At Nobel Hotel, Kaze and Darcy were welcomed by the hotel employees. All the employees had a strong impression of Kaze after he made Harrison, the consul of Paladia, kneel in front of the hotel. “Hi, can you please inform the representatives of Four Ocean Commerce Guild that the chairwoman of Quartet Group, Darcy Quint, requests a meeting with them?” Darcy politely said to the reception manager. The Four Ocean Commerce Guild sent a group of representatives over and booked an entire floor in the hotel for themselves. “Please wait, Ms. Quint. I’ll inform the representatives right away.” The reception manager nodded at Darcy and Kaze before he went off. At the same time in a meeting room on the ninth floor, the representatives from the guild gathered but the atmosphere was unusually quiet. “What?! Leigh was arrested and detained?!” A man with a scrawny face shouted in disbelief. His name was Max Kang, one of the representatives sent by the guild to inspect Darcy’s compan
Samson was the first person that Max thought of. Although Max had no respect for anyone in Lilyrose, including the police chief, he could not just get any John Doe to settle the problem with the local government and the police department. He wanted to contact the mayor directly but since the mayoral position had just gone through a transition, Max did not know who the new mayor would be, so he did not know who to call. Soon, the call to Samson got through. “Max, I just learned what happened. I know the police chief, Don Braders. People call him the Iron Justice, strict and adheres to the law. It’s going to be tricky trying to free Leigh from his apprehension…” Samson made it sound difficult on the other side of the phone. Max wiped his sweat off as he flattered. “Samson, with your methods, even the strongest iron can be bent at will. Please, I need your help. As long as I can get Leigh back, you will not only get my gratitude but also the Glitter family’s.” Samson feigned
Max’s eyes shone when he saw Darcy get in his way. The lustful greed in his eyes flashed but he was able to conceal it. He frowned and said, “Ms. Quint? I thought I told you to wait.” Darcy had been waiting for a while now and seeing the impatience on Max’s face irritated her. Even though she was the one being inspected by the guild, they should have mutual respect for each other. Max made it sound like she was begging him. Darcy politely said, “Mr. Kang, we had a lunch appointment and now it’s lunchtime. Why don’t…” Max cut her off before she could finish. He grunted impatiently and said, “I don’t have the time now. Just wait here.” He wanted to bring Leigh out of detention, not waste time on lunch with Darcy. He then led his men out of the hotel, leaving Darcy behind with a sour look. Kaze coldly stared at Max and his men leaving the hotel. He said to Darcy, “Darcy, since he doesn’t want to meet us, let’s go.” “We’ll wait for a little longer…” Darcy said with a
“Leigh, are you alright?” Max went up to Leigh immediately and escorted him out of the police station. “Do I look alright to you?” Leigh lit a cigarette and took a puff before he looked at the signage above the police station. His gaze turned grim as he said coldly, “There were a few of them who took charge. I want everything about them. No Tom, Dick, and Harry can walk away alive after laying a finger on me. I’ll make the peasants know how severe the consequences are!” Leigh came from a wealthy and powerful family and he had always been the bully, not the other way around. Even in Sunrise City, less than a handful of people would dare to challenge him. Yet in Lilyrose, aside from losing the argument to a useless trash, he even got beaten up by the people inside the southern branch station. If the news got to Sunrise City, he would lose face. “Don’t worry, Leigh. I’ll take care of it as if it’s my matter. Even without your orders, I’ll find out who did it and give you
“And also Cosmo Lee from the Lee family. Kaze Lee broke his legs as well. “That man is crazy, an idiot. To him, all of you wealthy young masters are nothing but a punching bag,” Samson said heavily. Whether he was intentionally fanning the flames or just simply warning Leigh, only he himself knew the answer. Samson’s words successfully piqued Leigh’s interest. He felt challenged. “Cosmo Lee? He’s just a sissy,” Leigh said with a contemptuous grunt. He added, “This time, I’ll show that bastard what it means to be a young master from a real wealthy, powerful family. I can crush him easier than crushing an ant!” With his family’s support, Leigh had the confidence. Samson continued, “Leigh, I don’t think you should take this lightly. Kaze Lee is quite close with the ex-mayor, Johnson Brooks. Although Johnson is no longer around, his legacy remains. Don Braders, the chief of police, used to be his right-hand man.” “I see. His support is Johnson Brooks. I see it now!” Leigh
Max wished he could reverse time and slapped himself for spewing the wrong words in front of Zel. He forgot that to a wealthy family like the Glitters, reputation and dignity were more important than money. Moreover, Kaze was not just any John Doe, he was the abandoned son of the Sunrise Lees. The Glitter and Lee families were competitors in many different fields. No matter how ridiculous Leigh’s demands were, the Glitters had to answer them. With that, Max knew what he should do next. He asked his men, “Are Darcy Quint and her husband still at the hotel?” “Yes, sir. We just got confirmation from our men back there. They are still at the hotel.” Max nodded and said, “Let’s go back.” Back at Nobel Hotel, Darcy and Kaze continued waiting for Max. Darcy’s stomach was growling already. Suddenly, Max and his men came back and strode into the hotel lobby. Darcy went up to him and asked, “Mr. Kang, you’re back. Are you free now?” She and Kaze had no idea that Max wen
