As soon as Charlie heard these words, he was immediately very alert and vigilant.At the same time, he could not help but feel contempt and disdain for the seven highly educated fools in front of him. Weren’t they waiting for the United States Navy SEALs to come and rescue them? As a result, the United States Navy SEALs had not come, but the King of Hades had come first!He could hear Commander Hamed exchanging a few words with Faizal and the others. He was probably asking them about the situation with the hostages inside.One of the guards hurriedly replied that everything was normal. After that, the leader said, “Open the door.”Immediately afterward, there was the sound of the door getting unlocked.After a short while, the iron door was pushed open from the outside. A man wearing a desert camouflage uniform took a step forward as he walked into the room.What was interesting was that his figure was swaying toward the left the moment he stepped into the room. Charlie instantly
“F*ck!”Hamed immediately felt very disappointed deep down in his heart when he heard this. After all, he had been leading the army for many years, and he could make a very accurate judgment of the strategic situation.At this moment, he had already realized that both Charlie and himself had control of half of the advantageous position to call the shots.‘The power to call the shots inside this cellar lies in the hands of this Oskian man. That is because he has a gun pointed at me, and he has even bought off my subordinates. So, he can kill me at any time inside this room…’‘Still, I am not exactly in a completely passive predicament either. After all, no matter how powerful he is, it will simply be impossible for him to buy over one to two thousand of my men in the entire base.’‘That is because, if he really had the capability to do so, he would have already chosen to overthrow my rule directly. Why would he make so much effort just to sneak into this cellar?’When he thought a
After pondering and putting much thought into this matter, Hamed ground his teeth as he tried to put up a final fight and said, “Brother! It must not have been easy for you to come all the way here. Besides, it seems as though both of us are predestined. I cannot turn down your request entirely, but you also have to give me a little face. You cannot simply allow all of my efforts to go to waste, right? Don’t you have an old saying in Oskia? Don’t burn bridges and always leave some room in whatever you do in case you meet again in the future?”Charlie smiled as he said, “I have to admit that your Oskian literature is indeed not too bad. You can even mention an old saying in front of me!”Hamed smiled embarrassedly as he said, “If I were to describe it in one word, no matter what it is, I was also a top student back then.”Charlie nodded before he asked him, “You said that you wanted me to give you some face. I wonder, how do you propose I do that?”Hamed waved his hand as he spoke u
When Charlie saw the aggrieved look on Hamed’s face, he could not help but say, “Since Commander Hamed has already spoken up, I will surely remember it in the future.”Hamed cupped one fist in his other hand as a sign of respect in front of Charlie before he pointed at the eight people opposite him and said generously, “Brother, please go ahead and pick!”After he was done speaking, he was afraid that Charlie would continue trying to make the best out of his situation. So, he ground his teeth and blurted out, “Brother, why don’t we do this? I will take another step back. You can pick five of them!”The desire of the seven people to survive instantly increased!Charlie looked at Hamed before he smiled and praised him, “Commander Hamed, you are remarkably generous. Based on this point alone, I can already tell that you are a person of integrity who will keep his promises.”Hamed nodded before he said seriously, “I am someone who has always kept my promises. Regardless of whether it
Charlie did not hide the truth, and he simply nodded and said, “That’s right. I am a member of the Wade family.”As soon as his words fell, the other seven people were all shocked. They were all top outstanding talents in the financial field. So, they had a deep understanding of the economic conditions of various countries, and they naturally knew about the strength of these few wealthy and influential families in Oskia.When they heard that Charlie was a descendant of the Wade family, they immediately understood why Charlie could travel to Syria on a Concorde within such a short time.This was the power of the Wade family!It was a pity that these so-called top outstanding talents could not see the wider picture, and they had failed to recognize the great man in front of them! Hamed, who was aside, immediately gave him a thumbs-up as he blurted out, “I did not expect that you would be from the Wade family. As a member of the Wade family, you were actually able to sneak into th
Autumn was completely at a loss when she heard these words.She could tell that Charlie was not joking.She really did not know what she should do if Charlie was truly unwilling to take her companions away with them.She never would have expected her group of friends to actually be so anti-intellectual. They had already offended Charlie to death before he even revealed his own identity. Now, regardless of how much they begged or pleaded with Charlie, it would still be reasonable for Charlie to refuse to save them.Although Autumn really wanted to leave this place and head to Aurous Hill so that she could be reunited with her father, she could not bear to leave so many of her friends behind and escape on her own.There was even a certain moment where Autumn thought about not leaving at all. She thought that it might be better for her to simply stay back here with her friends so that they could live or die together. In that case, even if they were to ultimately face the worst conseq
