Setting the Stage

Ethan woke up to the warm glow of the early morning sun filtering through his bedroom window, feeling a sense of calm for the first time in days.

It had been a hectic few weeks with the Ridge Rovers FC takeover, the looming threat from the Great Families, and the many moving parts at NovaTech.

But somehow, things had been relatively quiet lately. Anton Petrova or any of the Great Families had not moved against his family or NovaTech, giving him some breathing room.

"I can't let my guard down. Who knows if there are spies in NovaTech feeding information to them?" mused Ethan.

He stretched his arms, took a deep breath, and mentally reviewed his daily tasks. His top priority was still awaiting updates from Mr. Halen about the Ascendants he wanted to hire for protection, the equipment, and the supplements he had purchased.