Mirror Crown
The sun hit different when you knew the world bowed to your name.
Xavier stood at the steps of Blackwood Holdings, the empire Christian inherited—untouched wealth, influence across industries, and a building so tall it scraped the clouds like it owned the sky.
He stood there for a second, taking it in.
This place? This monument of power?
It was his now.
He adjusted his watch—Christian's custom diamond-encrusted Patek—and walked through the glass doors like he designed the place. Security didn't stop him. They didn't even breathe wrong. Staff whispered the moment he entered.
"Mr. Blackwood is here…"
"He's early today."
"Did you see his aura? Something's different…"
He didn't smile. He didn't wave. He just walked.
Every step? Measured. Heavy. Like a general entering his battlefield.
The elevator ride to the top floor was silent. Private. Gold-plated. When the doors opened, executives practically scrambled to get in line.
"Sir," said the assistant nervously, walking beside him. "You have the acquisition meeting at—"
"Reschedule it," Xavier said flatly.
She blinked. "But sir, they flew in from Japan."
"Then let them fly back with more respect for my time."
No one argued. Because the truth was: power didn't ask—it declared.
He stepped into Christian's office—a panoramic view of the city below, a glass desk, a stocked bar, and a chair so royal it looked like it belonged in a throne room.
He sat.
Put his feet up.
Leaned back like he built the skyline outside.
This was the empire Christian ruled with arrogance. But Xavier? He was going to rule with presence—calculated, calm, lethal when necessary.
There was a knock.
A board member entered—white-haired, with decades of experience and arrogance to match.
"I heard you've been… different lately," the man said cautiously.
Xavier stared at him. "Different how?"
"Confident. Quietly dangerous."
He chuckled. "Almost like your father used to be."
Xavier's gaze didn't shift.
"I'm not my father," he said. "And I'm not the Christian you remember either. You'd be smart to learn the difference."
The old man looked like he wanted to say more, but he simply nodded.
"Understood."
He walked out.
Xavier sat there a moment longer, then swiveled in the chair and looked at his reflection in the glass behind him.
The city moved like an organism beneath his feet.
And in that reflection?
He didn't see Christian anymore.
He saw himself.
Xavier. Wearing the mirror crown.
And making it shine.