Charlie was very angry and frustrated, and he simply pointed at her before he shouted sternly, “You, shut up! Before I came here, your life and death had nothing to do with me at all. However, since I am already here, you can only live! Even if you want to die, I will not allow you to die!”Autumn asked, “Who gave you that right?! I have the right to choose not to let you take me away!”Charlie pointed at Hamed before he asked, “Why didn’t you say these words to him when they were kidnapping you, then?”Autumn was completely speechless because of Charlie’s sudden questioning, and she could only stammer, “I… I…”Charlie replied coldly, “Stop trying to speak up. I am too lazy to continue talking nonsense with you. Today, you will have to leave regardless of whether you want to or not. If you really want to die here, after we return to Oskia and I hand you safely over to your father in Aurous Hill, you can come back here again if you want to. When that time comes, regardless of whethe
When Charlie saw Hamed limping as he walked up the stairs, Charlie felt somewhat curious. So, he casually asked, “Brother, was your leg injured before?”Hamed turned his head around to glance at Charlie before he looked at his leg again as he sighed and said, “My left leg was once seriously injured in a battle. My leg was hit by fragments after a bomb explosion. At that time, there was only one way, which was to amputate my leg, but fortunately, after exhausting all of my energy, I managed to save my leg. However, my leg had already suffered irreversible damage. So, even after recovering, my muscles were severely atrophied, and the function of my leg also deteriorated greatly. So, I ended up being a cripple…”As he spoke, he could not help but lament, “In truth, it is actually very complicated and difficult to explain and express the difficulties a crippled commander faces in a place like Syria!”Although being a cripple was not a serious form of disability, no matter what it was, H
However, Jimmy realized something important even as he sighed in relief. "Wait, Mr. Wade… I know I should settle things in the family Stateside, but won't I be arrested upon arrival?""That's Julien's department," Charlie chuckled and turned toward the man. "Tell your butler not to send the evidence to the feds. If it has reached them already, ask to have it back and tell the feds they saw nothing."Julien promptly nodded. "I'll text him right now. You have nothing to worry about, Mr. Wade."Jimmy remained worried. "But sir, I think Nate's not going to let this slide. The man is cunning—he deliberately dug a pit so we'd fall into it, and he gathered all the dirt he could on us to be used as leverage when necessary."Charlie shook his head. "That's no big deal. Julien can make sure that you're fine even if the feds get the evidence."Julien nodded nearby. "Don't worry, Mr. Wade. The decision remains in your hands, either way. Just say the word, and it's 25 to life… otherwise, not e
The fact that Jimmy was a partner in Ares LLP already meant he had skill, while Matilda had herself been retired for years and definitely had lost her touch a little. So, having someone like Jimmy who had stayed on the frontlines all this while would definitely be no issue.And in turn, it was a good thing for Jimmy as it was better than the kennels either way.Charlie then asked Jimmy pointedly, "You say you're interested, but are you sincere about it?"Jimmy nodded without hesitation. "Yes, absolutely!""No regrets? We're talking about ten years here.""None, absolutely none!""Do you know what to say if anyone asks?""Yes, of course! I chose to further my career here in Oskia, and it was absolutely voluntary! That's what I'd say even if my family asked!"Charlie nodded. "Good. Then, you will have two weeks. Go home and set your affairs in order and report in for work afterward.""No problem!" Jimmy nodded repeatedly, actually surprised and grateful that Charlie would let hi
And yet, Julien was suddenly clapping his hands, and exclaiming excitedly, "Yes, right! We should get his wife and son over too for a happy reunion!"He then paused and quickly corrected himself, "Wait, no! I mean, they should each be caged with one empty cage separating each of their cages. They can see each other and talk, but there will be no touching. How dare he flex on me—I gotta teach him a lesson to remember!"Jimmy dropped limply on his rump, and Matilda beckoned for Paul to help him up while turning toward Julien as she pursed her lips. "Please, Mr. Rothschild… Even if you don't accept his apology, don't bring his family into this. It's against Oskian tradition—you'd insult your family's name!"Julien shrugged, not hesitating to retort, "What do your traditions have to do with me? If I mean to hurt him, forget his family—I'll drag his dogs over too!"Seeing that Julien was so furious, Charlie decided to stop him, or he might actually go through with it."That's enough, J
