CHAPTER 1
If you read about my life in a book, you'd probably find it fascinating. From the inside, it's just a suffocating nightmare.
I used to know what peace felt like. I knew what it was like to be safe in a massive house, protected by parents who loved me. I was just a normal kid coming home from school, looking forward to nothing more than my favorite TV show. I still remember the exact moment the broadcast intercepted the screen. I remember the cold dread that pooling in my stomach as my parents' photos appeared beneath a headline of absolute finality. I stared at the television, waiting for the broadcast to cut away, waiting for someone to scream 'Gotcha!'
Nobody did. The silence that followed has lasted for months. I've finally accepted that they are gone, but I'll never accept how it happened. To find the killer, I have to survive the wolves closest to the throne. My parents' organization is bleeding from the inside, crawling with traitors, and my first order of business is putting a stop to the bleeding.
The Last Stark"
The television flickered softly in the dark living room.
Krist dropped his school bag beside the couch and loosened his tie, exhausted after another long day at school. The mansion was unusually quiet, but he didn't think much of it. His parents were always busy.
He grabbed the remote and smiled faintly.
Finally… time for my show.
Before he could change the channel, the screen suddenly flashed red.
BREAKING NEWS.
A cold feeling crept into his chest.
A reporter appeared on the screen, standing beneath the pouring rain as emergency lights flashed wildly behind her. Thick smoke rose into the night sky in the distance.
Behind her—
Flames consumed the wreckage of a private jet.
"Authorities have confirmed that the aircraft belonging to Stark Tech owner, Mr. Grayson Stark, crashed approximately thirty minutes ago shortly after entering city airspace."
Krist frowned slightly.
What?
The reporter continued, her voice tense.
"Sources now confirm that both Mr. Stark and his wife, retired General kailani Stark, were aboard the flight…"
The world suddenly became silent.
Krist stared blankly at the television.
"No…"
The camera switched to images of his parents smiling during a recent interview.
Then back to the burning wreckage.
"There are currently no survivors."
The remote slipped from his hand and hit the floor.
His breathing became uneven.
This wasn't real.
It couldn't be real.
His parents were supposed to come home tonight.
His mother promised they would have dinner together.
His father promised to show him something important.
But now…
All that remained was fire and smoke.
And somewhere beyond those flames—
The truth.
The Stark family wasn't just rich.
They were untouchable.
Mr. Stark owned Stark Tech, the largest technology company in the country, while Mrs. Stark had once been one of the military's most respected generals before retiring to help expand the family empire.
To the public, they were heroes.
They helped end wars.
They rebuilt cities.
They pushed the nation into a new age of technology and prosperity.
People adored them.
Or at least… that was what Krist used to believe.
After their deaths, he learned the truth.
No matter how good you are, someone will always hate you.
This world was a jungle.
Predators and prey.
And the moment his parents died, the wolves began circling.
Traitors inside Stark Tech tried to seize control of the company. Fake allies revealed their true faces. Even people who once smiled at him suddenly looked at him with greed in their eyes.
But the worst part?
He was alone.
Or at least… almost alone.
Rain tapped lightly against the taxi windows as Krist stared outside silently.
The city lights blurred across the glass.
A year and six months.
That was how long it had been since his parents died.
Yet the pain still felt fresh.
His eyes slowly drifted toward Maya sitting beside him. She was staring out the opposite window quietly, lost in thought.
A small wave of guilt hit him.
She got punished because of me.
His jaw tightened.
If my parents were still alive… none of this would've happened.
Sadness flickered briefly across his eyes before disappearing behind the cold expression he had learned to wear.
The taxi eventually slowed to a stop in front of the Stark Estate.
Massive iron gates towered before them.
Krist reached into his bag and pressed a small remote button.
The gates slowly creaked open.
The taxi drove through.
Even after all this time, the estate still felt empty.
Too empty.
As soon as the taxi stopped in front of the mansion, Krist stepped out.
Maya followed behind him.
"You're not going home?" he asked.
She shook her head.
"My mom has the house keys. I don't want to bother her, so… I'll stay here till noon."
Krist simply nodded and paid the driver.
He stood there silently as the taxi disappeared beyond the gates.
Then he pressed another button.
The gates shut automatically.
A low mechanical hum echoed around the estate.
Hidden security cameras activated one after another, covering blind spots around the property.
Maya noticed.
Krist noticed everything now.
He had to.
Inside the mansion, Krist walked straight toward the kitchen.
"I need water," he muttered.
But after grabbing a bottle from the fridge, he never returned to the living room.
Instead…
He headed for the gym.
Ten minutes passed.
Maya paused the show she was watching.
"Where did he go?"
She checked the kitchen first.
Nothing.
Then she heard it.
THUD!
THUD!!
THUD!!!
The sound of violent impacts echoed faintly down the hallway.
Curious, she followed the noise until she reached the gym door.
She pushed it open—
—and froze.
Krist was attacking a wooden training dummy with his bare fists.
Fast.
Too fast.
His movements blurred before her eyes as punches slammed into the wood like bullets. Sweat covered his body, and every strike carried terrifying force.
Maya's eyes widened.
At school earlier, he had effortlessly taken down three people, but she thought it was luck.
Now she realized the truth.
Krist had changed.
The boy she thought she was protecting…
Was becoming something else.
She stood there silently, watching him.
Punch after punch.
Strike after strike.
Like he was trying to destroy something invisible.
Or someone.
Finally, exhausted, Krist staggered backward and collapsed onto the floor, breathing heavily.
Maya slowly walked toward him.
"What were you doing?" she asked softly.
Krist lifted his head.
For a second, she saw pure anger in his eyes.
Then it disappeared.
"Blowing off steam," he said calmly. "I'm too angry to think straight sometimes."
Maya looked at the destroyed wooden dummy.
Then back at him.
"Can you teach me?"
Krist frowned slightly.
"Teach you what?"
"How to move like that," she said. "How to hit something that hard without getting hurt."
For the first time that night…
Krist smiled.