Brand Guild Tower – Floor 21, Hero Endorsement Wing
(Where reputations are managed, manufactured, and magically manipulated)
"Okay, Elios, just to review…"
The marketing exec's smile was way too wide for someone seconds from a public meltdown. She held a crystal tablet glowing with statistics no one wanted to read, standing in front of a 3D projection of Elios's face that was smiling, heroic, glowing slightly and at least two skin shades lighter than reality.
"You are not, under any circumstances, allowed to say the word 'cursed.' Or 'fraud.' Or 'Dante.' Got it?"
Elios adjusted his silk tie with a twitchy jaw. "Got it."
"And if anyone asks about the leaked footage, we stick to the script: 'I am shocked and saddened by recent developments. But I forgive him. Because that's what heroes do.'"
"I've said that three times already."
"Say it again. But with more sparkle."
Elios clenched his jaw.
Behind him, an assistant applied another layer of aura gloss to his face. "You're losing your glow, sir."
The Problem
Last week, Elios had twenty-eight sponsorships.
Now? Eight.
And falling faster than a failed teleport spell.
Why?
Because someone—definitely not Dante—leaked a video from their Academy graduation ceremony.
It didn't show anything dramatic. Just a frame-by-frame slow-mo of Elios smirking exactly two seconds after Dante was accused of attempted murder. Followed by Rhea clutching Elios's arm like she'd just won a lottery and not, you know, contributed to a public execution.
The internet had thoughts.
"Wait… why is Elios SMILING?"
"Bro enjoying the spotlight while his best friend gets erased."
"This dude has villain side character energy and it's getting worse every day."
"I trusted you, Elios. I defended you in the forums."
Elios's PR team had done all they could. Bought trending hashtags. Flooded feeds with cute dog adoption videos. Pushed a fake donation to a potion rehab center.
But the damage was done.
The glow-up of Dante Vale was shining brighter than the so-called Hero of Light™.
Present Day – Brand Meeting
The room was full of executives from GlowDrop, a luxury cologne brand known for its magical pheromone formulas and intense Instagram ads.
Their spokesperson?
Elios Fenbright. Until today.
"We're… just not seeing the same alignment with your aura anymore," said the CEO awkwardly. "You're polling at 48% trust with Gen Z mages. Down from 92%."
Elios blinked. "I literally saved a baby dragon last week."
"It bit the mayor," someone muttered.
"And the trending audio on that clip was 'Here Comes the Villain,'" said the assistant.
Elios's eye twitched. "Okay. So who are you replacing me with? Some random influencer?"
The exec smiled. "Actually… we're in talks with someone who's very popular right now."
The door opened.
In walked a man in a custom black suit and shoes enchanted to stay clean. A glass of wine in one hand and a cat in the other.
Dante Vale.
That Face
Elios's face did something between a glitch and a slow-loading insult.
Dante just smiled.
"Oh. Don't mind me," he said casually. "I'm just here to measure the office for new curtains."
"You—how are you—why are you—"
"Alive?" Dante offered helpfully. "Surprise."
He set the wine down. The cat hopped onto the table. It immediately batted a business card at the exec.
Dante Vale, CEO
Ashvale Enterprises™
Tagline: We buy you, then break you better.
The Blowup
"You can't be serious," Elios growled. "He's a criminal. He was exiled."
Dante picked up a GlowDrop sample bottle. Spritzed it once. Sniffed the air.
"Hm. Smells like desperation and old PR lies. Bold choice."
"You tried to kill me!" Elios snapped.
Dante turned slowly. Cool and unbothered.
"And you tried to fake a friendship with me for ten years while eyeing my title, my girl, and my entire life," he said. "Look how that turned out."
"You're insane."
"I'm rich."
Meanwhile — K1NG's Live Thread (Secret Internal Broadcast)
K1NG: Sir, would you like me to start a leak countdown for the next 'HeroGate' footage?
K1NG: Also, your glow level just outshined Elios by 300%.
K1NG: Public trust in the Hero has officially dropped below pineapple pizza.
Trending Now
As Dante exited the meeting (with a contract from GlowDrop in his pocket and the cat in his arms), the internet exploded.
"DANTE IS THE NEW FACE OF GLOWDROP??? 😭🔥"
"HE STOLE THE HERO'S SPONSORSHIP. THIS IS A TCOG MOVE."
"This man is running his revenge arc like a startup and I'm here for it."
"Elios? More like Unfollowios."
HeroFanClub lost 12,000 members in 24 hours.
DanteFanUpdates gained 200,000 new followers overnight.
The Hero Gets a Gift
Elios returned to his penthouse that night to find a box.
Black. Ribboned.
Inside: A bottle of new cologne—branded under Ashvale—and a note.
Smell that? That's what success actually feels like.
No need to thank me. I'm sure you'll get used to irrelevance.
— D. Vale