Rebirth Of The Tycoon: I Shall Dominate The World

The café was bustling with the usual chatter of students finishing their last classes, grabbing a quick snack, and gossiping about whatever drama was brewing in the school. I sat at our usual corner booth, nursing a cup of coffee that was probably way too bitter but kept me awake. My team—Todd, John, and Janet—were gathered around, all leaning in as I prepared to spill the details of my latest discovery. I couldn't keep it to myself any longer.

"So, you guys aren't going to believe this," I started, rubbing my temples. My head still hurt from all the strange flashes of memory I had shared with Selena earlier. It was like a part of me was still grappling with the fact that we had been something more than just… Well, whatever this life was.

"You met someone?" John raised an eyebrow, clearly already suspecting something weird.

I couldn't help but chuckle. "Yeah, but not just anyone." I paused, feeling a bit of a lump in my throat. "I met her. Selena,the one Samuel was talking about his business to."

Todd's eyes widened, a grin slowly spreading across his face. "Hold up. You're telling me that you're already getting romantic vibes? Seriously, William? After everything we've been through?"

"Just wait," I said, rubbing the bridge of my nose. "It's not like that—well, it kind of is, but hear me out."

I went on to explain how everything had felt so familiar when our eyes met—like I had known her my whole life, or lifetimes. How the memories from our past selves had flooded back, and how it had all clicked: Selena wasn't just some random girl. She was Hathor, the goddess I had once loved, and we were meant to be partners. The connection was undeniable.

"You're telling me that you, William, the guy who claimed to have a business empire in his previous life, are now talking about this... epic, past-life, cosmic love story?" Todd burst out laughing, almost spilling his drink.

"Seriously?" Janet snorted. "You claimed to be mentally older than fourteen, and now you're out here dropping cheesy lines about soulmates and goddesses? You sound like a soap opera character."

John tried to suppress a grin, but he couldn't help himself. "Man, you know it's bad when we are the ones questioning your love life."

I groaned, leaning back in my seat. "I'm not making this up. It's real. I mean, how do you explain the way we both felt something when we saw each other? It wasn't just some coincidence."

The three of them continued laughing, their amusement bouncing off the walls of the café. I had to admit, hearing them make fun of me like this was kind of nice. At least, it was a good distraction from the mess I was about to dive into.

"Alright, alright, we get it. The past-life lovebirds have met again," Todd said, still chuckling. "But what about the other part? You said Samuel's just a pawn in all of this, right? The teachers are still sniffing around, and the evidence pointing to him could easily come back to bite us."

I leaned forward, dropping the goofy smile. "Right. Samuel isn't the mastermind. He's just there to take the fall if things go south. The real person behind all of this is still hiding in the shadows."

John tapped his fingers on the table, his face serious now. "So what's the plan? You don't think just clearing Samuel's name will make them back off, right? If he's a pawn, someone's pulling the strings, and it won't stop just because we shut down one operation."

I nodded. "Exactly. We need to create a situation where Samuel's business takes a massive hit. Something that forces the real mastermind to show themselves." I leaned back in my chair, folding my arms. "And we need to make sure that when they do, we have all the evidence we need to nail them."

The café buzzed with chatter and the clink of coffee cups as I leaned in, lowering my voice to make sure only my team could hear. I could feel the tension hanging in the air—it wasn't just because of our plans, but because I had finally connected the dots about what we were dealing with. This wasn't just about some small-scale business operation. This was a much bigger game, and we had to play our cards carefully.

"We're not just going to expose Samuel's operation," I said, my voice steady, though my mind was already a few steps ahead. "We're going to sabotage it in such a way that it looks like he's been undermined by a rival, someone from within the school. And once his business crumbles under pressure, we'll be ready to strike."

Todd raised an eyebrow. "Sabotage, huh? You've got my attention. How do we make sure it looks like someone else's doing it and not us?"

I gave him a sly smile. "That's where we get creative. We need to make it seem like Samuel's business is being sabotaged by an outside force, but we need to keep ourselves off the radar while we pull the strings. We'll do this in stages, each one more convincing than the last."

