Dean, Jarek, and Sunny were certainly pathetic, kowtowing to Frank as everyone watched.It was a dark page in their history, and they had to get even!That was the case especially for Ivor, who had to suffer utter humiliation just to survive.If he could, he would call his father right now and have him send his men over.However, he also knew very well that his father was a busy man and did not have time for his nonsense, not to mention that a call was not convincing.Instead, he must let his father see his tragic state and get his father to do something.Strengthening his resolve, Ivor snapped coolly, "Go, get my car and take me to my dad's office in Bearson Group right now. I will let him see how I suffered! It'll be a slap to his face!""Alright!"Dean, Jarek, and Sunny Cabat traded glances, gleeful right then.After all, Bearson Group was secretly backed by the Lionhearts of Morhen!If the Lionhearts helped, Frank was as good as dead!The men's footsteps quickened at the
Winter, who had been craning her neck to listen in on the call, quickly turned away when Frank hung up, feigning ignorance.Naturally, she could not fool Frank—he did not blame her, however, and instead patted her head and chuckled.She would be his apprentice from now on.It was a little ridiculous in a way, seeing that his mentor's daughter would become his apprentice instead of becoming her fellow."Hmph. How meddlesome…"Hearing the tactless grumble, Frank turned to see a long-haired girl wearing thick-makeup.Though she was basically a four, she was a seven thanks to her elaborate makeup. On the other hand, Winter just needed basic makeup to reach eight point five, even nine.Nonetheless, Frank was frowning when he heard the complaint.Jean heard it too. Being blunt as she always was, she promptly snapped, "What's that supposed to mean, Yew?""Nothing. Tch." Yew clicked her tongue, sarcastic even as she folded her arms before her chest. "All thanks to Winter's amazing b
After all, Zamri Hospital was one of the best hospitals in the East Coast, and its previous chief, Dennis Jackson, was one of Zamri's Three Bears!They were on a completely different level from Riverton Hospital!"Are you messing with us, Professor Lawrence?"Yew snorted skeptically. "Even Ivor Bearson only promised a recommendation letter and not an internship. Do you even have the connections for this?""Oh, but don't worry—I do."Frank nodded to assure everyone, even smiling and pointing at Winter, "And the next chief of Zamri Hospital is standing right there. She's your friend, after all—would an internship be really a problem?""What?! The chief of Zamri Hospital?!"Everyone stared blankly at the equally confused Winter, who could barely speak.As everyone looked on, she shook her head repeatedly, her hair flowing in waves. "F-Frank… Me, the chief?" she stammered. "No way! What are you talking about?! I just graduated, and I'm going to become chief? That absolutely won't
The private room turned completely silent.Earlier, the girls were slightly convinced that Frank could write a recommendation letter so that they would have a shot at getting an internship at Zamri Hospital. But now, he was also saying that he would help Winter get appointed as the chief of that hospital, and that he and Gene Pearce agreed to that?Everyone knew that Gene was the richest man of the east coast, and Frank would say that he and that man discussed and agreed to let Winter become chief?!Who did he think he was, swaying Gene's decisions?! It was no longer a joke at that point—just fiction.Yew did not even bother mocking Frank at that point. Keeping a straight face, she picked up her handbag and got to her feet, "Keep listening to him brag all you want. I'm leaving—I don't have the time to waste here."Two other girls followed suit, holding no hopes toward Frank at all.In their mind, Frank must be crazy for saying something like that, and anything else would just b
With that, only Jean and Winter were left in the room with Frank.Smiling at Winter, he said, "I'm going to teach you the precepts of Draconian traditional medicine over a month, while you study the rest from there. How about that?"Winter's eyes lit up—she had seen Frank's skill in medicine, and she would be a great help to him if she could inherit his skills.She nodded repeatedly at that thought."Good." Frank was pleased to see her agree to it. "With this, you'll be even more qualified as hospital chief.""Why are you still going on about that…" Winter pouted, clearly doubting Frank.Frank was not concerned, however, even smiling as he patted her head and told her to study well while he made the arrangements.Jean stood up just then—she was not convinced Frank could get someone like Gene to agree to his request, but Frank had already achieved the impossible one too many times.At this point, she was just used to Frank achieving wonders, which was why she was the only one mo
"Me?" Frank shook his head. "That wasn't me. Sage Lake Sect didn't want witnesses, and it's not my fault.""You're lying!" Aria bellowed. "I wouldn't be at White Hall if not for you, and I wouldn't end up like this!""Shut up!"Frank turned furious as well at her outburst. "You're the one who set me up in the first place! Would I have needed to travel to White Hall to find proof otherwise? None of it would have happened if you had just confessed from the start! And when we got to White Hall, you hooked up with Kim's father—which of those are not your fault? What part did I play in any of that?!"Aria hung her head at Frank's bellow, but the spite in her glare never faded.Seeing that, Frank knew that there was no saving her now—hate had completely clouded her mind, and she remained unrepentant even after he had been as lenient as he could.Moreover, he was not one who hesitated… and he was not about to keep a ticking time bomb around.Since Aria refused to see reason, Frank had
