The moment Vincent stepped back into the Blackwood estate, he knew he was walking into a battlefield. This was not a homecoming—this was a test. A test to see whether he was still the unrivaled genius his father had once feared or just a forgotten son who had lost his place in the family.
His father, the King of Mafias, had not summoned him back out of sentimentality. No, this was a challenge, a game of power where only the strongest could claim victory.
And Vincent intended to win.
The first obstacle standing in his way was his older brother—the heir.
For years, the Blackwood empire had been preparing Vincent's brother to rule. They had given him everything: education, connections, resources. And yet, in just five months, Vincent had done more for the Vasiliev empire than his brother had managed in his lifetime.
The rumors in the upper circles were growing louder.
"Vincent was the true heir, but the Blackwoods were too blind to see it.""They forced him into acting, and now he has turned the Vasiliev empire into something even greater than his own family.""How foolish of them to have discarded their greatest asset."
Vincent's return only added fuel to the fire. The whispers turned into questions. What was he planning? Why had he returned? Had the Blackwoods finally realized their mistake?
But no one dared to say these things out loud in front of his father.
And Vincent? He said nothing.
He moved silently, watching, observing. He knew that his father was waiting for him to make his move, to prove that he was still worthy of being a Blackwood.
So Vincent did exactly that.