Chapter 388
Although the livestream had a large audience, the feed was cut quickly, limiting
the initial spread. With Seth’s resources, suppressing the story wasn’t difficult. And given how much he cared for Bianca, he would spare no expense to clear the path for her.
That was exactly what infuriated Claire. “That’s Jerk Seth for you! Always cleaning up other people’s messes! All those years you spent on him were a complete waste!”
Noreen couldn’t have agreed more. “You’re right. I used to think that if you were good to people, they would be good to you in return. Now I realize it’s better to just be good to yourself. No middleman to take a cut.”
Claire could tell that Noreen had truly moved on, and she was genuinely happy for her. Still, she had to ask, “Do you have any regrets?” After all, it had been seven years of her life.
Noreen thought for a moment. “There’s no such thing as regret, only misplaced hope.”
“That’s my girl,” Claire said, her voice full of admiration. “Anyway, this is still worth celebrating! If you’re free, come pick me up at the airport! If not, I’ll just show up at your place and play house elf!”
“If you’re coming back, I’m always free.” Thıs text ıs hosted at ÍŸ.net
“Best friends for life!”
Noreen assumed Seth would be able to contain the incident, but she
underestimated how quickly things could spiral. The next morning, the fireworks story exploded onto social media.
*Aetheria* was met with a massive boycott and a flood of negative reviews. Users swarmed the game’s official website, condemning the company’s irresponsible behavior until the servers crashed. The game,
which had beer onling for less than
twenty-four hours, was reported so many times that it was taken down from app stores. Its fall was as swift and spectacular as a shooting star.
It all felt strangely familiar.
The company had attempted damage control, issuing an apology and promising to take full responsibility, but the public wasn’t buying it. Netizens dug deeper, not only exposing the company behind the game but also dissecting the gantes content. What they found was shocking. Aetherias later-stage plot was rife with
violence, gore, sexually suggestive themes, and even deeply offensive and unpatriotic content.
These were highly sensitive issues that crossed a line no one was willing to
forgive. That was why the game was removed so quickly, with almost zero chance
of ever making a comeback. The company would now face massive fines and potential lawsuits.
But in the immediate aftermath, an even bigger crisis was brewing. The internet sleuths had not only flagged the game’s content but had also uncovered its primary investors. Ascendancy Group held the largest stake, followed by Seymour Group. Both companies saw ther stock prices plummet. Ascendancy Group suffered the most, with its stock dropping four percent, wiping out nearly a billion dollars in market value. Seymour Group, already on the brink of being delisted due to poor performance, was now facing total collapse.
At the airport, Noreen waited for Claire at the arrivals gate, but she was nowhere to be seen. Just as Noreen was about to call her, a commotion erupted near the VIP exit.
Someone in the crowd was shouting, “It’s you! You greedy businessmen! You’ll do anything for a profit! Do you have any idea what those fireworks did to the local ecosystem? That’s protected land! What were you thinking, setting off explosives there?”