Mistaken Match: Marrying the Enigmatic CEO; Chapter 2368

Mistaken Match: Marrying the Enigmatic CEO

Chapter 2368; Martial Artist List

The next morning, Emmanuel reached the foothills of Eastern Star Mountain.

As his boots crunched on the gravel path, a soldier hurried up to him with an urgent report.

“Commander, someone’s waiting for you in North Star Village. They say they know you. Should we let them up?”

“Who?” Emmanuel asked, raising an eyebrow, intrigued.

“They claim to know you, sir,” the soldier answered.

“Know me?” Emmanuel’s brow furrowed slightly.

The person hadn’t even bothered to provide a name. It didn’t matter. He’d find out soon enough.

Still, it felt strange, what were the odds someone would turn up at this precise moment?

As Emmanuel and Eve stepped into the rustic house in North Star Village, they were greeted by a familiar, unexpected face.

Both of them spoke at once, “So it’s you!”

“Commander Emmanuel! General Eve! What a coincidence!”

The man chuckled, his grin wide and easy.

Behind him, a few subordinates lingered, standing at ease with no hint of tension. It was Mr. Adkins, the president of the Martial Arts Association and one of Santiago’s sons.

Emmanuel and Eve had crossed paths with him years ago in the Northern Region. The martial and military words didn’t overlap so much, so their connection had always been surface level, just pleasantries exchanged here and there.

They’d seen him briefly during the tournament at Nuthana, but their conversations had been brief.

Emmanuel couldn’t help but recall Mr. Adkins’ vice president, Joe, with sharper clarity.

“Mr. Adkins, what brings you here?” Emmanuel asked, his tone casual, but his mind ticking.

Before Mr. Adkins could respond, Eve cut in.

“Mr. Wallace has been asking to visit North Star Peak every six months, claiming that he needs some information. But we’ve always turned him down.”

“Information?”

Emmanuel curiosity sharpened.

“Exactly,” Eve nodded, her expression unreadable.

Joe, standing just behind Mr. Adkins, stepped forward, eager to clear up Emmanuel’s confusion. “Well, to put it plainly, the Martial Arts Association is in charge of gathering intel on martial artists across the country, ranking them, and compiling all sorts of data. But beyond our own efforts, some of the info on higher level martial artists comes from the mysterious North Star Peak.”

“Really?”

Emmanuel’s expression shifted, his interest piqued.

“Do you know what it’s like at the top of that mountain?” he asked, his curiosity growing stronger by the second.

Joe shifted awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck.

Mr. Adkins let out a soft chuckle, then gave a wry smile. “Commander Lowe, truth be told, none of us have ever made it to the peak. Even when you were in charge, our people only managed to reach the halfway point before they were sent back. To those at the top, we’re just… well, lower tier.”

“Lower tier?”

Emmanuel’s frown deepened. He felt a tight knot form in his stomach.

The memory flashed quickly, two years ago, him and Sarah reaching the mountainside, and then encountering Dicky’s group. The cold, dismissive glares had told him all he needed to know. They’d looked at him as if he were some intruders, someone undeserving of being in their domain.

“Exactly,” Mr. Adkins lowered his voice, leaning in a little closer to Emmanuel.

“Word has it, up on the peak, there’s a being who transcends all human imagination. A god.”

Emmanuel stiffened.

The Three Gods and Seven Saints were famous names in the martial world of Chanaea. But even though Emmanuel had faced Saint-level fighters In his time. He’d never crossed paths with one of those so-called gods.

To think one of them might be so close, right here in the North Star Village… It was almost too much to take in.

“Have you seen him?”

Emmanuel didn’t bother quieting down. Here, surrounded by people he trusted, he couldn’t help but ask.

Mr. Adkins shook his head, his expression calm. “I haven’t, but I’ve never doubted it.”

Emmanuel didn’t press further. His gaze shifted to the thick book Joe was holding. “Is that the file that holds information on all the martial artists in Chanaea?”

