….

  About thirty mier, Regal found himself ba the same office as the day before.

  The same room. The same time of day.

  Sitting across from him? The same faces.

  Gwendolyn sat across the desk, posed and effortlessly stunning.

  Maggie stood nearby, having just returned with two cups of tea and snacks, a small but thoughtful gesture to smooth over the m.

  If oo look at Maggie - she is a woman in her early forties - and had been a loyal employer for Everleaf Press even before the present 'boss' took over the pany.

  Despite the tough times to the point she had to occasionally do odd jobs, simir to being a 'receptionist' yesterday, she was dedicated to tinue.

  Overall, she is a part manager, part assistant, part friend, part well wisher and always there to lend a hand to her current boss, Gwendolyn.

  And yes, of course, she receives the immense resped pay bonus she deserves from Gwendolyn, who holds her in high regard.

  ing back, by the time Maggie set the tea and snacks down, the polite pleasantries had run their course.

  And now, it was time for business.

  On the surface, everything seemed unged.

  But Maggie could feel the shift.

  There was a subtle ge in the air - a quiet mutual respect that hadn't been there before.

  Maggie had a pretty good idea why.

  Her boss, Gwendolyn, had made her iions clear before the start of the meeting - she wao colborate with Regal, and there was no ging her mind.

  Maggie had also read a portion al's manuscript, something she had done just that m.

  Surely, it wasn't enough to judge the entire book, but it was lightyears ahead of the usual junk they ofte in the name of manuscripts.

  After reading it, ohing was clear, Regal had potential.

  Maybe not today, but tomorrow?

  There are some ces.

  Maggie uood why Gwendolyn's took such a stance, even if it is too bold.

  She wasn't blind to their situation - they have been in their downfall with many of their past ventures falling and were in no position to be picky.

  The pany needed a win, and Regal?

  He might be it.

  But something didn't sit right with her.

  Regal was being too forward.

  …and more than that he was showing it on his face.

  Why?

  They his deal to work, but Regal?

  He shouldn't be that desperate like them.

  Sure, he was a debut writer, but he didn't have to be ined to this opportunity like they were.

  From what she had seen, Regal Seraphsail, a young man in his twenties, prided himself on his worth and believed his book was something special.

  Whether that belief was justified or not didn't matter.

  But often, people like him tend to dream big and usually don't settle for small panies uhey are in an urgent need - reition, money, or a break.

  Even if it means taking a few losses.

  It was the only logical clusion she could reach.

  So that automatically makes them have an upper hand in this deal.

  Of course their pany is as desperate if not even more than his but Regal didn't o know about that.

  The atmosphere shifted, turning serious as the versation was about to begin.

  But despite the tension, there was an undeniable ease between Gwendolyn and Regal.

  Maybe it was their simir ages, or maybe they saw a simir spark of ambition in each other - or something else entirely.

  Maggie couldn't quite put her finger on it.

  What she could expect was a heated bad-forth.

  Regal wouldn't fold easily, aher would Gwendolyn. She was almost looking forward to how it would unfold.

  But then, Gwendolyn shattered her expectations with a single sentence.

  "Regal, if you would like, allow us to publish your book."

  "..." The silehat followed was deafening.

  ?!Maggie's eyes widened in disbelief. Had she missed something?

  Gwendolyn had just tossed away their biggest bargaining chip as if it meant nothing. It was an unspoken rule iiations - never reveal how much you he other party.

  Yet here was Gwendolyn, ying it all bare without a hint of hesitation.

  Regal, for his part, choked down his tea internally, his expressioraying nothing. He set the cup down with a light cough, masking his surprise.

  "Bos–!"

  "Believe me Maggie. I have already thought it through. We are doing this."

  Maggie began, her voice filled with uainty, but Gwendolyn cut her off with a soft yet firm wave of her hand.

  As the seds ticked by, the weight of Gwendolyn's boldness hung in the room.

  Maggie's thoughts spiraled - What's her angle?

  She had been told this would happen, but why say it like this? So openly?

  In fact she fears Regal might misinterpret that they are scheming something underhanded, when she could see Gwendolyn genuinely wishing to assist him.

  But how would he know that? He had only met Gwendolyn once before this meeting and it was very brief.

  Her attention moved ontal, who seemed to be thoughtful, as his gaze locked onto Gwendolyn as he was suspicious of her. -

  "Hahe…" However, to her shal let out a mirthful ugh and gave his terminal answer. "Okay, I agree."

  "....." Gwendolyn.

  "....." Maggie.

  The fusion was evident as they both exged a ghat's it?

  her of them had expected him to gullibly accept without doubting their iions - the versation to take this turn so quickly.

  ….

  .

  After that, despite their skeptiess they dove into the details of the tract.

  Gwendolyn, as the CEO of the Everleaf Press put forth a straightforward tract - still it is better then what a debut authors would get.

  The deal id out was simple enough.

  An advance of - 10,000.

  The amount will be divided into two halves with the first half being paid right after signing the trad the other on the day of unch.

  Royalty Rate - 12% of sales for the first 50,000 copies, and 15% for all copies beyond.

  Initial Print Run - 5,000 copies.

