Chapter 392: Impeachment of Angers, Billion-Dollar Reward in Hunter Market
The Westin Excelsior Hotel, Italy.
In the evening of June in Rome, a trace of blood-red glow remained in the sky.
No one spoke in the conference room. The heavy atmosphere almost solidified into reality. The five school directors had already taken their seats, and the candlelight cast flickering shadows on their faces.
The main seat was empty, waiting for the man who flew over overnight from the Far East.
The door was pushed open silently, and all eyes were instantly focused.
An old man with white hair stood at the door, looking exhausted.
Gilbert Jean Angers.
He was still wearing the well-tailored black suit, but his tie was slightly loosened, and there was a barely perceptible hint of hostility in his eyes, as if he had just emerged from a battlefield where the smoke had not yet dissipated, ready to deal with the stupid teammates who were making trouble in the rear.
Glancing across the long table, Ange grinned, revealing his sharp white teeth: "Looks like I'm late?"
His voice was steady, without any urgency, as if he was not here to participate in a sudden impeachment against him.
Without any greetings or greetings, Frost Gattuso, the acting head of the Gattuso family, looked up calmly and said in a cold voice, "Principal Ange, please take a seat."
"We need to have a serious discussion about the future, or rather, the crisis, of Kassel College."
"crisis?"
Ange raised an eyebrow, said nothing more, and calmly walked to the main seat and sat down. He scanned the crowd again, his gaze briefly lingering on the beautiful woman in the black veil. He nodded to her and then shook the small brass bell in front of him:
"Now that everyone is here, I declare this year's annual meeting of the Board of Directors officially open."
He turned his gaze towards the old man on crutches, his expression calm. "We have just witnessed the fall of two Dragon Kings within the past two weeks: the White King and the Bronze and Fire King. I think this is a moment worth celebrating with champagne."
As soon as he finished speaking, Frost Gattuso rang the small brass bell in front of him.
"But at what cost? The academy invested enormous resources, the Japanese branch suffered heavy losses, and yet we haven't recovered even a single dragon bone or drop of dragon blood.
All the spoils, including the glory of slaying the Dragon King, went to one man, one who wasn't even one of us."
"Lu Mingfei." The old man, twisting his red sandalwood prayer beads, rang the bell slowly. "You rated his bloodline as S-level, but from our observations, his bloodline is far more than S-level. His danger is unknown, and there may be an unknown organization behind him.
He passed the academy's interview but refused admission. He subsequently single-handedly disrupted our plans in China, nearly leading to the Dragon Clan's secret being exposed and costing the academy over a million dollars in cleanup costs.
Ange, you actually tried to recruit such a dangerous person in the first place?"
"Why not?" Ange's attitude was very relaxed. It didn't seem like he was participating in an impeachment trial against him, but more like he was attending a boring party and playing games with a few stupid idiots.
"Isn't fresh blood that can kill the Dragon King the weapon we most desire? As for the Wushan Plan..." He shrugged and pulled the cedar cigarette case on the table closer. He took out a Havana cigar and cut it open skillfully.
"The Wushan Project was originally initiated by him. If it weren't for the poem he told Guderian, we wouldn't even know that there was such a large corpse-guarding nest hidden within Wushan.
Speaking of which, he also asked us to eliminate a hidden danger. Otherwise, if the Dragon King revives, those corpse guards will come out in droves, and the manpower we send alone will not be able to stretch the battle line that far."
"You call this eliminating hidden dangers?" Frost suddenly raised his voice, but then restrained himself and rang the bell: "He almost destroyed the secret work we accumulated in China for decades!
We had no choice but to yield to those local mixed-race families and paid a price far beyond our expectations to calm the situation!
The secret party is disgraced, Ange!
"Face?" Ange lit his cigar, blue smoke curling up, and he sneered: "Frost, my friend, the war with the Dragon King has never been about face, it's only about life and death.
If you want respectability, perhaps you should go and patronize the opera in Vienna instead of sitting here."
"So what about the Japanese branch?" The sarcasm in his words made Frost's face darken. Frost took a deep breath and rang the bell again: "The eight Snake Qi families have collectively resigned, left Kassel Academy, and are no longer loyal to the Secret Party.
