In other words, no matter what kind of trouble Kaze got into, Kent would vouch for him and even protect him with his life and career. If news about this got out, many people would be jealous of Kaze. After all, in Riverbank, the mayor’s authority and power were only second to the South River State Governor. The slightest favor from the mayor was considered a lifetime worth of benefits for an ordinary person. “Why would I want your life for, Mr. Synder?” Kaze smiled vaguely. The mayor of Riverbank might be a prominent figure that people admired but it was nothing to Kaze. However, with Kent’s promise and help, Kaze could do things a lot more easily in Riverbank. “Come on, let’s go have a look at Myra first.” Kaze gestured at Kent, telling him to lead the way. “This way!” Kent took a deep breath and then brought Kaze into the house. When they entered the living room, they saw the elf-like girl in her pajamas and messy hair. The pure and innocent demeanor that she us
“Mr. Lee, Mrs. Synder is a religious Christian and a loyal patron of St. John Church. When she realized Professor Wilson couldn’t cure Myra, she contacted the church and asked for Pastor Angelo’s help.” Hamlin was worried that Kaze might misunderstand, so he quickly explained to Kaze softly. Kent did not disagree with inviting Pastor Angelo over because he could not be sure if Kaze would agree to help. Even if Kaze agreed, he might not be able to fully cure Myra. Pastor Angelo was different. He was a reputable clergyman in Riverbank and all of West State; many people had faith in him. If Myra was cursed like Kaze said, then inviting Pastor Angelo over might be the more suitable choice. Kaze nodded and did not say anything. It was understandable that the Synder family wanted more options to save their daughter. “Pastor Angelo, please save my daughter! If you can save Myra, I will donate to your church and support any kind of reconstruction!” Jane was behind Pastor Angelo
Kaze ignored Cole. He looked at Pastor Angelo and said, “Pastor, why don’t we have a test? Let’s see if your religion can save Myra, or if my murderous intent can bring her back from hell.” Usually, he never bothered to reply to mocking or sarcasm but Pastor Angelo pointed out that he was in hell with just a few glances—physically here, but mentally in hell. It meant that Pastor Angelo was not trying to mock or insult Kaze but he did see intense murderous intent in him. Kaze knew exactly what caused this condition. Killing one man would be a crime; killing ten thousand would be a monster. Killing nine million would be the monster of all monsters. Back on the foreign battlefield, tens of millions of lives perished in his hands. It was not exaggerating to call Kaze the embodiment of hell. He knew Pastor Angelo was not a fraudulent charlatan like Dr. Raph Tyson and was a man with true capabilities, so he decided to challenge him. Yet when the others heard him, they felt
Even Cole, an unbridled playboy, felt the power of the chants. He felt goosebumps and even had the urge to kneel. Pastor Angelo was indeed powerful. His chants filled the living room instantly. “That’s some powerful hypnosis technique. Is this the secret hypnosis practiced by the church?” Professor Wilson, who got beaten up earlier, finally recovered and came to the scene. He stood behind the group and watched Pastor Angelo work in admiration and awe. He might not understand the chants but as a professor with high achievements in psychology, he too had the urge to kneel. The strongest and most effective form of hypnosis would be religion. A religion had the most number of followers compared to any other psychologist. Even the most powerful politician, the richest man in the world, or even the most vicious criminals had their own beliefs in religion. Professor Wilson used to study different religions and had a decent understanding of Christianity. He knew the church
Upon hearing Kaze, Hamlin’s expression shifted a little. Kent’s heartfelt smile faded and his brows furrowed. “Hmph…” Cole wanted to continue mocking Kaze but then a frosty voice interrupted him. “Old man, you’re dead!” Everyone was shocked by the cold and hoarse voice because it came from Myra, who looked calm and peaceful a moment ago. Myra spoke, but the voice from her mouth did not belong to her. It sounded rough and demonic. It felt like something vile and filthy was inside the girl’s pure and innocent body. “Myra…” Kent and Jane were horrified. Despite looking at the familiar face, their daughter felt like a total stranger to them. Under everyone’s horrified gazes, Myra lifted her foot and took a step forward, seemingly trying to approach Pastor Angelo. “Protect the pastor!” The clergies quickly surrounded the pastor. “Stand down!” Pastor Angelo bellowed all of a sudden. Shocked, the clergies reluctantly stepped away. Pastor Angelo stepped forward an
“Myra, no!” Kent and Jane cried in shock. They knew if Myra killed Pastor Angelo, the girl would also lose her life. “Old man, even if you are compassionate, you shouldn’t really do this, risking your life and such.” As the knife swung down at Pastor Angelo, a strong hand extended from behind and grabbed the pastor by the back of his collar. He was then dragged backward and tossed to the couch, like how Kaze saved Kent earlier. Kaze finally intervened. “You!” The clergies reacted with anger but swiftly realized Kaze was saving the pastor. However, they disapproved of his rough method. Ignoring the horrified crowd, Kaze looked at Myra who swung the knife at him. He took a quick deep breath and shouted, “OUT!” Everyone else in the room was shocked. What did he just do? Myra was swinging the knife at him, yet he shouted at Myra. Myra did not even hold back when it came to the clergies or the bodyguards, and she even tried to kill Pastor Angelo. What gave Kaze t
“What the…” “Is Kaze Lee that terrifying?” “Impossible! He is just a charlatan, a liar! How could he be more powerful than Pastor Angelo?” Cole fell on his butt and cried like a wimpy boy. He never would have thought that Myra, who almost killed Pastor Angelo, would run away like a terrified little girl in front of Kaze. It sounded ridiculous. Kent was baffled as well. Even though he knew Kaze was capable of solving this matter because he saved his life back on the train, it was still unbelievable that one shout was all it took for him to scare Myra away. “Holy shit, is he the real God or what?” Professor Wilson widened his eyes in shock as well. He looked down on Kaze earlier because of the misleading first impression and how he argued with a professional like himself. He urged Kent to send Kaze away last night. Now, after getting hurt by Myra, he was looking miserable and did not do anything useful. On the other hand, Kaze simply shouted and seemed to have sol
Fwoosh! The quiet bushes suddenly rattled loudly and a dark and scrawny figure jumped out, running toward the tall walls at lightning speed. The dark figure might be fast but Kaze was faster. He tiptoed and then boosted himself into the air. He appeared behind the dark figure like a phantom and then punched him to the ground. Bang! The dark figure almost reached the top of the wall but was punched back to the ground. He left a deep crater when he crashed and blood spewed from his mouth. “Fuck! How dare you ruin the plan of the Ninja Clan! No matter who you are, you are already a dead man!” The dark figure got up and shouted at Kaze. The eyes that he did not cover up gleamed coldly. “So you are from Ryokan.” Kaze asked coldly, “Ninja Clan? Can you represent the whole Ninja Clan of Ryokan? Not even Daiso Kailan whom I killed had the nerve to make that claim.” The ninjas of Ryokan, also generally known as the Ninja Clan, had more than a hundred branches. The dark fig
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