Half an hour later, Jason smiled smugly as he put the finishing touches to the painting of a sprinting horse."Marvelous!" Ian applauded right then.Heidi nodded repeatedly in approval, too. "I don't know art… but it looks legendary!"On the other hand, Lily was glaring at Skyler.While there was a gap between the quality of Jason's piece and a real masterpiece, he was still an unscalable mountain compared to amateurs. The way she saw it, Skyler was just getting himself humiliated over nothing!However, that was when Skyler pursed his lips. "Amateur.""What was that?!"Ian was immediately pointing at Skyler and snapping, "Sure, why don't you draw something better?!"Heidi scoffed too. "Take a look in the mirror before you run your mouth!"Skyler simply shrugged and walked over to the easel. "Anyway, my turn."Still, just as Jason brushed past him, the man paused and chuckled coolly, "You can still avoid embarrassment if you give up now."Skyler did a double take.Where the
Any fool could tell that Heidi and Jason were relatives through the Green family.As such, Heidi was throwing a thinly veiled insult at Skyler when she brought here, in hopes of matchmaking Jason with Lily.It didn't matter if she knew Jason was lying either—she was only on his side, no matter the circumstances.So why would Skyler be shaking hands with them, even thanking them?Still, Ian flung Skyler's hand off, snapping, "We're leaving!" "Haven't you embarrassed us enough?! Move!" Heidi glared at Jason too, before storming off.Skyler watched as Jason hung his head and followed the other two, when he suddenly chuckled, "By the way, Uncle Ian… Do you feel like you're not pulling your weight? Especially sexually."Ian abruptly stopped and wheeled on Skyler, gaping in rage and shock—mostly rage!How did he know?!He was already shocked that Skyler could expose such a hidden illness with pinpoint precision.In fact, it went without saying why he was furious—sexual matters were
Hugh stood near the dining table, motionless like a log as the other servants brought in plates of food.Before they were placed on the table, however, Hugh would inspect each plate closely—one had to admit, he was almost zealous towards his duty to protect Lily.When Skyler arrived, Anne was already sitting by the table, and she was shocked to see him, "Lily! What is he doing here?!"She just came home from class, and was in a good mood since Skyler was nowhere to be seen, only for him to show up during dinner!"Just eat." Lily didn't bother to explain."Not feeling it!"Anne glowered viciously, brandishing her dainty knuckles at Skyler as she snorted. "Hmph! How am I supposed to eat when the sight of a certain someone makes me sick?!" She really hated Skyler to the bone. The prick had tricked her into drinking snake soup.The very thought of that still left her stomach churning!On the other hand, Skyler had to hide a smile as he watched Anne make a mad dash upstairs.He o
It was 4.30 in the morning. The skies were still dark, but Skyler had already washed up and made a beeline for the car park.Hugh nodded in greeting and walked over to an old Lincoln. "As requested—a vehicle with level four bulletproofing. Master Sable used it personally, and nothing short of .30 calibers are a threat." Skyler nodded. "Apply one-way tints to all the windows."Soon, when that was done, the Lincoln quietly cruised out of the mansion, with High driving and Skyler riding shotgun.Still, Hugh was scowling as he drove, his eyes fixed dead ahead."Relax. And you don't have to go that fast."Skyler chuckled, his expression relaxed. "They can't tell from this trail alone that we're heading to City Hall.""What makes you so sure they think Miss Sable is in this car?" Hugh asked in curiosity."They planted some sort of tracking software in Lily's phone," Skyler explained. "That's how they''ll know wherever she goes—it's fortunate you never let her out of your sight since
Five minutes later, Skyler opened the door of the Lincoln to find Hugh staring blankly at him.As he was a martial artist as well, he could swiftly dispatch two targets while catching them off guard. But what about the rest?A no-look headshot at a gunman was hidden on the opposite side of the road.It was a speed that Hugh could not hope to reach.And scariest of all, the way he had parried the endless barrage of bullets with his rapier.Obviously, Hugh was capable of none of those things.Most of all, he saw the dense white mist swirling around Skyler's rapier!What on earth was that?!Still, Hugh also finally understood why Skyler never answered his question about his level.He finally understood. They were on completely different levels!When he personally challenged Skyler the other day, Skyler never budged while he stumbled backward.What Hugh took from that, however, was that Skyler might only be slightly stronger than he was, and that the gap could be overcome. It wa
Poof!The brief exchange was over with a quiet pop, as Raven's heart burst like a punctured balloon.Skyler's rapier had already cut it earlier, leaving a glowing radiance within. Soon, it detonated like a bomb, leaving a fist-sized hole on the left side of his chest.And with that, Raven's body dropped to the ground with a thud, even as Hugh looked on in shock dozens of feet away.Whoosh!However, Hugh didn't see a crimson light that shot out of Raven's body and into the plain metal ring Skyler wore."What…? How?" Even Skyler was left perplexed. It's just that this was different!That was when Hugh called out urgently, "The woman's getting away!"Skyler had told him to stay in a car, for no other reason than the fact that he was just too weak.In fact, Skyler wouldn't have brought him along if he didn't need a driver.Still, as he saw the scarred woman being thrown into the distance while Skyler fought Raven, Hugh did not hesitate to get off and give chase.The issue with
