The Return of The Warlord

Chapter 5

“What did you go to the border for? I heard it was very dangerous at the time.”

Alan nodded slowly, knowing that he had to keep his identity hidden and not wanting her to ask any more questions, he said, “it's personal.”

“Oh I see,” Hazel responded. “I have also left my family.”

Alan glanced at her.

“They want to force me into a marriage with a man I don’t love. But he is just another insidious snake. My family…they wouldn’t want to listen to me,” Hazel said with a sad sigh.

“Love is not always the basis for marriage and it could be your fears speaking. Who knows maybe he’s actually a good man if you give him a chance?”

“You talk like my father but you both do not understand. I have heard his conversations on the phone when he thought nobody was listening. He has ulterior motives”

“If you feel he’s plotting against your family, then I’ll advise you to listen to your heart.”

Hazel smiled widely. “Finally, someone who understands but if I don’t get married I won’t have full access to my inheritance left by my grandfather, unless-” She stared into his eyes, making him raise a brow. “Will you marry me?”

Alan was taken aback by her request. “Miss Hazel I feel that you are unwell, please return back to your room,” He said, standing up and walking towards the door.

“I know my request may sound stupid especially when we don’t know each other but I’m desperate at this point, please help me,” She pleaded.

“Miss Hazel, there are other men that would fall at your feet if you make such a request known to them but, I am not interested.”

“Even if I promise you 20% shares of my company? That’s around fifty million dollars per year”

She was certain her offer would be enticing to him.  He had just come back from his service in the army, so he definitely won’t have anything on him.

“I’m sorry miss, but you can’t buy me with that.”

Hazel was confused. 

“Everyone has their price, surely you do too, besides, marrying into the Hades Family will be worth even more than that 20% share as well.” 

She was expecting him to ask about her identity before even rejecting her offer, so she took the initiative to drop her family name.

She was the heiress of the Hades family, one of top influential families in the city and the entire country. She alone had painstakingly built her own business brand and was recognized as the city’s rising star in the business world.

Hazel Hades and Hazel Emporium.

Topping the city’s charts in accountability and CEO’s resourcefulness for a year now. 

Alan was marvelled by her identity and her wit, although she sounded like a naïve lady, she was very calculative.

“I’m afraid I do not have a price.”

He had just gotten a divorce from his wife. Why would he go into another marriage? Hazel’s company could even be bought by him with just the snap of his fingers but of course, he knew that she wouldn’t think of him as a rich man just like the sales attendant in the jewellery store and his ex-wife.

“You’re really a tough man. Are all soldiers like you? Or are you just particularly bitter?”

“Are all female CEOs as domineering as you? Or are you just particularly unreasonable?”

At first, she was angry at his snide remarks and his cool demeanour. It was almost as if talking to her was a chore to him. She could tell from the way he sat and the expressions that passed his face fleetingly. This was a skill she had honed as a businesswoman and she trusted its effectiveness well.

A minute of silence passed between them, neither was willing to speak first. Alan knew how to play this game well. The first person to speak would be passing the initiative to the other and he wasn’t ready to do that. So, he watched her calmly. His tea grew cold in front of him.

After some minutes, Hazel finally smiled and shook her head.

“Fine. It was wrong of me to ask that of you. What about a pretend wedding then? Don’t worry, it’s not for a long time, just long enough for me to get my inheritance, then we can just divorce.”

Alan stared at her, What is the damn difference?! Is this lady lacking a few screws?

Seeing that Alan was not in a good mood, she smiled lightly and continued, “Before you go on about how unreasonable I am, I want you to think about what you are going to gain.”

“What?” It was definitely not the 20% share or the prestige of her family, because both were like shit to him.

“You get to show your ex how wrong she was to dump you.”

Lightning struck in Alan’s mind.

Hazel saw that she had finally gotten a good reaction from him,  so she took the opportunity to press on.

“Imagine, she gets married to some guy, gets pregnant for him, and now, she sees you on television, getting married to the number one lady in the city. Not just her, every man in the damn city would be dying from jealousy.”

