“Kaze.” Aiden’s sidekick came forth and pointed at Kaze arrogantly. “Enough with the games. Do you think you can fool Mr. Krad? “You can either smash the gem right now or get on your knees and present the Golden Toad to Mr. Krad. “If you’re lucky, Mr. Krad might forgive you.”Kaze smiled offhandedly. “Kneel?“Believe me when I say that you’ll be on your knees begging me in a bit.” The sidekick scoffed and looked at Kaze in disdain. Aiden smirked in rage. “You want my buddy to beg you, Lee? Who do you think you are?” “Rest assured, Mr. Krad.” Kaze replied indifferently, “I know who I am.” Aiden narrowed his eyes and looked at Kaze as if he was a dead man. Not passing the chance to mock Kaze, Joan rose to her feet. “Who are you bluffing, Kaze? I dare you to smash the Golden Toad.” Her expression was of defiance and contempt. She hated Kaze’s guts. He attacked her twice in public yesterday, and she needed to get urgent care. Today, she could only show her face to
On her deathbed, Melissa expressed deep regret for stealing the Golden Toad. She wanted to get the gem back to atone for her sins. Sean became obsessed with finding the Golden Toad. The young members of the family had been on a relentless search to locate the Golden Toad. Not too long ago, Aiden finally tracked the Golden Toad down in Geranium City. The wealthy businessman from Geranium City, who bought the Golden Toad, did not appreciate its value, and the gem changed hands multiple times over the years. The Golden Toad was nothing more than a decorative piece to others, but it held profound meaning to the Krads. Hence, Aiden was able to acquire the Golden Toad for a hundred million dollars effortlessly. Only, the ease of retrieving the Golden Toad would undermine his effort and determination. So Aiden secretly passed the Golden Toad to Everett and orchestrated today’s auction. His goal was to turn his grandparents’ love story and his dedication into a legendary tal
Darcy was aware of Kaze’s plan. Still, she clung to the edge of her seat as Kaze confronted Aiden. Planning was one thing, and execution was another. Kaze needed to get everything right to win the battle of wits against Aiden. Judging by Aiden’s response, Kaze played his cards right. Kaze got Aiden right where he wanted him. “You should always leave things on a good note.” Aiden looked at Kaze and hissed through clenched teeth. “Don’t take things far, Lee.” “What happened to the determination you showed when you threatened to make my wife pay? Just cut the crap.”Kaze scoffed and said indifferently, “Didn’t you want the Golden Toad? I can give it to you.“You can buy it for eight billion dollars. “You are free to leave with the Golden Toad once I get the money.” Eight billion dollars? The crowd erupted into an uproar. Kaze’s demand was uncalled for. Kaze paid seven billion dollars for the Golden Toad, and now he was selling it to Aiden for an extra billion do
The crowd believed Aiden was off his rocker. The Golden Toad was worth no more than a hundred million dollars. Yet, Kaze purchased it for seven billion dollars. Everybody assumed Kaze was a sucker to outbid Aiden. Moments ago, many of them mocked Kaze. Aiden turned out to be the bigger sucker. He spent another three billion dollars to take the Golden Toad off Kaze’s hands. What was going on? Everybody was confused. Aiden was probably the only one who had a clear picture of the situation. He would be an idiot if he still had not caught on. “I don’t care how you figured out the secret behind the Golden Toad, Lee. Just you wait. This is far from over.” Aiden glared at Kaze and hissed through clenched teeth. He understood that he did not lose to Kaze. The information gap cost Aiden the victory. Kaze must have known what the Golden Toad meant to the Krads and outbid him in the auction. Most frustratingly, Aiden had no choice but to concede to Kaze’s manipulatio
Ignoring Aiden, Kaze turned to the stunned auctioneer and smiled. “Carry on, lady.” Kaze went back to his seat. “You were amazing, honey!” Darcy took Kaze’s arm excitedly. If they were alone, she would give him a kiss. Kaze played Aiden like a fiddle without getting physical. Darcy had known what the Golden Toad meant to Aiden beforehand. Still, not many could pull it off like Kaze. “We shall continue with the auction.” The female auctioneer took a deep breath and hosted the auction. The later part of the auction appeared anticlimactic. The items featured in the auction, regardless of their value, were lackluster compared to the thrill of auctioning the Golden Toad off. Many kept looking at Kaze, still caught in the previous drama. They wondered who Kaze was. Kaze had the nerve to break Aiden. Aiden returned to his seat near Kaze and Darcy. He held the Golden Toad, checking the box out every now and then with a grimace. It was clear that Aiden was about to
“That’s not a lot,” Aiden murmured with a sneer.Sky Ocean Corporation was not a worthy rival with just 15 billion dollars in funding. Joan said cautiously, “Mr. Krad, they now have 10 billion dollars from you too.” Aiden grimaced. Nevertheless, he pulled himself together and said callously, “So they now have 25 billion dollars.“Are you sure that this is the most Sky Ocean Corporation can afford right now?” Joan nodded. “I am certain. You pulled all the right strategies to drain Sky Ocean Corporation’s funding. “After what happened, no banks would give them a loan. “Though Madam Quint didn’t look into Sky Ocean Corporation’s finances yesterday, we can tell from Darcy and her assistant’s behavior that the corporation account is dry. “I just can’t figure out where Kaze got the money from.“I would’ve loved to see them denied entry.” Aiden nodded. “So all I need is 35 billion dollars to acquire the piece of land.” He talked as if thirty-five billion dollars was not a