"What?"Kilian scowled in annoyance right then. "I informed you beforehand and even pulled strings so that Zamri City Hall covered it up as a highway project, and you still haven't acquired that plot of land?"Killian's accusation left Troy sweating buckets, and he pursed his lips awkwardly. "It's not like we're refusing, Mr. Lionheart, but Lanecorp just isn't giving up that land lot. Everyone we sent was turned down, not to mention that Zamri is a mess at the moment.""Really? You can't deal with some company? And what mess are you talking about?" Kilian asked, but he was convinced Troy was deliberately stalling to get more goodies from the Lionhearts."Well, sir, Lanecorp has recently seen progress," Troy replied. "They are gaining ground across various fields in Zamri. In contrast, Zomber Group, formerly one of the city's Three Bears, is declining. Their two leaders died under mysterious circumstances, and the company is now acquired by Lanecorp as a subsidiary."Seeing the loo
Just then, a commotion could be heard from the hallway outside. "Please, Mr. Bearson! You can't go in—your father is meeting an important guest, and he said no one is to disturb him!"Before Troy could react, his office doors opened.Then, he watched as his son , bleeding all over and bawling, was carried inside on a stretcher by Dean, Jarek, and Sunny.Troy's secretary and security guards were still trying to talk them out of it. "Please just step outside for a moment…"However, Ivor could not care less as he ordered Dean and the others to barge inside.As soon as he saw his father, he was shouting tearfully on top of his lungs."Dad! Dad!" he cried shrilly, trembling even as he kept howling, "Someone beat me up, and broke my hands and legs! I'm a cripple now… You have to avenge me"!Troy was about to scold his son for being tactless, but the gruesome sight of his injuries left his rage vaporizing.He strode up, his eyes flashing viciously as he barked, "Who did this to you?!
As it turned out, the white-clad geezer did not return for revenge.People change as they age, along with their mindset, and develop a longing for their hometown.In fact, the white-clad geezer had returned to make peace with his family, and died in their company.Naturally, he was furious to hear that someone was using his name to bluff their way out and abduct his niece, the hag.And so he came with the rest of them, looking for Frank.After all, if Frank was not sent by the white-clad geezer, the only other person would be…-Back at the present, the white-clad geezer growled icily, "Where is my niece?"Frank smirked. "She paid the price for her crimes. What, do you want revenge?""A life for a life," the white-clad geezer growled. "That's the one rule that has never changed since olden times!"His entourage roared in approval. "Don't get so full of yourself, brat! He is different from the rest of us, and he can kill you anytime!""Really?" Frank simply snorted nonchalant
As the geezer spoke, he opened the rosewood box and put an ashtray in it. "I actually don't have any abilities—everything I make is produced from this box. With its help, I can imbue any object with an enchantment beyond human comprehension. See for yourself!"He closed the box and held it by its sides as the box glowed in a rainbow gradient.Frank felt a sense of familiarity as he watched, as the energy signature resembled the spiritron vein, but one different from the meteor.So what the heck was going on?While Frank was left surprised, the geezer stopped and opened the box, handing Frank the ashtray.As Frank held the ashtray, he saw that it really was altered—it could carry more now!The geezer then passed him a yellowed old book. "This is how you can use it!"Frank frowned. "Why are you giving it to me? I can't take it, or people would just say that I stole it from you when they find out."The geezer smiled in wry amusement. "It's yours either way, kid! And after you've d
To be honest, the hag really had not considered that question and was just playing along to her own whims, never once considering why she was such a philanderer.Frank then pressed his advantage. "Your so-called love is but a manifestation of your lust. It seems noble, but it has no warmth or color, and the world has no way of determining if it exists."If I want it, I can do what you do too. Heck, I'm sure that's the same for everyone else—they're just kind people who know that they shouldn't hog the limited resources of mental asylums.""Insolence!"The hag lunged at Frank as she realized that he was mocking her, but Frank was already prepared and pinned her to the floor with his telekinesis."Alright, you can quit hollering now. The more you do, the more you're just proving that you've lost!"Crouching in front of the hag, Frank growled coolly. "Did you think I'd only rely on brute strength to force your compliance? You're kidding—I don't even need to do that with someone like