Ange, as the principal, you established the Japanese branch. How could you be unaware that they are descendants of the White King?
Or... did you notice it but chose to hide it?"
"I suspected it." Ange took a deep drag on his cigar and slowly exhaled. He did not deny it, and his tone was calm:
"But so what? Even if they are descendants of the White King, they are still members of the Secret Party, protecting the secrets of the dragon race and the hybrids.
And, from what I saw with my own eyes, they were still fighting the White King to the very end."
"But they have rebelled now!" emphasized the school director who was playing with red sandalwood beads.
"I resigned," Ange corrected, "but that's a different concept.
They simply no longer obey the orders of the secret party, but their goal of slaying the dragon may not have changed.
They paid a heavy price to deal with the White King, and for now, they are not opposed to returning to the secret party.
If you hadn't called me back, the negotiations would still be going on."
"Heavy losses, nothing gained!" Frost sneered. "Is this the result of your management? Not only that, you also allowed dangerous bloodlines to get out of control!
Freshman Chu Zihang displayed extremely dangerous bloodline traits during the battle with the Kanto branch in Japan!
He threw out a stack of photos and slid towards Angers.
In the photo, Chu Zihang was standing in a rainstorm, with mutilated corpses lying at his feet. His body was covered with pitch-black scales, and his golden eyes were as hot as lava, like an evil ghost crawling out of hell. The look in his eyes was no longer human.
This is a photo of Chu Zihang defending Takama-ga-hara and fighting alone against the top brass of the Kanto branch. Even though the Sheqi Eight Families had cleared the entire street and blocked all surveillance, he was still captured bleeding.
"According to the core tenets of the Abrahamic Bloodline Contract, he should be immediately recalled and subjected to the strictest bloodline checks and even control!" Frost rang the bell, the tone carrying an undeniable meaning.
"And yet you let him continue to follow the more dangerous and uncontrollable Lu Mingfei! Ange, controlling dangerous bloodlines is one of the tenets of Kassel Academy! You're playing with fire and risking everyone's safety!"
"Chu Zihang controlled himself and completed an almost impossible task." Angé's eyes swept across the shocking photos, his tone remained unchanged, and he even collected the photos one by one.
“I know my student and I trust his will.
In a critical moment, the sword that can kill a dragon is the best. Rules are dead, and the person holding the sword is the key. If you think this is gambling," he paused, looking at Frost coldly, "then let me tell you, I won the bet."
"If Chu Zihang hadn't defended Takama-ga-hara to the death and prevented Genji from falling into Herzog's hands, we would have paid an even more painful price!"
"Anger!" Frost rang the bell again. "Your management is a mess, and your waste is staggering! The absurdity of 'Free Day,' the exorbitant bills resulting from the Executive Department's reckless actions, and your own extravagant spending are all borne by the academy!
Now, coupled with the betrayal of the Japanese branch, the failure of the Wushan Plan, and the loss of control over dangerous elements! The Board of Directors is forced to seriously question whether you still have the qualifications and ability to lead Kassel Academy!
After a series of accusations were made, the atmosphere in the conference room fell to freezing point, and all eyes were fixed on Ange, waiting for his response.
Elizabeth Laurent rang the bell at this moment. The voice of this enraged young woman who had received her father's body was clear and calm, and her reason was not clouded by hatred:
“Let’s not discuss Principal Angers’ management style for now, but the achievements he has made cannot be erased.
It was he who discovered Lu Mingfei and tried hard to maintain a friendly relationship with him. Otherwise, Lu Mingfei would not have rushed all the way to the sea to provide assistance after killing the White King.
Furthermore, Ange personally, along with S-rank executive Cheng Shuangfan and Caesar Gattuso, risked their lives by diving to a depth of eight thousand meters, successfully capturing extremely valuable footage of the Dragon City ruins. This historical material is crucial to the academy's research and is of inestimable value."
Frost's expression softened slightly, and he nodded. "That Caesar boy has truly demonstrated the courage and responsibility of a leader."
But he changed the subject, and the bell rang again, still pointing the finger at Ange: "However, Ange, as the supreme leader in the White King's decisive battle, you neither sat in the rear to command the overall situation, nor went to the front to participate in the decisive battle in person!
