“Stop!” Everybody turned their heads to the source of the voice. “Uh… Mr. Stormborn!” Patrick and the others were surprised that South would take Kaze’s side. Neely grimaced. South’s presence gave her a bad feeling because he was of equal standing with her boss, Casius. In some ways, South was a league higher than Casius. More than one of the Riverbank Seven, South was also one of the Steelclaw Guild leaders. “Hold for now, Granny Snake. This is Mr. Stormborn.” Though baffled by South’s behavior, Neely stopped Granny Snake anyway. “I don’t care who he is. No one can stop me from killing the boy.” Granny Snake had no intentions of stopping. She did not know South. Even if she did, she would not care anyway. She did not carry out Casius’ bidding out of loyalty. Granny Snake was old and had many enemies. Casius happened to offer a safe haven. Granny Snake swung her staff at Kaze. “I told you to stop, old hag!” South, on top of the steps, yelled.“Because of your
South cut Neely off and said indifferently, “Granny Snake should know her place as a lapdog. “She had some nerve baring her teeth at me. I can’t believe she gave me a death threat.“Who did she think she was?“Casius?” South’s barrage of questions weighed over Neely. South saw Neely no more than a lapdog as well. The questions were not just directed at Granny Snake. South had a problem with Neely too. Neely bent over and said submissively, “You got the wrong idea, Mr. Stormborn. Granny Snake wasn’t disrespecting you. She simply didn’t know who you were. “Had she known, she wouldn’t have defied you.” “Oh…” South took strides ahead and kicked Granny Snake’s body. He sneered. “She’s dead now, so you could say whatever you want. Tell me. What brings you here?” His attitude toward Granny Snake left Neely feeling despair. Putting her personal feelings aside, Neely said humbly, “Mr. Weather heard of Kaze’s disrespect toward you at Buckridge Lounge. He sent me here right
Instead of attacking Kaze like before, South started defending him. South even beat Neely to a pulp and threatened to kill Casius. It was such an unexpected twist that left everyone baffled.Surely, Kaze had some kind of hold on South. It was no wonder Kaze descended the stairs unharmed. Patrick’s version of the truth was a lie. He was not the reason why Kaze got off scot-free. In fact, Patrick’s group was saved from South’s wrath thanks to Kaze. With that in mind, everybody changed their perception of Kaze. There was something very mysterious and profound about him now. The young Otters, represented by Patrick and Maxine, looked at Kaze with a mix of emotions. The very man they looked down upon was full of surprises. “Get your ass here!”Ignoring the surrounding people, South yelled at Neely, who was sent sprawling across the floor. Neely sat herself up in a struggle and crawled her way to South, unable to keep her head straight throughout. She said in despair,
“You weren’t wrong.”Kaze shook his head. “You looked down on me the moment you met me at the Otters’. With Maxine egging you on, you won’t stop picking a fight with me. “Even though I make you eat your words each time, you still have no respect for me. You think of ways under the sun to pull me down. “Ultimately, you only have disdain for a hick and wife moocher like me.“You didn’t try to hide your intentions to end me here at Buckridge Lounge.“You’re Casius’ cousin. You are part of the prestigious Weathers. It’s only right that you frown on me. It makes sense that you want to kill me for humiliating you and having no regard for your authority.“You could do no wrong.”Kaze’s flat statement washed the color off Patrick’s face. “K-Kaze, I was wrong. Maxine was the idiot who pushed me to get on your nerves.” Patrick pointed at Maxine and shouted, “Her jealousy of your wife was why she urged me into pushing your buttons. There’s really no beef between us.“I wouldn’t have
“Sure… I mean, no. Um…” Patrick was going to say yes until he realized what he was giving his word to. With his face turning pale, he looked at Kaze and pleaded. “I can’t, Kaze. These shares belong to my cousin. He’ll kill me if I give the shares away.” The others looked at Kaze in surprise. If Casius were to find out, it would be the end of Patrick. Before Patrick could make his case, Kaze interrupted him. “I won’t kill you because of the Otters, but you need to be taking my orders. “Do you want me to kill you now, or later at the hands of Casius?“Take your pick.”Kaze patted Patrick’s shoulder and glanced at South before uttering in a flat tone, “Give him two hours. If the shares don’t reach Sky Ocean Corporation by then, you can kill him. “We’re even once that is done.” “Alright.” South nodded without a second thought. Kaze spared South’s life, and in return, South killed Granny Snake and Neely. He would be robbing Casius of his company shares too. South believe
Casius said, “I have given South a call and sent Neely and Granny Snake there. “If everything goes as planned, Kaze won’t exist in the world after tonight.“You can do what you need to do to get everything back, including the branch chief position.”Raising a brow, Jude hid his embarrassment and said in shock, “I can’t believe Kaze upset South too. Can’t he do anything right?” Jude had heard about South before.South was one of the Steelclaw Guild leaders, and Jude would think twice before getting on his nerves. It never occurred to Jude that Kaze would make an enemy out of South before his differences with Casius could be settled. Kaze just would not stop. Even Jude was impressed. Casius chuckled at the comment. He said indifferently, “The Lees hired Stripes and Bali of the Steelclaw Guild to kill him, but they were the prey instead. “Bengla and Caspian went to seek revenge, only to be captured. Kaze set Genesis up to kill them both.” “Oh, my.” Jude gasped sharpl
