Ch. 311..320

Chapter 311 Awesome Decision

Liana had an arrogant attitude not too long ago, but now she was as lousy as she could be. Before Catherine could decide, Ronin spoke first, his smiles full of sarcasm and his gaze cold enough to penetrate Liana’s heart like a sword.

“What? You start begging for mercy now, huh? Are you afraid? Liana, weren’t you arrogant just now? You incited the others to join in the criticism of Catherine. How come you’re not being arrogant now? Why don’t you continue?”

Liana knew she was now at a disadvantage and didn’t dare to speak, worrying that irritating Ronin would be even more disadvantageous. One had to know that Catherine was nicer to Ronin, an outsider than she was to any of them.

Ronin was unhappy with Liana but even more with the people making a fuss together. He stood beside Catherine with his chin held high, eyes sweeping the class with contempt.

“You guys are smart, righteous, and eager to help. Now that Liana has lost her words, why don’t you guys help speak up for her?”

With Liana’s appearance, anyone with the slightest judgment could tell she had a guilty conscience.

Otherwise, why would she beg Catherine? Anyone who wasn’t too stupid could figure out what was going on here.

Keeping silent now was to protect themselves, and they naturally wouldn’t stand up for Liana at this time.

Seeing the true colors of these people, Ronin couldn’t help but make another sarcastic comment, the kind that was directed at the whole class.

“Humph, you change your mind so easily and have no judgment at all. That’s all you guys got, huh? How ridiculous!”

Some students lowered their heads in embarrassment, while others were unconvinced by Ronin’s scolding. They were spoiled at home and were unwilling to be scolded. Therefore, someone directly stood out to refute it.

However, after learning about the situation, the student directly targeted Liana.

“Liana, why don’t you say anything? You accused Catherine of plotting against your brother and asked us to stand up for you to get justice. Why do you give up halfway now? Are you being threatened by Catherine, or do you have a secret? Say something, now! Stop using us and letting us take the rap for you.”

After this student finished speaking, some others immediately spoke up for him.

“That’s right. You should give us an explanation!”

“In my opinion, she’s probably using us. She usually looks like a delicate young lady, but she’s not that kind in her heart.”

“An angelic bitch, for sure. Liana had never suffered such hostility from her classmates. It had always been her who incited them against others.

This was the first time she had been targeted, and she was so angry that she wanted to kill Catherine right now. She knew that this was what Catherine was up to. She didn’t make a response herself but instead got Ronin to incite everyone to strike her down.

“Catherine is too ruthless! She wants to bring me down once and for all,” thought Liana. If Liana were to retort now, not to mention what Catherine would do, just this group of brainless classmates could kill her.

Therefore, the only thing she could do now was to stay silent and do nothing, waiting until the right time to counterattack.

With her head lowered and red eyes, Liana bit her lower lip tightly without responding and looked pathetic.

Seeing this, Ronin was about to explode with anger. He whispered to Catherine.

“Catherine, the girl is still playing pitiful even now. Those who don’t know would think that we bullied her. She’s so hateful!”

Then he added. “Catherine, let me tell you. This girl has such talent. It’s really a pity that she doesn’t engage in acting. Don’t you think so?”

Catherine lazily looked up and glanced in Liana’s direction, just in time to see the hostility crossing the corner of Liana’s eye. She silently sneered in her heart.

“Don’t give me the chance to embarrass you if you are capable of doing so!” said Catherine inwardly.

Liana had really learned their mother’s tricks very well, but unfortunately, her skills were not as smart as their mother’s.

As a result, whenever she jumped out to make a scene, she would be defeated and humiliated. Not only did she not take advantage of the situation, but she also made a mess of herself.

If she genuinely felt sorry for Johnathan and came to Catherine to plead for mercy, Catherine might have thought highly of Liana.

But the purpose of Liana’s behavior today was too obvious. She was here to get Catherine in trouble, so Catherine, of course, shouldn’t be blamed for hitting back at her.

Because of this commotion, the class was thrown into disarray. Just a moment ago, the students were all targeting Catherine, but now they were all pointing fingers at Liana. The homeroom teacher was having a headache. She didn’t understand how kids could be so rowdy nowadays.

She tapped the table behind her, focusing everyone’s attention.” Alright, now everyone can see. This is Catherine and her family’s business, so don’t get involved and make a scene!”

After the homeroom teacher finished speaking, she said sternly to Liana, ‘ Liana, this is the class, so please don’t get your family’s matters into the class in the future. This affects the learning of the whole class. Understand?”

After being a top student for so many years, it was the first time that a teacher had lectured Liana. She couldn’t hold back her grievances, and tears poured down from her eyes.

The homeroom teacher, however, didn’t buy it and even rolled her eyes at Liana. In her opinion, if Liana hadn’t made a scene, how would it have gotten to this point?

She couldn’t understand why Liana had to target Catherine all day long. After all, they were sisters related by blood.

This way, not only did the two sisters not get along with each other, but they also disturbed the class order, which she couldn’t tolerate the most.

After speaking to Liana, the homeroom teacher turned to comfort Catherine, her attitude much better than earlier.

“Catherine, since the students are clear that you were wrongly accused, let’s end this matter for now, okay? You can go back and discuss it with Liana later. Let’s continue with the lesson first, shall we?”

The homeroom teacher’s tone carried a sense of negotiation and was not tough. She knew that this matter, most likely, was not Catherine’s fault.

Catherine didn’t want to affect the learning of the whole class. Only Liana would make a fuss over such a trivial matter. However, she didn’t want to let Liana off so easily.

Since Liana wanted to embarrass her so badly, she had to do something in response in order not to let Liana down for putting on such a good show.

“Okay, let’s put an end to this matter for now. But I don’t think it’s good for Liana to disrupt the class like this. What if the others follow her example?”

Liana’s eyes suddenly widened when she heard Catherine’s words. She initially thought that this matter had already been settled, but she didn’t expect that Catherine wouldn’t let her off the hook.

The homeroom teacher, however, felt that Catherine’s words were somewhat reasonable, and what she feared the most was the others following the terrible examples.

The country had its laws, and the class had its rules. This couldn’t be changed.

“It makes sense.” The homeroom teacher looked at Liana seriously and announced the punishment. She said, ” Liana, you’ll stand in the last row during this class as a punishment!”

Ronin couldn’t have been happier to hear it and clapped his hands. ” Teacher, awesome decision!”

Liana’s face darkened in anger when she saw this, but she couldn’t do anything to Ronin.

Chapter 312 Classmates

The bell for the end of class finally rang. Liana never thought standing for a whole class could be so exhausting. Both of her legs were numb.

As soon as the homeroom teacher left, she stiffly walked toward her desk. She was eagerly waiting for class to be over, and so was Ronin.

“Catherine said that we should respect our teachers.

“Although these teachers might not be able to teach us much, they were still teachers, so they deserve respect.

“During class hours, it is unacceptable to cause disturbances that disrupt the teacher’s teaching or distract the classmates.

“I’m the most obedient to Catherine, so naturally, I can’t go against her wishes, “thought Ronin.

Catherine saw the subtle hints that Ronin was giving her. Ronin constantly made funny faces and winked as if he were worried that Catherine wouldn’t notice.

Catherine knew that Ronin was eager to engage in a fight. As long as Ronin didn’t hurt himself, Catherine was not interested in bothering with him.

“Liana was annoying, but that was totally on her,” thought she. She couldn’t be bothered with it and left Ronin to handle it himself.

After receiving a response from Catherine, Ronin was all fired up and ready to take action. Liana walked toward her seat. Just as she was about to sit down, someone secretly snatched her chair away.

Without any precautions, Liana almost fell flat on her face. She angrily stood up and looked at Ronin on the side, cursing with a red face full of anger, “Ronin Oconnor, is there any point in doing this?”

Ronin just shrugged, spread his hand, and looked at Liana with a confident and righteous expression.