Joe blinked, caught off guard.

Mr. Adkins, fully aware that Emmanuel’s approval was needed to head up the mountain, wasted no time in offering more details.

That’s right. Not only does it include the Seven Saints, but it also contains martial data on the Commanders of the North and South.”

Emmanuel’s curiosity flared. “I have to see that.”

Though he knew full well that martial strength wasn’t defined by mere numbers, factors like physical state, determination, and environment played just as much of a role, he couldn’t resist the temptation to look at the data on the Seven Saints.

He had to know, and deep down, he was eager to see how accurate it really was.

Mr. Adkins gave Joe a quick look, and with a silent understanding, Joe handed over the file.

Emmanuel took the book, its material clearly high-tech. It wad a sleek, modern feel to it, built to update its contents, text, and images on the fly.

It wasn’t the original file, but Emmanuel wasn’t concerned, he’d still be able to go through it.

Flipping through a few pages, he was surprised to see Eve’s information pop up.

“Oh, they’ve got me in here too?”

Eve, who typically had no interest in martial ranking, her expertise was in firearms after all, raised an eyebrow and leaned in. Her curiosity piqued, she glanced at her own entry.

Her ranking? Only A+.

And it said she specialized in the whip.

Emmanuel’s fingers hovered over the pages, his mind racing as he absorbed the information. The rankings were precise, accurate even. Eve’s techniques were all listed, each one detailed with the kind of care only a serious organization could afford. The Martial Arts Association was not just a name, it was an institution, painstakingly thorough.

He flipped through more pages, eyes scanning the familiar names of whip martial artist. Then, a name stopped him cold. His heart skipped a beat.

“SSS-class, Scarlet! Weapon, Towerine Dance of Flames!”

The date of the last update was the day they rescued Caden, followed by a stark note; ‘status unknown’.

“Wait…” Emmanuel muttered, disbelief creeping into his voice.

“You know the date of her last battle, but you don’t know if she’s alive or dead?”

Mr. Adkins didn’t hesitate.

“After the battle, her body was never found. For high-profile fights like hers, we send someone to confirm the details. Our people went to the site, but no body was recovered. That’s why we marked it as ‘unknown’. We like to keep things… accurate.”

Emmanuel’s breath caught in his throat. He wanted to believe. He couldn’t let go of the hope that Scarlet, his old friend, might still be out there. The thought of facing her fourth whip of testing its power, it lingered in his mind.

But he pushed the thought aside. He had to keep moving.

He turned the pages, skimming past unfamiliar names until he came across another entry, this one much more familiar.

“(Substitute) Gorgeous Dance Saint, Isabella, SSS-class…”

Emmanuel blinked. Substitute? He hadn’t expected this. The file was revealing things he hadn’t even known to ask about.

“What does ‘Substitute’ mean?” he asked, his curiosity spiking. His eyes flicked to Mr. Adkins.

This was something not even Santiago and Yorick knew.

Mr. Adkins paused. He seemed to weigh his words carefully before speaking.

“The Lannister family used to control all martial artist information. It wasn’t until Eric took charge that he handed the reins over to us. And it was him who told me about the god on Eastern Star Mountain. Now that he’s dead. I don’t have to keep any of it secret. You know me, I’m obsessed with martial arts. Ranking every martial artist is my only joy.”

Emannuel studied him for along moment. He believed him.

There was no deception in Mr. Adkins’ eyes, just a passion, a genuine love for the craft.

Mr. Adkins continued, “As for ‘Substitute’ Jane was originally one of the new Seven Saints. She was even stronger than Isabella. After Jane’s death, Isabella took her place.”

Emmanuel’s mind reeled.

“So, you’re sure Jane is really dead?”

He asked the question without thinking, the words tumbling out.

It didn’t sit right with him. Xylie survived, and Jane was one of the strongest, a powerhouse.

If someone like her had fallen… it didn’t add up.

Especially now that he knew her power had reached the Sage level.