Chapter 123. What Is an Engine?

"What exactly do you want from me?"

"Let’s return to how things were before, Hubert. Follow me, and this stronghold will be returned to the Wang family."

"Follow you? Follow you where?"

Jacob didn’t answer right away. He grasped Hubert’s hand and intertwined their fingers. Hubert offered no resistance. He had grown weary of these insincere charades—let Jacob do as he pleased. He was indifferent to whatever meaningless actions Jacob was taking. Once their fingers were interlocked, Jacob lifted Hubert’s hand to his lips and kissed it, his tone suddenly much more conciliatory.

"All I need is for you to be by my side; the location doesn’t matter."

Hubert remained silent. He had been foolish enough to evade the issue, but now he’d given it careful thought. Against someone like Jacob, silence would be taken as an acquiescence, making future inquiries impossible.

Hubert breezily dismissed Jacob’s previous comment a