The rain poured heavily over the city, turning the glass towers into blurred reflections of light and shadow.
From the top floor of the tallest building, the entire city looked small.
Very small.
Inside the luxurious office on the 78th floor, silence dominated the room. The only sound was the soft ticking of an expensive wall clock.
Behind a large black desk sat a man whose presence alone could make powerful people nervous.
Adrian Voss.
CEO of Voss Global.
At just twenty-eight years old, he had built one of the most powerful corporate empires in the world. His company controlled technology, finance, and international trade.
Billionaires respected him.
Politicians feared him.
Competitors avoided him.
Because everyone knew one thing.
Anyone who challenged Adrian Voss… eventually disappeared from the market.
No one knew exactly how he did it. Some said he used illegal strategies. Others believed he had powerful connections in the shadows.
But there was one title the media secretly used for him.
The Devil of Business.
Adrian leaned back in his chair, his sharp eyes calmly watching the rain outside the glass wall.
His expression showed no emotion.
A knock suddenly interrupted the silence.
"Enter."
The door opened slowly.
A tall man in a gray suit walked inside, holding a tablet. His expression looked tense.
"Sir," he said carefully. "The board meeting is ready."
Adrian didn't move.
Instead, he asked a simple question.
"How many?"
The assistant immediately understood.
"Three companies refused the acquisition offer."
For a moment, silence filled the room again.
Adrian finally turned his chair.
His dark eyes were calm… too calm.
"And?"
The assistant hesitated.
"They believe another investor is supporting them."
A faint smile appeared on Adrian's lips.
But it wasn't a warm smile.
It was the kind of smile that made people uncomfortable.
"Interesting."
He stood up slowly, adjusting his black suit jacket.
"Then destroy them."
The assistant nodded immediately.
"Understood."
No surprise.
No hesitation.
Orders like this were normal in this building.
When Adrian Voss said destroy, companies collapsed within weeks.
Adrian walked toward the window, watching the rain slide down the glass like falling tears.
He had built this empire through intelligence, patience, and something else.
Ruthlessness.
In the corporate world, kindness was weakness.
And Adrian Voss was never weak.
Suddenly, his phone buzzed.
A message appeared on the screen.
Unknown Number.
Adrian opened it.
The message contained only one sentence.
"Your empire will fall soon."
For the first time that day, Adrian's eyes narrowed slightly.
A threat?
Interesting.
Most people were too afraid to challenge him.
Another message appeared.
"You should start protecting the girl."
Adrian frowned slightly.
The girl?
Before he could analyze it further, someone knocked on the door again.
This time it was a different voice.
"Excuse me, sir."
Adrian turned.
A young woman stood at the door, holding several documents.
She looked slightly nervous.
Clearly, she was new.
"Who are you?" Adrian asked calmly.
The woman quickly stepped forward.
"I—I'm Elena Carter, sir. I joined the strategy department today."
Adrian studied her silently.
Most employees avoided eye contact when speaking to him.
But this woman was different.
Even though she looked nervous, she didn't look afraid.
That was unusual.
"Why are you here?" he asked.
"I was told to bring these reports."
She placed the documents on the desk.
As she turned to leave, something unexpected happened.
One file slipped from her hands and fell to the floor.
The papers scattered everywhere.
The assistant gasped quietly.
In this building, making mistakes in front of Adrian Voss was a terrible idea.
Elena froze for a moment.
Then she quickly bent down to collect the papers.
"I'm sorry," she said.
Adrian watched her silently.
Then something caught his attention.
One of the documents she dropped wasn't supposed to be visible.
It was a confidential acquisition report.
Only top executives were allowed to see it.
Elena picked it up, but she paused.
Her eyes moved quickly across the page.
Just one second.
But Adrian noticed.
When she stood up again, she hesitated.
"Sir…"
The assistant immediately interrupted.
"Don't speak unless you're asked!"
But Elena looked directly at Adrian.
"There is a mistake in this report."
The room suddenly became silent.
The assistant looked shocked.
No employee had ever spoken like that before.
Adrian raised an eyebrow slightly.
"A mistake?"
Elena nodded.
"The market prediction is wrong."
The assistant almost laughed.
"This report was created by our senior analysts."
Elena didn't back down.
"They assumed the competitor's stock would drop after the acquisition pressure."
She took a breath.
"But it won't."
Adrian's eyes sharpened slightly.
"And why is that?"
Elena spoke calmly.
"Because someone is secretly funding them."
Silence filled the office again.
The assistant looked confused.
But Adrian felt something interesting.
Curiosity.
Very few people could analyze corporate strategies that quickly.
He studied her face carefully.
"Who is funding them?"
Elena shook her head.
"I don't know yet."
Then she added something unexpected.
"But whoever it is…"
"They're targeting you."
The assistant suddenly became nervous.
Adrian stared at her for a long moment.
Then slowly…
He smiled.
But this time, the smile looked different.
Not cold.
Not threatening.
Amused.
"Miss Carter."
Elena straightened.
"Yes, sir?"
Adrian walked back to his chair.
"Welcome to Voss Global."
He leaned back slightly.
"I think working here will be… very interesting for you."
Elena didn't know why, but a strange feeling ran through her mind.
Almost like she had just stepped into something dangerous.
Very dangerous.
And Adrian Voss watched her carefully as she left the room.
For the first time in years…
Something had broken the monotony of his world.
He looked again at the message on his phone.
"Protect the girl."
Adrian whispered quietly to himself.
"Interesting."
Then he closed the phone.
Because whoever sent that message clearly didn't understand one thing.
Adrian Voss was not someone who protected people.
He was the man people needed protection from.
And yet…
For some reason…
He felt that the girl who just walked out of his office was about to change everything.