“Liana, please be reasonable. What did I do to receive such words from you?”

Seeing Ronin’s attitude, Liana got furious. All her anger exploded in that moment. “Ronin, as a man, you pulled my chair to make me fall. You dared to do it but can’t even admit it?”

“Haha!” Ronin sneered. “Just because you claim that I did it, I must admit? When stating accusations, one must provide evidence. Do you have any?”

“Evidence? That’s easy..

“It’s break time. There’s no way that not a single person in the whole class noticed it,” said Liana inwardly.

She looked around to find some witnesses for herself. She noticed that other classmates either had their heads down or were mocking her, showing no intention of helping her at all.

Liana was about to glance at her deskmate, but when she turned around, she saw her deskmate pretending to sleep on the desk with such poor acting.

Just now, Liana dragged everyone down to deal with Catherine. She knew exactly what was going on, but she intentionally got everyone to join in opposing Catherine.

Fortunately, the homeroom teacher stepped in. If Catherine had insisted on an explanation, Liana would have implicated everyone. Everyone was so pissed off at Liana right now, so why would anyone want to help her?

Liana was so angry that she gritted her teeth while Ronin laughed heartily.

This contrast was so ironic.

Ronin snorted and glared coldly at Liana.

“What? No evidence, right? Let me tell you, you can eat whatever you want, but be careful what you say, or I’ll sue you!”

Liana glared angrily at Ronin, who was jumping up and down in front of her. She knew this must be Catherine’s idea. “Ronin always listened to Catherine.

Without her permission, how could Ronin trouble me like this?” said she inwardly. She directed all her grievances at Catherine and was so angry to the point of losing her rationality that she confronted Catherine directly.

“Catherine, you’re so shady. You pretend to be nice on the surface but order Ronin to mess with me. Why are you so evil?”

Ronin didn’t expect Liana to be so shameless. “It was clearly me who had a conflict with her, yet she blamed it on Catherine,” thought he.

This really pissed off Ronin. He didn’t care what Liana thought and confronted her directly.

“Hey, just come for me. Why get Catherine involved? Can’t you see her resting? If you bother her, don’t blame me for being rude!”

“Humph, some pretentious bitch is absolutely disgusting!” The tone of Liana was indescribably sarcastic. If it weren’t for the dominance of Catherine, Liana might have already cursed it out.

No matter how harshly Ronin tried to confront her, Liana ignored him entirely and directed her anger toward Catherine.

Catherine had initially intended to nap, but unexpectedly, someone was constantly chattering beside her. Finally, she showed a reaction.

She lazily opened her eyes and lifted her eyelids, revealing those mesmerizing eyes. A cold gaze fell upon Liana. For a moment, Liana froze, her breath completely halting.

But soon, she reacted and pretended to stay calm as she locked eyes with Catherine. Although she was scared inside, she still looked very defiant.

She couldn’t believe that Catherine would hit her in front of so many people. Catherine wouldn’t hit Liana, not because she was afraid, but because she was just too lazy to bother with Liana. She looked at Liana coldly and said, ” Before doing anything, ask yourself whether you deserve it or not!”

This sentence didn’t cause much harm, but it was highly insulting. Liana had a stubborn and indignant look but held her anger in earlier.

Now, she was totally overwhelmed by anger. Her expression alternated between red and white, which was amusing. The statement from Catherine was humiliating. She ripped Liana’s dignity off and stomped on it on the ground.

That was not all, Catherine added coldly.

“I suggest you take it easy, considering that nobody in our class has a taste for jerks!”

After listening to Catherine’s retort, Ronin stood on the side and applauded continuously.

“Catherine, you rock! That was an awesome speech!”

“The ability to humiliate people without using any vulgar language and to leave people speechless was only possessed by Catherine,” thought he.

Under the mocking gaze of the entire class, Liana couldn’t take it anymore and ran out of the classroom to hide. She hadn’t come back until the classes were over in the afternoon.

It was time to finish school, and Ronin’s thoughts began to stir. With a smirk, he leaned in toward Catherine and gave her a pleasing look.

“Catherine, let’s have a barbecue together tonight. It’s been a long time since we had a meal together.”

These words were indeed true. Since Branden started cooking at home, Catherine rarely ate outside.

Whenever Branden was available, he would come to pick Catherine up after school, and then they would go to his apartment first.

After having dinner, Catherine would return to Audrey’s apartment to rest. Sometimes, she was too lazy to walk and slept at Branden’s apartment.

Catherine looked sideways at Ronin and said, “Think about what day it is today!”

Ronin was caught off guard and glanced at his phone before realizing it. He totally forgot about it. Now, it was not the same as before.

He came to study with Catherine, and for him, this period was all about self- cultivation. He had nothing to do every day and even lost track of time.

“Come on, Catherine! You can do it!”

“Okay!” Catherine slightly nodded as she slung her backpack on one shoulder and walked away. Ronin couldn’t help but stare in a daze at Catherine’s back as she walked away. He felt like Catherine had been acting differently lately.

But he couldn’t put into words what had explicitly changed. Perhaps the only adequate description would be that Catherine gave him a sense of ordinary people.

For the first time, Ronin felt it would be the right decision to let Catherine return to the Swanns.

Chapter 313 Boxing Match

Just as Catherine walked out of the school gate, she received a phone call from Branden. Without hesitation, she casually picked her phone up and put it next to her ear.

A melodic male voice came through the telephone, warming her ears.

‘School’s out, right?” asked Branden.

“Mhmm!” Catherine lazily responded.

“Some businesses came up last minute. I won’t be able to pick you up today. Should I send a driver to take you back home?”

The driver would be waiting at the school gate anytime if Catherine wanted. The condition was that she agreed.

Catherine replied coldly, “No need. I have plans for tonight, too!”

“What plans?”

“None of your business” was something that Catherine originally wanted to say, but when it came to her lips, she changed it to something else.

“I am going to rehearse with Ronin and Bryan!”

Branden had no intention of interfering with Catherine’s business, as he understood that Catherine disliked being confined.

If the burden of her shackles became too heavy, she could leave anytime without even bothering to say goodbye.

“Take care of yourself. Give me a call if anything goes wrong!” said Branden. After listening to Branden’s instructions, Catherine hung up the phone and walked into the nearby alley.

In the depths of the narrow alley stood a house. Catherine pressed the app on her phone, and the electric shutter door of the house opened automatically.

Only a silver-black motorcycle was parked on the first floor of the spacious house. Sunshine was shining on the body of the motorcycle, making it dazzling.

Catherine elegantly executed a leg sweep and straddled this sleek silver- black motorcycle with ease.

“Boom, boom, boom…”

As the throttle accelerated instantly, the motorcycle emitted a low roar, resembling the roar of a dormant dragon suddenly awakening.

Catherine released the accelerator, and the car shot out at lightning speed. Her stunning figure left a lasting impression, leaving people in awe.

At a remote village on the outskirts of Casier. No one would have thought a giant black market was hidden underneath this remote village.

Every Tuesday, there was going to be a boxing match here. In the black market, boxing was commonly referred to as black boxing.

Two strong men with bare upper bodies were fiercely fighting on a platform of several square feet.

Punch for punch, each one landed on flesh. The dull sound of the collision of fists excited the nerves of everyone present.

They shouted, roared, and cheered as if they had gone mad…

“Fight, you wimp. Knock down that pussy!”

Where there was a competition, there was going to be some gambling going on. People loved to place bets. As the player lost, the audience who lost money started to curse crazily.

They took out their frustration from losing at boxing on the failed player, even doubting themselves for betting on such a wimp. The loser was lying in a pool of blood, all beaten up.

No one would feel sorry for him, and no one would want to help him. Those spectators who lost the gamble couldn’t wait to go up and tear him up.

The worst of human nature was unleashed to the extreme, laid bare for all to see without restraint. Regulars here knew that the seemingly brutal boxing matches were just an appetizer.

