Adam felt his heart pounding in his chest as he stood there in the dusty area just outside the refinery gates, facing the angry, disillusioned employee.

  The man's cynical dismissal of his former company still echoed in the air, mingling with the distant industrial hum. Adam had just been physically thrown out himself, his initial plan seemingly shattered by the unexpected fury of the executive inside. Yet, here was a potential new opening, an unexpected detour.

  The man – tall, maybe early thirties, dressed in a surprisingly smart black coat now covered in dust – stared back at Adam. His eyes, moments ago filled with frustrated anger towards the refinery, now held a mixture of confusion, annoyance, and maybe just a tiny spark of curiosity.

  He clearly didn't know what to make of this young stranger who had witnessed his outburst and was now standing there with a strange, confident smirk.

  "An offer? For me?" the man repeated, his tone dripping with disbelief, skepticism heavy in his voice. He gave a short, humorless laugh. "Kid, what could you possibly offer me? A shoulder to cry on? Bus fare home?" He clearly assumed Adam was either mocking him or completely delusional. He started to turn away again, clearly wanting to be left alone with his anger and disappointment.

  But Adam wasn't going to let this potential opportunity slip away. Before the man could take more than a step, Adam acted decisively. He reached out quickly, his hand shooting forward with surprising speed, and grabbed the man's wrist firmly. It wasn't an aggressive grab, but it was solid, commanding attention, stopping the man's retreat instantly.

  "Wait," Adam said, his voice firm, steady, cutting through the man's cynical dismissal. There was an unexpected weight in his tone that made hesitation impossible.

  The man stopped dead, turning back abruptly, his eyebrow shooting up in surprise at Adam’s boldness. The physical contact seemed to break through his wall of frustrated anger, forcing him to focus. "What?" he asked, his tone softening just a fraction, irritation replaced by grudging curiosity as he looked into Adam’s intense, unwavering eyes.

  Adam held his gaze, maintaining the light but firm grip on the man's wrist for just a second longer to emphasize his point. Then he released it. "You just said," Adam repeated slowly, deliberately, reminding the man of his own words spoken in anger just moments before, "that if you had the power, you could build a company even better than this one."

  Time seemed to hang suspended for a moment. The sounds of the distant refinery faded into the background. The man hesitated, his eyes narrowing slightly as he studied Adam’s face, really looking at him now. He seemed to be replaying his own frustrated outburst in his head, perhaps surprised that this stranger had not only heard it but was now throwing it back at him.

  Slowly, cautiously, he gave a small, almost reluctant nod, as if admitting, yes, he had said that, maybe in a moment of bitterness, but perhaps there was some truth to it.

  "Yeah," the man replied, his voice wary now, a mix of lingering skepticism but also growing curiosity. "Yeah, I said it. So what? Talk is cheap."

  A small, confident smile touched Adam's lips. This was the opening he needed. "So," Adam said, his tone unwavering, filled with a quiet certainty that felt strangely convincing despite the absurdity of the situation, "I'll give you everything you need to make that happen. The resources. The backing. The opportunity."

  For a heartbeat, the man just froze. His expression went blank, unreadable, as he tried to process the sheer audacity of Adam’s statement. He searched Adam’s face intently, looking for any sign of joking, any hint of deception or mental instability. Could this kid possibly be serious? Giving him the resources to start a rival company? It sounded completely insane.

  Then, letting out a slow breath, a puff of dusty air, he seemed to regain his composure, his skepticism returning full force.

  "Kid," the man said, his voice flat, laced with disbelief, "look at you. No offense, but you don't exactly look like someone who has the kind of money needed to start anything, let alone a company that could compete with Green Refinery." He gestured vaguely at Adam's simple clothes, still dusty from being thrown out himself.

  The words, blunt and honest, struck Adam like a splash of cold water. Doubt. The man didn't believe him. Of course, he didn't. Why would he? Adam knew his appearance screamed 'broke college kid', not 'wealthy investor'. He realized instantly that if he wanted to win this man over, if he wanted this potential ally, he needed more than just bold words. He needed proof. Tangible proof.

  Taking a careful step closer, Adam met the man's skeptical gaze without flinching. His voice resonated with unshakable confidence now. "I understand why you'd think that," Adam conceded calmly. "I may not look rich on the outside. But trust me," – and here his eyes seemed to hold a strange, compelling intensity – "I have access to more money, more resources, than you can possibly imagine right now." He let that sink in for a second.

  "And I'm not just talking about starting a company. I'm talking about our company. I don't just want you to build it – I want you to run it. I want you to be my first CEO."

