize for making you wait so long"
"The fact that you've returned is enough for me; from now on, the responsibility of managing this empire is yours..
"Brother!" After a long time.
"Kelvin, you've grown up quite a bit"____
"Your shirt is covered in dust, your shoes are filthy____ why are you in this state?" ____
"In your absence, we've had to go through so many struggles. Where have you been all this time, and why didn't you return____?"
"Kelvin," your brother is very exhausted right now. Let him rest first; we can talk about these things later.
"Yes! Father."
"Kai," go get cleaned up and take some rest____ I'm sending the necessary files to your room____ which will help you understand the current situation___
"Yes, Father."