Ashwin's eyes finally focused on the weapon in his adversary's grip, and a shiver of dread coursed through him. "A quintuple-edged dagger... you... you're King Pendragon..."He could not believe that the man he had been plotting against was then standing before him; his earlier bravado evaporated.With a bow of submission, Ashwin's voice quivered with fear, "King Pendragon, have mercy! Please, spare me. The Ashwin organization will surrender to you without conditions!"Alpha and Ellison stood frozen, their faces etched with astonishment. They had never imagined that upon meeting the Commander-in-chief of Pendragon, Ashwin would capitulate so easily.Alpha's ranks had been decimated, and he was seething with fury, ready to command his remaining men to swiftly eliminate the threat.However, in a heartbeat, the enemy moved like a wraith, a blur of motion, and suddenly, Alpha's men were sprawled on the ground, their necks gushing blood.Simultaneously, Cirocco emerged, his presence c
"Heh, just as I thought!"During the hotel assassination scare, they pinpointed Noel, but Liam was still in the dark about their motives. He figured it was due to his role as the Commander-in-chief of Pendragon, and once his presence in Zephyrland was blown, he became a target.It turns out that after all the runaround, it was Noel stirring the pot all along. Then that's a twist!Right then, Calum stepped out of the shadows, approaching Liam with a salute. "Sir, Noel's been taken care of."They barely set foot in the villa when Cirocco took charge of the Draconian Order's crew, while Calum led a team to the hospital to handle Noel.Anyone brave enough to mess with him had to be ready to pay the price.Liam gave a nod and commanded, "Handle the rest."With that, he strode back to the villa.Cirocco and Calum responded with a dutiful yes, escorting Alpha and the rest away. Calum kept pace with Liam, returning to the villa together.Back at the villa, Liam found Sunniva in the li
Over and over, Sunniva repeated those words like a mantra, trying to drill into her head that Liam was off the market, a family man.However, no matter how hard she tried, she could not shake the image of Liam, who swooped into her life like a guardian angel in her hour of need.How could she not fall for a guy like that?Even fully aware that he was taken, Liam's image was seared into her heart, unshakable.Her mind was a mess, her heart in turmoil. She knew her crush on Liam was wrong, but she could not rein in her runaway feelings.Meanwhile, Liam downstairs had no clue about the storm raging inside Sunniva. Once she was gone, he casually strolled over to the sofa and took a seat."How's it looking with Jeffrey?" Liam inquired.Calum straightened up, his face set in seriousness, and replied, "I've been in touch. He says we're good to go. We'll head out tomorrow to meet him, and the guide will take us to Wraith Island."...At the crack of dawn the following day, Liam, with
However, that was Rasford City, where the unusual was just another Tuesday.Jeffrey, with Liam in tow, zigzagged through the streets until they reached a grand casino that oozed luxury. The bouncers, armed to the teeth, looked like they meant business. However, at the sight of Jeffrey, they straightened up and greeted him with the utmost respect, chatting in the tongue of the town.One of them, all politeness, swung the doors wide open, beckoning them inside with a 'right this way' gesture.They were led past the bustling main hall, into the quiet of the casino's backyard, where a hidden cabin waited, promising secrets in its seclusion.A team trailed behind their bodyguard, weaving through a hidden underground passage that stretched nearly a hundred meters before reaching a sturdy iron door.The bodyguard whipped out a card, swiped it on a nearby scanner, and followed up with his fingerprint and a facial scan to unlock the door. He ushered the group into the next area.They en
With a detached tone, the old man spoke, "The illustrious Commander-in-chief of Pendragon from Biskeland, head of the Draconian Order, it's quite a surprise to have you visit this humble place."Liam was taken aback as well. He did not expect the man to recognize him, let alone be aware of the Draconian Order. His brow furrowed in an instant.Jeffrey's eyes widened in shock as he turned to Liam. "Wow! Mr. Cole, who would've thought you're the King Pendragon of the Draconian Order!"Liam ignored the comment, his piercing gaze fixed on the white-haired old man, a storm of suspicion swirling in his eyes.Unperturbed, the old man with the white hair walked over to the desk, clutching the sheepskin book. "You're looking to head to Wraith Island?" he asked.Regaining his composure, Jeffrey nodded earnestly. "Exactly, York. We're aiming for Wraith Island and could use your guidance."York stopped thumbing through the book, gave a nod, and said, "That would've been fine before, but not n
Jeffrey was fuming, his chest rising and falling with each heavy breath. "This ore is a rare gem, barely a few hundred grams come out of the ground each month. A single gram, if you put a price tag on it in dollars, we're talking millions."We had a deal with the old coot. He sails us out, we pay him with five hundred grams of the stuff, no bigger than your fist. However, now, he's got the nerve to ask for double!"Double! Can you believe he wants one thousand five hundred grams? That's like hauling around three fists worth of this stuff!"It'd take the better part of a year to dig up that much, and once this ore's gone, it's gone for good—it's non-renewable. So now you get why I'm so worked up?"Jeffrey was so angry he thought he might burst. He ran the numbers a thousand times but never saw that coming—York, the sly old dog, was trying to pull a fast one!He had the gall to demand a king's ransom in ore right out of the gate!Liam, still not getting it, pressed on, "What's so s