  Marketing Budget - 3,000 allocated for social media campaigns, bookstore signings, and mailing copies to iial bloggers and early reviewers.

  Retail Price for hardcover book - 16.99

  Regal skimmed through the details carefully before putting the tract down oable.

  " I get a pencil?" He asked, his hand already outstretched without even looking up from the paper.

  Gwendolyn nodded, and Maggie handed him a pencil.

  Regal leaned forward, making a few adjustments to the tract with quick strokes of corre.

  After a few seds, he hahe paper back to Gwendolyn.

  She picked it up, and began sing through the ges he made.

  "...Are you for real?" She questioned, rubbing her forehead with one hand, the other still holding the tract.

  Maggie, a little surprised by her boss's rea, leaned in slightly, trying to see what had caused this shift. But the moment Gwendolyn caught her, Maggie quickly pulled back, feigning innoce.

  Regal shrugged, unfazed. "I am betting on myself just as much as you are betting on me."

  Gwendolyn's gaze sharpened as she id it out bluntly. "You wouldn't get a penny if this book didn't work out."

  "I will be printing money if it's a hit." Regal tered.

  "You are being too greedy." She replied, though her tone wasn't harsh. It was more like a gentle reprimand.

  "I just kly what the worth of this book is." Regal said with fidence.

  Gwendoly out a soft sigh, not out of disappoi, but .

  She had already been juggling a lot with her newly formed retionship, and this added stress wasly helping.

  Maggie, now even more intrigued by the bad-forth, leaned in again, this time without trying to hide it.

  Her curiosity was obvious.

  That's when she finally saw the details Regal had ged on the tract.

  The advance payment was cut to zero.

  And the royalty rate?

  It had been sshed from 12% to 3% for the first 100,000 copies - a massive jump from the initial 50,000 - but to ba out, the pertage for copies beyond that was bumped up from 15% to 20%.

  The half of the advance payment was now requested to be used for printing the initial copies.

  The rest was to be allocated to the marketing budget.

  As for the chts?

  The publishing rights for the book would belong to Everleaf Press, granting them trol over the distribution and marketing of the final work, including the iional. However, Regal retaihe adaptatihts, ensuring that any future iterations - whether in the form of sequels, spin-offs, transtions, merdise or adaptations for other mediums - remained under his personal trol.Still, as Maggie read through the royalty distributial had proposed, she felt the blood drain from her face.

  Clearly, it was a one-sided deal, entirely in their favor, even if the book turned out to be a hit.

  Fal to see any real profit, the book would have to make massive waves, enough to pete with the bestselling books of the year.

  That's when she remembered his initial 'pick-up' lio her boss when he first pitched the project.

  Regal passed her the water bottle from his side, looking at her with a faint grin.

  "Curiosity kills the cat."

  Maggie, startled by the sudden call-out, straightened up in her chair.

  Even before she could take a sip, the sudden interruption was enough to quell her hiccups.

  Regal knows what he is doing.

  Right now, more than anything he needs cash.

  Cold, hard cash.

  …not some chump ge.

  It isn't just for his survival.

  He needs enough moo kick-start a small indie film.

  He was dead set on it.

  Fal, now living in this young man's life, it felt like a bittersweet irony.

  The boy had been so much like him- an aspiring director brimming with ambition but crushed by relentless bad luck.

  Six months ago, things had taken a sharp turn.

  The boy's father, Ryder Seraphsail, died in a car act.

  He is a man who spent his te forties chasing the dream of success as a scriptwriter.

  He hadn't found it.

  Dreams remained just that - dreams.

  Anyway, with Ryder gohe boy lost the modest ihat had kept the household running.

  s, thankfully, but no saviher.

  Left on his own, he scrambled to stay afloat - juggling too many responsibilities on far too little sleep.

  He had worked tirelessly to get into a prestigious film school, believing that education was his ticket to a future in the industry he loved.

  But without financial support, things unraveled fast.

  He already quit college due to looming tuition bills.

  Rent for his tiny apartme unpaid.

  He is barely eating three meals a day.

  Still, he didn't quit on his dream.

  Between part-time jobs and freence gigs, he wrote scripts, sending them out in the hope someone would notice.

  …and there was also his twin sister -

  Unlike him who dropped out, she is still in her final year of college.

  Regal was lucky enough for the fact that she stayed in the college dormitory, far enough from home to avoid seeing the mess he had made of his life.

  If she had been closer, there was no ce he could have dropped out.

  She would have fought him every step of the way, like she always had when he made rash decisions.

  There was also the fact that - she couldn't stand the film industry.

  And frankly, the boy, and even Regal, uood why.

  Their father had spent his life chasing success in it, too often putting his family on the back burner. In the end, all he had earned was the bitter title of failure.

  For the st three months, the boy had avoided meeting her in person, crafting endless excuses about his busy college schedule. The st thing he wanted was for her to see the hollow shell of his life.

  He thought he could make everything right with his success.

  Then a few days ago 'something' happened.

  Regal woke up in the boy's body, his memories and struggles now his own.

  It was frankly, cruel - to wake up in the life of someone so simir to his own.

  .

  ….

  [To be tinued…]

  ★─────??★??─────★

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