Eugene was clearly displeased with Sebastian's attitude. He was a figure of authority in Steinberg, someone whose word carried significant weight. When had a young punk ever treated him with such disregard?"How dare you! Do you know who you're talking to? Kneel and apologize to Mr. Targery Senior!" Zakary shouted while glaring at Sebastian. It was as if he wanted to tear him apart.Sebastian frowned and gave Zakary a cold look. "Who do you think you are? This isn't your place to speak.""Why you—" Zakary fumed with rage, then turned to Eugene. "Mr. Targery Senior, do you see how arrogant this kid is? He has no respect for you! This is outrageous!"Eugene's expression grew even darker. "Very well. Young man, do you know my status in Steinberg?" Eugene asked coldly.Sebastian chuckled. "A bit. But so what?""Then why aren't you kneeling?" Eugene asked with a sharp gaze, exuding a stern air.Sebastian laughed, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair as he looked at Eugen
Earlier, Zakary hadn't mentioned any of this to Eugene, only claiming that Sebastian had stormed into the casino, causing chaos. He also suggested that it might have been part of a power play by Hans.Zakary shuddered and quickly explained, "Mr. Targery Senior, I-I didn't know… This was all done by my subordinates. You know how it is with a large group—sometimes things get out of control. "Besides, even if what he's saying is true, there's no reason for him to attack and destroy the casino or hurt me! I'm one of your people! If he does this, it's like he's insulting you!"Eugene frowned, contemplating the situation. He looked at Sebastian and said sternly, "No matter what happened before, you shouldn't have resorted to violence!"Sebastian laughed. "So, Mr. Targery Senior, you're just going to ignore the facts?" he retorted with a cold smile.Eugene's expression darkened. "Boy, I don't want to hear your nonsense! Get him!"The two bodyguards quickly moved forward.Sebastian's g
Vincent? The head of the Hindon family? He was in Steinberg!Instantly, Eugene's face turned pale.But Zakary, blinded by rage, kept cursing. "I don't care who this Vincent is! Tell him to get over here and apologize! Otherwise, if Mr. Targery Senior gets mad, he'll be as good as dead!"That sentence shook Eugene to his core. "Shut up!" he roared, raising his hand and slapping Zakary across the face. The slap left Zakary reeling, and knocked him to the ground. "Mr. Targery Senior, why'd you hit me?" he asked while holding his face. He was utterly confused.Eugene glared at him with fury and said, "You idiot! Are you trying to get me killed? Do you have any idea who Vincent is?""I… I don't know... But he can't be as powerful as you, right?" Zakary replied, full of resentment.He thought Eugene had lost his mind. After all, it was just some man named Vincent! Was it worth hitting Zakary in front of everyone?"You're truly clueless!" Eugene snapped, raising his cane and pointing
Vincent looked sickly. An elderly man in a blue robe was currently checking up on him."What's the diagnosis, Dr. Evans?" Vincent asked.He'd fallen ill after returning from a private art exhibition, feeling weak, with aching limbs, dizziness, and occasionally even coughing up blood.Michael Evans was Vincent's personal doctor, known for his medical expertise.He paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Mr. Hindon, it's nothing serious. It's just a common cold exacerbated by some underlying conditions. "I'll give you a few acupuncture treatments and prescribe some medicine. Rest for a few days, and you should be fine."Vincent nodded, "Thank you, Dr. Evans.""There's no need to thank me, Mr. Hindon. It's my duty," Michael replied with a smile before leaving to prepare for his treatment.Vincent coughed a few more times and asked the man in the black suit who had entered, "Is he here?""Yes, he's waiting in the parlor," the man replied."Bring him in," Vincent said as he c
As soon as he spoke, the atmosphere in the sitting room became tense. Vincent's expression darkened significantly, and his already unhealthy complexion turned even more grim."What did you say?" Vincent asked coldly, every word laced with anger.The man in the black suit also frowned, his expression showing displeasure at Sebastian's words. Who dared to curse Vincent, predicting he wouldn't live past the night? That was a death wish!Michael, however, just smirked, thinking that Sebastian must be insane to say such things to Vincent.But Sebastian remained unruffled. "Mr. Hindon, it's your choice to believe it or not. But from what I see, you won't last through the night. Even if I make the Life Prolonging Pill, you won't be around to receive it.""How dare you!" Vincent roared, slamming his hand on the armrest. In his sudden burst of anger, he coughed violently, spitting out blood.Michael was alarmed. He rushed toward him and said, "Mr. Hindon, you mustn't get agitated, or
The man in the black suit glared at Michael. "If anything happens to Mr. Hindon, you won't survive, either! Someone, lock him up!"Two guards immediately rushed in, grabbing Michael and restraining him."It's not my fault!" Michael protested in fear. He never expected Vincent to react like this.Vincent managed to force out a few words, his voice faint and strained. "Get… Sebastian…"After saying that, he fell unconscious.The man in the black suit quickly got up, instructing his men to carry Vincent to the bedroom. Then, he ran out to find Sebastian.…Sebastian had taken a taxi back to the grocery store.Outside the store, Eugene was still there, seemingly waiting for Sebastian. Hans and James stood nearby as well.Seeing Sebastian step out of the car, Hans and James quickly approached him and asked, "Mr. Ballard, what did Mr. Hindon want with you?""Mr. Ballard, are you okay? Did Mr. Hindon do anything to you?"Sebastian smiled and replied, "I'm fine."Eugene also walked