Convinced by Liam's earnest nod, Jeffrey made up his mind and declared, "Okay! Let's head over!"Jeffrey led Liam to a different underground gambling joint on the other side of town.This place was a good deal bigger than the York joint they just left, and it had its unique vibe.There, among the usual spread of gambling tables, there was a boxing ring—a different kind of bet altogether.Right then, the ring was alive with action. A beefy white guy was locked in a fierce match with a black guy.The fight was at its boiling point. The black guy might not have had the bulk, but he was holding his own in strength.It was obvious the black guy was getting the upper hand, while the white guy was starting to flag, his energy waning.The white fighter knew he was in trouble, his moves becoming more frantic.He realized if he did not take his opponent down soon, he would be the one hitting the mat in less than ten rounds.With a guttural roar, he launched into a more aggressive assaul
"Hmph."Kastor snorted, a wry smile on his lips. "York's biting off more than he can chew, huh?"The mention of York piqued Kastor's interest, which was flat just moments before.Jeffrey just shrugged, his eyes flicking to the man beside him. "Kastor, meet Mr. Cole, Liam. He's the one looking to talk business."Liam stepped up, his eyes—a deep, frosty black—meeting Kastor's stare head-on.Kastor felt a flicker of surprise. It was not often someone could meet his gaze so calmly. However, he did not let it show. To him, Liam was just another Biskeland nobody—weak, without the muscle or the mojo to matter.Kastor gave Liam a once-over, his eyes dripping with scorn. He flicked a mocking gesture. "A Biskeland man?" he scoffed.Liam's expression turned stone-cold, a palpable chill rolling off him as his eyes blazed with fury.Liam bit back the anger boiling inside him. He needed that guy to show him the way, so instead of blowing up, he just fixed him with an icy glare.Jeffrey caug
Meanwhile, Celena and the group were taken out of the hotel and shoved forcefully into a couple of jeeps waiting at the entrance. They were whisked away to a nearby military base. Before they could even get their bearings straight, they found themselves being tossed into holding cells. Celena, on the other hand, was taken separately to a small, dark room, illuminated only by the barest sliver of light that peeped in through a tiny window. The room was entirely empty, save for a metal bed frame. A sour stench hung in the air, and it was clear this room had been abandoned for a very long time. A soldier shoved Celena roughly into the room, and before she could realize what was happening, the soldier slammed the door shut.The soldier had pushed Celena so hard that she fell onto the ground, but upon seeing that her captor was about to leave, she leaped to her feet and sprinted over to the door. "Sir, can you tell me what I did wrong? Can you please have mercy on me? Can you at least
Tristan seemed just as baffled as they were. He returned their puzzled gazes with an equally perplexed one of his own. "I… I have no idea…"The general glanced sharply in their direction, then gestured to his soldiers and declared sternly, "Take them away!"His soldiers obliged and stepped forward to restrain the members of the Drunham City Connoisseurs, who all shrieked in alarm, "Why are you taking us away?""General, what did we do wrong? We didn't do anything illegal, so why are you arresting us?""Mr. Xander, save us! They've got this all wrong!""What's going on here? Why are they arresting only us?"Celena's entire body was shaking like a leaf. She eyed the soldiers around her and asked, stammering, "General, what did we do wrong? Why are we being captured? Where are you taking us?"Tristan, stricken with panic, shoved a soldier aside and shouted at the general, "General, I'm the president of the Drunham City Connoisseurs, and I want to know why we're being taken away. Wh
Celena was utterly terrified by the sudden turn of events. She stared pale-faced at the soldiers around her, not daring to move even a muscle. What was going on?All of a sudden, a man in a uniform stepped into the room. The badge on his shoulder indicated to everyone that he was a general. The heavy thumping of his boots echoed through the silent room with every step he took. All eyes were on him as he stepped onto the stage.He carried himself with great authority, and clearly, this man was not one to be messed with. He scanned the room as if searching for someone. Finally, he announced in a deep, resounding voice, "Do not fear, ladies and gentlemen. We are here on a routine check after receiving a tip-off regarding your conference. We will release you all once we have carried out our investigation, and the process will be quicker and smoother if you all cooperate. "Now, I would kindly request you get your documentation ready so that my men may confirm your identity."Everyone