The scarred woman clenched her fists tightly.She was willing to die for Raven, only for Raven to save her when it mattered. As such, how could she bear to see his corpse being desecrated?!"Move… over there!" She snapped, clearly afraid as she pointed her knife at Skyler and Hugh, while dragging Linda towards her SUV. "I'm going to leave now, but only if I'm not threatened!"Skyler nodded, shooting Hugh a look, signaling him to follow.As both men walked back about 100 feet from the junction, the scarred woman fired up Linda's SUV and held Linda outside by her shoulder."Back off!" She then bellowed at Skyler again.Skyler was speechless, but stepped backward again as he was told.Vroom!In a split second, the scarred woman floored the pedal.As Linda's SUV shot towards City Hall, the scarred woman threw Linda to the ground.After all, she knew that despite Linda being a hostage, there was no chance that she could get away while still holding Linda captive.With that, th
Skyler knew very well that the cops couldn't pin anything on him.The public security cameras around every ambush point where the Seven Deaths' gunmen lay in wait would definitely have been destroyed, so as to leave no trace.Moreover, Skyler was up against hired killers—it was justified self-defense!-Ten minutes later, Skyler found himself at a hotel with Linda, as she took him there instead of the precinct. After getting a room and shutting the door behind them, she made a call, "Johnny, it's Linda. I need some alcohol and bandages. Room 1203, Hotel Jackson."Skyler raised a brow, but he got it—her injury was not serious for a hospital trip, but she couldn't go to work with her neck and collar covered in blood.Here, she'd clean herself up and tend to her injury.Still, as Linda hung up, she glared at Skyler and demanded, "You know me?""Of course," Skyler smiled. "Back at the precinct, remember?""Don't try to be cute! I meant before!" Linda glowered furiously. "You sud
In the lounge, over a dozen boxers waited silently.Naturally, this wasn't everyone, as most wouldn't be fighting over consecutive days.After a round or two, they would be resting for a few days, or up to two weeks if they sustained worse injuries… or perhaps they would never stand on their feet again!That was why one would only find twentyish boxers at best each day.As Skyler got himself a chair, however, a burly bearded man grinned intimidatingly at him, brandishing his knuckle.Everyone was used to that as bullying newbies were all too common.That was when the speakers crackled, "In ten minutes, our old friend Tyrant will be up against our newbie Sandfox. Odds are 1 against three—please put your bets on as soon as possible, as we will stop taking bets a minute before the match!""Who's Sandfox?" Beardie asked without thinking.He was obviously Tyrant, which was his boxer nickname.As Skyler looked around in reflex as well, Chris leaned in, telling him under his breath,
The driver almost wet himself right then, and said no more.With that, the Santana sped off, and soon arrived at the illegal boxing ring.It used a rather bleak bar as a front, hiding the basement that went thirty feet beneath.Every guest here needed a referee—even if the cops knew that this place existed, they never found it.The headed down a passage, eventually arriving outside a pair of steel doors.Creak…As the doors opened, it revealed a sight that was a stark contrast to the pitch-black passage.Bright lights, crowds, and choruses of cheers.Over a couple hundred guests were all standing around an octagon fighting ring. Each of them were raising their betting slips into the air, cheering for the two men wrestling in the ring on top of their lungs.The driver of the Santana handed off Skyler and Chris to another goon, who led them through the hall.Soon, they entered a room guarded by two bouncers, labeled authorized personnel only.It was quite spacious inside, with
Later, Skyler and Chris were standing by the curb, with Skyler explaining to the other man beforehand that he was just there for show.There was no help—Chris had to take care of his heavily ill sister, and he mustn't take the risk. What would happen to her if things got bad?Still, Chris couldn't help asking, "Mr. Woods… Do you have a grudge against Wyvern?"He was a fine close-quarters fighter, but could tell right away that Skyler outclassed him by miles when he fought Boris.However, numbers always win!No matter how good a man was, they could handle a handful at best.Against a dozen—let alone twenty… And as a kingpin, Wyvern would have hundreds of goons with him, and Chris would rather nothing bad happened to Skyler…That was when Skyler nodded. "I guess I do.""Why don't you just… let it slide?"Chris hung his head, muttering, "There are things that cannot be resolved with violence… And here in the west side of the city, his influence is overwhelming."Skyler chuckle
Since Skyler had given whatever money he had left to Stella, he really needed cash now!That meant not only did he have to settle the beef with Wyvern tonight, he had to make a killing too…But for that, he'd need his own capital first.So what was he supposed to do?"Skyler," a voice called out from behind just then."What's up?" He asked as he turned to find Lily standing there."You're… acting strange. Did something happen?"There was no question that Lily's opinion of Skyler had changed after the past couple days. After all, he had first exposed that woman who tried to kill her, before decimating Seven Deaths to register their marriage as planned.Still, that was exactly why she could tell that he was acting strange today, and therefore came to ask.Skyler shook his head—there was no chance he'd tell Lily he ran into someone precious to him by chance. "Nothing. I have an errand to run, so I'm heading out.""Oh…" Lily nodded. "Well, there's something we need to discuss."
