Snow was right under Kaze when the gas hit the ground. The sizzling noise and the melted asphalt road shocked her, turning her face pale. Kaze frowned, and his expression turned serious as well. The poison that the Ryokanians used was indeed vicious. If not for his quick reaction, the poison would easily burn off Snow’s face or skin, turning a beautiful lady into a monster. Snow could barely keep herself together due to the intensity of the situation. Her face was as pale as paper. She was not hit by the poisonous gaze because of Kaze’s protection but the dust particles remained in the air. Taking in even a little made her sick and her heart raced. Kaze narrowed his eyes. He pulled a silver needle from his pouch and poked it into Snow’s head. Then, he opened the door and shoved her into the car before closing it. Kaze then slowly stepped away but after a few steps, his body started shaking and moments later, he collapsed on the floor and started to twitch uncontrollab
“Little bastard, regret talking to me like that already?” The ninja looked at Kaze sinisterly and said, “If you just kneel and beg me for mercy, I might consider letting you go, but you have to get up to do that. Hahaha…” He laughed hysterically. In his eyes, Kaze was like a piece of meat on the chopping board, entirely at his mercy. He was sent to Arcadia to carry out assassination missions and the first target was Kaze. There were some others assigned the same mission, but to his surprise, he was the first to act and effortlessly secured the target. All he needed to do was cut Kaze’s head off and claim his reward. He felt that the mission was too easy, like taking candy from a baby. “Hehe, before I came, that woman from the Hara family told me to be careful. She said you are an expert and don’t die. Now it seems she was misinformed. “After I kill you and claim the credit, I’ll report it to the top brass and request them to punish that woman. Best if they could let m
“Aaargh! You sneaky bastard! You ambushed me?! You were not poisoned?! How?!” The ninja got up on his feet with a frontal flip. He could barely balance his body but his eyes were burning with anger as he glared at Kaze. Rage quickly consumed him. Kaze rubbed his face to ease the numbness from pretending to be poisoned. “The poison you Ryokanians used is nothing compared to the Tyban’s Scorpion Clan, so why would I be poisoned in the first place?” “You were faking it?!” The ninja was furious. With gritted teeth, he shouted, “You sneaky bastard! You’re shameless!” “Shameless? Are you talking about yourself?” Kaze was amused by the ninja’s word choice. He said, “I pretended to be poisoned to test you and see how many more accomplices are there. Now it seems like you are alone. That puts my mind at ease.” The ninjas of Ryokan might not be a formidable foe but they were known for their unrivaled patience. During the warring period in Ryokan, the ninjas could hide in a tiny
The ninja was confident in his speed as he had trained since young, yet when he saw Kaze appear in front of him without his knowledge, as if a ghost had appeared, he was shaken. His beliefs collapsed on him. “Did I say you could run?” Kaze stood with his hands behind his back. “I’ll give you a chance to kill yourself. You had a lot of poison with you, right? Pick one and take it. Don’t make me kill you, I don’t want to dirty my hands.” The ninja was hideous and basically a walking rotten piece of meat. Looking at him was already troubling, let alone touching him. “You want me to take my own poison? Dream on!” The ninja spat out a black bead at Kaze and it exploded mid-air. Black gas, darker than the previous, erupted. “Your trick can only work once, yet you want to use it again? You’re underestimating me.” Kaze grunted coldly. He raised his hand to strike his own chest, releasing a loud buzz similar to a thunderclap. The shockwave from the buzz blasted the cloud of blac
“Mr. Chairman! You’re alright!” Snow breathed a sigh of relief seeing Kaze unscathed. She then asked about the ninja, to which Kaze replied he had taken care of.He did not want her to see the gory scene in the woods. Soon, Conan arrived with his men, together with Collier. When Conan learned that Kaze was ambushed, he contacted Collier immediately. Collier was already the deputy chief of the South River Branch. He was qualified to utilize resources in Riverbank, becoming someone much more useful than Conan locally. Conan had gotten more and more mature in doing things. He was no longer led by blind confidence and could recognize his shortcomings. Collier knew he had become the deputy chief of the South River Branch because of Kaze. His life and future were basically in Kaze’s hands. Therefore, when he heard something happened to Kaze, he quickly made his way to the scene. Since Collier was already at the scene, Kaze could skip all the troublesome procedures. He then s
“If you think so, then so be it.” Kaze simply smiled it off. Patrick was struck by a sudden realization. Kaze did not deny it but it was something that should not be made verbal, so he chose to answer vaguely. A moment of silence later, Patrick said, “Reiko Hara was at the Weather family’s last night. My family handed me over. “I was hiding outside but I was deceived by those old bastards. They then handed me to that woman. “They tortured me because I transferred the shares to Sky Ocean Corporation without their permission. Now I realize that the companies and assets Casius ordered me to oversee do not belong to him but to the Ryokanians. “One of the Riverbank Seven is nothing but a dog working for the Ryokanians.” He scoffed and mocked himself with a bitter laugh. If Casius were a dog to the Ryokanians, then Patrick would be the lackey of a dog, making him even more miserable. Kaze barely reacted to Patrick’s emotional speech. He asked, “The Ryokanians forced you to
“I want payback!” Patrick sprung from his bed and dropped to his knees on the floor. With his bones already fractured, the sudden movement sent a jolt of pain through him, leaving him drenched in cold sweat.“The Weathers turned their backs on me, so I want to make them pay!“The Ryokanians ruined me, and I want payback! “But I know I’m defenseless against them. “I can only turn to you for help, Kaze. I know you’re strong. You killed Casius, didn’t you? “You simply choose to remain discreet. That’s why everybody thinks you’re a loser. I used to be one of those idiots. “I can’t give you much. All I can offer is the confidential files about Bronze Sparrow and clues to Casius’ secret assets and overseas accounts,” Patrick said pleadingly, his gaze intense on Kaze. Kaze narrowed his eyes at Patrick for a moment. He did not account for Patrick’s behavior. Patrick was just a show-off, an airhead, and a bully. After the last incident, Patrick would do everything to get b
“Aaron is leagues above Aiden. He became the South River Strategic Department’s chief commander in his early thirties. Still, Aiden holds up on his own among his peers in Westeros.“The Westeros heirs answer to Aiden. He’s one of the leaders of the community. “Aiden must come to some sort of use so that Reiko would be subservient to him.” She, as a woman, felt a natural disgust toward such matters.Snow was resentful of the fact that Reiko plotted to murder her and Kaze. Hence, Snow assumed the worst of Reiko and Aiden’s relationship. By coincidence, Snow was not far off the mark. Kaze read the file and learned more about Aiden. “It appears Aiden is not just an airheaded heir. “He’s not going to stop now if you’re the reason he’s here.“The Ryokanians are using him to get rid of me, but he’s manipulating them to do his bidding too.“The man in the tree is just the appetizer. The Ryokanians are trying to sound us out. Poor thing. He thought he was special. “I think we
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