An hour passed by in a flash, with Logan mentally preparing himself for whatever was coming next.
Glancing at the door, he saw Head Butler Edric enter, prepared to guide him to his destination.
Bowing slightly, Edric greeted him before asking Logan to follow him.
Walking through the automatic doors, Logan couldn't help but marvel at the sight around him.
'This place is huge, and everything looks so clean,' he thought, amazed. 'Even the tech is decades ahead compared to where I used to live.'
Stepping into an elevator that was created using wind engravings and mana stones, he glanced through the glass panes surrounding the platform.
As the elevator began to lower, he really got to see the inside of the building.
'This place is larger than five football fields.'
"This is the Mercer main building," he heard Edric say. "Built by your great-grandfather after the great mana-monster invasion around 150 years ago."
Stepping out of the elevator, Logan was greeted by an even more magnificent sight of hundreds of people walking through the halls.
"Tens of thousands of people come here every single day," Edric continued, leading him down the hall. "This building serves as the central hub for all Mercer operations—military, research, trade, logistics, administration. Each department has its own floors, teams, and directors."
Logan nodded, having some understanding about what the Mercer family did after watching the news reports following their disappearance.
"You'll find everything from legal teams and dungeon logistics to core alchemists and affinity researchers. There's even a private academy wing for internal talent development of key staff and hunters."
As Edric continued talking about the main Mercer building, they arrived at a set of large wooden doors.
Taking a deep breath, Logan composed himself and put on a neutral expression.
Then, he pushed open the doors and walked in.
Inside was a magnificent room with a massive mana-stone chandelier. Right under the chandelier stood a large, round, silver table with hand-stitched leather chairs surrounding it.
'Eight other people, of whom one is Silas,' Logan noted, keeping his neutral expression.
Everyone present observed him closely as he walked in, each wearing the same expressionless mask.
Silas rose from his seat as Logan entered, offering a short nod before gesturing toward the empty chair beside him.
"Logan," he said. "Welcome."
The others didn't speak, but their eyes followed Logan closely.
Logan took the offered seat without hesitation. Scanning the room, he took mental notes of everyone in preparation for the future.
Silas tapped a small panel on the table. A display appeared in the air above them—projecting rows of names, divisions, assets, and branches stretching across continents.
"This," Silas said, "is what you now own, lead, and protect."
Logan looked through the projections: trade routes, mining operations, high-tier dungeon contracts, a whole fleet of aerial transports.
It was overwhelming, but he didn't flinch.
As the last projection faded, Silas tapped again. This time he pulled up two massive figures, side by side.
"Your current liquid holdings," Silas said, "amount to 19.6 billion USD—accessible through Mercer accounts immediately."
Logan blinked but kept his expression composed.
"And these," Silas continued, as the second figure changed into a tree of logos, buildings, and territories, "represent your non-liquid assets. Estimated value: 278 billion USD. That includes infrastructure, equity in allied corporations, secured dungeons, and mana core processing facilities."
'Wow,' Logan thought, excited, having difficulty maintaining his neutral expression.
Silas let the numbers sit in the air a moment longer before turning back to Logan.
"A detailed breakdown will be sent to your terminal later," he said. "I recommend reviewing them when you're ready. Understanding the full scope will take time—but you don't have to do it all at once."
Logan gave a nod.
Silas then continued. "You aren't expected to run everything; we have people for that. What we do expect, however, is for you to learn and understand exactly what goes on."
A quiet murmur of acknowledgment came from the other seated figures. They were barely audible, but enough to show they were listening.
"For now, this meeting is to formally acknowledge the transition. The directors will introduce themselves one by one." Silas said, gesturing to all of the people seated aroudn the table.
Straightening even more, Logan gestured for Silas to continue.
Silas gestured to the person seated on his left. "Let's begin with Research and Development."
One by one, Silas introduced the directors within the room, each giving Logan a formal handshake and congratulating him on becoming one of the richest people on the planet.
After some more formalities, the meeting was over, and Logan was guided back to a different room within the building by Edric.
"This is the highest quality suite here," Edric said, showing Logan around a massive, luxurious room.
Edric led him to a massive master bedroom. At the center was a king-sized bed, several manipulatable hologram systems, and many other top-notch pieces of furniture.
He continued the tour, showing Logan a luxurious bathroom, a private study, an open living space, and a broad balcony overlooking the skyline.
Finally, Edric revealed a personal training area that even included a built-in mana chamber.
"Are you satisfied with the accommodation?" Edric asked, bowing slightly. "Anything you do not like can be changed in seconds."
Logan looked at Edric, stunned, unable to imagine how it could get any better than this.
"No, thank you," Logan mumbled, just loud enough for Edric to hear. "This is perfect."
Giving a slightly deeper bow, Edric left the room.
Walking to his balcony, Logan leaned on the fence as he lost himself in his thoughts while looking at the massive infrastructure down below.
'I suppose I'll start with reading through all the information Silas sent me in the coming two days,' he thought, looking at the sunset in the distance.
'And then I'll have my system draw again.'
'They said I had, what, 20 billion USD in liquid assets? I wonder what'll happen if I give my system 1 billion.'
Staring into the distance, Logan began strategizing.
'It'll lead to many questions if 1 billion USD just vanishes, but at the end of the day, those liquid funds belong solely to me.'
Logan looked at the open system screen silently.
'It's a stupid amount, sure. But what if it works? What if I can get my core upgraded or something?'
That's when a thought crossed his mind.
'And who's to say they'd even find where it went?' he thought. 'The System isn't wired into anything here. If it takes it clean off my balance... maybe they'll just think it's a glitch. Or fraud.'