“Rising Sun is a media company. Several of their films are about to be released. They are trying to get them approved to air due to some censorship issues.” Arthur took out a document. “Are there any issues with the films? Why aren’t they approved yet?” Kaze asked curiously. Kaze had no idea. “There are some issues. They aren’t fit to be aired. “Typically, there aren’t a lot of restrictions for film productions so long as the themes aren’t sensitive topics. “But these films featured altered history. The company has been asked multiple times to make revisions, but the films still don’t make the cut.” The Viper’s Den’s members were not privy to the information. The Frosts were insignificant. Kaze was after the Frosts. Otherwise, the Viper’s Den would not waste its resources on a mere film production company. Jet’s investment of nearly ten million bucks in Rising Sun caught the Viper’s Den’s attention. The delayed approval of the films would be catastrophic to the in
Given Kaze’s status, Alfonso knew better than to have him waiting under the hot sun. Of course, he would send his people to be on standby for Kaze’s arrival. Peter only came to the rescue when Kaze was pestered by some street gang. Alfonso’s omission of Kaze’s identity led to this hiccup. Kaze did not care one bit about the incident. Heck, he did not even bring it up. Arthur straightened his back nervously, becoming even more cautious behind the wheel. “You knew, but why didn’t you say anything, Mr. Lee? You didn’t even tell on us.” Arthur could not understand why. However, he had more respect for the man. “I didn’t see a point. You’ll learn what happens when you displease me, so I won’t bother telling you now.” Kaze was mild-mannered as ever. He spoke softly without a hint of anger. All the more Arthur revered him. “Mr. Lee, we didn’t do our jobs right. We didn’t know who you were.“But my duty is to protect you in the dark. “We saw you getting out of the train
Arthur chuckled, his smile carrying a touch of sleaziness. “Oh, I see.” A realization dawned on Kaze. “Are you with quality control?” Several individuals in dark blue suits approached. The men and women carried files and documents. Kaze nodded without a word. “We are just here to announce the results. We shouldn’t be long.” Arthur came forward to engage with them. The group was likely given the heads-up as they had the right number of people. They swaggered into Rising Sun’s building. The general manager straightened up his tie in a fluster and walked out. None of the film productions made the cut yet, and the delay was costing the company money by the day. At this rate, the project would go down under. Eli, the general manager, rushed to the entrance upon learning the news. The review team was there to do one final check. The films would get the green light if the board found that everything was up to par. The head office would stop putting pressure on
For that reason, Rising Sun’s film productions were not cleared to be aired. “I told you the reason. The investor supplied us with the scripts, and we were told to base our productions on the scripts. Our hands are tied.”Eli would have made the amendments if he could. He knew where the problem lay. However, the company had to take the investor’s perspective into consideration. In the end, the films were yet to be approved for release. “I guess you won’t get the permission to air them then.” Knox was surprised that Rising Sun would not budge on the matter. Nevertheless, Knox and his team were not there to give the all-clear or talk some sense into Rising Sun. Knox and his team could care less about what Eli had to say. “We’re serious about getting the approval. “I’m sorry that we aren’t a better host for your visit today. Why don’t we move to the nearby hotel for a talk?” With the review board making an appearance, Eli knew there was still hope. If Eli did not grab
The purpose of the visit was to inform Rising Sun that the films did not make the cut. Since Rising Sun would not make the necessary amendments, the project would come to a halt. “Please, don’t. Since we are all here, we should talk it out.” It took Eli quite some effort to get the group to the hotel. Eli had plans to please the crowd, so he could not let them leave just yet. This went beyond getting the green light for the films. Eli needed to make the group happy. “There is nothing more to talk about. We can’t proceed unless you make the changes.” There was no way around it. Since Rising Sun refused to make the right amendments, and Knox had orders about putting a hold on Rising Sun’s films, that was one less problem for Knox to deal with. Eli could not let the group walk out on him. Hence, he quickly sent people in. Several thinly clad women entered, each holding a small bag. Despite the weightlessness, the bag appeared to be carrying something of substance. “You
Eli dined offhandedly as if he had taken hold of the group. His words were layered with threat. “What? Are you trying to replace us?” Knox asked in disbelief. “I don’t have that power, but the investor does. I heard that he enjoyed dinner with your superiors. I’m sure the project will get the green light in no time. “Even if you didn’t approach me today, my team and I would have invited you out for a get-together.” Eli knew when to back down, easing the tension in the air. It was another type of reconciliation. Eli needed to go through the review board to get the rights to air the films. The carrot-and-stick approach was the best way forward. Kaze was surprised by the sophistication of Eli’s tactics. Still, he believed he had come to the right place. Sure enough, Jet would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. Surely, he was bound to leave loose ends. Nevertheless, he probably did not care. Arthur cocked his head back to look at Kaze. Kaze grinned, unbothered
“I’ll keep the bank cards for now. I’ll talk to our superiors and give you a decision. Since the man said that the cards are meant for us, they won’t be going anywhere.” Knox had no idea who Kaze was, but he knew Arthur was with the Viper’s Den. Arthur must be someone from high places. Eli soon put the little incident behind him. He got a call from Aloysius yesterday and was made aware of Jet’s plans. The films had been put on hold for far too long, and the people above Eli were anxious to get things moving. Though Eli was surprised by the review board’s visit, everything was still in his control. Eli left the matter at that without reporting the incident to the higher-ups. The flashy, red car sped along the road. Arthur kept looking back at Kaze, eager to find out about the next plan. Arthur brought Kaze out today to witness how Eli and his team operated. As it happened, Eli adopted such a shallow ploy. Arthur was not surprised, though. Eli’s methods were common.
