Josie Howell was bewildered.
Carson Flores had only just entered the Grandmaster Realm, hadn’t he?
Wasn’t he ranked as the weakest in the entire squad?
To think that with one punch he caused Garrett Howell, the strongest among them, to vomit blood, and with another punch, made Jeffrey Howell roll on the ground like a gourd, his fate unknown—could a newly minted Grandmaster really be capable of this?
The harbinger of death?
Josie instinctively took a step back. Although she hadn’t fully grasped the situation, her intuition screamed that she was no match for Carson Flores.
Carson didn’t chase after Josie but instead, turned direction and charged towards Ruben Howell, who had just struggled to his feet.
With one punch, Ruben’s body was sent flying back, smashing through a wall and creating a large hole with a loud crash.
Carson casually withdrew his fist, his gaze settling back on Josie.
Josie felt like she was being preyed on by a tyrannosaurus, her whole body turning weak.
Ruben Howell had been sent flying with a punch as well!
Just how strong was this man?
He was only twenty-seven years old, how could he be so powerful?
He had just entered the Grandmaster Realm, how could he possibly be stronger than a Peak Great Master?
What kind of monster had she provoked?
As Josie thought about how she had treated Carson Flores all along, she regretted it so deeply she felt sick to her stomach.
She finally understood the words Carson had said before.
It could have been a smooth-sailing affair, but she chose to make trouble, constantly finding new ways to do so...
Indeed, she made a complete mess of things!
If she hadn’t been so aggressive before, hadn’t insulted Carson, and had actually asked for his opinion when facing Saint Jaramillo for the first time, perhaps Carson would have fought.
Carson could’ve easily defeated Saint Jaramillo, and then all the gains from the pharmacy would’ve belonged to their squad. As long as the distribution was fair, wouldn’t they have continued to win effortlessly with Carson’s strength?
She insulted him, overreached, and in the end not only tried to seize Carson’s gains but also harbored the intent to kill him!
Josie glanced at Garrett Howell, who was struggling to sit up from the ground, at Jeffrey Howell lying on the floor, and at Ruben Howell, who had been blasted through a hole and was nowhere to be seen. Josie lost her nerve.
"Carson, don’t go crazy, I was just joking with you before..."
Carson paced towards Josie and said indifferently, "Joking? You joked about killing me?"
Josie broke out in a sweat, knowing her actions couldn’t be excused with a mere joke. Hesitating, she began to plead, "Indeed, I went too far, but don’t forget the favors—Jaiden Howell recommended you to join the Howell squad, and that’s a fact, isn’t it? Jaiden Howell is a member of the Howell Family after all. You’re a generous man, won’t you let us off this time?"
Carson sneered, "Now you remember to pull on the senior’s strings, huh? Weren’t you all sneers and mockery before?"
Josie shamelessly said, "That was my ignorance. I didn’t realize Jaiden meant well by getting us such a powerful ally. If you had made it clear earlier, we would have definitely followed your lead without any misunderstanding, right?"
Carson delivered a kick. So close was Josie that dodging was impossible; she had to take the hit.
Josie’s body was sent flying, crashing into a wardrobe in the corner. The closet burst instantly, and Josie crashed into it.
Crawling out from the pile of splintered wood, Josie looked up to see Carson standing before her. Before she could speak, her hair was grabbed tightly, and Carson yanked her out, throwing her onto the floor.
"I don’t have much of an issue with the other three, but you... I really want to kill you..."
Josie turned pale, disregarding her disheveled state, and knelt before Carson, lifting her hand and slapping her own face fiercely.
Just from Carson’s seemingly casual kick, Josie felt like her bones were nearly falling apart.
Acutely aware of the power gap between herself and Carson, Josie knew that her life was entirely in Carson’s hands.
Even if Carson killed her in front of the others, the Howell Family wouldn’t seek revenge for her; after all, they had no justifiable cause.
Bullying the weak, abusing power, ganging up, only to be counter-slaughtered—at the end of it, anyone who heard the story would probably say it was a well-deserved death.
The Vasquez Family, who had previously acted unreasonably, attempting to overpower and kill Carson, had now fallen to a second-tier status. Certainly, the Howell Family wouldn’t want to become the next Vasquez Family.
The shadow of death loomed over Josie. Her mind was now completely filled with fear and regret; there was only one thought.
If she could survive, she would do anything, endure any humiliation!
Watching Josie slap her own face, Carson spoke flatly, "Is that the best you can do with your hands? Are you weak from hunger, or shall I help you?"