"Can you handle this alone?" Wren Wynter knew Zane Langley had been a soldier, but they outnumbered him. She couldn’t be sure he wouldn’t get hurt.

"Don’t worry, Ms. Wynter!" Zane Langley raised his right eyebrow confidently, a subtle yet fierce aura emanating from him.

"So you like playing the hero, huh? Get him, boys! Let’s see if you’re a real hero or just a gutless loser!" Blondie shouted, ordering his lackeys to attack.

"Fine. Come at me all at once," Zane Langley said with a dismissive, arrogant tone, completely unafraid.

’During his years in the army, he’d lived on the edge, a knife to his throat. Any sign of weakness would have meant forfeiting his life to his country.’

’Compared to those true desperados, these petty thugs were nothing.’

The moment he finished speaking, the thugs swarmed him.

Zane Langley dodged to the side, kicking one away while his other hand expertly seized another’s elbow and twisted.

With a soft CRACK, the thug screamed and collapsed to his knees in agony.

The remaining two thugs’ expressions soured, and they charged Zane Langley again, one from the front and one from the back.

Expressionless, Zane Langley took them both down with a swift kick each. The entire exchange took less than ten seconds.

Watching this, Blondie’s face went deathly pale, all his earlier arrogance gone.

"You... I’ve got connections! If you dare touch me..."

"You think I’m scared?" Zane Langley straightened his slightly ruffled cuffs and smirked.

Wren Wynter truly hadn’t expected Zane Langley to be so capable. For a moment there, she’d almost believed he wasn’t a university student at all.

"Stop!"

Suddenly, a voice rang out.

Blondie turned to look.

But when he saw who it was, the fear on his face vanished, instantly replaced by a fawning smile.

"Boss, you’re here."

A pot-bellied, middle-aged man in a security uniform, who was clearly in charge, strode toward them.

He glanced from Blondie to Zane Langley, a flicker of impatience in his eyes.

"Didn’t I tell you I’m busy right now? That you shouldn’t cause trouble for me? What is all this?"

"I didn’t do anything, Boss! He started it!"

The middle-aged man shoved Blondie aside and walked over to Wren Wynter and Zane Langley, sizing up Zane.

"Alright, this is just a little misunderstanding. Everyone break it up. Young lady, for my sake, we’ll let this slide. Just hurry on home."

"Let it slide? He... he was just trying to drag me away! And... and he took my jewelry!"

Lana Xavier mustered her courage and stepped forward to identify Blondie, only to be frightened back by a sharp glare from the middle-aged man.

"It’s just a bit of jewelry. So he took it. Can’t you just buy more? And here I thought this was something serious. We’re very busy. We’re not here to sort out your petty squabbles."

"Petty squabbles? Heh. Is this how A University trains its security staff?"

Wren Wynter, who had been silent the whole time, snapped her head up, her clear, beautiful eyes now tinged with anger.

’So much for Blondie having connections at the police station. His backer is just a security captain.’

The moment the middle-aged man saw Wren Wynter, his face went white with fright.

Wren Wynter was well-known at A University. The entire campus knew she was one of Julian Hawthorne’s students and had been hired as a substitute teacher.

As a member of the campus staff, there was no way the security guard wouldn’t recognize Wren Wynter.

’If I offend her, I’ll lose my job for sure!’

"You bitch, I tried to be nice, and you spit in my face! My boss is in charge of this whole area, he doesn’t have time for your crap—augh!"

Before Blondie could finish speaking, the middle-aged man backhanded him across the face without even turning around. He roared viciously at Blondie, "Shut your damn mouth!"

"Boss..."

Blondie had no idea why the man had hit him. He just covered his face, sneaking guilty glances at his boss.

The man’s expression immediately switched to one of fawning subservience. He rubbed his hands together and walked sheepishly over to Wren Wynter. "Miss Wynter," he said in a low, obsequious tone, "I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize they were bothering you. I’ll handle them right now."

"So it’s only a problem because it’s me? It would have been fine if it were someone else?" Wren Wynter looked up, her gaze fixed on the man. "They assaulted the treasured daughter of the Xavier Family. If the Xaviers find out you’re their backer, do you think they’ll let any of you off lightly?"

Cold sweat beaded on the man’s forehead. His heart pounded in his chest, and his posture became stooped.

"At that point, forget about your position as security captain. You won’t have a place to stand in the entire Capital."

Wren Wynter’s expression was serene, but her words were chilling.

The man could already picture himself being cornered by the Xavier Family’s enforcers.

His knees felt weak and a chill ran down his spine. He couldn’t believe Blondie had gotten him into such deep trouble.

The man yanked Blondie over, forced his head down, and made him kowtow in apology to Wren Wynter and her two companions.

"Miss Wynter, my little brother here is an idiot. Please, don’t stoop to his level."

"And that’s it?" Wren Wynter was clearly not satisfied.

The man steeled himself, gritted his teeth, and pulled out his phone to call the police.

"Miss Wynter, rest assured, I’ll make sure he’s dealt with properly. According to Cathay’s Public Security Administration Punishment Law, we can have him detained for fifteen days and fined thirty thousand. How does that sound?"

"Not enough! That’s not nearly enough! He’s taken at least a million from me over the past few days, and you’re only fining him thirty thousand?"

Lana Xavier pointed at Blondie, tears still glistening at the corners of her eyes, her fair skin flushed crimson with anger.

She had always considered him a good friend, so when he said he was in trouble, she’d given him the money without a second thought.

She never imagined that when she asked for it back today, he would just turn on her.

And he even... he even tried to force himself on her!

The man’s eyes widened when he heard the amount. He whipped his head around to glare at Blondie.

Blondie lowered his head guiltily, his eyes darting away. It was obvious Lana was telling the truth.

He was furious. ’This little bastard took so much money from her and kept it all to himself!’

’If he can’t pay it back, he’ll be facing criminal detention!’

"Where’s the money?!"

The man roared at Blondie, who flinched and began to stutter.

"I... I spent it..."

"What? You spent a million?! You good-for-nothing parasite!" The man kicked Blondie again, harder this time.

Blondie curled up, protecting his head with his hands and letting out a pathetic wail.

But Wren Wynter just stood aside, watching with cold indifference.

’Does he think this pathetic act will make me feel sorry for them and grant them forgiveness?’

"I’ll teach you to be a parasite! I’ll teach you to keep things from me! See if I don’t beat you to death!" The man had completely lost his temper.

’A million! He’d worked this job for years and never had a million to his name, and his own damn brother gets it just by scamming some young girl.’

’And he deliberately hid it all from me. After all the messes I’ve cleaned up for him, I didn’t even have the right to know? What a selfish, stupid piece of work.’

"That’s enough," Wren said. "I don’t care how you deal with him. But if there is any attempt to cover this up, I won’t hesitate to report the entire matter to the Xavier Family, the police, and the president of A University. I highly doubt the president will risk offending the Xavier Family for your sake."