Chapter 327: The Arc Reactor
Nando could easily get product from his gang leader friend and become a second-tier distributor.
But he couldn't purchase directly from Heisenberg and become a first-tier distributor.
On the surface, both options looked the same—buy product, sell product. What difference did it make?
The difference was enormous.
If Nando became a first-tier distributor, he would sit at the main table—the people who directly divided the cake. That meant taking a slice from the existing first-tier distributors. And since the cake was only so big, their shares would shrink.
When the top tier's portion shrinks, the second-tier, third-tier, and lower-level distributors beneath them all feel the squeeze. Everyone down the chain gets less.
But if Nando joined as a second-tier distributor under someone else, the main cake division wouldn't change at all. Only the internal allocation within that particular distributor's hierarchy would shift.
In simple terms:
Becoming a first-tier distributor affects the entire system.
Becoming a second-tier distributor only affects one branch.
One move shakes the whole board. The other is just a localized adjustment.
But there was another critical factor—Nando was Brazilian, not American.
No matter how powerful he was in Brazil, no matter how feared or influential, in the United States he was still an outsider.
If he triggered collective resentment among the domestic first-tier distributors, they could easily push him out of the game entirely.
So even though the staggering profits of Blue Angel made his eyes burn with envy, he had no choice but to exercise patience.
Now that he had connected directly with Heisenberg and had a real chance to become a first-tier distributor—someone seated at the table dividing the cake—why would he settle for being a second-tier distributor and let someone else skim profit off him?
He would rather wait.
Wait until Heisenberg's production scaled up.
Wait until there was more cake to go around.
Then step in properly—at the top.
Frank spent a long time talking with Nando, repeatedly assuring him that once the formula was optimized and large-scale production became possible, he would be the first to be contacted. Only after making that promise did he send Nando back to Brazil.
Nando was a major drug lord in Brazil—"listed" in more than one country. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration had his name clearly marked on its watchlist.
If the DEA discovered he was in the United States, he would be detained immediately.
So it wasn't convenient for Nando to stay long. After only a few days, he returned to Brazil.
And yet—a man on the DEA's radar could stroll into the U.S., commit a murder, dump a body into a lake, and leave without consequence. The audacity was staggering.
What was more, he had sent his daughter to the United States and enrolled her in university—essentially placing his own weakness in what should have been enemy hands.
Yet no one in authority seemed to notice. As if blind.
Whether that meant Nando's influence reached extraordinary heights—or that the government was feeding incompetence with taxpayers' hard-earned money—was hard to say.
Then again, considering that "Frank" had hidden a corpse and fraudulently collected Ginny's survivor benefits for over a decade before the government finally noticed and sent someone to investigate… the efficiency of American bureaucracy spoke for itself.
Nando had chosen Jimmy as his son-in-law instead of just anyone precisely because of his own sensitive identity.
Although Nando had returned to Brazil, his daughter and Jimmy were still legally married. That issue hadn't been resolved.
Until a suitable replacement was found and Nando approved, Jimmy wouldn't be free.
Until then, he still had to play the role of husband.
---
"Dad!"
That weekend, Lip rushed home to find Frank.
Frank stood up immediately when he saw him.
"What the hell happened to you? Have you not slept in days?"
Lip looked terrible—haggard, unshaven, heavy dark circles under his eyes.
"Dad, I figured out what that blueprint is," Lip said breathlessly. "The guy who gave it to you—wasn't he that 'Whiplash' guy from the news?"
Frank didn't answer directly. Instead, he shifted the topic.
"You figured out what's on the blueprint?"
"I can only understand part of it. A lot of it still doesn't make sense. But after I saw the news that night, I realized the design looks a lot like Iron Man's energy source."
"I've been studying it these past few days. I even went with my professor to Stark Industries and saw their large-scale Arc Reactor."
Lip's eyes burned with excitement.
"I'm certain. That blueprint is for an Arc Reactor."
The miniature Arc Reactor in Iron Man's chest was a miniaturized version of the original design.
The original Arc Reactor had been created by Iron Man's father. It was massive—an industrial-scale energy facility designed to power factories or even entire city blocks.
But it was astronomically expensive to build. Compared to traditional power plants, it was far less cost-effective, which was why it never saw widespread adoption. Most people dismissed it as flashy but impractical.
Only one existed—inside Stark Tower, powering Stark Industries itself.
No one paid attention to it.
Until the genius Stark miniaturized it, built the Iron Man suit, and revealed its true potential to the world.
And the blueprint Ivan had given Frank—
was the design for an Arc Reactor.
---
"Have you told anyone about this?" Frank asked sternly.
Governments and powerful organizations had used every method imaginable to get their hands on Iron Man's technology.
Stark had the entire weight of Stark Industries behind him. That was the only reason he could stand up to them.
But their family? They were just ordinary people living in the South Side.
Compared to those forces, they were grasshoppers—easily crushed.
Even if Frank now had some money, it was nothing compared to Stark Industries. Not even a single hair on a cow's back.
Worse, Frank's business wasn't exactly legal.
If anyone found out they possessed Arc Reactor blueprints, there were countless ways to wipe out the whole family and take it.
To many, the blueprint was a treasure.
To Frank, it was a burning-hot potato.
"Don't worry," Lip said quickly. "I haven't told anyone. I've just been researching it myself in the lab."
Frank followed Lip into his room. Lip pulled the blueprint from his bag.
Frank stared at the design, frowning deeply.
Ivan had claimed it was worth billions.
Looking at it now… that might actually be true.
But only if you could sell it.
And only if you weren't "invited for coffee" by certain agencies before you ever had the chance.
To others, it was unimaginable wealth.
To Frank—
it was danger in paper form.