Niko Varr enjoyed being called right hand for exactly one day.

After that, the title became a weight.

Men came to him asking for money, weapons, instructions, and permission to hit Harlan Pike’s people. Tobin gave orders through calls, but the men in the room looked at Niko when they wanted an answer. Every delay made him look weak. Every wrong answer could make Tobin blame him later.

"Tell them to hold the south warehouse," Tobin said over the phone.

Niko pressed the phone close to his ear. "Boss, Harlan’s men already took half the outer road. If we only hold, they will say we are afraid."

"Let them say it. We cannot waste men."

Niko looked at the faces around him.

They were waiting.

"Fine," he said, though he did not sound fine.

The call ended.

One older Rust Gate member crossed his arms. "What did he say?"

"We hold."

The man laughed once. "Hold? Harlan is calling him a coward in every den from here to East Bridge, and we hold?"

Niko’s face tightened.

This was the problem with remote power. Tobin could hide from bullets, but his absence gave every ambitious man room to speak louder.

He also knew another truth and hated it. The men were starting to test him, not Tobin. If the room obeyed, Tobin would get the credit. If the room broke, Niko would be the one standing closest to the blame.

By afternoon, Harlan’s side struck another small point, not to take money but to prove movement. Two men loyal to Tobin were beaten and thrown outside a clinic. That was enough to make the street choose sides faster.

By evening, even the small gambling rooms knew the split. Some men kept Tobin’s name because he had taken the chair first. Others said Harlan was the only one still walking openly like a real leader. In the underworld, that kind of talk became a weapon before the first bullet was fired.

Bruno heard each update and felt his patience cracking.

He called Tobin from a new phone.

"You need to show control," Bruno said.

"Do you think I do not know that?"

"Knowing is cheap. Your men are splitting."

"Then tell your people to help."

Bruno almost laughed. "My people are dying."

There was silence on the line.

Tobin’s voice changed. "What?"

"World Zone is cutting my outer circle. Drivers, handlers, storage contacts. They are not only after you."

Tobin cursed.

For a moment, both men said nothing. They had wanted to climb using the hidden organization’s shadow. Now the shadow had pulled a larger predator toward them.

"Then ask them for help," Tobin said.

Bruno’s face tightened. "You think I have not?"

"Ask again."

Bruno wanted to snap back, but he stopped himself. Tobin was frightened, and frightened men pushed blame toward the nearest voice. Bruno could not let that voice become his enemy too.

"Stay alive first," Bruno said. "If you lose the loyal side before help comes, no one can put you back in the chair."

At Unit 14, Aster Core had no idea that its hidden founder was fighting that kind of war.

The office was full of calls again.

Kiri had removed his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. Davin was writing company names on a board. Sera handled the front phone while Kenji checked delivery sheets until his eyes hurt.

"Another inquiry," Sera said.

Kiri did not look surprised anymore. "Put it in the queue."

"They do not want the queue. They said they can sign today if we confirm first delivery within the week."

Kenji’s pen stopped.

Shinju looked up from the contract file. "Within the week?"

Sera nodded.

Kiri took the note and read it quickly. "They are scared. Their current supplier delayed shipment, and they heard we delivered faster to others."

Davin should have been happy. Instead, he looked toward the storage report.

"Can we deliver?"

No one answered immediately.

The silence told them more than a refusal would have. A month ago, their problem had been convincing anyone to listen. Now companies were asking too quickly, and every quick yes could become a rope around their necks if the first delivery failed.

The contracts were no longer the problem. Demand was no longer the problem. The problem was that the company’s hidden supply line was a black box with a polite voice and impossible timing.

Kenji finally said, "Message Rivan."

Shinju’s eyes moved toward him.

"Ask for stock confirmation," Kenji said. "No pressure words. Just the required quantity and deadlines."

Kiri nodded. "Also ask whether we can plan larger batches. We cannot keep selling if we do not know what we can promise."

"If we overpromise now, the first real failure will spread faster than our success," Shinju said.

Kiri looked at her and nodded. "Exactly. Reputation grows slowly but cracks in one bad shipment."

Shinju wrote the message herself.

She kept the words clean and businesslike, but her mind was not calm. Every new order made the company stronger and the mystery around Wil’s side heavier.

When the message was sent, Kenji looked at the board.

There were too many names on it now.

He should have felt proud. Part of him did. Davin’s fieldwork, Kiri’s skill, Shinju’s contracts, and Wil’s push had dragged them from nothing into rooms that had refused them days ago. But pride was hard to enjoy when each new name demanded stock they had never seen being made.

"This is what we wanted," Davin said quietly.

Kenji gave a tired smile. "Yes."

Then he looked at the delivery column.

"Now we have to survive getting it."

Far away, Bruno sent his own message.

He did not write everything. He could not risk a long message if his phone was already unsafe. He only sent the important part.

World Zone is killing my outer men. Rust Gate is splitting. Tobin’s side may lose control if this continues.

He stared at the sent message and waited.

For the first time in a long while, waiting felt worse than acting.