*****
"Is—Is this where my parents live now?" Xavier, gaping with eyes wide and jaw dropped with disbelief abruptly mumbled to himself. Following which he trembled all over, acting as though a jolt of electricity had suddenly coursed through him. He couldn’t believe his eyes, so he had to rub them fiercely before looking again; however, the scene before him remained unchanged. It was still the same half-rundown and dilapidated house that appeared long abandoned. This was Xavier’s childhood home, inherited from his grandparents by his father. Despite its livable condition and slightly aged appearance at that time, Xavier felt that the house no longer suited his parents which was why he moved them into a better apartment after he started earning money. Looking at this same apartment now, apart from appearing abandoned, it was surrounded by tall weeds, something nobody had been to in years. *** After staring in a daze for a long time, Xavier finally shook his head vigorously with a deep sigh. "I refuse to accept that this is where my parents now live," he mumbled to himself, clenching his fists and trying to convince himself of his words. Even though he had been informed that his parents had moved out of the house he rented for them and returned to this place a few years ago, Xavier refused to accept it. "Although she stopped loving and caring for me, she wouldn’t be so heartless to my parents, who always loved her like their own daughter!" he mumbled again, trying to convince himself. After this thought crossed his mind, Xavier calmed down slightly and his fear disappeared, then he entered a deep contemplation, wondering how he would get his parent’s new address. Just as Xavier was about to abandon his pride and return to Jennifer to find where his parent now lives, he heard the loud creak of a door opening and he instinctively looked. The next second, his heart stopped working completely and his jaw dropped with astonishment. “That—that is my mother?” he muttered dumbly, almost choking on his words. If the state of the house had left him thunderstruck, seeing the person weakly dragging an axe with her frail, aged hands made Xavier feel as though his soul was being torn from his body. **** Xavier's mother was known for her dedication to maintaining her appearance, always striving to look youthful for Xavier's father so that he wouldn’t be stolen from her by young-blooded maidens. Xavier even used to playfully tease her about whether she was looking for a young man back then, given how well she usually maintained her figure. Now, however, she is almost unrecognizable to Xavier, looking more like his grandmother. The person dragging the axe out of the dilapidated and half-ruined house is an elderly woman with completely grey hair and deeply wrinkled skin. She no longer seemed healthy; instead, she appeared so weak, looking as if she might collapse at any moment. Her dress, though neat, looks heavily worn, and her sandals are tattered at the soles, a sigh that Xavier couldn’t believe no matter what. He continued gaping and before he knew it, two drops of tears rolled down his cheek as the woman finally got near him and he saw her full appearance. At the same time, the frail woman, who was going to chop some wood for her husband’s breakfast, noticed Xavier standing before her and she weakly raised her head, forcefully squinting her eyes to look at him. “Plea—please make way for—for me,” she said weakly, her voice so unfamiliar to Xavier’s ears. Xavier had always believed he was mentally strong, especially after what he experienced the previous day following his return from prison. Now, however, he realized how terribly wrong he was. Tears began to stream down his eyes before he even realized it and after what felt like an eternity of effort, he finally managed to open his heavy mouth. "Mo—mother," he choked out, his voice barely audible and cracking with emotion. Meanwhile, as Laura, who had begun to think that the person blocking her path was one of hers and her husband‘s oppressors, heard the word just spoken, her body trembled uncontrollably. It was as though a bolt of lightning had shot through her body as well. How many years has she heard this word last? Five years! Despite her poor vision, she couldn't help but widen her eyes and study the face of the person standing before her with intense focus. Though it had matured