Chapter 268 The Exchange

Day Thirty…

~~*****~~

[ Country J: At Orion Port: 7:00 pm ]

Axel and Chantha together with the other members of the Syphiruz Mafia already arrived at the Orion Port. Three vans stopped in the middle of the port. It was an old port so no people were using it at this moment. Only a few construction workers were staying in the area since the port was undergoing renovation.

But little did they know, the men wearing protective gear and construction uniforms were members of the Red Dragon Mafia. They were scattered in the area, hiding their weapons. Some snipers positioned themselves in dark places where they could easily conceal their presence from the enemies.

Agustav and others alighted from their respective cars to welcome the newcomers. Stephen and Violet were still inside the black van, being guarded by five armed men.

"What's going on here?" Violet murmured, asking Stephen. She couldn't see anything as her eyes were also blindfolded.

"I think… Cough~ Nathan's group is here," Stephen calmly said in his hoarse voice. He already felt sick. He got a high fever after he suffered severe beatings from Agustav yesterday. "Don't worry. I trust my best friend. He will do something to save us."

Violet folded her hands, which were tied by a rope, into tight fists. She was touched since Stephen could still comfort her despite his current situation. He was very calm at times like this. She truly admired her for being composed in any given situation.

They were still talking when from a distance they suddenly heard a very familiar voice.

"Where is my Sister? Bring them out now! I will kill you all if I find out that my sister got hurt!" Chantha's loud voice echoed in the area. She was too fierce and bold, declaring war as soon as she stepped out of the car. She could no longer wait to see her twin sister, including Stephen.

Axel could only grab Chantha's shoulder. He couldn't let her run wild and fire a shot at anyone out there. They were supposed to deal with this in a peaceful manner. 'Hmm, it seems like Supreme Leader already envisioned this. He already expected how Chantha would act in front of the Red Dragon Mafia. No wonder he reminded me to watch her over and control her emotions.'

"Chantha, just calm down. We are here to negotiate and do the exchange. This is their turf. We need to be more careful." Axel warned her in a low and gentle tone. He didn't want to trigger her emotions further so he tried to be as gentle as possible.

"No! I have to threaten them now. I will definitely kill anyone who dares to touch my twin sister," Chantha stubbornly said.

Axel took a deep sigh while rubbing the space in between his brows. Nathan asked him to be patient with her but Chantha was acting very stubborn tonight. He had to control her no matter what. "Can you stop talking for a few minutes? Let me handle this negotiation. Just stay put."

"No–" Chantha was about to argue with Axel when suddenly her lips were sealed by his mouth. He pressed his lips against her to stop her from talking. And it was effective!

Chantha: 'What the hell?! Axel kissed me?! Did he?! Aaaah~!'

Agustav: "..."

Red Dragon Mafia's members: "..."

Syphiruz Mafia's members: "..."

Axel already released her mouth but Chantha was still stupefied in her spot. She was blinking her eyes in utter disbelief, trying to process what had just happened.

On the other hand, Axel turned to face Agustav and his men, starting the negotiation.

"Where are my comrades?" Axel used Nathan's usual authoritative tone. He was pretending to be the Supreme Leader in front of their enemies.9ront of their enemies.

Agustav and others snapped out of their stupor when Axel's voice was heard. Agustav stepped forward and spoke, "Show us our comrades as well. Spade and Jack… bring them out first!"

Axel motioned his subordinates to open the door of the white van in the middle. Spade and Jack were sitting there. When Agustav saw the two men, he also instructed his men to open the car door of the black van. Axel and Chantha frowned deeply when Stephen's figure came into their view.

He didn't look well. The corners of his lips and some parts of his face had bruises. He was badly beaten up. His clothes were untidy. Axel, who was wearing his mask, narrowed his eyes at the sight. He knew that Nathan wouldn't be happy to see Stephen's sorry state. Axel clenched his jaws.

'Dr. Stephen Zhou… didn't deserve this treatment.' Axel thought to himself.

But Agustav also noticed that Jack was in a similar situation as Stephen. He was also badly beaten up by Nathan's men. Agustav tried his best to conceal the satisfaction in his eyes. He thought that Jack deserved it. He didn't feel sorry for him at all.

The two factions got their hostages out of the vans simultaneously. While this exchange was ongoing, the Dragon Lord was watching the scene from a secluded area in the port. He was watching it through the screen monitor. The live video was being transmitted to his laptop.

The Dragon Lord was leisurely sitting on his chair while staring at the monitor. He ran his finger on the surface of his lips as he tried to assess Axel. With the action he did and the figure he had, the Dragon Lord could tell that the person behind the mask was not Nathan. He was a fake Supreme Leader.

'Ahuh! So this is your trick, Nathan Sparks. You are still hiding from me. I thought you were a brave man who wouldn't be scared to infiltrate your enemy's territory. But I was mistaken. You chose not to show up.'

The Dragon Lord sat up straight and rubbed his palms together, his eyes not leaving the monitor screen. "Perhaps, you are here… but you just blended with the crowd."

The Dragon Lord was searching for Nathan among the group of men whom he could see in the live video. He hadn't spotted Nathan yet.

"Where are you… Nathan Sparks? Where are you hiding? Are you scared of me?"