Kaze could do nothing about Darcy’s jealousy but steeled himself up and said, “Of course I am a good boss. If I can’t help my employee in times of need, how can I leave her in charge while I am away?” His words made sense. Kaze always presented himself to people as an idle person with a lot of free time at hand. Perfect World Group was a big company and Snow had to take care of everything because she was capable. “You and your strange theory.” Darcy grunted and then asked, “Then what about Buffy Gwake? She’s not your employee, but I heard someone tried to help her become the chairwoman of Gwake Corporation, and even became the vice chairman himself.” Sensing the dangerous gaze from her eyes, Kaze quickly said, “It’s that one time. I actually got a billion shares of Gwake Corporation because of that.” In other words, it was purely business and nothing more. Darcy scoffed, “Then what about before that? Aside from the fact that you let her stay in the villa, I also heard t
“Get out of the way, you shithead!” The two young skateboarders shouted at the man in their way. They even pulled out a knife from their waists, ready to stab the man to clear a path for their escape. Suddenly, the man in the trenchcoat lifted his arm and revealed a small handgun in his hand. Thump! Thump! Two shots were fired from the silenced handgun, striking them in the legs. “Ugh!” “Aaarh!” As the two young men cried in pain, they lost balance and crashed on the ground, losing their skateboards in the fall. The two of them lay on the ground, spitting blood. The crash must have broken their ribs. One of them mustered enough strength to look up at the man with resentment. “W-Who the hell are you? Who sent you?” “Leron.” The man in the trenchcoat was standing right in front of them. “The Sharpshooter Leron?!” Shocked, the two young men looked at him in disbelief. “You’ve heard of me? It seems like you are not just some skater boys.” Leron squatted down
Villa No.1. Kaze and Darcy returned home with their hands clung together and it angered Agnes. “Darcy, you are the branch head of the Quint family of Ridgesouth, shouldn’t you be more aware of your image? Why are you being so intimate with a man?” she bellowed. Darcy sighed and said, “Mom, can you please not? What’s wrong with me holding my husband’s hand?” “I am saying this for your own good and you are talking back? You have to present yourself as a mature and responsible person! You should really stay away from this little shit. He will only make you look bad!” Agnes argued. She had been trying to get them to divorce for some time, but Darcy was at Lilyrose until today, so she hadn’t had the chance. Darcy did not want to waste time with her mother. She muttered, “If you are concerned about me, you should ask about my work or transfer one or two billion to my company account…” “What did you say? One billion? Two billion?” Agnes narrowed her eyes. “Nothing.” Darcy di
After a quiet night, Darcy received a call from Pamela as soon as she woke up the next morning.“Ms. Quint, the auction committee just called. They said the ten billion must be transferred by noon today, or else we won’t be qualified to attend the auction. “What time are you coming to the office? Maybe we can discuss how to talk to Aiden Krad and ask him to let us off. “Ms. Quint, you should know that even though we managed to pay off the banks yesterday, all we did was clear the rumors of our financial problem. If Aiden Krad is determined to beat us down, he still has a lot of ways.” After witnessing Kaze coming up with three billion in an hour yesterday, Pamela knew she should not look down on the live-in husband anymore, but she still lacked confidence about him getting ten billion for the deposit. Three billion was considered a huge fund in the market, but ten billion was on a whole new level. It required time to gather that much funds in such a short time. After recei
The voice of an angry man boomed. “Woah? A three-million-dollar vase?” As the scene brimmed with excitement, a crowd gathered to watch the drama. Kaze was not one to stay for the drama. Given the recent events, especially the splash of blood last night, Kaze was cautious of mass gatherings. He took Darcy’s hand and said to the staff, “Do you have a quieter place?” “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to!” The familiar voice of a girl came from outside the door. The cry was tinged with sobs, and fear was apparent. Kaze furrowed his brows. “Sasha?” “Who is she, Kaze?” Darcy asked. Kaze replied, “It’s Emiko’s niece. I got her into Herbal Spring to get treatment and help. What is she doing here?” One thing was for sure, Sasha was in trouble. Without another word, Kaze took Darcy along to squeeze past the crowd. “Smack!” A middle-aged plump lady slapped Sasha in the face. “Don’t give me that sad look. You’re not fooling anyone!“You didn’t even look where you were goin
“You smashed our vase, so pay up!”“You’re not going anywhere until you pay us for our loss.” The plump woman and Ron were all over Sasha, demanding that she compensate them for their loss. No one among the crowd stepped forward to intervene as the damage was worth three million dollars. Most people could not afford that sort of money. Sasha wailed, “But sir, ma’am, you hastily bumped into me. Why should I pay? I don’t even have that much.” Ron narrowed his eyes dangerously. “Hey! Have you no shame? Don’t try to turn this on us.” “Bitch! You are a disgrace to your family!” Raising her hand, the plump woman took a step forward to slap Sasha. “Smack!” A powerful grip pulled the plump woman back from hurting Sasha again. The plump woman glared at a stern-looking young man. “Who are you, bastard? Get out of my way!” The young man was Kaze. He shook the plump woman’s arm off and said curtly, “If you can’t be civil, you should ask your parents to teach you some manners