considerably, it was still the same familiar face that had appeared in her dreams every day for the past five years—the face she had thought she might never see again before she died, and the face she had always enjoyed seeing in her dreams, often not wanting to wake up because she knew it would disappear as soon as she did. Laura’s eyes reddened rapidly, and then she shivered hysterically. “So—son?” She carefully inquired with a raspy voice, hoping she wasn’t just daydreaming again. Xavier, seeing his mother like this, also trembled all over, and the tears gushing out of his eyes increased significantly. “It’s me, mother! It’s your son, Xavier. I’ve—I’ve been released!” Xavier finally lost it and wept. “My son?” Laura mumbled to herself in a daze. Although she desperately wished it was true, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was dreaming upon hearing the familiar voice confirm it. She stared blankly at Xavier for a moment before eventually, the axe she was dragging fell from her hand; however, she did not notice. She dragged her legs forward and approached Xavier, then after what felt like an eternity of hesitation and fear that it might not be real, she carefully raised her aged hand and touched the face she had been missing and yearning for over the past five years. The moment she felt the warmth of the body—something she had never experienced when trying to touch it in her dreams—Laura felt overwhelmed and suffocated. “You—you are really my son?” She inquired in a daze, and Xavier, whose tears had now turned into a dam, nodded his head repeatedly. “In flesh and blood, mother!” He responded and this was the last straw that finally broke Laura’s camel’s back. “My son is back!” She mumbled to herself in a stupor. “My—my son is back!” she finally cried out before suddenly slumping down, almost fainting from excessive excitement. Xavier, seeing her falling quickly rushed over and held her tight, not allowing her to fall, but Laura did notice. “Thank you, gods! Thank you for making me see my son at last!” “I’ve—I’ve lost all hope, I really have!” “Thank you!” She mumbled hysterically while sobbing, seeming to have lost her senses. Eventually, she looked back at Xavier, who was watching her with tear-filled, blurry eyes and without even the slightest trace of hesitation, jumped into him and hugged him tightly against herself, acting as though she was going to enter his body.*****Xavier’s eyes were currently bloodshot, looking as though he were going to commit a killing spree.His fists were also tightly clenched, and his breathing had become labored, listening to his mother’s recounting.Initially, Xavier hadn’t lost his sanity at Jennifer’s house because he believed his parents couldn't have had it worse, given that Jennifer had given them the remaining money from selling off his assets. However, he now realized how foolish he had been.Jennifer had really given his parents the remaining money as she claimed, but;"She—she really claimed that the remainder after selling off all my properties and paying for that bastard’s medical expenses is $100?" Xavier, refusing to accept the figure he just heard inquired with a strong tremor, his entire body feeling cold.Seeing her son like this, Laura sighed heavily and thought on the past, recalling how shocked she and her husband had been as well when they learned that Jennifer had sold their son's propert
***** “These demons are here again! Why?” Laura became terrified, hearing the playful and condescending roar. Trembling, she forced herself to her feet and rushed out with a panicky countenance. “Ma—master Frosh Junior, I—I had no idea you were coming today,” she stuttered nervously. Currently standing outside the dilapidated and partially collapsed house was a 17-year-old young man with a small build. He wore a brightly colored outfit consisting of baggy trousers hanging halfway down his butt, an oversized shirt three times his size, and a bandana tied around his head, exuding an air of arrogance. Standing proudly behind the boy was a group of gangsters, all presently glaring at Laura in disdain a disgust. "You old hag, why did you intentionally make elder brother waste his strength calling you? Weren't you supposed to have been out waiting for him?" one of the gangsters behind Frosh Junior abruptly asked as soon as Laura appeared, causing her to shiver from apprehension.