You could have allowed others to dive, but ended up putting yourself in an extremely dangerous situation, which is a serious dereliction of duty!"
The youngest female school director, who had remained silent the entire time, rang the bell. As everyone looked over, the housekeeper behind her slowly straightened up and stood still like a statue.
“Not only are there external concerns, but there are also internal security issues.
It has now been revealed that the information submitted by Fujiwara Nobunosuke was false. His words were from Time Zero and his bloodline was excellent, but his preparatory class chose to conceal it after taking the 3E exam, which eventually led to him being captured by the demons and injected with an excessive amount of evolutionary drugs, degenerating into Deadpool.
Ange, as the principal, you bear an unshirkable responsibility for this negligence."
The school director, twisting the red sandalwood beads, also rang the bell, his tone stern: "And that S-rank executive Cheng Shuangfan, he detained Zhao Xuzhen, a candidate knight of the Solomon's Temple, without authorization.
This move is extremely dangerous and reckless, and will provoke a frenzied retaliation from those lunatics, putting all of us in the secret party at great and unnecessary risk!"
If Lu Mingfei were here, he would definitely suspect that this old man had been in the system.
But Ange knew what they were worried about. Before he could speak, Elizabeth Laurent immediately rang the bell in response, with a rare hint of chill and determination in her voice:
"The Solomon's Temple is a group of lunatics who constantly conduct forbidden bloodline experiments and break ethical boundaries. They are even suspected of planning and assassinating my father. They have already taken action against the secret party!"
"Is this the reason you're declaring war on Solomon's Temple?" Frost frowned as he looked at this die-hard supporter of Angers, and shook the bell as well.
"I'm very sad about George's death, but the secret party has investigated and it's clear that he died in a plane crash."
After all, he is the second most vulnerable person on the board of directors, and is second only to the Gattuso family in terms of spending money. If something happens, the executive department will naturally investigate it thoroughly.
But all signs indicate that this was a pure air crash accident.
The only doubt is that no body and tissue fragments were found.
But the plane crash happened over the Atlantic Ocean, and the plane crashed into the rough sea in the explosion. It is normal that no relevant traces can be found.
To this, Elizabeth Laurent simply responded coldly: "I found my father's body."
"What?!" Everyone was shocked upon hearing this.
"Lisa, when did this happen?" Ange also frowned. He just found out about this now. George Laurent was his die-hard supporter and had even considered letting him be Elizabeth's godfather, but Ange refused.
"Today." Elizabeth obviously didn't want to talk about her father's body with too many people. She planned to talk to Ange alone after the meeting. She only trusted Ange among the people present.
Receiving her gaze, he nodded proudly: "Regarding the Solomon's Temple, Lisa is right. They are enemies, heretics, and unstable factors.
Commissioner Cheng has done a great job, especially since they're planning to target Lu Mingfei. We can't afford to back down on this matter."
As he said this, he turned to look at Frost: "Frost, my old friend, if you convened the annual meeting urgently today, it is just to list my crimes and force me to resign from the position of principal of Kassel College.
Putting aside the question of whether it's realistic to expect an old lion that has been deep in the dragon's lair and is still wounded to go back to its den to lick its wounds just because of a few untimely barks, I just want to ask, who can you find to replace me?"
There was silence, a long silence. Apart from the sound of breathing, the only sound in the conference hall was the faint sound of the endless waves coming from the cliff below.
Frost exchanged glances with several other school directors. They had prepared many criticisms of Ange, but they found helplessly that although Ange had countless problems, there was really no one who could replace him.
Slaying a dragon is not a business. Anyone present is more like a qualified businessman than Ange.
But the secret party does not need businessmen. What it needs is an iron-fisted leader like Ange who possesses supreme prestige, terrifying strength, iron-blooded courage and is awe-inspiring.
"We hope you will exercise greater caution, Ange." Frost finally rang the bell and spoke, his tone slowing down but still firm. "And accept the oversight of the Board of Trustees, especially regarding the Dragon King War, high-risk bloodlines, and the budgets for major operations."
The school director wearing the rosewood beads and the little school director also expressed their agreement. Elizabeth supported Ange, saying that it was Ange's leadership that made the secret party grow to its current size. If the school board intervened again, it would only lead to a recurrence of the Greenland Sea incident.