Next, there would be even more brutal things happening. With time, everything would only become increasingly cruel and also more stimulating.

After the first round of boxing came the second round. Unlike the first round, where the players were evenly matched, the second round of boxing was more exciting and brutal.

On the left stood a tall and sturdy guy about 6 feet tall. On the right side was a short, thin, pale guy who looked like a malnourished little boy. To the discerning eye, these seemingly mismatched players were not at all peculiar in this boxing match.

The vast difference between the two players’ strengths stimulated the audience’s senses, and the odds for this round were 1 to 10.

If they placed a wager on the victory of the young boy, they could receive a payout that was ten times their initial bet.

Although there was a significant difference in the betting odds, which was very tempting, no one was willing to place a bet on a skinny little boy.

As soon as the bell rang, the match officially began. The tall player took the initiative to attack. He silently counted down in his mind, wanting to end the game as quickly as possible.

“Bang!” With one punch, the young boy fell to the ground. Everyone seemed unsurprised by this outcome. Not even a cheer was heard.

At the very top of the audience area, , an exclusive box was reserved for the elite VIPS. This was a place reserved for a small number of highly distinguished guests.

A man was shaking the red wine glass in his hand. On his cold, pale, handsome face, a pair of feminine eyes revealed a chilling smile. With a deep and eerie voice, he said, 11 What a pity, this little guy looks pretty good!”

Right after his words, a cold female voice came from the darkness.

“Not really!”

Unlike the gentle and softness of the man’s voice, the woman’s voice had a unique icy and bone-shivering coldness. She slowly walked out from the shadow and raised her head, revealing a stunning face that took everyone’s breath away.

“What do you mean?” The man asked curiously. It wasn’t because the boy on the stage had changed his mind, but because he knew the woman beside him never took risks without being sure.

What she said was usually the truth. Faced with her friend’s inquiry, Catherine did not know how to respond and lazily uttered one word.

“Intuition!”

Then, she stared at the activity on the stage below and watched the confrontation happening there. After being knocked down, the little boy didn’t completely give up.

He struggled for a while before getting up. The big guy’s fist was indeed powerful. It hit him so hard that he couldn’t stand straight.

The big guy didn’t even bat an eye at the little boy, who managed to get back on his feet. He already accepted the ending in his heart. All he wanted to do was break his own record of game time.

So he didn’t even hesitate for a second and quickly threw a punch, wanting to knock the little boy down completely with another punch.

As the tall dude threw another punch, everyone thought that this would be the moment to determine the winner. To everyone’s surprise, the big guy’s fist missed its target.

Taking advantage of his short height, the little dude swiftly crouched down and narrowly avoided the punch. Laughter filled the air from the audience as they constantly mocked.

This move pissed off the big guy. He threw another punch quickly, planning to teach the boy a lesson.

Although the little boy was weak and thin, he was very agile, just like a monkey jumping up and down. He never allowed the big guy to catch him and even made him dizzy.

Upstairs in the VIP room, the man holding a glass of red wine finally understood what Catherine had just said.

He curiously looked toward Catherine and asked, “Cassie, how did you know that the boy intentionally took the punch to lower the opponent’s guard?”

He was the owner of this boxing gym, Sean Scott.

Over the years, he had watched more than a thousand matches. Had he failed to discern the boy’s ploy from the outset, he undoubtedly had a complete understanding of it by now.

This little boy was adventurous and took a punch from the big guy to get a sense of the opponent’s techniques while catching him off guard.

Next came the real confrontation, but what perplexed Sean was how Catherine could see through it at first glance.

“Her ability is truly formidable!” thought he.

Chapter 314 I Want Him

The big guy was repeatedly circled by the young boy, becoming exhausted from the constant spinning. Not only did he fail to lay a hand on the boy, but he also became increasingly furious.

He started to go crazy and vent his anger by smashing in the air. Although the young boy was agile, the big guy possessed great strength. The boy struggled to keep up and narrowly escaped danger several times.

With a composed expression, Catherine calmly observed the scene on the stage. When she saw the young boy maneuvering behind the big guy and preparing for a daring leap, she knew that the outcome of this match had already been decided.

The little boy leaped down from a high place and struck directly at the big guy’s weakest point on top of the head with great force. The big guy was covered in muscles. There was no weak spot except the soft spot on the top of his head.

He was too tall for most people to reach. After observing him for a long time, the young boy finally spotted his weakness.

With a loud bang, the big guy dropped to the ground. Right at the very last moment before he fell, he struck aggressively.

The little boy was also knocked down to the ground. A mouthful of blood spurted out, staining the stage red.

The host started the countdown. Now, it was a matter of who could get up first and stand for a bit longer. The timer was ticking away second by second. Each tick set the hearts of everyone present aflutter.

In the audience seats, all the audience was shouting, hoping that the big guy would stand up because only in this way could they win money. The big guy shook his head hard, trying to get up but falling again before he could get up.

The little boy climbed up easily. He stood up slowly and resolutely. Even though his body swayed like a kite about to fall from the sky, he still stood up.

The countdown was about to end. The little boy snatched the win despite all the teasing from the peanut gallery.

His victory signified the defeat of many people present. The audience crowd wouldn’t accept it and started chucking their water bottles at the little boy on stage.

The little boy standing in the center of the stage appeared like an isolated and helpless puppet, subject to the whims and taunts of the audience.

His face had no expression of joy, even though he had won the game. Because even if he won the match, the prize money wouldn’t be his. He was just a tool here. He was just a tool to collect money.

Catherine’s skills in judging people blew Sean away.

“Cassie, you’re amazing! You just made a bet at one to ten. Your odds were one million dollars, and now you have ten million dollars in your account. That’s impressive!”

Ten million dollars was nothing to them, but the meaning was different.

It felt awesome. Catherine glanced at Sean sideways, pressed her cap brim down a bit lower, and then made a handsome flip, jumping straight down from the second floor.

Sean didn’t even have the time to ask where she was going before Catherine’s graceful figure disappeared from his sight.

The little boy slowly descended from the stage. His employer approached and patted him on the shoulder while showing a mouthful of golden teeth and exclaiming with great joy, “Not bad, Tyler. Keep making me more money, and I won’t mistreat you.”

His palm slapped onto the little boy’s body with increasing force each time. Despite his battered body, the little boy gritted his teeth and held on after enduring the repetitive slap.

Seeing that he was unwilling to submit, the employer’s mischievous instincts soared. He raised his hand high, getting ready to give a solid slap to make Tyler kneel in front of him..

He slammed his big hand down, and his large hand was about to strike the young boy.

Suddenly! A strong wind swept by, and someone caught the employer’s hand in mid-air. He turned around and scolded, “Which fool dares to mess with me?”

When he turned around, he could only see a girl wearing black clothes with a mask on her face standing behind him.

Upon noticing that it was a woman, he became excited. Although the woman wore a mask, her well-proportioned figure ignited a fiery passion within the employer. He laughed with a mouth full of golden teeth, constantly examining the woman’s figure with great interest.

“Oh, where are you from, girl? Are you looking for a man to have fun?”

Catherine was not interested in wasting time with small talk, so she straightforwardly stated her purpose.

“Killian Jensen, let’s make a deal!”

When Killian heard the woman say his name, he knew the woman was also part of the circle. However, his attitude remained arrogant. He was known as a big shot in this circle who did not pay attention to ordinary people.

“Huh, a deal? Sure, tell me, what kind of deal? Are you offering to clean yourself and get into my bed, or are you offering to kneel and lick me clean here?”

Out of nowhere, a slap suddenly came and directly hit Killian’s face. Killian turned his head to the side. Blood gushed out of his mouth, splattering onto the ground.

At the same time, his gold teeth were also spat out with blood. Upon seeing the spit-out gold teeth on the ground, Killian became infuriated.

“This woman actually dared to hit me. Is she courting death?” thought he. He was about to have someone teach Catherine a lesson when he found Sean standing behind Catherine.

