Chapter 459

He couldn’t keep drifting like this—lost, aimless, going nowhere. It wasn’t a solution. It wasn’t a life.

As soon as he got back, Joseph marched straight into the company and went to find his father.

“Dad, I don’t want to hide my identity anymore.”

The words barely left his mouth before Albert’s blood pressure practically skyrocketed.

“You ungrateful brat. What the hell are you talking about?”

“So, now everything’s on your terms? Should I just hand you the keys to the company and walk out?”

Joseph took the verbal lashing without protest. “Alright, alright. I know I messed up. Just stop yelling, old man. I get it. But you can relax this time. I swear I’ll handle things properly. I won’t mess it up again.”

He held up three fingers solemnly. “I swear, this is the last time.”

Albert looked like he might pass out.

He patted his chest to calm himself, mumbling under his breath, “He’s my son. My only son. I can’t kill him.”

He was, after all, the Hunt family’s one and only heir.

“So?” Albert snapped. “What happens after you stop hiding your identity?”

He didn’t believe for a second that Joseph had suddenly grown a brain.

Did the kid somehow figure out the board was already eyeing him as the next in line?

Joseph was silent for a moment, clearly thinking it through.

Eventually, he shook his head.

“Honestly? I’m not sure yet.”

“I just know that I’m old enough now–I should be trusted with real responsibility.”

He was tired of floundering. He had thought starting from the bottom would prove something to his father.

But now? He realized how naïve that was, especially after seeing how far Judy had come and how clearly she’d found her path.

It made him realize how little he had figured out.

Even Judy had found her direction.

And him?

He was still fumbling in the dark.

Albert looked at his son, disappointed and frustrated beyond words. It was like watching a gold mine that refused to be dug.

Albert knew exactly what kind of son he had–one who never took things seriously, who always seemed to be playing around and never accomplished much of anything.

And that was precisely why he’d been so reluctant to hand over the company.

As long as he could hold on, he would.

This business was his life’s work–decades of sweat and sacrifice.

He wasn’t about to watch it go up in smoke.

The thought alone made his blood boil as he looked at Joseph–his careless, spoiled heir. “Fine,” Albert snapped. “Do whatever you want. Just stop standing there like a statue.”

He couldn’t help but grumble as he waved him off. “You’re a grown man. Can’t you think about something serious for once? All you ever think about is love and drama. The only thing that matters in the end is money. The kind you can hold in your hands.”

Joseph said nothing, head bowed.

Because deep down, he knew his father was right. Every word of it.

If he kept drifting like this, he wouldn’t last long–not in the business, not anywhere.

“Dad, I get it now. I know I messed up. I’m ready to follow your lead,” Joseph said, lifting his head and looking his father in the eye.

“I’ll do what you say. I’m ready to grow up. I just want to make progress now.”

Albert narrowed his eyes. “You serious?”

He wasn’t sure he believed it.

His son had never sounded so sincere.

Was this really Joseph? Did he finally grow a conscience overnight?

Joseph nodded, firm and steady. “I want to learn everything about the company, as fast as I can. That way, I can take some of the weight off your shoulders.”