***** Not even in Xavier’s worst nightmares had he expected to witness the scene he saw upon his return. Standing motionlessly, his eyes turned crimson red in an instant, and his body trembled as he unconsciously unleashed a chilling killing intent that seemed capable of destroying the entire world. Although the massive wood he had just chopped and the axe he was carrying had already fallen, Xavier failed to be bothered. No, he did not even notice. He couldn’t believe that someone had dared to make his own mother kneel to them, even seemingly on the verge of hitting her. Shivering all over as if he had been locked inside an iceberg—a sensation he had never experienced even in Irondome prison—Xavier slowly stepped forward. He moved very slowly and almost unconsciously, yet he was already standing before his mother in the blink of an eye. “Mo—mother,” he stuttered, almost choking on his words as his eyes became blurry, staring at his mother kneeling pitifully. As soon as
****** “You lot made my mother kneel before you?" Xavier asked indifferently, finally having time for the gangsters, and unaware of the grave danger they were now in, the gangsters exchanged glances before bursting into laughter. “Yes, what will you do?” Frosh Junior, who was ten years younger than Xavier inquired arrogantly, leaving Xavier, stunned for a moment before his expression returned to being icy cold. “What was my mother’s offense? Why did you make her kneel?” he suddenly inquired, making everyone become astonished for a moment, Frosh Junior included before an even more playful smirk appeared on his lips. “Since you know your place and ask nicely, I will tell you if she hadn’t,” he responded arrogantly before sparing Laura a disgusting glance. “I am the king and protector of this district, meaning that everyone who sees me will need to knee to me, otherwise, they would be beaten to a pulp, the same way you would from now on if you refuse to knee,” he explained oppressive
***** “This…” Laura and Frosh Junior stared dumbly for a moment, refusing to believe their eyes before Frosh Junior‘s face changed. “What are you motherf*ckers doing?!” He growled, glaring ferociously at his fallen men. He became even more infuriated when he saw them trembling on the ground with fear, his eyes turning into the definition of rage. “Are you telling me you can’t even handle a single ex-convict?!” He barked and rushed toward the fallen gangsters, kicking them furiously on the ground. ”Get to your feet now and cripple that bastard for me!” he roared like someone who had lost his sanity, scaring all the gangsters badly. Tremblingly rising back to their feet, they exchanged affright gazes before cautiously grouping and moving closer to Xavier again. Although Xavier didn't say a word and appeared harmless enough for any of them to handle easily, they stared at him warily as if he were a demon king. “These retards. These useless bastards!” Frosh Junior, seeing his
***** “You—” Xavier froze in his tracks and his eyes widened significantly, seeing the scary scene before him. Unlike what Frosh Junior had dreaded that caused him to take Laura hostage, Xavier hadn’t even had him in mind. Instead, he had merely wanted to help his mother back to her feet, yet… Following Xavier’s shock, strong tremors coursed through his body and a cold sweat covered him. He then glanced urgently at his mother, only to find her trembling with a look of horror and helplessness, with sweat rolling down the side of her face as she cautiously watched the knife pressed against her neck. ‘How—how dare he?! How dare he?!! How—how dare he?!!!’ His thoughts raced with rage as he trembled frantically, fixing a death glare on Frosh Junior who has now become relieved—wearing a mockery expression on his face. Following Xavier’s rage, he released a terrifying aura and cast Frosh Junior a death glare that frightened him to the core. Frosh Junior felt another wave of tr
***** The entire world seemed to freeze in an instant and everyone whether on the street, at their home, or at their various workplaces shivered slightly for no reason, some wondering where the sudden coldness originated from. Xavier, the originator of this was currently in a state of disbelief as stared in a daze. His heart had not resumed working and he had long forgotten how to breathe, causing him to experience a suffocating sensation as he stared blankly at his mother’s bloodied neck. This lasted for what felt like an eternity before eventually, he breathed shakily and began to tremble hysterically, looking like someone who had been locked away inside a millennia-year-old iceberg. “No… no… no!” he mumbled frantically to himself, his vacant and lifeless eyes getting filled with dread. “How could this be?!” He finally let out a painful cry that sounded like that of an injured king of the jungle, making all the hearers feel a strong heartache. The two