As the owner of the underground boxing gym, Sean was known by everyone. Seeing Sean show up, Killian became a lot friendlier.

“Mr. Scott, is she your woman?” asked he.

Sean smiled slightly and said, “I don’t have that ability.”

Upon hearing these words, Killian knew the woman was not with Sean. This triggered his urge to use physical force again. Unexpectedly, Sean took the initiative to stop him the next moment.

“Killian, I suggest you think twice before acting. There are some people you shouldn’t mess with!”

Killian’s face darkened, and he was full of anger. “Mr. Scott, I would’ve let her go for your sake, but this chick knocked out my teeth today. If I don’t reclaim my dignity in this matter, how will I survive in this industry in the future?”

“For my sake? Hahaha…” Sean burst. into laughter, his laughter filled with sarcasm. Killian was somewhat bewildered by Sean’s behavior and unable to comprehend the situation at hand.

After laughing, Sean narrowed his eyes and looked at Killian. “You might have to thank me later for saving your life. For my sake? Killian, you’re getting old and confused!”

Killian felt that Sean was acting strangely today. Having been in this business for many years, he fully understood the concept of “never judge a book by its cover.”

He vaguely felt that the woman beside Sean was not ordinary.

He had been in this business for so long and had some fighting skills. However, when Catherine made a move just now, he didn’t even have a clear understanding of her approach.

Catherine’s slap directly knocked out his gold teeth.

“Her strength was not to be underestimated!” thought Killian. He carefully examined Catherine and asked in a low voice, “Who exactly are you?

“What do you want from me?”

Catherine raised an eyebrow and looked at Tyler next to Killian, speaking in a cold tone, “I want him!”

Chapter 315 An Unfair Challenge

Killian finally understood Catherine’s purpose, and it turned out that she wanted to poach his money-making tool.

Although Tyler was extremely thin and small, he was indeed a tough character. He dared to fight and wasn’t afraid of death. Since Tyler was in his hands, Killian had made a lot of money.

It could be said that Killian’s career was reaching its peak because of Tyler, so how could he easily give up Tyler and give him away?

After spitting, Killian sneered and squinted at Catherine.

“You’re dreaming!”

Catherine didn’t come to negotiate with Killian at all. She just came directly to demand him to give her Tyler. The black market had its own rules.

There was only one rule in the black market, which was that the strong ruled the world. Only the strong had the right to speak here.

If Catherine wanted to take away Tyler from Killian, she had to pay the price accordingly. Under Killian’s contempt, Catherine made an easy leap and jumped to the center of the arena.

No one expected a woman with a delicate figure to appear suddenly. Although she wore a mask, her stunning figure alone was enough for men to go crazy.

In an instant, Catherine caught everyone’s attention. No one knew why a girl who just stayed in the corner suddenly entered the arena. Just as everyone was curious, Catherine suddenly made an astonishing move.

She took off the dusty bell hanging in the center of the arena and threw it onto Killian below the arena. In an instant, the bell rang loudly in the entire venue. Everyone’s eyes widened in surprise. Someone proposed a challenge!

In another private room in the VIP area on the second floor, Triston watched the scene in the arena with interest, and he became excited.

“Mr. Duncan, look. Someone took the bell, and it’s a woman!”

Aidan rarely stayed in the country and only heard about this black market, not knowing much about it.

Seeing that Triston was so excited, and most importantly, even Branden’s eyes were filled with intense colors of interest, which was strange for Aidan!

He quickly asked Triston about the situation. “What the hell is going on? Why are these people so excited? Tell me!”

Triston glanced at him with disdain and whispered sarcastically, “Such a hick!”

Aidan was so angry, but he could only endure it to figure things out.

“So, are you going to tell me or not?”

Triston would certainly tell Aidan, but he would belittle him before telling him.

“This bell is the rule of the black market. If someone wants to challenge others, they can ring the bell to designate the person they want to challenge. The designated person must take the challenge but can choose any way he wants to fight! If the declarer loses, all the consequences that arise in the end will be paid by the declarer.”

Aidan asked in confusion, “So the man with golden teeth can even find ten experts to fight against the woman in the arena?”

Triston nodded. “That’s right. Most importantly, if the woman in the arena loses, she has to bear the cost of Killian finding people to deal with her. Don’t mention Killian finding ten people to deal with her. Even if he finds one hundred people to beat her, it’s allowed!”

“What!” Aidan shouted in surprise.” Isn’t it clear that the woman is going to lose?”

Triston sized him up with raised eyebrows. “So, that’s why the crowd is excited. You know what, it’s been ten years since someone proposed a challenge last time!”

Now, Aidan was energized, pulling Triston to stare at the arena with his full attention. In addition to the two of them, Branden was also staring at the arena in this private room.

Branden was now clearly in the spirit compared to his previous lack of interest. He stared at the delicate figure below, feeling somewhat familiar. Below the arena, looking at the bell thrown into his arms, Killian was stunned for a moment.

He didn’t expect the other party to challenge him this way. He didn’t know if the woman was too confident or if she was fearless. If he didn’t take the challenge, wouldn’t he appear too cowardly?

If he didn’t take the challenge, he would be ridiculed for not even daring to take a woman’s challenge in the future.

Killian raised his head toward the arena, his eyes looking straight at Catherine as he questioned arrogantly, “Tell me. Since you want my man, what is your chip?”

Catherine didn’t respond directly but glanced at Sean on the side. Sean sized up the boy named Tyler, but he didn’t know what Catherine saw from this boy that she insisted on wanting him.

“Killian, she’s betting 30 million dollars. Even if she wins, she will still give you ten million dollars!”

Sean knew that Catherine had her principles in doing things. Although she acted arrogantly and did things domineeringly, she would never bully and take by force.

Everyone knew in their hearts what prices teenagers like Tyler were on the black market. Even if Killian lost the challenge, he wouldn’t suffer a loss after he got the ten million dollars Catherine offered!

Killian was satisfied with the money Sean had quoted. The most important thing was, in his opinion, he would surely win!

With such an easy deal to make thirty million dollars, anyone who didn’t accept the challenge would be a fool!

“Okay, I’ll take the challenge.” Killian grinned happily. “Hehe, it’s too late for you to regret it now!”

Killian hired the Twelve Ruffians of the black market to win this challenge securely.

The Twelve Ruffians was the most famous team of twelve thugs in the black market. Anyone among them was a notoriously ruthless character, not to mention twelve of them joining forces at the same time.

After realizing that Killian had hired the Twelve Ruffians to deal with the woman in the arena, some people couldn’t help but feel angry for the woman and cursed Killian for being too despicable.

But there was no way because that was the rule of the black market. Since Catherine dared to challenge, she had to pay the price! The Twelve Ruffians made a brilliant appearance under the invitation of a huge sum of money from Killian.

Each of the Twelve Ruffians was tall and strong, and all were big men. Living on the black market all year round had made them experienced in fighting.

Watching the twelve big men walk out at the same time, Aidan’s heart couldn’t help but miss a beat.

He turned sideways and bumped Triston with his shoulder. “Mr. Lambert, how many men can you fight at a time if it were you?”

Triston replied confidently, “That must be two!”

He felt that it was no problem for him to fight two people by himself!

“Hmm!” Aidan gave him a disdainful look. In his opinion, Triston could fight at most one person. He turned sideways again toward Paxton, who had a cold face as if he were a statue. “What about you?”

Paxton took a closer look at the Twelve Ruffians, and a hesitation appeared in his eyes.

“I’m not sure if I can win steadily!”

Paxton was the number one expert of the Duncans’ defense team, and even he wasn’t sure to win over the Twelve Ruffians. Then, it seemed that the woman in the arena was certain to lose.

Thinking of a girl with such a good figure, who would possibly die or become disabled for nothing, Aidan was a little heartbroken. She had such a perfect figure!