“Who else could it be?” The plump woman rolled her eyes. “Why would we frame her?” Kaze nodded. “Alright. There are surveillance cameras in the mall anyway. We can check the surveillance footage to confirm whether she ran into you, or the other way around.” The plump woman and her husband scoffed, not taking Kaze seriously at all. Not wanting to dwell on the matter, Kaze asked, “Are you sure your vase dates back to 500 B.C.?”Displeased with Kaze’s doubt, the plump woman said angrily, “What do you think? We have agreed on a price with the owner of the mall. He was going to pay us three million dollars for it. Why would we lie?” “Oh, really?” Kaze grinned and approached the piles of broken shards on the floor to pick up a piece. “This is part of the shattered vase, right?” Kaze held the piece up for a look and asked nonchalantly. “Are you blind? Of course, you can tell whether it came from the vase.”The plump woman said in annoyance, “What are you up to? I’m warning y
The crowd nodded in agreement. “That’s right. The couple must be scammers, picking on the girl because she doesn’t know her stuff.” “Security! Where’s security?” “Why isn’t someone from the mall taking care of this?” The crowd believed the couple were scammers. “Please give way.” Soon, several security officers arrived on the scene, and the leader glanced at the plump woman. Getting the message from the woman, the security leader approached Kaze and said menacingly, “Boy, are you up to something? Ron and his wife are long-time customers here. I have never seen you around before, though.“You’re something else to assault a customer here. Do you know who owns the place?” The security leader pointed at the door. “Get out, or I’ll make you!” Kaze asked, “Are you in on it too?” The security leader narrowed his eyes. “What did you say? I dare you to say it again.” “I said that you’re in on it too.” Kaze pointed at the middle-aged couple while eyeing the security lead
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
Kaze observed as the jeep took off further off course, past the towering buildings to a run-down neighborhood. “This is where I usually reside. My home is not too far away, but I think you might have trouble adapting to this place.” Dwight did not forget to book Kaze a hotel. Kaze could not possibly stay with him. The hotel was around the area anyway. “Didn’t you say that you haven’t tried the local cuisine? I’ll take you out for a bite. “The barbecue ribs here are to die for. We’ve got the dry-rubbed and saucy kind.” Dwight parked the car and hopped out right away. Opposite the parking lot was not the cleanest food joint. Looking in from the outside, Kaze realized that the place was packed. Kaze understood that the restaurant must be known for some kind of dish. The customers were from all walks of life, so the food must be great. “There’s not much to see here, but the food is tasty. If you don’t mind, we can order something inside.” Kaze was not particularly con
Dwight was surprised and curious as to who Kaze really was. From what he gathered, Kaze was a confidante of the Butterworth Branch chief. The purpose of Kaze’s visit was to learn and share. Dwight worked on the fringes, so his access to information was limited. Nevertheless, he got the feeling that Kaze was just an ordinary guy just like him. The only difference was that Kaze was lucky to rub shoulders with important people. Dwight did not get chances like that. “Who are the most influential people in the Viper’s Den Westeros Branch?” Kaze asked in the car. Dwight was taken aback by the question. Still, he had an answer to that. “So you don’t know much about the situation?” Dwight suddenly felt important. “Well, I’m new to the city. I will be running into them soon, so I need to make sure I get my facts right,” Kaze said humbly. This was Dwight’s shot, and he needed to present his best. “Relax, Kaze. I’ll tell you everything I know.” Dwight would reveal some info
Kaze glanced at the flowers. There was a card for well-wishes too.Curious, Kaze reached out to read the card. It was written, “To my eternal lover and sweetheart.” Dwight grabbed Kaze’s bag. Since the sign in his hand was getting in the way, Dwight tossed the placard in the trash can. As Dwight turned his head back, he saw Kaze reading the card that came with the flowers. He tried to stop Kaze, but it was too late. Dwight had not attended to a guest of high importance before. The task was assigned to him at the last minute. In the past, Dwight was usually on the sidelines, never getting close to major matters. He would always get the small, insignificant jobs. Dwight often bought drinks for his superiors to build connections. However, he had always been kept out of the loop. Now that an opportunity had fallen onto his lap, Dwight was not about to let it slip. He wanted to show what he could do. When Dwight arrived at the airport for the pick-up, most people car
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