“Mr. Glitter, you’re the undefeated student of a great martial artist.“Why can’t you evade my sneak attacks? “I must say, I’m disappointed that you are so weak. “I thought you have been training since you were a child. Is that all you can do?” Kaze stomped on Leigh’s chest, pinning him to the ground while hurling insults to strip him of his dignity. He was simply returning the favor to Leigh after what he did to the officers. The words cut Leigh like a knife. “Why?“Who is your teacher? Who taught you to fight?” Leigh hissed through clenched teeth, his eyes fixating on Kaze. He could still lie to himself before. However, reality sunk in that he was no match for Kaze. Still, he was not convinced Kaze was powerful. Kaze must have learned from a skillful fighter. While there did not seem to be a rhyme or reason for his attacks, Kaze was able to strike where it hurt the most. “Sorry to disappoint, Mr. Glitter. I’m just an amateur. I didn’t learn from some great mar
Max could not sit by and do nothing. The Glitters would inflict pain on him if he allowed Kaze to break Leigh on his watch. Hence, Max pointed at Kaze and threatened, “Think twice before you do anything, Kaze. “I admit that you have power and connections here. It makes sense that Mr. Glitter lost to you. “But don’t forget who he is. “I have contacted Mr. Glitter’s father. Do you know that you have pissed him off? “The fact that you and your wife run a few companies and boss Don around is no reason to do whatever you want.“The Glitters will bury you.“You can’t afford to face their wrath,” Max said sternly. Realization struck the group from Four Ocean Commerce Guilt. Only the rich and powerful ruled. So what if Kaze could fight? The criminal bosses had combat skills, but they did all the labor for the affluent family. “You will be making the Four Ocean Commerce Guild an enemy too, Kaze.” “Don’t let your little wins go to your head. We’re not living in the age be
“Argh!” Leigh let out a harrowing cry. Kaze broke his arm. “What are you doing, Kaze? Stop!” The hair-raising scream scared Max, making him weak in the knees. He quickly flipped out. “Do you know what you’re doing? “I told you that the new police chief is almost here. I can’t believe you’d make things worse for yourself.” Kaze glanced at Max and said with a smile, “I’m curious. Are you feuding with the Glitters?“His life is in my hands, but you kept getting on my nerves anyway.“If I were you, I would kneel and beg, not stir the pot.” Kaze then lifted his foot for another stomp. He stepped on the same area, causing further damage to Leigh’s broken arm. “Kaze!” Max shrieked with fright. Leigh groaned and unleashed his anger. “You’re a bastard, Max! Are you trying to get me killed? “Didn’t you hear him telling you to kneel?” Thump! Max fell to his knees without another word. “K, bro, please. Don’t hurt Mr. Glitter anymore.” Despite his pleas, Max did not hi
Several men in police uniform entered the residence. A rugged middle-aged man led the group of police officers. He was Pierce Woodcock, second-in-command in the city police force. Another group walked into the residence after Pierce’s team. The group was built like tanks. It was clear they were trained for combat. The middle-aged man with a ruddy appearance was the leader of the group. With his hands clasped behind his back, he exuded a dangerous aura.He set foot into the living room and frowned at the people kneeling. His eyes narrowed menacingly when he saw Leigh under Kaze’s foot. “There you are, Lyon. Save me. I’m so angry. I will destroy this guy!” lying on the ground, Leigh shouted excitedly.The middle-aged man was Lyon Hicks, the Glitters’ highly-paid aide. Wealthy families would hire aides for security and problem-solving. The rich and powerful would employ many aides to safeguard the family from harm. Lyon was more than an aide to the Glitters, thoug
Leigh’s cries could not drown out Kaze’s nonchalant speech. Lyon felt for Leigh. It was shocking enough that Leigh, a wealthy heir, was trampled under Kaze’s foot. Though faced by Lyon, one of the four titans in Sunrise City sent by the Glitters, Kaze continued to torture Leigh like no one else’s business. Kaze’s behavior was more than arrogant. He was taunting the Glitters in their faces. He had never seen the Glitters as a threat right from the start. Even Lyon was speechless. He thought that he could make Kaze surrender and resolve the issue quickly just by showing up. His identity spoke for itself. However, things had gotten out of hand. “You are cocky, boy.” Lyon looked coldly at Kaze, his eyes menacing. “But your attitude had better reflect your competence. “You are stepping on the heir of the Glitters. “His father, Zel, has power that can rival the head of the household. “He is also a council member of the Four Ocean Commerce Guild. He has sway over
Lyon threatened Kaze. He hoped Kaze would weigh his options and let Leigh go. When that were to happen, it would be time for Lyon to make his kill. Kaze observed the well-hidden murderous intent in Lyon’s eyes and smiled faintly. “You’re right. I didn’t want to make the Glitters an enemy over something trivial. “But Mr. Glitter here insisted on blowing the whole thing out of proportion. “His lapdog tricked my wife into taking compromising photos with the intention of making them public. He even sent his men to trash my wife’s beloved car. “Is he remorseful? No. He demanded I offer my wife to him. “Since he won’t just walk away, I don’t mind blowing up the whole thing.” Lyon believed Kaze had begun to waver. He smiled and said, “Mr. Glitter is only acting a little willful.” In Lyon’s view, he had softened his attitude.He even went ahead and admitted Leigh was at fault. Kaze should leave at that and quit while he was ahead. However, Kaze raised a brow. “A little
