Chapter 4 This Backup is Useless

• The banquet hall doors flew open, and twenty big guys in black suits stormed in, looking tough.
• They lined up on both sides, standing tall and straight.
• "Welcome, Mr. Damian!"
• The twenty men shouted in unison, their powerful voices reverberating through the hall, sending a ripple of awe and excitement through the crowd.
• "So this is the Porters from Ciderbrook? What a show!"
• "Hah, wasn't that Goodwell just strutting around like he owned the place?"
• "Yeah, let's see how tough he acts now in front of Mr. Damian!"
• The crowd stared at Eric as if he was a joke.
• Even though Alan had just died, the Duncans members, driven by their greed, felt no sorrow. Instead, they were secretly pleased—one less person to share the profits with.
• With Damian stepping up for the Duncans, these people couldn't be more pleased.
• Damian swaggered over to Monica, oozing arrogance.
• "Honey, this is the ex-husband I told you about!
• "I cut ties with him five years ago, but he just won't let go. He even killed Uncle Alan just now, and who knows? I might be his next target!"
• Monica cuddled up to Damian like a sweet little bird, her tone calm but dripping with malice.
• Seeing her so compliant gave Damian a huge ego boost. He waved his hand with a flourish, "Kemp, kill him!"
• The old guy in black behind Damian strode forward with a no-nonsense air. His knuckles were thick, his hands covered in calluses, and his temples bulged. He was obviously a seasoned fighter.
• This man was none other than Kemp Porter, the Warrior who had guarded the Porters for years!
• "Rumor has it that Kemp is at the peak of the Combat Master ranks!"
• In the martial world, warriors were ranked from lowest to highest: Novie Warrior, Warrior, Combat Master, High Master, Grandmaster, Warlord!
• A Combat Master like Kemp was in a league of his own. He could take on a hundred guys at once on the battlefield!
• "Kid, next time, pay attention. Some people are way out of your league!
• "Time to die!"
• With a sneer, Kemp stomped his foot and shot forward like a rocket, his whole body blurring. He unleashed a fierce gust of energy from his palm, aiming straight for Eric's head.
• He was aiming to kill with one blow.
• Whoosh!
• Eric slammed his hand on the table, and the knife flew out like missiles, piercing Kemp's shoulders. The force was so strong it sent Kemp crashing into the wall, pinning him there.
• The sight left everyone in the room speechless, their jaws dropping in shock.
• What was even creepier was that Eric had somehow vanished from his seat.
• He appeared out of nowhere in front of Monica, grabbing Damian by the throat and lifting him off the ground, his feet dangling in mid-air.
• It was downright terrifying!
• "Who the hell do you think you are?
• "How dare you act so bold in front of me!"
• Eric's expression was cold.
• With his throat being choked, Damian was clearly terrified, but he kept yelling, "Do you even know who I am?
• "I'm Damian!
• "I'm the eldest son of the Porters, and we're one of the top elites in Ciderbrook—"
• Creeeak ...
• Before Damian could get another word out, Eric had yanked open the banquet hall windows. The icy night wind rushed in, making Damian shiver all over.
• What's he doing?
• Is Eric planning to throw me out from up here?
• But ...
• The banquet hall is three stories high. If he throws me down, I'll either be dead or seriously injured for sure!
• He won't!
• He doesn't have the courage!
• Hey, I'm Mr. Damian!
• My family has been a prestigious, top-tier family in Ciderbrook for a hundred years.
• Just a stomp of a foot can make both the underworld and the high society in Ciderbrook shake.
• Eric must be out of his mind if he's trying to mess with us!
• No, that's wrong.
• To be exact, unless Eric wants to drag his family and friends to their deaths with him, he wouldn't dare touch a hair on me Damian.
• "Goodwell, do you think I'm scared of you?
• "Let me go right now!
• "Argh!"
• Damian had been sure that Eric wouldn't hurt him, and that made him feel a lot more confident.
• But that newfound confidence didn't last more than three seconds. Eric loosened his grip on Damian's throat.
• Then, Damian was sent plummeting from the third floor to the first.
• The sound of bones cracking echoed as he fell, barely having time to scream before his eyes rolled back and he fainted from the pain.
• Everyone's eyes went wide in disbelief!
• This was insane.
• Eric not only pinned Kemp to the wall with a knife but now he'd tossed Damian off the third floor, leaving him in a near-dead state.
• It was just ...
• Unbelievable!
• If they hadn't seen it for themselves, they'd never believe anyone could be this wild.
• But Eric didn't give a d*mn about the chatter around him. He just pulled up a big chair, sat down, crossed his legs, and leaned back with a relaxed posture.
• He looked at Monica, who was stunned and confused, with a smirk. "Monica, didn't expect your new fiancé to be so useless, did you?
• "I'm not even done having fun, and he's already a mess.
• "You're not gonna blame me for this, are you?"
• Monica's heart skipped a beat, and she felt a wave of anxiety.
• He's way too strong!
• Eric was so intimidating, and his methods were just unbelievable!
• She couldn't imagine what Eric had been through over the past five years to become this powerful.
• But she quickly pushed her anxiety aside and calmed down.
• After all, she was a cold-blooded woman who would scheme against even her own husband for the sake of profit and money.
• When Eric looked her way, Monica flashed a smile. "Of course not!
• "Eric, you're the only one who's right for me!
• "And Damian?
• "He's not even worth a finger compared to you. You're my perfect match, Eric!"
• Monica gave Eric a flirtatious smile and winked. "I'm worth billions now, and once my company goes public, I'll be a well-known businesswoman in Skaonia!
• "As for everything I've done to you and your family over the past five years, I'm ready to spend the rest of my life making it up.
• "I've already got a room booked upstairs. Let me start making up for it tonight!"
• You've gotta admit, Monica's scheming nature was impressive.
• Such shameless words might be something an ordinary woman would say to save her life, but none would be as calm as Monica.
• Because she knew!
• A wise woman knew not to pick a fight she couldn't win. Given that even the Porters' guard couldn't handle Eric, it went without saying that her guards were no match.
• So, right now, she was just stalling for time!
• Monica had already informed the Ciderbrook military about what was happening here.
• Once they showed up, no matter how strong Eric was, he'd be turned to dust with all that heavy weaponry.
• Tonight, she was determined to make sure Eric disappeared for good!
• "Kid!
• "I don't care who you are. How dare you go on a killing spree in Ciderbrook? Do you have any respect for the law?"
• Suddenly, a loud, angry shout rang out!
• And then came the sound of heavy, rhythmic footsteps pounding closer and closer, like a drumbeat.
• At the front was a man with two bars and two stars on his shoulder—a clear sign he was a lieutenant colonel!
• Following him were over a hundred soldiers in dark green combat gear, all carrying rifles and moving in tight formation, advancing rapidly toward them.