Everyone waited for Hank to punch Kaze but he left in a hurry after a phone call. No one understood what kind of selection was more important than avenging Yume. “Selection? I heard the Lilyrose Strategic Department is selecting soldiers to be sent to foreign battlefields. All the ace soldiers from different strategic departments wanted to join, but there were only so many slots.” “My cousin who served the Spec Ops Team for many years didn’t even get a slot, but Hank got it?!” Harry looked at Hank in surprise. Hank said proudly without looking back, “How hard is it to get a slot in the preliminaries? Your cousin is useless.” Harry grunted but he did not argue. Hank served the main Spec Ops Team of the South River Strategic Department. He served directly under the highest command. Those who were given a slot in the preliminaries were all ace soldiers. Hank was able to secure his position among the elites and he even became a team leader, not just a common soldier. He
Hank looked proud. He was confident about the preliminaries. “Are you sure you can get through the preliminaries?” Kaze asked with a soft grin. Judging from the young masters’ words, there seemed to be a lot of misunderstanding regarding the preliminaries. They thought getting a slot would mean a bright future. He decided to correct their assumptions, which he needed an example. Coincidentally, Hank turned out to be the best choice to make an example out of. “I am the ace in our team and with my family’s support, I have the power and the background. If not me, who else?” Hank was confident. His family had everything laid out for him. As long as he performed well, he could easily pass the preliminaries. As for the next round, his family would also invest a lot to make sure he got in. “Great. Then you will soon understand that reality is harsh.” Kaze ignored him and called Draco directly. “The preliminaries haven't started, right? I’m coming to have a look.” “Boss,
Harry and the others were surprised. “You are still being stubborn at times like this? We don’t want to waste time on you now. We’ll come after you after the preliminaries are over. We will surely crush you by today!” They then called their drivers to pick them up. Rose was upset by the young masters’ frivolous attitude. “Stop being arrogant! You people are laughing at Kaze because he can’t go? I’ll make it happen!” Rose pulled her phone out and called her father. She said she wanted to attend the preliminaries but she did not mention Kaze. “You want to go have a look? Sure, I’ll ask around.” Nelson was punished together with his direct superior for drinking on duty, but he was released for good behavior. Soon, he secured a way to get Rose in. “Thank you, Dad!” Rose then waved her phone at Harry. “I can also attend the preliminaries with just one call. What’s so great about that?” “Hmph. Quite capable, little girl.” The young masters were embarrassed but they
“That depends on what he did wrong.” Nelson said confidently, “If it’s a heavy crime, even if he’s not from the military, he would be punished. If it’s something light, he would still be lectured. “Besides, the idiot is arrogant. I bet he’s going to be taught a lesson, or even beaten up. The discipline division isn’t the friendliest. Even if he’s a stubborn one, they have a way to crack him.” Rose’s face turned pale when she heard her father. “Kaze, don’t argue with them! Just cooperate!” Sky was worried as well. “Hahaha! He’s taken away by the discipline division the moment he arrived? Did he just turn himself in?” “Do you think he’ll call the soldiers from the discipline division useless? If he did, they would beat the shit out of him!” “Kaze, the idiot! He made my day!” Harry and the others continued to laugh at him. “Since when did we allow public viewing for the soldiers’ selection? This is not by the rules. Find out who allowed it and deal with it.” Kaze was
The young masters were taken down from the platform that they were standing on. Harry tried to resist but was taken down as well. Agitated and flushed, he shouted, “What are you doing? Show some respect! I am Harry Lokeman of the Lokeman family!” Slap! The soldier slapped him in the face for being irritating and uncooperative. “I don’t care what family you are from. This is a restricted zone and no civilians are allowed in here… What are you holding? Give it to me!” Harry’s binoculars were confiscated. “Military binoculars? You’re a spy?!” The soldiers immediately surrounded Harry and the young masters to search them. “I’m not a spy! I just want to see what the God of War looks like! Don’t accuse me!” Harry shouted. He was called a spy just because he held a pair of binoculars. “Trying to see the God of War’s true face is spy activity. The God of War’s schedule is classified, not even we know about it, yet you are here with military binoculars. You are not a spy? I
Hank did not want the God of War to see him, yet he already stood out from the others. Kaze saw him lowering his head among the other uplifted and energetic soldiers. It was difficult not to notice him. Hank was in uniform, so Kaze did not recognize him at first glance. He frowned and asked, “Soldier, why is your head down? Look up!” Countless gazes landed on Hank instantly. Hank wanted to die on the spot to escape the attention. He nervously squeezed the words out of his clenched teeth, saying, “S-Sir! G-God of War! I-I am afraid…” He answered instinctively without realizing he violated a taboo in the army. Kaze looked rather angry. “What is there to be afraid of? Look up!” His voice was as loud as the rumbling thunder. Hank was so frightened that he fell on his butt, and even his hat fell off. He looked at Kaze blankly. Kaze finally saw Hank’s face. He smiled and then wore a frosty look. “Am I that scary?” “I…” Hank could not spell a full word. Kaze grun
