Number 7

"My business is with you. Here and now."

Panic could not even hope to approach the state in which the room fell into.

Screaming and running like children, the wealthy and prestigious members who were present in that auditorium seemed to throw aside all dignity as they ran away from the armed man.

However there was nowhere to run.

For the man and his target were in the way of the door.

"AGH!!!!"

"A maniac!!! They allowed a maniac in this place!!!"

"Move out of my way!!!"

People rushed up the stage in order to get as far as possible from the man, heading for whatever back entrance they could find as Bradley merely stood completely speechless, watching the scene unfold in those moments.

And it was in those few moments that something cracked in the man.

The pushing and the shoving, the complete disregard for everyone around them, the absolute lack of the manners which they had previously floated around themselves, and the disregard for any form of dignity as they hurried out of that place - it made Bradley realize one thing.

'When they are faced with a threat... when they realize that they are in danger for once in their lives... they will throw others down in order to escape.'

This was exactly what happened.

‘Like animals.’

Gripping and shoving, these people used each other as bait in order to take one step further than those around them to maximize their chances of survival.

However all while this was happening, there were two more groups of people present in that room.

The first was those who were servants and bodyguards of the unaffiliated parties, those who were shoved down and ordered by their respective superiors to stand as meat shields, preventing the bullets of the man from reaching them at all costs.

And the second were the men stationed as security, and the bodyguards of Norman Felbaust.

While two of them fell immediately to protect their CEO, the remaining men rushed at the perpetrator the instant they realized the situation.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

And three more fell before the criminal was tackled to the ground.

One after another, man after man jumped onto the middle aged man who began to shout as he was pressed down.

"You... you!!! I did nothing wrong to you, and yet you ruined me!!!"

One security guard stepped on the hand of the man, pinning it down as he let go of the gun before it was kicked away from him.

"Shut up!"

"Don't make any moves!"

At this point, six men were pinning the man down, each of them forcing their weight on him as he began to shout even louder.

"All I did was compete with you!! All I did was try my hand in one of the hundreds of markets that your greedy hands were slathered all over! And because of that you ruined me!"

The man shouted this out while being pressed down, at which one particular guard slammed a fist into the back of his head.

"What part of shut up don't you understand?"

"Hold up just a moment."

However in that instant, ever so calmly, Norman walked forward.

Passing numerous bodies on the ground, he closed his eyes with a stern expression as he took in a deep breath, glancing around him as he counted the worth of the assets he had lost.

Then, standing right in front of the man who was pinned down, he looked down upon the man with disgust.

"What horrible thing are you accusing me of?"

"You... you're going to play dumb? Or maybe you don't even remember, because of how many people you've fucked over in your life? Drumsticks. Don't you remember that name?"

"Drumsticks... Drumsticks... ah. I do recall such a thing."

Placing his hand to his chin in thought, the man looked down with a disturbed glare.

"Ah, you were the owner of that restaurant chain, weren't you?"

"Seven years ago... it was just after my chain started to pick up some success... you sent me a notice in the mail saying you wanted to meet with me, and that if I didn't that you would take legal action against my chain. So I showed up to find out what was going on... do you remember the words that you said to me that day?"

Gritting his teeth as he spoke, the man choked out his words with hatred.

"It wouldn't be wise to own a franchise which is in competition with ones that I own."

"And was my statement not the truth? At that time I was investing in a large number of chicken based restaurants, and so I was warning you that if you didn't take things seriously that I would run you out of business."

"So you bribed a health inspector to make a false report on every restaurant I owned!?"

Spitting out these words laced with loathing, the man couldn't contain his hatred for the one before him.

Even as he laid there powerless, weaponless, and held down by numerous bodyguards, the man spoke without reserve.

However the man known as Norman Felbaust didn't bat an eye.

"What ever could you be talking about?"

And with a slight chuckle, the man brushed the entire affair off.

"Your restaurants had issues meeting health codes and as such were closed down, yet you have the GALL to come before me with an accusation - and not a single shard of evidence to back it up?"

"I don't NEED evidence!!! It's beyond obvious that it was you!!! You made those threats to me and the very next day issues popped up in every store simultaneously!!!! With the flick of your hand you destroyed everything I had ever worked for, and there's nobody in this world who could have done that in the same way you did!"

