The Tycoon's Odyssey

As they continued their debate, the door to the exclusive private room swung open, and a young man walked in. He was impeccably dressed in a tailored suit, exuding an aura of sophistication and privilege. His sharp eyes scanned the room until they settled on Noah's table.

"Ah, there he is," Noah remarked with a smirk, gesturing at the newcomer. "Jay, come join us."

Though Jay's status paled compared to Nova's, you can't underestimate his worth, in a way it wasn't wrong to say that Jay's father was the owner of the educational institution of Utkal.

If you offend Jay, you risk getting banned from obtaining a degree, making it difficult to get admission elsewhere in Indra.

Jay approached with a composed stride, acknowledging the nods and respectful glances from other patrons who recognized him as a young master of influence in the city.

"Hmm!" Jay greeted them, taking a seat gracefully. "I couldn't resist after hearing about this brewing discussion on Evan."

"He's quite the menace, isn't he?" one of the young men remarked, eyeing Jay as if trying to pry into his intentions.

Noah leaned forward slightly, his expression thoughtful. "You know, Jay, there's a rumour floating around that Evan might have some dirt on your father. Something that has propelled him into this unexpected success."

Jay raised an eyebrow, maintaining his composure. "Though my father's dealings are not always transparent, I find it hard to believe Evan could have such leverage."

"My father was going to deal with him but..."

At this moment Jay couldn't help but erupt in anger, "I am sure that piece of shit had done something to force him to step back."

First, he was hit in the head, and the next day after waking up, he found that his arch-nemesis had been set free.

How can there be such a coincidence?

He might be not a genius, but he wasn't a fool.

He knew how the upper society worked.

"Also, I have been eyeing and keeping tabs on him. There is no rich woman feeding him, nor is there anyone backing him up. He built everything from scratch.

"Well, you know how these things go," another man chimed in. "Ambitious upstarts often find creative ways to climb the ladder."

Noah chuckled softly and sipped his drink. "Indeed. But regardless of how he got there, in the end, he is just a frog at the bottom of the well. He might be getting attention today, but everything will fade away. He doesn't have a  background like us."

Jay nodded thoughtfully. "If he has managed to manoeuvre into our league, it means we must consider our next moves carefully."

The others at the table exchanged glances, silently agreeing with Jay's assessment.

"Perhaps," Jay continued, "we can get rid of him."

Noah smirked, his eyes gleaming with a hint of unknown emotion. "Always thinking ahead, Jay."

Though Noah was smiling, he couldn't help but have some crooked thoughts.

Who were they?

All of them were rich second generations that leeched and grew their family influence. Although their skills were exceptional, they couldn't compare to someone who built something from scratch.

Even if Evan had always been a fly in Noah's eyes, ever since he refused to attend to tag along when he threw a big party he didn't like that fly.

However, he has ignored Evan since then…..

Stroking his chin, Noah looked at Jay and asked ruefully, "Why don't you just disrupt the supply, and everything will fall into place."

"That's the bloody problem, just how can I block the entire supply alone? Can't he just go out and get them? Moreover, how much does a small shop require?" Jay replied, slamming his hand on the table.

"Hmm! It isn't small anymore Jay? They are now turning it into a corporation. Soon, they will expand to other cities and then it will be troublesome to manage if we were to  just block one or two."

Jay's eyes widened for a moment.

A few days ago it was just small cafes. Despite the huge sales, they didn't require such a large quantity so they could procure their raw materials from anywhere easily. Moreover, in case of problems like before, Evan could just close the shop for a few days. But now, with the scale so large, he can't manage everything personally.

"Also use FSSAI!" Noah suggested.

"No, we can't do that anymore," Jay clicked his tongue remembering how his father warned him about that.

"Then..." Noah paused a bit and looked at his goons.

John, Jasper, and Ken, who had been quiet, noticed his gaze.

"I heard that you had some problems with Evan before. Some personal conflicts."

John, Jasper, and Ken's eyes brightened up.

"Yeah, young master...That bastard beat and humiliated us."

Nova's brows squinted for a moment.

"Is he a skilled fighter?"

"We can't be sure of that. It's just that he has good intuitive skills and is quite agile."

"I see…" Noah paused for a moment before looking back at Jay.

"Try to find information about the head members. Maybe we can create some problems from them."

"As long as there is enough chaos, everything will slowly crumble apart. Without much experience, background, and help, I am sure he will collapse and won't be able to recover."

_____

April 2023, at Eagle's Mountain View office in California, excitement filled the air as developers gathered to submit their apps for the Eagle Play Awards.

In a bustling room filled with computers and tech personnel, Mark, a seasoned developer, carefully compiled the list of nominated apps.

"Alright, team," Mark announced, "Let's double-check everything before we submit."

His diverse team of developers and designers from around the world quickly began reviewing the list.

Emma from London finalized CanvasCreate, an app for digital artistry. Sarah from Tokyo ensured ChronoLens, an augmented reality time management app, was ready. Michael from New York confirmed the latest updates for HealthSync, focusing on AI-driven health analytics.

And lastly, there was the dark horse of the year.

With a final click, Mark submitted the nominations for review and passed the list to the core jury.