"Please, Mr. Ballard, save Mr. Hindon," the man in the black suit said, his head touching the floor. Sebastian watched him for a moment, then sighed and said, "Alright, I'll go, just because of your loyalty."He walked out of the grocery store, brushing past Eugene, who stood there like a deer in headlights.Eugene quickly adjusted his attitude, forcing a couple of awkward laughs. "Mr. Ballard, it was all a misunderstanding earlier. I hope you won't hold it against me."Sebastian glanced at Eugene without a word and got into the car. The man in the black suit jumped in and sped off.As the car drove away, Eugene felt his legs trembling, a thin film of sweat forming on his forehead.If Mr. Hindon's aide had to beg on his knees, then Sebastian was no ordinary person. Hans and James came out, and Eugene asked, "Hans, what does Mr. Ballard like? I need to prepare a generous gift as an apology."Hans pretended to be surprised. "Mr. Targery Senior, what are you planning?"But the s
Then, in front of the man in the black suit, Sebastian used the small knife to cut open each of Vincent's ten fingers, allowing dark blood to flow from them.The man in the black suit was both astonished and anxious by the sight. "Mr. Ballard, what are you doing?""Bloodletting," Sebastian replied calmly."Bloodletting?" The man was confused, wondering what was going on.Sebastian explained, "Mr. Hindon's system is filled with toxins. We need to reduce the toxicity by draining some of his blood.""Is this safe?" the man asked, still doubtful.Sebastian chuckled and said, "You'll see soon enough."After collecting a small basin of dark blood, Vincent's complexion began to improve. He wasn't as dark, and his breathing seemed to stabilize a bit."Mr. Ballard, it's working! Should we keep going?" The man was getting excited.Sebastian shot him a look and said, "Keep going, and your superior will die from blood loss.""So, what do we do next?""Lay him flat and get a set of cuppi
The old man nodded slightly and said, "That's right. My name is Solomon Jackman. If you think things through, you can come to Townsend Clinic. We can discuss the price!"Solomon bowed to Sebastian before squeezing out of the crowd. Cliff's eyes reddened as he watched Solomon leave. Solomon was a prominent figure in Acorn City. Not only did he have exceptional medical skills, he was also skilled in martial arts. However, neither of those were Solomon's true specialty. What he was most skilled at was antique appraisal! Any antique that Solomon appraised was sure to be a treasure among treasures.Noticing Sebastian and Unus turning to walk away, Cliff immediately became agitated. "Stop!" he shouted.Sebastian turned to glance at him and said, "A deal's a deal. No returns or refunds. You said that yourself. It's the rule of the antique industry!"Cliff ignored all of that. He came out from behind his stall and grabbed Sebastian's sleeve. "I'm not going to sell that emerald pendan
"I don't think that you've seen the original form of this emerald pendant, either," Sebastian said, smiling coldly at Cliff. Cliff looked disdainfully at him. He felt that Sebastian was just unhappy about being tricked and was trying to provoke him. "Stop putting on that mysterious act. Why wouldn't I know about something that belongs to me?" Cliff demanded with a scoff. "You might really not know," Sebastian replied. He closed his palm slightly and exerted a slight force. The layer of stone on top of the emerald pendant peeled off. While everyone looked on, dumbstruck, Sebastian opened his palm once more. The crowd gasped.There were two clouds of energy on the emerald pendant, chasing each other like a pair of fish. One was black, while the other was red. The emerald pendant had been square-shaped originally, but it had now become a round emerald buckle. In the middle of it, a pale yellow energy was rising slowly. Everyone cried out in shock. It was clearly a rare trea
Some people just didn't know what was good for them. Even if Cliff had wanted to laugh, he should have waited for Sebastian to leave before doing so. How could he call a buyer a fool while they were still there?"It may be a little crude, my young friend, but it doesn't change the fact that you were hoodwinked!" Cliff said, guffawing gleefully.Since Sebastian had already paid, he could no longer take it back. After all, it was a rule never to accept returns or refunds. When Cliff thought of how he had charged Sebastian more than ten thousand for something that had only cost him about 300 to 400 dollars, he became even more smug. "You'll just have to bear with it, my young friend. Not regretting your purchase is the rule of the antique industry. Even if you've now found out that you were deceived, you can't get your money back!""That's right. The work on the emerald pendant that you're holding is so shoddy that it was clearly just done last week. It's a new item!" "Watch out
