As Felicity spoke, tears slipped from the corners of her eyes, tracing warm paths down her cheeks. The ache of her grievances swelled within her chest again, threatening to drown her.
Sensing her pain, Kayden gently tightened his grasp around her hand and reassured her, “Don’t worry,” he said firmly. “Every last penny-you’ll have it back. And as for the interest, I’ll make sure he hands that over willingly, without so much as a word of protest.”
Felicity blinked through her tears, and doubt flickered in her wide eyes. “Really?” she asked hesitantly.
“Of course,” Kayden replied with a resolute nod.
“No, no, no!” Felicity shook her head vehemently, rejecting the idea before it could take root. “I don’t want the interest. I just want the one hundred thousand! He borrowed one hundred thousand, and that’s all I need. That money belonged to my father, to my family. I only want back what’s rightfully ours.”
She was so pure, so honest that people instinctively want to shield her from harm.
Felicity walked alongside Kayden for a while to the main street. Then, they flagged down a cab and got in.
The cab was cramped, and as they sat side by side, Felicity became acutely aware of Kayden’s presence. Seated so close, she could almost feel his faint scent brushing past her senses. Her heart fluttered wildly, betraying her nervousness. She cast a quick glance at him and couldn’t help but think, “What an odd yet charming man.”
Her mind raced. Had they just been holding hands, walking through the streets like… a couple?
Felicity had never known what it felt like to walk hand-in-hand with someone. This was her first time experiencing it!
She dared another glance at Kayden, and her chest tightened with a peculiar sense of contentment. How wonderful would it be, she thought, to have someone like him-someone to hold her hand forever, to always walk by her side? Even if, in some corner of her heart, she couldn’t help but suspect that Kayden was only pretending to care, tricking her so she’d spend the money on cosmetic surgery.
Even so, even if it felt too good to be true, there was no denying the joy it gave her. For once, her heart was full, satisfied in a way she hadn’t known was possible.
Just then, Kayden turned his head and caught her staring.
Flustered, Felicity jerked her gaze away. She blinked rapidly, trying to cover her unease, and asked, “Oh, um… well. Do you know where he is?”
Kayden shrugged, utterly unbothered. “Didn’t he say he’s part of the Black Tortoise Hall? Chances are, that’s where he’ll be.”
Felicity let out a soft gasp, and her eyes lit up with a look of sudden realization.
Before long, the two arrived at the so-called “Black Tortoise Hall.”
The name Black Tortoise Hall carried an air of grandeur and authority, yet this organization actually lay in an abandoned steel factory on the outskirts of town.
The factory sprawled across a wide area, surrounded by a deteriorating wall whose paint had long since peeled away, leaving behind patches of exposed, weathered concrete. The place seemed to have long been neglected. At the main entrance stood a massive iron gate, rusted and heavy.
Next to the gate leaned a makeshift sign. A torn piece of cardboard rested against a crooked wooden stick jammed into the ground. The cardboard bore three slanted, childishly scrawled characters: Black Tortoise Hall.
“Black Tortoise Hall…” Kayden muttered under his breath. He only felt that the dignified name “Black Tortoise” had been thoroughly disgraced.
The Black Tortoise, after all, was one of the Four Auspicious Beasts in Seclela mythology, as a symbol of strength and prestige. A place associated with Black Tortoise was supposed to be an auspicious, prime location. And yet, this so-called Black Tortoise Hall was merely an embarrassment nestled within a ruin. Kayden couldn’t help but shake his head.
This wasn’t some refined, majestic Black Tortoise Hall. It was nothing more than a hangout for a bunch of low-life thugs.
At the entrance to Black Tortoise Hall, Kayden didn’t hesitate. He walked right in with long, deliberate strides.
And what jumped into their view was a group of shirtless, muscle-bound men. They huddled around a pool table, engrossed in their game.
Their bare bodies were covered with an assortment of intimidating tattoos. Among them were bald men, blonde-haired men, and some with close-cropped haircuts. Every single one looked like the type who caused trouble for a living.
These were the kind of people who survived by fighting and extorting protection money. Their days were spent idling, sleeping, or playing games, while the nights were reserved for “work.”
Felicity had never witnessed such a scene before. She was so startled that she clung tightly to Kayden’s arm.
