Pow!"Argh!"Deedum screamed as his bones cracked audibly and his arms dangled limply at his sides."Now stay away!" Mona bellowed.Taking a few steps back as the other women looked on in shock, she then leapt forward, launching a kick up Deedum's chin and sending him flying too. Deedum howled in pain as he joined Deedle, slamming heavily into the ground outside, his fate unknown."Huh…" Unlike Winter, who had seen Mona fight before, Noel and Carol were both left stunned, and they were suddenly looking at Mona differently.-Frank and the others drove for over an hour to finally arrive at Laneville in Southstream.Even before he entered, he saw the familiar men in white—the Soranos' bodyguard.And to no surprise, Willy Sorano, who had fled for his life from Noel's mansion the other night, was sitting smugly in the Laneville drawing room.Gavin Lane was not present, though his eldest son Roth appeared most undignified as he served their beck and call, looking as undignifie
Naturally, it did not matter how tightly the Lane family bodyguards tied Frank up—freeing himself was a matter of intention, and he played along just to spare Roth from Gus' wrath."Hahaha!!!" Willy was even less wary now that Frank was tied up, striding down the stairs and pointing haughtily at Frank. "How about that, asshole?! Not so full of yourself now, are you?! Here, I'll count to five… Haha…"He was quoting Frank, even mimicking him and holding up five fingers just to rub it in. Frank remained unmoved, however."You wanted to know how Hubert Sorano died? I'll tell you right now," he said quietly, striding once toward Willy and holding his gaze as he growled, "I killed him. And he was full of himself… just like how you're behaving right now."The Soranos were actually unfazed by his threat, but that could not be said for Fleur. "Insolence!" she shrieked, eager to renounce Frank. "You little shit! I should've known you were a murderer! To think you'd speak so insolently af
However, Fleur remained apathetic even as Gina begged, showing no intention of compromising.Even Helen was afraid. "Frank, could there be a misunderstanding here…?"She believed that Frank could not stand up against that many martial elites at the same time.That was especially true with Gus, the man who stood above them whose very appearance made it obvious he was no pushover.Was this really the end for them? Helen could not help regretting her actions just then—if only she had known her place and refused Gavin's nomination of her as the next head of the Lane family.Obviously, Fleur did not want to see that happen and had come for her head.However, it was while her thoughts strayed that Frank spoke beside her ear. "Don't worry. No one will hurt you as long as I'm around." "Yeah," Helen replied, slowly calming down as Frank's words instilled her with an indescribable sense of confidence.Then, even as the Lane family bodyguards strode up at them, weapons in hand, she
"Mark?""Grandfather?"The spirited shout from upstairs left the Southstream Lanes stunned.Fleur was stunned like the rest and snapped right then, "Silence, old-timer! I'm doing this to save your life!""I will not be denied!" Mark continued shouting from upstairs. "I'd rather die right now than live under such grief! I was waiting to see if any of you kids were going to stand up to these thugs… but Clark and Gable bailed as soon as they heard the Soranos were here! Only Gavin and Helen stood up against them! That's why I'm announcing it right now: only Gavin and Helen will be the candidates for the next head of the Lane family—Oof!"Mark was suddenly grunting just as he was about to finish, seemingly struck."Sir!" Helen exclaimed in shock.Frank strode forward, leveling an icy look at Willy right then. "Come at me if you have a problem. Bullying an old man says more about you than me.""Old man? Who are you talking about?!" Mark was laughing upstairs. "I'm not old yet, whipp
"However, you insolently slayed Zam Sorano, the head steward of the Sorano family, and incurred their wrath. Your fate is hence sealed."Frank paused at Gus' words. "Zam Sorano? The geezer who barged into Noel York's house that night with Willy here?"Gus stood, his hands clasped behind his back as he nodded. "Indeed.""No, there's been a mistake." Frank shook his head. "I'll admit to slaying Hubert Sorano, because he disregarded my warnings and insulted me. But I didn't slay Zam Sorano.""Hmm…?"Gus appeared hesitant, raising a brow. "Well, Hubert is just some mistress' child. If it's just him, I have no reason to get involved…"He could tell that Frank's rank was quite high and had no reason to lie given the circumstances."Shut up, Frank Lawrence!" Willy promptly yelled, afraid that the truth would be unraveled. "How naive are you, thinking that your lies could deceive Gus?""Believe what you want to," Frank replied, calmly shaking his head. "I only sent Zam Sorano flying bu
Gus went all out from his very first strike, and Frank met his blows unflinchingly.Their fight was beyond the realm of an average Joe's understanding—each blow was as swift as a shadow and as lethal as a viper's fang… And they exchanged over thirty blows in no time at all!"What?!" On the other hand, Willy was left staring on in shock as both Frank and Gus proved evenly matched, even having a foreboding sensation right then.Then, after over fifty blows, Gus leapt backward away from Frank, taking a moment to calm his erratic breathing and staring at the other man fixedly."I'm surprised…" He nodded. "You're not Ascendant rank, but you already boast such immense strength. I can already see that if you wanted my mentor dead, you wouldn't have to resort to underhanded measures such as slashing him through the neck with a dagger."Pausing, Gus then turned toward Willy and growled icily, "You have explaining to do, Willy Sorano.""W-What do you mean, explaining?" Willy snapped in d
