Later that night, after dinner, Alex called Alfred into his room.
The elderly man was surprised and very curious as to the reason why Alex called him into his room, and what he wants to talk about.
Alex saw how the burning curiosity on Alfred's face and smiled, but it quickly faded, and was replaced with a solemn expression.
What he was about to discuss with Alfred is something that concerns his future and what he's trying to build for himself. It's not time for him to smile.
Alex sighed and coughed, clearing his throat before speaking.
"Alfred, how long have you been working for my family?" He asked.
Alfred looked at Alex with strange sense of amusement when he heard his question. He felt that something was up but he couldn't place his finger on what it is.
He had no idea why Alex is asking but he knew that he must answer.
"I was employed immediately after the Madam became pregnant with you. Just like how your older siblings have their own personal Butler, my role from the beginning was to become your personal Butler."
"Good. Now, I want to ask you something, Alfred, and I want you to be completely honest with me," Alex said, and paused.
"What is it, Young Master. Please ask away."
The atmosphere in the room was slowly charging up and becoming tensed.
"Alfred, where does your loyalty lie? Is it with my family or with me?"
Immediately, the tension in the air thickened—like a wire pulled taut between two unseen forces.
Alfred's posture stiffened, almost imperceptibly. His expression, though still composed, tightened ever so slightly at the corners.
The room, moments ago casual, now held a weight that pressed into the walls.
For a brief second, there was silence.
Alfred lowered his gaze for a moment, thoughtful. Not out of guilt or discomfort, but out of respect for the gravity of the question.
When he looked up again, the amused glint in his eye was gone—replaced by something different. He looked at Alex not as a servant to a boy, but as a man speaking to another man.
"My loyalty, Young Master," he said slowly, with a low voice, "has always been tied to my duty."
There was a brief pause, as Alfred's jaw tensed faintly.
"But duty is not a rigid thing. It grows. It shifts. And over the years, I have come to understand one truth about this family—every child is born into its shadow… but not every child finds their way out of it."
He stepped forward, just enough to cross the invisible line of formality that usually stood between them.
"I was assigned to you. But I stayed for you."
Alex's expression didn't change, but his eyes sharpened.
Alfred continued.
"The Master—Master Palmer, your father—may have signed my contract. The Madam may hold the ledger of the household. But neither of them knows you like I do.
You were given to me immediately after birth. Neither of them watched you struggle to sleep after nights of guilt, nor watched you destroy yourself looking for something no inheritance could ever give you."
He straightened his back and continued.
"I serve this family. But I follow you, Young Master Alex."
And just like that, the atmosphere shifted into something else, but the tension didn't fade
Instead it transformed. From uncertainty… into clarity.
Alex exhaled, deeply, and nodded.
"Thank you," he said softly.
"I appreciate your honesty, Alfred. I will talk to you in the morning."
"Good night, Young Master," Alfred nodded, and walked to the door.
"Good night, Alfred," Alex nodded.
Alfred nodded back, before opening the door and stepping out, and closing the door behind him.
After Alfred had left, Alex sighed deeply and collapsed back on his bed. His body plopped into the bed and he felt the stress of the day, leaving him slowly.
He stared at the ceiling as his thoughts went back to the conversation he just had with Alfred.
There was a reason why he ask that question. And the reason why he asked that question is because he wants to know if he can trust him.
Alex will need Alfred to do a lot of things for him in the coming days. But the reason why he wants to know if he can trust Alfred, is because he doesn't want him spilling what he's doing to his father.
Of course, he's aware that Alfred will have to report his progress and stuffs to his father from time to time, but there are things that he doesn't want his father to know. And he wants to be sure that Alfred can keep those things a secret.
"I will have him initiate the creation of the offshore trust and LLCs tomorrow," Alex murmured.
One might be curious as to the reasons why Alex wants to create an offshore trust and LLCs. The reason is because from the previous Alex's memories, he has come to understand lots of things about how the elite society work and the best way to move money without being detected.
Through the trusted and LLCs that Alfred will help to create for him, he can secretly scale things up, creating his empire in the shadows without his family's knowledge.
Since Alex had already decided that he won't be going back to the Palmer family, he will have to start slowly distancing himself from them, and finally cutting himself off.
Yes, blood will still tie them together but the Palmers has never cared about blood relations. To a multi-billion dollars family like them with so much on the line, you're only considered capable of the Palmer name when you're useful.
Alex was aware that if he wants to escape complete control of the Palmer family, then be will have to do everything in the shadow.
It's for this reason that Alex wants to create a separate bank account and one that his family won't be able to monitor.
This the same as the trust. It's being monitored by his family and the trustee will report every activities he does with it, to his father.
Alex sighed once more, as he slowly stood up from the bed, to go take his bath and retire for the night.
"Everything will fall into place soon."