gangsters who ha
***** For the second time in just a matter of minutes, Frosh Junior finally felt the true sense of fear and death gripping his heart, but this time, very close and there was no way he could dodge it. “Help!!!!!” He suddenly cried out before he could stop himself, something he had never thought he would do in his life. Xavier’s eyes grew several times colder seeing this, then he decided to waste no more time when without any forewarning, the sound of rushed footsteps echoed, followed by confused voices. He slowly lifted his head just in time to see the once-empty street becoming filled with a confused crowd of people who immediately stopped in their tracks upon seeing the scene before them. Xavier quickly recognized the newcomers as the residents of the street. “You really think those people would be able to stop me?” he slowly asked with a voice heavily laced with derision as he glanced back at Frosh Junior. The very next second, his eyes hardened with viciousness. “You c
*****The atmosphere in the conference room was so stifling at this moment, the tension so thick it was almost tangible, as every eye remained locked on Lucius. “He… he is really young master Lucius?” one of the representatives stuttered.“What’s he doing here?” Another murmured in a daze.“Wasn’t he the one who ordered our various companies to pressure Sky Group?”“Or… could he be here to finish them off?”Murmurs spread among the representatives, their confusion evident in their wary glances at Lucius, trying to decipher the reason behind Lucius’s presence.Grace, however, remained outwardly indifferent, though her heart churned with a mix of nervousness, confusion, and suspicion.‘What’s he doing here again?’ she wondered, her cold gaze on him. ‘Didn’t I already make it clear to him yesterday that I would never have anything to do with him again?’Finally, Mason.He still appeared utterly dumbfounded right now. His earlier fury completely vanished, replaced by an overwhe
*****The atmosphere in the conference room was so stifling at this moment, the tension so thick it was almost tangible, as every eye remained locked on Lucius. “He… he is really young master Lucius?” one of the representatives stuttered.“What’s he doing here?” Another murmured in a daze.“Wasn’t he the one who ordered our various companies to pressure Sky Group?”“Or… could he be here to finish them off?”Murmurs spread among the representatives, their confusion evident in their wary glances at Lucius, trying to decipher the reason behind Lucius’s presence.Grace, however, remained outwardly indifferent, though her heart churned with a mix of nervousness, confusion, and suspicion.‘What’s he doing here again?’ she wondered, her cold gaze on him. ‘Didn’t I already make it clear to him yesterday that I would never have anything to do with him again?’Finally, Mason.He still appeared utterly dumbfounded right now. His earlier fury completely vanished, replaced by an overwhe
*****The tension in the conference room was suffocating at this moment, a taut silence following Xavier's nonchalant words. “Again?” one of the representatives whispered, their astonishment breaking the stillness.Suppose the representatives had initially dismissed Xavier’s earlier remarks as a slip of the tongue or some misunderstanding, his repeated references to Grace as his wife left no room for doubt, the weight of this revelation, striking them like a tidal wave.Their eyes instinctively turned to Grace, knowing that if she had failed to hear Xavier before, she must have heard him clearly now. To their shock, however, her expression remained composed—eerily calm.This lack of denial instantly deepened the representatives’ confusion, and they exchanged dumbstruck glances, as though they’d just stumbled upon a secret capable of shaking the very foundations of the world.‘Grace is married?’ all thought in unison, their hearts pounding at this revelation.Mason, Honey, and
*****The conference room was still as death right now, the air heavy with tension.All eyes continued darting between Mason, who currently stood in stunned silence, acting as though he had just eaten a bunch of flies, and the handsome newcomer, who had just casually stridden in, exuding confidence, his easy demeanor somehow commanding attention.Different thoughts went through the representatives’ minds and their confusion cackled like static in the silence.This continued for what felt like an eternity until finally;“Hmph!” Honey broke the spell with a derisive snort.“What’s a nobody like you doing here?” Her voice dripped with disdain, fury, darkness, and coldness.“Huh…” The representatives blinked, stunned.