Outcast Queen: Her Return from Hell novel Chapter 408

But he had no other way out. His only hope for a comeback lay in letting Barrett pull the strings to reconnect him with the woman he had a one-night stand with over a decade ago.

That was the eldest daughter of the Quincy Family from Highcrest!

The Quincy Family's power was formidable enough to go head-to-head with the Osborne Family. As long as they acknowledged him, he was absolutely certain she would take him in. And then... he would take back everything he had lost, with interest.

"Alright, everyone. We have seen your capabilities and your sincerity," Quentin said as he returned to the center of the stage. His casual sentence instantly commanded the attention of the entire room.

"Draco Enterprises is new to Cloudhaven. As a rising power, we aren't looking to dominate alone; we are looking for mutual success. As long as you can bring value, every single person in this room can become Draco's ally."

Those words sent ripples of ecstasy through the crowd. It meant that regardless of any past friction, absolute profit could turn former enemies into partners.

The hunger in Silas's eyes intensified.

Mavis, however, barely perceptibly furrowed her brow.

She didn't hold enough patents. If it came down to a sheer battle of resources, she couldn't beat Silas.

Her only trump card was how incredibly advanced her patent was—a prototype she had risked everything to steal from the Miller Family's secure servers while they were still transitioning into the new energy sector and their security was lax.

"It's anyone's game," Mavis narrowed her beautiful eyes, shooting a freezing glare at Silas nearby.

Sensing the hostile stare, Silas turned his head, flashing her a condescending, victorious smirk.

A sharp gleam flashed in Mavis's eyes. Instead of backing down, her heels clicked sharply against the floor as she walked right up to him.

"Ms. Miller, what can I do for you?" Silas raised an eyebrow as the woman stopped in front of him. His tone was mocking. "You didn't come over here to ask me to withdraw, did you?"

"You're joking, Mr. Sterling," Mavis parted her red lips, offering a deeply calculated smile. "I just suddenly realized that instead of fighting to the death, we can absolutely achieve 'mutual success.'"

"Oh?" Silas's expression shifted, his interest piqued.

"The Sterling Family might have taken a hit thanks to Pierce, but your century of foundational power is still there. If you board Draco's ship, fixing your empire is only a matter of time. You could even tear off a massive chunk of the new energy market." Mavis paused deliberately, staring intensely at him.

Silas dropped the mockery, raising a hand in an inviting gesture. "Go on, Ms. Miller."

"Ladies and gentlemen, I imagine what you're all anticipating the most tonight is catching a glimpse of Draco Enterprises' elusive founder, isn't it?" Standing under the spotlight, Quentin smiled faintly, pausing intentionally to push the room's suspense to its absolute breaking point.

A wave of restless excitement washed over the crowd.

"Ever since Draco was founded, the mysterious big boss has never shown his face. Is he actually going to reveal himself tonight?" Guests whispered eagerly, their eyes darting around the banquet hall, desperate to catch any clues.

"Someone capable of single-handedly building a corporate empire like Draco has to be a legend among men. Do you think... it could be Barrett Lowery?" Someone murmured, and instantly, countless investigative gazes locked onto Barrett.

Facing the sudden scrutiny, a look of amusement flickered in Barrett's eyes.

His years of staying in the shadows and playing the long game while pretending to be crippled did align perfectly with the mysterious founder's profile.

Unfortunately, it wasn't him.

In truth, he was just as intensely curious about the mastermind controlling Draco's chess board.

He had hired elite hackers to dig up the founder's identity, only for every lead to vanish without a trace. The counter-tracking methods the founder used were clearly at the absolute pinnacle of the hacking world.