"Really? Donn… Frank? Can't you reconsider?""It's me, Silverbell… Or you don't like how I look now that I'm grown up?" Silverbell could cry, but she kept herself smiling—the bitter expression left even Ned's heart aching, let alone Frank."No." He shook his head, turning away. "It'd be better if we never meet again.""I see…" Silverbell wiped her face as she strode out of the factory without looking back."Ah, it looks like it's beginning to rain…" she said as if to calm herself, even as she disappeared from sight."Mr. Lawrence…"Ned had no words for Frank just then—he was just an outsider and did not know why Frank would reject someone as beautiful and strong as Silverbell."Phew…" Frank sighed lengthily before turning to Ned. "I'm afraid I need your help to clean up the mess. And if you could, please pretend nothing happened here.""Don't worry." Ned nodded solemnly. Frank then turned to Gina and Cindy, watching them in silence before saying, "Naturally, the same goes
Helen suddenly thought to herself how great it would be if Vicky was there with them.Kat certainly would not strut with Vicky around—not many had the honor of getting one over Vicky when it came to verbal fencing.If anything, Vicky would have tamed the child in no time at all, and Helen was a lot less smart that way—unable to riposte the brat's witty remarks, all she had was Nash's profuse apologies.Naturally, she would not stoop to getting petty with a child either.Just then, Frank led Gina and Cindy in through the door.Helen hurried to them, exclaiming, "Are you alright, Mom?"Gina was her mother after all, and she would be lying if she said she was not worried.She glanced at Frank gratefully too, seeing that he had brought Gina back in one piece."Hmph. Alright?" Gina snorted, already thinking of a script on the way back, shooting Frank a look and grumbling, "They took all our money!""What?" Helen did a double take and pressed urgently, "But the money is from the Sou
"Oh, I'm so sorry." Nash hurried over to apologize. "Children can be really ignorant…""How am I ignorant?" Kat snorted in disdain, folding her arms before her chest. "She lost the money her daughter entrusted to her, and then tells her daughter to sell her company to make up for her mistakes. She's a real bloodsucker, if not worse! Even Dracula himself would have to kowtow to her and ask her to teach him how to be such a natural, shameless bloodsucker."Gina screamed right then, "You brat! I'll tear out that rotten mouth of yours!""Hahaha!!! Fight! Fight! Fight!" Luna clapped as she watched."That's enough!" Frank snapped coldly, finally stopping the mess.On the way back, he was busy thinking about what Talc had told him before he died—Gina's drama was the last thing on his mind.Frowning, he said, "Ned Janko will recover the money the Talnamese took. Aside from the one billion he asked for in our agreement, he'll return the rest as is."Gina breathed a sigh of relief right t
Frank was convinced, but he still worried about Helen's safety.As such, he set the rule that she must stay put at Nash's cottage, which she agreed to eagerly.It appeared that she was pleased that she was allowed to stay.As for Luna, Gina, and Cindy, Frank had Hux Darman's people escort them back to Riverton, in case there were still Talnamese prowling in Morhen.When all of that was done, Frank finally had the time to gather his confused thoughts.The first of his concerns was what Talc had told him.Somehow, he started to see a strange, vague connection between Draconia's leaders, Talnam, his father, his mother's death, and even the massacre of Mystic Sky Sect.And judging from his father and Fenton's reactions, Frank had the feeling that the mastermind was someone even his father—the Lord of the Southern Woods himself—would never challenge.In that sense, Frank now had a feeling that his old man was scapegoated for the massacre of Mystic Sky Sect.However, what on earth w
Frank saw no harm in making the trip.He did not have anything else on his plate at the moment. All he was doing was waiting for Ciaran Zobel to make contact, and she would not be doing so anytime soon.Most importantly… Frank could hear the quiet footsteps shuffling toward his room.Naturally, it was none other than Kat.And with Helen staying in the next room at the moment, what else could happen if Helen caught them?Pausing for a moment, Frank then leapt to his feet, teasing Abel, "You know you'll need to pay a consultation fee if you ask me to make a trip like that, Mr. Loggins.""No problem!" Abel assured him—he was more concerned that Frank would say no.Not only was Frank's abilities as a healer profound, but Abel had to bother him on two occasions already.It was almost common for the best in any business to develop eccentricities, and asking too many favors like Abel had would upset them soon enough. If they were short-tempered, they would be snapping at him already.