  The man's eyes widened dramatically at the word "CEO." The sheer scale of the proposal, the unexpected title, seemed to momentarily stun him. CEO? Him? Of a company funded by this strange kid? For the first time since Adam approached him, a flicker of genuine curiosity, maybe even a tiny spark of intrigued ambition, showed in the man's guarded expression.

  The default cynicism faltered slightly. Slowly, almost reluctantly, the man seemed to relax his defensive posture. He pulled his hand away from where Adam had briefly held his wrist. His gaze remained serious, challenging, but now held an invitation to elaborate, to convince him.

  "Okay," the man said slowly, his tone shifting from outright disbelief to cautious consideration. "Let's say… let's just say for a second I believe you might actually be serious, even though it sounds crazy. Are you actually serious about this?"

  Adam nodded firmly, decisively. No hesitation. His eyes remained locked on the man's, conveying absolute conviction. "Dead serious."

  The man let out another long sigh, running a hand through his slightly messy dark hair as if trying to physically rearrange his scattered, conflicting thoughts. He looked from Adam to the imposing refinery gates, then back to Adam again. Finally, seeming to make a decision to at least hear more, he straightened up.

  "Fine," he said, his tone still wary but accepting the premise for now. "You want to talk business? You want me to believe you're some kind of secret tycoon? Then tell me – where's your office? Where does this supposed company of yours operate from?" It was a practical, logical question. A test. If Adam was serious, he should have some kind of base, some evidence of legitimacy.

  For a brief, heart-stopping second, Adam froze internally. An office? He didn't have an office! He had a tiny, rented room on the outskirts of the city and an invisible inventory! He hadn't planned this far ahead, hadn't anticipated needing to provide such concrete details so soon. His mind raced frantically.

  He couldn't show hesitation now. He couldn't reveal he was basically operating out of a backpack. He needed to project confidence, control, even if he was making it up on the spot.

  Forcing a confident, easy smile onto his face, hoping it masked his momentary panic, Adam met the man's questioning gaze and replied smoothly, gesturing vaguely down the street, "It's not far from here. Follow me."

  He started walking, hoping the man would follow, hoping he could figure out where to lead him – maybe to a coffee shop, maybe just walk and talk until he could think of something more concrete.

  This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

  Thankfully, the man seemed to accept the vague answer for now, perhaps too caught up in the strangeness of the situation to press the issue immediately. He fell into step beside Adam, walking side-by-side along the quiet industrial road, away from the refinery gates. The steady echo of their footsteps filled the space between them.

  After a few moments of walking in silence, Adam broke the quiet, glancing sideways at the man. "I didn't get your name back there," Adam said politely. "My name's Adam."

  The man gave a short, humorless smirk, his eyes crinkling slightly at the corners. He seemed to relax just a tiny bit. "Right. Sorry. Got a bit heated back there," he admitted gruffly. "Almost forgot my manners. Name's Kim. David Kim." He extended his hand towards Adam.

  Adam met the gesture without hesitation, shaking Kim's hand firmly. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Kim," Adam said respectfully.

  They walked in silence again for another minute or so, the air between them charged with unspoken questions and possibilities. Adam could almost feel Kim's mind working, analyzing, trying to make sense of this bizarre encounter. Kim, it turned out, wasn't just letting it go.

  He had always been a practical man, grounded in facts and figures, even if his current situation was desperate. He couldn't just blindly trust this strange young man based on a wild promise.

  Suddenly, Kim stopped walking again, turning to face Adam directly on the sidewalk. His expression was serious, intense. His eyes searched Adam's face, looking for concrete answers, not just vague assurances.

  "Okay, Adam," Kim said, his voice dropping the earlier casualness, becoming all business now. "Let's cut the crap. You say you want me to be CEO of your company. Fine. What's the name of this company? How many employees do you currently have? What, exactly, is your business model, besides just 'having resources'? Where are you registered? Who are your other partners?"

  The rapid-fire questions hit Adam like machine-gun bullets. He realized instantly Kim wasn't just making small talk anymore. This wasn't idle curiosity. This was due diligence. Kim was a real businessman, despite being thrown out of his last job, and he demanded real answers, real substance, before he would take any proposal seriously, no matter how tempting it sounded.

  Adam could sense Kim's lingering skepticism, his need for proof. He could also sense the deep-seated anger Kim still felt towards Green Refinery, the company that had apparently failed him. It was likely that anger, that desperate desire for a different path, that was keeping Kim engaged in this conversation at all.

