The hostess’ eyes reddened.On the other hand, Darius narrowed his eyes. He felt the latter was quick-witted, or she would not have come up with such an excuse on the spot. His expression did not improve because of that. Instead, his nose scrunched up as he kept his hands in his pockets. “You aren’t actually working hard, though. If you were, you would’ve investigated all the guests’ backgrounds beforehand and targeted other people. Consider this—you arrived in appropriate clothing and successfully impersonated a hostess. Since you’ve researched so much about hostesses, it’s unlikely for you not to look up information on the attendees tonight. Thus, I can go as far as to say you’re causing me trouble now because you found out the Gillettes and I are on bad terms. That’s what led you to act the way you did toward me.”Darius had keen eyesight; it was as though he could read every thought in the hostess’ mind.That was when Erin, who stood aside, nodded sternly. “Indeed, Mr. Reid. Th
“You claiming to be Darius seems far too suspicious,” Cerys pointed out. “Moreover, no one here knows you.People would surely recognize you if you were a tycoon—or, at the very least, they would’ve heard about you. What unnerves everyone here is how you’re an enigma to everyone here.”Darius did not speak up to defend himself even then.On the other hand, Cerys’ lips curled triumphantly. She was confident that all the guests would believe her over Darius if she continued voicing her suspicions. Hence, she announced at the top of her lungs, “You only showed up here because you wanted everyone to think you’re wealthy! But is that the truth? No! Your actions and words from the moment you arrived can’t prove that you’re someone wealthy!”Darius had been standing for a long time, so his legs started to ache. After sighing deeply, he replied, “I’d very much like to know this—what are your motives for saying that about me?”That surprised Cerys as she gulped anxiously, knowing she was too
A lighthearted chuckle came from Darius, who shook his head and said, “Don’t worry. The person that’s about to show up is Edward.”Only then did Bridget let out a relieved sigh and return her hands to her sides. However, her brows soon twisted together as she asked, “Why did he get here so late? He drove behind our car, yet we’ve been standing here for some time, and he still hasn’t shown up.”Darius shook his head before explaining with a smile, “I’m sure it’s because he couldn’t get a parking near the entrance like us since he’s driving the damaged Bugatti from earlier.”Bridget raised her head slightly, then scrunched her nose and flashed a thin smile out of embarrassment. “Apologies, Mr. Reid. I never thought he would get stopped from entering because of that.”Finding the topic uninteresting, Darius did not voice his opinions on the matter anymore. He was, instead, looking forward to the person that would soon come out of the villa. That was when the person stayed at the front d
Darius did not care about whatever rhetoric Wilson brought up. Thus, he did not respond to the latter’s claims and turned to look at Cerys instead, stating, “This young lady is your daughter, and I’ve hurt her.”Only then did Wilson spare Cerys a glance. Yet, what baffled everyone at the scene was his lack of emotion toward her. All he did was nod and apathetically reply, “Indeed. She’s my badly behaved daughter, which is why I’m grateful you showed up and put her in place, Mr. Reid.”A scoff came from Darius as he thought, “Wilson’s implying I purposely came to the banquet to punish his daughter.”He did not verbally express his opinion but kept both hands in his pockets and nodded. “Yes, I’ve already punished your two misbehaving sons on your behalf, so I don’t mind disciplining your daughter too. Though, I would never end their lives because I don’t have any bad blood with you, Gillettes.”Wilson’s eyes grew wide in that instant. His heart rate spiked as he could tell there was m
Confusion shrouded Wilson’s face. He no longer needed to hide his emotions as he was now hell-bent on killing Darius. Thus, he did not conceal his desire to know what the latter meant. Yet, he also knew he would not believe it even if Darius had told him the truth, so he turned to look at his secretary.The secretary was a gorgeous woman in a bodycon dress with a deep V-neckline. Heels clicking, she approached Wilson’s side and held a laptop with her manicured hands. “Sir, I’ve just found out,” she said in a voice as seductive as her appearance. It felt intentional. She pointed at Bridget while she continued, “Those bodyguards became nervous after this woman appeared. She’s a skilled bodyguard and could’ve easily taken down everyone earlier.”Wilson’s jaw dropped wide open. He felt it was impossible, so he examined his secretary with a look of suspicion.Seeing that made the secretary sway her hips as she stepped closer to Wilson, reaching out to grab his hand. “Why are you looking
Wilson’s eyes trembled so much that they were about to pop out of their sockets. Facing off against Darius left him intensely frightened. His voice became hoarse as he asked, “W-What are you trying to accomplish? I never invited you to tonight’s banquet—”“That’s enough!” Darius interrupted loudly. “I’ve been more than patient with you. I can investigate how that invite appeared in my room and who delivered it to me. What I never expected was someone would use such immature tricks against me. Then again, perhaps you thought that making me show up with a fake invite to this banquet would embarrass me. Is that it?”Wilson’s eyes grew dim with fear. It shocked him to learn Darius did not care about getting humiliated. Because of that, he never got to say the smug words he had prepared beforehand. All he could do was quiver on the ground like frightened prey.At that moment, Darius raised his chin while placing his foot on Wilson’s shoulder. “I sense another potent presence in this vill
Wilson dared not look at the man in the black robe because he could sense an unprecedented rage emanating from the latter. Wilson was unsure whether he would still be breathing if he locked eyes with him. However, the man obviously did not care about that, as he was now focusing on Darius instead.In that instant, Darius sensed a powerful aura radiating from the man, which was more potent than the previous martial artist in the same black robe he had encountered. He stood there and pondered for a while, unable to recall the name of the last martial artist. He then met the man’s eyes and instructed his subordinates behind him with a cautious tone. “You three should get out of here as quickly as possible.”Erin remained rooted, unwilling to leave. Even so, she got dragged away by Bridget and Edward, who each took one of her arms. Although she wanted to resist, the two bodyguards’ strengths far surpassed hers. She wriggled with all her might but to no avail; her wrists did not budge f
The cogs in the man’s brain spun atlightning speed, and he made his decision in under a second; he quickly steppedback when Darius’ fist came close to his face.Darius did not foresee that, so he did notpursue the former out of caution. Once his fist fully reached out, the man wasalready far away.“You truly are formidable,” the man saidwhile looking down at Darius and standing atop the Remnard Estate’s concretefence. He then fled, vanishing into thin air.Darius’ figure flickered just then. He wantedto chase after the man but was shocked that he could not detect the latter’saura in the air. The man did not leave any traces, so it waslike he was never there. Because of that, Darius halted on the spot,no longer charging ahead. Another reason he did not move was that he felt thetornado dissipate once the man left. Thus, it left Wilson’s body rapidlyfalling from almost 30 feet above the ground. Darius did not know if Wilson had sufferedany injuries after being held that h
"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