A balanced, profitable dynamic had been developed among the ports in Butterworth. Jet spotted his chance in the lucrative port business. He covertly took out some money to invest in a dying port. The port was situated in a more remote area. Some businesspeople favored more accessible ports. This drove shippers away from the dying port. Jet snagged the steal and improved the logistics and facilities around the area. The port was up and running again. Business at the port was decent enough. As the Frosts would run their business through the port, the local economy took off too. It was a good thing. However, Jet set his sights on several residential buildings around the area. He needed space to accommodate containers. The land was required to make business at the port more profitable. This triggered a whole new thing. Jet could spend some money to buy the residents out of their homes. However, the residents preferred to stay put in their long-time homes. No a
Clemont was born with a silver spoon and raised like a prince as he was the youngest in the family. He knew his father’s current situation, which explained why he behaved arrogantly. He thought his actions could help his father but little did he know, they were causing a huge trouble. Kaze made it verbal but the spoiled brat did not appreciate the warning and simply felt annoyed. “What do I mean? I guess you have to ask your father about it.” Kaze looked at Clemont coldly. There was no way a useless trust-fund baby could achieve anything great under the protection of his family. Every action that Clemont took was causing damage to his family. Kaze initially intended to use the Siegfrieds to his advantage, which explained why he did not act immediately. Now that Clemont had come under his radar, Kaze ought to use the chance. He managed to showcase his strength to Rosie earlier and what he said to Clemont would surely raise more suspicion in her. Kaze must come up wit
Rosie was shocked. She almost got kicked by some spoiled brat. She was not happy about it. She revered Clemont’s background and had been tolerant with the brat but he stepped over the line when he decided to be physical. Rosie looked up to Kaze who was hugging her. He was just outside the crowd and decided to step in when he heard the commotion. She did not expect him to save her. It was a surprise but it allowed her to see his capabilities. The man from Butterworth had been hiding his abilities from everyone all along. Rosie smiled at him before getting back up on her feet. “Thank you for your help,” she said softly. “It’s nothing. It’s the right thing to do,” Kaze said. Kaze was the type of person who could never stand seeing the weak being bullied. “Who the hell are you? What do you think you are doing?” Clemont bellowed. He was outraged and needed to vent his emotions. Since Kaze had intervened, it gave Clemont a chance to lash out at him. “Stop causing a
“I told you this is my club! They have to listen to me! Now open the damn door!” Clemont was furious after being questioned. He started to kick the door like a madman. The waiters were worried but they dared not do anything. “Young Master Siegfried, there are guests inside! VIP guests!” the waiter added. He dared not reveal the identity of the guest inside. Zidane informed all employees earlier that no one shall reveal the VIP guest’s identity or even mention that the suite was booked by Edmund. It was to keep things low. Therefore, the waiter dared not speak any of it even to Clemont. Unfortunately, Clemont stubbornly believed the waiter was lying to him. “What guests?! You’re lying to me! You said there were guests inside but even after I kicked the door, there was no answer! Open it up. Don’t be stupid!” he shouted. He cared not about the others when he shouted. He was impulsive at nature. “Young Master Siegfried, there are guests inside. You can’t do this,” the
“Then what should we do?” “What else? Give him a VIP room and try to hold him down.” Rosie was displeased but she had to handle the matter herself. Clemont was a proud man. If he felt embarrassed in any way, he would certainly cause more problems. Rosie was afraid that he would do something rash once provoked. He was a man with a background. Even if he made a mistake, his father could cover up for him. However, if the club’s business was affected, Edmund would hold her responsible. That was why Rosie saw Clemont as a problem. “But they are heading to the suite already,” the bouncer said, looking worried. He had a premonition of something bad happening. “What are you guys doing?!” Rosie glared at the bouncer. They were usually smart and quick-witted so she did not have to worry about many things. Yet they let Clemont through?! “There are too many customers today. All the rooms are booked, so we have to make new arrangements.” “The other bouncer at the entranc
