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Ethan Montgomery built an empire with ruthless precision, optimizing every decision for power, control, and efficiency. But when an old acquaintance, Adrian Reeves, resurfaces after years of absence, cracks begin to form in the carefully constructed world Ethan has spent decades perfecting.

At first, Adrian appears to be nothing more than a forgotten remnant of the past—a man left behind by time. Yet, as Ethan peels back the layers of their reunion, he realizes that Adrian’s return is no coincidence. The empire Ethan once commanded with absolute authority is shifting beneath his feet, and the very foundations of his success may not be as unshakable as he thought.

And then there is Lena Carter—the one person Ethan could never fully claim, the one presence in his life that always remained just out of reach. As she withdraws from the world, she leaves behind fragments of truth—clues to a game Ethan never realized he was playing.

What unfolds is not merely a battle of business or power, but something far more personal. Betrayal, revelation, and an inescapable reckoning await. The real question is not whether Ethan can win—but whether he ever understood the rules at all.

Because in the end, success is only a mask. And masks, no matter how carefully constructed, are meant to break.

Table of The simple mask

Table of contents

Volume 1