“After you.” Cole smiled pretentiously at Kaze. Without looking at Cole, Kaze stepped into the business-class carriage. The carriage was nearly empty, occupied only by a few middle-aged men and women in simple attire. Their reserved demeanor suggested a certain level of authority.With a brief observation, Kaze concluded that they were likely mid-to-high-ranking government officials.In the end, Kaze’s gaze fell on one of the middle-aged men. The latter looked at him with a composed smile. The middle-aged man was clearly the leader of the group. The individual who spoke earlier must be him. Meeting Kaze’s gaze, the middle-aged man rose to his feet and smiled. “My nephew always has his way at home. His parents spoiled him rotten. I’ve been telling him to quit with the attitude. “I want to apologize on his behalf for his rude behavior.” Kaze gave a nod as a response. The middle-aged man must rank high in Riverbank’s council. Nevertheless, even the former governor of
“I can’t agree more, Dr. Tyson. You’re a model of virtue and integrity.” Kent chuckled, seeing that Raph agreed with him. However, Raph shook his head. “Don’t be quick to call me that. I’m not done, Mayor Synder.” “Oh?” Furrowing his brows, Kent said, “Do tell, Dr. Tyson. I’m all ears.” Raph glanced at Kaze and said coldly, “The Riverbank Presleys requested that I examine a lady in Lilyrose. “The boy called me a scammer and got me locked up in the police station there. I suffered a few days behind bars. “If Mr. Libra hadn’t pulled some strings to get me out of there to provide your daughter with medical treatment, I would still be there. “I’ve seen my share of hardship, but that was on another level. “The worst part is my reputation. I was nearly ruined. “I can’t get over it just because you told me so.” Raph broke out of character. However, everyone could understand where he was coming from. Anyone in Raph’s shoes would lose it after going through the same tr
“What are you saying, young man?” Kent scowled. He sought help from many renowned doctors, but none of them could help with his daughter’s case. Raph, found by Cole, was one of his very last hopes. Kaze checked Kent out before uttering indifferently, “This so-called miracle doctor is a scammer. He can’t even tell that you’re dying.” The carriage fell into a deafening silence. Even Kent was shocked. He looked up at Kaze, his gaze carrying wariness. A suited group barged out from another door in the business-class carriage and surrounded Kent. Some of them blocked Kaze’s exit. They reached their hands to their hips. That was where their guns were holstered. These individuals had been stationed between carriages to ensure Kent’s safety. Once a threat against Kent’s safety had been identified, the group made themselves known. Sure enough, Kaze had been determined a threat to Kent. Anything Kaze said could be seen as a reason to kill him. The mayor of Riverbank C
“Say one more word, and I’ll knock all your teeth out!” dismissing Cole’s hostile eyes, Kaze stood there and said indifferently. “How dare you!” With Kaze getting violent, the bodyguards furiously pulled out their weapons. “That’s enough.” Kent stopped everything. “The young man doesn’t mean me any harm. Stand down.” The hired protection hesitated for a moment but kept their weapons away and withdrew behind Kent. “Uncle, the guy wants you dead. How can you let him go?” Lying on the ground, Cole gritted his teeth and said bitterly, “Even if he isn’t a killer, what if he’s here to gather intel about you?” “Shut up!” Kent glared at Cole, and the latter closed his mouth embarrassedly for the slip of the tongue. A killer? Kaze raised his brow in contemplation. It explained why Kent had armed bodyguards with him for his trip. Kent gave a nod. “I want to apologize for my nephew’s behavior. He used to have his way.” “You’re too kind, Mayor Synder. It isn’t you wit
Kaze read Kent’s reaction and smiled without a word. He did not see a point in getting his point across. Sometimes, it was hard to persuade others until the worst happened.Raph, though a scammer, had more credibility than Kaze because he was a supposedly renowned doctor.With Kent getting suspicious of Kaze, Raph was delighted. Heck, Kaze only took a page out of Raph’s playbook. Kaze was in over his head by challenging Raph in his area of expertise. “You said that my uncle is ill, Dr. Tyson. Did I hear it right? Please help him get better,” Cole approached Raph and said respectfully. Raph stroked his long white beard, turned to Kent, and said indifferently, “You must have injured yourself during a recent assault. “Your external injuries have been treated, but you still suffer underlying issues. “I’m sure you haven’t slept well lately. You often wake up in the middle of the night in pain, and your condition hasn’t improved after seeing many doctors. “What’s worse, y
Kent was sure that Raph was a miracle doctor. Not everyone had the resources to collect such valuable herbs.“Haha. I have a small collection. I was locked up behind bars, so I told my assistant to bring my herbs from Ridgesouth to secure my release. Mr. Libra came to my rescue anyway. “These herbs would be perfect to treat you, Mayor Synder.” Raph smiled. The valuable herbs seemed to mean nothing to him. He took out a century-old fleeceflower and gave it to Cole. “Soak it in warm water before consumption. Mayor Synder should enjoy a good night’s sleep after taking the medicine. “It will take time for Mayor Synder to get better.” “Thank you, Dr. Tyson.” Cole asked the train conductor for a glass of hot water and soaked pieces of fleeceflower in the water.The water turned thick, and a refreshing aroma filled the air. It took only a whiff for everybody to feel invigorated. “Drink this, Uncle.” Cole ingratiatingly handed the glass to Kent. The latter grabbed the glass
Raph stroked his beard and said with a smile, “I told you that you’d be fine.” Cole smirked at Kaze. “See that, Lee? My uncle is alive and kicking. “Who are you to call Dr. Tyson a scammer? I think you’re the scammer! “Hmph! I ought to call the cops on you for pulling a fast one on the mayor of Riverbank—” “Cole…” Kent waved his arm to interrupt his nephew and turned to Kaze. He frowned and lectured, “Kaze, youthful enthusiasm is good, but it’s important not to lose your way. Making the wrong choices can have lifelong consequences.“Just apologize to Dr. Tyson. Hopefully, he will forgive you and move past this. “You haven’t done anything major, so I won’t hold your words against you.” Kent was fond of Kaze. Though he was not pleased with Kaze’s scaremongering, he did not plan to take things far. “You’re a good man, Mayor Synder. You still have a soft spot for the likes of him. “Fine. In this case, I won’t pursue the matter further.” Raph looked at Kaze arrogantl
Cole pushed Raph to the side and looked at Kaze with bloodshot eyes. “It was you! You did something to hurt my uncle, right?” Kaze narrowed his eyes and sneered. “This is the doctor you sought to help your uncle. What will your family do to you if he turns out to be a scammer? “If I were you, I would not be so quick to dump the responsibility on someone else. Instead, I would beg the one who could save him.” Cole looked Kaze in the eye. “Can you really help my uncle?” “I will save him if you kneel to me.” Kaze said indifferently and turned to Kent. “Better be quick. He doesn’t have much longer. One more minute, and he won’t be with us anymore.” “Thud!” Without another word, Cole fell to his knees and pleaded, “Please save my uncle!” Kaze smiled and looked at Raph. “You should kneel too.” “Thud!” Raph paused for a moment before getting on his knees. He believed Kaze was right. Either way, Kent should not die. Otherwise, the responsibility would be put on him.“A m
“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