A while later, almost every one of Miya’s men received a phone call. “Madam! This just came in! The men we sent to Ridgesouth were arrested by the police, suspected of smuggling.” “The livestream account you’ve been on is now banned. They claimed that you are doing false advertising and spreading false information, tax evasion…” “A few artists under one of our labels got their contracts terminated by companies in the mainland…” …The calls were ceaseless and sounded like a symphony of distress and bad news. All the calls reported something bad happening to Heartanos’ family business. Miya’s expression shifted multiple times. She was skeptical at first, simply assuming it was just a coincidence. As more and more calls came in, she almost lost her balance. Many of the reports were trivial matters and usually, Miya would not even bat an eye at them. The people in charge of the respective subsidiary companies would deal with them. Yet when all of them happened at onc
“When you said you wanted to come after me and my family, why didn’t you mention your status? “When Sasha was hurt in the hospital, you chose to side with the wrongdoer, unbothered by the truth, why didn’t you mention your status then? “I crashed your share price with just one phone call, letting you have a taste of the poison, and you finally know how to mention your status?” Miya covered her face as she glared at Kaze. If her gaze could materialize, it would become the sharpest sword holding the heaviest grudge in the world and its sole purpose was to stab into Kaze’s heart. “What’s the matter? Not happy with it? You still want to come after me?” Kaze chuckled. “I’ll give you a chance, like the one I gave the hospital director yesterday. You can call whoever you think can help you.” “Madam! The share price has fallen from 202 to 180!” said one of her men in a trembling voice. In just a few minutes, the share price that the Heartano family spent so much effort into mai
When Kaze arrived at Sasha’s ward, Miya, Keiko, and the others were apologizing to the girl, bowing repeatedly. Nadia and her friends knelt on the floor, crying and pleading for forgiveness. To an outsider, it might have seemed as if Sasha had been the one bullying them. “Please get up. I accept your apologies and forgive all of you. I really do…” Sasha was overwhelmed by the scene. Her face blushed as she stood still, not knowing what else to do except waving her hands at them. When Kaze came in, the girl’s eyes lit up. “Kaze, you’re here! Can you please tell them to get up? I’ve forgiven them!” The girl was too kind. Even though Nadia and the others bullied her yesterday, threatening to ruin her reputation, the girl did not hold a grudge against them. Kaze did not want the girl to feel pressured, so he waved at Nadia and the others. “Get up.” “Thank you, Sasha! Thank you, Mr. Lee!” Nadia and her friends felt immense relief as they got up, but resentment remained d
“I didn’t expect Kaze Lee could change things around with just one call, but he shouldn’t underestimate me as well. “He insulted me and wanted to take St. Mary. If I simply let him do it, I will lose the respect of the others,” Miya said with resentment. They arrived at the parking lot and left the hospital in their car. In the center of Riverbank’s commercial district sat a skyscraper of a hundred meters. Miya’s car stopped in front of the entrance. She got out and looked up at the building but could not see its top. With a smirk on her face, she led her men into the building. After a nod to the receptionist, she got into the exclusive elevator that reached the top floor. The top floor of the building was a grand and luxurious sky villa—a villa built on top of a tall building, almost reaching the sky. The sky villa was equipped with a garden, a swimming pool, and even a small golf course. Even people with the wildest imagination could not picture how grand and luxuri
The Heartano family welcomed Hunter to Geranium City with a grand welcoming ceremony, utilizing every resource they had. Yet even within the upper social circle of the city, it was considered a private and mysterious event. Therefore, the outsiders knew little about Hunter. Coincidentally, Miya was one of the few people who knew about Hunter’s existence and background. It was also the reason she came to him. “You folks from Geranium are over superstitious. There’s no god or deity in this world.” Hunter smiled as he took a glass from his cabinet and put spherical ice in it. Miya smiled as she got up and opened the whiskey on the table before her, pouring it into Hunter’s glass. She said respectfully, “Well to me, Mr. Yaphet is a walking deity on earth.” Hunter simply smiled at her words. He had a sip from the whiskey on the rock and said, “You know me. What brings you here? Just skip to the chase.” “Mr. Yaphet, I bother you today because I need your help on something,” M
Miya was thrilled to hold the scroll given by Hunter. The Riverbank Seven’s influences extended beyond Riverbank. They all had powerful families, and mysterious forces as their support, or like Hunter who himself was a mystery yet he possessed strength that allowed him to stand out from his peers. The words he wrote on the scroll represented himself. The strokes and the ink carried a hint of his presence. Kaze might be skilled and powerful but Miya believed even he dared not act like a clown in front of Hunter. Her grievance faded, replaced by a surge of pride and excitement. She wanted Kaze to kneel and tremble before the scroll. Holding the scroll in her hand, as if it was a royal decree, she bowed at Hunter respectfully before she went out. … Back at St. Mary Hospital, Kaze came out of Sasha’s ward and decided to visit Snow. His phone suddenly rang, and when he saw the caller ID, his brows furrowed. Cyan? Since he came back from Rivername, the real estate c
