Chapter 4 Outside home

Footsteps echoing across the glass hall, Eliana Packer entered Vale Industries with her pulse already rising. Not royalty today - not bound by title or duty - but sharp-minded, ready to move pieces. The smooth floors caught light like shifting futures, every pane showing someone who could bend outcomes. This place didn't care about bloodlines; it answered only to precision and nerve.

Fingers darting over glass, Lucien Vale arrived by the central lift as she got there, his gaze locked on shifting figures. A chief executive. Someone driven by big ideas. Smug, sure. Annoyingly magnetic. This was the one who'd taken pieces of her affection, all while chasing control across continents.

He spoke, still staring down. "Eliana." A pause. "You're here before time." Then silence filled the space between them

"I prefer to see the battlefield before everyone else," she said, smoothing her jacket. "Besides, I wanted to understand how your empire breathes without me interfering."

His gaze met hers at last, an eyebrow rising slowly while a quiet smirk played on his mouth. Empire thrives most when shaken up - particularly by what suits me

A building stood where work moved like clockwork, its insides split into three levels without doors. Clear panels sliced space into zones, each holding different tasks. In one corner, people in suits passed notes under bright lights. Elsewhere, deals cracked through the air like snapping twigs. Movement never stopped, yet nothing seemed out of place. Right in the middle stood their plan - Bisonia's return to mining. It wasn't only about pulling resources from the ground, yet built on smart methods, long-term thinking, tied tightly to political moves. A quiet strategy meant to shift power toward Eliana within her father's realm, at the same time expanding Vale Industries across borders.

A corner room, just right for deep thought. Not big, but full of presence. On the walls - Bisonia's maps, stretched edge to edge. Charts stuck up here and there, quite proof of planning ahead. This place shaped how they worked together. Accuracy mattered most. Outcomes had to show up. She led by feel - and they followed.

Fumes of annoyance clung to Marcellus Kade as he arrived past ten, his stride sharp, eyes tight. Her lead analyst rarely moved so fast unless something snapped behind the scenes.

"Eliana, they've insisted we only present efficiency! Nothing about political leverage, nothing about economic revival!"

She leaned against her desk. "They're testing us. The council wants to see if we can pivot, adapt under pressure. It's not about facts; it's about framing."

Fury burst from Marcellus. "They're absurd!".

"They underestimate us," she said, meeting his glare with calm certainty. "Which is exactly why we'll win."

Footsteps light, Lucien moved beside her, eyes sharp as they swept the space. Because he was near, the silence between them spoke louder than plans ever could. What others saw as duty, they felt as breath under skin - close, unshakable. Lines between job and heart didn't just fade here - they vanished like smoke in the wind.

"Have you seen the Bisonian financial council's objections?" he asked. "They're worried about foreign leverage - us controlling the narrative."

"I've seen it," she replied. "And we'll turn it into an advantage. They think they control the board. We'll make them play the moves we want."

Time slipped by while the group picked apart each possibility, building slides that balanced sharp expertise with quiet manoeuvring. Not one graph could be trusted. Each page carried weight. The room grew heavy with unspoken stakes.

A clash came out of nowhere, just after noon. Into the room walked Cassandra Drevin - councillor, sceptic, voice like frost - with no warning at all.

"Eliana," she said, gaze like a scalpel. "You may carry Bisonia's title, but you do not carry its loyalty. And Mr Vale? Your influence may not align with the kingdom's best interests."

Lucien stepped forward, calm and poised, letting the weight of his presence fill the room. "Cassandra, our goals align perfectly with Bisonia's needs. Efficiency, revival, stability. That is the only interest we serve."

"You speak like an outsider," she said. "And your power threatens more than gold. Control is dangerous when wielded from the outside."

"I understand control," Lucien said evenly, "but leverage, true leverage, is shared. The kingdom benefits. That is the only measure we follow."

I stepped closer, standing beside him. "We're not here to dominate. We're here to strengthen. Every objection you raise only proves that Bisonia needs this partnership."

Cassandra closed her mouth tight. We will find out, she said to the Princess

Still, her firing stayed present - sharp, like a blade showing that power can't always buy loyalty.

Fog crept through the streets just as silence filled the hallways. His office waited, lit faintly - walls of glass, floors cold underfoot. City sparks blinked beneath us, distant, slow. Inside, two chairs faced the skyline, ambition humming low between us.

"I hate that she hates you," I murmured, closing the door. "Cassandra Drevin. She doesn't just disagree, she resents your presence."

He leaned back in his chair, legs stretched, hands folded behind his head. "Good. She makes us better. Every opponent sharpens your instincts. You adapt, you anticipate, you win."

"I don't want to play games that feel like war," I admitted softly.

"Then don't call it a game," he said, voice low. "Call it survival. You've never been better at it than you are now."

A sharp beep broke the silence - the screen lit up. It was Darian, family on my mother's side, speaking fast. His words carried a weight that pulled me in.

"Eliana," he said immediately, "the council is raising doubts about your authority. They're questioning every step. They want assurances before the summit."

My eyelids shut for just a moment. Naturally, that is how it works

Lucien moved close, brushing a hand over mine. "Then we give them assurances they didn't expect: confidence, clarity, and results. Not arguments."

I nodded. "Every move outside Bisonia is preparation for war inside it. Sometimes I wonder if I'll survive both."

He lifted my chin gently. "You will. We'll survive. And if the world comes at you too hard, I've got you."

Fatigue arrived, yet excitement too. The group finished a fresh deck - efficiency woven through quiet signals of power plays, nods to authority. Each frame is designed carefully: keep Bisonia happy, never give away control.

"You've turned pressure into strategy," Lucien whispered. "That's why we work."

"I've had practice," I replied, leaning against the desk. "A lifetime of it."

Faint office sounds filled the air when it hit me - our work and private worlds were tangled tight. Things we used to hide, like quick touches deep in Bisonia's passageways, now happened out in the open: fingers grazing near stacked files, eyes meeting over a room full of suits, smirking together after another council blunder.

"This is more than work," I said softly. "It's survival, but also...choice. And it feels like freedom."

Lucien smiled, eyes holding mine with that infuriating arrogance. "Then enjoy it while you can. Because Bisonia will never make it easy. But that's the point. We thrive under pressure."

He turned out to be correct.

Control returned after weeks of chaos - thin, risky, thrilling. Not just allies by plan but by bond, close and real. Every push from the council only proved it clearer: nothing could break us when we stood as one.

My fingers settled over his. A silent vow, just between us.

Faint glimmers danced beyond the window, thin golden threads pulsing in rhythm with what we'd set in motion. Bisonia meant resistance, pressure, moments that twisted tight. Yet inside that grind of metal minds and silent aims, something firm was already claimed - not loud, just true.

Together.

This moment marked a shift - perhaps survival wasn't out of reach, even here among clashing ambitions, shifting deals, where emotions get taken like trophies. A quiet thought took root: maybe I could grow stronger in this chaos.