At that moment, the man on the ground shouted out as his hand was stomped by the foot of the CEO, whose brow seemed to furrow with irritation.

"I've heard enough of your speculation."

At that moment, the mood shifted, and the man's tone lowered as his words became filled with deadly calmness.

"You accuse me of being the one to destroy your chain, yet you provide no evidence of such a thing. You claim that I am the only one who was capable of such a thing, yet you refuse to even consider that it was someone other than myself. Am I the only person in this world with power?"

At this point, the millionaires who were running off had stopped, and were slowly filing back in - their dignity having magically returned.

On noticing that the criminal had been deprived of his ability to harm anyone else, the people slowly returned to their seats, propping up their feet and dusting off their coats as if nothing had happened in the first place.

"Even if there were some other people who could have done it... you were the one who benefitted the most from doing so. It had to be you! You had the greatest motive to destroy everything I had worked for!!!"

Once more shouting out as the people around him began to chuckle to themselves, laughing at the fallen nature of the pathetic man, these laughs were cut off by the cold words of the CEO.

"And so everyone who has a motive to murder will become a killer?"

At that moment, the man stepped down harder, crushing the fingers of the criminal underneath him as the man screamed out in more pain.

"If such a thing were true... then every person in this world would become a murderer."

Then, turning around with abhorrence in his tone, the man walked off as blood trailed underneath his shoes with each step.

"For there is not a person in this world who doesn't have at least the slightest reason to kill every single person around them."

----

There is nothing in the world that can make someone feel more powerless than being the one in charge - and still being unable to do anything.

'Police... I need to call the police.'

Bradley found himself in such a scenario.

'That man... he tried to murder... no... not tried. He DID murder... so many. How many people did he just kill? And for what? Revenge?'

It was not that Bradley did not understand the man's hatred.

But as he watched this bloody scene play out, he was overwhelmed at the wretched state that the man had been driven to.

'How could someone fall to such a state?'

The fact that it was possible for a human to fall this low was a shock even to him.

"I could just leave him to the police... however I won't allow such a thing to happen."

As the CEO walked off, he spoke with complete control - as if he held every person in this room within the very palm of his hand.

And perhaps he did.

"This man not only attempted to attack me personally without basis, but he slandered me publicly and even went as far as to take the lives of my subordinates."

Pulling a phone out, the man opened a calculator as he began to type some numbers.

"Even if the damage that you have caused can be measured... there are some things which should not be paid back equally."

With the nod of his head, the man turned around once more as he faced the hatred filled opponent who was at this point gagged and unable to speak further.

"After all... when a loan is taken, there is always interest. No?"

The men who held the criminal down looked to their boss, awaiting his orders with patience.

"Have him taken to the Warehouse as well. Fetch the best price you can. I'm sure Randov will be pleased that he has obtained two employees in a single day."

Then, turning to look at Bradley, the man spoke up without reservation as he spoke in a blunt manner.

"Ah, and regarding this project... I've changed my mind."

And as he stated these words, even the defeated Bradley who had settled on a 0% interest rate now came to a realization.

0% was not a loss.

It was nothing.

Yet now, truly, this was his loss.

"A man's word is important. Excessively important. Which is why when I say I will do something... I do it. HOWEVER."

With a smirk, the man mocked him as he turned off.

"I'm sure you'll understand that the conditions have changed in this particular case. After all... the fact that you allowed such a man into this banquet in the first place would mean it is the fault of the one who even allowed him on the list."

With these words, the man had walked off, half of his remaining security detail following him, the other half restraining the man who had attacked.

And at that moment, Bradley could only think of one thing - one pathetic thought.

'I need to escape this.'

----

'It's his fault.'

'It's the President's fault for putting him on the list in the first place.'

Bradley had done his research into the man who had been taken away by the forces of the CEO, and found that he was not merely someone who had snuck past security.

No, rather, he was someone who the security had been explicitly told to allow inside.

He was on the list as one of the wealthy VIP's.

'Which means it's the fault of the President, who declared him as someone worthy of allowing into the event.'

As Bradley sat in his office that day, biting his nails to the point where they bled, he could do nothing more than scroll, his hands trembling with fear as sweat rolled down his forehead.

He was a mess.

