Ethan arrived at AMAX before dawn expecting another normal day of training pitches and system refinement Instead he found a small crowd gathered outside the hall Whispering merchants curious apprentices and even a few guards with hands on their weapons Lorian rushed toward him face pale Ethan something happened overnight Ethan kept his voice calm What happened Mira walked forward pointing to a wooden sign nailed to the opposite building A burning symbol of a winged courier was painted in glowing red ink Under the symbol were the words FireWing Guild Opening Soon Lorian trembled They stole my idea Ethan examined the sign It was crude flashy and designed to grab attention more marketing stunt than service But it conveyed one thing clearly AMAX had its first competitor Ethan raised his voice addressing the crowd Anyone know who put this here A merchant stepped forward I saw cloaked men last night They wore courier guild badges Ethan nodded not surprised The traditional courier guild was the most threatened by Lorian and Mira The guild relied on runners enchanted pigeons and expensive scroll delivery Their dominance was old and vulnerable Ethan turned to his team Everyone inside We talk now The hall door shut muting outside noise Ethan gathered Lorian Mira Aria and the apprentices around the pitch table Aria spoke first voice steady They reacted faster than expected Ethan nodded Competitors always react fast to disruption especially weak ones Lorian squeezed the fire sprite in panic What do we do Ethan answered calmly We do what startups always do Build faster Learn faster Focus on customers not noise Mira said But the guild has resources connections and reputation Ethan replied Yes but they lack two things Insight and adaptability They cannot change they can only copy The apprentices looked relieved hearing his confidence Ethan then wrote three words on the chalkboard Differentiation Loyalty Speed Mira leaned forward Explain Ethan tapped the board Differentiation means our service must evolve faster than they can imitate Aria help Lorian upgrade sprite stability to reduce burn accidents That gives us an edge Loyalty means we build trust with early customers They already like our speed and our kindness The guild cannot copy authenticity Speed means we expand routes quickly We launch cross district delivery by end of week Mira blinked End of week That is fast Ethan said Exactly They want to intimidate us We respond with progress not fear Lorian slowly nodded Mira raised her chin with new confidence Aria simply began gathering chalk and crystals as if preparing for immediate work Because that was her nature The team got to work Ethan guided them like a conductor Lorian fine tuned sprite loops Aria reshaped runes to reduce energy loss Mira summoned variations of smoke hounds testing different sizes and endurance patterns Ten and the apprentices marked new delivery paths across the map Ethan watched them forming an early stage startup culture fast learning high trust low ego That was power A few hours later a messenger arrived carrying a sealed scroll from the courier guild Ethan opened it reading silently The guild accuses AMAX of illegal magical delivery services If you continue they wrote penalties will follow Ethan laughed softly and handed the scroll to Mira She crumpled it You are not scared Ethan No They are scared of us That is the difference Lorian straightened his posture Mira summoned a new hound Aria reshaped another rune The hall vibrated with determination In the afternoon three merchants returned asking about regular service and Ethan accepted new trial contracts They expanded routes added delivery slots and increased training hours By dusk the team collapsed from exhaustion but also pride Ethan stood before them and said Competitors do not destroy us They shape us They force us to grow Today we became stronger because they challenged us Lorian said quietly I will not let them take my idea Mira said And I will not let them take our customers Aria simply said Then we keep pushing Ethan nodded Tomorrow we launch a new initiative and this time everyone in Astravar will hear our name He looked at the glowing runes around the hall and said AMAX is not threatened We are awakening