Holding up a thumb at Charlie, Julien exclaimed in approval, "You're right, my friend! That's far more exciting than having him jailed!"Just hearing that he would be sent to a kennel, Jimmy knew nothing would come of it—even if he didn't know the details, it was so obvious that Julien was thrilled by the very idea!Turning nervously toward Charlie, he was sobbing as he asked, "Mr. Wade…? What's this about a kennel…?"Julien chuckled coolly even before Charlie said a word. "A kennel is where you keep dogs, of course. Though there are literal dogs and metaphorical dogs, and you are the latter."Oh, don't worry. It's a really nice place where you get your own cage, and you'll be fed every day. You don't even have to work, so just sit tight and keep eating until the day you die."Jimmy's soul left his body in that instant.He was going to be locked in a cage?! That was way worse than being locked up and sent to jail! Where was the humanity around here?!Even as the thought struck h
Matilda was actually caught off guard by Jimmy's pleas, and even Paul found it hard to watch.Turning to Charlie, he said, "Please, Mr. Wade—my uncle can be a little despicable, but he is my father's brother. Please, let him have a chance to turn over a new leaf, seeing that he's earnestly repenting."While Paul spoke with Charlie, Jimmy was still confused and wondered why Paul would plead his case with Charlie instead of Julien. If there was anyone Paul should ask, it was Yolden since he was Julien's friend. So, why would he ask some young man instead of Yolden?That was when Charlie asked in curiosity, "You want to let him off? After he tried to take away your parents' legacy?"Paul smiled awkwardly. "I mean, I know the guy. He made sure to travel all this way to make a scene because he had nothing legal that could help him claim Smith Group Corporate Law from us. Otherwise, he'd have already filed the lawsuit in the States. Sure, it's a dirty move, but that's basically a des
As Julien finished, he realized something was wrong and turned toward Charlie before he knew it.Charlie held his gaze in turn, his expression quizzical and amused.Julien cleared his throat right then. "See, there are people who can order me around, but they have my utmost respect. However, a third-rate lawyer like you? Who do you think you are?"That was when Julien's butler called, and he reported respectfully as soon as the call was answered, "Sir, I've spoken with Nate Ellis, the owner of Ares LLC. He has since agreed to fire Jimmy Smith right away as well as disbar him nationwide."Julien asked, "Good. Anything else?""Well, Mr. Ellis also delivered some documents that can be used as evidence against Jimmy Smith, which he claims is enough for a lifetime sentence. If you deem it necessary, we can have it sent to the FBI.""Yes, let's go with that!" Julien replied, his tone satisfied. "And ask the director to handle it personally—I want this prick to never set foot stateside
Jimmy was sweating profusely in fear, but he argued back before he knew it, "That's impossible! Everything you say is bullshit! Gaiman simply thought he had a fair chance of winning and didn't want to pay Ares that much, and I have no idea who he partnered with, and I'm certainly not involved. Don't you try to slander me!"Nate chuckled. "Come on, Jimmy. We're all adults here, so there are things we shouldn't have to be so direct about. Mills Gaiman and your old classmate met in private many times, not to mention the private conferences you three had in secret, discussing your overall strategy and decisive points. Just so you know, Gaiman recorded every conversation, and I have the tapes with me."Jimmy's heart was left pounding as he blurted, "B-Bullshit! That's impossible!""Grow up, Jimmy," Mr.Goodman chuckled. "Every partner in every law firm always strives to rise higher, so I'm going to need as much leverage as I can. Otherwise, I'm not about to let them advance any further, e
Although the ringtone and vibration frequency were the ones Jimmy always used, this call somehow felt more urgent, leaving him exceedingly uneasy.When it abruptly stopped and left a missed call on his log, Nate Ellis soon sent a text: [Answer your damn phone this instant!]Just seeing the text left Jimmy feeling like his throat had gone dry, and as he gulped, it felt like his throat was being ripped, leaving him hurting.Still, he couldn't care less as his boss called again.Having seen the text, Jimmy didn't hesitate this time and promptly answered, watching Julien's smug face as he started tentatively, "Y-Yes, boss...?"Nate immediately yelled at him hysterically, "What the hell did you do?! Why did the Rothschilds call to complain about you?! And the complaint was from their heir apparent, at that! I worked hard for them and always toed the line for years, and I still haven't gotten a chance to meet the man, so how the fuck did you upset him?!"Jimmy's heart sank to rock bott
Fuming, Jimmy snapped at Julien, "If you insist on playing it like that, I will call my boss, and you can talk to him yourself!"Julien chuckled. "That's unnecessary. I've never met him. He would never recognize my voice."Jimmy laughed and nodded despite himself. "Impressive—you can really come up with anything! You don't have his number because he's beneath you, you refuse to call him because he's beneath you, and when I say I'll call him for you, you say he won't recognize your voice. Well, how do you suppose we should sort this out? At least prove you're a Rothschild, or anyone could claim that they are—"Julien held up a hand to stop him. "Then, how about this? I'll ask my butler to talk to your boss."Jimmy laughed even more loudly as if it were the best joke ever. "Hahaha!!! Butler, you say?! You really know how to talk! Alright, I'll wait and see what your 'butler' can do… I mean, what you can do. We'll see whether my boss calls me!"Julien ignored him and whipped out his