The Quints were frightened, thinking it was another debt collector knocking on their door. The debt collectors had broken down the Quints’ gates before, and the shameful past still haunted them to this day. “Kaze!” Nevertheless, the Quints saw red when they saw who it was. They quickly tucked their emotions away, though. Kaze was no longer a man they could afford to cross. He was the chairman of Shangrila Group and the CEO of Hudson Investment Firm. Those titles alone lifted Kaze out of the loser status.At least, no one in the Quint family had the right to call him a loser. By the look on Kaze’s face, he was not here for the party. The Quints felt unsettled and confused by his aggressive approach. “Agnes, um…” Without the nerve to question Kaze, Logan turned to Agnes in distress. Agnes slammed the table and rose to her feet before uttering peevishly, “What the hell, Kaze? Why did you kick the door down? Hurry up and apologize.” “Darcy is abducted.” Kaze’s re
Samus could finally catch his breath. He held his neck and coughed in agony. Rudy grimaced hard. Between his son and daughter, he chose the former without hesitation. “Call Deborah now.” Rudy told his wife before saying with an ashen face, “Deborah told us that Madam Hacks bailed her out of jail. Ms. Roberts, a servant of Madam Hacks, came to her last night, but I don’t know the details of their conversation.” “No need to dive into the details.” Since Kaze already had his suspicions, he cut Rudy off. “So you don’t know where Deborah is now?” “We have no idea. It’s true, Kaze. Please believe us,” Rudy pleaded. As Rudy did not look like he was lying, Kaze nodded and turned to Whitney. “Did you get through to her?” “She’s not answering.” Whitney stared at him fearfully. Kaze frowned and replied, “Give me her phone number.” The earlier call from Deborah was through a satellite phone, so the call could not be tracked. After acquiring the phone number, Kaze turned to
Zion Mercenaries’ activities had been expanding to the East in recent years. The Geranium City’s Hackses had worked with Zion Mercenaries before. This time, Gareth had Mary Sue orchestrate Darcy’s abduction. Since Madam Hacks wronged Gareth over the incident with Stone, she hired Zion Mercenaries to come to Lilyrose. “Alright. Take me there. I’ll wait for Kaze there.” Madam Hacks said indifferently, “Loid won’t budge. I heard Kaze could get through to him. “We can use that bastard’s wife to make him build a bridge between Loid and me.” “Yes.” Mary Sue escorted Madam Hacks into the car. However, Kaze was one step ahead of them. Kaze tracked Deborah’s phone through the military to the factory on the outskirts. The factory was surrounded by vast space used for farming. There was a reason Darcy was brought there. Those in the factory could keep an eye on anyone approaching. So as not to spook the abductors, Kaze chose to drive alone. The factory must not be in
Close to twenty men surrounded Kaze. “Why do you have to put yourself in this situation, boy? Well, you asked for it.” The cocky leader blew a puff at Kaze’s face and reached out to slap his face. “Smack.” Kaze threw his fist at the leader’s face. Before the leader knew it, Kaze grabbed and twisted his wrist but not without stuffing the cigarette in his mouth. “Mgh!” With the cigarette burning the leader’s tongue, he cried out in agony. “Let go of Steel!” Livid, the other thugs swung their steel pipes at Kaze. “Whack!” Kaze kicked the leader in the head before charging into the crowd. A minute later, close to twenty men crumpled on the ground. The first few who surrounded Kaze suffered broken limbs. They looked at Kaze as if they had seen a ghost. These thugs often took advantage of the weak, demanding money from trucks that supplied stock to the factory. They met their match today. “If I find even a tiny scratch on the car when I get out, each one of
Members of Zion Mercenaries were war veterans. Many of them had witnessed the power of the God of War Blow on the battlefield. The lethal maneuver was etched in their minds. The foreign mercenaries recognized Kaze’s upbringing by the way he fought. Kaze’s proficiency in the God of War Blow meant he was an Arcadian soldier who had gone to war before. “Oh, you recognize the God of War Blow? Not bad. “It was meant to be called the Kill, and I specifically developed it to take down the five strongest nations on the battlefield.” Kaze drew close with a straight face and explained callously. “What? You developed the God of War Blow? “Are you from the God of War Palace?” the foreigner blurted, his eyes meeting Kaze’s in disbelief. As far as he knew, the Arcadian soldiers named the technique the God of War Blow because it was developed by the man himself. The God of War was a legend to pulverize the five strongest nations in the world. He was God-like. Yet, there he was
Darcy seemed fine. Kaze was relieved. Deborah sat across from Darcy and fiddled with the dagger in hand. She wanted Kaze to be there when she destroyed Darcy’s face. Hearing the footsteps in the back, she cocked her head back. “Mr. Skyfort, what’s the commotion out there… Kaze? “H-How did you get in?” Deborah’s jaw dropped. Kaze replied curtly, “I killed all of them to get here.” “Stop bluffing.” Deborah shuddered, skeptical that Kaze killed the mercenaries. However, Kaze gave off a dangerous vibe. Kaze drew close and said indifferently, “Try me. You’ll know whether I’m bluffing.” “What are you doing? Don’t get any closer.” Thrown into a panic, Deborah got up and ran to Darcy. She swung her dagger and said sternly, “Don’t come any closer, or I’ll slice your wife’s face.” “Slash.” A glint of metal pierced Deborah’s palm, sending blood splattering. Deborah rammed into the wall behind her, her dagger clattering to the floor with a clang.“Argh!” Deborah was