All the soldiers on the scene fell silent. It was brutal out there on the foreign battlefield, and Draco had the battle scars to prove it. “Get dressed.” Kaze waved his arm and said, “You saw it. Your chief commander is single to this day for fear of scaring the women when he takes his clothes off.” It sounded like teasing. However, it was no laughing matter. “The battlefield is not a place for easy fame or fortune. It’s a dangerous and challenging place where you must be prepared to risk your life.“Let me put it out there now. If you’re looking for a career that will make you rich and famous, this isn’t the place for you. The door is right there if hard work and danger scare you.” Kaze said his piece and walked away. Back on the training grounds, the soldiers stood at attention for a long time. The silence lingered. “That’s so uncool, Boss. Now the kids have seen me naked. There goes my reputation.” Draco put on his clothes and caught up to Kaze. He removed
“Come on. I’ll give you a tour of the military base. I made a formal request, so you won’t be arrested over it.” Draco patted Sky’s head. He warmed up to Sky because of the latter’s relationship with Kaze. Sky was now a younger brother to Draco. “Thank you, Draco, for saving us.” Sky was relieved, but a wave of anxiety quickly washed over him. “What about Kaze, Draco? Did he commit a serious offense?” “I doubt he has done anything,” Draco replied peevishly. Rose asked, “Why did the disciplinary commission approach him?” “They just want to get an understanding of the situation,” Draco murmured randomly. “So Kaze blew the whistle on all of us. That’s why we were arrested!” Landon’s eyes bulged. Draco glared at him. “Show some respect to Kaze or I’ll hit you.” Out of the three kids, Landon was the most annoying. Landon turned pale and kept to himself. Sky said, “Oh, I get it. Kaze reported those people from affluent families to get them arrested, so they can’
Kaze saw the anxiety and nervousness in Jiro’s eyes and he was amused. “I didn’t know you were such an emotional man. Do you know that the woman you love is serving an Arcadian man like she is his personal sex slave?” Jiro had no idea about that, or he would have been devastated a long time ago. Kaze simply wanted to attack his confidence. As expected, the words shocked Jiro. Infuriated, he shouted, “What the hell are you talking about? It’s fucking nonsense! There’s no way Ms. Hara will do that! “What are you trying to do to her? Why are you slandering her?!” Judging from his reaction, Kaze knew Jiro had started to lose his calm. After all, they met purely because of coincidence. Kaze also coincidentally knew Reiko and something about her, which made his words credible. “You should ask what she is trying to do to us, not the other way around.” Kaze pointed at Snow and explained, “Did you know that earlier in the afternoon, me and my friend here were attacked by the
Jiro was almost driven mad. He had never been insulted like this before. Seeing that Jiro could no longer stand it, Cyan rushed over and said, “Kaze, what are you doing? Are you trying to kill Mr. Sakamoto?! Can you handle the consequences?! “Let it go before it gets out of hand! I’m warning you, don’t cause trouble for our family!” Kaze shot an icy glance at her and bellowed, “Get out of my way!” Cyan froze on the spot. Upset and angry, she cried, “W-What?! What did you say to me?! Who do you think you are?!” She believed Kaze had lost his mind. The timid and quiet man raised his voice at her and told her to get out of his way! What had gotten into him!? “Miru, clear the place.” Kaze ignored Cyan and said to Miru with a raise of his hand. A moment later, he added, “Snow can stay.” He did not want Cyan to annoy him like a buzzing fly, and he had questions for Jiro, questions that needed to remain private. Miru raised her hand without saying a word. Her men scatt
From the very first time Draig met Kaze, he had never thought highly of him. In the subsequent encounters, Kaze’s repeated tolerance of the mockeries from Wesley and Cyan further solidified his image of a coward in Draig’s mind. With such prejudice in his mind, Draig could not accept the fact that Kaze was stronger than him. Coincidentally, he found an acceptable and reasonable explanation for all the inexplicable occurrences, so he hypnotized himself into believing the false. “Can you get up?” Under everyone’s surprised gaze, Kaze strolled over to Jiro and peered down at him condescendingly. Gasp! Phew! Jiro mustered enough strength to look up but the pain was insufferable and he was gasping for air already. Baam! As he struggled to get up, the marble table beneath him further crumbled into pieces, causing a loud clunk. He held onto the couch and slowly got up on his feet. His eyes at Kaze showed unprecedented fear and seriousness. He had come to Arcadia for many