“This time, the guild will not set any terms and conditions for you and all you need to do is promote the guild. Ms. Quint, it’s a very small favor in exchange for the strict terms and conditions…” Max tried to provoke Darcy but he was gloating at her deep down. He made it sound like Darcy was already part of the guild but it was not true. Once Darcy fell for his trap, her nudes would be all over the city. Then, he would have a reason to reject her application because it would tarnish the guild’s image. It was a vicious idea. Darcy would walk straight into the trap and suffer in the end. She had no idea the wicked idea was brewing in Max’s mind because she was considering his offer. It made sense. Joining the guild was beneficial to every business because the members had a brand new platform to find potential businesses and expand further. Four Ocean Commerce Guild had connections and resources that were available for all its members. It was also the reason why it
Upon hearing Darcy’s words, the anger on Max’s face faded. “Very well. Ms. Quint, you are quite decisive. The shoot might start today. You two can go home for now. I’ll inform you about the location and time later,” Max said to Darcy and Darcy only. He did not even look at Kaze. “Thank you.” Darcy smiled and nodded. She nudged Kaze, signaling him to leave. Kaze stared at Max for a moment before he left with Darcy. Max watched Darcy and Kaze disappear from his sight. He then said to the woman who mocked Kaze earlier, “Loren, get someone to set up a set and contact the production crew. “When you inform Darcy Quint later, tell her not to bring her husband. The production crew will take care of her.” Max did not take Kaze seriously but he did not want the idiot to cause trouble. He knew from his sources that Kaze was physically strong. “No problem, Mr. Kang. If that idiot appears, I’ll twist his dick. He’s so ordinary but he’s blindly confident. What’s his problem…” L
“How dare those men hijack the plane and take Kaze. They must be punished…” Despite her grumbles, Snow grew anxious. “Given Mr. Lee’s capabilities, he won’t be hurt.” The agents around her tried to comfort her. They believed she was being too nervous. “I know, but we as subordinates have failed him by allowing this to happen. We have to do our best to make up for the mistake, and not rely on Mr. Lee to get out because he can.” Snow drowned in self-blame and regretted not being able to help. It was her negligence that allowed the hijacking to happen. “But there’s nothing you can do now. It’s late. Even the hijackers need to rest. They won’t do anything yet.” “It’s because the hijackers need to rest that we have to hurry and beat them to it. That’s the only way to solve this matter!” “But we’ve searched high and low and didn’t find anything. No one knows where they have gone. Even if they transported the passengers via buses, we didn’t see any tracks.” The agents discu
Kaze breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly went over to Miguel and pressed his hands with the gun down so that it would not misfire. “Good job.” “Thanks.” Miguel curled his lips into a nervous smile. He frequently trained in the gym and mixed martial arts but had never encountered any real-life incident before, thus being inexperienced. Fortunately, his mentality was stronger than the others and allowed him to act accordingly. “I’ll be taking the gun. This is self-defense, you won’t be charged and you won’t need to take responsibility,” Kaze said. Miguel’s pale face looked relieved. “What should we do now? Are there more of them?” Miguel dared not let go of the gun, worried there might be more enemies. “I’ve counted the numbers and this guy here should be the last one.” He then took the gun from Miguel’s hands. “Really? Gosh! That was crazy! I was so terrified!” Miguel finally loosened up and let his instinct take over. His heart was pounding so fast that it
Manson came over and saw the mercenaries lying in their own puddle of blood. The gore shocked him and made him sick. He tried his best to hold back the urge to throw up as it would attract attention. “Don’t look if you can’t take it! Don’t make things worse!” “Yeah! Professor! Grow a pair of balls!” “I have never seen dead bodies like this before!” he explained with a flush of embarrassment on his face. “Can we go out now and run away?” The hostages were eager to leave as things had settled down outside. They thought the danger was over. A dead mercenary was inside the container with them and they were still horrified. Once the others found out about this, the hostages would be shot to death. “If you want to die, be my guest. The moment you step out, you’ll be shot!” Callahan said as he looked at the others scornfully. One of the hostages had already put his hand on the handle of the door and was ready to dash out, but he quickly pulled his hand back after listening
