The Ultimate Hidden Tycoon

Chapter 3

Ethan sat in the backseat of a Maybach. He was flipping through the files Lewis had handed him.

From the front seat, Lewis glanced at him through the rearview mirror.

"Sir, are you staying in Atlantis City for good?" He asked in a curious tone.

Ethan rubbed his temples, exhaustion lacing his voice.

"Yes, I will. Atlantis is my home base. I’m done running."

Lewis nodded.

“Understood. I’ll notify the five major companies here. They should prepare for your return.”

Ethan paused a second, then asked,

"How’s Brightstar Corporation doing these days?"

Lewis adjusted his glasses, admiration in his tone.

“They’re the king of Atlantis now. They’re expanding fast, including real estate, finance and technology. The market value has already surpassed thousands of billions.”

“They’re on the verge of becoming a giant."

A flicker of emotion flashed in Ethan’s eyes.

Brightstar Corp was the first company he ever built.

It meant a lot to him.

"Schedule the executive meeting at Brightstar’s headquarters,"

Ethan said, setting the documents aside.

He leaned back and closed his eyes.

For three years, he gave up everything for Madeline.

He thought she was his fate.

But fate had a cruel sense of humor.

When Ethan was eight, he got lost in the snow.

As an abandoned kid, he had nowhere to go.

It was freezing. The cold gnawed at his bones. And he was starving.

Just when he curled up in an alley, waiting for death to take him, a pair of polished little shoes appeared in front of him.

"Are you okay?" a soft, childish voice asked.

Ethan looked up. He saw a girl around his age who watched him with concern.

"I don’t know," Ethan said. He couldn’t remember the last time he ate. Hunger and cold were swallowing him whole.

The girl seemed to think for a moment. Then, she took off her scarf and wrapped it around his neck.

For the first time in years, Ethan felt warmth.

And she slipped a ring off her finger, and placed it on Ethan’s hand.

It was plain and old-fashioned. As the sunlight broke through the clouds, the ring gleamed faintly.

"I don’t have any money, but you can sell this. That way, you’ll have some to buy food."

"I’ve seen my mom secretly sell her jewelry before. I think this ring could work too."

The ring wasn’t worth much. Ethan, with his street smarts, could tell at a glance.

But the girl clearly didn’t know that. She was just doing her best to offer what little she could.

Ethan looked at her back when she left, shouting after her.

“What’s your name?! I’ll find you again!”

She didn't hear, she just disappeared into the crowd.

From that day on, Ethan couldn’t forget her.

He never sold the ring. Instead, he kept it safe, treating it like a treasure.

Years later, he found her.

It was Madeline.

But he never told her about that day. He thought it was enough to just take care of her in silence.

And now, everything had changed.

The ring sat abandoned in his bedside drawer.

Ethan glanced at his empty finger. He wasn’t going back for it.

There was nothing left to hold onto.

The deafening roar of a helicopter echoed outside the window broke Ethan’s thought.

Outside the Maybach, black sedans appeared like phantoms. Silent and synchronized.

To anyone watching, it looked like a head of state was on the move.

Lewis glanced out the window. His voice was calm, but his eyes held a trace of amusement.

“Looks like word travels fast. They’re already here to welcome you, sir.”

Ethan barely spared a glance outside.

The convoy rolled forward, rolling in a majestic procession toward the city center.

The helicopter followed closely above, as a standing guard over the Maybach.

***

When Madeline backed to the house, a smug grin was stretching across her face.

In her arms, she cradled a brand-new Hermès Birkin, the glossy leather reflecting the soft light. She had bought it specifically for a business meeting that Robert had asked her to accompany him to.

It must be a big business event to go with Robert. Madeline mused.

Thinking of Robert, her disgust for Ethan deepened.

She couldn't believe she had wasted three years with that man!

If it weren’t for Ethan, she would have already married Robert by now, living a life of endless wealth and luxury.

The thought made her blood boil. She wanted nothing more than to get rid of everything that belonged to Ethan.

She stepped into her and Ethan's bedroom as she seethed. Her eyes landed on an old cabinet.

Ethan used to guard the cabinet like a dragon hoarding gold, claiming it held something "important."

She snorted. What a joke.

Important? Yeah, right. Probably just some useless junk. P**n, magazine, postcard, or whatever.

But Ethan was nothing more than a discarded memory. And this apartment, along with everything in it, were all hers now.

She’d love to see what Ethan hid inside.

She grabbed the drawer handle and pulled.

Locked.

Her brow furrowed. He actually locked it?

She tapped her nails against the wood, thinking. Then, with a scoff, she punched in a code on the digital lock—her own birthday.

Click.

The lock released.

Madeline rolled her eyes. Pathetic. The idiot actually used my birthday as the password?

"Licking my boots even when he’s gone." she muttered.

Yanking the drawer open, she expected junk.

Instead, neatly stacked inside were envelopes.

Thick, high-quality ones, each sealed with embossed insignias.

She grabbed one.

It was a formal invitation. Gold lettering. The signature of one of the city's wealthiest elites stamped at the bottom.

A private event for top-tier businessmen.

The others were similar. More invitations. High-end galas. Exclusive fundraisers. Gatherings where the richest of the rich convened.

A sleek black envelope stood out from the rest. A single word embossed in gold foil: The Shadow.

Madeline rolled her eyes, her lips curled in disgust.

"Ridiculous. There's no way he could ever be invited to an event of this caliber," Madeline thought.

“How he made things up like this?!”

"And ’The Shadow?’ Seriously? Is he living in some kind of fairy tale?"

Without hesitated, Madeline shoved the invitations into a pile and tossed them straight into the trash.

As she brushed off the nonsense, a box at the bottom of the drawer caught her eye.

She opened it curiously, and there, resting inside, was a simple silver ring.

Her breath hitched.

That ring—she knew that ring.

When she was a kid, she and her childhood friend Katherine had bought a pair of cheap silver rings at a street stall, thinking they were fun.

She’d thrown hers away years ago, disgusted by how tacky it was.

So why was this one here?

How had Ethan ended up with it?