“Don’t just stand there, Kaze. Hurry up and let me go. I expect you to be on your knees too unless you want to get shot,” Leigh said with a snicker. He made up his mind to torture Kaze later. “Smack!” Kaze responded with a kick. Leigh nearly bit his tongue off when Kaze struck his chin. Even so, the pain was too much for Leigh to bear. “Did I say you can speak?” Kaze criticized without looking at Leigh. His chilling gaze fell on Pierce. “Deputy Chief Woodcock, those barely breathing on the ground are your colleagues. Even though you have been standing here for a long time, you ignored them. “You point your gun at the person who came to save them because someone from the Glitter family told you to. “Instead of directing your weapon to the bad guys, you go after the good guys. “Is this how you carry out justice, deputy chief? “Are you trying to tell me that you only hold good guys at gunpoint?” Pierce’s expression turned grim. Lyon said indifferently, “Pierce is
The mayor, who was less than 30 years old, was meant for greater things in the next decade or so. Pierce suspected the mayor was Kaze. He had to stop his mind from going down the rabbit hole. It was at that moment he decided not to make things difficult for Kaze anymore. The last thing he wanted was to be caught in the crossfire. Pierce could get himself killed for clashing with the new mayor. As sweat rolled off his forehead, Pierce stole a glance at Kaze, who kept a blank face, and put away his gun like nothing ever happened. He then turned around and said, “Mr. Hicks, I need to attend to an emergency now. I believe you are more than capable of handling the situation.” All Pierce wanted was to stay on the sidelines without offending either party. He could not afford to get involved in a conflict of this level. “An emergency?” Lyon scowled and said in a chilling voice, “What could be more urgent than working for Mr. Glitter?“Don’t you want to be the police chie
“Gone too far?” Phoenix said furiously, “Do you want to get it too, boy?” “Shut up, Kaze!” Not wanting the situation to escalate, Agnes charged over and said ingratiatingly, “I’m sorry, Madam Quint. We didn’t do a good job raising Sky. He simply didn’t think straight in the heat of the moment.”“I’m sorry. I’m really sorry!” Darcy apologized as well. “I’ll wipe the blood off you, Madam Quint. We don’t want to get your hands dirty.” Joan pulled out a tissue and cleaned Phoenix’s hands fawningly while uttering sarcastically, “You have no idea, Madam Quint. Some people have the money. They just don’t want to spend it.“As far as I know, our little leader is living in a villa worth several hundred million dollars in Riverbank. The villa was a gift from Mayor Synder too.“They didn’t give a bracelet that was only worth half a million because they have no money. They simply do not care enough for you, Madam Quint. “They’re just trying to fob you off since you’re only an old
“We from Chrysant City have given Madam Quint a bullet-proof Lincoln stretch from Uleania. The Lincoln will be Madam Quint’s ride in Riverbank,” a middle-aged man with glasses said smugly.Kaze glanced at the Lincoln stretch not too far away, understanding the value of the car. “Madam Quint can’t be staying in the hotel throughout her trip. We, the branch in Takeno City, are a family in politics, so we lack funding. Still, we borrowed a villa from a major corporation to accommodate Madam Quint,” a representative of the Takeno Quints said with a chuckle. The Takeno Quints talked about borrowing. Their primary focus was on politics, so they could not be honest about their net worth. However, every branch of the Quints presented Phoenix with expensive gifts. Each gift was worth at least five million dollars. The five-hundred-thousand-dollar bracelet from Darcy’s family seemed modest in comparison. Sure enough, Phoenix grew upset and raised her free arm to slap the gift box
Even Darcy did not think Phoenix would deny her. It was true that Darcy was supposed to gather all family branches in Riverbank. She would have to discipline the unruly and unite the rest. Her goal was to consolidate the family’s power and resources under her control. It was a clear and comprehensive strategy. Darcy had not anticipated such a response from her first meeting with Phoenix. It was harsh. Phoenix completely dismissed her. Darcy, though accepting fault, felt hurt. Agnes felt like her world was crumbling down. If Darcy was stripped of her leadership role, the family would go back to when things were bad. Ever since Darcy became the family head in the South River State, Agnes was treated like royalty everywhere she went. She was addicted to the privileges. Agnes never wanted to go back to those days when people would look down on her.“Darcy, where’s the gift you got for Madam Quint? Hurry up and apologize to her.” Agnes grabbed Darcy hastily. A
