Chapter 115: Chapter 115: Kneeling Down

"It's outrageous how the Blackwood family's pharmaceuticals blatantly jeopardize consumer safety. As a member of Isengard, I feel it's my duty to stand up for these vulnerable groups, the Beast Masters who have been killed by Coca-Cola, and denounce the Blackwood family's pharmaceuticals!"

Sly said, his face contorted with anger as he continued in front of the gathering cameras and flashing lights. "I've had pharmaceutical experts analyze the ingredients in this Coca-Cola, and indeed, some of the products contain lethal toxins!"

Hearing this, the crowd around began to murmur.

"No wonder this Coca-Cola is so cheap; it's because it's poisonous!"

"I've drunk it too, what should I do? Is it still time to go to the hospital?" Sёarch* The NôvelFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"I was wondering why I've been finishing so quickly in bed with my wife these days. It must be this Coca-Cola!"

In a moment, the crowd was whipped into a frenzy, and everyone started condemning the Blackwood family's pharmaceuticals. Among the crowd, four or five people exchanged glances, then, as if on cue, began to chant together: "Boycott Blackwood family pharmaceuticals, give us back our health!"

"Boycott Blackwood family pharmaceuticals, give us back our health!"

Led by them, the gathered citizens continued shouting as they marched towards the gates of the Blackwood family corporation.

"You claim an expert confirmed the presence of toxins in Coca-Cola, but who might that expert be?" A resonant voice boomed as the corporate gates slowly swung open. Charles, flanked by Raj, Henry, and David, stepped into view and continued, "Sly, you need to stand by your words. What if they're unfounded?"

"Charles, since when is it your turn to speak here?" Sly responded with composed defiance. He had either bribed or intimidated experts; the actual presence of toxins in the Coca-Cola was now irrelevant.

What mattered was making sure all the Beast Masters knew this drink could be lethal! As for Axel and Kevin, Sly was confident they wouldn't slip up.

"I stand by my statement," Sly directly addressed Charles. "If I'm wrong, I'm willing to kneel and bow my head in apology!"

"Are you certain?" Charles's eyes gleamed; he had video evidence, and now Sly's promise to kneel seemed inevitable.

Unperturbed, Sly nodded affirmatively. "Yes, I'm certain! It's the toxins in your pharmaceuticals that have led to Beast Master deaths!"

After his declaration, Sly turned to Raj, Henry, and David, shouting, "I've posted online about how your actions endangered Beast Master safety. You all are accountable for this incident!" MVLeMpYr.com-verified

Raj feigned outrage, retorting, "This mess isn't our fault at all. The pharmaceutical plant was just burned down yesterday, Sly! You're framing us!"

"Humph, still making excuses, huh? It's clearly your fault these Beast Masters died!" Sly then addressed the gathering Beast Masters behind him, "This is the fault of the Blackwood family's pharmaceuticals. They ought to compensate—at least ten silver coins per person!"

The initially angry crowd quieted down after hearing this.

Everyone looked around, greed slowly overtaking their expressions.

Ten silver coins equaled ten thousand copper coins—not a small sum!

"If I drank two bottles of Coca-Cola, should I get twenty silver coins?"

"I had three bottles; I should get thirty silver coins. They must compensate us!"

"Lucky me, I only had one bottle. Is it still okay to drink more now?"

"Bro, I still have a bottle on me. How about I sell it to you for five silver coins?"

Everyone was captivated by the compensation Sly mentioned. Any previous doubts about whether the Blackwood family's pharmaceuticals were to blame had become irrelevant; what mattered now was how to secure the compensation.

Seeing this, Sly's face lit up with glee. It was one thing for a few individuals to be swayed, but now it seemed thousands were on his side.

Facing this scenario, Henry, Raj, and David were out of their depth, unable to resolve the situation favorably.

As the scales of victory seemed to tip in his favor, Sly couldn't help but taunt further: "How does it feel now? Paying ten silver coins per person, there are countless people in Isengard who bought your products. Just the compensation alone could bankrupt you!"

Charles remained unconcerned, responding nonchalantly, "Compensation? What compensation?"

"Playing dumb now, Charles? You're just a minor third-level Beast Master. What right do you have to strut around in front of me?" Sly's face contorted into a snarl, his anger uncontainable at the thought that Charles might be linked to his son's death.

But now wasn't the time to settle scores. Once David and the others were completely defeated and unable to recover, he'd deal with Charles directly.

"Sly, I might only be a third-level Beast Master, but I didn't set fire to the factory or frame anyone for murder!"

"What?" Sly was taken aback, as if struck by lightning, standing there dazed. Behind him, Axel and Kevin were also panicked.

Axel blurted out, "Charles, that's a serious accusation! If you're going to make claims, you better have evidence!"

