“I figured that if you guys could get along well, I wouldn’t interfere. Now, it looks like things aren’t as straightforward as I thought.” Darius’ eyes were frosty as he looked Yarlyn in the eye. A few seconds later, he suddenly exhaled and started gasping for breath. Darius’ face softened. “Welcome back, Shelvin.”Shelvin coughed violently, putting a hand on the wall to keep himself upright as he nodded. “Thank you, Mr. Reid. I wouldn’t have made it back alive if not for you.” His eyes were red from his coughing fit. “The bastard used his black life force to suffocate me. I’m nothing but a ball of consciousness, but I almost died of asphyxiation! Do you know how humiliating that is? It looks like I was being too merciful toward his son.” As he spoke, he turned to walk back into the room.Darius didn’t budge. He frowned and watched Shelvin storm off. Shelvin was injured—at least, his supply of life force had been cut off earlier—and should’ve been extremely weak at the moment. Besi
Darius raised an eyebrow, looking surprised. “I’m surprised you’re so open-minded.” He smiled in satisfaction. “I didn’t expect this. It’s rare that I’m pleased, so I’ll reward you for this.” William looked pleasantly surprised at his words, making him smile again. “Your attitude surprises me every time.”William didn’t say anything, but the smile on his face widened. Darius leaned back and took a deep breath. “If that’s the case, I promise you that I won’t bear a grudge against your family for everything that’s happened before today. I’ll wipe the slate clean.”William’s eyes widened. Darius raised an eyebrow, thinking about how different William was from his sister, Calypso. From what he’d seen so far, every member of the Anderson family placed great importance on relationships and emotional bonds—whether familial or not—but Calypso seemed to be the exception to this. The only person she cared about was herself. He didn’t linger on these thoughts for long; it wasn’t any of his bus
Darius raised an eyebrow, shrugged, and smiled. “I still don’t trust you. If the Reid Consortium were to acquire the Anderson Group, how would it be different from being sold off by Calypso? Either way, it’ll end up belonging to someone else, and the Anderson family will no longer be independent.”William’s eyes turned redder as he said anxiously, “Please, stop saying that. I’m telling you nothing but the truth! Besides, the two situations are completely different! The Anderson family has been around for many years, but it’s only become what it is now through my hard work. Obviously, Calypso couldn’t care less about that—that’s why she’s taking advantage of my absence to sell my heart and soul. And if the company were to be sold to anyone but you, the Anderson name will forever be forgotten. I can’t live with that.” He trained his gaze on Darius without any hesitation.Though William seemed to be moving in slow motion in Darius’ eyes, his instinct as an enlightened martial artist told
At the same time, she turned to look at Darius. When Erin saw the calm look on his face, she knew she’d guessed correctly and gulped. After a long moment, she asked, “William isn’t out of his mind, is he?”Darius shook his head and sighed. “He’s too worried about his daughter.” He turned to look at a corner of the Anderson family’s villa despite it being too far away for them to see anything. A few seconds later, he said, “Hurry up.”The chauffeur nodded. “Yes, sir.” He put the pedal to the metal, and they shot forward so quickly that Erin was pressed onto her seat due to the momentum. Less than a minute later, they arrived at the villa, which was more than a mile away. Darius raised an eyebrow and silently gave the chauffeur a thumbs-up.William Anderson was lying on the ground, and Darius couldn’t sense his breathing because too many people surrounded him. He got out of the car, walked to William, and saw his chest rise weakly. The bodyguards didn’t know who he was, but they could
His comrades had abandoned him mid-fight! His breathing sped up, but he didn’t change his mind. He pointed at them and roared, “You’re all weak, cowardly, good-for-nothings! Look at the clothes he’s wearing—they’re obviously cheap and low quality, which means he lives in squalor. Don’t you guys even have the nerve to beat up a poor and powerless man? I’m humiliated to be associated with you guys!”He turned back to Darius. This time, his gaze was appraising. He looked Darius up and down, then cleared his throat and said, “Brat, I’ll give you a word of advice—the Anderson family’s wealthier than you could imagine, and Miss Calypso’s gotten to know plenty of wealthy people recently. They’ve invested in the Anderson family, and we’ve even gotten pay raises. You have no hope of winning against them!” His tone was resolute, and he was obviously proud to say this.Darius raised an eyebrow and smiled. “You may be right, but there’s one thing you’ve gotten wrong—the Anderson family might not
Darius let go of him, crossed his arms, and took a few steps back while looking at him mockingly. “I thought you’d realize what a huge mistake you made and apologize to me.”William gaped at him. He didn’t know what to say, so he remained silent, merely lowering his eyes to the ground.When Darius saw he wasn’t willing to say anything, even in such a situation, he didn’t push him. Instead, he turned to walk into the villa. The bodyguards made to stop him again, but they stiffened when he stopped. Then, he stretched out an arm and sent some life force their way, forming fists with it and landing blows on them. They immediately collapsed onto the ground, and Darius smiled. No one dared to speak, including William. He merely followed Darius into the villa.Contrary to Darius’ expectations, William didn’t trail him for long. Once they were in the villa, he immediately headed toward the staircase. Darius wanted to stop him but ultimately didn’t—William had moved too quickly. And so, Dari
“He might be in a lot of danger now because he’s useless to those people.”“Those people?” Darius raised an eyebrow, looking curious. “Who are you talking about?”Kate looked hesitant, but she quickly made up her mind and said, “I don’t know either. All I know is they were in black robes.”Darius frowned. He buried his confusion and placed a hand on Kate’s arm. “Got it. I’ll save your uncle, but you and your father need to get out of here.”Kate relaxed at his promise, then turned to look at William. “Dad, let’s go. I trust Darius. Now that he’s promised me, he’ll definitely save Uncle Benji.” William nodded and turned to look at Darius with a complicated gaze. He parted his lips to ask for more details but ultimately decided against it.Darius said calmly, “Don’t worry, Benji will be fine. You two will only cause more trouble for me if you stay.” After that, he turned away from them to face the people who’d gathered outside the room.Calypso was in the lead, and she looked at Willia
This time, however, Calypso had a pleading look in her eyes. William frowned and moved to stand behind Kate, using her to block Calypso’s gaze. Instantly, Calypso’s eyes widened, and her breathing sped up.Darius smiled. “Alright, we have a definite answer now—your brother isn’t going to save you.”Calypso pursed her lips tightly and turned to face Darius. Her eyes darted around crazily as she tried to figure out what Darius meant. Darius’ smile widened as he said, “You’ve given up hope by now, right? Are you ready to tell me everything?” His tone wasn’t dangerous or threatening, making Calypso’s heart settle in her chest again. She said shakily, “Let go of me, and I’ll allow you to leave. I can act as if none of this happened.”Darius raised an eyebrow, and the look on his face became mocking. “Honestly, you’re dumber than I thought.” His disdain made her eyes bulge. “I’m not blind—I saw every minute change in your expression. Come now, let’s have a nice chat.” He looked her in the