"Have you finally decided to drop your circus act?" Godfrey sneered.Darius raised an eyebrow and rolled his eyes. Godfrey glared at him and said, "I've been playing nice with you, but you haven't appreciated it. Now, I'm gonna show you the gap between us!"Darius stopped when he heard how pleased with himself Godfrey sounded. He looked at Godfrey, who now stood akimbo and held his head high. He said scornfully, "The fact that you're standing here means you're wealthy and probably capable, but I'm here to tell you that it's all fake!"Godfrey's breathing sped up. He glared daggers at Darius and continued, "I've seen countless people like you. You're nothing special, no matter which way you look at it." He cleared his throat and continued, "You have a pretty face, but it's nothing compared to those celebrities. Even if you wanted to use your face as a way of making a living, it'd be nothing but a dream!"Godfrey's voice was loud and piercing. It made Darius' ears hurt. He raised an eye
Darius raised an eyebrow mockingly. "What were they gonna do after keeping me here?" His voice was cold.Godfrey trembled when he met Darius' gaze. He couldn't control himself as he blurted out, "Our scion has a huge crush on a woman, but she likes you. She's also staying in your home. We've been delaying you because this is an order from our scion. The way we treat you depends on how that woman treats our scion. If she left with him obediently, we would've let you go. Otherwise, you would've been in for a rough time. Similarly, if we kept you here, we could threaten that woman."Darius smirked at that and leaned back. He snapped his fingers, making the life force return to him. Godfrey had been standing up. When the life force left him, he became pale and collapsed on the floor. He didn't dare to make a sound. What had happened to him? What had he done? How could he have told Darius everything? He didn't dare to even think about it.Godfrey shut his eyes and exhaled shakily. To his s
Slater sighed and shut his eyes. When he opened them again, they were devoid of emotion. "Godfrey, you've already decided to do away with us. Go ahead, then! But know that you'll have to bear the responsibility for anything that happens after today. If you're prepared for that, go ahead and do what you want." He flexed his neck.Godfrey's chest heaved with rage. He waved a hand and shouted, "What are you still waiting for? Beat the shit out of them!" The security guards on Godfrey's side didn't hesitate. They lunged at Slater and formed a smaller circle around him. They brandished their batons and got ready to attack.Slater stood still. He didn't show any sign of wanting to resist. He shut his eyes, looking pale. The security guards on his side didn't agree with this, though. Their expressions darkened, and they looked regretful. One of them leaned close to Slater and said cautiously, "Sir, I don't think we should swear our alliance to Darius. He's not a good guy. Look at how he's ab
They cried in unison, "Slater!" Then, they darted forward to stand before him. Unfortunately, they were too late. The gun had been fired. All of Slater's comrades squeezed their eyes shut. To their surprise, nothing happened. Even Slater was stunned.They looked around before realizing that Godfrey was the one on his back. Someone was standing behind with a gun raised. He lowered it and said calmly, "Mr. Reid sent me here to pick you guys up. Sorry for being late; there was a small accident earlier."Silence descended upon the crowd. Then, Godfrey yelled, "No, that's impossible! Darius couldn't possibly have sent someone to get you! He fled on his own!" He sounded like he believed himself to be right. He glared at Slater.Edward didn't think a good-for-nothing would refute him so bluntly. He raised an eyebrow mockingly. "You're not very convincing, seeing as you're lying on the ground." He tucked his hands into his pockets and sighed. "Anyway, I'm taking these people with me. I don't
"Now that you're here with your subordinate, I think it's time for us to go." Slater stepped forward. He couldn't wait to get into Darius' car and get the hell out of there. He found it too dangerous for him to stay there; Godfrey's gaze was filled with venom and evil.Godfrey watched Darius like the snake he was and snarled, "Do you know what Slater said about you earlier, Darius? Do you know what he thinks of you? Do you realize what will happen if you keep siding with him like this?"Darius raised an eyebrow mockingly. "What does that have to do with you? You're about to die, anyway." He smiled and leaned against the car. He crossed his arms and scanned Godfrey disdainfully. Then, he turned to Edward. "Your skills have deteriorated. Since you already whipped out a weapon, why didn't you kill him? Look at him—he's like an annoying pest."Edward stood beside the car with his hands behind his back. He was surprised by Darius' return, but this wasn't the time to think about that. He sm
It was in his pocket. Darius pulled it out and saw it was James calling. This made his heart skip a beat. Based on experience, James didn't call often. But whenever he did, something had to have happened. Darius exhaled and placed a hand over his racing heart before answering the call. Sure enough, it was as bad as he'd expected. When he answered the call, Bruce's anxious and hasty voice rang out on the other end of the line. "Sir, something's happened to Master James! His car exploded while it was being driven, and it flipped on his side. Master James is now comatose. I think you should return to the Reid family to deal with the family's matters."Darius frowned deeply. "Shouldn't I be accompanying Grandpa at the hospital?""No, sir." Bruce sounded resolute. "I've worked for the Reid family for many years. I can guarantee that the first thing you need to do under such circumstances is return to the Reid family. You'll need to do everything you can to keep the Reid Consortium's share
