Chapter 735
“According to the surveillance team, Jude Vance and his associates met with
several financial firm executives over the past few days,” Owen said. “We couldn’t get our people inside to hear the specifics due to their tight security p>
“Oh, and he also paid a visit to Sebastian on the exact day of your engagement party p>
Owen added over the phone.
Ever since Solflare Capital became a target, Mira and Owen had been utilizing their mentor’s network to keep a close, covert eye on Jude’s movements.
Mira was swamped with her daily university classes, so all intelligence reports were routed directly to Owen.
With the powerful Vance Dynasty backing him from overseas, Jude’s aggressive push to carve out a massive slice of the domestic market meant he had limitless resources at his disposal, forcing Mira and her team to stay on high alert.
“Why would he go looking for Sebastian?” Mira asked. “The Quinn family isn’t exactly known for their financial ventures p>
“Aethelgard’s business world is deeply intertwined. The Quinns actually hold the majority shares in Griffin Capital.
“Furthermore, out of the top five financial firms in the city, three have already held meetings with Jude. One of those introductions came directly from Sebastian, and the other two were orchestrated by Lawrence Lance p>
Mira let out a frustrated sigh. “So Sebastian and Lawrence are basically thick as thieves now, acting like true family?
“Fine by me. When we finally make our move, I won’t have to hold back for anyone’s sake p>
Jude was clearly plotting a massive entry into the financial sector, but what exactly was he discussing behind closed doors with these industry titans?
It definitely wasn’t idle chatter; a major scheme was brewing.
“What is his ultimate endgame?” Mira mused. “If I were in his shoes p>
“He’s likely aiming for a complete monopoly over the financial market,” Owen supplied.
“A monopoly? He’s out of his mind,” she scoffed. “Does he think Mavaria is his own personal playground?
“He would need an unprecedented, flawless strategy to crush the competition. Even if he bought out every single firm except ours, he couldn’t pull it off without the public’s trust p>
The consumers simply wouldn’t buy into it.
The financial sector wasn’t like retail; if the returns were abysmal and the risks too high, investors would stay away, even with zero commission fees.
Suddenly, a realization struck Mira.
“You don’t think they’re rallying the other firms to launch a coordinated attack on us, do you? Much like the strategy we used to dismantle Porter Entertainment p>
“An all-out attack? That would require an astronomical amount of capital.
“Besides, none of those other firms would risk their necks to help him without a guaranteed, massive payoff.
“And as for the Lance family’s involvement, my grandfather would never authorize such a reckless move p>
“My guess is that he’s promising them direct access to his overseas syndicates.
“He might also be leveraging political connections to put regulatory pressure on us,” Mira noted.
“Don’t stress over it. Just focus on your studies and trust me,” Owen said softly. “I’ll leave the heavy lifting to you, then p>
“Silly girl, you’re my partner. There’s no need for such formalities between us p>
On the other end of the line, a warm smile graced Owen’s lips.
“Who are you calling your partner? You’re getting way too bold these days p>
“How is it bold? We’re officially engaged, aren’t we p>
Being engaged wasn’t exactly the same as being married, she thought.
Knowing he would just keep teasing her with his smooth talk, Mira decided to drop the subject altogether.
The next day at Aethelgard University, Elara Finn immediately rushed over to show Mira the promotional teaser airing on MNN:
She was the top scholar, a brilliant vocalist, and a genius music producer. Known as Lady Oracle in the stock market, she was also Mavaria’s youngest billionaire.
Tune in as we dive into the incredible entrepreneurial journey of an eighteen-year- old visionary!
The network was definitely laying it on thick. While the claims were technically true, her massive
investments in Nexus Core Systems, her extensive real estate portfolio,
and her premium stock holdings. were all strictly off the public record.
With the recent explosion in property values, those hidden assets had generated staggering wealth for Mira.
Her publicly known assets alone didn’t quite hit the billionaire mark yet.
As soon as class ended, Mira called Owen and filled him in on the dramatic television promo.
“Owen, tell the team at TaleStream to speed up the launch. I want to unveil it during
the exclusive interview. It’ll be the perfect free advertising p>
A successful rollout of the digital reading platform would pull in massive ad revenue and licensing deals while also creating a pipeline of fresh scripts and intellectual properties for their entertainment division.
Since the network was already hyping her up to such an extreme, it would be a missed opportunity not to capitalize on the spotlight.
“Mira, there’s something else you need to know. Someone paid a visit to Lacey recently. There’s a high chance she might show up at your campus to cause a scene p>
Mira let out a heavy sigh. “Understood. I’ll take care of it p>
She immediately dialed Eleanor Quinn’s number to brief her on the situation.
“That woman is unbelievable p>
BUT
Eleanor fumed. “She took you for granted when she had you, severed ties, and now she’s obsessively trying to force her way back into your life using such extremes?
It’s nothing but toxic harassment.
“Just focus on your classes, sweetheart. I will handle her p>
“Eleanor, if things get out of hand, just walk away. Don’t push yourself too hard confronting her.
“And please, make sure you take the security detail with you p>
“Don’t you worry about a thing. If there’s one person in this world I can put in their place, it’s my own daughter p>
Eleanor knew Lacey’s weaknesses better than anyone, making her the perfect person to shut this nonsense down.
Mira’s status had drastically changed; she could no longer fly under the radar like
she used to.
With her rising fame and countless eyes watching her every move, any minor scandal could easily be blown out of proportion.
A public relations disaster could seriously damage both her personal image and the Solflare Group’s standing.
The moment Eleanor ended the call with Mira, she marched straight out the door to confront Lacey p>