The Hidden King Among Mortals

Chapter 003

Asher raised a brow. He had a vague epiphany that Livia had perhaps discovered his true identity yesterday when they were all convened at the Steward's home. Why else would she have helped him? It was unexpected how smart this girl was to have not revealed his identity right there and then. If the matter were to get out, the enemy would hound the Stewards.

With matters now coming to light, Asher could not continue with concealing the matter, and so he said seriously, "I hope you can keep my identity under wraps, Lily. No one else can know besides us. Otherwise, it won't just be me. The Stewards will also be under fire."

"Huh?" Livia panicked. "Is the matter so grave, Ash? Thank God I didn't tell anyone else. I swear I'll take this secret to the grave with me. That said, can you help us through this turbulent time?"

Asher was left pondering on the matter for a while. "Let me think about it."

He would likely expose his true identity if he openly aided the Stewards. That was exactly what he was the most worried about.

Livia, who had free time on her hands, pestered Asher to go with her on a stroll when they had finished breakfast. All she wanted to do was get to know Asher, a scion from the Capital City who stayed with the Stewards under a secret identity, better. She could not quite wrap her head around why he would do so.

They were out till the sun was high in the sky when Livia suggested they pick Noelle up from work so all three of them could go for some pizza.

The Stewards had their own conglomerate, which had about ten subsidiary firms under them. Noelle worked in one of the subsidiary companies.

The duo made their way to her office building by car when Livia suddenly pointed at a black Mercedes-Benz parked outside. "Ash, look! That's Radley's car. What's he doing here?"

Asher had met Radley Leonard several times. He was a man in his early thirties. He was a good-looking man who wore a pair of glasses and looked very civilized.

That was when a gorgeous woman came into view. Noelle was dressed in a short, black pencil skirt that outlined and emphasized her figure. She was beautiful beyond compare coupled with her delicate facial features.

Livia hurriedly yelped when she noticed Noelle making a beeline for Radley's vehicle. "Ash, Elle is going to get into his car. Stop her!"

Asher was no fool. He knew exactly what this meant. Noelle could not withstand the pressure Carter Steward had put on her by having her use her body in exchange for the safety of the rest of the family.

What a foolish woman!

There was no way the Leonards would pardon the Stewards even if she slept with Radley.

Asher cursed to himself as he rushed up to Noelle and held her wrist in a tight grip. "We're going home!"

"Asher, why are you here?" Noelle's brows furrowed as she tried to shake off his grip. This was the first time in two years he was holding her hand, catching her off guard.

Livia also hurried over. "Are you crazy, Elle? Why should you be the one shouldering the responsibility when it was Erick who screwed up? Can you still look Ash in the eye if you go through with this?"

There was a trace of self-abasement in Noelle's eyes.

That was when Radley got out of the car with a mocking smile plastered on his face. "Your marriage with Noelle two years ago made me suffer humiliation, Asher Craig. And now two years later, you're going to watch as she spends the night with me. Of course, I'm not going to coerce her into anything she doesn't want. She can decide for herself if she wants to come with me."

One truly could not judge how terrible a person was just from their physical appearance. The most ruthless people were most often the ones who looked amiable, and Radley was exactly that.

"You're absolutely vile!" Livia spat through gritted teeth.

"My thanks for the compliment, Ms. Steward." Radley was grinning from ear to ear instead of expressing his anger. He then looked at Noelle and offered, "You're free to go with them if you aren't willing. I'm not going to force you into it. But do keep in mind, this is the chance of a lifetime. Once this opportunity passes, I won't agree to anything even if you seek me out."

"Come home with me, Noelle. You shouldn't sacrifice yourself for the trouble that Erick has caused." Asher wanted to reach for her hand again, but this time, Noelle avoided his touch.

Asher had no choice but to back off now that he could not hold her hand. He subconsciously began to clench his fists.

"Go home, Asher, Livia. I've made up my mind. There's no point in trying to persuade me." Noelle truly did not want to do any of this, but what else could she do? It was not like Livia was some prophet. How could Asher have a way out of this?

Asher roughly grabbed her by her wrist when he saw that she was going to get into Radley's car. He did not say a word as he took great strides toward Livia's own vehicle.

"Let go of her!" Radley barked coldly to stop Asher in his tracks.

