"Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding, huh?" The thug, who looked more like a bear than a man, toyed with the thick gold chain around his neck while jabbing Li Ren's chest with his rough fingers.
Liam forced a smile and took another step back. He was beginning to realize that saying anything to this provocatively hostile man would get him nowhere.
His eyes darted around, hoping to spot any of his friends in the circle of thugs surrounding him. The thought crossed his mind, 'Those guys might joke around all day, but when things got serious, surely one of them would step up and help… or at the very least, find someone in charge to de-escalate, right?'
Sure enough, he finally spotted a few familiar faces among the crowd, one of whom was alongside someone in a manager's uniform, 'Wait… why did the manager's face look bruised and swollen? Never mind that, the important part was that backup was on its way.'
Heavy footsteps echoed through the slightly subdued casino atmosphere, vibrating through the floors. Liam's hopes lifted as he saw a steady stream of people, security guards and plain-clothes staff alike, coming down from the grand wooden staircases that led to the second floor.
There were easily thirty to forty of them, all converging on the scene, and Liam sighed with relief, thinking the casino's true powers were finally stepping in.
At this time, the commotion had roused the entire casino. Many patrons, sensing danger, hurriedly left to avoid getting caught in the crossfire. But with the sudden appearance of Bear Head Gang's members, others decided to keep a safe distance to watch the show, as it's an unexpected bit of entertainment.
"You deaf or something?" The thug, nicknamed 'Gator', jabbed Liam's chest once more, his patience wearing thin as he seized Liam's tie, yanking him forward.
At this time, seeing the influx of security, Liam's confidence grew. He figured that with so many guards around, this mob of thugs wouldn't dare go too far. Emboldened, he even felt the audacity to glare back at Gator.
'Coming to cause trouble here, huh? And wearing a gold chain, no less… what do you think you are?'
The space in the middle of the hall was now unmistakably cleared, leaving only a few unfortunate patrons and the black-clad thugs surrounded by onlookers. In this open space, Liam quickly spotted Olivia and her three friends, who were trying to slip away unnoticed.
Seeing them fleeing without a word on his behalf irked him, but he understood their instincts. Taking a deep breath, he saw an opportunity to restore his dignity.
"Young lady, don't worry! You all stay safe!"
Liam called out firmly, with a heroic tone, but Olivia's expression changed after hearing this.
Logan, who was following the girls' steps and came step by step to the edge of the crowd, heard the voice from behind and had to stop because the female class monitor and Diane who were pulling him had stiffened.
Seeing the manager of the casino was getting closer and closer, and the situation was decided, Liam felt even more assured now. He straightened up, giving Gator an unbothered look, "The guards are already on their way, so I suggest you watch your behavior. And by the way, I'm quite close with the manager here..."
Because of Liam's words, several thugs with their arms crossed looked at Logan and others with malicious changes, and they lowered their hands subconsciously.
Logan subtly rubbed his forehead in exasperation, moved half a step away without leaving a trace, and then turned back to look at Liam with a 'you are so brave' look in his eyes.
He had genuinely underestimated Liam.
"Okay, I really underestimated you!" Gator seemed to have the same realization, patting Liam's shoulder as his expression softened briefly. Then, with an abrupt change, his face twisted into a look more vicious than before!
"You think you can talk to others while I'm holding you by the collar?" Gator sneered, shooting a cold glance at Olivia and her friends before tightening his grip on Liam, lifting him clear off the ground, "Guards? I'm here to deal with the casino's 'guards' myself today!"
Gator flung Liam to the ground like garbage and stomped down, eliciting a pained scream. The sight quickly bored him, and he dismissively gestured to his men, barely noticing that his old accent had slipped back into his speech, "Get rid of this worthless fool," he snarled, "Teach him a lesson."
The thugs, catching the cue from Gator, wasted no time in ruthlessly closing in on Liam, while two more brutes moved menacingly toward Olivia, Diane, and the class monitor, cracking their knuckles ominously as they approached.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing?"
"Security! Get over here!"
"Gator, calm down..."
The casino manager and his team were rushing over, visibly furious at the escalating situation. But Gator waved off their shouts, signaling to his men to continue as if he hadn't heard a thing.
"Watch out!"
Facing the strong man in black with a strange smile and a hateful appearance, it is unknown from where she got the courage, but Diane suddenly stepped forward to shield the class monitor.
Logan was a little dumbfounded by this. He looked down at the ground and then at the other party's position, 'Diane was mainly in front of the Class Monitor, but I was probably within her protection range as well...'
Olivia's face finally showed a flicker of panic as she hurriedly reached out to grab Diane's sleeve, "What are you doing? If anyone should be facing this, it's me, the senior here."
"Oh my gosh, are you all trying to film a drama?" Logan exclaimed in exasperation, giving the three girls a slight push to break up their moment of misguided courage, "This is no time for heroics, just run!"
Logan's gentle nudge managed to scatter the three just enough to avoid the thug's grasp. Realizing how close they had come to getting caught, they finally took Logan's advice to heart and bolted, seeing that the security team was only steps away.
Logan kept an eye on the two thugs as he ran, yelling with the class monitor by his side, though he let himself fall a step behind the others.
With her long legs, Olivia was the first to rush outside, and Diane followed close behind.
However, there was obviously a huge gap in physical fitness between adult men and high school girls, and with a few strides, the thugs were nearly upon them again.
Logan saw one of the thugs aimed a nasty grab for Diane's hair, who, in her panicked flight, hadn't noticed a thing.
"Ahh!" Logan let out a convincingly pained yell, then stumbled and 'tripped' right into the thug's knee from behind, causing him to collapse forward unexpectedly.
The thug's leg buckled under the sudden impact, sending him crashing to the ground… certainly not the outcome he had expected.