Apologizing to his patient, Abel hurried off to receive Frank.However, as Loggins Apothecary was a mansion built in traditional Draconian architecture, there was much ground to cover from his office to the entrance.Abel was so excited that he almost fell a few times, but Jim managed to catch him each time—he would be a laughing stock if he got hurt even before seeing Frank!"Gramps, is the man really as amazing as you say?" asked Jim, a twentyish youth who looked especially soft-spoken with his glasses and actually appeared older than Frank.Still, he was not particularly interested despite his grandfather's excitement. While he respected Frank at first since someone like Abel would go so far as to call him mentor, the man he saw earlier was undoubtedly younger than himself.That in turn left Jim doubtful—was his grandfather senile, mistaking some shaman off the street for an actual healer?Naturally, Jim could not be fully blamed for being presumptuous.When it came to trad
If Ava really took anything on the list, her condition would deteriorate.No one could tell what would happen at that point.Frank crumpled the prescription list right then and threw it into a nearby trash can. "No, you can't let her drink it. It'd just make your daughter's illness worse!""What?" Brenda was left stunned."Pfft—"Jim snickered nearby, and pointed at Ava, who was still crying herself hoarse in Brenda's arms, shaking his head and smiling. "Grandpa, that's your mentor? Have you gotten senile? The girl's clearly having a cold with her intermittent coughs and stiffened vessels. And see how she keeps touching her neck? Her throat is affected too—there's no question that it's a cold, and a serious one at that."He paused for a moment to laugh. "And that man is saying it's a heat condition? That's your mentor, Grandpa? Are you kidding me?""Huh…" Abel actually agreed with his grandson, as he could not see what made Frank diagnose the girl with a heat illness."Where di
Spreading his arms invitingly, Ferdy gloated at Frank. "Come on, tell us who you are! I'd like to see which famous university or mentor you learned from!"Frank inhaled sharply and spoke as everyone looked on. "So in your eyes, the number of patients, your salary, and your honors are what makes a good doctor?"Ferdy leveled Frank a look of disdain as if he was braindead. "What, am I wrong?""You're wrong," Frank said staunchly. "Doctors care more about saving lives and curing illness. And they do that by diagnosing them correctly, and then applying the simplest, most effective cure. You, on the other hand…" Frank grabbed the prescription list he threw in the trash can and flung it at Ferdy, snapping coldly, "You're no doctor. You're just yet another businessman! Even if the girl only needs a prescription for a cold like you said, all it takes is just basic cold medicine. But that wasn't what you prescribed—everything you listed here is the most expensive item, and I'm guessing you
Baldie dropped to his knees with a thud.Not only did Frank possess superior abilities, but he had a functioning moral compass too?He certainly deserved the power of the spiritron vein!Baldie then said, "I guess I should warn you that there are people who keep their hands clean. They would do anything to further their mysterious goals, so you should watch out."Frank chuckled. "Don't worry. I never hold back when I should kill—just listen to the reverend, and leave if there's nothing else, or I might change my mind."At those words, Baldie turned to run without lingering another second. Frank then turned toward the beggar. "Is this what you want?"The beggar nodded, clearly not bothered to hide anything. "To be honest, I've been considering an issue—do all the people who gain superpowers deserve it? The dragon inside you, for example… I can't say that it's anything good."Frank nodded, smiling—she was right about that, as he thought the same himself.After all, it had done
Frank smiled, shaking his head. "No, you misunderstand. What I mean is that she's right. The paranormal, your mystical artifact—it all works using the same principle: You're all just a little stronger than the average martial artist."However, when you're up against the real deal like me, you're relatively weak and easily dealt with."Baldie was left flabbergasted. "No, no, no… That's impossible! We're not the same as martial artists. None of you stand a chance against us!"Frank shook his head. "What you're saying is impossible. Your kind is simply more gifted, while martial artists are less, and that's the only reason you're stronger than most martial artists."Baldie dropped to his knees with a thud, shaking his head repeatedly as there was nothing more that could tear him up inside.He had always believed that even if he was not divine, he was still an envoy among the mortals like the priests and monks in fiction. Naturally, he was convinced that the day would come when he tra
After strutting for so many years, this was the first time anyone had seen through the depth of Frank's abilities in its entirety.That alone set Baldie apart from the rest, or at least the average martial artist, if not placing him scarily high over them.Still, Baldie warned, "Word of advice, kid—mind your own business. This isn't my choice, as there's a larger faction at work here, and you'd be in trouble if you rubbed them the wrong way.""Really?"His warning only pleased Frank further.After all, this meant that there were more powerful individuals like Baldie!In fact, Frank was just getting sick of being invincible, or he would not have been amusing himself by tormenting baddies.And with Baldie's words, he found himself a new hobby… He had plenty of time to spare anyway, so he should use it!"What's that stupid grin for?"Baldie smiled in wry amusement as he realized what Frank was thinking.To think he had the bad luck to run into someone like him!"Simple, really.
