Chapter 459
Takashi Yamamoto’s eyes narrowed as he demanded sharply, “Benjamin, what do you think you’re doing? Explain yourself.”
“What does it look like I’m doing?” Takashi unsheathed his dagger. The blade glinted dangerously under the dim basement lights. A cruel smirk twisted his lips. “You have two options, Isabella. One, my men beat you until there’s nothing left. Two, you cut off your own hands and crawl out of here.”
No one was allowed to surpass him. Anyone who could defeat him deserved to be erased.
If Isabella Montgomery lost her hands, she would never compete again. That would be the end of Takashi Yamamoto’s humiliation.
He threw the sharp dagger. It landed at her feet with a cold, metallic clang.
The sound echoed in the tense silence. Benjamin Kensington’s pulse raced. How could someone as refined as Isabella be forced to mutilate herself? He immediately stepped in front of her, his voice shaking with fury. “Master Yamamoto! This is outrageous! You lost fair and square! Have you no honor?”
“Silence! Do not call me ‘Master’! Do you honestly believe I wanted you as my student? I made a deal with Victoria!” Takashi scoffed, his expression full of contempt and impatience. His gaze was icy. “With your mediocre talent? I only agreed because Victoria promised to share my bed!”
He laughed, a harsh, grating sound. “Surprised? Everything Isabella said was true! Victoria lured you away from Westchester. She used you to seize control of the entire sixty percent family shares! I’ve been keeping you locked in my basement all this time, and you still call me ‘Master’? Pathetic! You are a fool of the highest order!”
Takashi reveled in the destruction. He loved shattering people’s realities.
Benjamin stumbled backward, his face pale. His world was crumbling. Had it all been a lie? Had Victoria truly manipulated him so completely? Had she really traded her body to a man like Takashi just to ruin him? Was her kindness merely a facade to steal his inheritance?
That meant Isabella had been telling the truth. She had come here to rescue him.
The sister he adored had betrayed him. The sister he despised had risked everything to save him.
Benjamin’s eyes burned. His hands clenched into white-knuckled fists.
Takashi found his anger amusing. A mocking half-smile played on his lips. “What’s this? Anger? You want to go home and seek revenge? Then convince Isabella to chop off her hands. You can even do it for her! As long as her hands remain here, I will let you both leave. Otherwise…” His voice dropped to a deadly whisper. “You will both die here today.”
His gaze was utterly merciless.
Benjamin stood his ground, shielding Isabella completely. “Never! This is insane! I won’t let you lay a finger on her!”
“Hahaha! Ahahaha! You are hilarious!” Takashi erupted in derisive laughter. He looked Benjamin up and down with pure scorn. “Oh, Benjamin! What right do you have to speak? What right? With that weak, useless body? Or those clumsy fingers that can’t even win a simple game?”
The words hit their mark. Benjamin froze. What right did he have? Takashi was right.
His whole life had been about games. He rejected every business and science course his family enrolled him in. He never studied. He never learned.
Victoria had secretly funded his gaming. She encouraged his addiction. He used to think it was kindness. He believed she was the only one who understood him.
Now he saw the truth. It was all a setup for his downfall. She was engineering his ruin.
Suddenly, he remembered the words Isabella had once said to him.