Picking up on Kaze’s intent to kill, Casius grimaced. In the end, Casius made an amused look. “I guess you’re out for my life today.“But I love life too much. I still have a lot to live for. “So I don’t want to die. “Besides, I don’t know what makes you think that I’d die at your hands—” “Swoosh!” Kaze got right in Casius’ face before the latter could finish his sentence. He got Casius by the throat right away. Hank and the other suited men could not react to the change in time. They raised their weapons and aimed at Kaze with grimaces. “Let Mr. Weather go.” Hank hissed through clenched teeth. Hannah clenched her sword and said to Hank, her eyes fixating on him, “You better not point that thing at the branch leader.” Hank had a flashback of Hannah hurling her sword just moments ago. Still, he pointed at Kaze firmly. “What do you think now, Mr. Weather?” Without looking at Hank and his party, Kaze fixed on Casius’ purple lips. He smiled pretentiously. “My han
“Thud!” Rio went for a downward blow, slicing down on Hannah. The sheer force of the attack enveloped Hannah. Faced with the magnitude of the impact, Hannah grimaced. Without time to think, she flinched back and thrust her sword forward. They were both trained in great swordsmanship. The blades met with a burst of intensity. “Clang!”Sparks exploded in the air, and the grating of metal could make anybody’s skin crawl. Hannah dropped back, nearly slamming her weight on the floor. She made a face, unable to shake the lingering impact from the slash of Rio’s blade. The sheer force hung heavily over Hannah, even bending her sword. While descending from mid-air, Rio sank his weight down. Hannah hunkered down, her back nearly touching the floor. Still, she stayed rooted to her feet. Rio remained indifferent. He pressed on, coming on with stronger force. Rio pinned Hannah to the ground with his sword. Hannah had been to hell and back many times before. She re
“Damn it!”With Hannah surviving the attack, Casius grimaced. Hannah was strong, but Casius could see that Rio had her cornered. Hannah was just one step away from death. Yet, she managed to turn things around. It was true that Hannah was most likely to succeed within the Viper’s Den West State Branch, but Rio was one of the elites of the Refined Blades. They ranked high in their field. Rio’s strong attack did not kill Hannah, making her a powerful opponent. That was not the point, though. Hannah’s death was beneficial to Casius’ situation and his upcoming plan. That was the problem. Hannah was not dead. Since the ambush did not work, Rio would find it harder to kill a potent fighter like Hannah. Nevertheless, Hannah seemed incapacitated, at least for now. She would not be able to go on with the fight tonight. Though disappointed, Casius felt lighter in mood. He turned to Kaze with a smile. “How about it, Kaze? What do you think of my backup? Good enough fo
Kaze released his grip and smiled faintly. “Are you that confident that the Ryokanian can save you? “Have you ever wondered why I didn’t kill you on the spot? Instead, I waited until he showed up.” Casius’ gaze became shifty. “Are you trying to tell me that you delayed killing me to lure Mr. Sho out?” “I see that you have redeeming qualities.” Kaze said callously, “Jude lost everything, and I trashed your Bronze Sparrow. Neely and Granny Snake died at the hands of South. I’d say the odds aren’t in Jude’s favor too. “Yet, you are confident that Jude will make branch chief, so you must be turning to external forces. “With your connections, your only choice is to grovel at the feet of Ryokanians. “In that case, why wait tonight for the Ryokanian? I’m better off luring him out and killing him all at once.” Kaze spoke emotionlessly as if he was talking about the weather. Stunned at first, Casius quickly sneered. “You can talk a big game, Kaze. “But can you back it up?
