Demonic Pornstar System

He began to pace back and forth like a beast trapped in a cage before he reached the dartboard and punched Kaiden's picture, hitting the man currently busy plowing his extremely gorgeous girls into the sheets right in the face. Or, at least, his printed face.

Then, abruptly, Maximilian stopped.

A feverish gleam lit his bloodshot eyes.

"Wait…" he whispered. The words were slow and oily. "Yes… yes! A second video. We release a statement- no, not just a statement, a campaign. Alexandra was kidnapped by them. Forced. Her confession was nothing but a performance under duress. We spin it so she's their hostage, not my victim!"

He slammed a second fist against Kaiden's image. Then, with triumphant eyes, he turned back toward his subordinates.

"We can flip this! Turn their lies back on them! Do you see it?! We can save everything!"

The four shareholders exchanged glances across the table, every one of them looking at Maximilian as though he had finally slipped the leash on sanity.

Elise was the one to voice what the others were too wary to say. Her French accent sharpened as she leaned forward. "And what then, Maximilian?" she asked coolly. "Say we make such a claim. All Kaiden would need to do is walk Alexandra into the Association's headquarters. A single test. Do you know what happens then? Every word she speaks will be verified. Every tear will be real. And every lie we push will collapse, or better yet, come back to bite us even worse."

Her lip curled in disdain. "It wouldn't just fail. It would bury us. Doubly so."

Maximilian's face twisted. His thick neck trembled as he ground his teeth loud enough to creak.

"Fine. Then let them make those tests! Because when they do, she'll have no choice but to admit what her so-called 'saviors' did! She'll confess they butchered my guards like dogs in the street!"

He slammed his fist down again, veins bulging on his forehead, his voice tearing through the silence.

"And then the world will see who the real criminals are!"

Elise's voice cut back in. "You assume too much, Maximilian. We don't even know how exactly those men disappeared; maybe they were not killed. But even if they were killed, maybe they acted on your orders and tried to keep Alexandra detained no matter what. Or worse. If that's the case, then whoever killed them wouldn't be some bloodthirsty murderer; it would be seen as protecting a mistreated girl. A rescue."

Her eyes narrowed.

"Yes, they would face trial. But public opinion would not be against them. Quite the opposite. The crowd would cheer them on."

She folded her arms. Her tone grew heavier with every word.

"And let's not act as if Valhalla's Sinners are random nobodies anymore. They are stars already. Proper, established names in the world. They have connections. Runewoven herself spoke up for them. Many awakened elites are already circling them."

Harold finally spoke up, turning this back-and-forth conversation into a group effort. "And… what about Alice Ashborn?"

The mere mention of her name made Anton and Lionel pale, as if someone had drawn a blade across their throats.

Elise gave a slow nod. "Exactly. They have connections. Powerful ones. Alice Ashborn personally went after us once for daring to release that video, and she is no stranger to blood. She has killed and walked away untouched by the law. If she can do it, why not Kaiden and his merry band? Why wouldn't they get away with the same?"

Her eyes then found Maximilian's, bearing into his very soul. She was visibly infuriated with the man.

"But here's the greater truth: it doesn't matter. Whether they fall or sink is not our main concern anymore! You're obsessed with revenge against your petty little love rival—if that's what we can even call him."

Her hostile expression turned into one of utmost mockery. "He took your 'girl,' made her fall deep in love with him, even if it meant earning your ire. She chose love in the face of lethal danger! Hah! Or maybe she just didn't think you were quite the dangerous man you think yourself to be? Hmm, who knows?"

Then, her previous disapproval and newfound mockery melted into one singular expression, one Maximilian couldn't even bear looking at without getting his blood rushing.

The woman did not care as she added, "Meanwhile, your empire, your multi-billion-dollar company, is rotting under your feet. Are you not the CEO? I think you're just another spoiled brute who throws tantrums while the kingdom burns. You're the inbred kings of old who were sitting on their seats purely out of whose vagina they popped out of. You're a pathetic, incompetent man, Maximilian. A failure of both a male and a leader. Ptui!"

She spat, literally, right at his feet.

Her words landed like whiplash. Maximilian froze. His chest heaved. His entire body quivered with rage. Then, suddenly, violently, he moved.

He charged. The sheer bulk of him made the table rattle as he stormed right through it while his face was purple with fury.

Elise didn't flinch. She didn't recoil, didn't scramble like the others. Instead, she leaned back in her chair and smirked.

"Not bad," she whistled. "For a fat pig, you run fast. Maybe you can outrun your butcher."

The insult was like oil thrown onto fire. Maximilian's roar tore through the conference room as he drew back a meaty fist.

"Do it," Elise hissed, baring her teeth in a taunting smile. "You fat slob."

His fist arced forward in the form of a blur of raw violence - then halted inches from her face.

The silence was deafening.

Maximilian's breath sawed in and out; his whole body was trembling. And yet he didn't strike.

Because realization dawned. She wanted it. She wanted him to snap, to give her the ammunition to save her own hide by creating the following headline:

"Female Shareholder Assaulted by CEO During Crisis Meeting."

His teeth ground audibly as his fist hovered, then slowly, shakily, lowered.

"Tch." Elise was outright angered. "You can't even punch properly."

"Nice try, cunt. I won't let you weasel your way out. You're riding this one out with me."

Then he looked at all four shareholders in the eye, one by one, as he declared, "You're all on the same ship with me! Don't you dare assume otherwise!"

He was right. Even if Elise got herself beaten black and purple, her crimes were numerous. If Maximilian became implicated, she wouldn't run free just because she was beaten. Though it was most certainly a nice try to gather fuel.

"We'll need to draft an official response," Anton said.

"Right. Silence is not an option," Harold nodded.