8: Howard Stark?

"Ah?"

Susan was stunned.

The new boss actually wanted to promote her?

The problem was, she was planning to resign. She tactfully said, "Mr. Evans, the board has some objections about you and Doom."

It was more than just objections; to be precise, they were extremely dissatisfied—Doom was the core of the Doom Group. As soon as the news of his transferring shares spread, the market value of Doom Group was halved, and the directors were furious, preparing to split and sell the group to recover losses.

"Heh~ Just a minor issue."

Andrew said, "The board meeting is at noon. You will come with me then."

Susan hesitated, "This…"

"What is there to hesitate about?"

Andrew smiled and said, "If you win the gamble, you will be the Vice President of the group. If you lose, at worst, you'll be kicked out. After all, you were planning to resign anyway."

Susan felt a bit awkward. She asked, "Mr. Evans, do you have a way to convince those directors?"

"Well~ I'm very good at persuading people. Alright, you can leave now."

Andrew said. Susan nodded, turned, and left. She didn't have much hope in Andrew's words. Those directors were like demons who devour everything; they would never let Andrew take control of the Doom Group.

"Susan isn't sad at all. Poor Doom."

Watching Susan's incredibly beautiful back, Andrew shook his head. Susan didn't truly love Doom; she had someone else in her heart. She accepted Doom only because she needed a man's affection.

Not long after Susan left, four men walked into Andrew's office. Leading them was a middle-aged man who looked very wise, followed by Wind Demon, Earth Demon, and Water Demon.

Unlike their previous disheveled appearances, the three demons were now wearing branded suits and high-end leather shoes, looking quite refined—entirely with the aura of newly rich people.

Oh? Earth Demon, this embarrassing fellow, hadn't even cut the tags off his clothes.

"You're here. Howard, how is the investment company matter coming along?"

Andrew asked. "Howard was one of the five souls he got from Mephisto, though his current body wasn't the original one."

In Las Vegas, a lawyer who was on a losing streak bet his soul against Andrew, and his body became Howard's.

"The procedures are completed."

Howard nodded first, then complained, "Boss, I'm the world's top scientist. Using me as a lawyer is a waste of talent."

Andrew laughed, "Don't worry, you'll have plenty of opportunities to show your talents in the future. However, you might be outshone by your son."

"That kid?"

Howard was very dissatisfied. He said, "Look at all his tabloid scandals. Does he look like a scientist at all?"

"Weren't you the same before you got married?"

Andrew shook his head and asked, "Howard, I'm really curious, with your intelligence, why did you make a deal with Mephisto?"

"There are many things in life that are beyond our control."

Howard didn't want to say more. He continued, "The deal I made with Mephisto was just a regular transaction. Who knew that this deal would taint my soul with dark energy? He used this dark energy to pull me out of the River Styx.

After that, I became one of his collectibles. Sigh*, I don't know how I survived these past ten years. Every once in a while, he would pull me out to torture me. Worse still, he completely forbade me from doing any research."

"It seems the latter grievance is greater for you. Mephisto is an antique; he doesn't understand your value."

Andrew smiled, then turned to the three demons and instructed, "Your future task is to use money to buy souls in places like casinos and hospitals. I'm very reasonable and can wait to collect their souls after they die.

The more souls you buy, the richer your rewards will be."

"Boss, we'll definitely do our best."

The three demons responded simultaneously. Following Kira/Andrew these past few days had been incredibly thrilling, a stark contrast to their previous life of hiding. Being able to follow the Boss was their greatest fortune.

Andrew said, "Very good. When purchasing souls, if you encounter colleagues, that is, devil worshippers, deal with them directly."

"Deal with them directly?"

The three demons were stunned. Wind Demon said, "Boss, doing so will anger other Hell Lords."

"So what? On Earth, I am the strongest demon lord, and all souls are mine."

Andrew said, "Besides, do you think if we don't deal with those worshippers, they won't become our enemies?"

The three demons realized this and nodded, "Boss, we understand what to do."

"You are my subordinates. You don't need to fear anyone. I will give you the power and wealth you desire. However, let me make this clear: all transactions must be voluntary, and you are not allowed to harm humans."

Andrew said coldly, "I believe you don't want to find out the consequences of disobeying my orders."

The three demons quickly lowered their heads and said, "We wouldn't dare."

Andrew waved his hand, "Go now. Each month, I will set performance targets for you. Don't disappoint me. As for money, don't worry, I will keep transferring it to you."

"Yes."

The three demons respectfully left. Howard looked at Andrew and said, "Aside from the last threat, you are completely different from other demon lords."

"Oh how lovely of you, by the way whether as a human or a demon lord, one must have some principles."

Andrew shook his head and said, "Join me in the board meeting. There will be a lot of documents for you to handle."

"Alright, I'll play along for a couple more days."

Howard winked and said, "I'm familiar with New York. Want to go out and have some fun tonight? Maria went to heaven, and I'm single now."

"And you have the nerve to look down on your son?"

Andrew retorted. He said, "Let's focus on business first. This is the critical period for my career."

...

Board meeting!

From the start, the directors didn't give Andrew a second glance. Ned, an investor from a certain bank, said directly, "Mr. Evans, you are not a member of the Doom Group. You can just observe this meeting. We will buy your shares at market price."

"Exactly, just watch and don't speak."

The directors echoed. This issue had caused them significant losses, and naturally, they were not favorably inclined toward Andrew.

Andrew smiled, "I was planning to be polite, but since you're not, I won't bother."

"You intend to be impolite to us?"

Ned sneered, and the others laughed, not taking Andrew seriously at all.

Susan, standing behind Andrew, couldn't help but shake her head. In her view, Andrew was overestimating himself. Only Howard looked at the directors with pity, knowing they had no idea who they were dealing with.

"So, shall we start the rel meeting?"

"What do yo—!"

"Heh," Andrew didn't waste any more words. His eyes lit up with two flames.

As soon as the directors made eye contact with the fire in his eyes, their minds were flooded with memories of every bad thing they had ever done.

For example, Ned had once betrayed a brother and used loans to cause the deaths of hundreds of innocent people. Now, these misdeeds resurfaced one by one.

_____