“I am the CEO of Shangrila Group, Winnie Souffle. Welcome, Principal Tensor and the students of Tensor Martial Arts School,” Winnie said politely while trying to be calm. “Oh, so you are James White’s ex-wife, Winnie Souffle? No wonder they say you are a beautiful woman!” Dwight sized up Winnie from top to bottom pervertedly. He would have raped Winnie if his gaze could materialize. Dwight was a well-known pervert and a sexual offender. He impregnated a student of his school and made headlines for a while. However, due to his background and connections, he was able to suppress the scandal. The school was not affected by his sexual offense. “Thank you, Principal Tensor. I wonder what brings you and your students here.” Winnie had gotten used to men looking at her pervertedly, so she was not offended at all. “I’ll be straight with you.” Dwight pointed at his students and said, “James promised me that he would help the students with their careers and future, so I brought
Two hundred martial arts students answered en masse. They were so loud that it felt like the ground trembled. They looked ferocious. One word from Dwight and they would wreck the stage, the venue, and even the entire building without hesitation. The martial arts students were more terrifying than street thugs. Street thugs knew the consequences of breaking the law and they were afraid of the law enforcers and those who had backgrounds. The students were still teenagers, some minors, and they would follow their principal’s orders without hesitation. They practiced martial arts and they always resolved things with violence. “Ms. Souffle, when Shangrila Group moved back to Lilyrose, you promised to help the city’s development and because of that, you got a lot of benefits and support from the city council. “Shouldn’t you be helping me in solving my students’ problems? Don’t tell me you are breaking the promise now that James is gone. I might not be able to hold my students
Dwight looked down on Kaze and raised the price on the spot. Kaze said, “Shangrila Group is trying to form a specialized and professional security team. If the students of Tensor Martial Arts School are capable, I can afford five billion a year. But your students…” He scanned over the students. Not one of them looked strong or disciplined, most of them were just underaged thugs. He chuckled and said, “Since they are still students, I can pay them five hundred per month.” He insulted Dwight in his face. “You piece of shit! I’ll break you!” The students were furious and agitated. They all shouted at Kaze fiercely. “Jesse White, I will tell my students to wreck this place and see if they are worth five billion!” Dwight’s expression turned grim. Then, he ordered his students to spread out to wreck the building. It was then another strong voice sounded. “Dwight Tensor, if you wreck Shangrila Group, I will erase the Tensor Martial Art School from the face of the city!” Th
As Kaze had no intention of letting Dwight leave, Alan furrowed his brows. The bodyguard behind Alan said coldly, “Chairman White, Dwight is walking away from this on Mr. Cummingham’s request. You should quit while you’re ahead.” In the bodyguard’s opinion, Alan had already told Dwight to get lost. Dwight was glad to let the whole thing go since Alan asked. That should be the end of the matter. However, Kaze was insistent that Dwight stay. His behavior was a slap in Alan’s face. The local government and Lilyrose underworld; the rich and the filthy would do nothing to undermine Alan’s authority. “Don’t tell others what to do unless you have walked a mile in their shoes. Mr. Cummingham, your people don’t seem to see the sense in that.” Without looking at the bodyguard, Kaze talked to Alan indifferently, “Dwight brought his men to stir trouble at the renaming ceremony. He insulted my deceased buddy. Things are not over because you say so.” “Don’t take it there, Jesse!”