Derek nodded earnestly and replied, "Of course it's true. My sources have never failed me. I wouldn't have trusted you with this information if I didn't think you'd be interested."Celena stared at him for a moment, then turned to glance in the direction of the people he had pointed. She could not help but be tempted by the offer. She considered this for a few moments, then accepted his offer. "Alright then, Mr. Duncan. I'll go with you. Thank you for inviting me."The smile on Derek's face widened. He could hardly believe his luck—Celena had agreed to go with him! Taking that first step was always the hardest, but he had done it!Unbeknownst to Celena, Derek already knew her long before their first meeting at the conference. Her name was known far and wide in Drunham City, not least because of her beauty, but because of her—in the eyes of the public—tragic marriage. Celena had earned herself a reputation as one of the most beautiful women Drunham City had ever seen, and although
The attention they received, however, was large due to Celena and her young, handsome companion, who was a man named Derek Duncan. Their attractive looks, both individually and combined, were easily the topic of discussion that night. Everyone who laid eyes on them admired both their good looks and brains, for certainly only the cream of the crop were allowed to attend this prestigious event. What made this feat even more impressive was the fact that they were both so young!Aside from her beauty, Celena's name was already known far and wide in the business world, not just because of her strong leadership but due to her association with Liam and her company's connections with many international corporations. She had started her business from scratch, but within a few short months, she had single handedly built it up to become one of the top ten grossing companies in Drunham City.There were hundreds of people gathered there tonight, and their seats had been allocated according to t
The moment Clifford left, Kastor turned to Liam with a wide grin, all hint of his hostility now gone. "Mr. Cole, thank God I arrived just in time."He raised his brows as he said this, and Liam took this to mean he was trying to claim credit. Truth be told, he would have been able to handle things on his own even without Kastor's help, but he decided this was a detail Kastor did not need to know. Instead, he returned Kastor's smile graciously. Kastor, like a child, burst into laughter at this. No further words were exchanged, but they understood the message nonetheless.Jeffrey also grinned. "Kastor, what brings you here all of a sudden?"Kastor replied, "Ah, you might not know this, Mr. Stein, but I actually own this very restaurant that you're sitting in right now. One of my employees called me for help, citing that a brawl was about to break out, so I rushed over immediately. I had no idea it would turn out to be you and Mr. Cole!""Ah, what a pleasant surprise, then!" Jeffrey
Clifford scowled upon hearing this. He cracked his knuckles menacingly as he stared at Kastor through narrowed eyes.Kastor did not seem at all intimidated by this. Instead, he brushed past him and approached Liam, smiling. "Mr. Cole, I apologize for the delay. I rushed over as soon as I heard the news, but I was late anyway. I'm so sorry for the wait."Liam's expression eased up slightly. He tugged the corners of his mouth into a strained smile but did not reply. Clifford's expression turned even more sour when he sensed Kastor's tone. He asked sharply, "What is the meaning of this, Kastor? Are you intent on making me your enemy?"Clifford's reputation was known far and wide, and many feared him, but Kastor was not one of them. He shot Clifford a look of utmost disdain and replied, smirking, "Yes, Clifford, that's exactly what I'm going to do. So what if we will be enemies from now on? What are you going to do about it?"He was confident that Clifford would not dare to retaliate
One of the muscle-bound goons stowed his submachine gun and drew a hefty machete, nearly a foot long, from his side. He advanced on Liam with deliberate steps.Calum and Cirocco were poised for a fight, ready to jump in at Liam's command and wipe out the roomful of petty thugs.However, Liam had other plans. He remained seated, an unfazed smirk playing on his lips, watching the approaching thug with the machete.The thug, mistaking Liam's calm for fear, grinned viciously and raised his machete, aiming for Liam's arm.However, in a flash, the scene changed.A figure hurtled through the air, and with a resounding crash, the thug was sent flying into the wine rack. The rack toppled, bottles shattering, their contents spilling and perfuming the air with the scent of alcohol.The thug hit the ground, blood spurting from his mouth, his eyes wide with shock. He lay there, lifeless, staring at Liam, dead before he hit the floor.The room plunged into a deathly hush.Corie clapped a h
Corie was also shaken, her fists clenched tight under the table as she watched Liam with wide, fearful eyes, barely managing to whisper, "Liam!"Liam stood there, steady as ice, without a trace of fear. "Don't worry, I've got this," he assured.Corie, seeing Liam's calm dismissal of the threat and recalling his proven strength, felt her fear ebb away.She could not explain it, but she had an unwavering faith in Liam.Across from them, Clifford lounged back, his legs thrown carelessly over the table, his gaze dripping with disdain. "You don't know who you're messing with, do you?" he sneered. "Karpos works for me, Clifford. And yet, you've got the gall to attack my men in broad daylight? You're in over your head!"Jeffrey was about to chime in, but one look at Liam's icy demeanor and he thought better of it, choosing instead to watch the scene unfold in silence.He was curious to see just how Liam would handle that.Liam chuckled, a sound as cold as the winter wind, and fixed Cli