-Chapter 8-

-Chapter 8-

-POV 3rd Person-

The journalists who had been camping outside the hotel all swarmed towards the entrance upon seeing the new star who had been making headlines for over a week and had reignited the debate on how soldiers were treated after their service ended.

"Mr. Copperfield"

"Mr. Copperfield"

"Mr. Copperfield"

The 22-year-old young man stopped when he saw that the journalists were blocking all his escape routes and then he said, "I need to go to the gym, so please make it quick."

"Mr. Copperfield, what do you have to say about the controversy surrounding the veterans?"

"That I am wholeheartedly with them."

"Mr. Copperfield, are you outraged by the treatment the army subjected you to, as well as all the other veterans?"

"Listen, let's not play dumb, shall we? You came here to get the highest ratings, not because you genuinely care about me. All I have to say is that my situation has nothing to do with that of the other veterans. I was discharged because I hit my superior. Wearing the uniform and defending the colors of our magnificent country was the greatest honor of my life. I commit to doing everything I can to make veterans' lives easier if I ever get the chance. So don't count on me to tarnish the pride of the millions of soldiers who shed or have shed their blood for this country in a vain vindictive purpose," he said before making his way through the crowd of journalists, completely stunned by the turn of events that had just occurred.

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-POV MC-

"I could watch this for days and days," said Ryan, laughing.

"How did you know the media would react this way?" asked David, surprised that I wasn't riding the wave of my new notoriety to take revenge on the colonel who had gotten me kicked out of the army.

"I didn't know, but I knew how to react to make the best of it, and that's all that matters because I'm a 'hero' in the hearts of all soldiers, active or not," I said, making air quotes with my fingers to show that the term hero shouldn't be taken literally.

I had simply shed the image of an arrogant brat and had accepted and acknowledged my mistakes as every 'loyal' veteran should behave.

"But I still don't understand why you couldn't take revenge and openly say what that racist bastard did," said Jensen.

"Because it would have served no purpose other than to show that I am a young man who avoids taking responsibility for his actions," I said calmly.

"Which you are not?" said Ryan.

I frowned, and then Ryan continued, explaining, "I talked with Melissa, and she told me you were screening calls from a certain blonde."

I smirked, understanding what Ryan was implying, and I said in a mocking tone, "Ryan, I think I can also talk with Melissa. We would certainly have plenty of things to discuss, like teaching her who Shirley is."

"I was just saying," he said, raising his hands in a gesture of submission.

"Okay, let's be more serious, guys. You called us to tell us something important about the future direction of the company," said Ryan more seriously, switching to work mode while making sure to change the subject.

"Yes, I registered the company, and with a bit of persuasion and gifts to the right people, I am happy to inform you that we have successfully opened a company called Copperfield Enterprise, consisting of three subsidiaries: Copperfield Private Security, Copperfield Capital, and Copperfield Weapons."

"What are all these subsidiaries for?" asked Jensen.

"Actually, it's very simple. For Copperfield Weapons, we will use the government site to get contracts for selling weapons and equipment to the military. We will then take the money earned from these sales and inject it into the Copperfield Capital subsidiary, which will invest this money in the stock market to make it grow. Lastly, we will have Copperfield Private Security… As the name suggests, it's a private security company. We will recruit former soldiers into our private security firm, and we will then hire out their services as bodyguards and mercenaries in war zones for the government," I said, outlining my plan for the future.

"And the money we make from all these small businesses will also go into Copperfield Capital, I suppose," said the other David, understanding where I was going with this.

I nodded, and then he said, "On paper, all of this looks very appealing, but in reality, how will you manage to set all this up, especially the last part? How will we establish a solid investment fund? None of us have real skills in this area, and even if we did, we have no experience. Worse still, we might simply lack luck and end up failing miserably."

"That's reality, you are totally right. We could fail, but I have confidence in us, and I know it won't happen. So if you are with me, I think we can do it."

No one said anything for a moment until Jensen jumped in and said, "Anyway, it's your money that will serve as the initial investment, so it's your problem if you lose everything."

Ryan and David smiled before nodding, indicating their agreement with my project, and I said:

"You don't know it yet, guys, but now you have just signed the best deal of your entire life."