The beggar continued, "The way I see it, those ghosts are basically people with superpowers. They are driven by their own desires to hurt the living, while some have trouble controlling their powers after suddenly awakening to it."Her unexpected explanation actually enlightened Frank.Ghosts and hauntings notwithstanding, they were just people who could do what normal people could not—but they were fundamentally no different!Without hesitation, Frank rushed forward when a tall, well-rounded bald man appeared before he reached the graves. "Does no one ever listen?" He laughed coldly.Frank felt a powerful burst of energy from his words—he was clearly trying to make them obey, but they were not listening!"In that case, I'd just have to be tough on you!"At those words, a bead appeared on Baldie's palm, and it shot up to the sky!At the same time, an unusual energy converged and ultimately morphed into a monster.It was basically a pile of rotting flesh crawling with maggots.
Frank smiled, shaking his head. "Don't worry—I'm neither blind nor deaf. I knew what was happening from the start, and I'd be even more upset if I were in your shoes."The stall owner sighed in relief at Frank's words and turned to leave, not forgetting to curse the beggar under his breath.At the same time, the beggar straightened herself off the ground and sat cross-legged, whipping out a large meatloaf out of nowhere and chomping down on it.Frank sat beside her too, not bothered that he was wearing an expensive suit and certainly not concerned about getting it dirty."So, do I pass your test, reverend?"The beggar said nothing, instead handing Frank the meatloaf that her dirty hands had left darkened. "Hurry up. It's good."Frank took it, not minding it at all and finishing it in a few bites. "It's good, but I can make something better. How about it?"The beggar was suddenly on her feet, stretching her back and yawning. "Next time. I'm busy.""What is it? Can't I help?" Fra
After Mr. Creston handed Frank his phone, Frank nodded. "Good, at least you're cooperating. So you can do it yourself!"Mr. Creston was left befuddled—what the hell?! He was already being so cooperative, and the brat still wanted him dead?!"Friend, a gentleman is as good as his word," he said. "People would laugh at you.""Laugh at me?" Frank chuckled coolly. "Who would dare laugh at me? Also, I think it might happen if I don't wipe out people like you.""What…!"As Mr. Creston realized from Frank's calm tone that he was not letting him off the hook, he ran without hesitation.But to Frank, he was slower than a tortoise and disappeared in the blink of an eye.Frank then whipped out Mr. Creston's phone and called the number in it.A coquettish woman answered the call. "Hey, buddy!"Frank laughed at the way she greeted him as if they were old friends. "Reverend Quietus, I presume? Why don't we meet up, if you don't mind?""I certainly don't mind." The woman laughed too. "Who
Frank smiled and nodded. "Ladies like you are rare these days."Drunken Moon snapped her fingers, grinning. "That's exactly why we need to work hard to eliminate all the terrible women. There would be more good girls that way, don't you agree?"I'm not out to make men happy—just to set a standard for my fellow girls. Not everything is black and white, since anything can be relative. Even if men were all gone, bad women would still be bad women. Don't you agree?"Frank nodded in agreement.Thirty minutes later, the stout Mr. Creston sat up on the bed, clearly startled.Frank, who was watching from a bird's eye view, was caught by surprise—how did that man sense his presence?Still, he understood when he saw that Mr. Creston was holding a gleaming yellow talisman.Shock soon turned to curiosity as Frank thought most street geomancers these days were conmen, but somehow, a working talisman was there right in front of him. Hence, Frank made up his mind to find them right then."I
Frank was not only the smart guy out there in the whole right world. In other words, Mr. Creston had that in mind too!He was helping because he had felt insulted after Frank flexed on him earlier, and Dani was still useful to him—for now.When she handed over the company, however, he would not hesitate to kick her out! On top of that, he would make sure that she took the fall for all the dirty deeds they did together.In the end, she would not even be able to defend herself, while suffering lawsuits and public condemnation!Even so, she said, "I understand now. But it's never too late—I swear I'll change if you give me a chance!"Frank simply turned to Zein. "Actually, this man had the right idea—if he gave you a chance, who would give him one?"We're all adults here, so act your age. I'm sure you understand how a good opinion, once lost, is lost forever.""I get it!" Dani quickly said. "You don't have to keep me around, just—""No!" Frank snapped and crushed her left hand und
Dani was under the impression that even if the goons were not the best, they were on the cusp of reaching that level anyway.It turned out to be just her wishful thinking—when against the truly powerful, she was a lamb at the mercy of the butcher's knife, no matter how many people she brought! "To be honest, I'm curious as to what you're thinking." Frank snorted as he strode up to Dani. "Why dump a man who loves you dearly for some prick you don't even know? Being abused in that state and still thinking that you'd chosen wisely—do you actually have a brain?"Seeing her launching, he knew she was not listening, and he tore her ear off!The horrific pain jolted Dani to her senses, and she was left clutching what remained of her ear as she stared at the seemingly handsome man.She was under the impression that Frank would let her live even if she lost, but it was once again wishful thinking.He would kill her, and savagely at that!And she was certainly right, since Frank had ne