Chapter 1486


    As Ian and Oliver were left alone, the tension in the room was palpable.


    Rp, a man known for his caution, had stationed guards outside of Ian''s dwelling since the night


    before.


    It was a charade of protection that thinly veiled his true intentions—surveince. Rp was after the


    medicine, a valuablemodity in their cutthroat world. Now that it was gone, his unease was evident,


    yet he knew better than toy a finger on Ian.


    As soon as the door closed, Oliver stood up, and brushed off the invisible dust from his jeans in a


    gesture of readiness.


    "So, Ian, when are we making our move?" he asked, the casual tone belying the gravity of their


    N?vel(D)rama.Org''s content.


    situation.


    Ian''s gaze drifted toward the window; dusk was only a few hours away. He had deliberately leaked his


    location to the hounds who were baying for his blood. It didn''t take a genius to figure out they were


    under K''smand.


    K''s influence seemed to have spread even here. Undoubtedly, K was holding back for some reason—if


    not, they would have been wiped off the map with a single bomb, rather than this borate hunt within


    the ind''s confines.


    But tonight, K''s men woulde. And when they did, amidst the sh with Rp''s forces, Ian and


    Oliver would slip away to find Maja.


    Oliver didn''t wait for an answer; he knew the pattern of their conversations well enough. Together, they


    silently bid their time.


    Two hourster, the calm was shattered by the distant sound of gunfire. Rp sat erect in the parlor,


    sipping his tea. Upon hearing the shots, he turned to his most trusted aide.


    "Go check what''s happening."


    But before the aide could move, the sporadic gunfire turned into a cacophony of chaos.


    "Boss, I''ll cover you. We need to get out of here," the aide insisted as Rp''s expression soured. Had


    his enemies dared to encroach upon Middle Ind so brazenly?


    "Damn it, who''s got the gall to cause such a ruckus on Middle Ind?" Rp muttered angrily. "Take


    Oliver with you back to Inner Ind. I need to consult with the other families. We must deal with this


    external threat as one."


    The intruders'' audacity posed a direct threat to the resources of Inner Ind''s ruling families. They had


    to eradicate them just like they nned for Ian.


    "Understood, boss."


    "And contact the Elder; tell him we have an urgent report."


    The ''Elder'' was Quentin, a man revered by the families. Quentin was much more than a coborator


    like BLACK to them; he was almost sacrosanct, because he held the keys to all of Forbidden Ind''s


    surveince, and therefore he was privy to every secret.


    The Elder set the rules that governed Forbidden Ind for centuries, and his word wasw. Now, with


    the ind''s security potentially at stake, they turned to him for guidance.


    Meanwhile, Quentin was already aware that K''s men had made their move. He had expected a


    confrontation with K upon leaving Forbidden Ind, but the assault wasunched in the Forbidden


    Ind,,which was a tant disregard for all the ind''sws.


    "What''s gotten into him?" Quentin mused darkly, wiping the blood from his face.


    "Deploy all our ind forces, and eliminate K''s men."


    If K was mad enough to take things this far, Quentin was ready to meet the challenge head-on.


    "Mr. Ger, K''s forces came by helicopter. At least thirty have been sighted so far," reported an aide.


    "A bold move," Quentin noted. "Find out if anything else has happened within the organization besides


    the capture of the Third Elder."


    Communication with the organization had been lost since morning, and it was likely that K''s men had


    seized the other Elders as well.


    Quentin''s frown deepened. "Forget it then. Just fight. I want to see if K has the guts to destroy the


    entire ind!"


    But he had no such intention. The ind harbored Maja, Ian, and the Holy Daughter. His agents at the


    Mental Hospital of South District had stumbled upon her trail, and Philip was astonished to find her


    alive. Reаd at NovelDrama.Org


    He couldn''t destroy the ind—not yet. He wanted to see her, to facilitate a reunion.


    What had she once said to him? That he was too consumed by darkness to lead, that his ruthlessness


    and cunning would bring disaster to those around him.


    He reveled in these contrasts, and the thrill of deceit. ying the world like a game gave him a


    profound sense of satisfaction, and he wouldn''t have it any other way.