Although Steven had always suspected Max came from money, he had never guessed this level of wealth.
The moment Joe mentioned the Stern family name, Steven hurried to his desk and grabbed his phone. He started searching online, and when he typed in the words Stern family net worth, the number of zeros made his head spin.
"No wonder he was able to clear all my debts like it was nothing," Steven muttered, jaw slack. "That guy... he’s not just rich."
Joe was nodding along, finally able to let it all out. A huge wave of relief washed over him. For a moment, he’d questioned if he was just overthinking things, but now, it all added up.
"You know what this means?" Joe said, grinning greedily. "It means we can totally ask for a raise! I mean, with that kind of money, it wouldn’t hurt him at all to give his dear friend just one little million, right? Right? Then I’d never have to work another day in my life!"
He burst into laughter, practically glowing with excitement. It was like he’d just hit the jackpot.
"Man, they say money changes people... and I’m watching it happen in real time," Steven said, shaking his head with a small smirk.
Truthfully, while Steven wouldn’t mind fantasizing about having endless wealth, that was as far as it went. Having Max clear his debts had already felt like winning the lottery. The truth was, having someone help you when you were desperate, when you needed it most, meant more than being helped when things were fine.
Still, Steven’s rational side kicked in.
"Hey, aren’t you jumping the gun a little?" he asked. "Didn’t you used to bully the guy? Why would he reward his old bully with a truckload of cash?"
Joe’s heart sank like a stone. His knees buckled, and he collapsed to the mat, slamming his fist into the floor.
"Why, Joe? Why?" he shouted at himself. "You foolish idiot! This is why you don’t just go along with stuff without thinking! If I’d known who he was, if anyone had known, none of us would’ve touched him!"
"You know," Steven said thoughtfully, rubbing his chin, "you’ve got a point. But then again, why did he keep his identity a secret? Why use a fake name? Why go to your school instead of one of those private academies where rich kids make their power connections?"
He gestured around. "With that kind of money, he could’ve paid people to stop bullying him, or just hired someone to beat up anyone who laid a hand on him."
Joe thought about it. In a way, Max had done something like that eventually. But not before suffering through so much on his own. Joe knew better than anyone how long Max had endured torment in silence, despite sitting on a mountain of wealth the entire time.
"Did Dipter have something on him?" Joe mumbled aloud. "If I think back... Max only started using his money after he dealt with Dipter. But that still doesn’t make sense. Dipter was just some delinquent."
"You know," Steven said, "now that we actually know who he is, a lot of this doesn’t make sense."
He leaned back, brows furrowed.
"With that kind of money, Max could live a carefree life. He’s set. He could retire now, and never worry again. But instead, he’s out there running around with this Bloodline group, doing who knows what."
Steven let out a breath. "Honestly, I can only come up with two possible explanations. Either he’s doing all of this because he’s bored, and the bullying thing was part of the act. Or... there’s some rich-people-level problem we just don’t understand."
"What makes you say that?" Joe asked.
"Well, even when I search ’Max Stern,’ there are a few reports that pop up, but barely any pictures of him. Compared to the other Stern family members, who have hundreds of articles and media coverage, Max is like a ghost. It’s almost like someone’s scrubbed him from the entire record."
He shook his head slowly.
"Honestly, if all we had was Max’s name, and he told us he was part of the Stern family? I probably wouldn’t believe him. There’s barely any proof, aside from the crazy stuff we’ve seen him do."
Joe went quiet. He was starting to feel something unexpected, guilt.
For someone they now spent so much time with, someone they fought beside and respected... they barely knew anything about him. It was only now that they were learning who Max really was.
Meanwhile, Max continued to walk beside Vivian, who remained mostly silent. Eventually, she called for a taxi, of all things.
She hadn’t arrived in her own vehicle, and they weren’t meeting anyone else. It raised two possibilities in Max’s mind.
Either she’s underestimating me because I’m just a student... or she’s confident she doesn’t need anyone’s help.
When they finally exited the taxi, Max looked up, surprised. They were at a shopping mall.
Vivian didn’t explain. She just kept walking along the outer edge of the building. Then, finally, she spoke.
"I’m sure it must’ve been a shock, me calling out your name like that," she said. "To be fair, I’ll tell you mine. It’s Vivian."
She glanced at him, her tone casual but firm.
"I have to admit, I was surprised to learn that someone of your status is attending a regular public school. Then again, rich people do weird things all the time."
As they walked along the perimeter of the mall, Max tried to form questions in his head, questions that would reveal information from her, but not give away too much about him.
"So... why did you want to meet me?" Max asked, careful with his words. "Is it something to do with my family?"
"I guess you could say that," Vivian replied cryptically.
She gestured for Max to go ahead of her. He followed her gaze and saw a staircase leading to the upper level of the shopping mall. At the top, he spotted a familiar neon-lit sign: a KTV establishment. Discover stories at
They walked up the steps together and followed the hallway to one of the private rooms.
"I didn’t say much before," Vivian said, "because I didn’t want to reveal too much too soon. But I think you’ll catch on pretty quickly."
With that, she opened the door.
Max stepped inside, and stopped in his tracks.
Seated on a velvet sofa, calmly looking in his direction, was someone he recognized immediately.
It was Chad Stern.