Alan calmed down and tapped the table lightly with the tip of his index finger. 

Hazel didn’t speak as she could tell that he was in deep thought.

‘If I get married to her, everyone in the entire city will know about it. Hell! Everyone in the whole country will know about it. This is the Winged Lioness of the Hades Family! Their family could make any city mayor in the entire country tremble in fear and even influence specific regions of the country with their immense wealth and influence. I won’t even need to get revenge using my own identity or means, with this alone…hehe…who the hell is Michael Fletcher?! He is just a country bumpkin compared to one of the Twenty Great Families!’

After accepting this first phase, he began to formulate a plan in mind, apart from getting back at his ex out of pure spite and the need to sate his vengeance, he could also use that to break into the Apparel and Luxury Goods industry in the city by riding on her influence.

He began to think of different ways he could take advantage of the situation and even gain more. 

Currently, he and his younger brother have passed the test given by their family to know who will become the family head. While this meant all competitors within the family had failed, it also meant the two of them had to defeat each other to find a final winner. 

The City, Silver Lace, is one of the wealthiest cities in the country, and naturally, it has a very competitive business space, but if business can succeed here, it can easily spread to all other major cities in the country and become a true success.

Hazel waited calmly for Alan to think, and he remained in thought. The small cafe was peaceful and to the untrained eye, they looked like friends or couples having a calm morning drink.

Unknown to both of them, photos of them both were being taken.

…

Gold Aries.

Gold Aries emerged six years ago as a tech startup, and for two years, it was barely known at all. It faced a tough time until the company made a huge break in renewable energy which pushed them to the limelight. The company quickly grew from there.

Many have tried to find out who owned this rising star company, but no one had any information about it at all. Only the Executive Director, Timothy Hall, was known by the public, and even this old man in his fifties was usually out of the spotlight except during events and occasions that required his attention.

Alan stared at the landmark sculpture outside the company building with emotions swirling in his heart. This was his hard work, his blood, and sweat.

After appreciating the beauty of the sculpture outside the company and Old Tim’s taste in design, he took a deep breath and walked towards the entrance.

Just as he was about to go into the company, he heard someone call out to him and he turned around, coming face to face with Micahel Fletcher and Lucia’s sister, Kira beside him.

“What are you doing here, Alan?” Kira asked.  “Are you trailing me? Don’t expect me to beg my sister on your behalf to take you back because that’s impossible!”

“K, will you ask him such a question when there is an obvious answer? He’s probably here to seek work. After all, we all know how jobless and homeless he is right now.” Michael said with a mocking smile on his face.

Kira sneered. “Hehe, that’s true. Where did you sleep last night Alan? At the gutters where the likes of you are meant to be, I suppose?”

Alan gave no reply and turned to walk away. He wouldn’t bother him with these two at all but as he spun around to walk away, Micahel held him back.

“How dare you walk out on me? Do you know who I am?!” Micahel’s gaze was domineering. This good-for-nothing actually had the guts to walk out on him! What gall!

“And who are you?” Alan asked, hitting his hand away. 

Michael puffed up his shoulders with pride. “If you must know, my family is a very prominent one in this city and we are the owners of JK enterprises, one of the fastest-rising companies in the city. I’m here to discuss one of my ongoing projects with the Gold Aries group. I’m sure you don’t even know what this means.”

“Okay,” Michael replied indifferently.

What!

Michael was flabbergasted. This wasn’t the reaction he was expecting at all. He had expected Alan to try to gain favour with him like most others would do when they learn about his identity and his lie about having gained a contract with Gold Aries group.

Kira was also surprised at Alan’s indifference to Michaell. “Hey, Alan, who exactly do you think you are anyway?! You can’t even hold a torch in the presence of Mr. Fletcher here so stop behaving like you are important!” She spat out angrily.

Michael scoffed, “I suppose you are here to get a job right? Hmm, since you were so good to my wife when you both were still together, I want to repay you for your kindness to her.”

Alan raised a brow.