Chapter 10: Young Master, please grant me your guidance

Words : 1876 Updated : Dec 17th, 2025

After dinner, Jaden Waller left without paying, tugging Melina Shadboult along. The hotel manager didn't dare stop them and simply saw them out. "Is this really okay?" Melina murmured, nerves tightening her voice. "I've never dined and dashed before." "What's not okay?" Jaden said, his tone crisp. "The Farrell family owes me plenty. What's one free meal?" Outside the East Coast Grand Hotel, Melina instinctively hooked her arm through his. The handsome-man, beautiful-woman pairing drew a wave of stares. Guests here were mostly rich or powerful. Plenty of them recognized, at a glance, the peerless beauty who had just walked past-the Shadboult heiress, Melina Shadboult. "Oh my God!" "Am I seeing this right?" "Melina Shadboult is holding a man's arm!" "If someone posts a photo of this online, it'll explode! Jenos is going to blow up tomorrow." "Who's that guy?" "He actually tamed the ice queen Melina!" "My goddess… stolen, just like that!" "Still, they do look perfect together." Jaden only smiled at the envious looks around them. "You killed Finnegan Farrell," Melina said, worry tugging at her brow. "Do you really think the Farrell family will let it go?" She had been anxious through the entire meal. News of Jaden's return must have spread across all of Jenos by now. The Farrell family, the Lyson family, the Munger family, even her own Shadboult family-every one of them would know. What would the Four Great Families do? She couldn't guess and couldn't predict. The thought that Jaden might be walking into danger left her uneasy. "Alright. Go home and get some sleep," Jaden said. "Where are you sleeping tonight?" Melina flushed, voice dropping. "If you don't have a place… you can come to my place…" "Relax. I have a bed," Jaden said, cutting her off. She nodded. "Okay. I'll get going. Rest up." "Mm." Jaden hailed a car for her and watched until it pulled away. Then he caught a cab himself and headed toward Jenos Goldia Mansion. On the way, his phone rang. Aunt Juliet Lashbrook. "Hey, Auntie, what's up?" he asked, curious. It was late. Was someone making trouble again? "Jaden, aren't you coming back to Auntie's place to sleep tonight?" "No, Auntie. I've got a place." "Alright. Take care of yourself and turn in early." "Got it." Juliet Lashbrook only relaxed once she heard he had somewhere to go. Soon, the taxi pulled up to the gates of Jenos Goldia Mansion. The men at the entrance saw Jaden step out and hurried forward. They bowed. "Young Master!" Jaden nodded and walked in. Nier had been waiting in the hall for a while. He came to meet him, head lowered. "Young Master! You're back." "You handled today well," Jaden said as he sat. Nier stood off to the side. "Thank you for the praise, Young Master." He paused. "By the way, tomorrow is the Lyson family head Zayden Lyson's sixtieth birthday. Word is, they invited a lot of prestigious families. Should we send a gift?" "Of course," Jaden said, resting his chin on his hand. "What should we send, Young Master?" "A clock," Jaden said offhandedly. Nier blinked, then caught on. Brilliant. "Understood, Young Master." "Also, the Munger family's daughter is getting married tomorrow," Nier added. "Do we send a clock for that too?" "On a day of joy, how could we send a clock? Too unlucky. Send the Munger family a pair of coffins," Jaden said evenly. "They must be red. Make it festive." Paige Munger's icy face when she came to break off the engagement flashed through his mind. "Understood, Young Master. You always think ahead," Nier said, unable to stop a grin. A clock on a birthday, coffins on a wedding-perfection. As expected of the Young Master. "Young Master, I sent people to dig into the Waller family incident again. Still no leads," Nier reported. "After that night, your father seemed to vanish into thin air. There isn't a single clue. We can't even trace who stormed the Waller estate. Everything was wiped clean." "I know," Jaden said. "If it were that easy to find, I'd have found it two years ago. You can hide for a time, not forever." "Do you think the Four Great Families were involved?" Nier asked. "No." Jaden's eyes were cold. "They don't even qualify. Just a pack of fair-weather clowns. The moment the Waller family fell, they betrayed us, flipped sides, and grabbed our assets. I still remember the Nine Great Families lining up at our door to break engagements. The Four Great Families were the first to come. Even if they had nothing to do with that night, the filth they've done these years is enough for them to die a few times over. Anyone who left the Waller family was suppressed. No company dared hire them, no unit dared take them, all because the Four Great Families meddled behind the scenes." "So I will make them pay. In blood." "Understood." Nier inclined his head. "Young Master, the Right Protector is on his way. Tomorrow, he and I will split up to deliver gifts to the Lyson family and the Munger family. Should we announce your identity in public?" "It's time they knew I'm back," Jaden said, his gaze like ice. "Yes, Young Master." Just then, a man in a black cloak strode in, a longsword in hand. Power rolled off him. "Phantom, paying respects to the Young Master!" he said. "Young Master, this is the Right Protector of Longevity Hall-Phantom," Nier introduced at once. Jaden nodded slowly. Rumor had it the second Protector of Longevity Hall was a battle maniac who loved to duel-settling both victory and life and death with the sword. He was the strongest under the elders, a touch stronger than Nier. "Old Phantom, you finally came," Nier said, bright with the joy of seeing an old friend. "Young Master," Phantom said suddenly, "this subordinate wishes to test your sword. Please grant me your guidance." "Are you out of your mind?" Nier snapped. "In the middle of the night?" Jaden rose and said, "Fine. Make your move." The next second, a slash of black sword qi streaked toward him. Boom! Jaden merely stamped his foot, and the sword qi unraveled. Then he raised two fingers as a blade and cut. Nier darted to Old Phantom's side. Phantom saw the terrifying sword qi coming and stumbled back, panic in his eyes. Too late. He couldn't dodge. In the end, he had to take it head-on. Nier struck out to help. Boom! Even with both of them giving everything they had, they skidded back dozens of meters before they managed to stop. A metallic sweetness flooded their mouths. "Old Phantom," Nier spat, wiping blood from his lips, "next time you want to die, don't drag me with you."

Chapter 10: Young Master, please grant me your guidance

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