Little did Cyan know, Collier called Kaze “boss” in front of the entire sales department. Since it was directly related to confidential matters of the company, the sales department dared not simply spread the news about Kaze’s true identity. Therefore, Cyan might feel baffled as to why Kaze became the sales manager at first but she quickly claimed the credit and believed she was the one who got him the roles. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. I’m nothing.” Kaze did not want to argue with the woman. He moved his phone away and said, “Don’t tell me you call me just to scold me. If it is, go find someone else. I don’t have the time.” He could not understand how a young girl like Cyan would behave like an old wretched hag. Like mother, like daughter. “Hmph! You sound like you are super busy every day while I am not. Who wants to call you even if I have the free time?” She explained, “Get over to the office right now, there’s a meeting going on! Your superior is asking for you and since yo
“Mr. Lee, the GM is Grace Summers, the daughter of our boss and CEO, Mr. Scott Summers. “Mr. Summers is an old friend of Chairman Ettinger’s father, who was also the founding member of this company. That’s why even the chairman respected Mr. Summers. “So, the daughter of Mr. Summers was promoted to be the general manager of the showbiz division. “Grace is a hot-tempered lady. I heard that even Cyan is afraid of her after being scolded twice.” Ronald knew Kaze was able to join Golden Scale Corporation because of Cyan, so he intentionally mentioned her relationship with Grace, the general manager. The Chairman Ettinger that he was referring to was Collier. In other words, Grace’s father, Scott, was an old friend of Newell Ettinger, the ex-branch chief of Viper’s Den South River Branch. “Oh? Even Cyan is afraid of her?” Kaze raised his brows, showing interest. Bang! As they were speaking, the door was pushed open with a bang. Cyan came in with a distressed look and g
Darcy frowned and said, “Grandaunt, we don’t need to be afraid of Aiden Krad’s dirty tricks. As a matter of fact, I dealt with the banks and their repayments last night. “Sky Ocean Corporation is fully prepared for the upcoming auction. All our funds are being diverted and we will receive them today…” “Shut up!” Phoenix shouted to cut Darcy off. Her eyes were sharp and fierce as she said, “You are more ignorant than I thought. The bank repayments are nothing! “I heard that the auction committee raised the deposit to ten billion. You can’t even afford to qualify for that, yet you dream of opposing the Krad family? You are delusional! “I don’t want to repeat myself. Call Aiden Krad right now and drop out of the auction!” The deposit alone was ten billion?!” Agnes and Hector, who were hiding behind the crowd, were shocked by the astronomical amount. “Darcy, what are you doing standing there? Make the call!” Noticing Darcy’s silence, Agnes finally lost her patience and de
“Hmph! You’re trying to hide it? How long do you think you can keep this up?” Joan crossed her arms and scoffed. “Everyone in Riverbank knows that you’ve offended the Krads and are being sanctioned right now. “The bank cut off your loans and the suppliers refused to work with you. Sky Ocean Corporation is in a huge financial crisis and might be facing bankruptcy!” Darcy frowned. “Joan, Sky Ocean Corporation’s financial status is none of your business.” “Yeah, but it’s Madam Quint’s business!” Joan scoffed. “Darcy, don’t you forget that you are the branch head of the Quints and your duty is to make money for the family. “Madam Quint came all the way here to Riverbank from Ridgesouth because she is representing the family to inspect your work! Yet look what you've done! Why don’t you look in the mirror and see who you are? How dare you offend Aiden Krad and oppose the Krads? You’re ignorant! “One word from them and Sky Ocean Corporation is facing bankruptcy! Don’t forget th
“Thank you, Ms. Quint!” Tess and the others were overjoyed. Darcy was the main reason why they did not resign or lash out at the old lady when they were slapped. Darcy treated the employees like family and even after Aiden’s intentional sabotage, only a few resigned from the company. “Where are they?” Darcy asked Pamela. “The main meeting room.” Darcy nodded and went straight to the meeting room. Kaze, on the other hand, pondered. He glanced at Tess and the others who went behind the counter to retrieve their phones and then said to Darcy, “You go ahead, I’ll be right there.” Darcy hummed a reply and went off with Pamela. When they arrived at the entrance, they saw Phoenix and the others from the Quints, sitting around the table like they owned the place. The executives of Sky Ocean Corporation were serving water to them like they were waiters. The other branch heads of the family ordered the executives around, giving them a hard time. “A small company with no man