After a few seconds of silence, Paxton suddenly said, “If it were Mr. Duncan, he’d be sure to win!”

Aidan had long heard that the most influential expert of the Duncans was not the defense team but the young head of the Duncans, Branden!

Although he had been friends with Branden for many years, he had never seen him actually fight. He was kind of curious about how powerful Branden really was!

Chapter 316 I’m in a Hurry

The Twelve Ruffians appeared in style, and when they saw that their opponent was Catherine, they instantly lost interest.

They initially thought that the one who dared to propose the challenge would be some expert, so they prepared for a good display. Unexpectedly, it was a little girl. Looking at this little girl, although they felt she was full of vigor, they suspected she could not withstand their blows.

Ayden, the person ranked first in Twelve Ruffians, shouted toward Lennon, who was ranked last, Lennon, you go first. We’ll rest first!”

Lennon ranked last in the Twelves Ruffians, and it was often the top- ranked people charging into battles. Today, it was finally his turn.

“Chick, let me have some fun with you today. Killian’s deal is so easy!”

Who wouldn’t like such an excellent money-making deal? To provoke Catherine, Lennon even stretched out only one hand to spar with her.

“Seeing you’re a woman, I’ll only use one hand to fight you!”

Catherine looked at him coldly. There were originally no grievances or grudges between them, and she didn’t want to lay heavy hands on him. But she hated people who discriminated against women, and Lennon’s words annoyed her.

Lennon took the initiative to throw a punch. He initially just wanted to tease Catherine, but he didn’t expect his fist to be yanked by Catherine.

He sneered, “Girl, you have some power!”

He thought that he could drag Catherine with a little force, but he didn’t expect that he couldn’t take his fist back, even with all his strength. He was shocked. Catherine’s strength was terrifying.

Catherine stared at him with her cold eyes filled with a faint hostility. In a deep and cold voice, she said, “Have you had enough fun?”

She was still able to speak with a very steady breath, so Lennon’s inner doubts deepened once again.

Who was this woman?

Before Lennon’s inner doubts could even be reduced, Catherine had already started to make her move. With a sharp pull, she pulled Lennon forward.

Catherine then raised her leg and kicked Lennon’s knee. Lennon, in pain, knelt on one knee in front of Catherine.

Catherine didn’t retract her leg but kicked Lennon directly in the jaw. Catherine completely defeated Lennon before he could even see her movements clearly.

The whole scene was abuzz, and no one expected Catherine’s strength to be so strong. The Twelve Ruffians were the closest to Catherine, and they didn’t even put Catherine in their eyes at first. Now, after seeing Catherine so powerful, they were also a bit surprised.

Catherine glanced at the time and found that she had already been delayed for a while..

She reached out and beckoned to the Twelve Ruffians, her cold tone sounding slowly from her thin pink lips.

“You guys come together. I’m in a hurry to leave!”

Glancing at Lennon, who was being helped down from the arena by his brothers, Ayden realized that Lennon had to be sent to a hospital for treatment.

Ayden knew he underestimated the enemy. Though he knew Catherine had the strength, he didn’t believe he could not beat Catherine by teaming up with the rest of his brothers.

He looked around and united a few of his brothers, agreeing to make a move together. Compared to the strictness of the few of them, Catherine looked much more relaxed.

She played with her fingers in a bored manner, waiting for them to attack her.

Finally…

They launched attacks on Catherine together. These people had been fighting together for years and had long since formed a tacit understanding of fighting.

They were more challenging to deal with than the average expert. But that was only for ordinary people. Catherine wasn’t worried about that at all.

Not to mention fighting twelve people by herself, she had even fought against a hundred people at the same time alone.

Several fists swung toward Catherine simultaneously, and Catherine took advantage of her petite figure, lowering her body at the right time. As the crowd rushed toward her, she bent down to attack the lower part of those men’s bodies.

She was incredibly fast. She kicked over, and a scream was heard as someone among them had one of his legs broken. Catherine was extremely fast, and the power of her punches and legs was mighty.

She was incredibly powerful! Ayden was known amongst the group for his hard punch, and no one in the black market could stand a punch from him.

Anyone whom he punched would be incapacitated. The other few people tried to delay Catherine, buying Ayden a chance.

Watching Ayden’s big fist pounding over, Catherine swung her first. As their fists collided, the crowd thought that Catherine had overestimated her strength.

Unexpectedly, she held Ayden’s fist and made the expression on Ayden’s face change instantly. When Ayden froze, Catherine threw her left hand out and swung her fist across Ayden’s face.

Instantly, the burly man fell to the floor with a loud thud and lost the power to fight. The people around were stunned by the scene, and the whole scene remained silent. Everyone couldn’t take their eyes off Catherine’s performance.

This was not a fight but a performance!

It was completely Catherine’s one sided abuse. It only took her ten minutes to beat up all the members of the Twelve Ruffians completely. On average, it took less than a minute for her to defeat one strong man.

In the audience, all the audience were dumbfounded, and some were so surprised that their mouths were so wide open that they were even able to put down an egg.

Looking at his brothers lying on the floor, Ayden struggled to get up, and his gaze at Catherine filled with fear.

“Are you Cassie?”

Catherine didn’t respond to him and slowly walked down the stage.

Ayden, however, shouted insistently. ”

You’re Cassie. I definitely didn’t mistake you!”

Seeing him so serious, Catherine looked back at him kindly and sneered, “Did I say I wasn’t?”

The arena was equipped with a radio. The conversation between the two was played out loud on the sound in the venue, and everyone could hear it clearly. The originally quiet venue was abuzz at that moment!

Killian was also a veteran in the black market, and he had naturally heard of the name “Cassie”!

Now he finally understood why Sean said that he had to thank him. Sean was right, and he did have to thank him. Sean had literally saved his life!

Killian never expected that the little girl in front of him, who just looked so young, was actually the big shot, Cassie!

Aidan felt a bit confused again in the private room on the second floor as he watched the excitement in the audience below.

“Mr. Lambert, who is Cassie? Why is the group below even more excited after hearing her name?”

Triston was hesitant, as he didn’t quite know why. But to appear more experienced in front of Aidan, he came up with a witty solution.

He couldn’t rely on Branden to help him. If he asked Branden for help, he might even get his ass kicked!

In Triston’s eyes, anything that could be solved with money was not a problem. He rang the service bell, and a professional waiter soon came in. Triston casually pulled out a one thousand dollar tip and threw it on the plate.

“Here you go. Tell this hick what’s going on down there, and tell him about Cassie’s story!”

Chapter 317 She’s a Legend

Fortunately, this waiter had been working on the black market for quite some time, and he had some understanding of “Cassie.”

Seeing the tip on the table, the waiter accepted it calmly and started giving them some information.

“Gentlemen, Cassie is a legend in our black market. Her story begins five years ago!”

A legend has been circulating in the black market for the past few years. There was an underground boxing champion in the black market who took one year to go from being a nobody to making a name for herself and becoming the champion everyone in the black market feared.

The crowd knew very little about this champion. At first, they didn’t know her name, age, where she came from, or even if she was a man or a woman. Even the nickname “Cassie” was only known after she told them herself.

“Cassie” had never lost a fight since entering the underground boxing. She even set an unbeaten record for winning continuous battles without sleep or rest for three consecutive days.

She became famous in that battle and became the most powerful person in the underground boxing gym. The unknown information about her made her mysterious, making people love and fear her.

But “Cassie” became famous quickly, and she disappeared quickly. It had been three years since she had been in the ring. Many people were forgetting about the black market champion.

But that didn’t mean the legend of ” Cassie” had disappeared there, as evidenced by the abuzz atmosphere of the old audience under the arena when she revealed her identity today.

“Cassie” was a myth in the hearts of many people! Hearing the waiter’s story, Aidan and Triston’s surprised expressions were the same as those of the audience. Especially Aidan, his eyes widened in surprise, and the corners of his mouth even twitched when he spoke.

