May looked at Kaze with scorn. “The Viper Queen, Autumn Fall, came to deal with the problem of her men colluding with people from Ryokan while Elder Nectar spoke up because the Ridgesouth Quints ignored his words. “What does all that have to do with you?” Autumn did not attend the celebration and took Sirius away. As May said, Autumn came to Lilyrose to flush out the bad apples of the organization, but that was only the simple reason. The real reason Autumn had come was to give Kaze an explanation about the Ettingers. What no one knew was that Elder Nectar had intervened, forcing the Quints into submission and teaming up with the Lyfes to clean up the mess—all because of one phone call from Kaze. Kaze kept this truth from May, knowing she would not believe it anyway. May, interpreting Kaze's silence as a sign of compromise, scoffed at him. She then turned to her daughter with a cold expression and said, "Snow, you’re a Frost. You've enjoyed the privileges of our family, a
“Snow, I told you before the most worthless thing of a woman is her tears. I want this to be the last time you display your weakness. “When you go back, you have to bear the demeanor of a well-mannered woman prepared for marriage. You have to satisfy the Krads one way or another. “If you are still this weak, I can only say your life in the Krads will be miserable and no one will pity you just because you cry. They will only take advantage of you.” May’s words sounded cold and emotionless. Her daughter was walking the same path as her own. Instead of being a loving and compassionate mother, it would be more effective to treat Snow with strictness, ensuring she understood the consequences at stake and gearing her up for the worst. Snow looked at her mother blankly. Then she slowly regained her senses. However, Kaze saw something fade away in her crystal-clear eyes. He could not bear watching her heart die. He stepped up and asked, “Mrs. Frost, do you think it’s appropriat
Selling off her daughter sounded unpleasant to May’s ears, but she did not have the words to refute. The marriage arrangement between the Frosts and the Krads was mostly a trade. May did not want to delve into the topic. “You want to help?” She scrutinized Kaze and scoffed. “Do you know what trouble the Frosts are facing? You want to know? Fine, I’ll tell you! “The Frosts are being targeted by an assassin group called the Hades’ Hand. If we don’t arrange the marriage with the Krads, our family will be in danger. “The head of the assassins, Midas King, has already given the word that if we don’t do it, they will massacre us! “By massacre, I mean every single member of our family—young and old, men and women—all will perish! “You say I am selling my daughter but have you ever considered that I am saving her? As long as she marries Aaron Krad, even if our family got wiped out in the end, Snow will still be safe under the Krad family’s roof.”’ May was emotional when she e
“It’s not that we are afraid to do anything. Your grandfather requested Dallas Moneylender to issue a bounty and three famous assassin groups, local and foreign, took the job. Their task is to assassinate Midas King. “However, they were wiped out. Not just the assassins, but their entire organization. Nothing was left and their heads were sent to the Frosts again. “Now, you know how terrifying Hades’ Hand is. Snow, you really think as your mother, I would push you into the abyss with my own hands?” May looked at Snow emotionally. Her calm was lost along with the explanation. Hades’ Hand must have scarred her terribly. It was also the reason why she came to Lilyrose in a hurry and wanted to bring Snow back. Snow’s face turned pale. She asked heavily, “Mom, if they want to come after us, why haven’t they done so?” The moment the question escaped her mouth, Snow felt that her question sounded redundant. Hades’ Hand had its own objective. If they simply killed the entire
The grudge and anger Snow had for her mother vanished. She wiped her tears and then looked at Kaze. With a begging tone, she said, “Chairman Lee, I have never asked you for anything but can you help us to deal with Hades’ Hand? I don’t want your dividend. If you can help my family, I will work for you for life.” Work for Kaze for life? Given Snow’s capabilities and potential, it was a heavy promise. However, the words sounded ridiculous to May. “Snow, are you out of your mind? You want him to help us deal with Hades’ Hand?” May looked at her daughter with disbelief. She believed Snow was not thinking clearly due to the recent fever and she got nervous asking the wrong person for help. Kaze said, “Mrs. Frost, your daughter knows me more than you do. Hades’ Hand is just a small group, I can deal with them.” “You? You and what army?” May looked at Kaze with disdain and scorn. She scoffed. “Kaze Lee, I know you are quite capable. I’ve sent people to do some research on
Kaze was not bluffing. The five strongest nations’ intelligence agencies used to invest heavily, hiring different assassins from different countries to kill him. Some of them were the assassins on the Dark Vault’s leaderboard. Since they had a death wish, Kaze granted their wish and killed all who came his way. However, due to certain reasons, some of them did not die and were released. Therefore, it was not exaggerating that they owed Kaze their lives. One phone call and Kaze could summon them before him. “You?” May did not believe a word Kaze said. “Kaze Lee, I have to admit that you are quite decent since you started off with nothing, you are considered a prodigy. “But this world isn’t as simple as you think it is. You are bragging, don’t you know that? The assassins on the leaderboard are elusive. Not to mention that people can’t even see them in person. If you can even spell out one of their names, then I will look at you differently. “Unfortunately, you don’