“Aiden Krad? Why is a man like you threatening a woman? You call that capable?” Kaze took the phone and said, “Tomorrow at the auction, I will make you kneel and beg in front of me.” “Kaze Lee?” Aiden was taken aback for a moment before he realized he was speaking to Kaze. “How dare you speak to me like that? You must have a death wish.” “Fuck off.” Kaze hung up the phone immediately. “Don’t worry about that.” As he handed the phone to Darcy, he tapped her shoulder and said, “Tomorrow, Aiden Krad won’t even have the tears to shed.” Darcy might or might not have listened to Kaze. Her brows remained furrowed along the way back. She got a few calls during the journey but she did not answer them all. Kaze’s phone rang a few times as well. One was from Agnes, but since he did not know what his mother-in-law was up to, he refused to answer. When they almost reached Sky Ocean Corporation, Darcy slowly regained her composure and senses. “Ring!” Darcy’s phone rang
Aiden’s words carried obvious threats. His tone sounded like a bloodthirsty monster warning its prey. The arrogance and confidence that originated from his family were on full display during the conversation. It was as though Darcy must step away and let him take the land or else it would defy the laws of nature. “I don’t fucking care if your family is pissed.” Darcy spat out a rare vulgar word, showing neither respect nor courtesy to the man. “We’ll see what happens at the auction tomorrow.” “Ms. Quint, it seems like you are determined to oppose me and the Krads.” Aiden’s voice turned cold as he added, “If you continue down this path, you will only be my enemy. What I have done until now is nothing but child’s play. If you really become an enemy of my family, then…” A quick pause later, his voice turned sinister, and said, “Believe me, you will regret it.” “You’re threatening me?” Darcy scoffed in disdain. Aiden explained, “I am merely stating a fact. I know you are
“It’s like a fish in water, a tiger in the woods. To the Steelclaw Guild, at least in Riverbank, no one can stop them if they want to leave.” Kaze nodded, agreeing to Leron’s explanation. He quickly put the thought of pursuit aside. The Steelclaw Guild had been around for many years and its existence and strong influence became answers to many questions. “Let’s go back to Riverbank,” Kaze said to Darcy. Darcy looked hesitant. She carefully looked around and asked, “We’re just going back like that? Should we call the bodyguards or something?” She was terrified about what just happened and she still had not completely calmed down. She became aware of her surroundings and cautious of the people who appeared before her, assuming that they were people with malicious intentions. Kaze knew that she was under high pressure and anxiety for the past two days, especially after what happened. Siberian’s assassination attempt only made her condition worse. It all started with Aiden’
Leron said, “The Eight Tigers named themselves that just to look good. As a matter of fact, the four who died a while ago were just recruited to fill in the numbers. “As for the top four tigers such as Siberian, each of them has their own characteristics and traits. Siberian is responsible for the assassination and is one of the strongest and fastest members of the organization. “I believed Mr. Lee just experienced it first-hand.” Kaze narrowed his eyes. “So Siberian is after me?” He then pulled his phone out to dial a number. “Kaze, my brother, what can I do for you?” A while later, South’s voice came from the phone. Rumors about Casius dying at Kaze’s hands had been circulating around these days, but most of the common citizens did not believe it. No one believed a useless live-in husband could do something that atrocious. However, South believed otherwise because he saw what Kaze could do with his own eyes. It explained why he kept his arrogance and confidence of
It was the familiar sound of a handgun equipped with a silencer. Kaze breathed a sigh of relief. Leron had arrived! He had been tailing them, secretly protecting them from the shadows. Right after the first shot, two more shots sounded. It was Leron’s signature triangle shot, used to block a target from escaping. The old killer initially charged at Kaze from the left but he quickly did a side flip, twisting his body in a freaky manner, and escaped from the trajectory of the triangle shot. All three shots missed—two shots hit the wall, and one hit the ground. The impact chipped off a small part of the wall and ground, leaving behind deep holes. “Huh? Interesting.” Even Kaze was surprised by the old killer’s response. The killer was not just good at assassination, but his body was also agile and extraordinarily nimble. Leron had been following Kaze for a while now and participated in multiple fights. Other than Kaze himself, he had never seen anyone who could do
“Whoosh!” The swift swing of the dagger left a huge cut on Kaze’s shirt at the abdomen. The old man had switched his stance to kneeling on one knee. The pain in his eyes had been replaced by frosty murderous intent, with a hint of shock and resentment as if he did not expect Kaze to dodge the lethal blow. “Old man, you’re a wicked one.” Kaze was also shocked. He looked down at his collar T-shirt and the wide opening at his stomach. The chilling wind on his skin sent chills down his spine. A split second later he would be gutted on the spot. “Swoosh!” After missing the ambush, the old man jumped like a nimble fox for a follow-up attack. This time, he switched his target from Kaze to Darcy. The dagger in his hand glared coldly as it thrusted toward Kaze’s chest. He was shocked that Kaze was able to dodge his lethal blow. He also realized Kaze was a tough opponent, so he switched to an easier one—Darcy. He acted like a gambler who had lost everything. With nothing