Frank nodded as Gus turned toward him with a pointed look. "Of course—I would certainly accept the olive branch you offer." Then, turning toward Willy, he said, "I'm sorry for what happened before, Mr. Sorano." However, there was no hint of sincerity in Frank's apology. If anything, it sounded like an insult.Willy's face darkened, but he was afraid to throw a fit.Instead, he resorted to name-dropping. "My father will hear about this, Gus Zeller!""Sure." Gus nodded impassively. "Though that would have to wait after the murderer of my mentor is unmasked."Willy stiffened at Gus' words, but he snorted as he turned and strode off."Mr. Lawrence." Gus actually saluted Frank, a stark contrast to Willy's frustrated reaction. As Gus beckoned for the Soranos' men to leave with him, Helen was still caught off guard by Gus and the Soranos' quick change in attitude."What's going on Frank?" she asked—was Gus really backing down because of Frank's strength?Frank was staring at Gus
Mark finished, "Helen may have brought this upon us, but she's the one who did not cow to the Soranos and fought back. She's a testament to our family's dignity, and we need a leader like her."Fleur was immediately flustered at Mark's words—she would have no place if Helen was really chosen to be the next head of the Lane family!"You're being senile, old man!" she interrupted right then. "If you know she caused this, then you'd understand that you, Mark, or Luna wouldn't have been beaten up. It's all her fault!""That's right!" Luna was flustered too. "You have to think carefully about this, Grandpa!""Silence!" Mark bellowed and waited until everyone turned silent."I understand you're dissatisfied, and I have no intention to break the old rules," he said, looking around at everyone as he decided to compromise. "But I still prefer Helen's attitude, so how about this? The wager with Helen before still stands, and she must make a profit from the farm in the remaining half month.
The hag shook her head repeatedly. "No, this is impossible! Even if you're gifted, you wouldn't be this accomplished without giving blood and sweat!"Frank sighed. "Don't you know that Einstein revolutionized physics in his twenties? Prodigies don't simply possess extraordinary gifts—they can gain twice the success even with less effort than the average person, staying well beyond any of your reach."The hag smirked. "To be honest, I would have been willing to let you join us if not for your arrogance."At her words, the lotus she sat on turned pellucid like Frank's and started flashing in red light too.The crowd who was feeling just disappointed a second ago were once again thrilled, and the middle-aged man even dissed Frank. "And you call yourself a prodigy? You're just a bitch the way I see it—your red light only lasted that long!"The hag sighed. "Such a shame indeed!"The red light shot toward Frank as she finished but faded in an instant, and soon, the hag's lotus faded as
Frank ignored the hag and asked, "How many people do you have?""It doesn't matter," the hag growled coldly. "They're plenty enough to deal with you."Frank nodded and sat cross-legged, closing and resting his eyes while saying, "Go on. Call for them."The hag was curious. "You're only in your twenties—wherever did you get that confidence?"Frank chuckled. "You can identify a horse from a donkey by making it run, as they say."The hag would like to end him right there. But considering that this was an opportunity to train, and they were all safe with her around, she decided to play along and called for everyone.Soon, over a hundred people dressed like the hag arrived. All of them were ugly or had birth defects, which paints quite the amusing picture.A middle-aged man in shades strode up, studying Frank in interest. "Oh, quite the overachiever, aren't you? Reaching the Ascendant rank in your twenties…"Frank shot him a look and asked coolly, "How many people have you killed be
Frank yelled, "Tell me who your boss is, and I might spare your life! Otherwise, the glass shards on the door will be your doom."That certainly showed the woman that Frank was being honest, and that she misjudged men!Chuckling bitterly, she said, "I actually quite liked you, so I'd rather not speed you to your death. Know when to stop if you're really smart, kid."Frank laughed coolly. "If I was going to stop, would I have come after you or Horace at all?"Fear comes from the unknown, which is why people fear the dark and the paranormal. But when they emerge from it, they fear nothing!"The woman gaped at Frank in disbelief, surprised that someone like him existed in such a quiet corner in this world.Terrifying, yet not patient—his existence was way beyond her reach.But when it came to men like him, she was still all too happy to help him die for on reason!"Fine, I'll take you to her—just don't be disappointed in the gap of power. Try to keep your pride as you do now."Fr
