Chapter 546: Bow to his presence

"Then, if you know her... why didn’t you tell me she’s your cousin!?"

The room, which had been chaotic and loud with heated exchanges, suddenly fell silent. It wasn’t just Mr. Ito’s stubbornness in refusing to back down, despite Dean Pierson’s presence, or the guests who couldn’t stop whispering.

It was the mention of T. Mouse—the well-known alias of the person behind Prime Group, a leading security firm that had recently moved its headquarters to Anteca—that commanded everyone’s attention.

Just as everyone knew about the drama between the Bennet and Ito families, they were equally aware of the waves Prime Group had made upon entering the market.

"Oh my God," one woman in the crowd whispered, covering her mouth in shock. "Did he... did he say T. Mouse is his cousin?"

"I thought I misheard it."

"T. Mouse is here? I heard they supported charities before moving here, but I never thought they’d attend this event."

"He? I thought Mr. Ito said... she?"

All eyes slowly turned to Penny, their gazes swirling with confusion and disbelief. The events of the night, though already dramatic, seemed to reach a new level of complexity that left everyone struggling to process the new information.

Sven, meanwhile, furrowed his brows, staring at Mr. Ito in confusion, unsure where the old man’s fiery gaze was coming from.

"Mr. Ito, please calm down," Theo urged, holding Mr. Ito’s arm, worried the older man might have a heart attack.

But Mr. Ito didn’t calm down.

"Sven Bennet! If you really know T. Mouse, why didn’t you recognize her?!" Mr. Ito’s voice roared, his anger reaching a boiling point after the night’s mounting embarrassment.

Initially, Mr. Ito had planned to humiliate Atlas, believing the Pierson connection was merely a bluff. Sven had indirectly confirmed this, leading Mr. Ito to feel secure in his plan. But with Dean Pierson present, it was clear there was a real connection between the two families. What Mr. Ito couldn’t stomach now was Sven’s apparent lie.

"What?" Sven gasped to himself, darting his eyes between Mr. Ito and Penny, who stood near the old man. The lines between his brows deepened as realization struck him.

’What? Don’t tell me T. Mouse is... this good for nothing?!’ His thoughts trailed off as his mind blanked for a moment. His complexion paled as he glanced at Atlas.

Atlas’s face remained neutral, but Sven saw the mockery in his eyes. ’He knew all along,’ Sven thought, shifting his gaze to Penny. Her deliberate smirk only confirmed it. Even Hugo and Slater looked at him with ridicule and disgust, as though he were a clown.

"Sven Bennet, didn’t you say you were the one to introduce Prime Group to the CEO of Global Prime Logistics?!" Mr. Ito thundered. "I gave you countless opportunities because you promised to connect us with Prime Group! You also said that if I didn’t agree with Atlas, he’d eventually bend!"

"M-Mr. Ito! When did I say that?!" Sven stammered, taking a step back. His heart pounded in his chest, feeling as though vines were sprouting from the floor, wrapping around his feet to drag him down.

’This is not good,’ Sven thought, panic setting in. ’Atlas let me use the Prime Group connection on purpose because he knew... Penny owns it!’

Alarm bells rang in his head as he stared at Penny in disbelief. ’How could she be the head of Prime Group? That’s impossible! Wasn’t she abroad, wasting time and embarrassing everyone? She married young, ruined her future, and now she’s just a good-for-nothing who leeches off her brothers!’

"What did you say?" Mr. Ito snapped, disregarding everyone’s presence. "You! You’re the one who caused this rift between the Ito and Bennet families!"

"Goodness, is that true?"

"What a mess."

"So, Sven Bennet has been sowing discord between the families?"

"That’s wicked. How could he do that when it could bring down his entire family?"

"Bad seeds grow in every family."

"I feel bad for Atlas Bennet, having to deal with such scum."

One by one, the guests frowned, glaring at Sven in dismay. They weren’t switching sides—they had never taken sides to begin with—but Mr. Ito’s revelations didn’t sit well with them. Who would tolerate someone betraying their own family? And Sven’s ulterior motives were becoming painfully clear.

Hearing their whispers and seeing the disdain in their eyes made Sven panic.

"Mr. Ito, this is slander! I haven’t done anything like this!" Sven yelled in defense, knowing he needed to act fast. If this escalated, he wouldn’t just be facing suspension—he could lose everything.

If this reached Chairman Bennet, Sven would be fired for humiliating the family like this. He had to defuse the situation, had to...

"Atlas, cousin!" Sven blurted out, turning to Atlas with a desperate look. "Weren’t you the one who put me in charge of negotiations with Prime Group? You—"

He stopped when his back bumped into someone. Before he could turn around, a deep, cold voice spoke behind him, sending a chill down his spine.

"If you truly negotiated with Prime Group, you’d know they follow a strict protocol. No client can pass the negotiation off to an assistant or anyone else."

Sven slowly turned, only to realize he needed to look up a bit to see the man behind him. His heart dropped to his stomach when he met the dark eyes of the towering figure, as if the man were Death itself, come to claim him.

Zoren tilted his head, frowning. "Why are you so small yet loud?"

As soon as he spoke, the loud crash of glass shattering echoed through the room. No one moved to clean it up, and no apology was heard. It was as if, for a moment, time had stopped— even the orchestra in the background ceased playing, stunned into silence.

"That... that... that..." a man in the crowd stammered in disbelief and he managed to breathe out, "That’s Zoren Pierson."

The crowd collectively gasped. Just when they thought Dean Pierson’s presence was akin to having the head of the most influential family in Anteca, they realized they were wrong.

Zoren’s presence alone was like the king himself had descended from his throne, and now everyone was expected to bow to his presence.