‘Was he really not the powerful backer that brat had been arrogant about?’They thought, the realization hitting them like a punch.In the next instant, all their attention swung back to Mason, whose face was now a shade of crimson—embarrassment, anger, and disbeli
*****“So, President Mason, you said we only needed to wait a minute. It’s been almost three hours now since then. What exactly are we waiting for?” One of the representatives asked without standing up, now showing his complete disregard for Mason and the entire Sky group as a whole.While the question sounded as polite as possible, it was tinged with simmering frustration and unhappiness.They had thought that having been made to return to his senses, Mason would at least try to address them now, but contrary to their thoughts;Mason, slouched arrogantly in the president’s chair, shot the speaker a venomous glare, his irritation still lingering from his earlier defeat in the video game.“Then get the hell out of my company if you can’t wait again!” he snapped, his tone as sharp as broken glass.“This…” Everyone flinched, following which a stunned silence fell over the room, the representatives staring at Mason, their jaws slack with disbelief.“P-President Mason…” one of them
*****Back in Sky Group.“President Mason, what exactly are we waiting for?”The voice of Praise, one of the representatives suddenly cut through the heavy silence that had settled over the conference room like an oppressive fog, her question echoing what everyone in the room had been thinking for the past hour as their patience eroded like sand in an unforgiving tide.As soon as her voice sounded, all eyes immediately darted toward Mason, who had returned over an hour ago only to slump lazily in the president’s chair, hunched over his cell phone, completely absorbed in a video game.That’s right.One would have thought he would have addressed the room after his return, but no. As though he wasn’t the one they were waiting for, he had been frantically playing the video game since his return, his thumbs clicking rapidly across the screen of his cell phone, sweat glistening on his brow, as though he were locked in a life-or-death struggle in the virtual world.….“Die! Just die
*****”Young… young master,” a trembling voice abruptly broke the silence inside a lavish hotel room.The speaker was a flushed, naked woman who was currently sprawled across a king-sized bed, gazing up with watery eyes, her breath shallow and uneven.Perched on the edge of the bed, Lucius—equally unclothed—was just setting down his phone.His sharp, cold eyes immediately flicked toward the naked lady, and in the next instant, his expression darkened with unrestrained disgust.“Snap out of it already, you whore!” he barked, his voice cutting through the intimate atmosphere like a whip.“This…” The lady jolted as though slapped, the haze in her eyes dissipating like the wind.She stared at Mason in bewilderment, unsure how the man who had just shared a heated moment with her—whom they were just planning another round together could transform so quickly.She couldn’t react for a moment, but then recalling that this was how Lucius always turned cold and dismissive after getting wh
*****For a brief moment after Mason shattered the palpable tension in the room, silence reigned, everyone staring dazedly at him, frozen in disbelief.This stillness stretched on, only to be broken by the nervous shuffling of the representatives, who hastily wiped the beads of sweat from their brows, their gazes flitting nervously toward Grace, her earlier icy demeanor still fresh in their minds.‘As expected of the Ice Goddess,’ they thought uneasily, recalling the sheer weight of the presence she had released from a mere question alone.‘No wonder no one else from the company dared come, no matter what bonuses were promised,’ some of them thought, swallowing hard.Grace, meanwhile, sat motionless, her gaze fixated on Mason with a mixture of confusion and incredulity.She had been moments away from taking control of the situation, fully prepared to salvage what she could—even when she knew perfectly well that she’d ultimately lose the company to Mason.‘Why would he do that?’ th
***** At first, Grace had been deeply shaken by the coordinated actions of the partner companies, whose perfectly timed decisions to cut ties and demand repayment of debts seemed almost too calculated. The coincidence had been heavily weighing on her mind, and this was what she had been trying to process when Mason's sudden accusation hit her like a bolt of lightning. His words left her momentarily stunned. But as she regained her composure, her gaze fixed on Mason, her eyes narrowing, and her expression turning cold and resolute. “You… seriously believe I’d sabotage the company I’ve spent my life building?” she asked, her voice sharp and frosty, cutting through the charged silence like a blade. “What will a desperate witch not do?” A derisive snort responded, drawing everyone’s attention to the speaker, Honey, who was currently glaring venomously at Grace, her lips curling with spite. Grace’s brows immediately knitted with dissatisfaction. “What do you mean?” She ask