“It’s public information that Crown Tower under Mt. Seven Stars and its surrounding land is the best spot in the city. “The Seven Star District Council put up the land for sale in hopes of finding a good buyer to develop and boost the growth of the city. “As a result, we have conducted a comprehensive screening process for all potential buyers and selected a few qualified buyers.” The bidders perked up. The highlight of today’s auction was the land in the Seven Star District. The other auction items were insignificant compared to the main event. The ten-billion-dollar sale of the Golden Toad was unexpected. However, the Seven Star District land was likely to exceed the price point. That was what the ordinary bidders thought. A select few had the inside story, and they were qualified to bid on Crown Tower. Still, they quietly put down their paddles. First of all, this was the big leagues. It would take money, connections, and a lot of influence to stay in the game
Darcy said indifferently, “Working in business, we want to make sure every penny counts. We can’t be as lavish as you, Mr. Krad.” It sounded like a compliment, but the sarcasm was buried within. She was implying that Aiden was flexing his financial muscles. Aiden grimaced. He did not expect Darcy to snap back at him. After a scoff, Aiden cocked his head back and said menacingly, “Six billion dollars.” Excited by the heated competition, the auctioneer cried, “Six billion dollars, going once. Are there any other bidders? “Six billion dollars, going twice.” Darcy uttered without hesitation, “Six point one billion dollars.” “Seven billion dollars!” Aiden bid on and sneered. “You’ll be sorry for taking me on, Ms. Quint.“I can tell you now that we were only going to spend five billion dollars on the land. “You’ll pay for all the losses.” Dropping his gentleman act, Aiden uttered grimacingly, “If you know any better, you should leave right now. Stop giving me problem
Snow had already sent men to where the plane was found. If the passengers were taken away, then they must still be nearby. It was difficult to transport an entire plane of passengers to some place far within such a short time. It was a race against time. Snow did not know who would do such a thing. Kaze took a common flight like everyone else, yet it was hijacked. It was strange. The coincidence was uncanny. Snow believed the hijacking happened because of Kaze but she did not know why. “The only explanation is that there’s a traitor among us…” She finally came to an unlikely conclusion after combing through the details. If there were a traitor, it must be within the Viper’s Den. Kaze had laid a low profile for as long as he was in Butterworth. Not many people knew about his identity and those who wanted to make connections with him were because of Snow. It was unlikely that someone would go after him so suddenly unless this person knew his identity and background.
If they were sent to capture Kaze, then they were severely under-numbered. In addition, they allowed Kaze to be alone with the captives, which proved that they were inexperienced. Or maybe they did not know what he had done in the past as the God of War. Kaze believed that the mercenaries were after him but they did not know his true identity. There must have been some miscommunication between them and their employer, which was good news to Kaze. Tiguan and his men were eating. Since they were unable to identify the target, they were forced to bring everyone back. The plane was huge. It would be an easy target for the law enforcement to locate them. Maybe the outside world had caught wind of the hijacking. “Boss, what should we do now? That man seems like he vanished into thin air.” “We got his boarding information but we can’t identify him on the plane.” “Who are we looking for exactly? Why is he so mysterious?” The men were baffled. “We are looking for the righ
“We are almost there. We have to transfer these people as soon as possible. The plane must take off right away. We cannot leave any traces behind.” They must hurry or they would be caught very soon. They held the pilot hostage and forced him to do an abrupt landing. The sudden descent caught everyone off guard, shocking them. A few of the passengers even hit their heads. Many of them did not get the chance to fasten their seat belts. Kaze grabbed Barney and protected his head from hitting the front seat. “Thank you.” Barney looked at Kaze with gratitude and then looked outside. “Where are we? Have we reached?” He was worried that they would be completely trapped. “They are going to transfer us elsewhere.” Kaze had a similar experience before and he knew what the hijackers would do next. “Transfer us? Are they going to transfer us to somewhere secluded and kill us all?” Barney looked horrified as he stared at Kaze. He somehow felt safe beside Kaze. “They sai