Darcy noticed Kaze’s intention to stay and sort Deborah out. She said, “Deborah should be punished for what she has done, but don’t take things far. I don’t want anything to come back and bite you, honey.” In fact, Deborah was dead to Darcy after the incident today. However, Darcy did not want Kaze to get blood on his hands and risk the trouble. “Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.” Kaze patted Darcy’s back with a smile. “Promise me that you won’t get yourself in trouble over someone who isn’t worth it, honey.” Darcy urged before leaving the room. Outside, she saw the dead bodies scattered on the ground. Chills crept up her spine. When she saw Kailan pinned dead to the wheelchair, her heart sank to the pit of her stomach. Like Deborah, the dagger pierced through his body and stuck him to a hard surface. The only difference was that Kailan was dead. Darcy walked out of the factory with a pale face and saw a dozen thugs in security uniforms surrounding Kaze’s car
“You can’t kill me, Kaze,” Deborah screamed and cried. Fear gripped her when the realization struck that Kaze would kill her. “Slash.” A shrill sound pierced the air. Furrowing his brows, Kaze shifted to the side. “Thud!” The dagger whooshed through the air and stabbed into the wall, its handle wobbling from impact, where Kaze was standing earlier. “There you are, Godmother. Save me!” Lying on the ground, Deborah shouted in tears like she had seen her savior. Kaze cocked his head to face the door. An elegantly dressed woman, her face blank, entered the room with an entourage in tow. Seeing Mary Sue tend to her cautiously, Kaze realized who the woman was.It was Madam Hacks from Geranium City. Behind Madam Hacks were several burly, savage-looking foreigners. They gave off the same vibes as the foreign mercenaries who died at the hands of Kaze. However, these newcomers appeared stronger than the former ones. A foreigner with shoulder-length hair emerged fro
The hostages were locked up in the containers. Some of them were elites in their own field while some were ordinary people with average income, yet all of them got into trouble when they boarded the plane. Most of them could not accept their fate. Yet they dared not defy or resist the mercenaries. When things started to calm down, they broke down in tears, weeping in silence as resentment consumed them. Kaze sat down at a clean corner that allowed him to look outside the window. The window was dirty but at least he could see outside. The space inside the container was filled with people sitting closely, offering comfort to one another. They were aware they were just temporarily safe in this container. No one knew what the mercenaries would do to them at the next moment. “My parents must be worried. I said I would call them when I land but now I can’t even get in touch,” Barney muttered as he sat beside Kaze. He too looked outside the window, his feelings mixed. He watc
Kaze thought of what he had overheard in the toilet. If he told the hostages about that, they would probably panic. “It’s nothing. They are just going to separate us into different rooms or containers. They said the buses would be disposed of,” he said. He did not want to reveal too much because it would cause panic. Once the hostages knew their lives were on the line, things might spiral out of control. The mercenaries could kill a few of them to make an example, and none of the hostages would dare to cause problems anymore. Kaze kept it a secret because he wanted to protect the people. “That’s it?” “Is there anything else? How many men are there? What is their plan? Who are they looking for?” “We want to know because we want to survive. This isn't our problem—we just got caught up in it.” The hostages looked at Kaze, their eyes filled with worry. They felt aggrieved because they should not be caught in such a huge problem. “I don’t know either.” No matter how m
“There’s a room there. Get in.” The mercenary pointed his gun at the mother and son, which led them to look at Kaze nervously, seemingly asking for help. “What do you want?” The mother was nervous. She clutched her son’s hand tightly, nearly making him cry, but she reacted quickly enough to cover her son’s mouth to prevent him from doing so. “All women must go into that room. You go in now,” the mercenary explained. He did not want the woman to get the wrong idea. “You people won’t hurt me, right?” the mother asked, worried that she might be ravaged. “We are not into MILF,” said the other mercenary who was escorting Kaze, indirectly assuring the mother. Kaze shot a glance at the mother and nodded at her. “They told us they were going to separate us, so there’s nothing to worry about,” he said, worried that the mother and son would not cooperate. The mother then carried her son and followed the other mercenary into the room. It was called a room but it was actually ju
