Rivan's POV
I never thought I'd find peace in a place like this.
Back in my old life, everything was shadows, blood, and silence. I was a king of underworld, raised by betrayal and hardened by war. Family? That word had no meaning. Trust? A liability. I lived with my back to the wall, expecting bullets, not breakfast.
But now…
This world is different. This family is different.
I'm still adjusting — to the warmth, the routine, the way they speak to me with softness instead of fear. Eira, my… no, my mother now — she looks at me with worry and love I don't know how to accept yet. Her touch isn't a trap. Her voice isn't laced with motive.
And Elyra… that little girl hugged me without hesitation. Her innocence is dangerous in a way I never knew existed. She reminds me that maybe — just maybe — I don't have to be the monster anymore. Or at least, not to them.
It's strange.
I was used to gang meetings and cold, efficient meals in silence. Now I'm being served breakfast on crystal plates .
And yet… I love this.
After eating breakfast I said,"Mother, I'm heading out now," I said, pushing my chair back after breakfast.
Eira stood up from her seat, graceful as ever. "Your father said he's waiting for you at the company office. Do you need anything before you go?"
I shook my head. "No. I'm good."
Just as I was about to step out toward the estate's private parking garage, the familiar voice of Eldon, our butler, stopped me.
"Young Master," he said with a courteous bow, "you're not planning to leave dressed like that, are you?"
I paused, glancing at my casual wear. "Why?"
"I've taken the liberty of preparing a suit for your meeting. It's laid out in your room."
With a quiet sigh and half a smile, I turned back. "Fine."
The suit Eldon picked was tailored to perfection — midnight black with silver accents, minimal yet regal. I adjusted the cuffs, staring at my reflection in the tall mirror.
The man staring back looked powerful, measured. A far cry from the blood-stained king I once was, yet somehow sharper now. Purposeful.
"Not bad," I muttered to myself.
As I descended the marble stairs to the underground parking bay, the soft lights of the garage flickered on.
There it stood — my car.
A sleek, obsidian black sport car, built with curved edges and a hum that whispered power. It wasn't just a machine; it was an extension of control. In my previous life, I'd seen hundreds of luxury cars, but this one... this was different.
It had been a gift — from Eira — on my twentieth birthday. She'd ordered it a year in advance from a rare builder, just because she thought I'd love it.
And I did.
In Earth terms, its price would be over 10 million lote, but on Volmera, it was simply considered "upper luxury."
I ran my fingers along the hood, then entered. The engine started with a deep, smooth roar — not noise, but power waking up from sleep.
"Alive," I murmured as the dashboard lit up.
I shifted into gear and pulled out, merging onto the wide streets of Niremo.
The city glided past me — tall towers of metal and glass, smart trees lining the medians, solar banners fluttering lightly in the wind. Volmera's cities looked eerily like Earth's at a glance — but they were cleaner, sharper, more efficient.
Still, familiarity brought a strange comfort.
The sport car slowed to a quiet stop in front of the towering skyscraper. Drax Industries Headquarters dominated the heart of Niremo City like a sentinel of power — a 60-floor monument of ambition and precision.
Its exterior was a blend of drakblue-tinted glass and dark steel veins, rising upward like the edge of a colossal blade. Each level reflected the skyline, but the building itself bent no light — it absorbed it. It wasn't made to shine. It was made to command.
Aven stepped out, eyes lifting to take in the height. The front plaza shimmered with polished black tiles and a minimalist water feature that pulsed softly like a heartbeat.
Two guard want to scanned him passively but see face said good morning sir he also nod morning ,as he walked through the grand entrance — a seamless archway framed in dark chrome and etched with the Drax sigil: a silver triangle cradling a rising phoenix.
Inside, the lobby was silent and expansive, a cathedral of corporate power. The ceilings stretched two stories high, with floating lights that mimicked shifting constellations. Marble floors, digital art displays, and kinetic pillars made it feel less like an office — more like a curated world.
Aven approached the sleek reception desk where a young woman stood. She was in a gray and silver uniform with a small Drax Industries badge clipped to her chest. Her posture was perfect — composed, alert.
"Good morning, sir," she greeted with a soft smile, His eyes briefly flicking to her ,she said Chairman Kaelion is expecting you."
He nodded. "I'll head up."
"You'll be taking the executive lift," she said, gesturing to a private corridor guarded by two black-suited agents. "Only authorized for the board and family. Floor 59 — the command suite."
Her tone was calm, respectful, but not robotic. Polished, yet not rehearsed. She had the Drax brand etched into her demeanor — discreet, efficient.
The lift door slid open with a whisper. Inside, the panel had no buttons — only a biometric scanner. Aven placed his hand on it. It recognized him instantly.
The lift ascended, smooth and silent, cutting through the building like a shadow on glass. Outside the lift's transparent wall, Niremo's skyline unfurled — the silver threads of traffic, the floating neon signs, the green-scaped rooftops. From this height, the city felt manageable. Small, even.
Aven's reflection merged with the moving cityscape.
"This view," he thought, it's admiration quite good.
Clip__
The lift stopped with a soft tone. The doors opened into a spacious private lobby, lined with blackwood panels and red-tinted lighting. A digital art wall on the left