"Yeah, don't talk nonsense without proof!" Kevin chimed in, supporting Axel.

Watching the somewhat flustered Sly, Axel, and Kevin, Charles smirked slightly, "Who says I don't have evidence? Why don't you check your phones? You'll find the evidence right there!"

"Enough, Charles, stop your desperate struggle, we didn't..." Sly was cut off mid-sentence by Axel, who was the first to pull out his phone to check.

Upon opening it, he saw two videos that were wildly circulating online. One showed Axel leading a group to set the factory ablaze, disregarding the safety of the workers, including a close-up of his face.

The other video exposed how they manipulated other Beast Masters to frame Coca-Cola as poisonous.

"How can this be? When did you film this?" Axel exclaimed as he scrolled through the overwhelming online backlash, where commenters cursed and derided him.

One person commented, "Not only is Axel ugly, but his heart is rotten too!"

"Exactly, to think he was capable of arson and murder, I had no idea he was such a person!"

"I heard it's because his wife cheated on him, that's why he turned into such a freak."

Watching a bewildered Axel, Sly felt a sudden sense of foreboding and quickly pulled out his phone to check. His discovery sent him into a panic as he muttered to himself, "How could this happen?"

The Beast Masters who had been denouncing the Blackwood family's pharmaceuticals suddenly shifted their focus to Sly, Axel, and Kevin.

"My God, how could Axel be so evil! To set fire to the factory, and it's a miracle no one died."

"If there were workers inside, probably none could have escaped!"

"These people didn't die from drinking Coca-Cola, they were killed by them!"

"That's too cruel, committing such harmful acts in Isengard, it's outright criminal murder!"

"So it was all a setup! There's no poison in the Coca-Cola!"

"Ah, then why was I so quick in bed yesterday?"

"Could it be you're just not that good?"

As the situation spiraled out of control, Sly erupted in rage on the spot, bellowing, "Everyone, shut up!"

In an instant, the power of a fourth-level Beast Master burst forth, summoning a hexagram formation as four wind-element mystical beasts appeared.

Before anyone could react, Sly activated [Beast Mastery Possession].

Suddenly, a fierce wind kicked up as the full force of a fourth-level Beast Master's power subdued the onlooking crowd into silence.

"Sly! What are you trying to do?" Henry and David, while summoning their own mystical beasts, shouted in challenge.

The tension escalated rapidly, like a powder keg ready to explode.

Even Kevin, who was on the same side as Sly, had not anticipated such a sudden outburst and urgently shouted, "Stop!"

Kevin's reaction stemmed from the fact that Charles was not only regarded highly by various academic institutions but had also received an invitation from the prestigious Monster Academy, Cyber Academy. If Charles were to be killed in front of a public audience, the consequences would be unimaginable!

Previously, when Charles's academic standing was still uncertain and he hadn't received the invitation, it might have been possible to make a move against him.

Now, any action would be akin to trampling on the reputations of those academies underfoot. While Sly, possibly grieving his son's loss, might not care, Kevin had to consider his family and Thomas. Thus, upon seeing Sly initiate [Beast Mastery Possession], Kevin quickly intervened to stop him.

Compared to offending academic institutions, arson and murder were minor issues. Compensation and settlements were trivial for the Miller and Draven families.

"Shut up! Charles, I won't let you go!" Although Sly had initially planned to eliminate Charles, when Kevin intervened, he came to his senses.

Inside Isengard, he couldn't make his move, so he'd wait until Charles left the city to kill him. Moreover, he planned to ensure that everyone close to Charles suffered as well.

He wanted Charles to experience the agony of losing loved ones! With a determined snort, Sly said,

"You're lucky today, but you just wait!"

Charles remained calm, showing no fear, and quietly put back the prepared [fragment of jade tablet].

[Fragment of Jade Tablet] [Orange Quality]: Can be activated by injecting any type of energy. Although merely a remnant of Joshua, it possesses the combat power comparable to a fifth-level Beast Master. Usable 3/3 times.

Even if Sly had attacked and others hadn't intervened, Charles wouldn't have been worried.

Mousie's dark attribute abilities weren't convenient to reveal, and only Max, a mystical beast, facing Sly directly in combat wouldn't resolve the matter quickly. It seemed Charles needed to advance his plan to find the next mystical beast!

Dismissing his inner thoughts, Charles sneered at Sly, "Did you summon your mystical beast just to perform magic tricks? Have such a poor memory? Don't you remember what you just said?"

"Yeah, who was it that just said he'd kneel and bow his head?" David, catching the mood, sarcastically repeated Sly's earlier statement: "I stand by my statement. If I'm wrong, I'm willing to kneel and bow my head, kneel and bow~"