Darius had never imagined his grandfather would be indisposed one day. And it had happened so unexpectedly. The damage caused was too grave. It was hard for him to stop thinking about James. Though Bruce had made it clear what he had to do, that didn't mean he could accept it and move on.He sighed, then got to his feet. No matter what, the hospital was where he needed to be. Unfortunately, he didn't even know which hospital James was at. As he headed to the living room, he heard his phone ring.He raised an eyebrow in surprise and checked his phone. Bruce was calling again. He sounded disapproving as he said, "Sir, I know you're worried about Master James. So am I. I wish you two could meet, but this isn't the best time. Right now, the most important—and the only—thing you need to do is deal with the consortium's share price! No matter what happens, you have to value the consortium over everything else. Even if you hear that we're all dead, think of the consortium first."Darius frow
Darius looked at the two obnoxious security guards standing before him. He smiled. Edward stood beside him, feeling nervous. He'd never seen Darius like this before. He parted his lips to say something but ultimately remained silent.Bridget couldn't take it, though. She screeched, "You two look like monkeys! You're even worse than guard dogs—at least guard dogs recognize their owners. You two don't even know who you're facing! Master James may be injured, but no one knows what exactly is going to happen yet. How can you two treat his only grandson like this? Mr. Reid is the only true heir to the Reid Consortium!"Her chest heaved with rage. "Don't you find your actions laughable? Master James has already had his will done up. If anything happens to him, everything he owns will immediately and unconditionally be transferred to Mr. Reid's name. In other words, Mr. Reid has the final say in what happens to the Reid Consortium! Those old fogeys who are seated in the conference room up th
"If you hadn't picked on me, I wouldn't have ended up like this. No matter how wealthy I've become, I'll never be able to take these black robes off!" The mysterious man's voice was shaky. He was extremely agitated.James frowned at that. He said curiously, "You keep saying I've done you wrong, but everything I did to you was what you did to others. I only gave you a taste of your own medicine."The mysterious man's breathing sped up when he heard that. He barked out a laugh and sneered, "I'll be honest with you. I never thought I'd have the chance to meet someone as dumb as you again."He shook his head. "I find it hard to imagine what your grandson will do when he sees you like this." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the door was kicked open with a loud bang. The man was caught off guard. He looked at Darius as his body trembled violently.Darius frowned when he saw this. It was completely different from what he'd imagined. He narrowed his eyes at the mysterious man, his
Gabriel smiled and nodded. "Alright, then. I'll return to my workstation and prepare a proposal on what to do with Noah."Darius nodded and smiled. "Good. That's all I ever wanted." He turned to leave. "You need to get to work, and I need to return to my hotel to get some rest."Gabriel stopped. Darius' words made him hesitate. "I'm sorry to be asking this because I don't think it's my place, but it's probably better for me to ask anyway. I don't remember there being any hotels nearby."You should head home if you wanna get some rest. I don't understand why you're heading to a hotel to rest."Darius raised an eyebrow, looking surprised. He turned with his hands behind his back to look at Gabriel helplessly. "I don't know how to feel about what you've just said. You're making me think you're a little silly. Wouldn't I know how to search for a hotel?"It won't take you long to prepare a proposal, but it'll take me ages to get home from here." Darius turned and left.Gabriel's lips twitc
"Because you realized the risk was far greater than what you were comfortable with," Darius said calmly.But Noah started trembling. He looked at Darius in terror. He didn't expect Darius to see right through him after some simple back-and-forth. His eyes widened in fear.Everything that was happening now made him feel like he was dreaming. Noah had only been a step away from success, yet Darius had ruined everything.Tears filled his eyes as he gazed at Darius. "I've said everything there is to say. I'm the lowest rung on this ladder, and I only have one purpose for being here. It's to make you come under the authorities' control. Once you're here, my mission's accomplished."Someone else from the authorities will be here to deal with you, but that has nothing to do with me. They wouldn't have told me about it, anyway."Darius put his hands behind his back without saying anything. He turned to leave. Noah's eyes widened as he stared in fear at Darius' back.Darius didn't see this, bu
