Chapter 8

"Have you thought about it?" Henry asked with a serious expression as Brandon stood by the door of the Dragon Mansion after walking through the city to clear his thoughts all afternoon.

"I have, and I've decided to go along with all this; whatever all this is, I want to stop being so mediocre," Brandon replied firmly.

"Even if I never knew any of them, I'll try my best, as this is a good will left to me by an old man on his dying bed," he added, and Henry relaxed his tense expression as he breathed out a sigh of relief before smiling at Brandon.

"I have said it before, but it wasn't at the proper time, so I'm going to do it again." Henry voiced as he bowed his head towards the stunned Brandon,

"Welcome home, young master Brandon. My name is Henry Adams, and I am your faithful surrogate. I'll be your sword and shield, and you can rest easy as the dragon of the dragon empire." As he declared his words, all the staff in the mansion gathered at the entrance, forming two straight lines on each side of the door with their heads bowed.

"Welcome home, Master Brandon!" They all echoed, and Brandon raised his chin as he walked into the mansion.

With every step he took, he felt like a new man, reborn through the flames of betrayal.

His resolve to climb to the highest position became set in stone as Henry led him to the office his grandfather had used.

"As much as I would like for you to relax and enjoy your welcome, the Dragon fundraising banquet will be held in three days," Henry announced, getting straight to work as Brandon Hutt touched the golden chair of the CEO.

"Everything has already been planned, and we've sent out the invites to the guests; however, I would like you to go through it for any last-minute changes," he explained as he handed the document with the list of invited guests to Brandon.

Brandon pushed the documents back to him with a shake of his head. "As much as I would like to be in charge around here, there are a lot of things I'm still yet to know, so give me some time to learn how things work. You know best how these things run; continue with them, and I'll learn from you," he explained, and Henry smiled approvingly.

"I don't mind showing you the ropes." Henry replied as he spread the document on the huge mahogany table.

"The VIP guests are our long-time business partners and those that have sworn their loyalty to the Dragon Empire." There are just seven of them, and they are all the people your grandfather trusted the most while he was alive," Henry began.

"I will introduce them to you at the banquet."

"The regular guests are the potential partners, and we are trying to maintain formalities with them." He continued as Brandon picked up the list with the regular guest.

He scanned through the list, trying to get an idea of who the guests would be, while also mentally preparing himself to meet them.

His eyes briefly stopped on a familiar name before going past it to the other names on the list.

"Would you like any names removed from the list?" Henry asked knowingly, and Brandon gave a shake of his head.

"There won't be a need for that; allow the banquet to proceed as planned. I'll also appreciate it if you hold on with the introduction of me as the new CEO; I would like to get to know these people personally," Brandon voiced calmly.

"Alright then. I'll do as you have said."

"What's the fundraising banquet for? Is it for the charity or for the state project that was proposed last year?" Brandon asked while looking through the other documents concerning the banquet.

Henry leaned against the chair, a small smile playing on his lips. "Neither, actually. The Dragon fundraising banquet has always been held in honor of your late grandmother, Velyn. It was her dying wish to support aspiring artists, so each year we host this event to raise funds for art scholarships."

Brandon's eyes widened in surprise, and he looked up from the documents.

"I had no idea the banquet had such a noble cause; the majority of the fund-raising banquets held by the influential families are just formalities, and the majority of them use the funds for personal gains," he admitted.

Henry nodded, his smile softening. "Your grandfather loved her deeply, and this was his way of keeping her memory alive. Speaking of which, there's someone I'd like you to meet before the banquet."

Intrigued, Brandon raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Who is it?"

"Her name is Amelia. She's a talented artist and one of the students benefiting from the scholarship. She's been working on a special project for the banquet, and I think you'll appreciate her work."

"I'm looking forward to meeting her. I'm not too familiar with the art world, but I guess I'll have to learn one or two things so I can relate in the future." Brandon agreed; his curiosity piqued.

"When can I meet her?"

"She'll be stopping by the mansion tomorrow to finalize some details. I'll make sure to introduce you then," Henry promised, gathering the documents from the desk as he began to walk out of the office, trying to give Brandon some space to adjust.

His hand stopped at the door handle as he turned back with a hesitating look on his face.

"Are you sure you want Cassandra and Dean on the guest list? I can have them blacklisted if you wish," he offered, and Brandon sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"As much as I understand your concern, they are still influential figures in the city. Excluding them from an event like this could cause unnecessary friction."

Henry considered his words, frowning slightly.

"You're right, of course. Let's hope they don't cause any trouble at the banquet; I'll assign people to keep watch around them." He stated this and walked out of the office, leaving Brandon to his thoughts.