This statement was like setting off a powder keg. This was a decision that was passed almost unanimously by the school board that year. The meeting room was filled with the ringing of bells and arguments. The middle-aged school board member who had remained silent like a gangster was forced to act as a peacemaker.
Ange leaned back in his chair and smiled. There was an indescribable sarcasm and fatigue in that smile, which was a kind of helplessness of being held back by stupid teammates one after another.
He rang the bell and blew out a smoke ring, ready to end this farce: "If there is nothing else, let's end the meeting here. There is still a mess in Japan waiting for me to clean up."
Just at this moment, there was an inopportune and hurried knock on the door, and the school directors who had been arguing just now frowned.
In a meeting of this level, interruptions are extremely rare and rude.
Frost said in a displeased voice, "Come in."
The door opened, and it was Frost's secretary, Percy, who came in. He still maintained impeccable manners, but his face had lost its usual composure, and was filled with a hint of disbelief and astonishment.
"I'm very sorry to bother you, board members." Percy tried to keep his voice calm, but he still spoke a little quickly. "But we just received urgent intelligence from the Hunter Market. A new bounty was placed at the top ten minutes ago."
"Content." Ange had a bad feeling and stared at Percy.
"A dragon named Fenrisulfr will awaken in the capital of China. The publisher is recruiting hunters from all over the world to kill him. The reward is... 100 million US dollars!" Percy's words were like a nuclear bomb being dropped.
There was first a dead silence in the conference room, followed by a heated discussion.
The school directors didn't even care about maintaining their upper-class dignity and rang the damn bell, speaking their minds:
"Which bastard is so bold as to publicly release information related to dragons in the Hunter's Market?!"
The hunter market is a mixed bag, and it's not just half-bloods who mingle there. There are too many ordinary people wandering around that site. Could it be that the secret of the dragon clan that the half-bloods have guarded for thousands of years is about to be revealed to the world?
"God, the Bronze and Fire Talents awakened a few days ago and caused such a big commotion, and now another dragon is about to awaken. Did someone blow up the dragon's nest?"
"China, why is it China again, and in the capital?!" Frost's face turned grim as he stared at Ange.
"If I remember correctly, Lu Mingfei and the others are in Beijing right now."
"Yes, and your dear nephew." Angre nodded. Others might panic when they heard the news, but he didn't care too much.
Although the intelligence department of Kassel College often makes mistakes, because the specialists always like to mess around, their aftermath department is very powerful and can properly resolve this matter and minimize the impact of the bounty.
Moreover, since Lu Mingfei is here, the dragon Fenrisulfr is nothing to worry about.
Do you understand the value of being able to seize the opportunity as soon as it appears?
Frost frowned and asked, "Lu Mingfei always appears at the place where the Dragon King revives. Could it be that this Fenrisulfr is also a Dragon King?"
"Who knows?" Ange shrugged nonchalantly. "Since the dragon has revived in Lu Mingfei's homeland, it's destined not to see the next day's sunrise."
Although Lu Mingfei only had two experiences of slaying dragons, he always waited for the Dragon King to revive and then killed him with one blow, focusing on high efficiency.
Everyone looked at each other in surprise when they heard this. Just a moment ago, they were still criticizing Ange because of Lu Mingfei, but they never thought that the other party would now become their greatest reliance in keeping the secrets of the dragon clan.
After all, as long as Lu Mingfei can kill the dragon before it wakes up and makes a big noise, Kassel Academy can easily minimize the impact of this bounty.
"Are we just going to stand by and watch as spectators?" The little girl, the school director, rang the bell. Children love to be in the spotlight, especially since she is the representative of the family. If possible, she would like to see someone from Kassel College become the savior this time.
"I'll have Mans and the others head north. Caesar and Chu Zihang, the future student leaders of the academy, are also here. I'll have them participate as much as possible," Ange said calmly. "If they're just ordinary dragons, Lu Mingfei will give them a chance to perform."
"How can you be sure?" Frost asked in disbelief.
"Because he's a strong man." Ange put out his cigar, stood up, and shook his collar. "And the strong are never stingy in giving others the opportunity to challenge them."
After saying this, he turned and left.
(End of this chapter)
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