The Queen They Buried

The study was empty. Aubree pushed open the door but didn’t see Bowen inside

“Bowen?” Aubree called out tentatively as she stepped into the study for the first time. Her eyes swept across the room, but it appeared empty.

Moving deeper into the room, Aubree noticed several cigarelles scattered across the desk.

Aubree thought, “Bowen smokes!

“Who would we thought someone as refined and gentlemanly as Bowen would actually smoke?”

At first glance, Bowen gave the impression of a perfect gentleman, refined in manner, elegant in demeanor, and cultivated in temperament, all seamlessly blended into one.

She’d always pictured Bowen as the type to meditate in a room with burning incense. But this discovery completely caught her off guard.

Aubree picked up an unlit cigarette from the desk and sniffed it. The scent wasn’t unpleasant, more like the kind women would prefer.

***No smoking, young lady.” A large, well–manicured hand reached over her shoulder and plucked the cigarette from her fingers.

Aubree turned back. Towering over her, Bowen’s usually deep and tranquil eyes met hers, yet now, faint ripples of emotion shimmered within them.

With the desk behind her and Bowen standing closely in front, Aubree found herself completely trapped between him and the table.

Trapped in his ams, Aubree’s face flushed with panic and confusion.

The way he was pinning Aubree down from above made Bowen recall last night, her bare back exposed as she lay face down on the bed, cheeks flushed. eyes filled with shyness, completely under his control, just like now

Bowen’s Adam’s apple bobbed as his gaze darkened, and he unconsciously leaned in closer. Aubree’s instincts screamed, she could sense danger in the air, warning her, “Something’s not right, he’s way too close.”

“Bowen,” Aubree stammered tentatively.

Bowen braced one hand against the desk, veins bulging on the back of his hand as it restraining some powerful urge.

Bowen parted his lips, clamping the cigarette between them. With his free hand, he swept up the metal lighter from the desk and pressed it into Aubree’s palm. “Light it for me.”

Trapped in the tight space between him and the desk, all she could see was him, all she could breathe was his scent. For a moment, she felt utterly dazed, caught in a whirlwind named Bowen.

The cold metal in her palm snapped Aubree back to reality. Flustered, she hastily shoved the man looming over her away.

With an amused smirk, Bowen stepped back following her push. As he retreated, he deftly snatched the lighter from Aubree’s hand and it his cigarette with practiced ease.

lighter snapped Bowen back to his senses, ruthlessly suppressing all the improper thoughts

mind

obscuring his features. He took just

said, composing herself with a serious expression. “I want to invest in an esports

an eyebrow, unsurprised by her proposal. “Not exactly groundbreaking,

Chapter 40

of God’s fury and briefly let

and if you want a slice

the coming years, League of Legends and several other games will become official Olympic events, if that really happens, esports will enter its golden age. Now is the perfect time to get in on

gaze was full of approval. “I suspect you

but capital

already caught Aubree’s drift the moment

strategy. With its current popularity

attention to any live streams or broadcasts of regular esports

Do you think people would pay for that? And what if this platform was open to everyone, so ordinary people

model that would go viral nationwide in the coming years, just as she remembered from her previous

Aubree’s proposals, he could already envision the substantial commercial returns if

only that, this model could spawn numerous spin–off ventures, and every single one would

lit up. Jackpot she thought to herself, barely able

hooked, Aubree continued, “With God’s Fury’s championship, they’re at peak popularity. If we launch the club together with the app, we can have the team kick off livestreaming on our platform, starting with gaming streams. Once traffic builds, more creators will want to join.

all we’d

‘Back then, this platform wasn’t just a nationwide phenomenon. Even government agencies joined in to

planned to refuse her anyway. If it failed, he’d

such an idea truly caught him off guard. But from a business standpoint, if this proposal had landed on his

in his hand and asked directly,

over 3 million in prize money

buying a League of Legends franchise spot is already a huge investment. From what I know, a

him for investment before, but this was the first time someone had been so bold and unapologetic about

your price, I’ll cover it all. But in return, I want a 30% equity stake

Chapter 40

percent is no small stake, but it’s

for a brief moment before

the shares for unlimited financial backing from the Turner Group, and the prestige of their nam backing? Absolutely worth

all, without this funding, even getting started would be impossible for

funds wired to your account