Jiro looked shocked. He did not expect Kaze to dodge his dropkick that easily. With a twist of his waist, he changed his body’s momentum mid-air and swung his left kick at Kaze’s face. However, forcefully changing his momentum mid-air decreased the power and speed contained in his attack. “I don’t like people pointing their feet at me,” Kaze casually said. As he spoke, he lifted his leg too. Without any fancy move or technique, he simply did a high kick, clashing kicks with Jiro. Kabaam! When both feet locked, Jiro’s body convulsed as if hit by lightning. He cried in agony before he was sent hurtling like a stringless kite, crashing onto a couch. The marble table in front of the couch shattered under the force of the crash. He lay down helplessly and weakly, his arms and legs wide open, and his body still convulsing as he could not find the strength to get up. He looked as miserable as it could get. The entire room fell into a dead silence. Many of them rubbed the
Cyan simply watched from the side without a hint of guilt. She believed she had done everything that she could for Kaze. Even if Kaze were to be beaten to death, he deserved it and he could not blame it on anyone else. Jiro was stunned for a moment. When he was learning from his master, he was slapped many times and it was part of the training. It had been many years since his last slap. Kaze’s slap rendered his mind blank for a while. He finally regained his composure after some time. He stroked his burning cheek as he stared at Kaze with eyes burning with anger, almost materializing into an erupting, raging volcano. “It has been a long time since anyone slapped me. Arcadian, you are dead!” Jiro’s freezing words gave everyone chills. It was obvious that he was infuriated. Kaze was not deterred at all. He smiled and said, “Slap is nothing. I will make you kneel in front of me. “A coward like Wesley cannot represent us Arcadians, but your claim of making us kneel p
“Hold on!” Just as Jiro turned around, a voice came from the back, saying, “Jiro Sakamoto, was it? Did I say you could leave?” Jiro was stunned. He slowly turned around to Kaze and raised his brow. “What do you mean?” Cyan and the others were also in shock. ‘Did I say you could leave?!’ Kaze was practically saying that without his permission, Jiro could not leave. The audacity!? Was it because Miru defended him and he thought he could step on the pride of the face of the Refined Blade Dojo? Miru frowned but quickly eased up. She stepped aside without saying anything. Kaze stood firm and still, saying, “I’m like you. I don’t like serving revenge cold. If you want to take revenge, come at me now. I’ll give you a chance to strike.” He gestured at Jiro, indicating that he was ready for a fight. Jiro looked at Miru and then switched his attention back to Kaze. He scoffed, but it felt icy. “I’ve already spared your life once because of Ms. Scarlet, and you are still c
Everyone looked at where Jiro was pointing and saw Kaze. Wesley and the others immediately curled their lips into a gloating grin. Kaze’s words must have infuriated Jiro. He allowed others to leave except for Kaze, which he wanted to take away. One could only imagine what would happen to Kaze if Jiro took him back. However, before Wesley and the others could savor the moment, their smirks froze. Miru shook her head and said sternly, “Bronze Sparrow is open for business and we will not interfere with our customer’s private affairs, except this time. “I am making an exception for Kaze. I don’t care what you do to the others after you walk out of my place but with Kaze, it’s not happening.” “What the…” Miru’s words put everyone in shock, even Cyan and her friends widened their eyes in disbelief. Miru was defending Kaze?! Kaze knew Miru personally as well? Draig started to feel jealous about Kaze’s luck with women. Snow listened to him while the owner of Bronze Sp
“Nonsense!” Infuriated, Jiro shouted, “Woman, Bronze Sparrow thrives because of us Ryokanians! How dare you say that to us? “Who the hell are you? Not even Zoro, the previous manager, spoke to me like that!” “That’s why Zoro is dead.” Miru pursed her lips and raised her hand at the men behind her. “Let’s show Mr. Sakamoto what Bronze Sparrow is capable of.” “Alright, Boss!” Wolf, with an ever-smiley face, stepped up and walked toward Jiro and his men. Aside from the three Ryokanians Kaze had already taken down, eighteen remained. Seeing Wolf's bloated figure and cheerful smile as he approached them by himself, the Ryokanians burst into mocking laughter. “What is this fat guy trying to do? Is he trying to take us all at once?” “Look at his size. Was he a sumo wrestler before?” “Go get him. Teach him a lesson! Remind him that sumo wrestlers are no match for us!” One of them went up to Wolf with a ferocious smile. Bang! Wolf punched the man in the face, sending
“Huh?” Jiro frowned but then quickly smiled. He took the glass of whiskey from Cyan and said, “I’m always happy to give a beautiful woman some space.” Cyan breathed a sigh of relief. She turned around to face Kaze with a different look and said, “Kaze, what have you done? “Can you stop causing trouble? Stop bragging and stop with your nonsense! This is no time for that! Kneel before Mr. Sakamoto and ask for forgiveness! If he’s happy, your punishment might be lighter!” The look on her face screamed resentment for Kaze. “Now! If you waste this chance, I won’t care about your life and death anymore!” She did not want to get involved in his nonsense. Yet she was the one who organized the gathering and if something happened to Kaze, injured or dead, her father would scold her to death. It explained why she steeled herself up and tried to save Kaze, or so she assumed she was saving him.Kaze said, “Cyan, you should worry about yourself first. And, if you don’t want to be thei