To many youngsters, Absolute Zero was a mysterious place. Young men and women from a better background were forbidden to set foot into the club. It was not because of the environment, but because of the human relationship within the establishment. The club was a gateway to the underworld and once exposed, the youngsters might thread onto the wrong path. Clemont was not allowed to go to Absolute Zero. However, he knew the club belonged to the Wittersons, which was his father’s rival. Therefore, he had been planning to help his father. He often used his father’s name to spend money at the club to annoy them. He brought his friends here today to show off his wealth and power. He wanted to let his friends know that he, too, was capable. “Young Master Siegfried! You’re awesome!” While surrounded by flattery, Clemont walked down the stairs to the entrance with his friends. The bouncers knew Clemont, so when he arrived, they quickly informed the management. They dared no
Kaze finally got some surprising news: Edmund had booked a room at Absolute Zero tomorrow for a business talk. In addition, Morris’ son was a regular at the club. Edmund and Morris were rivals but they looked peaceful in the open. No one knew how fierce the competition was under the table. Morris wanted to put his son in charge of the Viper’s Den but was unsure if his son could handle the matter. According to Zeeny, Morris’ son was a trust fund baby. His only ability was to make friends over alcohol. Maybe the young man liked being surrounded and flattered by people. Due to his father’s position, he was always flooded with friends and people interested in his resources. His so-called friends were just drinking buddies. None of them were any help to his career. It was the reason why Edmund did not take the son seriously. Kaze had a feeling that tomorrow would bring something interesting. They left later than usual tonight and he tipped the girls as usual. Even Dw
Kaze took a glass of beer from the girl and had a sip. “It’s okay that you still haven’t decided on your future.” He suddenly felt like a joke. He came to the club yet he tried to convince them to leave the environment without bothering to know their difficulties. “Let’s play dice!” The girl, Zeeny, smiled brightly and took the dice on the table. She was trained on how to make customers happy. Kaze did not ask the difficult questions anymore. Everyone enjoyed themselves with the games. Those who lost must drink. There were a few who sang while the others played, filling the room with joyous melody. Kaze enjoyed himself as well and slowly got to know each other better. At the same time, he learned more about the girls’ backgrounds, even though most of them were made up. To let customers tip them more, they would fabricate a pitiful background. Kaze’s goal was to fool Rosie, so he just had to enjoy himself now and nothing else. Dwight was overwhelmed by the beer
When Kaze entered the club, he saw that the place was clean and the lights were on. It was indeed not open for business yet. There were no customers inside. He could have a clear look over the entire establishment. “You guys are too early, so we had nothing prepared for you. I’ll bring you guys to the VIP room. When the music starts later, you guys can come out and have some fun, or you can call in some girls to accompany you,” Leeny said. She then pointed at a few girls walking toward her. All of them were in heels and sexy outfits. Their smiles rivaled the brightest sun and each of them had their unique charisma. All the employees of Absolute Zero were carefully handpicked. The way they dressed emphasized their personal charms. One would definitely ask for more after a glance. “Can we ask the girls to come to our room?” Dwight asked. His eyes were gleaming with interest. “Of course. This is your room. The girls will drink with you. We do provide some special service,
“I didn’t get anything from them. They just said Rosie is a dangerous woman.” “I told you to go back to see your colleagues and befriend them. Having no news is actually a good thing,” Kaze said. He might be slightly disappointed but it was expected, so he was not bothered. “Really? I thought I was quite useless.” Dwight thought he could finally get the recognition that he was waiting for but he was turned away by his boss. He was never taken seriously at the Viper’s Den, which was the reason why he disliked his colleagues and his superiors. However, he had to stay with the organization for the sake of staying alive. Ever since he met Kaze, his life changed. He thought he could improve himself but the others still did not take him seriously. Dwight was still willing to trust Kaze. “Don’t be affected by their opinions. You know better than anyone what you can do. Just focus on what you need to do and things will be alright,” Kaze said with a hint of encouragement. “Y