Worry had filled his mind, overtaking him as he realized that everything he had worked for had ended in failure - and there was nothing he could do to change that.

'That... that's right! It's his fault. It's his fault!!! He took a vacation after putting that man on the VIP list, a list that nobody would dare to check or question! Anyone on that list was someone important, someone of status and wealth. Questioning or investigating them is considered taboo, so why would I have even considered that such a thing was possible?'

As a wretched smile drew itself up the hopeless man's face, he deceived himself with pretty lies.

'It shouldn't have been.'

'That's right.'

'It shouldn't have been possible... which is why it isn't my fault.'

'When you're presented with a list of VIP's, you're not allowed to question it.'

'You simply follow orders and do as they please.'

'Therefore... it's the fault of the one who gave me that list.'

The state of the man devolved from pitiable to pathetic as he comforted himself in a way that even he himself did not believe.

However in that next instant, he received an email which shook him to the very core.

'What is this?'

From: Alexander Meyer

Mr. Vendetta,

See me in my office. ASAP.

Thank you.

Sheldon Meyer

Rockville Regional President

Moria Financial

It was as he read his email that the man's heart sunk to the floor, and he could not drag himself out of his chair at that moment, for he knew and understood one thing.

Forgiveness for mistakes was nothing more than a fantasy in the world of business.

----

"What are you doing back so soon? I thought you were on vacation?"

With a suspicious tone and stiff body, Bradley sat before the man who was just one position higher - the Regional President of the Rockville Branch.

Alexander Meyer.

"I came back because I received the news that an emergency had occurred... but I think that my whereabouts are the least of your concerns, no?"

The man responded in a calm yet threatening manner, folding his hands as he leaned forward with a criticizing expression.

"Bradley. Would you mind explaining to me what happened today at the event?"

"Would I mind explaining?"

As he said these words, Bradley broke.

"Would I mind explaining!? Why don't you explain why the hell a psychopath was on the VIP list?"

Slam!

As his fist hit the desk, Bradley looked down with darkened eyes, breathing heavily as he failed to contain his anger.

"Did you not even run a background check on the people that you put on that list?"

Spitting out these words at the President, Bradley spoke with contempt.

However his words were immediately countered.

"Did you not do so yourself?"

"Eh?"

Looking up with confusion, the man found it hard to keep his mouth from gaping as he mumbled to the other.

"What... what do you mean by that? Do you think I wouldn't have looked into them? Of course I did... I mean, of course I saw that his restaurant chain went out of business, but he recuperated from that and became a major stockholder, so I thought-"

"I thought. These are the words of someone who failed to do proper research. Perhaps you were too distracted by something else to look any deeper?"

Tapping his fingers on the desk, Alex merely smirked as he glanced away.

"You see... that man in particular went out of business, and fell into bankruptcy. However he couldn't accept it. He refused to accept it. After all, what is one to do when he grows so accustomed to living in luxury only to fall back into the arena of normal society?"

With a chuckle, he eyed Bradley - who couldn't help but be filled with shock at the revelation that Alex knew so much.

"So he pretended as if such a thing had never happened in the first place. He found some more... unsavory organizations in order to take out immense loans, and rather than using that money to redeem himself, he instead wasted it on luxury. He used the money in order to deceive the media and the world into thinking that he was successful, and to the public eye he was just another millionaire."

With a laugh, Alex closed his eyes in a calm manner as he spoke with disgust in his tone.

"However to that man... and to those who he became indebted to... he was just a pawn trying to buy time."

"So you knew that... and still placed him on this list?"

"Oh, no. I wouldn't do something so horrible to my own company. Only AFTER realizing this tragedy did I look into such a person."

He was lying.

Bradley knew that he was lying through his teeth, yet he could say nothing to prove this.

"But even so, that would mean it's your fault-"

"I was on vacation, and you were put in charge of this entire project. Bradley, let me ask you something before you go and shove the blame onto me."

Holding up a finger as he stopped the red haired man from speaking any further, Alex leaned forward as he spoke with a whisper.

"If things had gone well, then who would have received the reward for this entire affair?"

As the man said these words, Bradley lost any will to protest.

For he spoke as if he could read his very mind.

Bradley had celebrated at the fact that Alex had been leaving for vacation, given that the results of the event would be completely his own achievement, and that not a single person could claim otherwise.