“You should know that Madam Quint loves flowers, and you came empty-handed. No flowers, no gifts.” “You talk about respect for Madam Quint. It’s all talk. What have you done for her?” “You are hicks from a small place like Lilyrose. Where are your manners? You’re lucky to become the head of the South River Quints, but you will always lack refinement.” “I’m starting to worry about this leader taking us to new heights. I guess we can consider ourselves lucky if she doesn’t bring us down.” “Yeah! She was late and came empty-handed. This tells us all we need to know about this family.” Taking Joan’s lead, the other family members lay into Darcy’s family thick and hard. “That’s enough!” Before Kaze said anything, Sky had a go at these people. “You tried to set my sister up, and now you’re putting the blame on us!“Only you had information of Madam Quint’s flight. You only let us know half an hour before the plane touched down. “Why didn’t we come earlier to wait in the airp
Kaze narrowed his eyes at the woman and drew close. “You’re a member of the South River Quints. Should you stand by your leader instead of stirring the pot and causing the scene? “Does family even mean anything to you? “Are you defying the family? “Who are you to disrespect Madam Quint and the family?” The woman staggered back with each question, her face draining of color.“I… You…” Flustered, she glared at Kaze. Still, she was at a loss in the face of Kaze’s questioning. “I assure you, Madam Quint. My daughter, Joan, doesn’t mean any disrespect.” A grizzled-haired middle-aged man with glasses came forward with an ashen face. “She was just trying to defend your honor, Madam Quint. She’s upset because someone disrespected you and arrived late.” This person was manipulative. While sticking up for his daughter, he also took the opportunity to belittle Darcy. “Doesn’t mean any disrespect?” Kaze snapped back, “Madam Quint hasn’t said a thing, but a nobody came out
It appeared Kaze and Darcy were not the only ones who got their hands on the special pass straight to the hangar. Five groups stood in close proximity, yet a clear divide was evident between them.Interestingly, that was as many branches as the Quints had in Ridgesouth.The smallest cluster belonged to Hector, Agnes, and Sky. They kept their heads down, hiding their distress. It looked like they were insulted. As Darcy and Kaze got out of the car, all eyes turned to them, and many sneered. “Can you even drive, Kaze? Look at the time! Are you expecting Madam Quint to wait for you? You have the nerve to show your face when you’re already late!” Agnes tore into Kaze. She threw Kaze under the bus in hopes of deflecting Phoenix’s anger from Darcy. Having seen through Agnes, Kaze did not make a fuss and explained, “Sorry, when we received word, Madam Quint’s plane was touching down in half an hour. “What? Are you blaming us for informing you late?” A tall and pretty woman
With Sasha putting the blame on herself, Kaze shook his head. He was not pointing fingers. “You can accept the pay from Herbal Spring.” Kaze said, “You’re not living at Herbal Spring for free. Your aunt is paying for you. Once you get into college, you can make more money to repay her.”“Really?” Sasha was skeptical. Besides boarding and lodging at Herbal Spring, Sasha was also taking medicine for her health. After working there for a while, Sasha had a general idea of things. Sasha’s medicine was expensive, and the medical bill was beyond the budget of most families. Kaze said, “You can ask Darcy if you don’t believe me. Your aunt even asked me if she had paid enough money when I was heading out this morning.” Despite knowing it was a lie, Darcy nodded. “Sasha, Kaze is right. Don’t feel burdened.” Sasha was naïve and gullible. Darcy’s statement gave Sasha the push. Since Kaze and Darcy were rich, Sasha assumed that her aunt must earn a lot. Her aunt could afford
Everett understood that Kaze would make a big deal out of the Golden Road at tomorrow’s auction. Of course, it was none of Everett’s business. He had no qualms about turning his back on Aiden. As one of the four underworld kingpins, Everett would give the Krads their due respect, but he did not owe Aiden anything. Aiden was an individual. He did not represent the Krads as a whole. “So that’s decided.” Kaze then said, “That reminds me. Have your people pick out a nice bracelet. I’m looking at the five-hundred-thousand-dollar range.”“Oh, consider it a gift from me. Just inform Marilyn.” Everett was quick to offer a gift. Kaze did not appreciate the gesture though. Everett was a cunning man. His generosity may seem like an olive branch. However, Kaze knew that given the chance, Everett would make him pay. Everett would never have the chance though. Kaze would fight back, and the consequences could be fatal. “Mr. Lee, Ms. Quint, are you happy with this bracelet
“I reckon that the stone might be important to someone within the Krads.“Aiden volunteered to take care of the business in Riverbank and go up against your wife. He’s not just here to suck up to his chief commander brother but to prove to the Krads that he’s better than the rest of the competition.“If he can gain that somebody’s favor, this can be bigger than his achievements in business.” Everett adopted the requirement analysis. Though Everett had no idea why the Golden Toad was important to the Krads, he understood Aiden’s needs. By grasping an individual’s core requirement, he was able to deduce something that was closer to the truth. “Has Aiden lost his head?” Kaze uttered in confusion, “He could’ve just gotten the thing from you at a better rate. Why is he getting to buy it from an auction?” Everett mentioned that the Golden Toad was worth tens of millions of dollars, but no more than a hundred million dollars. Aiden could have made a private deal with Everett.