Chapter 6 The Position Revoked

The CEO's office, where Tristan Alexander Whitmore had always directed the company's every move, was now engulfed in an oppressive silence.

No one dared to speak after Ronald Sebastian Whitmore uttered his final words. The lawyers stood in a neat row behind the older man, while several board members exchanged uneasy glances. None of them understood why Ronald had called an emergency meeting so early that morning, especially after Moana's arrival, her appearance so dramatically transformed.

Unlike everyone else in the room, Tristan remained perfectly composed.

He glanced at the divorce papers he had just signed, then curled his lips into a faint smile.

"Now that our personal matters are settled," he said casually, "I still have a lot of work to take care of. So, unless there's something else, I think this meeting should be adjourned."

Ronald looked at his nephew without blinking.

"There is one more matter."

"What is it?"

"Effective immediately..." Ronald's voice was deep, steady, and commanding. "...you are no longer the Chief Executive Officer of Whitmore Holdings."

The announcement froze the entire room.

Even the directors who had known an important decision was coming were stunned to hear Ronald declare it so bluntly.

Tristan let out a quiet laugh.

It began as a faint chuckle, but within seconds, his laughter became more pronounced.

"You're joking, Uncle?"

"I never joke about company business."

The smile slowly disappeared from Tristan's face.

"On what grounds are you removing me from my position?"

"On the grounds of a decision that must be carried out."

"That's absurd."

Tristan stepped forward until he stood directly in front of Ronald.

"For the past three years, I've been the one leading this company's growth. I secured the biggest projects. I increased the company's market value. And now you want to fire me just because I divorced Moana?"

His voice rose with every sentence.

"If this is because of her, then you've gone too far."

Christina, who had been standing beside Tristan, stepped forward as well.

"Mr. Ronald, this isn't fair," she said, unable to hide her irritation. "Personal matters shouldn't be mixed with company business."

Ronald remained silent.

Encouraged by his silence, Christina became even bolder.

"Moana was the one who asked for the divorce. Mr. Tristan already signed the papers. It's over."

She then turned toward Moana, who still stood calmly beside Ronald.

"Isn't that enough? After making Mr. Ronald take your side, now you're trying to steal Tristan's position too?"

Moana didn't react in the slightest.

Her expression remained calm, as though Christina's insults no longer meant anything.

That only irritated Christina even more.

"Now that I think about it, you're actually very good at pretending. You've spent all this time acting like a helpless woman just so everyone would pity you."

Tristan nodded in agreement.

"I've only just realized that myself."

He looked at Ronald.

"You always told me to respect Moana. Now I finally understand why."

"What do you mean?" Ronald asked.

"You've always favored her."

"That's true."

"And because of that, you're willing to destroy my career just to defend her."

Ronald let out a slow breath.

For a moment, he simply looked at Tristan with profound disappointment.

"Do you really think I'm doing this to avenge what you did to Moana?"

"Isn't that exactly what's happening?"

"If that were the reason, I would have dismissed you long ago."

Tristan fell silent.

Ronald continued, his voice remaining calm.

"Your position isn't being revoked because of the divorce."

"That's a lie."

"Nor is it because I care more about Moana."

"Then why?"

Ronald looked his nephew straight in the eyes.

"Because from the very beginning..."

He paused briefly.

"...that position was never truly yours."

Tristan's brows knitted together.

"What do you mean?"

Ronald didn't answer immediately.

Instead, he gave a subtle nod to one of the company's lawyers.

A few moments later, the office doors opened once again.

Four archive staff entered, pushing a trolley stacked with dark brown document boxes.

The boxes looked old, but each one bore an official seal and archive number.

Every eye in the room immediately shifted toward the towering stack of documents.

Tristan frowned.

"What are those?"

No one answered.

Ronald walked over to one of the boxes and slowly lifted its lid.

Inside were neatly arranged old file folders that had been preserved for years.

He took out a black folder and handed it to the company's attorney.

"It's time."

The attorney nodded respectfully.

Christina began to grow uneasy.

"Mr. Tristan..."

She tightened her grip around his arm.

"I don't like any of this."

But Tristan still tried to remain composed.

"This is nothing but a performance."

Ronald turned to face the two of them.

His gaze was sharp, but no longer fueled by anger.

What remained was absolute certainty.

"The two of you have spent all this time looking down on Moana because you believed she had nothing."

Silence filled the room once again.

"You believed she lived solely on the Whitmore family's charity."

Not a single person interrupted him.

Ronald raised the black folder slightly higher.

"When in reality..."

His eyes slowly swept across every director standing frozen in place.

"...none of you have ever known the true identity of the woman you've been insulting."

Tristan's heartbeat quickened.

For reasons he couldn't explain, a terrible sense of foreboding crept into his mind.

Ronald then gave a slight nod to the company's attorney.

"Open the file."

The attorney drew a deep breath before carefully opening the aged folder, its seal unbroken for decades.

Ronald looked around at everyone gathered in the room.

Then, in a firm, authoritative voice, he declared,

"Today... the whole truth will finally be revealed."