At the precinct, Linda just received a call from the captain and was heading out of her office.Pop! Pop! Pop!The loud bursts as soon as she opened the door left Linda revealing, as confetti filled the air in a split second, engulfing her..She finally saw several other officers, holding party poppers as they cheered."Congratulations, Linda!""That was amazing!""All hail Linda!"Linda was left at a loss as her colleagues all competed amongst themselves to congratulate her."Well done, Linda!"Even Roy Allen, captain of the precinct, was all smiles as he came to congratulate Linda. "You've landed a big score this time, and I reported it upstairs. Just wait for your medals—I'm sure you'd be catapulted up the ranks!""What…? Cap, I don't get it," Linda was baffled.Captain Allen merely laughed heartily. "The lady of the hour! And she's still so humble even with such a historical achievement!""But I really don't get it…""Linda!"A policewoman in her twenties exclaimed, h
After staring at Stella's arm for a long while, Skyler suddenly got up and asked, "What's her illness?"Chris did a double take—why did the man suddenly look like a completely different person?He knew for a while that Skyler hadn't saved him from Boris out of kindness. But no matter what Skyler's reasoning was, the man had saved him, and he must be grateful.However, Skyler had been nonchalant at best even when Chris thanked him earlier, until Wyvern was mentioned…In other words, Skyler was sticking with him to gather information.That was why even Chris believed that Skyler was the lofty-type who acted as if nothing concerned him.That was especially obvious since he came into Stella's ward, but never bothered to ask a thing… until now.So what was going on here? Why would Skyler suddenly ask about his sister? "It's bone marrow failure," Chris quickly answered nonetheless."I'll treat her," Skyler said, starting toward Stella."Huh…?" "What are you doing?!"While Chris
Ding!As Chris Hunt dashed out of the hospital elevator, Skyler slowly followed.Right now, he just had to wait for Skyler to finish his business here and contact Boris, pretending to take his offer to fight at the illegal boxing ring.Once he got there, reaching Wyvern wouldn't be difficult since the man owned the place."Stella!" Chris exclaimed as he rushed into the ward with breakfast."Chris…" The girl's voice was melodious but frail."Here, you should eat something," Chris hurried to her.Skyler only reached the ward by the time Chris had taken out the breakfast he bought.However, when he saw the girl on her sickbed, he felt his breath left his lungs.What a beauty!Her face was so dainty it could fit his palm, and her visage was one of perfection.Even if she couldn't groom her hair and had no makeup on since she was hospitalized, there was no hiding those looks. She could even give Lily Sable a run for her money.With her pale cheeks that painted her with a sickly
And with those words, Skyler started forward again."Wait!"The youth leaped in front of him in a flash, stopping him.Skyler's eyes narrowed—that movement was crisp and agile.However, that was relative to the average person, and actually insignificant in his eyes.Still, he frowned. "Are you done?""No, wait…"The youth exclaimed, flustered. "Boris and his men are actually a big deal. They work for Wyvern, and now that you got off the wrong foot against them—"He could see that Skyler was strong, but as the saying goes, there was always strength in numbers…Still, he had no idea that he managed to pique Skyler's interest this time.That honey trap at the hotel, and the attempted murder in a precinct!Weren't those carried out under Wyvern's orders?Still, Skyler knew that he should prioritize, and his top priority was to marry Lily Sable to accomplish his task of misdirection.And now that the first step was done, he just so happened to find a lead to reach Wyvern…Well
"You want a piece of me, brat?!"Boris strode over, ready to shove Skyler just as he did the youth. "Don't you know who I am—ow!" Suddenly, he could not move his hand even before he reached Skyler, as he was caught by the wrist!Even as Boris flinched in pain, he snapped, "Shit! Let go—"Crunch!Skyler simply flicked his wrist, and there was a hair-raising crunch of bones as Boris collapsed to his knees, screaming.His hand was dangling at a weird angle, clearly dislocated!"Apologize," Skyler's tone remained calm."Fucking—"Smack!Skyler finally freed Boris' wrist, only to slap him audibly across the face.Boris was sent falling backward, bleeding from the nose as a crimson palm print appeared over his left cheek.Still, his goons finally came to their senses and lunged at Skyler without hesitation, instantly reaching him.The one at the front even handedly whipped out a switchblade, his face contorted savagely.However, even before he realized what happened, he felt h