With trains, there was still an option to jump out. However, everybody was sitting ducks in a plane. Kaze had always been sensitive when it came to safety. He had a sinking feeling in his gut as if something was about to happen. He turned his head back to observe the plane’s interior. Several passengers stood up in the business class section. Strangely, these people were seated separately. However, they seemed to know each other. They exchanged glances as if searching for something. Finding the whole thing bizarre, Kaze observed them. Those passengers went straight into the air stewardesses’ compartment and disappeared out of Kaze’s sight. Kaze could not shake off the eerie feeling. Something was off. He looked back, and several more rose to their feet. These individuals were young but toned. They likely underwent some form of specialized training. Kaze had a bad feeling. Trouble was brewing, and the plane was likely being hijacked. “Why are you looking around? Is
“I see. What bad timing.” Katie was a little disappointed to learn that Kaze had left, but in a way, she was relieved. She had gotten on Kaze’s nerves, and he could turn around and make things difficult for her. Now that Kaze was gone, Katie got to keep her job. She did not have to fear Kaze’s retaliation. The news caught Leah off guard. “Why did he leave without saying goodbye? I didn’t even thank him yet.” Leah had a hard time digesting the news. She had been waiting for a chance to show her gratitude to Kaze and see him again. He was out of her life before she could do anything about it. “I’m sorry. Chairman Lee’s departure was unplanned.” Snow put on a professional smile, appearing friendly and distant. “Please present the gifts to him for us if you can. We are grateful for Mr. Lee’s help.” Katie was annoyed that Leah could not spend time with Kaze. The bond could help with her career. Kaze’s departure cost Katie an opportunity, but there was no point in dwel
“Now that’s the spirit. You can’t take every matter into your own hands. You’re a leader now. You should put the right people in the right jobs.” Feeling relieved, May nodded. “Where’s the guy? I have been wanting to meet him. I missed the chance when I was unconscious.” May came over right away just to score a chance to see Kaze. Kaze saved her life, but she did not have the chance to thank him in person. “I set the date. We’re seeing him tomorrow afternoon. Let’s freshen up. I’m taking you home to rest.” With a time in place, Snow had to get ready. May nodded. The pair returned to the mansion where they felt at home. Even though it had been a while since their return, nothing had changed. “Did Jet say anything when he stepped down?” May was clueless on the specifics. “He went mad and ran out. I get this uneasy feeling, but I can’t locate him anywhere.” Snow was concerned. Jet, as witty as he was, likely played up his meltdown. It was a shame that Jet got aw
“I have pointed you in a direction. If you still can’t trust your team, you can go to the Viper’s Den.“There’s one thing, though. Don’t rely too heavily on the Viper’s Den, or your company will be left without secrets.” Kaze’s suggestion gave Snow assurance. She considered tapping into the Viper’s Den’s resources. However, Kaze warned her against excessive dependence. “Why did you say that, Chairman Lee? Will the Viper’s Den stab me in the back?” Surely, the Viper’s Den took orders from Kaze. The Viper’s Den would always be an ally so long as Kaze was the branch leader. “I just don’t want you to put too much faith in others. You find loyalty by developing your own team. Those who revere me will never trust you completely.” Kaze analyzed the situation. Snow ate her supper and looked at Kaze in confusion. “You can only count on the people you win over. You can’t trust anyone else, and that includes me.” Kaze would never hurt Snow. However, he hoped that she would fin
“As you said, all is in the past. What’s the point of dwelling on it?” Leah perked up. Such was life, but it took her too long to understand the harsh reality. She guessed things were just not meant to be. “I’ll think about what to get Kaze. Rest well. We’ll visit him in a few days.” Taking the matter seriously, Katie wanted to get gifts ready ahead of time to thank Kaze. “Alright. I’ll see what I can do too. I want to be in touch with the outside world. I don’t care what they have to say. This is not my fault. I won’t blame myself.” Leah wanted her phone back to contact her former friends. Ultimately, she needed to move forward instead of backward. She had to face and fight back the rumors with courage. It was the crucial step to kick trauma in the face. The abduction was kept hush-hush for the most part, but Katie’s frantic search for her daughter at the cocktail party did not go unnoticed. Hearing about the incident, the influential people were keen to find out
“When did Kaze start setting it all up? I get the feeling that everybody played into his hands right from the start, and he had controlled every step of the way.” Leah realized that Kaze was an amazing man. Nothing could go past his eyes. “I don’t know.” Katie feared someone like Kaze. She would not be caught dead near him. Even when grasping the situation, Katie dared not look into Kaze for fear she would be targeted. Katie was careful not to show her face around Kaze. For all she knew, Kaze might get back at her. “But he came to Butterworth alone. We met at the train station, and he helped me out of a bad situation.” Leah felt warm and cozy inside just remembering the events. They did not know each other then. Kaze was kind to help a stranger out. From then on, Kaze could do no wrong in Leah’s eyes. Leah befriended him and found him nice. Her interest in him grew. They also got along well. Her memories of Kaze were sweet. Anyone could hurt her in the world, but