When a group of stunning women arrived, the hundreds of men scattered across the mining area couldn't help but stare, their tasks momentarily forgotten. Some even turned off the roaring water pumps, and the high-pressure hoses they were using fell silent. This continued until a tall young man, over six feet in height, dressed in a black leather jacket, took a double-barreled shotgun from an assistant and aimed it toward the sky.
Bang! Bang!
Two loud shots rang out, scattering flocks of birds from the nearby forest.
The young man tossed the shotgun back to his attendant, his face fierce as he yelled at the workers, "Get back to work, now! Anyone caught slacking off will find themselves sealed inside one of these mines."
With this harsh threat, the workers quickly averted their gazes and resumed their tasks, the rumble of machinery filling the air once again.
Having set the tone, the young man's demeanor softened as the women approached. Alongside a younger man who bore a similar appearance but was slightly shorter, he greeted them warmly, "Nia, you actually came! I told you there's nothing interesting here—it's all dirt and grime. Ah, Natalia, Rina, Eve, good afternoon."
Eugenia ignored her brother Nicholas's friendly greeting and immediately pulled the leather jacket over his bare chest, zipping it up as she scolded him, "I'm telling Dad when I get back—you and Kirill look like a couple of hooligans again. Can't you dress a bit more respectably?"
She shot a glare at her second brother, Kirill Kolkoshko.
Kirill sheepishly zipped up his identical leather jacket and muttered, "Nia, there are a lot of people here. We have to keep up appearances."
Eugenia didn't care about his plea. She raised her small fist and thumped Kirill on the forehead. "There's your 'appearance'."
Accustomed to his sister's fiery temperament, Kirill just grinned and took a step back to avoid another thump.
Their attendants, seeing this interaction, simply smiled politely, clearly used to the dynamic. The miners working in the muddy pits nearby, however, were visibly shocked to see the fearsome Kolkoshko brothers acting so deferentially toward a young girl. Being common villagers from the northern border, they were unaware of the internal dynamics of Rovno's high society.
Once Eugenia finished scolding her brothers, Nicholas chuckled, "Nia, this place is filthy and chaotic. Let's go over there—I have something special to show you."
Eugenia nodded and took Natalia and Yekaterina by the arm, following her brothers toward a makeshift shelter by the edge of the forest. She kept chiding them, "Even Simon has told you both to act with more ambition, yet you're still fooling around like this. He'll be disappointed if he finds out."
Walking alongside her, Kirill defended himself, "Nia, that's just a front. These rough… guys at the border don't listen unless you get a little tough with them. We're perfectly respectable everywhere else."
Eugenia pursed her lips. "You two just like being bullies. It'll probably get Dad in trouble someday."
"No way!" Kirill protested. "We're not that foolish."
"You're both fools, all right. Two big idiots."
As they arrived at the shelter, the brothers guided the girls to a simple wooden table. Eugenia's three female guards took their positions nearby, while other attendants stood discreetly outside, facing away to ensure privacy.
Nicholas opened a wooden crate carelessly stacked in the shelter and pulled out a rough piece of amber the size of a fist. He handed it to Eugenia. "Look, blood amber. This used to be a royal exclusive. Kirill and I were planning to bring it back for you tonight. Think about what kind of jewelry you'd like made."
The two other girls gathered around to look. Although the amber was rough and still had patches of black crust, hints of a rich, wine-red glow peeked through, suggesting its high value even to those unfamiliar with gemstones.
As the three girls examined it, Natalia smiled up at Nicholas and teased, "So, Nick, you're only giving gifts to Nia? What about us?"
Nicholas shook his head with a grin. "No gifts for you two. Don't want Simon getting the wrong idea."
Eugenia quickly lost interest in the raw amber, tossing it aside after a few moments. She pulled her friends over to the crates, saying, "Then we'll just pick something ourselves."
Nicholas and Kirill didn't mind. They even assisted the girls, helping them gather the finest stones into a large box, promising to introduce them to skilled engravers.
After gathering their loot, Eugenia looked back at the mining area, where over a hundred miners were working.
Unlike many mines, the amber extraction here relied on using water pumps and high-pressure hoses to blast the ground, flushing out buried amber, which was then sifted from the mud.
Eugenia, despite her limited knowledge, immediately noticed an issue and said to her brother, "This way of mining seems wasteful. The hoses can only reach the surface—what about the amber further down? Plus, you've turned the whole area into a cratered mess. It looks awful."
Kirill laughed, "Nia, this is just how the poachers around here dig for amber."
"But this land is already under your control," Eugenia replied. "Why not do it properly?"
The Kolkoshko brothers exchanged a glance, their eyes gleaming shrewdly. Nicholas whispered to his sister, "It's intentional. We rough up the surface layer ourselves, then seal off the area to prevent poachers. Later, we'll dig deeper. The best pieces are further down, and we own this entire region—it'll take us decades to fully extract everything."