Casius recalled an incident. “Didn’t you say that Mrs. Gwake hasn’t gotten better, Mr. Gwake? Do you need Kaze’s help? Maybe we should capture him.” “There’s no need for that.” Jude waved his arm without hesitation. “You don’t get this chance every day. Just kill Kaze when you can. Don’t think too much about it.“As for my wife…” Doubt fleeted across Jude’s face, but he quickly picked himself up and said indifferently, “I think Kaze had already cured her. She hasn’t had another attack since yesterday.“Kaze talked about a prolonged treatment likely to delay time and blackmail me. “Hmph! I won’t fall for it!” Jude scoffed. In a way, he was convincing himself. To be honest, Jude was uncertain about the extent of Faith’s recovery.The only thing on his mind was to kill Kaze, and he could not wait a minute longer. After today, Jude realized that Kaze’s death took precedence. Kaze would remain an obstruction to Jude’s plan for as long as he was alive. Jude was desperate t
“There’s one more thing, Mr. Weather,” the aide uttered.Casius stared at the aid with bloodshot eyes. “What is it?” “Patrick took the liberty to transfer your shares worth two billion dollars to the company of Kaze’s wife. The transfer has been completed.” “What?” Flushed in the face, Casius spat out blood. He experienced a rush of blood to his head. Patrick had been holding the shares for Casius. It was the safest approach to protect his interest. Even if Casius’ dirty secrets were revealed, he could always throw Patrick under the bus and disassociate himself. It never occurred to him that Kaze would make Patrick transfer the shares away as an act of revenge after Casius pushed Kaze into transferring his wife’s company shares to him. The shares were worth two billion dollars. Two billion dollars was a lot of money. Over the years, Casius had amassed a fortune through the shadiest business, leveraging his family connections. He had accumulated a lot of wealth. Y
“Kaze can pull the punches for sure. I mean, he has the Butterworth branch chief’s trust for a reason. “There has to be something for him to win the branch chief’s approval.” Edmund doubted there was depth to Kaze. After all, Edmund decided whether to take on a person based on their abilities. It made no sense to pay attention to losers, as he would hold them in contempt. Edmund had been impressed with Herman, who excelled in strategies and management. That was why Edmund bumped Herman up and made sure he stayed on top. “Got it.” Herman nodded and had one foot out the door. “Don’t be in a hurry to leave. There’s one more thing.” Edmund pointed at the table. Herman approached and stood on bent knees. Pleased with Herman’s submission, Edmund passed him a wine glass. Herman took the drink humbly before looking carefully at Edmund, awaiting his orders. “The wine was just airlifted from abroad. I can vouch for the taste. If you’re looking to sip on the finest, yo
Time went by, and a towering man in a suit showed up outside the door. Picking up on the noise inside the room, he knocked on the door. It was hard to tell whether the person inside could hear the knocking, so the man waited outside. The door was opened, and a woman, her face flawless with makeup, popped her head out and saw him. She cocked her head back at Edmund. “You have a guest, Mr. Witterson.” “Let him in,” Edmund instructed. He then leaned in to take the drink from the girl next to him with his mouth. The other girls cheered him on. The group was lost in their fun. The man, who entered the room, stood by the sofa respectfully. He kept his head down, his gaze staying low at the bottles of alcohol spread across the table. It was a bit of a wait before the man approached at Edmund’s order. “Tell me about Dwight.”While listening to the girls’ singing, Edmund turned to Herman. Herman rushed over as soon as Edmund called. He won a lot of money at poker toda
In this particular circumstance, Morris had to play it safe so that things would not get out of hand. The last thing he wanted was to be dragged into the mess. At least, he finally saw the Wittersons’ true colors. Morris’ friendly advice was met with disrespect and insult. However, the Wittersons were a force of nature, and Morris was not about to take them head-on. Despite his frustration, Morris had to walk away. Well, Edmund would soon face his downfall at the height of his power, and Morris would be there to enjoy the ride. Still, it did not sit well with Morris to have a young fella walk all over him. It had crossed his mind to keep the Wittersons in check, but there was only so much he could do. Morris had to be the one to back away as the Wittersons grew haughty. Morris believed there was more to Kaze’s visit to Westeros. Nothing major happened in Westeros recently. At least, there was nothing worth the other branch’s attention. However, a representative of the