“You’re saying she’s been fighting continuously for three days and three nights? She fought with everyone alone?”

The waiter nodded, his eyes filled with admiration. Aidan also heard what Paxton said just now. Now, hearing the waiter say that Aidan couldn’t help but look toward Paxton again.

“How long can you fight with her?”

Paxton frowned slightly and said coldly, “Ten minutes!”

The crowd subconsciously looked toward Branden again, only to see a somewhat bizarre expression on Branden’s face.

He looked as if he was a bit angry, and his face was so gloomy that they found it frightening. However, no one had messed with him just now!

Branden stared down with cold eyes, his bizarre gaze following the woman’s figure. Catherine had told him that the school had a rehearsal. He thought to himself, “Hmph! Very well!”

Catherine had learned to lie to him!

Catherine got out of the arena and walked right up to Killian arrogantly. Her gaze fixed on Killian coldly. “I won. He has to go with me!”

If Killian didn’t know Catherine’s identity just now, he probably would resist one last time. Now that he knew who the woman in front of him was, how could he have the guts to resist?

Unless he didn’t want his life anymore, only someone who sought death would go against Cassie. Killian hurriedly showed a smile and looked at Catherine with a pleasing face.

“Cassie, you win me, and Tyler is naturally yours. I’ll never complain!”

In fact, what Killian was thinking in his heart was that he would thank God as long as Cassie didn’t blame him. He dared not complain at all!

Catherine glanced at Sean beside her, and Sean immediately took out a check and handed it to Killian.

“Ten million dollars, it’s yours!”

Killian quickly waved his hand and said, “No, no, no. I can’t take this money!”

Although money was important, life was more important. Sean smiled coldly as he sized Killian up, with a hint of mockery in his piercing eyes.

“Just take it. You spent 100 thousand dollars when you bought him, and now I give you a hundred times the money. You’re not at a loss!”

Killian reached out and took the check, wiping the cold sweat on his forehead secretly. Killian wasn’t surprised that Sean knew about his background.

After all, there wasn’t anything Sean didn’t know in this black market. After arranging everything, Catherine glanced at Tyler and turned toward the exit. Tyler followed her without hesitation.

He was Catherine’s man now, and he had to follow Catherine. He had no choice.

Tyler knew this from a very young age. Inside the private room on the second floor, Paxton received an updated message. The expression on his face changed slightly, and he quickly reported it to Branden.

“Mr. Duncan, the person we’re looking for is that boy named Tyler down there!

But now that boy had been taken away by someone else. Paxton’s face looked gloomy because their intelligence was a bit late.

“Mr. Duncan, do you need me to go snatch the boy back up?”

Branden turned his head and gave him a cold look with his stern eyes. “Can you beat her?”

Paxton lowered his head in shame. He really couldn’t beat her! “Hehe!” Branden laughed coldly with an indifferent gesture. “Forget it.

Arrange for someone to watch them carefully and report back if anything happens!”

“Okay!” Although Paxton took Branden’s order, he always felt something strange. Branden was determined to win the boy, so how could he let him be taken away by someone else so easily all of a sudden?

This was not in line with Branden’s style of doing things! Although “Cassie” was very capable of fighting, in Casier, there was no one that the Duncans couldn’t handle.

Even if one could fight, could he withstand weapons?

Paxton always felt that Branden’s gaze at that woman named “Cassie” was unusual. Catherine went up to the top floor, the most secret location in the black market.

Sean’s office was there. Now Catherine was sitting in the office, and opposite her was her latest winning gift, Tyler!

Catherine leaned back on the sofa chair lazily, slightly squinting her eyes in a lazy posture. She had a lazy posture, completely different from the handsome boxing champion who had just been in the arena.

She was a bit tired after the fight just now. Her voice was a bit hoarse as she rested her cheek with one hand.

“I’ll give you a chance. You can ask me three questions!”

Tyler was an intelligent boy, and he knew what Catherine meant. To avoid the opportunity, he opened his mouth and asked immediately, ” Why did you buy me?”

He always felt that Catherine’s purpose in buying him was different from Killian’s, who bought him to make money. He was an orphan and grew up on the streets because he was too old to go to an orphanage.

One of his best friends was caught by Killian’s men while stealing something due to hunger and taken to an underground boxing gym.

To save his best friend and keep him alive, Tyler became a tool for Killian to make money. Catherine wasn’t surprised that Tyler would ask that question.

“Someone entrusted me!” This was Catherine’s response.

“Who?” Tyler followed up with the second question. Catherine didn’t hide it and told Tyler directly. She was not afraid of him knowing the truth anyway.

She pulled a document from the side and threw it to Tyler, saying, “Your biological father.”

Someone indeed entrusted her, and as for the deal she made with that person, Tyler didn’t need to know.

The document contained information about Tyler’s father. If Tyler wanted to know the identity of his father, he could read it himself, and it was a gift from Catherine to him.

Catherine was sleepy, and she wanted to make it quick.

“You can ask the third question now!”

Chapter 318 The Black Market

Tyler knew that he had no chance of resisting in front of Catherine. It wasn’t just because of Catherine’s mysterious status but also Catherine’s formidable influence that left him in awe.

“Can you help me save someone?”

After hearing that, Catherine showed some interest. She glanced at him and asked, “Is this your third question?”

“Yes!” Tyler blurted out. He eagerly stared at Catherine. “Can you help me? If you help me, I’ll obey your every command.”

Tyler had no resources now. All he could do was obey orders and gain acceptance from others.

“What’s your name?”

When Catherine asked, Tyler hesitated for a moment. He hadn’t expected such an irrelevant question. Tyler remembered what he had said earlier. He immediately showed obedience.

“My name is Erick Olsen.”

Remembering Catherine’s purpose in coming to him, Tyler added, “I share my mother’s last name. Tyler is a nickname Killian gave me. You can call me Erick.”

Catherine knew he wasn’t lying. The information she received showed that his birth mother’s last name was indeed Olsen.

“Why are you willing to obey me?”

When he was with Killian, he followed Killian’s orders to compete and earn money. But he had always been rebellious and defiant. However, in front of Catherine, he acted obediently.

Erick understood Catherine’s meaning. Catherine’s question made his cheeks turn slightly red. He showed a hint of shyness.

“Because you’re really strong.”

Catherine didn’t have much reaction to this. She had heard these kinds of compliments too many times and had become numb to them. After understanding Erick’s purpose, Catherine agreed to his request.

“Is the person you want me to help save your companion?”

“Yes.” Erick nodded solemnly. “He saved my life.”

Catherine intended to use Erick to obtain something, which was her purpose for going to the boxing gym today. She made use of Erick, and now she agreed to his condition. It was a fair exchange. Neither owed the other anything.

“I’ll have Sean help you find the person. You stay here and follow him. Don’t go anywhere else!”

As Catherine stood up to leave, Erick felt an impulse he couldn’t explain and blurted out, “What about you? Won’t you come back?”

Catherine looked back at him and said, “Tomorrow evening, I’ll come to pick you up.”

Erick smiled faintly and revealed his cute canine teeth. He said softly, “Okay. He liked the feeling of getting a response and not being abandoned.

Catherine opened the door and walked out of the office, only to find Sean leaning against the doorframe.

Sean squinted his eyes mischievously and looked at Catherine. He spoke in a low, suggestive tone, “Cassie, it’s not right to seduce young boys like this.”

Catherine’s attractive eyes darkened and turned cold. She gave Sean a warning with a glance.

“Mind your own business.”

It wasn’t until Catherine left that Sean regained his composure. He silently breathed a sigh of relief. Women like Catherine were too terrifying. He couldn’t afford to provoke her.

Since he couldn’t provoke her, he had to behave and save his own skin. He turned and entered the office, only to be met with the intense gaze of Erick, who Catherine had just brought in. Erick stared at him in a rather eerie manner.

