However, what puzzled Nathan was—who exactly were these people taking action against him?
After all, if Valar truly made a move on him, it would spark a war. Unless the Prime Minister was an idiot, there's no way he would allow that to happen.
But if Valar wasn't involved, then who else could have the power and means to gather so many people here to deal with him?
Ring ring~
Suddenly, Nathan's phone rang.
He glanced down and saw that the caller ID was none other than Lily.
"You'd better release Lily right now if you know what's good for you. Otherwise, you're going to regret it!"
Nathan said directly as he answered the call.
"Oh, come on, we're all old friends here. No need to get so worked up—we just invited your little girlfriend over for a meal,"
came a cheeky, shameless voice on the other end, completely unfazed by Nathan's threat.
"Here, let me let you hear your little girlfriend's voice."
"Nathan, help me... these people... sob sob…"
The moment Nathan heard the voice, rage instantly surged to the heavens—but then he froze.
A plea for help? That didn't sound like Lily at all.
If Lily had really been captured, she would have calmly reported her situation to him—
not cried like a helpless damsel in distress.
"Should I say you're stupid... or just stupid? Do you really think the woman I chose would beg for help like that?"
…
Nathan and Lily had known each other for nearly twenty years. Their mutual understanding was deeper than most married couples.
Back at the hotel, the moment Lily learned that Nathan might be in danger, her first thought was to leave the country.
That was her faith in Nathan's strength.
She firmly believed he could resolve the situation and return home safely on his own.
And Nathan knew full well—Lily was a woman of extreme rationality.
If she had truly been kidnapped, there's no way she would say such useless things.
"Nathan, it's really me! Don't you want me anymore?"
Before Nathan could respond, the voice on the phone came again—this time even more absurd, dripping with fake affection.
"Alright, drop the act. If I'm not mistaken, that's a Ditto talking, right?"
Nathan said with a laugh.
Even a con artist should do their homework on their target. He didn't know whether to call them clueless or just uninformed.
Sure enough, on the other end of the line, the Ditto returned to its original form.
(TN: Can Ditto talk? I don't really remember the anime anymore.)
Around the Ditto, layers of ambushes had been carefully set up.
But none of them had expected Nathan to see through the trick.
Right before Nathan arrived, they had nearly captured Lily—until a wild card appeared out of nowhere.
A van charged through, snatching Lily—just as she was about to fall into their hands.
With no other options, they used Ditto to try and lure Nathan into a trap.
"Nathan, don't get cocky. Even if you and your little girlfriend escape for now, there's no way you're leaving this country!"
The voice on the phone growled, furious that their deception failed.
Unfortunately, Nathan didn't even hear that part.
By the time those words were spoken, he had already hung up, mounted his Flygon, and taken off.
Now that he knew Lily was safe, it would be foolish to waste any more time.
His priority was to find her.
However, since Lily's phone was in their hands, Nathan was a bit worried—how would he locate her now?
Just then, his phone rang again—but this time, it wasn't from Lily's number.
It was Hana.
Right when Lily had been in danger, Hana had gotten her driver to rush over.
She had been participating in a post-match interview when she accidentally overheard some people discussing a plan to kidnap Lily to threaten Nathan.
As Nathan's business partner, there was no way she could just stand by.
She left the program halfway through, jumped into her car, and left immediately.
Those people had foolishly mentioned a location while chatting, and Hana had caught it.
So, she headed straight for the location.
When she arrived, she saw Lily surrounded by 20–30 people.
Without hesitation, she ordered the car door to open mid-drive, honked the horn nonstop, and charged right up to Lily, pulling her into the car and speeding off.
The people surrounding Lily were completely caught off guard.
They never imagined that aside from Nathan, someone else would come to rescue the woman.
"You're Lily, right? I'm Hana, Nathan's business partner,"
Hana said with a smile after they got in the car.
Lily, still wary, kept her guard up.
"Don't worry, Miss Lily. I'm just Nathan's business partner in this country. I'm not with those people."
At first, Lily remained on alert, even as Hana introduced herself.
But when she mentioned being Nathan's business partner, Lily believed her a bit more.
"Do you have any proof?"
Hana paused. She hadn't brought the contract with her...
There was only one thing she could do—make a phone call.
Beep... beep...
Several attempts failed—the line was busy.
Just as Lily looked like she was about to lose her patience, the call finally connected.
"Nathan, your girlfriend's with me right now. I told her we're business partners, but she doesn't believe me!"
Hana blurted out, desperate—she was seriously worried Lily might dismantle her car.
She immediately handed the phone to Lily.
Lily took it, still skeptical.
"Nathan?"
"It's me. Where are you guys right now? I'll come to you."
Hearing Nathan's familiar voice, Lily finally let out a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness. She hadn't actually been kidnapped, and she was safe.
If she had really been captured, his mom would probably beat him senseless when he got back home.
"I don't know where we are exactly. Once we hang up, I'll have Hana send you the location."
Lily handed the phone back.
Although she had seen Hana cheer Nathan on in the tournament broadcasts, the real world wasn't always what it seemed.
That's why she had been so cautious.
But after hearing that Nathan trusted Hana, she relaxed a bit.
After sending the location to Nathan, Hana asked the driver to find a place to park and wait quietly for him to arrive.
While they waited, Lily kept scrutinizing Hana.
Though she had confirmed Hana wasn't among the kidnappers, her gaze remained alert and guarded.
"She's kinda pretty… about the same level as me."
"Okay, her chest is a little bigger. But I've known Nathan since we were kids—over ten years now!"
"But I've heard women from this country are super obedient… am I going to lose out on that front?"
...
Now that the danger had passed, Lily started overthinking again.
In other situations, she might not worry too much.
But this woman had a connection with Nathan—what if she ended up stealing her future husband?
And Hana, the one being stared at, felt deeply uncomfortable.
Being glared at with such hostility by a stranger—anyone would feel uneasy.
Still, Hana understood where it came from.
She was a woman too—she knew how women thought about other women.
After about ten minutes, Nathan finally arrived, and Hana was relieved to escape the gaze of doom.
"You're both okay, right?"
Nathan jumped down from Flygon and asked.
…
As soon as she saw Nathan, Lily leapt into his arms.
"If Hana hadn't shown up in time, you might never have seen me again… sob sob~"
she said with exaggerated tears.
"Alright, alright, people are watching. Aren't you going to get embarrassed acting like this?"
Nathan said as he gently comforts her.
Then he turned to Hana with a look of genuine gratitude.
"Thank you for helping me rescue Lily. But... will this bring you any trouble?"
To be honest, Nathan had never expected Hana to step up and help at such a critical moment.
(End of Chapter)