  Adam stopped walking too, turning to face Kim squarely. He knew this was a critical moment. Vague answers wouldn't work now. He needed to convince Kim, right here, right now, that he was legitimate, or at least, that his resources were real.

  "Mr. Kim," Adam began, his voice quiet but firm, holding Kim's gaze steadily. "I understand why you're asking these questions. I know how this looks. You think I'm just messing around, some kid playing games, right?" He paused, letting the unspoken accusation hang in the air. "But I promise you, I am dead serious about this. And if you don't believe my words," – Adam took a deep breath – "then maybe you'll believe this."

  With that, Adam reached into his canvas bag again. Not into his inventory this time, but into the physical bag where he’d stashed the bundles of cash from Thomas before transferring most of it. He pulled out two thick, impressive bundles of cash – crisp, clean hundred-dollar bills, easily totaling ten or twenty thousand dollars. He held them out matter-of-factly in front of Kim, letting the sheer visual impact of the money do the talking.

  "This," Adam explained, his tone deliberately casual, as if carrying stacks of cash like this was perfectly normal for him, "is just a small initial amount. Pocket money, really. Something I always keep on hand for immediate expenses."

  Kim's eyes widened significantly as he stared at the thick stacks of money in Adam's hands, then flicked back up to Adam's calm face. He leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to a low, intense whisper, suspicion warring with amazement. "Where… where in God's name did a kid like you get this kind of cash?"

  Adam allowed his confident smirk to return. This was his chance to reveal the core of his plan, the source of his potential power. "My business model is actually very simple, Mr. Kim," he replied smoothly, meeting Kim's intense gaze.

  "I own an immense crude oil reserve. Untapped. Undisclosed. Right here in Fieland." He let that bombshell drop. "That's why I came here today. I was trying to sell some of it to Green Refinery."

  The impact of these words on Kim was immediate and profound. His expression shifted instantly from wary curiosity to stunned shock, quickly followed by deep, sharp suspicion, maybe even alarm. "Wait… wait a second," Kim stammered, his eyes searching Adam's face frantically. "You're saying you found oil? A reserve? Here?" His tone was serious now, measured, the implications clearly crashing down on him.

  Adam nodded firmly, decisively. "That's right. A significant reserve."

  Kim's face darkened dramatically. He looked almost horrified. "Then why the hell," he demanded, his voice rising again, not in anger this time, but in sheer, frustrated disbelief, "did you come here?! Why would you go straight to that company, to them?!"

  Adam frowned, genuinely puzzled by Kim's intense reaction. He hadn't expected this. "What do you mean? They're the biggest refinery. They need oil. I have oil. It seemed like the logical place to start…" His confusion was real.

  Kim let out a long, frustrated groan, running both hands through his hair now, looking utterly exasperated. He took a step closer to Adam, his voice dropping to a low, urgent, serious tone. "Kid," he said, his eyes filled with a grim understanding that Adam clearly lacked. "Kid, you didn't just make a mistake. You made a huge mistake coming here."

  Adam felt a cold chill run down his spine despite the warm afternoon sun. Kim's intensity was unnerving. "What… what do you mean, a mistake?" Adam asked hesitantly, a knot forming in his stomach.

  Kim exhaled sharply, placing a hand on his forehead for a moment as if warding off a headache. His voice turned grim, harsh, like a teacher explaining a deadly lesson to a naive student. "Adam, listen to me," he began, his tone deadly serious.

  "This business world, especially the oil business in a country like Fieland? It's not a playground. It's a jungle. A dangerous one. And nothing, absolutely nothing, here is 'fair'. Power is everything. And you," – Kim leaned closer, his eyes boring into Adam's – "you just walked straight into the biggest lion's den in the whole damn country and basically announced you were carrying a big, juicy, defenseless steak."

  The metaphor hit Adam hard. A delicious meal… him? His oil? He felt his stomach twist unpleasantly as the implications began to sink in. He hadn't just been naive about business etiquette; he had been naive about the fundamental nature of power and greed in this world.

  Kim stepped even closer, his presence feeling imposing now, his hand coming up to rest firmly, almost warningly, on Adam's shoulder. His eyes were intense, sharp, demanding answers. "Tell me," Kim pressed, his voice low and urgent.

  "Where exactly did you supposedly find this crude oil? Do you actually, legally own the land it's on? Do you have the official papers, the deeds, the geological surveys to prove it's yours, to prove it even exists? And most importantly," – his grip tightened slightly – "did you tell them? Did you tell that snake Sterling or anyone inside that building where your reserves are located?"