John leaned forward, interested now. "Go on."

I took a deep breath, ready to explain my plan step by step. "We'll start small. There's this group of first-year students who've been trying to undercut Samuel's prices. We know one of them's been offering the same services for half the cost, and word's been getting around. It's the perfect way to start building pressure on Samuel without looking suspicious."

Janet nodded, already picking up on where I was going. "So, we stir the pot. Get those first-years to spread rumors, make sure they don't back down. Let's say they're offering better deals, and soon enough, Samuel's loyal clients will start questioning his prices."

"Exactly," I continued. "Next, we'll use social media to spread fake reviews about Samuel's business. The reviews should talk about how his service quality has gone down, how customers have been dissatisfied with his products. We'll make sure those reviews get just enough attention to make things look legitimate."

Todd grinned. "Ah, I see. We're planting the seeds of doubt. Samuel will think his own business is falling apart, and the teachers won't suspect us because it's just online chatter."

"Right," I said. "But we need to make sure Samuel doesn't know that someone's actively working against him. So we'll have to go one step further. I'll personally meet with a few of his 'clients' and feed them information about a 'mysterious rival'—someone who's offering the same services but at a better price and better quality. I'll make it sound like it's a fresh competitor from the first-year class. The more I hype it up, the more it will get under Samuel's skin."

John smirked. "That'll definitely make him feel the heat. But how do we get the teachers off our backs? I don't want to risk getting caught up in the mess when everything goes down."

"That's where things get interesting," I said. "We'll set up a situation where Samuel gets caught with a huge stack of fake orders and fake contracts—contracts he didn't even sign. We'll make sure they look as legitimate as possible, but there'll be little inconsistencies in them. The teachers will investigate, of course, but they'll find out that it was all someone else who created these fake orders. Samuel will look like he's been manipulated, and no one will suspect us because we've been playing it cool."

Janet looked impressed. "You're thinking of everything. If Samuel's business fails and he gets blamed for all this chaos, it'll force the real mastermind to come forward. They won't be able to hide anymore."

I nodded. "Exactly. Once Samuel has been sufficiently framed, and his business is in ruins, we'll have everything set up for a clean interrogation. We'll corner Samuel, and when the real person behind it all sees him crumbling, they'll try to salvage what's left of their operation. That's when we step in and gather all the evidence we need."

Todd gave me a thumbs-up. "Alright, I'll help with the social media stuff. You can't have a sabotage plan without some well-placed fake accounts and reviews. And I'll make sure to track Samuel's clients for any shifts in behavior. If they start jumping ship, we'll know it's working."

John leaned back in his chair, clearly thinking it over. "And when the teachers start sniffing around, we'll be in the clear. We'll just look like innocent bystanders who got caught up in the chaos. Let's make sure we get all the pieces into place. When Samuel cracks under pressure, we need to be ready."

I smiled. "Exactly. And once we have everything lined up, we'll have the perfect opportunity to take the mastermind down. Whoever they are, they won't be able to hide for long."

As the meeting wrapped up, we all shared a few brief laughs at how far we'd come since the first time we sat down and talked business. The plan felt airtight, and I couldn't help but feel a surge of adrenaline at the thought of pulling it off. We were on the edge of something big, and we all knew it.

But then, just as we were about to leave, I felt a buzzing sensation in my pocket. I pulled out my phone, and it was a message from Selena.

"I've been thinking about us, William. I know it's strange to feel this way after just meeting, but I feel like there's something pulling us together. It's not just a coincidence, is it? I'm glad you're here. It feels like we're finally on the same path again."

I blinked. I stared at the message in disbelief, as if the words themselves had materialized out of thin air. The strangest part? I had never given Selena my number. In fact, I hadn't even asked for hers.

I looked at the message again. "How the heck did she get my number?"

The room fell silent as I processed the situation. I could feel my face heating up, and not in a good way. My thoughts were racing, but I couldn't shake the odd sense of déjà vu. Had this happened before? Was there something I wasn't getting here?

"Is everything okay, William?" Todd's voice snapped me out of my daze.

