Gene worked hard for over a dozen minutes and suddenly yelled, "Argh!!!"Rory and Zorn hurried toward the washroom, but Frank raised a hand, stopping them.He walked up and knocked on the door with a smile. "How did it go, Mr. Pearce?""Mr. Lawrence, it's amazing! Y-You're…" Gene had obviously seen what just came out of him and was left flabbergasted."Haha!" Frank chuckled. "I shall excuse myself now that you're fine, Mr. Pearce… but may I ask when I could expect payment?""Tomorrow—wait, argh!!! No!!!! Mr. Lawrence, help… it's the pain again! It's worse! Argh!!!"Frank had presumed that Gene was fine and was ready to leave, only for the man to start screaming again!"What?!" He exclaimed in shock—did he miss something?Without another word, he rushed into the washroom and found Gene leaning on the wall.Gene still appeared weak, but he did not appear to be in pain like his screams suggested.In fact, he had a finger on his lips—a gesture for Frank to stay silent.Frank u
Zorn watched as Frank left, his lips curling into a sneer. "So, he's done for tomorrow? Fate is really on my side…" "Rory… Zorn…"Gene called out feebly from the toilet just then.Zorn and Rory traded a gleeful smile just then but quickly composed themselves to look worried as usual.-After Frank took a cab back to Lanecorp, he found Cindy throwing a major tantrum in one of the hallways.Picking up a vase, she threw it at Will and screamed, "You promised you'd help Helen get those land lots! Well, look what you've done now, not getting even one after I bragged so much! Do you know how that makes me feel?! I can't even bear to face Helen!"Her outburst was naturally drawing a crowd, even as Will dodge the oncoming vase.He had come to talk to Frank and explain himself, only to run into the crazy bitch who snapped at him before he could say a word.He really would have slapped her twice if he did not have to keep pretending to be her boyfriend!"What's happening here?" Frank
Helen continued, "And Gene is buying all those land lots on a blank check. Is Lanecorp supposed to spend every last capital to outbid the richest man of the east coast? You might as well demand that we go bankrupt directly!"Every staff member of Lanecorp was nodding repeatedly. Helen was right—Gene had nothing but money, and it was suicidal to compete against him in that front."Hah! I don't care!" Nonetheless, Kallum rolled his eyes and laughed—he could not care less about anything and was even more radical after his son's death. "That still meant you failed to achieve the second task I asked, no?"Helen frowned. "It's true, but—""No buts." Kallum sneered. "All I care about is results. You failed, and that's it. Hell, I don't mind telling you how much money I've siphoned off this company now… It's twelve billion dollars!"The Lanecorp staff around them gasped right then.They were aware that Kallum had been embezzling company money… But twelve billion was still a dizzying nu
"Pfft…"Cindy was the first to break the silence, sneering at Frank as she asked sarcastically, "Are you alright, Frank? Do you need to get your brain checked? The richest man on the east coast would just hand over tracts of land to a nobody like you, just because you asked… What, are you his son, grandson, or perhaps… lover?"Frank did not bother responding to her insults. Instead, he calmly turned toward Helen and said, "Don't worry. The issue is settled—we just have to go to Drenam Limited tomorrow with the transfer agreement.""Really…?" Helen was caught off guard by the abrupt news and unsure how she should react.After all, she was despairing… only to feel hope now.It was certainly a rollercoaster of emotions, and she was certainly overwhelmed, pressing a hand over her chest."Of course." Frank grinned. "When have I ever lied to you?""Frank, y-you're so… so…" Helen could not find the words to describe how she felt.Beaming in delight right then, she threw herself into F
The next day, Frank and Helen were already prepared early in the morning and drove to Drenam Limited's office.Cindy had insisted on following, throwing a tantrum as she claimed she wanted to see what Frank could actually do to take those land lots from Gene.To no surprise, Drenam Limited was just a small local construction company that Gene had bought out to be an intermediary."Hello. Looking for someone?" Rob, a thuggish youth with a toothpick between his teeth, strode up to them, stopping them.He looked between them, not even stopping to take a second look at Cindy, as he soon gaped at Helen, dropping his toothpick."Shit!" He cursed even as he spaced out."What's going on here?" Bob, a pudgy man strode up to them as well, frowning. "If you're here to talk shop, I'm sorry, but we were just bought out and… Shit!"He reacted no different from Rob when he saw Helen and barked, "Quit gawking! Don't just let her stand there—go get a chair and some tea!""Oh, yeah, yeah," Rob t
Just as Bob finished, Rob, who had been staring at Helen for a while, exclaimed in surprise, "Hold on, didn't they already know that Mr. Pearce owns us now? Then what are they doing here?"Bob frowned at Frank in turn. "Oh, right? What are you doing here? Is it not about those land lots?""It is," Frank nodded in confirmation.Bob clicked his tongue right then and sighed exasperatedly. "Then what are you doing here if you know that? What, are you going to buy them off Mr. Pearce?""Exactly. Are you crazy?" Rob chimed in, sneering at Frank while twirling a finger over his temple."See, Helen?" Cindy exclaimed gleefully. "They don't even know about us—Frank was lying! And he'd even announce that Mr. Pearce willingly sold them… He must be crazy!"Rob did a double take and turned toward Frank. "That chick's no looker, but she's right. You'd have a better chance buying a pillow instead, so that you can get those pieces of lands in your dreams.""Frank…" Helen turned toward him worrie
On the other hand, Frank was scowling when he saw Zorn.His first thought was that Gene had betrayed him, but he soon realized that it was impossible. After all, Gene knew that Rory and Zorn were conspiring to kill him. He would never betray Frank unless he was stupid, and he did not become the richest man on the east coast by being stupid.On the other hand, Zorn was glowering in realization and barked, "I get it now! You're trying to take advantage of Mr. Pearce while he's sick, aren't you?!""What?"Helen frowned alongside Frank.She trusted Frank, but the fact that Gene's valet did not know about the deed transfer made Frank look like a liar, and now exposed. And now, Frank was even accused of taking advantage of Gene's illness…"Frank, why don't we leave for now? We can come back again later," she said, tugging on Frank's arm and offering him a way out.Frank had every intention to do so too, as he would like to ask Gene in person what the heck was going on.Or maybe Zor
"J-Just you wait!" Bob and Rob bellowed, but they quickly scrambled to flee the office building.On the other hand, Zorn felt a chill down his spine when Frank parried his blow."He's a martial artist too?" he murmured to himself. "Why didn't I sense his vigor?"Moreover, he could see that Frank was used to fighting as he dispatched Rob and Bob in no time at all. He was certainly convinced earlier that Frank was just an average Joe, but he now actually sensed a formless pressure that Frank projected around him.The pressure left Zorn wary, and he was suddenly unsure if he could beat Frank.Such might despite his youth certainly left him wondering where he was from.Narrowing his eyes, Zorn backed down and asked, "May I ask what clan or sect you're from?"Frank, however, shook his head and said quietly, "I'm just a nobody. So? Are we going to continue? I'm not going to hold back if you do, and you'll have to face the consequences of your own actions."Zorn stared at Frank warily