Morris suggested entertaining Kaze well. Things would not be good for the branch if Kaze got dirt on them. That was where Edmund disagreed with Morris. His idea was to send someone to sound Kaze out. Edmund was smug because Morris’ decision was wrong. “You shouldn’t do that. Kaze is here on behalf of the Butterworth branch. You don’t want tension between both branches.” Morris looked at things from a wider perspective. Edmund believed Kaze was just a doormat of little importance. “You just overthink things, and it’s not good for your age. You’re getting senile.” Edmund did not take Morris’ advice seriously. He believed he was right. “You’re not getting it. Kaze is from Butterworth. Even if he doesn’t hold a high position there, we were in the wrong. We did not keep our tracks clean either. “Now that he’s back, I’m worried that he’ll cause us harm.” Morris was only giving a heads-up because the whole branch was at stake. Edmund was young. Due to his lack of judgmen
“We should be generous to our guest from Butterworth. You can arrange as you see fit. Please don’t house him in a messy home. Hire cleaners to tidy up the place. “You can report back to me if you need more money, but it’s not a reason for you to misuse the funds.” Herman wanted to hang up. The money was now in Dwight’s bank account, so he was washing his hands off the matter. The plan was to keep Kaze happy. He was just an insignificant member of the Butterworth branch anyway. The whole thing would blow over soon enough, so long as Kaze kept to himself without taking things too far. Herman would figure out a way to get him out quickly anyway. Maybe Herman and his friends did not have to do anything to get rid of Kaze. “Got it. I’ll be a good host, Herman. I won’t let you down. I’ll keep you in the loop.” Dwight was over the moon to get the notification about the money transfer. “Just play by ear and arrange what you see best.” Herman hung up and continued playing pok
“It’s becoming a hassle now. Are you going to inform the Viper’s Den about the change of accommodation?” After much hesitation, Kaze nodded to take up the offer. Dwight was thrilled. It only hit Dwight that he had to communicate with the Viper’s Den. Kaze was booked for a hotel stay, and Dwight’s job was to take him to the destination. Yet now, Dwight took him to his home. “I’ll tell my superior and see what he has to say.” Dwight was not sure whether the change was appropriate. Nevertheless, he did not want to pass up on a great opportunity. He simply grabbed the bull by the horn. If Kaze stayed at his place, the Viper’s Den members had to respect Kaze’s request even if they had a problem with it. “But when they ask, you can say that you’re getting along well with me. Living together just makes work more convenient.” Feeling unsettled, Dwight tried to get their stories straight with Kaze. Hopefully, the Viper’s Den would not come after them. “Aren’t we friends? I k
Dwight gave some suggestions. “But I’m worried about being a nuisance to your family.” Kaze remained hesitant, torn between decisions. “No, you won’t. I usually live alone. They stay somewhere else. They barely visit. I’ll just let them know not to visit for now,” Dwight replied. Dwight figured out what was in it for him. He could not let Kaze leave. “I don’t want to put your family in an awkward position.”Kaze was still considering the matter. “Relax. They don’t live with me anyway. The room I have for you is tidy. No one has stayed there before.“I’ll hire some help to freshen up the place. I can guarantee you an experience no less than at the hotel.” Dwight spoke with great confidence. “We should finish our food and doggie-bag the rest. I’ll take you to my place.” Dwight was ready to get things going. Kaze took the offer and nodded. “I’ll be in your care then.” Kaze was glad that his plan went through. Dwight had no idea that he got played. Nevertheless,
“I’m new to the place, so I don’t know much. Can you show me around when you’re available?” “No problem, but I usually have some stuff to take care of. I can’t be there 24/7. “Why don’t you propose to the branch that you want me to be your guide and attendant?” Dwight suggested. There was no telling whether Kaze would accept his proposal, but it was an opportunity to prove himself. He was never involved in the core operation. Often enough, he was the branch members’ punching bag. Though Dwight was aware that he was not good enough for the big stuff, he still wanted to succeed. Kaze was the trusted aide of the Butterworth Branch chief. He was in Westeros for a reason. By joining Kaze, Dwight would come across the major players. Kaze saw through Dwight’s plans. “Sure. I’ll do that.” Kaze did not mind the request. “Great. I’ll let them know on your behalf. I’ll be responsible for your needs while in the city.” Dwight was overjoyed at the opportunity. “So you live
“You must be rich. I often see rich people picking tabs for everybody. Talk about extravagance.” The tension in the air was lifted when Kaze offered to pay for everything. “I’m not. Consider it an apology,” Kaze explained, not wanting to cause unnecessary misunderstandings. He did not see the point of continuing the conversation. Dwight’s angry screams came from outside. “What the hell is this? I only ordered a bunch of stuff. Why am I being charged an exorbitant amount?“What do you mean my friend is paying for everybody? That’s throwing money away,” Dwight said while storming his way over. “I know you have money, but you shouldn’t do this, Mr. Lee.” Dwight did not approve of this type of generosity. “You rubbed them the wrong way. It was only right to apologize. Besides, it’s not a lot of money.” Kaze looked at the bill and handed a bank card to Dwight. “It’s my treat.” The consumption was barely a dent in Kaze’s savings. The meal did not cost more than his us