"What the fuck do you want?!"It was the first time Horace had ever seen anyone do something like this.Frank was helping out of sheer conscience and clearly would not tolerate anyone who committed evils, even going all out to wipe them out.At the same time, he was also different from the rest. Cunning ploys and fancy tricks were pointless against him, and he did not care about his reputation as long as he achieved his goal.And when it came to personal ability, wit, and influence, Horace simply did not compare in any element. He was also experienced enough to see that compliance was his only chance against a character like Frank. But chance did not even mean surviving but a polite death, because Frank would not let someone like him live!Throwing up his hands, Horace exclaimed, "I-I'll tell you everything! Just kill me—don't throw me in jail, okay?!"Frank said nothing and waited until Horace confessed everything, and once he gathered sufficient information, he snapped his fi
"How did you get in here?"Before this, Horace had arranged a security detail of over a dozen men in case Frank came after him.Even if they were no match for Frank, they could at least buy time, while he would hear the commotion and flee!However, Frank simply appeared without a sound behind him, making it all the more horrific!"Simple, really."Frank smirked. "I knocked them all out quietly! But to be honest, it's your own fault for not hiring martial artists despite being so rich. It's what you deserve.""You can kill me, but what's going to happen to the girl's parents?"Horace smirked, still confident in his own advantage as he waved his phone at Frank.It was a simple gesture to tell him that he was ready to take Aisling's parents down with him.Frank simply ignored him. "The assassin you sent was quite something, to be honest. Pretty face, and that mole under her eye… She's really special."Horace lost all composure right then—that could only mean that Frank had met h
"Got it!"The woman hung up and used her other phone to call Aisling again. "Lady, you will do everything we say. To put it harshly, you're now a slave—you don't get to refuse us!""Is that so?"Just as the woman finished, the window suddenly crashed open, and someone zoomed inside!Even before she could react, she was held firmly in place by the shoulder.Seeing the handsome face and knowing it was the martial elite who took down the dozenish goons sent by the cottage, she exclaimed in shock, "H-How did you find me?""Did you think I can't find you just because you're on the move?"Frank smirked as he pointed outside. "First and foremost, finding your name is simple since I have the means to find your number and therefore personal details. Also, this vehicle is registered under your name—and with the support of the most advanced GPS systems, it'd be shocking if I couldn't find you."In fact, Frank already knew the woman would not hang around in Aisling's home and called Jouri
Other factors aside, pride matters more than anything else when a person gets rich, and Horace absolutely refused to be mocked as a coward."Don't worry about it. I have other arrangements in place," he said. He then told the middle-aged man to leave and called a mysterious number.-An hour later, Frank was speaking with the intern at his homestay cottage when her phone rang.Taking it out and seeing an unfamiliar number, she knew right away that it was from the Mount Statera's management and turned on the speakers despite her curiosity as she answered."Aisling Walls, was it? Your name has a nice ring to it!" A playful, feminine voice giggled eerily from the other end."What's it to you?" Aisling snorted in annoyance. "Mess around, and I'll call the cops on you!"The woman was not intimidated at all, even laughing icily. "Go on, but your parents will die if you do."Aisling was stunned, shaking her head as she cried, "No, that's impossible… How could you know where I live?"
The middle-aged man frowned.He knew that the intern and the chief ranger would take convincing, but they did not even care to listen. "Actually, neither of you have any control over your lives now."And with that, he turned to leave.This was a homestay, after all—a fight would only further complicate the situation, which was why he did not want to do it here.However, just because he could bear with it did not mean that Frank could. "Hold it. Don't you think you're disrespecting me by leaving so quickly?"The middle-aged man stopped and turned, seemingly interested. "And where did you get the confidence to threaten me?"Frank simply smiled.At the very next instant, the middle-aged man and his dozen goons were sent flying.Then, even before they could get up, Frank had already cut up and stamped his foot on the middle-aged man's face."W-Who the hell are you?"He had worked for Horace for a while, but someone as bothersome as Frank was the first.Even if he was stupid, he
The chief ranger sighed. "I can understand being altruistic, kid, but strength doesn't solve all problems."Frank laughed. "Are you sure I'm just good in a fight? The behavior of upper management is definitely terrible—if someone like me would simply let it slide, what would happen to the ordinary folk?"The chief ranger no longer hesitated and told the intern everything he knew.Soon, her article blew up on the internet, with netizens everywhere outraged.Management naturally could not just let it slide.Horace Gagne, the person in charge, promptly sent his people after the intern and the chief ranger, only to find that they were both in Frank's homestay cottage.As both groups convened, they reported to Horace right away despite their surprise.Horace was certainly no fool—he knew that someone was setting this scene.But so what about it? He had plenty of ways to bury his opponent.And with that, his thugs all stormed into the first floor living room to find Frank seated on