"They were so happy," Betty said as Ashley lingered in the building, having settled in the office across from the game room.

Betty watched the guys test everything through the glass walls, smiling. But when she turned to Ashley, who was snacking, she couldn’t help but ask,

"Madam, I’ve been meaning to ask — this building..." she trailed off, searching for the right words. "...did you choose it because of the specific interiors you had in mind?"

The building was in a prime location, but it was not nearly as large as the others in the area. If anything, it was rather small by comparison. And beyond that, there were many spaces throughout that weren’t conventional offices — not quite like the game room, but not standard workspaces either.

Like the gym and training room on the other floor.

Somehow, every room and floor tied these ideas together, making the modest building far more layered and interesting than it first appeared.

"Isn’t that obvious, Betty?" Ashley asked, washing down a mouthful of water. "Our company isn’t huge yet, even if the money flowing in and out of it is. We don’t need many people in this office — most of the budget needs to go toward those in the field."

Betty nodded. With the current demand, she knew Ashley had been planning to expand the plantation and was already looking into acquiring a large farm or ranch.

"Besides, once this building is complete, I’ll be here most of the day," Ashley murmured, glancing toward the guys already making full use of the other room. "Which means these guys will be stuck here all day too."

"They’d die of boredom if that happened," she added under her breath. "Where do you think their house budget went to?"

Betty chuckled. She could already picture it. She had only spent a full day with these five when Ashley had ordered them to stay with her at home, and even then, she had seen firsthand how quickly they complained when there was nothing to do.

"What about the four recruits, Madam?" Betty tilted her head. "I know the five original guards — except Gin — will largely be in charge of security operations. But you haven’t mentioned what role the new four will take."

"Will they have positions in the company?" she continued. "I could get everything set up once you give the go-ahead."

"It’s alright. Leave them for now."

"Madam?"

"Betty, I probably haven’t mentioned this, but those four don’t officially exist."

"Huh?"

"They’re dead," Ashley clarified, which only deepened Betty’s confusion. "To put it simply, they’re already on record as deceased. It’s why they’re nearly impossible to background check — and I want to keep it that way."

Betty blinked rapidly. "Ghost employees?"

"Ha. You’re learning fast, Betty." Ashley quipped.

"Hehe. My boss before I joined Dominion had ghost employees too — something to do with avoiding penalties or certain taxes. That’s how I know the term."

"Mhm," Ashley hummed, tapping the armrest of her chair as she turned it over in her mind. She said nothing for a moment, then snapped her gaze to Betty. "By the way, about the building’s secret floor..."

Betty smiled. "The builders have already finished it. Would you like to check it now?"

"No," Ashley shook her head. "I’ll look at it once the rest of the furnishing is nearly done."

"Understood."

"Anyway, Primo has a school festival coming up. Clear my schedule for those dates," she said, switching topics without elaborating further.

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Betty. It was the opposite.

She was still weighing what to do with the four recruits.

Ashley already had big plans for this building. It was why it had taken her so long to settle on the right one, because she’d had specific requirements. A secret floor was one of them, and also, one was finding something small enough not to stand out.

But then the abduction happened, and Khan’s group had operated with a precision that was, by far, the cleanest she had ever seen. Had Ashley not been part of Dominion, they would have succeeded without a trace.

Now, they were a new variable she had to account for.

And the secret floor she had originally planned for Ghost’s office might need to become something else entirely — a new department altogether under Ghost.

"Madam?" Betty’s voice cut through her thoughts. "Is everything alright?"

Ashley smiled brightly. "Of course. Just thinking about something on Lucian’s side."

"Hmm?" Betty furrowed her brows, only for Ashley’s smile to stretch wider.

*****

[Black Dragon Corporation]

Lucian strode down the hallway after a long morning with the company board. Gustav followed close behind.

"Master," Gustav said, stepping up beside him. "Everyone is already in the room, waiting for you." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Lucian glanced at him and nodded without a word.

The corporate side of things had been dealt with all morning. Even so, there was still much to settle — particularly on the Dominion side of business.

When he entered the room, everyone rose to their feet.

It was a smaller conference room, filled with people from across all branches. Some held positions at the main headquarters; others had flown in from their respective branches just for this meeting. Lukas was among them, seated closest to Lucian’s left.

"Sit down," Lucian said as he took his place at the head of the table.

"Master, what is this emergency meeting about?" Lukas asked, and curious eyes turned toward Lucian from every seat.

"First, I want to express my appreciation, especially to those who traveled here despite the difficulties Dominion has recently faced." Lucian looked around the table. "That said, I won’t waste your time with formalities."

He paused briefly before continuing. "With everything that has happened across all branches, I want to assure you: Dominion will always be Dominion."

Quiet, relieved smiles settled over the room — as though that was the only thing they had needed to hear from the man himself.

"We may have lost some important people," Lucian continued, "but we have also gained a few. I’d like to formally introduce you to someone who will prove to be a significant asset to us."

Brows furrowed around the table. Even Gustav and Lukas looked at Lucian with open confusion.

Neither of them had heard anything about this.

Lucian glanced at the employee who had arranged the meeting and gave a small nod.

The employee bowed his head and pressed a button.

At the far end of the room, a long pull-down projector screen descended. Every eye in the room turned toward it.

Gustav and Lukas narrowed their eyes as the lights dimmed.

What appeared next made jaws slacken and eyes go wide across the room. Even Lukas felt his mouth fall open.

Because there, lit up on the screen, was a signature — one that every person in that room had either seen before or been made aware of.

"Isn’t that..." Lukas whispered, only to pause abruptly.

Gustav stared at it, breath caught, and murmured, "Ghost?"