“I have two hundred students with me, Jesse. If you want to make an example out of me, you should at least have six hundred soldiers on your side.” Dwight did not see the army of soldiers as a threat. These men might be able to stand at attention, but that ability was not a testament to their combat competence. Kaze was delusional to think that a hundred men could put a dent on him. Could Kaze round up six hundred soldiers? Dwight did not think so. Unless Kaze could deploy troops from the military. It was impossible. Ignoring Dwight, Kaze asked without looking back, “How many of you to sort these martial arts students?” “30, sir!” The veteran soldier standing in front of fifty men on the left reported. His name was Wyatt Bernett. He was the squadron leader of the Garo Special Ops Team before he retired. Wyatt had a good job lined up as a personal bodyguard to a multibillionaire after he retired from the military.When Kaze wanted to put together a professional secu
Dwight could throw a tantrum and stomp his foot all he wanted, but he could do nothing to turn the tide. Thirty veterans charged toward the group of 170 martial arts students. Like a pack of wolves, they rushed into a herd of sheep. These veterans had trained to draw blood. The group of students, fueled by reckless fervor and a craving for combat, were no match for these veterans who had been to the battlefield. Dwight watched as his students were knocked out one after another. His expression was grim. Wham! In the end, the last dozen students who were still standing were knocked down. The clash between 30 and 200 ended in one minute and 40 seconds. The students scattered across the venue in a lying position. “It’s a mission accomplished, Mr. Chairman.” The thirty veterans regrouped without the need to catch their breath. “Good job. You have passed the pre-employment assessment.” Kaze nodded and looked at Dwight who was in distress. “Mr. Tensor, have I prove
“Huh? What’s that?” “Someone threw a person out.” As gasps filled the air, the figure crashed onto the stage, dropping to his knees where Winnie was. The platform trembled. Startled, Winnie and a few staff members backed away. “Principal Tensor!” They were in for another surprise once they got a good look at the person. “It’s Dwight Tensor. What happened to him? He was hurled out. Where are his students? How could they do nothing when their principal was in trouble?” Clamor erupted beyond the platform. The crowd wondered what was going on and questioned what happened to Dwight. The soldiers in security officer uniforms appeared at the entrance of Shangrila Group. They each carried two martial arts students and tossed them out like they were trash. The shocking scene lasted a whole minute. Everybody stared numbly as the martial arts students and their principal were hurled out of the office building. Two hundred students sprawled across the entrance of Shangril
“The veterans weren’t pleased that the martial arts students were eager to snatch jobs from them, so they taught the students a humbling lesson.” After the Chapmans’ butler reported back with the police’s response, Belarus smashed his expensive teapot in anger. Generally, matters involving the military were pretty sensitive, and the local authorities were reluctant to get involved. The martial arts students took a beating for nothing. The three family heads could do nothing about the matter. “Is Jesse a clairvoyant? How did he know that we would send a martial arts school to him? He was able to defuse whatever we threw at him.” They were frustrated. “Maybe we should send a drone to take a photo of Jesse. We can see who he really is.” Belarus hissed through clenched teeth. He ordered eyes on Shangrila Group’s event through a drone. The trio fixated on the screen. However, it went black when the drone was about to fly into the office building. Why did the screen go bl
Arthur chuckled, his smile carrying a touch of sleaziness. “Oh, I see.” A realization dawned on Kaze. “Are you with quality control?” Several individuals in dark blue suits approached. The men and women carried files and documents. Kaze nodded without a word. “We are just here to announce the results. We shouldn’t be long.” Arthur came forward to engage with them. The group was likely given the heads-up as they had the right number of people. They swaggered into Rising Sun’s building. The general manager straightened up his tie in a fluster and walked out. None of the film productions made the cut yet, and the delay was costing the company money by the day. At this rate, the project would go down under. Eli, the general manager, rushed to the entrance upon learning the news. The review team was there to do one final check. The films would get the green light if the board found that everything was up to par. The head office would stop putting pressure on
Given Kaze’s status, Alfonso knew better than to have him waiting under the hot sun. Of course, he would send his people to be on standby for Kaze’s arrival. Peter only came to the rescue when Kaze was pestered by some street gang. Alfonso’s omission of Kaze’s identity led to this hiccup. Kaze did not care one bit about the incident. Heck, he did not even bring it up. Arthur straightened his back nervously, becoming even more cautious behind the wheel. “You knew, but why didn’t you say anything, Mr. Lee? You didn’t even tell on us.” Arthur could not understand why. However, he had more respect for the man. “I didn’t see a point. You’ll learn what happens when you displease me, so I won’t bother telling you now.” Kaze was mild-mannered as ever. He spoke softly without a hint of anger. All the more Arthur revered him. “Mr. Lee, we didn’t do our jobs right. We didn’t know who you were.“But my duty is to protect you in the dark. “We saw you getting out of the train
“Rising Sun is a media company. Several of their films are about to be released. They are trying to get them approved to air due to some censorship issues.” Arthur took out a document. “Are there any issues with the films? Why aren’t they approved yet?” Kaze asked curiously. Kaze had no idea. “There are some issues. They aren’t fit to be aired. “Typically, there aren’t a lot of restrictions for film productions so long as the themes aren’t sensitive topics. “But these films featured altered history. The company has been asked multiple times to make revisions, but the films still don’t make the cut.” The Viper’s Den’s members were not privy to the information. The Frosts were insignificant. Kaze was after the Frosts. Otherwise, the Viper’s Den would not waste its resources on a mere film production company. Jet’s investment of nearly ten million bucks in Rising Sun caught the Viper’s Den’s attention. The delayed approval of the films would be catastrophic to the in