Sean was still reeling from Catherine’s warning, and his temper flared up instantly. He scolded impatiently, ” What are you staring at me for? Trying to pick a fight?”

Erick remained calm as he replied coldly, “Cassie asked you to help me save someone.”

Sean looked at him disdainfully and sneered, “Why should I listen to what she says? Who do you think I am?”

Erick’s face darkened instantly, and his eyes turned cold.

“Are you insulting her?”

He asked in a menacing tone and exuded a bloodthirsty aura. Sean, who had been angry just moments ago, suddenly burst into laughter. But his smile had a sinister undertone.

He took a step forward and got close to Erick. He emitted an eerie vibe as he looked Erick up and down with narrowed eyes.

“Tyler, you’ve been tamed by Cassie so quickly. Are you starting to protect her now?”

Hearing that, Erick was momentarily stunned. He hadn’t realized just how special Catherine had become to him. As Sean saw Erick deep in thought, he smiled. His laughter filled the entire office.

Then he said, “Haha. Amusing. It’s pretty amusing!

“Don’t worry. I’ll help you with what you want. But it’s got nothing to do with you. I’ll complete any tasks given by Cassie.”

When Catherine emerged from the black market, she sensed someone following her. She remained calm as she continued walking forward. And she didn’t care about the person tailing her.

If he had the guts, he could come at her. However, it seemed the person behind Catherine had no intention of harming her. He simply continued following her.

After Catherine reached her apartment, she felt the person behind her disappear. Once she was sure no one was following, Catherine pressed the elevator button to go upstairs.

It wasn’t that she was afraid of anyone knowing where she lived. She just didn’t want any unexpected encounters with Audrey, who often came and went at odd hours.

The motion sensor lights in the hallway appeared to be malfunctioning. They didn’t immediately turn on when the elevator doors opened.

Catherine didn’t seem to mind and walked forward confidently. Catherine had trained since childhood. And her night vision was better than someone with night vision goggles.

She could walk normally without lighting equipment. Catherine heard shallow breathing behind her and frowned slightly. Before she could react, a gust of wind rushed toward her. Then Catherine reacted quickly.

She immediately fought back, and they were entangled in a brief scuffle. However, within a few seconds, Catherine stopped and surrendered willingly.

She allowed the person to embrace her. A low, husky male voice came from behind her. The man asked, “No more struggling?”

Catherine smirked arrogantly and said softly, “I’d hate to damage you. It would break my heart.”

After hearing that, the man laughed. After the fingerprint lock beeped and the door opened, the man led Catherine into the room. When he made his move, Catherine recognized him by the familiar scent.

Catherine stopped without hesitation. She knew it was Branden. And he would never harm her. Once inside, Catherine casually sprawled herself onto the enormous recliner.

This was a new addition that Branden had acquired for the apartment since her arrival. The oversized recliner allowed Catherine to arrange herself comfortably, and it was incredibly relaxing.

Catherine often played games on it until she fell asleep. In the end, Branden would have to carry her to the bedroom like he was holding a precious baby. Branden believed that sleeping on the recliner might affect Catherine’s bone development.

After Catherine found her most comfortable position on the recliner, Branden calmly asked, “Did you guess it was me?”

Catherine nodded without hesitation.” Of course. I could tell it was you as soon as you got close.”

It seemed like Catherine was in a good mood today. When she smiled, her eyes were exceptionally beautiful.

Catherine’s smile was so bright and attractive. It instantly warmed Branden’s heart.

Chapter 319 A Glutton

Before returning, Branden had considered asking Catherine why she appeared at the underground boxing gym and even inquiring about her intentions in taking Erick away.

However, he abandoned all those thoughts when he saw Catherine’s smile. There was no need to question these things. After all, Catherine trusted him so much and surrendered immediately.

Branden reached out and gently caressed Catherine’s beautiful face with his long fingers. His voice also softened instantly. “Are you hungry?”

Catherine had rushed to the black market right after school and hadn’t eaten anything. If Branden hadn’t mentioned it, she would have forgotten that she hadn’t eaten.

She subconsciously moved her face closer to his hand and rubbed her cheek against his palm for some reason. She was just like a kitten seeking affection from its owner.

The slight touch felt electrifying. It made Branden’s heart instantly restless. In front of Catherine, Branden’s once- proud self-control could easily crumble.

“Be good and wait here for me. I’ll go prepare something for you.”

As she watched Branden flee, Catherine smiled faintly. It was amusing. Catherine had clearly seen the fire in his eyes just moments ago.

Branden worked quickly. In just ten minutes, he had prepared a bowl of fragrant pasta with tomato sauce. Catherine followed the scent to him without needing an invitation.

Upon closer inspection, the sauce was indeed red, but it was obvious there was no spiciness at all. Instantly, Catherine frowned.

Branden didn’t need to guess. He knew exactly what was on Catherine’s mind. He gently handed Catherine a fork he had brought out.

“It’s late. Don’t eat anything too spicy.”

Catherine didn’t say anything and silently protested. Branden patiently coaxed her. He said, “Try a bite. If you don’t like it, I’ll get you something else.”

Catherine was the type who responded better to gentle persuasion. Branden’s soft coaxing was the most effective with her. She obediently sat down and took a bite.

The pasta was so delicious that it made her involuntarily squint her eyes in appreciation. When she had a barbecue, she despised those who added tomato sauce.

She didn’t like the tomato flavor. However, the pasta made by Branden, despite containing tomato sauce, had no discernible tomato taste.

It was incredibly savory, and she had forgotten entirely about the spiciness she was expecting. She started eating the pasta with a rare look of contentment.

Branden had been standing by and observing her with a faint smile. As Branden watched her eat the pasta one bite at a time, he knew he had made the right decision.

Catherine was not only a fierce beast but also a glutton After finishing the meal, Branden brought over a few sets of worksheets. He placed them in front of Catherine. These were supplementary exercises for Catherine to reinforce her learning.

Even though Catherine’s grades were already excellent, Branden insisted that she couldn’t slack off since there would be an upcoming exam.

Catherine was unable to resist him and reluctantly started working on the worksheets. She couldn’t help but feel that Branden was playing tricks on her for some unknown reason.

She had an inexplicable sense that Branden had bad intentions. Catherine thought inwardly, “Could it be that he knows I didn’t attend the rehearsal tonight?”

The next day after school, Catherine declined Bryan’s invitation to play games by citing a prior engagement. Just as she left the school gates, Ronin caught up to her.

“Catherine, are you going to the black market?”

Catherine didn’t respond. Ronin lowered his voice and leaned in closer. Then he whispered, “Catherine, take me with you. I promise to keep it a secret and won’t let Bryan and the others find out.”

Ronin thought Catherine was concerned that taking him along might lead to Bryan and the others finding out. That was why she hadn’t responded immediately.

Ronin regretted not going with Catherine yesterday. He initially thought it was just Catherine’s routine visit to the black market.

He didn’t expect Catherine to intervene personally. When he saw the video sent by Sean, he wished he could turn back time and cheer for Catherine when she entered the fray.

Ronin couldn’t believe he had missed such an exciting show. With Ronin’s insistence, Sean sold Ronin a piece of information.

Catherine would be going to the black market again that night and taking the boy named Tyler she had recently acquired. Ronin had missed out on the big show the day before, and he wasn’t about to let it happen again that day.

Ronin pleaded with Catherine relentlessly. Catherine knew his character well. Once Ronin set his mind on something, he was extremely stubborn. So, she decided to take him along. She stared at him coldly and said, ” Hurry up and start the car. I don’t like being late.”

Ronin was stunned for a moment. Then he realized what had happened and happily shouted, “Thank you, Catherine!”

After the shout, he rushed away happily. He was afraid that Catherine would scold him if he moved too slowly. He knew that Catherine didn’t like being late, so he absolutely couldn’t let her down.

Half an hour later, they arrived at the black market. Sean had received advance notice and was waiting at the entrance.