Asher, on the other hand, paid him no heed and continued on his way.

Radley did not expect Asher, this trash of a human, to ignore him. He narrowed his eyes and raised his hand to slap Asher across his face.

"A-Ash… Watch out…!"

Right before Livia could even finish, Radley was staring at Asher in disbelief as he covered his mouth.

She could not have predicted that it was not Asher who had received a beating. It was instead Radley who had fallen on the ground.

Radley was now up in arms. "You motherfucker, how dare you hit me? You're going to hell when I'm done with you!" He was extremely angered by Ash who had the guts to make a move against him. He was seeking death!

Noelle hurriedly helped Radley up. "Are you alright?"

Few would dare pick a fight with Radley in Rollinsford. This was a sight that Noelle had never witnessed before. Asher had hit him so hard that he was on the ground; it would surely anger the other man. He was also an in-law to the Stewards. This was surely going to implicate them.

"Scram! I am going to show you exactly what the consequences of angering me are!" Radley shoved Noelle away with a flick of his hand and drove away.

"You know martial arts, Ash? That was amazing." Livia clapped excitedly.

"What's amazing? We're in big trouble because of him!" Noelle glared at Asher. "Are you happy now? Have you ever thought about the consequences? Asher Craig, I believed you to be a mature and prudent person. How could you have been so impulsive? You've disappointed me!"

The exasperated Noelle then slapped Asher.

Asher, not expecting Noelle to raise a hand, made no move to defend himself. The moment the hand met his face, he could feel a stinging pain spreading.

What hurt more, however, was his heart that had been cut open as he continued to bleed.

He chuckled bitterly as he flashed her a disappointed look before leaving.

"Ash, she didn't mean it! Wait…"

Asher did not turn back and acted as if he could not hear her words.

"You've gone too far, Sis!" Livia said in righteous indignation. "Ash hit Radley to protect you. So what if you aren't grateful for what he did? You even slapped him! Have you ever thought about how he feels?"

Noelle's hands were still shaking like a leaf. Of course, it was not due to pain. She herself realized that doing what she had done would hurt Asher too.

She had gotten too heated. Radley was the heir to the Leonard business. He was one of Rollinsford's most influential bachelors. The Stewards were going to suffer now that his rage couldn't be quelled.

It was inexplicable why her heart still ached when she watched him walk away distraught. Her vision grew blurry.

"Our family is in danger. I had a hard time persuading your husband to step in and help us solve the problem. And you slapped him because of Radley Leonard? Your actions aren't helping us. It's harming this family."

Noelle knew better than anyone what Asher's capabilities were after being married for two years. There was no possibility of her believing that Asher could save the sinking ship that was the Stewards.

"Do you know him better than me, Livia?"

Asher might have quick reflexes which gave Noelle no small shock, but modern society is not about one's physical capabilities dictating their standing within a community.

Livia wanted nothing more than to reveal Asher's true identity, but she had promised to keep it under wraps. She was more worried about the disaster that would wrought the Stewards if his identity were to be revealed.

All Livia could say was, "Even if he isn't capable of getting us out of this, you shouldn't have hit him, Sis. You're still his wife."

"I'll apologize to him when I get the chance to do so." Noelle decided to not dwell on the matter. Radley was the kind to seek revenge for the smallest grievances. With matters having escalated the way it did, she had to report to Carter as soon as possible to discuss countermeasures.

Half an hour later.

Outside Carter Steward's study.

"Grandpa, it's me, Elle. I need to speak with you." Noelle gently knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Carter's machine-cold voice was heard from the study.

Noelle cautiously stepped inside. Carter had an antiquarian book in his hand and was leafing through it. She summoned her courage after hesitating for a while and started, "Grandpa, something happened…"

The book in Carter's shaking hands fell to the ground when he heard about what transpired between Radley and Asher.

"I knew letting him stay was going to be disastrous! Where is Asher? We cannot have him with us any longer. And you, Noelle, I had you go talk to Radley, and you come back to me with this! If the Leonards come back to us with this, I'm handing you over to them. What they do to you is none of my concern!"

Noelle felt wronged when she heard Carter's words. Her nose grew red, and she felt as if she was going to burst into tears.

That was when the butler, Mr. Wilhelm, hurried in. "Mr. Radley is here, Sir."