When Darius straightened up, his face became devoid of emotion. He said calmly, "I've wasted too much time on you. Now, I only want frank answers. Otherwise, I'll punish you for every lie that you tell me. I don't see any hope in your eyes, but let's see whether you prove me wrong."Darius paused, then continued, "I've already said something similar once. That was a chance I gave you. From this moment onward, I want you to know that I won't repeat myself because I believe you've had enough time to prepare yourself."Gabriel stood beside him and put his hands behind his back as his lips twitched. He'd thought about the various reasons for Darius repeating himself. But the one thing that hadn't occurred to him was that Darius had done it to give Noah time to prepare.Gabriel felt like applauding Darius, but the rational side of him stopped him from doing so. His rationality told him he'd be in for trouble if he were to do that, so he only looked at Darius with a smile.Darius sensed Ga
Darius raised an eyebrow and smiled. Then, he said, "You're too nervous, Gabriel. It makes it seem like you don't trust me. In truth, there's nothing for you to worry about."He stretched his neck and continued, "I know very well how bad the consequences of destroying this building will be. Aside from those silly regulations, I'll also need to pay for it. I might be wealthy, but that doesn't mean I'll enjoy forking out a huge sum of money as compensation."Darius spread his hands and shrugged. At the same time, he pointed at the window and turned to look at Gabriel. Then, he said, "Look. The windows are perfectly fine. They're not even scratched. That shows my life force is non-destructive."That's why you have nothing to worry about. You can put your heart back into your chest."Gabriel straightened up and sighed in relief. Then, he gave Darius an embarrassed smile.Darius grinned but didn't say anything in response. He put his hands behind his back and turned to look at Noah. He sai
"We're classmates from the same major, too! We were interns at Dream Investment Group, remember? And we got kicked out on our first day. You broke my legs because of a tiny argument we had outside the building! The surveillance cameras captured all of this!" Noah cried.Darius tucked his hands into his pockets and rolled his eyes. Then, he said mockingly, "You're the biggest fool I've ever met. Do you think you're the only one who can tamper with the surveillance footage? Any footage that can be tampered with can also be restored."Noah's eyes widened in shock. He gulped and tried to think of a way to explain away the injuries Darius had inflicted on him. Still, he couldn't think of anything. Before he had the chance to think any further, Darius spoke.He said, "There's one thing you got right, though. Gabriel is on my side, so he'll stand up for me no matter what you say."Gabriel's lips twitched at that. He subconsciously opened his mouth to say something in return, but Darius bea
"And I don't think it's my job to make you see sense," Gabriel continued. He put his hands behind his back. He gave Noah a look that was an odd mixture of gentle iciness. "I've given you more than enough time and chances."Gabriel sighed. "It's obvious that you don't care for that, though. And so I think it's time for me to treat you as an officer should." He sat down on the other side of the desk again.Noah's face was white with fear. Gabriel acted like he didn't see this, though. He smiled. "As I mentioned, I gave you plenty of time and chances, but you didn't appreciate them."His gaze turned frosty. "If that's the case, I'm sure you won't object to me doing this per our guidelines."Noah cried, "No, wait! I don't know what Darius has promised you to make you side with him unconditionally, but there's no way I'll let you two get away with this. You have to make sure you do everything by the book. It's a reasonable request, and you have no right to turn me down!"He trembled viole
Gabriel put his hands behind his back as he looked at Noah with a smile. "Now, you've piqued my interest."Noah looked up at Gabriel. His voice was deep and hoarse as he said, "If you help me, I'll give you half of the Reid Consortium's assets once I get my hands on them. You should know that without me, there's no way you'll get a dime from the Reid Consortium."Gabriel snorted with laughter when he heard that. He straightened up and slowly circled Noah. He sounded mocking as he said, "You've lost me there. I tried to puzzle it out, but it doesn't make sense at all."Why would I want to get my hands on the Reid Consortium's fortune? Even without it, I'm perfectly independent. I don't need it to survive."Gabriel crossed his arms and looked at Noah mockingly. "Or maybe you're different from the rest of us. Maybe you'll die without the Reid Consortium's wealth." He smirked and gave Noah a sharp gaze.Noah raised an eyebrow and smirked. "You're the one making me laugh now. I don't know
Gabriel sounded gentle, but everyone knew that was far from the truth. This was especially true for Noah, who sat across from him. He felt incredibly nervous. He shut his eyes and breathed rapidly.Noah never would've expected to still be in danger after being taken in by the authorities. He frowned and looked up at Gabriel. "So, are you determined to help Darius now?" His voice was shaky, and his eyes were wide because of his nerves.His emotions were clear as he looked at Gabriel. Gabriel bit his lip, feeling like he was about to laugh. To stop Noah from noticing, he quickly exhaled and sat down with one leg over the other. At the same time, he leaned forward to place his hands on the desk.He tapped his fingers on the desk quickly but rhythmically. Gabriel's eyes were devoid of emotion as he looked at Noah. "Tell me, Noah. What happened between you and Darius? Earlier, you said he was the one who injured you. Do you have any proof?"Because we checked the surveillance footage, a