“Kaze…” Buffy tipped Kaze the wink, hoping he could do her a favor and put up with her father. Kaze brushed Buffy off and did not even bother to greet Jude. Standing there, he said indifferently, “I guess you must be Mr. Gwake. “Didn’t you send for me? What’s with this expectation from me? “Well, this is certainly a warm welcome. “In that case, I should get going.” Kaze turned on his heel to leave. He was expected to roll the red carpet out for Jude. To be honest, Jude was unworthy. Kaze was the branch leader of the Viper’s Den West State Branch. If they were to go by the rules, Jude should be greeting him on his knees. “Hmph!”Surprised by Kaze’s behavior, Jude let out an angry scoff. Serene narrowed her eyes, her red-manicured hand reaching into her pocket. Jude quickly turned back around and waved at Serene. “Never mind. Kids can be rash. “You must be Kaze. Please sit. Ha. You’re just like me when I was your age.”Serene kept her head down.Buffy let ou
Kaze took the time to sip on his drink before replying indifferently, “I didn’t train under anyone.” He would not tell Jude that his combat experience was built over the war and dead bodies.“Oh, so you’re self-taught?” Jude looked at Kaze skeptically. Since Kaze did not look like he was lying, Jude chuckled. “You must be a genius to dominate Bronze Sparrow through your own efforts.“I guess you can even put Hannah, the most promising fighter of the Viper’s Den West State Branch, to shame.” Jude brought up Hannah. He could be sounding Kaze out or igniting a spark in Kaze to defeat Hannah. Instead of giving his two cents, Kaze simply smiled and took another sip of his drink. Jude put his hands together and grinned. “It’s refreshing that you’re able to hold your ground despite your young age. I heard from my daughter that you carried yourself well among Luis and other socialites at Bronze Sparrow last night. “It takes some type of talent to fight good, but you have qualit
After making his presumptions about Kaze, Jude raised both hands and clapped. A member bearing the Viper’s Den emblem approached with a case. Jude waved his arm. The member carried the case to Kaze and opened it. There were stacks of cash inside. “What’s the meaning of this, Mr. Gwake?” Kaze asked without emotions while sipping his drink. Jude picked up a wad of cash and flipped through with his thumb before uttering with a smile, “There are 10 million Uleania dollars here. Consider it your reward.” “Reward?” Kaze remained unfazed. Jude nodded and adopted a less respectful form of address for Kaze. “You started a fight at Drake Gym and pushed Luis into killing my best fighter, Joel.“This incident has triggered a ripple effect, kid. I can say that this changed things for myself and a few others at the Viper’s Den. Joel was supposed to have a fight with Hannah and Collier in a ring. “I can choose to move past this.“But on one condition. You need to get in the ring
“Kaze, have you ever thought about that? If it works out, even the Lee family who once abandoned you will beg you to go back to them. “Of course, for all that to happen, you must first listen to me and I will have absolute control over you. I tell you to stand, you cannot sit.” Jude looked at Kaze with a strong, determined look. He believed even if Kaze could reject 10 million Uleania dollars, he could not resist the other temptations, especially power. Kaze originally wanted to leave. He did not want to waste time listening to Jude’s unrealistic stories which could only deceive a three-year-old. However, the determined look on Jude’s face gave Kaze a second thought and he sat back down. He wanted to know what gave Jude the confidence. “Mr. Gwake, you don’t look like the deputy chief of the Viper’s Den at all. You look more like a smart businessman who has huge plans for your business.” Kaze no longer took Jude seriously and simply teased him frivolously. “Hmph.” Se
However, Kaze was no ordinary man and there was no way he would fall for Jude’s temptations. “Mr. Gwake, I am not a child. You don’t have to tell me all that.” Kaze stretched his back and lifted the teapot to pour himself a cup of tea. “Firstly, you want me to enter the ring for you. It’s not because you see my potential, but after Joel died, you have no good candidates left. “I simply taught Luis a few moves and he killed Joel. After weighing the circumstances, I am the perfect candidate to replace Joel to enter the ring. “Even if I die, it won’t hurt you at all. I come from Lilyrose and I don’t have any strong background here in Riverbank. I’m at most an abandoned son of the Lee family, so my death doesn’t affect anyone at all. “In fact, you can even use my death as an explanation for Josephine and Abraham Wonfield so that you can still maintain a good relationship with them.” Jude’s expression remained the same when he heard Kaze but his eyes turned cold. Kaze did no
Jude stared at Kaze coldly for a while. His ashen expression then turned into a warm smile. He went back to his seat and sat down. “Kaze, that's just your own assumption, somewhat malicious I must say. But I understand. “This is your first meeting with me and you still don’t know me well, so there might be a little misunderstanding. I’ll forgive you this time, but this time only. Be careful with your words next time. “I regard you highly and I don’t mind what you said, but when your words reach other people, it might cause unwanted misunderstanding toward our relationship.” Jude then picked up the teapot and filled Kaze’s already empty cup with tea. “Do you know why I think so highly of you? It’s because I noticed Buffy’s feelings for you. You have to know that my daughter is a woman with dignity, a lady. She had never been in a scandal with another man for as long as she lived. “Casius might be chasing her aggressively but she kept him at a distance. If I am just trying
Serene and the other Viper’s Den agents looked at Kaze coldly. The Viper’s Den had thirty-six main branches and even more sub-branches under each of them. There were more than a million agents of the organization across the country. No one knew better than them how difficult it was to stand out from so many people. Not only did Kaze reject the olive branch from Jude, but he even despised it. To them, his actions were ungrateful and disrespectful. His repeated disregard for Jude in front of them was also a provocative act that would put his life in danger. Kaze put the teacup down and smiled. “Mr. Gwake, why would I need confidence and nerve to reject your offer? Isn’t that a little bit unreasonable? “Since you mentioned it, for your daughter’s sake, I don’t mind explaining.” Kaze put a finger up. “Firstly, I am the first one who struck Joel but that’s because he insulted Rose, my cousin-in-law. “Luis then beat up Joel and I did give him a tip or two, but it’s also b
“Hold it right there!” “The chief didn’t say you can go!” Agents of the Viper’s Den stepped up and prevented Kaze from leaving. Kaze smiled but he did not even spare a glance at them. “It seems like you don’t cherish the chance that I just gave you, Mr. Gwake.” He turned around to Jude with a grin. Jude grunted coldly and said, “Who do you think you are, giving me a chance? Look in the mirror.” “Are you the branch leader of the Viper’s Den West State Branch or the governor of the South River State?” “Not even Kent Synder, the mayor of Riverbank, has the nerve to speak to him like that! What makes you?” “You’re giving the chief a chance? Are you kidding?” The agents continued to mock him. They saw Kaze as nothing more than a clown. Kaze smiled. “One of them got it right. I am really the branch leader of the Viper’s Den West State Branch.” “What?! You are the branch leader?!” Everyone was surprised before they laughed out loud. Kaze was the branch leader of th