“Can you make him stop? If the man comes back, we’ll be done for,” someone said. The kid’s crying made everyone anxious. “What can I do? He’s crying because he’s scared. I can’t just stop him.” The mother was afraid as well, and she did not want her son to be taken advantage of. “Calm down. Just don’t alert the men and we’ll be fine,” Miguel said, hoping to ease the situation. “I’ll fight him if he comes in. I believe I can make it,” someone said. Those with an impulsive nature grew restless from being kept on the bus for too long, feeling like livestock being kept in cages. “Shut it. They are coming,” Barney said after a glance outside the window. The other passengers fell silent, sat back down, lowered their heads, and tried their best not to look out the window. The mother quickly hugged her son and covered his mouth to prevent him from crying. Kaze felt peace and quiet once more, even the air felt smoother. He knew the passengers were merely ordinary people and
Unfortunately, Leah knew she would not get an answer out of Snow since she was refusing to help. Everything seemed to have changed following her mother’s disappearance. She tried to stay for answers but when security came in, she could not resist them anymore. It was the first time she was escorted out by security guards and it impacted her. She used to be the daughter of the CEO of Northborn Group—everyone respected her. She used to enjoy a privileged status. No matter where she went, she was the star of the event. Yet when her mother disappeared, everything changed. She wanted to look for Kaze but she had just lost the chance. Snow turned her down and gazed at her with contempt and irritation. Leah could not accept the changes but some things felt like they were destined to change. She was forced to leave the branch office but then had no idea where else to go. She felt abandoned by the world. Before this, she could still hope for Kaze’s help, but now she had no
Leah went to her mother’s company but did not find her anywhere. Joey was busy working in the CEO’s office. Leah went over and asked, “Joey, where’s my mother? I can’t reach her.” She wanted to know what happened to her mother. “I don’t know about your mother either. We went out together earlier in the day but I don’t know where she went. I can’t get in touch with her.” Joey was so busy that she could not even free herself from the desk to explain to the girl. “Where did she go? How am I supposed to find her?” Leah panicked. If even Joey did not know where her mother went, then something must have happened. A bad feeling rose from her heart. Things just got serious. “I don’t know. Why don’t you ask someone else?” Joey did not have time to deal with the girl. Leah was unfamiliar with Joey’s coldness. Joey had always treated her with kindness and flattery, so the sudden coldness caught her off guard. She felt like something had changed. “Who should I be looking f
“No! My daughter is still in the hospital!” Katie refused to accept her punishment. She started to regret her decision but it was too late. “Now only you think about your daughter? I guess you are not that foolish, but have you thought about her when you betrayed Chairman Lee? “Don’t worry. Leah knew Chairman Lee personally and we won’t hurt her, but she might not live a good life anymore,” Snow said coldly. She did not want to put the girl in a difficult situation but her life as a princess would come to an end. “You can’t do that!” Katie could not believe Snow would do that. “I bet you never thought of the consequences when you leaked the information. Too bad. You’ve lost.” Snow revealed the truth because she wanted Katie to suffer for the decision she made. Katie would now regret every decision she made because she knew she had jeopardized her daughter’s life. She would feel like a fool. She devoted her life to climbing higher to gain more power but she ignored the
“I went to a bar to have a drink and I bumped into an informant of the Viper’s Den.” Katie looked helpless as she explained as if everything that had happened was planned out for her, pushing her to the edge step by step. It was a lively night at the bar. The atmosphere was pleasant and most of the guests were having a good time. Katie was a single woman. She needed care and love at times. She was alone when she visited the bar. She started off by ordering some drinks at the counter, waiting for a chance to meet a man who shared the same ideals. A drink or two later, maybe she could get herself a company for the night. As a grown-up woman, she had her desires. It was a way to release her stress. Katie entered the bar in a casual outfit but it did not diminish her elegant demeanor. When she sat down at the counter, a few young men approached her but she was not interested in immature boys. She continued drinking. She looked at the dance floor occasionally, searching for a
“Who do you think will believe you?” Arthur frowned. There were too many coincidences that it felt like a giant setup. “I’ve explained what I need to. Don’t interrogate me like I’m a criminal. I am the CEO of the Northborn Group.” Katie left them speechless. She had said the necessary and it was up to them whether they wanted to believe it or not. They did not have the evidence to charge her anyway. “You really think we can’t hold you responsible?” Snow was not really looking for a definite answer. The moment she suspected Katie, whether or not she was truly the traitor, Snow already had the right to hold her accountable. It was necessary to make things clear and it was to find out who Katie leaked Kaze’s information to. “It has come down to this. No matter how you deny it, it’s useless. We already know what you have done and you can’t escape. Even if you don’t want to confess, we can continue the investigation, and we’ll eventually find out the truth. “If you come clean