Gunter was no fool. He approved of the local Powells’ behavior. Once Kaze was dead, they could split the pie. Gunter would have to reward the family with the Lilyrose New City project. Hence, the Powells from Arcadia pressured Loid to give up on Kaze. They wanted one of them to become the next mayor. While those working for the government put the squeeze on Loid, other family members used their connections in the underworld to intimidate enterprises. “The Lilyrose New City project sure attracted a lot of greed. Gunter came long after Gareth. If we don’t get rid of them quick enough, we will face many more threats.” Kaze said aloofly, “This will be the one last thing I can do for Lilyrose before I step down from office.” Caleb and the others were moved with emotions. They understood what Kaze meant. Simply stopping the Glowmoss Powells would not be enough. They needed to rip out the entire system, eradicating the family from both overseas and local branches.The p
“But I know why. “There is no shred of human nature left in you. All you have is a thirst to kill. “You’re born to kill. War is your game. “I’ve been holding you back because I know there will be a bloodbath in Glowmoss if I don’t.“Now it’s time for you to unleash your potential and kill to your heart’s content. “Kill everyone in your path,” Gunter uttered flatly. He spoke as if he was talking about the weather.His tone, casual and detached, only heightened the eerie feeling of horror.Attending to Gunter’s needs, Luis felt his blood run cold. Despite his years of service to Gunter, he was mostly responsible for his employer’s daily necessities. He was exposed to Gunter’s scary side for the first time. “Alright.” Mosiah, standing by the wall, remained composed. He expressed his stance in the same emotionless manner. The conversation between the pair only drained Luis’ face of color. He was aware that blood would spill on the upcoming trip to Lilyrose. Gu
“Mr. Lee, Gunter Powell is from Glowmoss, he doesn’t care about the life and death of Arcadians. If he goes on a killing spree, the people of Lilyrose will suffer!” Starting with Bernard, all the family heads looked at Kaze with deep concern as they poured out their grievances. They worried the most when almost ten thousand thugs and gangsters from the underworld swarmed the city. The tsunami of gangsters could easily overrun the city’s order, turning everything upside down. As for the families and their businesses, they would be the biggest victims. Kaze frowned. He looked at Bernard and the others and asked, “He got to you guys as well? What did he say?” “He came to us to deliver Gunter Powell’s message. He said if the three of us don't want to get annihilated, then we must bring our families to the funeral tomorrow and kneel before Sonny Sonne!” Bernard explained, his face flushed with emotions. It was an unprecedented insult to the three families. Sonny died at the
“Mr. Lee, Gunter Powell’s men even said after the funeral tomorrow, they would remove James White’s cenotaph and make it the forever resting place for Sonny Sonne,” Bernard said timidly, his forehead covered in sweat. The atmosphere in the office became tense. The air became heavier, so heavy that it felt suffocating. The others dared not make a noise because they knew Kaze was angry. It was no secret that Kaze and James were best friends, close as brothers. He wiped out the top three families a while back just to avenge his friend. Yet Gunter announced that he would remove James’ cenotaph for his disciple. It was an act of war! Fortunately, the atmosphere in the office quickly returned to normal. Kaze calmly waved his hand and said, “You three can go back for now. Just do as I told you.” “Yes, sir!” Bernard and the others bowed and then walked out together. Kaze sat in silence for a moment and then pulled the left drawer of his desk to take out a burner phone.
Kaze knew the elder asked him to take over the position for the sake of the people and the country, not his personal desire. He did not want to disappoint the man, so he said, “I’ll be honest with you, Elder Eins. I talked to the Viper Queen and decided to take up the position of branch leader of the West State Viper’s Den. “After spending some time in Lilyrose, I think rather than putting me at the highest position of the Strategic Department, it’s better to have me in the field where I can do more, such as cleaning up the forces infiltrating Arcadia.” The moment Isaac heard Kaze, he asked in a serious tone, “Foreign forces are infiltrating Arcadia? What is going on there?” Kaze then briefed the man about Zion Mercenaries infiltrating Arcadia. “Those bastards! They just don’t know when to give up!” Isaac was furious after learning what happened. His age did not tone down his feisty temper at all, but he learned to control himself since he rose to the highest position wit
If the Guardians were the sturdiest shield in the country, then the Dragon’s Edge would be the sharpest sword. The members of the Dragon’s Edge were veterans who got baptized by blood and gunpowder on the battlefield, surviving countless ruthless battles. They were the sword Arcadia wielded against her enemy, a deterrent force to other countries. In terms of solo combatants, they were the strongest of them all. They were always sent to other countries to participate in national military competitions and won countless awards. The latest members who joined the Dragon’s Edge graduated from Kaze’s special training camp, similar to Albert Hiden. After the war, the graduates scattered and pursued their own careers. Some got into the Dragon’s Edge, and some joined the God of War Palace and became Kaze’s private security force—the Guards of War. Some with a better background, like Albert, got into a different path to further their careers. “Sure. It’s been a while since I saw
The woman’s voice was not fierce by any means but it felt pressuring. Her name was Morgana Powell, the governor of a certain state in the North State, sharing the same rank as Loid. Despite being a woman, she too was a regional commander in her own state, which was considered rare. Other than her outstanding capabilities, her family also played a big role in helping her advance her career. She was from the Powell family of the North State, which was one of the most powerful families there. The North State Powells were considered the strongest among all the other branches across Arcadia. Then, the middle-aged man beside Morgana said in a strong voice, “Loid, as colleagues, we do not want to force you against your will, but the mayor of Lilyrose has crossed the line. He practically enraged every Powell family branch in Arcadia, which led to the wrath of the foreign branch in Glowmoss. “When it comes to foreign affairs, it’s always serious. If Glowmoss’ side voices out their
Hannibal Nectar, one of the five senior ministers of the cabinet in Arcadia. The cabinet had control over all the internal affairs of the country, which made them the strongest institute. It was even stronger than the Strategic Department and the Ministry of Justice. The five senior ministers of the cabinet, or elders, were the five of the most powerful people in the country. “Elder Nectar, what… I see… I understand… Yes.” After the brief conversation, Loid's expression remained astonished for quite a while. Both Neegan and Morgana were curious about what the elder said on the phone. “Loid, was that Elder Nectar? What did he say?” Neegan asked out of curiosity. Then, he realized his question was inappropriate, so he quickly explained, “If it’s confidential, then just forget it.” Loid stared at the two of them for a while before he said, “Elder Nectar said Lilyrose will see a storm coming. The South River Governor’s Office is only responsible for managing the situation
“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