It was just as the geezer had said—the hag had been pampered for so long that she could not tell right from wrong.In fact, in her mind, everything she did was never wrong and was even reasonable!That was what frustrated the geezer the most, and he simply stopped arguing and started whipping her with his belt.Pain really clears the mind, and the hag was no exception. In fact, she thought for a split second that she might have made a mistake.However, it only lasted for that split second—a little whipping was never really going to correct a lifetime of distorted beliefs!"I don't get it!" she cried. "Why do you treat my love with such disdain?! You don't have to love me, but you have to respect me!" The geezer laughed coolly and continued to whip her as he snapped, "That's true! But now, what I say goes—that's all there is to it!"That was when Frank suddenly reached out and caught the belt.It stunned the geezer, who quickly checked Frank's hand, and sighed after seeing that
It had been so long since he had seen his enemy, that the geezer almost fell out of his lounger.If he were to be honest, he really did not hold out much hope since it had been years, and no one lasted more than twenty strikes against the hag.However, while he was convinced that his revenge was futile in this life, Frank suddenly appeared.While he looked like he had nothing but his looks going for him, he brought the hag like she was some harmless hatchling."H-How did you do it?" the geezer exclaimed, presuming that Frank must have pulled some cunning trick.However, the geezer was once again reminded of the hag's conceit as she snorted. "How, you asked? With just a wave of his hand, and I lost!"Turning to Frank, she snapped, "There, he had his justice. Can you tell my uncle to show his face now?"Frank rolled his eyes. "I don't know your uncle. I only brought you here because of him!""No… That's impossible!" The truth was starting to dawn on the hag, but she still refus
"H-How did you do that?!"While the cabal was left flabbergasted, the hag was much calmer for some reason.After all, her father had told her about an uncle of hers, who had left the family because they kept abusing their earthbending ability.It was rumored that the uncle eventually cultivated a superior ability, fusing things that would otherwise not be just like what Frank just did.As such, she told her cabal as much, but Frank shook his head. "I learned your technique by directly observing you when you used it. And by doing so, I found a fatal flaw, which I adjusted for."He certainly did not have anything to do with the hag's uncle—he was just that quick a learner and that gifted to wield earthbending in an instant.Naturally, the hag was not about to believe that.No matter how gifted a person could be, there was no way anyone could learn earthbending instantly and even perfect it. In the end, someone must have taught him!As such, she was starting to get impatient with
Before the cabal could react, molehills appeared beneath their feet and sent them flying.Most passed out when they hit the ground, while the rest were barely holding on."W-Who the hell are you?!" The cabal had grown conceited since they did not have many rivals in a remote corner such as this one, and they therefore presumed that no one could challenge them.And now, they could not win with numbers against Frank, let alone one against one.Could anyone bear the shame?"What a bunch of mooks. I told you kids to stay on your training, but none of you listened. And now you're acting surprised?"A hunched hag appeared on a nearby alley, looking very much affable.Surprised, the cabal exclaimed, "What are you doing here, ma'am?""Do you think I'd miss the tremors?" the hag snapped coolly before wheeling on Frank. "Impressive physique! I certainly didn't expect you to hurt those boys."The cabal quickly warned her, "This isn't the time, ma'am. He knows earthbending, and he could
Frank's tone was calm, as if he was merely stating a fact. "What's there to deny? Even if I spilled my guts, do you stand a chance against me? See, no one does!"The man was furious—he had met plenty of conceited individuals, but Frank definitely took the crown!And seeing that Frank was not even in his thirties and was definitely small fry, he did not hesitate to slam his palm on the ground, which promptly started to move! "Interesting!"Frank stood his ground instead of leaping away, staring cooly at the molehills that streaked toward him. Even as the molehills were reaching Frank's feet, the man was left wondering why Frank did not dodge when the unexpected happened.The molehills struck the brat, but he remained unscathed!Earthbending was their cabal's signature technique, capable of causing seismic tremors—even if it was no match for real earthquakes, most people would still have trouble dealing with it.They were either torn into pieces by the shockwave, though the mor
Frank waited for a taxi and headed to his destination. Soon, the taxi stopped outside a dilapidated apartment.As Frank alighted and stared at the cracks on every block or the shaky foundations, even he could tell that it was in such a bad state it must be demolished. Shaking his head, he sighed in exasperation and entered the fifth unit on the sixth floor of Block D.He knocked on the door, and a smiling geezer opened it as he studied him. "What can I do for you, sir?"Able to tell right away that he was special, Frank asked, "Let's just call it a visit. I heard you could craft mystic items?"The geezer laughed right then. "I knew it. The nail that sticks out really gets hammered! I just want to keep my head down and live out my days, but you found me anyway.""Please don't misunderstand, sir," Frank quickly said. "I'm no robber, and I'm not going to steal from you. As long as you assist me, I can do anything for you.""Let's talk inside." The geezer stepped aside to let Fr