However, to their surprise, Erick was standing alongside Sean. Catherine’s presence instantly brought a spark to Erick’s usually gloomy face. Sean took the initiative to greet Catherine. He asked, “Cassie, why did you bring Ronin along?”

Hearing this, Ronin immediately kicked Sean. Sean reacted quickly and jumped aside. He narrowly avoided the attack. Sean’s face darkened as he cursed at Ronin, “You little brat, you’ve got some nerve. You dare to mess with me!”

The Scotts were a prominent family in the dark underworld. Moreover, the name of the Scotts carried a lot of respect and fear in the criminal world.

Sean was the young heir of the Scotts. He single-handedly managed the entire black market and had risen rapidly to a position of significant influence.

Anyone with a bit of a reputation had to show some respect to Sean, as no one wanted to provoke him. But Ronin dared to take direct action. He was really audacious.

However, Ronin seemed utterly unfazed. After he heard Sean’s threat, he sneered, “Does my business concern you? Catherine wants to bring me along. If you dare to meddle with my relationship with Catherine, I will just set fire to this underground market of yours.”

Sean’s face darkened further as he gritted his teeth. He replied, “Try making a move on me!”

Tensions rose, and the surrounding underlings were trembling with fear. They didn’t dare to intervene. Since Ronin dared to bicker with Sean and threatened to burn down the black market, he couldn’t be a small fry.

The two continued their heated exchange, and Catherine had had enough. She frowned and sternly reprimanded them. She shouted, “That’s enough!”

The next moment, the two individuals who had been ready to fight each other fell silent.

A few seconds later, Sean cleared his throat and found a way to save face for himself. He coughed and said, “Today, I’ll let it slide for Cassie’s sake.”

Ronin sneered and was not willing to back down. He replied, “Fine. I won’t argue with you for the sake of Catherine.”

Chapter 320 The Winfreds

Ronin and Sean stopped arguing. Catherine noticed that Erick was staring at her with no reaction at all. Erick kept staring at Catherine without even a flicker in his eyes.

Catherine hadn’t worn a mask like last time when she came today. Her uncovered face was unbelievably beautiful. She was as beautiful as a princess in a fairy tale. Erick was completely stunned.

He had imagined countless faces behind her mask, but he had never thought Catherine would be so beautiful.

Catherine glanced at him and continued walking forward. She paid little attention to Erick. Ronin immediately followed suit. Sean reached out to pat Erick’s shoulder and teased, “Wake up, kid!”

Sean wasn’t surprised that Erick was shocked to see Catherine’s true face. After all, the first time Sean saw Catherine’s face, he had been dumbfounded for quite a while before returning to his senses.

Erick realized the situation and hurriedly lowered his head to catch up. His reddened earlobes indicated his true feelings.

The four of them arrived at Sean’s office together. As soon as they entered, Ronin began to size up Erick. He examined Erick from head to toe and scrutinized every detail.

“Catherine, is this the person the Winfreds are looking for?”

Catherine lazily nodded and spoke in a low voice, “Ronin, get me some water.”

Ronin skillfully stepped forward and opened Sean’s fridge.

After a quick glance, he frowned and complained, “Catherine, Sean has no taste. Besides some foreign liquor, there’s only bottled water in the fridge. Can’t we have something fancier?”

Sean probably used the bottled water to mix with his liquor. Sean glared at Ronin unhappily and found him too picky.

“What’s the matter? Did I say something wrong? How dare you offer this bottled water to Catherine?” Ronin’s tone clearly showed his disdain. When it came to Catherine, Sean didn’t want to argue.

“Bring it here,” Catherine shouted. Ronin reluctantly opened the bottle and handed it to Catherine.

“Catherine, you’ll have to make do with this. I’ll get you your usual brand when we return.”

Catherine didn’t mind at all. She didn’t care what she drank. As long as it was clean. Water was just for quenching her thirst.

But Ronin was overly particular sometimes. After taking a sip of water and quenching her thirst, Catherine asked Sean coldly, “Have you found the person?”

Sean knew what Catherine was asking. He said, “I paid one million dollars to retrieve him from Killian.”

Killian dared to ask for a high price. Erick’s friend didn’t seem worth much, yet Killian dared to demand one million dollars. He had quite the audacity.

Catherine had given Sean this task, and Sean couldn’t shirk it. With time running short, Sean couldn’t haggle with Killian and could only accept the hefty price.

“After the person arrives, I will arrange a job for him at a factory. As long as he works obediently, the factory will provide meals, accommodation, and a salary. His future should be secure.”

Sean was always considerate and covered all aspects of the situation. After hearing this, Catherine raised an eyebrow and looked at Erick.

“Did you hear that?”

Erick nodded and looked at Catherine with gratitude. It had previously been arranged by Killian for his friend to work in an underground money exchange, and lived a miserable life.

Now, he was rescued and given a good opportunity to live a normal life. It was more than enough.

“Thank you. I owe you 11 million dollars from now on,” Erick said. Catherine had paid ten million dollars to redeem him and one million to save his friend. Erick remembered these amounts clearly.

Upon hearing this, Ronin scrutinized Erick once again and teased, “You’ve got some backbone, huh? I bet you don’t even have one hundred dollars in your pocket right now. What will you use to repay?”

Erick looked at Ronin seriously with a fierce look. “You can trust me. I will keep my word. If I can’t, I’ll pay with my life!”

Ronin saw something familiar In Erick’s eyes. At that moment, Ronin suddenly understood why Catherine had personally intervened to save Erick.

The Winfreds were lucky to have such a determined kid. Ronin patted Erick’s shoulder and said, “Kid, you’ve got spirit. I like your determination.”

Erick remained silent and stood with a stern face. He kept looking at Catherine. Catherine suddenly spoke up and instructed Ronin, “You have half an hour to help him change his clothes, and then we’ll go out for a meal.”

Ronin never questioned the tasks assigned by Catherine. He always followed Catherine’s orders.

“Sure thing, Catherine.”

Seeing Ronin so obedient, Erick didn’t argue with Catherine. He followed Ronin and left.

Once they were gone, Sean asked, ” Cassie, why does Tyler listen to you so well? I asked him to close a door, and he treated it like a life-or-death matter. He didn’t listen to me at all.”

Catherine wanted to tell Sean that because he was not worthy. But out of consideration for their years of friendship, she held back.

“I paid ten million dollars,” she replied.

Sean thought about it and found it reasonable. The black market was full of kids like Erick. Although Erick did seem a bit different, he didn’t seem worth ten million dollars.

“Cassie, why did you buy him? What did the Winfreds promise you?”

Sean only knew that Catherine had bought Erick to make a deal with the Winfreds. Sean was unaware of the specific trade that Catherine intended to conduct with the Winfreds. He didn’t dare to inquire without Catherine’s permission.

The outside world believed that the young heir of the Scotts was the mastermind of the black market. However, they didn’t know that the true leader behind the scenes was this beautiful girl in front of Sean. It would be hard to believe.

However, this seemingly harmless, beautiful girl was not only the biggest boss behind the black market but also the most formidable boxer in the black market.

Her impressive record of 108 undefeated matches had firmly secured her position as the top figure in the black market. Actually, it was 109 matches now.

For Erick, she had won another match yesterday. Catherine had no intention of keeping it from Sean. She was just too lazy to explain.

“Erick is Xavier’s illegitimate child. The Winfreds posted the information publicly online. Whoever finds Erick and brings him back will be rewarded with the mining rights to a rare metal deposit that the Winfreds acquired in South Apridon.”

Hearing Catherine’s explanation, Sean was secretly surprised. He said, “The Winfreds are investing heavily in this kid.”

They went to great lengths for an illegitimate child. It was pretty extraordinary.

After all, Xavier had his own legitimate children. Xavier had two sons and a daughter. The family’s succession wasn’t in jeopardy.

It was indeed quite rare for him to invest so heavily in Erick, who was just a lost illegitimate child.