Upon getting close to Kaze, Rio pulled out his sword. “Clang!”As the sword was drawn, a powerful energy came from within the shining blade. A wave of dread washed over the crowd. Channeling his rage, Rio unleashed his full power. He launched his most devastating blow to slice Kaze in half. Only a good revenge could quell his rage and prove his dominance over the Arcadian. Hannah, having faced Rio head-on, blurted, “Watch out, Mr. Lee. There’s something weird about this Ryokanian’s technique…” “Swoosh!” Kaze raised his arm and struck with his broken sword. The blinding flicker of the blade carried a low humming sound. The crowd wondered if their ears were deceiving them. Kaze retrieved his blade while Rio stopped advancing. As no one made a sound, a shadow of dread loomed over. “What’s the matter, Mr. Sho? Why aren’t you moving?” Casius, Hank, and the others were taken aback, oblivious to what was going on. The strangest thing then happened. A stark, whit
Casius would kill one of the best fighters if he could draw his sword quickly enough.The words sounded like sarcasm to Casius, and he froze. It was like a Harvard grad telling a community college dropout. “Getting into Harvard is easy, anyone can do it.”Casius was lost for words. The gap between him and Kaze just struck him, at least when it came to combat prowess.With Casius turning pale, Kaze said indifferently, “Now do you finally know why I let you go, Mr. Weather?“I don’t need to hold you hostage. “You and your people are no threat. “I’d suggest that you don’t fight back because it’s pointless.“Now kneel and tell me everything about you and the Ryokanians that is important and not privy to me. “I might spare your life for now if you come to use for me,” Kaze said with a smile while throwing the broken sword back to Hannah. It appeared Kaze’s streak of violence ended after Rio was dead. “Kneel and explain my ties with Sanwell Finances?” Snapping back to re
“Go on, Mr. Weather. I’ll hold them off.” With Kaze dodging the shrapnel, Hank’s head sank. Ready to die, Hank blocked Kaze’s path with his body and shouted angrily before raising his double-barreled rifle. “Bang!” As Hank took the shot, Kaze came close and pulled a kick. Knocked back, Hank fired upward. The sound exploded in the air, smashing the chandelier to the ground. Hank rammed into the wall with a thud, and his bones snapped from impact. He crashed to the ground as Kaze went after Casius without looking back. Despite the will to fight on, the life within him was gone. Kaze’s kick was fatal. Out of the living room, Casius cocked his head back and found Kaze right on his tail after finishing Hank off. Casius was scared out of his mind. Casius shouted angrily, “Forget the woman. Just kill Kaze!”Hannah did not just hang around while Kaze launched an attack. She dragged her injured flesh to help. The last twelve suited men were scared off their wits. Now that
With Kaze’s experience, he should be able to recognize the weapon. Yet, he still had the mood for ridicule. Even with Casius pointing a gun at him, Kaze looked relaxed. Kaze’s composed demeanor showed Casius that he did not take Casius as a threat. “Mr. Weather, I killed your little foreign friend and your people back there.” Kaze took a step in the face of the pointed gun and said with a chuckle, “You lost. You lost big time.” “Don’t get too excited. I’m not dead yet!” Casius shouted with a sneer. However, his hand holding the gun shook violently. Casius was a sitting duck. “I told you. You might not have to die.” Kaze patted Casius’ face and said callously, “Tell me why the Ryokanians have been aggressive in activity lately. What are they after? “If you have information of value, or if you come to use to me, I can consider sparing your life for the time being.”Kaze was curious about the Ryokanians’ motivations. Before, Sanwell Finances controlled Riverbank’s
“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
“Huh?” Phoenix narrowed her eyes and shot a sharp gaze at Joan. “Thump!” Joan fell on her knees immediately, looking horrified. “I-Impossible! My family spent tens of millions to make this walking cane, how can it…” Her family members were also similarly horrified, all falling onto their knees after her and even prostrating on the ground. If they were charged with attempted murder on Phoenix’s life, she and her entire family would be uprooted completely. Phoenix’s expression darkened. With gritted teeth, she said, “Take all of them away and investigate what really happened!” Her men who followed her from Ridgesouth came up, dragging Joan and her family away despite them crying for help. Those who resisted were slapped and knocked out before being shoved into the car. “Kaze, how did you know about the walking cane?” Agnes asked, her voice trembling. She felt grateful for escaping what seemed to be a disaster. Kaze’s offensive behavior shocked her, but it was to expos
“Huh?! Y-You hit me?!” Joan screamed as she covered her face. “Madam Quint, do something about this monkey! He’s disrespecting you and slapped me in front of everyone!” “You wretched boy, on your knees!” Phoenix’s expression darkened, her eyes on Kaze resentful. “If your family failed to teach you manners, I’ll do it for them!” “Greedy, self-righteous, ignorant, use your age to pressure others…” Kaze was determined to teach Phoenix a lesson about shame and humility today, so there was no way he would show her any respect. “People like you don’t even know what you are doing even with age, what gives you the right to lecture me?” “Kaze, shut it! Are you trying to get yourself into more trouble?!” Agnes bellowed, almost passing out due to the anger. Kaze had offended Phoenix. “Me? Ignorant?!” Phoenix scoffed due to disbelief. Her eyes were burning with the flames of anger as she said, “You disrespectful little bastard, I will show you what ignorance is!” As the words
The Ridgesouth Quints may be a prominent family, but their influence did not extend as far as the South River State. If that were not the case, the Ridgesouth Quints would not have waited until now to appoint Darcy as a proxy to expand their influence in the South River State. Kent came from a wealthy family, and he was the mayor of Riverbank. He had no reason to curry favor with the Quints by giving them a villa. The Ridgesouth Quints should be the ones showering Kent with gifts to do business in Riverbank. “What? How dare you say that we are unworthy!”“If we are unworthy, what about you? You’re just a moocher.”“Insolence!” Joan and the others flipped out. “Bam.” Phoenix slammed her cane to the floor and said chillingly, “You said that the Quints are unworthy, boy. What about you? Why would the mayor give you a villa? “You better give a convincing answer. If you don’t, ha!” “It’s none of your business,” Kaze replied bluntly.Silence hung heavy in the air. E
“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