May looked down on Kaze and purposely gave him a hard time. She strongly believed Kaze got the name Venom Kanon from somewhere and used it to show off. Kaze shook his head and said regrettably, “It seems like Mrs. Frost is determined to sell your daughter away.” “What do you mean, Kaze Lee?!” May was furious, and the anger was written on her face. She really wanted to tear Kaze’s mouth off of his face. “Actually, you can trust me for once. I mean, what do you have to lose? Yet you chose to ignore me, so other than your mind’s made up to sell Snow away, I can’t think of a reason why you wouldn’t take the bet,” Kaze said. “You!” May knew Kaze was trying to provoke her, and it was effective. “Fine. I’ll take a bet on you.” May nodded and continued coldly, “But you have to prove yourself first, I don’t want to waste time on you.” Kaze nodded. “Sure, how do you want to do this?” “It’s simple.” May’s lips curled into a grin. She looked at the elderly at the door and s
Right before the palm strike could land, Kaze moved. He tilted his head to the side and easily dodged the palm strike under Bass’ surprised gaze. At the same time, he took a step forward and countered with a palm strike of his own. “You’re quick, kid. I wonder how strong you are.” Bass grinned and switched his palm upward. Baam! The two palms clashed, causing a burst in the air. “You!” Suddenly, Bass’ expression ashened. An intense pain struck his palm as fierce energy penetrated his body, wreaking havoc in every inch of his muscles and bones. His face flushed. His arm then weakened and turned soft. Kaze’s palm strike continued forward and hit Bass’ face. Slap! The loud slap sent Bass flying and spinning in the air, crashing through Snow’s door and falling on the corridor outside. A red handprint appeared on Bass’ face. He covered his face in anger and embarrassment as he looked at Kaze in shock. What happened? He was already surprised that Kaze dodged
The incident did not sit well with Kaze, so he left them out to dry. After much searching, Kaze came across a café. Kaze bought a cup of coffee. Cupping the drink between his hands, Kaze sipped slowly. Many passengers swarmed the arrival hall in the airport, dragging along their luggage or pulling out their phones to get a pick-up. They all had a destination, a place they had to be in a rush. Intrigued, Kaze followed the crowd out. Kaze turned on his phone, and a text message from his airport pick-up came in. He glanced at the message, curious about who the person was. Nevertheless, Kaze trusted that the Westeros Branch members would not set him up out in the open. At most, they would pull little stunts to mess with him. Kaze was not the type to sweat the small stuff. However, he would not tolerate any extreme behavior. He had been keeping a low profile back in Butterworth, keeping the limelight off him. The purpose was to handle Jet without unnecessary complicati
“Alright. I will work hard to be the manager of the Northborn Group. You need to show me the ropes and teach me about management.” Leah looked at Katie with a smile. She believed Katie had not lost her mind. Katie simply had her memory mixed up. “You need to keep your people in line and reward those who deserve it. It all boils down to profits. “You need to work toward managing your people and working with rivals. You’ve got to keep the balance, and nobody loses out. “You need to build your own system when it comes to working together. Don’t be led around by the nose.” Hearing that Leah would start work soon, Katie imparted her knowledge. “Don’t worry too much about things. Joey is nice. You can go to her for help,” Katie said earnestly. Katie seemed to be herself at the moment. Leah wondered if Katie faked her insanity to escape the punishment. “What have become of you? Did they do something to you? “Did you really betray Kaze?” Leah whispered while leaning close
Leah kept working on her knowledge until late into the night. Just as she was about to hit the sack, she got a message from Snow. Learning was a hard enough process. The text message came out of the blue. Leah did not expect Snow to contact her at night. The message was strange as well. Leah could not understand why Snow would give her the address of a nursing home. Leah was determined to turn things around. She strived to become stronger instead of being a burden. She was grateful for Kaze’s help. At least, she had a job now. However, her gratitude was not extended to Snow. She believed Snow had gone too far. Snow left her feeling powerless. Leah did not think much about the message. She assumed that the text was not meant for her. Since Leah did not respond to the text, Snow put the matter aside and went to bed. Leah called Snow the next day. “Why did you send me an address?” Leah went straight to the question. She had been equipping herself with knowledge before