  Adam's heart pounded against his ribs. He felt a wave of cold sweat break out on his forehead. The questions were sharp, probing, hitting all the potential vulnerabilities of his situation. For a moment, he froze under the weight of Kim's intense scrutiny, the reality of his precarious position crashing down on him.

  "No…" Adam admitted, his voice barely a whisper, relief mixing with the lingering anxiety. "No, they… they threw me out before I could say anything about the location. Before I could finish my proposal."

  Kim let out a long, slow breath, some of the tension visibly leaving his shoulders. He released his grip on Adam's shoulder. "Good," he muttered, sounding genuinely relieved. "Okay. That's… good. Very lucky for you. It means they didn't take you seriously. They just thought you were some crazy kid with a vial of stolen oil, trying to pull a fast one."

  Adam blinked, trying to steady his racing thoughts. The executive's rage suddenly made a terrifying kind of sense if he thought Adam was trying to scam him. "And… and if they had taken me seriously?" Adam asked quietly, needing to understand the danger he had apparently just narrowly avoided. "If I had told them where the land was?"

  Kim's expression turned grim again, his eyes darkening with the weight of his warning. "Then, Adam," he said bluntly, his voice low and chilling, "you wouldn't be standing here right now. Best case? You'd be locked up in some police station on trumped-up charges – illegal prospecting, fraud, whatever they could invent. Worst case? Maybe you just… disappear." He let that hang in the air.

  "And your crude oil? Your land? It would be gone. They, or people connected to them, would find a way to seize it, legally or otherwise. National interest, essential resource, eminent domain… they have ways. They'd take control of your reserve, and you would never see a single cent from it. Ever."

  Adam felt his blood run cold again. Prison? Disappear? His oil stolen? The reality of Kim's words sank in, heavy and terrifying. His voice trembled slightly as he protested, "But… I haven't done anything illegal! The land is legally mine! The oil… well, the oil is there!"

  Kim shook his head slowly, a bitter, cynical look in his eyes. "Doesn't matter, kid," he said, his tone filled with the harsh truth of experience. "Legality? That's flexible when you have enough power and influence. In the corporate world, especially when it comes to resources like oil, might often makes right. To people like Sterling, to the powers that control this country's energy? You're nobody. You're just some obstacle, maybe some lucky kid who stumbled onto something valuable. Or worse," – Kim's eyes held a flicker of the executive's earlier assumption –

  "they probably just assume you're some rich kid playing businessman, trying to impress your powerful father by making a big splash, maybe using insider information."

  The words stung, deeply. Rich kid? Playing business? Adam clenched his fists again, feeling a mix of anger at the assumption and a cold wave of regret at his own naivety. "I was so naive…" he thought bitterly, the realization hitting him fully now. "So stupidly naive."

  For the first time since returning to the past, Adam truly understood the treacherous landscape he was trying to navigate. This wasn't just about having a secret power or a good plan.

  The business world, this world of power and money and influence, was a dangerous jungle filled with predators. And he had just walked into it unprepared, announcing his presence like a fool. If he wanted to survive, let alone succeed and get his revenge, he had to be smarter, tougher, more ruthless, and infinitely more cautious.

  Kim's piercing gaze seemed to see right through Adam's earlier bravado, exposing the harsh reality beneath. Money, connections, power – those were the currencies that truly mattered here, far more than fairness, legality, or even the potential benefit of his offer. Adam felt a deep chill as he absorbed the lesson. The path ahead, the path to building his empire, was going to be far harder, far more dangerous, than he had ever imagined.

  The silence stretched between them again, filled only by the distant sounds of the refinery and the city. Kim's stark warning hung heavily in the air. Adam's mind raced, processing the new information, recalibrating his plans, trying to figure out how to navigate this treacherous game. He had the resources, potentially limitless resources thanks to his skill.

  But resources alone weren't enough. He needed knowledge, strategy, allies. He needed to learn the rules of this ruthless environment, fast.

  He looked at Kim, really looked at him – the angry, disillusioned employee who had just given him a potentially life-saving warning. Maybe… maybe this unexpected encounter wasn't just a random event. Maybe Kim, with his insider knowledge and his own frustrated ambition, was the ally he desperately needed.

  As the conversation paused, Adam stood there, the weight of his own ambition feeling heavier now, tempered by the harsh dose of reality Kim had just delivered. He knew that building his empire wouldn't be a straight path. It would be filled with traps, betrayals, and powerful enemies.

  But the challenge, the danger, didn't extinguish the fire within him. It only made it burn hotter, fiercer. He had survived John Walker's fists; he would survive this too. He just needed to be smarter about it. And maybe, just maybe, the key to his next move was standing right in front of him.