Beatrice Medici's Perspective
When Beatrice opened the front door, she already had a plan in mind.
During the entire drive home, she had meticulously calculated her university schedule, mentally reorganizing her classes, assessing how much time she could free each day without raising suspicion.All of it to dedicate herself to the new goal now pulsing inside her chest — to understand the Black Tower and create a guild within it.
It was almost an emerging obsession.Every memory of Alessio, every word he had spoken about strategy, leadership, and structure, reignited the same thought: I need to learn — and fast.
She removed her shoes as she crossed the entrance hall and began to climb the stairs, ready to lock herself in her room and dive into research about the game.But before she could place her foot on the first step, a male voice echoed behind her.
"Ah, Beatrice… you're alone?"
She froze.That voice — calm, deep, and quietly curious — belonged to her older brother.She turned slowly and saw him leaning against the doorway to the living room.
Lucian Medici.
Even in casual clothes, he maintained the aristocratic bearing typical of the men in their family.He wore a dark blue cotton shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, revealing strong forearms tanned by the Tuscan sun.The open collar and undone top button revealed the ease of someone at home, yet he still exuded elegance.
His blond hair — darker than hers, tinged with honey — was brushed back, with a few loose strands giving him a disarmingly casual look.But his eyes… those unmistakable Medici eyes — deep blue, intense, and so sharp they seemed capable of piercing through any disguise.
Beatrice studied him in silence for a moment.Lucian was the kind of man who never needed to raise his voice to command respect; his mere presence was enough.And at that moment, his inquisitive gaze already made her feel exposed.
"Yes," she replied, trying to sound neutral as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
Lucian raised an eyebrow.
"Sofia said you brought a friend."
Beatrice felt the blood drain from her face.Sofia.
Of course.The little traitor — twelve years old, too curious for her own good, and with a memory sharp enough to ruin her life.
Damn it.
Her mind began to race while she forced her face to remain calm.She mustered a light, almost impatient smile and replied quickly:
"No friends."
Her voice came out slightly tense, the tone just a little too high, betraying her nerves.Lucian continued to watch her — his gaze silent, analytical, dissecting.
Beatrice looked away, pretending to adjust the strap of her bag.Inside, she was already planning the domestic counterattack she'd have to stage later.
She'd have to bribe Sofia.There was no other way.
Candy, gifts, maybe a small trip or a secret traded for another — whatever it took to ensure her little sister kept her mouth shut.Because the last thing Beatrice needed right now was Lucian — or worse, her parents — asking questions about a certain "friend" she had brought to the gates of the Medici estate.
Lucian didn't move.He just stared at her, silently.
For a moment, time stretched within the corridor.He said nothing — just observed — and Beatrice felt as if those blue, calculating eyes were peeling back every layer she tried to hide behind.
It was the same look he used in boardrooms, when he wanted an opponent to confess something without uttering a word.And even though he was her brother, she knew exactly what it meant: he was trying to read her mind.
Her fingers tightened slightly on the strap of her bag.The air grew heavier.But then, finally, he spoke.
"Well, it doesn't matter," he said, with almost rehearsed nonchalance.
Beatrice felt relief spread through her chest.That simple phrase seemed to end the interrogation before it had even begun.But the relief lasted only a second.
Lucian wasn't finished.
"You're playing that new game, right? The Black Tower?"
The question cut through the air like a cold blade.Beatrice froze.For an instant, she couldn't even blink.
"Yes…" she answered, forcing calm into her voice. It came out steady, but the faint tremor betrayed her."Yes, I'm playing."
She waited.Waited for him to explain why he was asking, to reveal what he truly wanted.But what came next was much worse than she could have imagined.
"Good," he said, with the relaxed tone of someone commenting on the weather."Then register with the Green Empire Guild when you log in tonight."
For a moment, Beatrice thought she had misheard him.Her gaze locked onto his, searching for meaning.
"It's the guild our family is developing inside the game," he added, casually — as if discussing a business dinner.
Her mind stopped.
"Our family… is developing a guild?" she repeated, barely above a whisper.
Lucian smiled — that confident, slightly teasing smile he always wore when he knew something she didn't.
"It seems my little sister's been so busy studying she hasn't had time to check the news."
Before she could respond, he took his phone from his pocket and, with a few taps, held it up for her to see.
It was a news site.And the headline, bold and impossible to ignore, hit her like a punch to the chest:
"Exchange Between a Game and a Government."
The video began playing automatically, the reporter's steady voice filling the room.
"In an unprecedented move, the U.S. government has announced the creation of an official exchange rate between the dollar and the gold coins of the game Black Tower.The decision opens a new international market and promises to completely redefine the global digital economy…"
The images shifted — scenes from the game, the Tower's golden emblem, graphs of financial growth, and interviews with economists discussing the revolutionary implications of the new currency system.
Beatrice watched, frozen.It took several seconds for the meaning to sink in.
Then, everything connected.
Alessio's words during lunch.The cautious tone he used when mentioning influential families within the Tower.That unreadable look in his eyes when he brought up the Medici name.
He knew.Or at least… suspected.
And she — foolishly, blindly — had just confirmed it herself.
Her stomach churned violently.The reporter's voice continued in the background, but Beatrice's mind was elsewhere — trapped between panic and bitter realization.
The Black Tower wasn't just a game.Not anymore.
And now… she was right in the middle of something far greater than she had ever imagined.
Between Alessio Leone and her own family, Beatrice Medici had just realized one terrifying truth:
She was completely — and utterly — trapped.