Neo decided to return to Chronopolis, leaving Zestia to handle the island temporarily.

​He had more important work to do.

​After several hours of flight, Neo returned to his Green Vine Villa.

​It was currently noon, and he saw his little sister Nina walking on the Garden with their mother.

​He felt very reassured seeing them safe.

​As soon as he landed, the mother-daughter duo rushed to his flying car.

​"Son, you have been away for two weeks. Where were you? We were really worried."

​Nina hugged him lightly.

​"Brother, I thought something had happened to you."

​Tears glittered around her eyelashes.

Neo gently patted Nina on the back and offered a bright, reassuring smile to his mother.

​"I was just out on a long training retreat," Neo replied smoothly.

"I found a great spot outside the city to practice some new techniques and completely lost track of time. There is absolutely nothing to worry about. I am perfectly fine, see?"

​He flexed his arm playfully to show off his unbroken condition, conveniently leaving out the dark details about slaughtering an island of mermen, transforming into a demon, and establishing a cosmic empire.

​Mrs Godson exhaled a breath of relief. "You really need to send a message next time, Neo. We were terrified."

​Nina wiped the stray tears from her eyelashes and nodded in agreement.

"Yeah! You owe us a huge dinner for making us worry so much."

​Neo chuckled and ruffled her hair. "Alright, alright. I promise I will make it up to both of you."

​After spending some much needed familial time to ease his mother and sister, Neo headed out to the headquarters of the Sovereign Corporation to check on his growing business empire.

​By mid afternoon, he arrived before a respectable, seven story building in a bustling commercial district. It was not the most extravagant skyscraper in Chronopolis, but it was certainly not shabby.

The main operations for his company took up the entire fifth floor. Stepping into the sleek magnetic elevator, he felt a brief, weightless shift in gravity before arriving at his destination in less than a minute.

​The moment the elevator doors chimed open, a wave of vibrant, bustling energy washed over him.

​The expansive office was a hive of intense activity. Dozens of human employees were busy behind their holographic desks, typing away furiously and managing multiple communication feeds. And AI assistant robots rolled seamlessly between the aisles, delivering physical documents and offering real time data calculations.

Even in an era where highly advanced artificial intelligence could run a company autonomously, Rose preferred an organic workforce. AI lacked ambition. Humans brought a lively, passionate, and fiercely competitive atmosphere that machines simply could not replicate.

​Standing unnoticed near the entrance, Neo listened to the chaotic symphony of corporate warfare ringing out across the floor.

​"We need three more shipments to Sector 4 by tonight! The retailers are literally camping outside the distribution center!" a frantic logistics manager yelled into his headset.

​A few desks away, a marketing analyst was pointing enthusiastically at a massive floating graph.

"Haha, I am looking at the numbers right now. The Aqua Core Flask is trending at number one across all civilian and mercenary networks. The promise of endless, perfectly pure water has completely broken the market. We are officially sold out of the standard models for the next two months."

​"Then tell the manufacturing factory to double their output. People are taking these flasks into the Wastelands, and they are surviving longer than ever before. The demand is only going to skyrocket from here. We cannot afford a supply bottleneck while we have the world’s attention."

​"Sir, I am already drafting the premium version announcement. Once the public realizes the Aqua Core Flask can filter out toughest contamination along with generating water, we will need to upgrade our entire server network just to handle the preorders."

"Anyone know who the inventor of this Flask is? Infinite purifying Water using insignificant power cells is simply ingenious."

​Neo crossed his arms as he watched his staff pour their absolute all into the company.

The sensation he had planned was finally taking the world by storm.

As Neo observed the bustling floor with a satisfied smile, a young junior staff member carrying a stack of data pads noticed him loitering near the entrance. The employee approached with a raised eyebrow and a highly suspicious glare.

​"Excuse me," the staff member said with corporate skepticism. "Can I help you? This is a restricted operational floor. If you are looking for an internship or the customer service desk, they are down on the second level."

​Neo turned to the employee and replied with a calm voice,

"I am not looking for an internship. I am the Chairman of Sovereign Corporation."

​For a brief second, the staff member just blinked. Then, he burst into a loud, mocking laugh.

​"You?" the staff member snorted, drawing the attention of several nearby colleagues. "The Chairman? Oh, that is a good one! Guys, get a load of this. This kid says he is the big boss!"

​A few other workers paused their tasks and chuckled.

​"Nice try, kid," a marketing analyst called out with a grin. "The Chairman is a mysterious tycoon who funds our tech. He is definitely not a young guy wandering in off the street."

​The laughter grew louder, creating a mild commotion near the elevator banks. However, the noise abruptly died down when the heavy, frosted glass doors of the executive suite slid open.

​Rose, the CEO of Sovereign Corporation, stepped out into the bullpen. She wore a sharp, immaculate business suit.

Her eyes widened in genuine surprise as she spotted the young man standing amid the laughing employees.

​"What is going on here?" Rose demanded, instantly freezing the room.

​The junior staff member pointed at Neo with a smirk.

"Miss Rose, this kid snuck up to the fifth floor and is going around claiming he is the Chairman!"

​The smirk completely vanished from the employee’s face the moment he saw Rose’s expression. She quickly walked past the frozen staff members, completely ignoring their smug expressions, and stopped directly in front of Neo.

To the absolute horror of everyone watching, the strict and powerful CEO bowed her head respectfully.

​"Welcome back, Chairman. I apologize for the lack of reception. We were not expecting your arrival today."

​The entire floor dropped into a dead silence.

The junior staff member looked like his soul had just left his body, his face turning an unhealthy shade of white. The marketing analyst who had just called him a kid nearly choked on his coffee.

​"Miss Rose... he actually is...?" the junior employee stammered.

​Rose shot the surrounding staff a withering glare that promised strict disciplinary action later.

Then, she immediately turned her attention back to Neo, her professional demeanor returning.

​"Neo, do not mind their ignorance. Come into my office. We have a lot of important matters to discuss," Rose said with familiarity, stepping aside and gesturing toward her private suite.

​Without waiting for another word, she quickly pulled him away from the stunned, paralyzed workforce and guided him straight into her executive office, leaving the terrified staff to contemplate their potentially ruined careers.