I looked up to see Todd, John, and Janet all watching me closely, no doubt sensing something was off. They were grinning like I had just stepped into some sort of romantic drama. They probably thought I was blushing, which I wasn't—okay, maybe a little.

"Uh, yeah," I managed, trying to sound casual. "Just got a text from Selena." I paused. "Weird thing is… I didn't give her my number."

Todd's eyes lit up, his grin widening. "Ohhh, a little mystery, huh? So, she found a way to contact you despite you not giving it to her. That's definitely not creepy. What is she, like, psychic or something?"

"Or maybe she's got a magic crystal ball," John quipped, raising an eyebrow. "You're a goddess reincarnation, right? I'm sure you could make a call from beyond the grave if you really wanted to."

Janet snorted. "Yeah, maybe she just knew you needed a message, William. The universe has plans for you two, clearly."

I groaned and opened the message, trying to ignore my team's incessant teasing. I had to get to the bottom of this. So, I quickly typed a reply.

"Hey, how did you get my number?"

I waited, watching the three of them as they eagerly leaned over to read my screen. The tension was thick in the air.

"Are you really asking her that?" Todd asked with a grin. "If it were me, I'd be like, 'Hey, I don't remember giving you my digits, but what's up?'"

John chimed in, looking amused. "Yeah, maybe you should add, 'Did you send a pigeon with a note or something?' for dramatic effect."

I shot them all a warning glare before looking back at the phone. The typing bubble appeared almost immediately.

"I have my ways."

I raised an eyebrow. "What does that even mean?"

"Yeah, sure, you have your ways," Janet muttered, rolling her eyes. "Sounds like something a secret agent would say. Are we about to start a spy movie now?"

"I'm starting to think this is a bigger conspiracy than I originally thought," Todd added. "Like, maybe she's part of some secret society that tracks down reincarnated gods. You know, that would explain a lot."

I wasn't sure if I was more confused or uncomfortable at this point. I quickly typed a follow-up message.

"But seriously, how did you get it? Are you some kind of tech wizard?"

I hit send and put my phone down on the table, expecting a response. The team was practically on the edge of their seats, trying to hold in their laughs, as if they were waiting for some big reveal.

"Well?" Todd asked. "What did she say this time? Did she claim to have hacked into your phone's GPS to track you down? Or maybe she has a supernatural connection to your soul that allows her to communicate with you telepathically. Maybe you're destined to save the world together. With your powers combined, you'll be unstoppable!"

I glared at him, not sure if I was more annoyed by the ridiculousness or by how much truth there was in his words. Then, the message arrived.

"You left your number on the paper at the café. You were too busy being dramatic to notice."

I nearly choked on air. I had left my number on the paper? The one that was—wait for it—right in front of the entire team?

"Oh my god," I groaned, rubbing my temples. "I swear I'm getting dumber with every minute I spend with you guys."

"Wait, you did what?" Janet burst out laughing. "You wrote your number on the paper for her? I can't believe you, William. You're basically asking for it."

Todd was doubled over, holding his stomach. "Man, how is it that the business genius can't even figure out how to keep his number private? You are definitely a romantic mess."

John was losing it too. "William, man, you've just become the most relatable person I know. You're basically a walking romantic comedy—everyone's in love with you, and you don't even realize it."

I buried my face in my hands. "I—this isn't how I wanted this to go. I swear, you guys are making it worse."

Todd snorted. "You're telling me the guy who's practically been training to be a business mastermind didn't see this coming? Oh, I love this. This is so much better than the plan."

"Can we please get back to the plan?" I groaned. "We have real problems here, people!"

The team kept laughing, but I didn't let it distract me for long. My mind was still reeling from the text and the strange connection I'd felt earlier. Could there be more to this than just an accidental number exchange? I mean, it was possible, right? There were too many strange coincidences happening at once—first the goddess connection, then the flashbacks, and now this. Something was going on.

As I looked at the phone again, the message from Selena still glowing on the screen, I couldn't help but wonder… Was this just the start of something I wasn't prepared for?