CHAPTER 8 – The Weapon Was Never a Machine
The deputy's words echoed through the underground chamber.
"Project Heir was never about protecting a child."
"It was about creating the perfect weapon."
Silence.
Then...
The little boy looked down at Nathan's body.
His uncle was barely breathing.
With his final strength, Nathan grabbed Ethan's hand and pressed a tiny metal chip into his palm.
"Don't... let them... take this..."
His hand fell limp.
The deputy smiled.
"Too late."
He snapped his fingers.
Dozens of elite soldiers emerged from hidden tunnels, surrounding everyone inside the vault.
Even the commander's remaining loyal officers were hopelessly outnumbered.
The scarred woman stepped in front of Ethan.
"You'll have to kill me first."
The deputy laughed.
"I already did..."
Everyone stared at him.
He pulled a faded newspaper from his coat.
The headline read:
FAMILY OF PROJECT HEIR DIES IN EXPLOSION.
"It was my operation," he said proudly.
"I planted the bomb."
"I killed Ethan's mother."
"I executed Nathan."
"I framed Prisoner 417."
"And I convinced the commander that protecting the boy meant lying to him forever."
The commander roared with rage and lunged at the deputy.
A single shot rang out.
The commander collapsed, clutching his shoulder.
The deputy walked toward Ethan, holding out his hand.
"Give me the chip."
"You don't even know what it contains."
Ethan slowly opened his tiny fist.
The chip was no larger than a fingernail.
"It's not money," the deputy whispered.
"It's worth far more."
"It contains the complete Project Heir archive..."
"...the names of every politician, general, billionaire, and intelligence officer who financed the program."
Every person in the room froze.
If those files became public...
Entire governments could collapse overnight.
The deputy smiled.
"That's why your family had to disappear."
Suddenly...
The lights went out.
Once again, the warehouse was swallowed by darkness.
A calm female voice echoed through hidden speakers.
"Biometric verification complete."
"Original Administrator detected."
The deputy's confident smile vanished.
"No..."
"That's impossible."
The massive vault door slowly opened by itself.
From the darkness stepped an elegant woman dressed in black.
She looked no older than thirty-five.
Not a single scar remained on her face.
She walked straight toward Ethan.
Then knelt before him.
"My prince..."
"I've been waiting eight years for this moment."
The commander stared at her in disbelief.
"You..."
"We buried your body."
The woman smiled faintly.
"You buried someone else."
She turned to Ethan and gently touched the silver bracelet on his wrist.
With a soft click...
The bracelet unlocked.
Hidden inside was a tiny golden key.
The woman whispered,
"This..."
"...is the real inheritance."
Before anyone could ask what it opened...
The ground beneath the warehouse began to crack.
Deep below them...
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An enormous underground bunker started rising toward the surface.
Across its giant steel doors were four words that made everyone stop breathing.
PROJECT HEIR – PHASE TWO
