The morning sun rises over New Harbor, painting the skyline in shades of gold. It's a funny irony, considering Mavis now owns literal tons of that gold. He sits in a nearly empty café on the edge of downtown, his hoodie pulled up, with a laptop open on the scratched table. The screen glows with financial data streaming across multiple windows through a stolen network line.
[Mission 2: Establish a Financial Entity.]
[Objective: Begin silent acquisition of Sonar Corporation debts.]
[Sub-Mission: Locate the other four vaults and recover Donard family assets.]
His fingers move across the keyboard with precision the old Mavis never possessed. The Enhanced Intelligence flows through him like electricity, guiding every click, every calculations and every decision. Numbers make perfect sense now and market patterns reveal themselves like obvious paths through a maze.
The name "Phoenix Holdings" appears on his screen—a shell corporation he'd registered an hour ago. Multiple layers of offshore accounts. Anonymous shareholders, untraceable ownership, and a company born from vengeance, masked as rebirth.
He starts small. Buying minor shares from Sonar Corporation's suppliers. Then he moves faster, targeting their loan securities from partner banks. Each transaction is hidden under different subsidiaries, scattered across his new corporate web. No single purchase was large enough to raise flags, but together they form a net closing around the Sonars.
The System updates in real-time:
[Debt Ownership: 14% → 27% → 49%...]
With each new percentage, Mavis feels something unfamiliar and dangerous—pleasure. Pure, cold satisfaction. This isn't about money anymore. Money is just the tool. This is about control. Every dollar he moves is another string tightening around the Sonars' throat. Another piece of their empire slipping into his hands without them even knowing.
The café's television flickers on, with the morning news now showing. Mavis glances up, then freezes.
Charlotte appears on screen, sitting across from a talk show host. She looks radiant in a designer dress, her smile was bright and practiced. The banner at the bottom reads: "Charlotte Sonar Opens Up About Her Fresh Start."
"Honestly, divorcing him was the best decision of my life," Charlotte says, laughing lightly. "I feel like I can finally breathe. Like a weight has been lifted."
The host nods sympathetically. "It must have been so difficult, staying in that situation for so long."
"It was. But I'm free now, and I'm focusing on myself, on my charity work and on building something meaningful."
Applause from the studio audience came through, as Charlotte beams, soaking it in.
Mavis watches from his tablet, his expression was completely flat. He didn't feel anger not hurt. Just cold observation.
The System's voice said through the broadcast:
[Emotional Agitation Detected. Calibrating Host's composure.]
[Focus: Progress = Power.]
Mavis breathes deeply, feeling the artificial calm settle over him like a blanket. His heart rate slows as his jaw unclenches. The rage that had started building dissipates.
"Don't worry," he mutters, his eyes still on Charlotte's smiling face. "I'll make you forget how to smile like that."
He closes the tablet and returns to his laptop. More acquisitions, more debt purchases, and the numbers climb steadily.
Hours pass and the café empties further. Mavis orders another coffee without looking up from his screen.
Late afternoon, a new notification appears:
[Optional Sub-Mission: Manipulate Public Perception. Reward: Skill – Social Manipulation.]
The System projects simulations directly into his mind. He sees how media narratives shape power dynamics. How public opinion can destroy someone faster than any lawsuit. How the right story at the right time can turn a hero into a villain, or vice versa.
Mavis smirks, understanding clicking into place. "Revenge isn't about shouting. It's about buying the stage everyone's standing on."
[Sub-Mission Accepted.]
He opens a new window and starts researching PR firms, journalists and social media influencers. People who could be bought, stories that could be planted, and seeds that would bloom into thorns later.
The System assists, highlighting vulnerable targets, suggesting narrative angles, and calculating optimal timing.
By evening, Mavis has drafted three different press releases, scheduled posts across multiple platforms, and identified two journalists who would jump at an "anonymous tip" about financial irregularities at Sonar Corporation.
He doesn't send anything yet. He just prepares, loads the gun, so to speak. He'll pull the trigger when the moment is perfect.
The screen flashes with a final notification for the day:
[Debt Acquisition: 80% Complete.]
[Projected Outcome: Sonar Corporation Bankruptcy in 14 Days.]
[Next Mission: Humiliate Your Betrayers Publicly.]
Mavis leans back in his chair, the old wood creaking under his weight. He taps his pen against the table in a steady rhythm, thinking. He was planning.
The Sonars have no idea what's coming. They're probably celebrating right now—Charlotte's successful media appearance, the embarrassing son-in-law finally gone, Lugar smoothly integrating into the family business.
Meanwhile, their empire is crumbling from beneath. Every loan they have is being called due. Every debt consolidated under one mysterious entity they've never heard of.
Phoenix Holdings.
Rising from the ashes of the Donard family.
"Publicly, huh?" Mavis says quietly, a genuine smile touching his lips for the first time in years. "I'm ready for this."
He saves his work, closes the laptop, and stands. The café owner nods at him as he leaves.
Outside, the city is transitioning from day to night, with lights flickering on across the skyline. People heading home from work, unaware of the silent war being waged in boardrooms and bank accounts.
Mavis pulls his hoodie tighter and walks into the crowd. Anonymously and invisibly.
But not for much longer.
The System hums quietly in his mind, already calculating the next move.
[Rest recommended. Tomorrow: Vault #2 - San Francisco Financial District.]
Mavis nods to himself. Four more vaults to go, and then the real fun begins.
The Sonars wanted to break him. They thought they had.
They had no idea they'd just created their own destroyer.