“It’s quite a bustle even when it’s late at night.” Kaze looked down from above and saw the bright lights. A street in the distance was brightly lit with many people working into the night. “The majority of people would do many things to make a living.” Arthur rarely observed these sights. “Thank you. Keep me in the loop of any progress. I’m curious as to what you’d do.” Kaze did not see a need to get involved with the minor stuff. He delegated the tasks to his people. “If you have time, why don’t you go out and have a bit of fun, Mr. Lee?” Arthur asked. The reason for Kaze’s trip was to deal with Jet. Kaze would get some satisfaction from upsetting Jet. “I don’t want to attract attention.” The last thing Kaze wanted was to blow his cover. From Kaze’s question, Arthur knew that Kaze was interested. “No. We can give you a whole new identity.” Arthur knew what to do. “I’ll leave you to it, but don’t take it too far,” Kaze replied. Still, Kaze was intrigued a
Katie was narrow-minded to spit out the unpleasant things. Her words would never harm Kaze. Kaze took the private elevator back to the penthouse for a rest. He had more important things to do. He needed to keep tabs on the Frosts. Leah’s business was none of Kaze’s concern. Sure, Leah was in a state, being manipulated by her mother and all. However, it was a family matter at the end of the day. Kaze had no rhyme or reason to get involved. Kaze soon put the whole thing behind him. Arthur was already there at the penthouse. As Kaze entered the room, Arthur jolted up from the couch. “Mr. Lee, this is the document you requested. It should have detailed information to give you a clearer idea of the situation.” Arthur put the papers in front of Kaze and grabbed him a bottle of water. Feeling hot from his walk back, Kaze took a sip and held the document up for a look. “I got to give it to the Frosts. They sure work in the shadows.” Kaze grinned. A strong opponent p
“Despite everything I’ve said, you still won’t listen! Kaze is a liar! He befriended you with a motive. Yet, you trust him. He’s a good friend to you? What do you take me for?” Katie could not put up with her daughter’s defiance. Leah must obey her because that was what a good daughter would do. “I see you as my mother. What about you? Am I a daughter to you?” Leah did not want to ask such a distressing question. However, there was no way around it. She was escaping reality. Still, she had to swallow the truth, however cruel. “What are you talking about? I wouldn’t raise you if I didn’t consider you my daughter.” Katie worked hard to keep a level head. The last thing she wanted was the whole thing to blow up into a bigger fight. She had a lot to do for the upcoming party. There was no time to lose in keeping her daughter happy. Besides, Leah was no longer a child. Yet, she was so defiant and rebellious. “Why do you plan on giving me away if I’m supposed to be your d
Katie proudly made the statement, convinced that she had done a lot for her daughter. It was only right for Leah to be grateful and understand her sacrifice. To Katie’s surprise, Leah chuckled. “What else have you done for me? You never showed me any attention. You don’t know what I like. You have no idea what I want.” Leah finally saw her mother as the person she was. This side of Katie was terrifying. “What more do you want? Am I not supposed to work? Should I be spending every waking minute of the day with you?” Katie understood Leah’s needs. However, there was no way she could make it happen. It was not easy for a woman to take hold in the Northborn Group, much less secure a high position there. Katie went through great pains to get where she was today. Alas, Leah could not understand where she was coming from. “I’m not asking you to be with me every day. I’ve tried my best to do everything you asked of me, but you can’t even be there for me during my birthdays.
“Everything I do, I do for you. Get this straight. The guy approached you because of what I could bring to the table.” Katie was pissed by her daughter’s defiance which was becoming worse with age. “I know the kind of person he is. Without Kaze’s help, I wouldn’t have escaped. Where were you then? You’re in no position to say that. “Even if there’s something he’s after, what would he want from me? I have nothing to offer.” Leah did not believe a word Katie said. Clearly, Katie was out to get Kaze. “He’s nothing but a poor kid. Why are you blowing this out of proportion? I’ve clearly stated what needed to be done. Why are you still being stubborn?”Katie believed she had not raised her daughter right. Leah turned out pretty naïve. “I told you. He has no ulterior motive. He doesn’t know who I am. He doesn’t have any other intentions. I approached him, not the other way around.” Leah kicked herself for pulling a reckless stunt. All she did was give Kaze more problems. Kat
Leah hated her mother being unreasonable. “Don’t get the wrong idea. I fed you, I gave you clothes, I put a roof over your head, I gave you life! The least you could do is to listen to me!” Katie did not expect her daughter to go so far as to defy her. Kaze remained silent, knowing that no matter what he said, it would be meaningless to someone unwilling to listen. “Kaze, I’m sorry. It was my fault that you are in this mess. I’m a jinx…” Leah blamed herself for getting Kaze in trouble with her mother. If not because of her, he would never encounter her mother. “Shut it! Why are you apologizing!? He approached you with purpose and you can’t even see that? He’s not worthy of your time!” Katie was livid. She felt her daughter was blinded by emotions, incapable of making the right decision. And to make matters worse, the girl even apologized to Kaze—what nonsense! A poor man without any background was no match for her daughter and her status. He approached the girl becaus