Snow could not believe her eyes. Katie suddenly went quiet and behaved like the CEO she was.However, Katie did not look like she was right in the mind earlier. “What’s going on? She seems to have gone insane.” Snow turned to the warden, still digesting the change. Katie had lost touch with reality before the Viper’s Den did anything to her. “How did this happen? She has been taking her meals. Just days earlier, she nagged about getting out because she was worried about her daughter. As usual, we didn’t respond to her requests.” The warden found the whole thing peculiar too. Just a few days ago, Katie demanded her release. Now, she kept to herself and abided by the rules. Out of the blue, Katie went nuts. Things had gotten complicated. Snow wanted to keep Katie behind bars due to her betrayal. However, Kaze decided against pursuing the matter for Leah’s sake. Katie would be let go soon enough, but she would lose her job at the Northborn Group. Katie’s presence woul
It was quiet in the office. Snow sorted the last bit of paperwork before picking her head up in exhaustion. Her initial plan was to delegate the tasks. However, Katie was controlling. Previously, she personally oversaw many matters. Snow could not distribute the responsibilities because the employees had no experience in handling them. They came to Snow for every tiny, little thing, and Snow really got her hands full. Despite her frustration, Snow could let things go as Katie was locked up. “I should pay her visit.” Snow decided to see Katie. Some things should not be left unsaid. Leah would be working for the Northborn Group soon, and the mother and daughter should meet to tie up loose ends. The truth would put Leah to shame, and her guilt would stop her from ever betraying Kaze. After a quick bite, Snow drove to the prison. Katie was furious when she was imprisoned. She was one step away from victory. She was so close to leaving Butterworth to head to Westeros
“Why do you want to sell the properties? Do you need money? Don’t you have some saved?” Joey had a good understanding of Leah’s finances since she ran all the paperwork. “My mother is being held, and I need money to ask favors. Maybe I can get her out.” Leah was not thinking much. Money could always be replaced, but not her mother’s freedom. “Don’t be silly. This is not the way to go.” Though Joey did not have the details, she observed that things were not as simple as Leah thought. Kaze was safe now, but the fact that Katie had betrayed Kaze and revealed his whereabouts remained unchanged. Katie had broken the Viper’s Den’s rules. Even if she got out, she would be a wreck. With Snow running the Northborn Group, Katie would remain a failure. Either way, Katie would not get away with it. Even if Leah offered all her assets, Katie’s situation would not change. It was a waste of money and resources for Leah to save her mother. Nothing would come out of it. “But I
“Give me an answer. Are you taking the job? If you are, you should sort out your affairs. Don’t bring your personal feelings to work.” Snow was not the type to go easy on fragile women. If Leah did not have what it took, she could be forced to leave the company. Nevertheless, Katie had left a lot of assets to Leah. Even without work, Leah could very well survive. The girl would have trouble keeping the wealth, seeing that she was without power or connections. If Leah had a job, she would have the resources to hold onto her assets. Leah had seen the best and worst of mankind. She was once the center of attention, and now, everybody avoided her. It dawned on Leah that it was over for Katie. If Leah could not even keep a job, she would lose everything. “I didn’t know things would happen.” Leah never thought that Katie was capable of stabbing Kaze and her in the back. The thought of betrayal put Leah in distress. Kaze was a great guy who helped Leah a lot. Feeling ete
Leah got dressed and was ready to leave, but she did not know who to turn to. She thought about going to her wealthy friends to see if they could uncover anything through their connections. However, Leah could not get a hold of them. It dawned on Leah that loyalty would fade when power was gone. Even though Katie was just missing, intel spread around Butterworth very quickly. These people must have found out and have chosen to stay away. Leah had always been treated like royalty. Nobody had ever avoided her like the plague. Nevertheless, she had not been in touch with these friends since her injury. Now, in her attempt to contact them, she could not reach them. “Why is this happening? My good friends have gone MIA, and I’m getting silence from those who have been trying to connect.” Sitting on the couch, Leah looked out the window in despair. She tried to seek help with her mother’s search, but her efforts were futile. She could do nothing for her mother. All al
“I have to work hard starting today. But before that, I have to get some sleep.” Snow remembered that Kaze punished her to get some sleep. He said her face looked tired and pale, signs of how hard she had been working. It felt great being cared for. It was because of his kindness, Snow fell for Kaze uncontrollably. Yet she understood not all things were meant to be. After she returned home, she went to sleep immediately without talking to anyone. She only woke up in the afternoon after a comfortable and easy sleep. Next, she would have to work on many things, first being taking over Northborn Group. Katie’s disappearance had the company shaken, but it gave many others a chance. They tried to calm their subordinates down and contact the higher-ups for more information, hoping that they could replace Katie as the new CEO. Little did they know, their preparations would eventually fall short. Snow and her secretary arrived at Northborn Group in the afternoon, and her a