She swallowed hard. Her voice dropped to a whisper as she said, “This… is the Black Tortoise Hall? I thought it was a place that sold medicine!”
Medicine?!
Kayden nearly laughed out loud. He thought about it for a moment. It made sense. Maybe Felicity had seen shops like People’s Herb Hall, Hundred Cures Hall, or Mercy and Aid Hall in town, and assumed that anything with “Hall” in its name had to be a pharmacy!
Kayden didn’t respond. He simply continued walking.
Felicity followed for a few steps before stopping abruptly. Anxiety gripped her voice as she pleaded, “Maybe we should just let this go. I’m scared. These people look like trouble, serious trouble. Forget it, forget it. I’ll just wait outside for Owen to come out.”
Kayden halted and turned back, his calm eyes locking onto hers. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “I’m here.”
Just one look, one sentence, and like a warm beam of light piercing through a fog, his words eased much of the panic knotted in her chest.
“Hey! Who the hell are you looking for?” a gruff voice suddenly cut through the silence. A bald man, gripping a billiard cue like a weapon, strode forward to them.
The way he spoke was less of a question and more a warning.
But Kayden didn’t even flinch. Without a word, he pressed onward as if the threats ricocheting around him didn’t exist.
The bald man and his group certainly had strength in numbers, but Kayden’s commanding presence didn’t waver in the slightest.
One of the thugs jeered, “Why waste your breath, Omar? You can tell just by looking that this guy’s here to stir up trouble. Let’s rough him up and deal with the rest later. Besides…” His tone turned slimy as he motioned toward Felicity, “Looks like he brought a little gift for you. Maybe she’s his offering.”
A wave of laughter erupted behind him. Their derisive guffaws echoed in the room.
But the bald man, Omar, wasn’t laughing. His face darkened, and his irritation was visible as he spat, “Are you assholes blind or just stupid? Look at that woman! Bringing her here is an insult to me. The one I fucked last night was already bad enough, and this one? She looks even more disgusting.”
“Didn’t you say you don’t care about looks, just the body?” another thug teased.
“Sure,” Omar sneered, narrowing his eyes. “But the body only counts if her face doesn’t look like a damned nightmare.”
The group roared with laughter again.
Felicity’s face burned crimson. The harsh humiliation drilled into her, making her heart race with a mixture of shame and helpless anger. If there were a hole nearby, she would’ve dived in without hesitation, desperate to escape their cruel words.
“Hey!” Omar barked suddenly, snapping his attention back to Kayden. He raised the billiard cue and pointed it at Kayden. His tone now simmered with unrestrained hostility. “Don’t take another step, you son of a bitch. You come any closer, and I’ll smash your face in. You hear me?”
Kayden didn’t even spare Omar a glance. He kept stepping forward, utterly dismissive of Omar’s existence.
“You son of a bitch!” Omar roared, his temper erupting. With fury twisting his face, he raised the billiard cue high over his head and swung it down hard, aiming to smash it against Kayden’s skull.
But before the cue could land, Kayden shifted forward in a single, explosive step. His fist lashed out like a thunderbolt, landing squarely on Omar’s face.
The force was overwhelming. Thud! The billiard cue slipped from Omar’s grasp, clattering to the floor. His body followed moments later, collapsing like a felled tree. He lay stiff and unmoving on the ground.
“Shit!” A furious cry erupted from the thugs in the back. Seeing their leader taken down so decisively, the rest of the gang surged with rage.
“You dare to cause trouble here! You’re dead, you hear me?! Kill him! Beat the bastard to death!”
“Fuck him up!”
They closed in like a pack of hyenas. Within moments, Kayden was completely surrounded by them.
But Kayden stood calmly in the center of the chaos, and his expression was laced with contempt. His gaze swept over the crowd as if they were nothing more than insects. “I don’t want to dirty my hands on trash like you,” he said coldly. “Bring Owen Thomas out.”
“FUCK YOU!” A tattooed man grabbed a billiard ball and hurled it at Kayden with all his strength. With a slight move, Kayden dodged it.
The ease with which he avoided the attack seemed to ignite the gang’s fury further. With an enraged roar, they surged forward all at once!
“Stop!”