Sebastian laughed at the reluctant expression on the stall owner's face. He weighed the emerald pendant in his hand and asked, "Mister, are you sure that this emerald pendant is worth 210 thousand?"With that, he tossed it onto the counter and turned to leave."Huh?"The stall owner immediately ran around to the front of the stall when he saw that Sebastian was about to leave. He grabbed him and said, "Don't be in such a rush to leave, my young friend. Let's negotiate. If you're sincere about buying it, I'll sell it to you at 150 thousand, and I'll be making a loss. Let this be the start of a friendship between us!"Sebastian smiled slightly and said, "Mister, even a layman can tell that this emerald pendant is a fake. I just like the patterns on it because it's quite trendy. That's why I asked about it on a whim."Describing the patterns on the antique as trendy only served to show how obvious it was that it was a fake.The stall owner turned beet red, then white. He cursed hi
However, the more famous something was, the more imitations there would be. Antiques were no exception. In Boren, streets filled with antique stores were abundant. From Klane City to the smallest town, they were omnipresent.There were stores and stalls of various kinds that had everything, but all of them had one thing in common. All the antiques and trinkets that they sold were a mixed bag of authentic and fake. Buyers had to rely on their own judgment. There was also an unspoken rule there. Once a deal was made, no returns were allowed. If a buyer had paid for an item before realizing that something was wrong or recognizing that it was a fake, they would have no choice but to accept it. There was a saying about how the golden age of antiques was during times of chaos. Although they were now in times of peace, many members of the upper class were still very interested in them. Both experts and laymen liked to have a few collector's items in their homes. There were plenty of we
"Watch him closely! If you lose him, I'll have your head!" Anton said before hanging up. A malicious grin spread across his face.As the son of the head director of Boren Martial Arts Court, many were eager to curry favor with him. If it came to dealing with Sebastian, there were plenty of people willing to do the dirty work for him. Acorn City was the second largest city in Boren after Klane City, and Anton knew just who to call. About two weeks ago, the Lynch family of Acorn City had sent gifts to him. However, as the Lynches were a third-rate elite martial arts family, Anton had dismissed them. That was why, despite searching frantically, he couldn't find Colton Lynch's name card."Damn it! Where did that asshole's name card get to?"It was the first time Anton had been so anxious about finding the name card of an heir from a third-rate family. After rummaging around for a while, Anton had a sudden flash of inspiration. It was in the trash can!He suddenly remembered that
Sebastian laughed wryly and shook his head at Nina's words. "Nina, you're staying behind so everyone thinks I'm still here. Rowan and Arran will stay here with you so that no one will become suspicious!"Nina frowned. "But I'll be worried about you being with Unus. It's still just a beast whose rational capabilities aren't fully developed yet. What if it—"Sebastian smiled and shook his head. "Don't worry. Hugo has subdued them completely already, so nothing unexpected will happen. Honestly, there isn't much in Boren that worries me. However, if the Yome Sect enters Steinberg while its defenses are down, we'll be put in a difficult position."Though reluctant, Nina finally agreed.That night, Sebastian quietly brought Unus out with him. As soon as he walked out of the hotel doors, two thugs hiding at the side of the road who had been watching them stealthily immediately reported his movements to Anton."Are you sure it was Sebastian?" Anton demanded sharply."Positive! He looks e
"Kneel!" Joaquin yelled at Anton the moment he entered the room.Anton immediately dropped to his knees with a loud thud in front of Sebastian."My lord, my son is worthless. Everything that happened before was his doing. He has been a disgrace to our family. Please have mercy on his crimes," Joaquin said. He looked up at Sebastian and was puzzled to see how terrible his complexion was.Nina had been injured the day before, so why was it now the other way around? She had a rosy complexion, while Sebastian looked as white as a sheet."Alright. The important thing is to learn from one's mistakes and change. Don't forget the oath that you made. If you break it, I won't have to punish you. The law of heaven will act accordingly!" Sebastian said coldly."Yes, of course! I would never dare to break the oath! But…" Joaquin looked at Sebastian with a troubled expression.Sebastian frowned slightly and asked, "But what?""I can see that you don't look very well, my lord. Should I prepa
After resting for the whole night, Nina's complexion had almost returned to normal. Even the wounds on her body had almost healed.In stark contrast, Sebastian looked worse than ever.It was the aftereffect of losing too much blood essence. If it wasn't for the fact that he had the legacy of the Sacred Medicine Society, he might have already been half-dead. Even so, Sebastian felt weaker than he had ever felt before. His legs felt like jelly, and he was unsteady on his feet."My lord…"Rowan blanched with fear when he saw Sebastian. Sebastian was as pale as a sheet. Even his lips had lost all color."My lord, how did you get into this state?" Rowan asked, clearly confused. Sebastian had seemed fine when they returned to Mount Klane the night before. Waving his hand slightly, Sebastian replied, "I'm fine. I'll get better after some rest. Why are you up so early?"Rowan grew even more worried after hearing how frail Sebastian sounded."My lord, did you get severely injured o