The hall gasped.
Not just a few people. Not just the employees in the back. The entire damn room. It was the kind of reaction reserved for stock crashes, last-minute firings, and discovering your ex is dating your worst enemy. Even Selena and Adams—the two who had spent actual hours crafting the perfect, safe, CEO-friendly speech for him—stiffened in their seats.
Because he hadn’t read a single word of what they wrote.
Not. One.
Instead, he had done what Justin Black did best—walked in, taken over, and left everyone scrambling to keep up. Justin exhaled through his nose, shaking his head slightly as he reached for the mic stand. He adjusted it, tilting it with an almost bored flick of his fingers—the classic "I couldn’t care less, but fine" move.
Then, to the absolute horror of the board mbers, he let out a low chuckle.
"That’s what you expected, huh?"
Another pause.
So executives blinked. So employees shifted. A few stole cautious glances at each other, as if waiting for soone to confirm whether or not they were hallucinating.
"A nice, predictable speech?" Justin continued, tapping a finger against the mic. "So generic, feel-good words about teamwork and vision? Maybe a few inspiring quotes about success?" He smirked, the kind that wasn’t really a smirk but more like a quiet, knowing amusent.
"No."
Silence.
"That’s not ."
He took a step forward, shoulders loose, his entire energy giving off the audacity of a teenager who had every single person in this room hanging on his every word—and knew it.
"Here’s the deal." He leaned slightly on the podium, gaze sweeping over the gathered executives, the managers, the board mbers. "Black Veil is about to change."
Another breath. Another pause. "I don’t care if you like . I don’t care if you think I’m too young. I don’t care if you’ve been here longer than I’ve been alive."
A slow, steady beat of silence followed.
"I care about results." He let that sink in before tilting his head slightly. "And if you can’t keep up? If you’re gonna cling to ’the way things used to be’ like so sad ex who can’t move on?" He shrugged, casual, unbothered. "There’s the door."
It was brutal. It was unapologetic.
And it was absolutely, terrifyingly true.
Selena inhaled sharply. Adams looked like she wanted to laugh.
The executives shifted again, so sitting straighter, so swallowing uncomfortably. Even the board mbers, the ones who had already seen what he was capable of, exchanged glances.
Because he wasn’t joking.
Justin Black was dead serious.
Then, just when the tension reached a suffocating level, he exhaled, rolling his shoulders back, expression relaxing slightly.
"Now, before so of you start whispering about how I’m so kind of power-hungry tyrant—chill." A few chuckles. Uneasy, but there. "I’m not here to ruin your lives. I don’t want to fire half of you." A small pause. "Yet." More laughter, this ti slightly less uneasy.
"What I want is simple." He straightened again, voice sharper now. "I want Black Veil at the top." His gaze darkened, sharpened. "And I will do whatever it takes to make that happen." His words settling over them like a final, absolute truth.
Then, finally, he stepped back from the mic, his next words softer, but sohow even heavier.
"I hope you’ll write more than just your resignation letters."
Dead. Silence.
For a long, impossible second, nobody breathed.
Then?
Justin let the tension settle for a beat, standing there like a god surveying his subjects—except, instead of divine wrath, there was sothing else in his eyes now.
Sothing warr. Smoother. Sweeter.
Like honey laced with arsenic.
"But let’s be real." His voice softened, losing its sharpness, settling into sothing low and velvety, the kind of tone that made people lean in without realizing. "I don’t want this to be a war."
So executives exhaled, shoulders easing just a little.
"I don’t want enemies amongst my own company." A pause. A slow, careful smile. "I want partners." The shift in the air was imdiate.
That brutal, take-it-or-leave-it dominance from earlier? It wasn’t gone—oh no, it was still there, simring under his skin. But now? Now, it was wrapped in sothing softer. He tilted his head, looking over the room like a man choosing his next move in a very, very important ga.
"Black Veil isn’t just a company." His words rolled through the hall like a slow, creeping tide. "It’s a vision. A legacy. And I can’t build that alone." Soone gulped. "I need people who believe in what we can do. People who want to push limits. People who want to win."
Another pause, another slow sweep of his gaze, the weight of his words settling over them like a whispered promise. "I need you."
Ding!
Trust: 50
Fear: 40
Lust: 60!
Justin blinked.
Wait. Lust?
What the—
Ding!
[Milestone achieved!
Hidden quest completed.
Mission: Earn the trust of your employees, make them fear you, but still devoted to the Black Veil!
Reward Granted: Deity’s Pride!]
[Deity’s Pride:
Effect: For one minute, the Veiler’s words beco absolute. Trust, devotion, and unwavering belief will surge in those who listen, compelling them to follow with no resistance—so long as the Veiler remains just and honorable in his speech. This is not persuasion, nor coercion, but an unshakable conviction instilled into those who hear.
Warning: The Veiler must uphold the trust granted by Deity’s Pride. Any abuse of this effect will result in an irreversible loss of the system.
[Ti Remaining: 00:58
Justin barely had ti to process that before sothing shifted.
Sothing clicked. The air grew thicker for him. The very atmosphere of the room changed felt as if sothing was guiding him to what to do. It was subtle—too subtle for anyone to fully comprehend—but suddenly, his words weren’t just words.
They were binding.
The mont they reached soone’s ears, they settled deep, weaving into the subconscious, wrapping around logic, twisting into sothing unshakable.
It was like signing a contract.
Not with ink. Not with paper.
With belief.
With devotion.
Justin exhaled, feeling the sheer weight of it, feeling the absolute, terrifying power in his voice. He could say anything right now.
And they’d believe it. They’d want to believe it not blindly like puppets though.
Fifty-eight seconds.
That’s all he had.
Justin took another slow step forward, hands resting lightly on the podium, voice dipping into sothing even smoother. "I won’t force you."
A lie. A blatant fucking lie, because at this mont? They were already his. But they didn’t need to know that.
"I won’t beg you." A small, almost imperceptible smirk. "I’ll just say this."
Silence.
"You can stand with ." His gaze flickered over them, lingering just enough to make a few people shift in their seats. "You can build sothing bigger than any of us have ever seen."
A beat. A breath. A promise.
"Or you can watch from the sidelines."
More shifting. More flickers of uncertainty.
"But I promise you..." His voice dropped, quiet but lethal. "You won’t want to be on the sidelines when Black Veil rises."
Soone coughed. Soone else gulped.
It was happening.
It was working.
Ding!
[Trust: 80]
[Fear: 40]
[Lust: 75?!]
...Okay, what the actual fuck.
Even he wasn’t ready for that number.
Justin kept his expression smooth, controlled, but internally? What the hell was wrong with these people. At this rate, half the boardroom would need a cold shower. But there was no ti to focus on that—twenty seconds left. His next words were asured, careful, laced with that final, unshakeable hook.
"I hope we get along." It was soft. Almost too soft after everything he’d just said. But that’s what made it perfect.
Because just like that—
He wasn’t a tyrant.
He wasn’t just a leader.
He was soone they wanted to follow.
Ding!
[Ti remaining: 00:03] The power slowly drained. The heavy, almost supernatural pull in the air lifted. But it didn’t matter. Because the effect? It was already sealed. The mont he stepped back from the podium, the room exploded. Executives exchanged quick, almost breathless glances. Others looked stunned, overwheld, a little too dazed.
And Chloe?
Chloe wasn’t even hiding her stare. She was locked in, focused, barely even blinking, like she’d just watched a god descend from the heavens and claim the mortal realm as his own.
Justin?
Justin just smiled.
Because at that mont, one thing was very, very clear.
He had them.
****
Warning again! ⚠️ This isn’t your moral novel!
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