However from the very beginning he understood that this meant the responsibility was his - and his alone.

As an executive, he could not play the card that he was merely 'following orders'.

He was the Vice President.

Even though he was not the person on top, he was someone who was capable of making his own decisions and achieving his own results.

He was not someone who was purely subject to a higher command - and as such he was not someone who could simply blame those above him.

"You understand it, do you not? The change in your expression tells me everything. You, from the very beginning, intended to use this as a way to forward your own career. And yet... this is the result."

Reaching into his desk, the man pulled out a document.

It was a fancy document, plastered with seals and a professional letterhead - something which one might look at first glance and think that it was something special.

However as soon as he read the title, Bradley knew and understood well his entire situation.

Letter of Resignation.

"If you sign here, then we will allow you to leave this company without dishonoring yourself any further than you already have."

As he was presented with this decision, the man closed his eyes as he thought.

He took in a deep breath, his entire career flashing before his very eyes.

And at the end, his memories landed on one person in particular.

'Anna.'

He thought of this name, and remembered himself.

He remembered everything he stood for - or rather everything that he wanted to stand for.

'I am no longer the man I once was.'

And as he thought these things, the man picked up the pen.

'I've changed.'

Sliding the paper over to him, Alex held back a grin as he watched Bradley, whose expression filled with acceptance.

'I no longer wish to progress myself in this world to the point where I lose my very soul... therefore... even if I have to start over...'

His hand slid past the paper as he signed, swiftly dating the form before sliding it back.

'I'll do things right this time.'

----

He had given up everything.

The new home that he had moved into was one which was funded by his company.

The maids, the butlers, the cars, the luxurious outings, everything he owned was a result of the benefits he obtained from being the acting Vice President.

However those things were stripped of him as Bradley signed those papers.

Yet even though everything had been taken from him, Bradley felt a sort of liberation.

He should have been reeling in hatred and anger - and perhaps deep within him such a thing boiled, however that hatred was sealed away.

It was locked up, completely contained as it was overwhelmed by something else.

Hope.

He could not say that he was not flaming with rage - such a thing would be a lie.

Yet there was something else - something beyond the rage that quelled it.

'It was my mistake.'

He knew and accepted this.

'First, I was so focused on trying to advance myself that I lost track of everything. I worked and worked, spending day after day answering the phone and mindlessly getting everything done - to the point that I forgot to stand back and check if what I was getting done was the right thing to do in the first place.'

'Then there was the fact that I blindly trusted the list that I was given... did I become too soft? No... that was not the case. It was that I underestimated him. This entire competition... everything that happened went all according to his plan. He likely knew about it, yet I grew confident with the knowledge that I thought I had obtained ahead of him. I thought I had an advantage, but that advantage led me to not suspect my opponent as much as I should have.'

Bradley had never even considered the fact that Alex would purposely lead the event to failure.

After all, this outcome would harm the corporation overall. Even if Bradley was the one who took the brunt of the punishment, surely he would not escape unscathed.

The reputation of the Company would plummet, and their relationship with the CEO of Marcel was tarnished.

From this perspective, the actions of Alex were unthinkable - something that Bradley would never have even conceived as possible.

'His actions were... unreasonable.'

Perhaps suspicion would have saved him.

Perhaps paranoia would have saved him.

'Yet it was the fact that I believed my opponent to be reasonable that I lost.'

If he had been unreasonable in his assumptions, in his preparations, would he have been able to prevent this?

Perhaps.

If he had been the same person he was before he was transferred to this City, would he instead have been lavishing in luxury right now?

Perhaps.

However as he walked out of that office on that day, instructed to leave his car in the parking lot and his keys at the desk of the President, along with the house key, and a number of other documents and items, he was left with next to nothing.

'I have enough to figure things out for now. My pay was good. No... it was exceptional. I have enough money to last for a good while without truly needing anything. As a matter of fact, I could even consider this a vacation.'

However it was as he left that day that his phone began to ring.

And as he pulled it out, Bradley looked upon the device as he noticed who it was.

Anna.

Closing his eyes and taking in a deep breath, the man prepared himself mentally as he answered.

"Bradley Vendetta. Former Regional Vice President. Moria Financial."

----