“Tsk. Hold on.” Vexed, the man clicked his tongue and then waved at his colleague. “Come here. Someone fainted. Help me get him out.” The man wanted to take the professor out of the container. Manson’s heart pounded as he listened to the man. He was afraid he might be exposed, but there was no turning back now—he had to play along. Kaze stood behind the door, calming his breath down to lower his presence. “Get back. Stay away from the door. If anyone gets close, don’t blame me for being rough,” said the man as he unlocked the container. He opened the door and saw a number of hostages still sleeping. He then looked at the professor on the floor. He went closer to nudge him but did not get a response. It seemed like the professor needed medical attention. “Come on. Help me get him out.” The other man outside the container was on edge, looking as if he would pull the trigger at the slightest movement. “Why don’t we do it?” Callahan and Miguel volunteered. “You two
“It’s freaking troublesome.” “Boss, don’t worry about it. We’ll get an update tomorrow.” “Yeah. It’s late. Get some rest.” Tiguan’s men told him to get some rest and not worry so much. A few of them were already snoring on the chair. Tiguan sighed and killed the cigarette. He then closed his eyes to get some rest, too. The container that Kaze was in fell into silence once more. No one dared to make any noise but they all looked at Kaze, hoping to find out about his plans. Kaze’s eyes remained fixed on the window and showed no intention of revealing his thoughts. Miguel and Callahan were annoyed by the other hostages. “If you people want to get out of here alive, you better cooperate or come up with your own idea. No one is responsible for saving you.”“Yeah. I don’t want you guys to turn on us after we do all the heavy lifting. It will cost us our lives and you people won’t even be grateful.” Miguel’s tone was sarcastic because he disliked how the others looked at t
Kaze read the hostages’ minds and refused to be used. He wanted to leave but not under such circumstances. “That’s not true. We just don’t have the skills for this kind of situation. You guys are stronger, of course, you should be in the front,” said the man in glasses and a suit. A hint of sharpness gleamed in his eyes. Miguel knew what the man was planning, either. “That’s some plan you have there. You are just trying to use us to escape this place and no matter what happens, you’ll win.” “That’s not it! I just want everyone to stand together and get out of this place. I’ve never thought of using anyone!” the man argued, trying to look innocent. Even a monkey knew what he was planning, yet no one dared to speak up because they would benefit from it too. “Why don’t you guys think of something? If you need our help, we’ll help,” said another middle-aged gentleman who looked more just and fair, as if he could lead the group. “Then what is your plan?” Kaze suddenly wante
The hostages were locked up in the containers. Some of them were elites in their own field while some were ordinary people with average income, yet all of them got into trouble when they boarded the plane. Most of them could not accept their fate. Yet they dared not defy or resist the mercenaries. When things started to calm down, they broke down in tears, weeping in silence as resentment consumed them. Kaze sat down at a clean corner that allowed him to look outside the window. The window was dirty but at least he could see outside. The space inside the container was filled with people sitting closely, offering comfort to one another. They were aware they were just temporarily safe in this container. No one knew what the mercenaries would do to them at the next moment. “My parents must be worried. I said I would call them when I land but now I can’t even get in touch,” Barney muttered as he sat beside Kaze. He too looked outside the window, his feelings mixed. He watc
Kaze thought of what he had overheard in the toilet. If he told the hostages about that, they would probably panic. “It’s nothing. They are just going to separate us into different rooms or containers. They said the buses would be disposed of,” he said. He did not want to reveal too much because it would cause panic. Once the hostages knew their lives were on the line, things might spiral out of control. The mercenaries could kill a few of them to make an example, and none of the hostages would dare to cause problems anymore. Kaze kept it a secret because he wanted to protect the people. “That’s it?” “Is there anything else? How many men are there? What is their plan? Who are they looking for?” “We want to know because we want to survive. This isn't our problem—we just got caught up in it.” The hostages looked at Kaze, their eyes filled with worry. They felt aggrieved because they should not be caught in such a huge problem. “I don’t know either.” No matter how m
“There’s a room there. Get in.” The mercenary pointed his gun at the mother and son, which led them to look at Kaze nervously, seemingly asking for help. “What do you want?” The mother was nervous. She clutched her son’s hand tightly, nearly making him cry, but she reacted quickly enough to cover her son’s mouth to prevent him from doing so. “All women must go into that room. You go in now,” the mercenary explained. He did not want the woman to get the wrong idea. “You people won’t hurt me, right?” the mother asked, worried that she might be ravaged. “We are not into MILF,” said the other mercenary who was escorting Kaze, indirectly assuring the mother. Kaze shot a glance at the mother and nodded at her. “They told us they were going to separate us, so there’s nothing to worry about,” he said, worried that the mother and son would not cooperate. The mother then carried her son and followed the other mercenary into the room. It was called a room but it was actually ju