Chapter 256: Resignation
The Presidential Island looked peaceful that afternoon. The sea stretched quietly beyond the cliffs while the soft wind carried the scent of salt and flowers from the gardens that had been carefully maintained for years. Ten years had changed many things in the world. Nations that once stood divided had become one under cooperation.
Wars had ended. Cities destroyed during the Sovereign conflict had risen again brighter than before. Humanity had stepped into an age that people once believed only belonged inside books and dreams. Yet among all those changes, this island somehow remained the same. It still carried the feeling of home. The place where victories had been celebrated, losses had been mourned, and countless memories had been born.
Sabrina Jonah arrived that afternoon.
The vehicle carrying her stopped before the main villa entrance, and shortly after, she stepped down slowly with a small smile on her face. She looked mature now in a way that time alone could create. The young woman who once stood beside Jayden in company meetings while trying to keep everything from falling apart had long disappeared.
In her place stood the woman who led the greatest company on Earth for an entire decade and turned it into an empire that no one could challenge. The staff greeted her warmly because almost everyone on the island knew her. Some even considered her family.
Jayden was already waiting near the garden side pavilion where he usually spent his quiet hours. A table had been prepared there with drinks and light food while the ocean breeze moved calmly through the area. He stood when he saw her approach.
"You came."
Sabrina smiled lightly.
"You asked me to."
"You insist it was a very official conversation."
Jayden gestured toward the seat.
"Sit first," he said.
They both sat.
For a short while neither spoke immediately. They simply looked ahead toward the sea while the sounds of distant waves filled the silence between them.
Jayden eventually broke it.
"You worried me, you know."
Sabrina looked at him.
"Because I wanted a face to face meeting?"
"You never do mysterious things."
She laughed softly.
"I didn’t know I had such a reputation."
"You absolutely do."
Her smile remained for a moment before fading into something quieter.
"There is a reason I wanted to come."
Jayden leaned back slightly.
"I figured."
Sabrina lowered her eyes briefly before lifting them again.
"I’m leaving."
The words landed calmly.
Jayden blinked once.
Leaving.
It was such a simple word.
Yet strangely heavy.
He remained quiet, and Sabrina continued.
"I’m engaged."
The silence afterward became longer.
Jayden looked at her properly this time.
For a second he genuinely looked surprised.
Then slowly...
A smile appeared.
"You’re serious?"
She nodded.
"Yes."
"When did this happen?"
"A while ago."
"A while ago?"
She laughed lightly.
"I know how that sounds."
"You kept this hidden?"
"I wasn’t trying to hide it."
"Then?"
"I just... didn’t know how to say it."
Jayden leaned forward.
"Who is he?"
Her expression softened.
"His name is Daniel."
"Daniel?"
She nodded.
"He works in Icelandia."
Jayden listened quietly.
"He’s part of the international infrastructure development council. We met during one of the reconstruction programs years ago and... things just happened."
She smiled while saying it.
Not the smile of a CEO.
Not the smile of the woman who commanded the greatest company in the world.
Just Sabrina.
Simple. Happy... And Human.
"We’re getting married in Icelandia," she said quietly. "And after that... I’ll be staying there."
Jayden did not answer immediately.
The wind passed between them again.
Sabrina lowered her gaze.
"I came because I wanted to apologize."
His eyes moved back to her.
"For what?"
"I’m leaving the company."
She looked genuinely guilty now.
"The position. The responsibility. Everything you trusted me with..."
Jayden suddenly stopped her.
"Sabrina."
She paused.
"That isn’t something you apologize for."
She looked at him quietly.
"You gave ten years of your life to that company," he continued slowly. "Ten years. You carried it through expansion, global recovery, international mergers, technology revolutions and everything else. You practically built the modern EC Consortium with your own hands."
Sabrina remained silent.
"You did more than enough."
"But I’m still leaving."
"And?"
She blinked.
Jayden smiled.
"Do you think I’d get angry because you found happiness?"
"No..."
"Then why apologize?"
Her lips parted slightly.
"You deserve this," he continued. "You deserve your own life. Your own family. Your own happiness."
The wind moved through the pavilion again.
Jayden leaned back.
"If anything..."
He smiled wider.
"I’m happy for you."
Sabrina’s eyes lowered.
"I really am."
For the first time since arriving...
The tension inside her seemed to disappear.
"You know," Jayden said suddenly, "I should be offended."
She looked up.
"Why?"
"You’re abandoning the biggest company on Earth."
She laughed.
"There it is."
"I’m serious."
"You’re not."
"I’m partly serious."
She shook her head while smiling.
Jayden continued.
"You’re not leaving quietly."
Her brows lifted.
"What do you mean?"
"I’m organizing a send off party."
Her eyes widened.
"Jayden..."
"No objections."
"That’s unnecessary."
"It absolutely isn’t."
She sighed helplessly.
"You worked too hard for too long. You deserve something bigger than a quiet goodbye."
He looked toward the sea.
"You deserve a heroine’s treatment."
Sabrina became quiet.
Years of memories moved through her mind.
The university days.
The first meetings.
The rise. The chaos. The victories.
The nights spent working. The impossible goals. The world changing around them.
And now...
This.
An ending.
Or perhaps the beginning of something else.
"Thank you," she said softly.
Jayden looked back at her.
"For what?"
"For trusting me all these years."
He smiled.
"You earned it."
Their conversation continued long afterward. They spoke about the company, about Icelandia, about her future plans and the life she wanted to build there. Sabrina even showed him pictures of Daniel and explained how strangely ordinary their relationship had been despite her position and fame. Jayden listened through everything with genuine interest, occasionally teasing her and asking questions she clearly expected him to ask.
Eventually evening arrived.
The sky turned orange.
Their meeting finally ended.
Sabrina stood near the path leading back toward the transport vehicle.
"So this is goodbye?"
Jayden shook his head.
"No."
She blinked.
"This is ’see you later.’"
A smile appeared again.
"That sounds better."
She stepped away slowly.
Then paused.
"Jayden."
"Yeah?"
"You really aren’t angry?"
He laughed.
"Sabrina, if I got angry every time someone found happiness, I’d be a terrible person."
She looked at him for a few more seconds.
Then nodded.
And left.
The vehicle drove away.
The island became quiet again.
Jayden remained standing there alone.
The evening wind brushed past him while the ocean below continued its endless rhythm.
His expression slowly turned thoughtful.
Sabrina was leaving.
The woman who had stood at the head of EC Consortium for ten years.
The woman he trusted more than almost anyone when it came to the company.
The woman who turned a growing empire into the greatest business force humanity had ever seen.
She was leaving.
His eyes moved toward the distant sea.
Now another thought entered his mind.
A troublesome one.
If Sabrina left...
Then who would take her place?
Who could handle that mountain of responsibility?
Who could sit in that office and lead the largest company on Earth?
Jayden exhaled slowly.
For the first time since the conversation ended...
He finally realized something.
Finding Sabrina’s replacement...
Might actually become harder than rebuilding a nation.
