CHAPTER 397: CHAPTER 397: LIGHT CORPORATION

Aurora stopped him at once.

"No. If you do that, it will draw attention to me. People will start wondering who I am. It is safer if I travel alone. I know how to take care of myself. I am good at fighting, too, remember?"

Spencer looked at her for a moment. Her words reminded him of her skill.

She was indeed capable of defending herself.

Though part of him still felt uneasy, he decided not to press the matter. He nodded slowly.

"All right," he said. "Be careful."

Aurora gave him a reassuring smile. She said goodbye and finally left.

When she reached her apartment, she felt waves of tiredness washing over her.

She rested for a while, letting her body recover a little before her journey back.

Later that night, she made her way to the airport. Despite her fever, she moved steadily, her expression calm. She boarded a first-class flight again.

As she settled into her seat, she noticed someone familiar.

It was the same businessman she had met during her earlier flight.

For a brief moment, a thought flickered in her mind. She wondered if he might be following her.

But then she heard his voice. He was speaking to someone sitting across from him. This time, he was not alone.

The person sitting opposite him was a woman. She was strikingly beautiful, her features refined and elegant.

Her calm presence made her seem composed, as if no amount of wealth or pressure could shake her.

The businessman’s tone was less forceful than before. He was speaking in a calm but earnest way.

"Our business needs a critical investment," he said.

"If you agree to support us, we can overcome this crisis. Without it, I am afraid we will not be able to sustain operations much longer."

The elegant woman rested her elbow lightly on the armrest of her seat and crossed one leg over the other.

Her smile was calm, almost as if the words coming from the businessman amused her.

"In business," she said softly, her voice carrying a rare hint of seriousness, "if everyone started helping each other out of mere emotion, there would be no profit. Business is not charity. If I am going to put my money into your company, it must be worth my while."

The middle-aged businessman sitting opposite her shifted uncomfortably.

"I am not asking for free help," he said with a hint of impatience creeping into his voice.

"I am ready to give you twenty percent of my company’s shares in return for your investment. That is a fair offer. You will gain a solid stake in our business."

The woman tilted her head slightly and laughed under her breath. "Twenty percent?" she repeated, as if the number itself was a joke.

"That is not enough to show your sincerity. If you truly want me to invest, you will have to offer me at least fifty percent of your company. Only then will it be worth the risk."

The businessman’s expression darkened. "Fifty percent?"

His voice rose slightly as he leaned forward.

"That is too much. My company may be in crisis, but half of it is worth nearly one billion dollars. I do not even have that many shares to sell. Fifty percent would take away everything that keeps me in control. Name another figure. I can accept a high price, but that is impossible."

For a moment, the elegant woman said nothing. Her gaze did not waver, and her smile remained as calm as ever.

Then she spoke again, her tone as even as before.

"Very well. I can lower my demand. I will take forty percent instead. That will be enough to justify my investment."

The man froze as if struck. His breath caught in his throat. He stared at her with a troubled look.

"Forty percent," he repeated slowly. His voice had lost some of its earlier strength.

"That... that is everything I own. If I hand over forty percent, I will be left with nothing. I will have no control at all. There has to be another way."

The woman’s calm laugh filled the small space between them again.

"If forty percent is too high for you, then this deal will not work," she said. "Without it, your company’s worth is too weak. My investment will be wasted."

She paused, her eyes narrowing slightly as if she was studying him like a chess piece.

Then she continued,

"But I am not without mercy. I will give you one more option. I can invest five hundred million dollars. In return, I want two dollars of profit from every single one of your products until I recover all of my capital. After that, you will give me ten percent of your company’s shares. This way, I take some risk, and you keep your position. Think about it carefully."

The businessman sat back in his seat, clearly conflicted. His brows drew together as he fell deep into thought.

The terms she had just offered were not easy to accept, yet compared to losing forty percent of his company, they seemed more reasonable.

He did some quick mental calculations. Ten percent of his company was worth around two hundred million dollars.

Giving her two dollars per product for a long time would be like having a creditor who would take a steady slice of his revenue.

Still, on paper it looked better than losing almost half of his company at once. It was a bitter compromise, but it was at least a lifeline.

As he sat silently, the elegant woman leaned back in her seat. Her calm expression suggested that she was in no hurry.

But then she spoke again, her tone still polite but carrying a subtle warning.

"Your company, Light Corporation, cannot stay afloat for long without help. The longer you delay, the worse your situation will become. You should decide sooner rather than later."

Those words hit the businessman hard. He lowered his gaze, still thinking, but his shoulders slumped slightly under the weight of his company’s troubles.

A few rows away, Aurora had been reclining quietly in her first-class seat.

Her eyes were half closed, but she had been listening to the conversation ever since it began.

She had not intended to involve herself, but the name Light Corporation made her eyes snap open.

She sat still for a moment, staring at the seat in front of her as thoughts raced through her mind.

That name was not new to her.

She had heard it before, not in the real world but in her dream!

In that dream, she had seen a future where Light Corporation grew into a massive power in the industry, one that became the greatest obstacle in Alex’s path.

She remembered it clearly. In her dream, Alex’s company had strong ideas and good innovation, but it never had enough time to grow and stabilize.

Light Corporation, on the other hand, had the time, the capital, and was century old!

As a result, whenever Alex’s company clashed with Light Corporation, Alex’s side suffered heavy losses.

She also remembered the role of Jasper Green.

Alex’s half-brother had been one of the biggest reasons behind Alex’s struggles.

Light Corporation had helped Jasper rise in power because its owner owed a great debt to Jasper’s paternal aunt, a famous businesswoman.

That debt had tilted the scales heavily against Alex.

Thinking of all this, Aurora’s good impression of the elegant woman faded completely.

Her eyes turned slightly colder.

She had once thought of Alex as nothing more than a pawn, someone she had to protect for her own brother.

But over time, she had started to see him as her own brother. She had grown protective of him.

And now that she knew Light Corporation might be used against Alex, she decided she would not allow it.

Quietly, Aurora unbuckled her seat belt and stood up.

Both the businessman and the elegant woman turned their heads when they sensed her approach.

Aurora stopped by their seats and gave them a polite, faint smile.

Her black hair framed her face, and the spectacles and mask she wore made her look nothing like she looked in her real life.

She turned her gaze to the businessman.

"I am willing to offer you one billion dollars," she said clearly, "in exchange for a favor you must remember and twenty percent of your company’s shares."

The businessman blinked at her, stunned by the boldness of her words.

His mouth opened slightly, but no sound came out. He looked from her to the elegant woman, unsure how to react.

The elegant woman’s eyes narrowed slightly. Her voice, though still calm, had a trace of sharpness.

"I do not remember inviting you to this conversation," she said.

Aurora chuckled softly at that, her tone light

"If investors needed an invitation before they could make an offer, every startup owner would be exploited."

The elegant woman’s lips curved into a faint, knowing smile.

The businessman’s brows rose in mild surprise.

Both of them were intrigued now by this masked young woman who had interrupted their discussion with such confidence.