Eugenia glanced at her brothers skeptically. "Didn't know you two had it in you to think that far ahead."
The brothers just smiled.
They hadn't always been this sharp, but over the past two years, they'd learned from the Westeros network. Combined with guidance from their father and from a powerful young man they admired from afar, they'd started to catch on.
Eugenia pointed at the countless craters around them. "You can't just leave it like this. It's ugly. At least plant some trees."
"Of course," Kirill replied, "but it has to wait a few months. These pits are full of silt; anyone who falls in would disappear without a trace."
Eugenia raised an eyebrow, a thought occurring to her. "You're not actually dumping people into these pits, are you?"
She remembered the threat her older brother had made earlier, after firing the shotgun.
Kirill shook his head. "No way! These are our mines, after all. We'll be digging here later—no point in putting bodies in there."
But inwardly, he couldn't help but think, We have other places for that.
Eugenia wasn't fooled; her brother's shifty gaze hinted that they'd done other questionable things. Though she was shielded from the harsh realities by Simon, she was still aware of Rovno's political landscape and Ukraine's turbulent conditions.
Particularly the amber mine here.
High-profit resources attract fierce competition, and while the Westeros network held significant sway over Rovno, there were still inevitable conflicts.
It was the sort of situation where people tended to die.
Turning back to her brother, Eugenia said, "Nick, you know what Simon's plans for Dad are. You two had better be careful not to cause trouble that could affect him."
Nicholas nodded, promising repeatedly.
But inwardly, he didn't take her words too seriously.
Over the past two years, he and Kirill had realized one thing: as long as they remained utterly loyal to the man supporting their sister, nothing else mattered. Ukraine was a land for adventurers now—fortune favored the bold. Trying to make a living here while following all the rules was a fool's errand.
Less cautious than his brother, Kirill couldn't help but add, "Nia, you worry too much. Lazarenko handed the entire Ukrainian gas industry to Tymoshenko, and nothing happened. We're just running a few amber mines—it's nothing."
Before he could continue, Eugenia raised her hand and rapped him on the forehead again. "Watch your mouth!"
Kirill instantly regretted his words. His sister was—well, connected to Simon Westeros.
Kirill tried to recover. "It's different. Tymoshenko is just… you know. Not the same."
"Enough," Eugenia cut him off, raising her hand for another knock. "Just shut up."
Kirill sighed and clamped his mouth shut.
The girls had only come for a casual outing, so they left after a little more than half an hour, taking their box of amber. They planned to spend the night at the hot springs estate, unwilling to let some of the other girls claim it as their territory.
After bidding the girls farewell, the Kolkoshko brothers stayed until evening, giving final instructions to the guards before leaving with their entourage.
Instead of returning to Rovno, they headed to the northern hot spring resort. By the time they arrived, night had fallen. With steady business over recent months, the hot spring resort was bustling, drawing increasing numbers of tourists from Western Europe and North America as well as locals.
Though modest compared to renowned entertainment hubs, the resort—a combination of a hunting lodge, hot springs, and a military-themed amusement park—was proving to be a cash cow, inevitably attracting envious eyes.
Parking their car, the Kolkoshko brothers made their way straight
to the casino.
Being part of the Westeros network's core team in Ukraine, they were well-known here, and a manager personally greeted them.
Nicholas greeted the manager with a hug as they entered. "Akim, are Andrei and Alexander around tonight?"
Andrei Volodymyrka and Alexander Nagiev were in charge of the three sections of the resort. Familiar with each other, they often stayed in touch for smooth collaboration.
Though the Westeros network preferred a unified presence in Ukraine, Simon had encouraged its leaders to foster close ties with each other, ensuring the network remained interconnected.
Akim, the bald casino manager, glanced around and lowered his voice. "Andrei and Alexander are entertaining guests right now. Tymoshenko—you know her, of course."
The brothers were taken aback.
They had just mentioned her that afternoon, yet here she was in person.
Nicholas asked, "Do you know what it's about?"
Akim shook his head. "Not my place to know."
"Let them know we'll drop by to say hello."
"Will do."
With that, the three walked through the casino lobby and up to a dimly lit room on the second floor. The room was filled with a display of around twenty women, all strikingly beautiful.
Akim gestured to the front row. "A fresh batch, Nick, Kirill—you won't want to miss out."
The brothers each picked two girls and left the room.
While the Kolkoshko brothers enjoyed themselves, in another club lounge nearby, Andrei Volodymyrka and Alexander Nagiev were entertaining guests from Kyiv, led by Tymoshenko.
Tymoshenko's purpose was recruitment.
She wanted to bring Alexander Nagiev on board.
With Ukraine's abundance of military supplies, the success of the military-themed park here had sparked interest in creating similar parks elsewhere. Such ventures promised high returns without the risks of illicit arms deals.
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