"Hehe... You will definitely pay the price for disrespecting our boss..."

The tall figure looked down at them with clear amusement in his eyes.

"Who are you? And why did you come here to confront me? Who is this boss of yours?"

L stepped forward, protectively putting Alen behind his back. Since he didn’t want to entangle Alen in some dangerous problem he might have created in the past, he remained cautious of the guy standing in front of him. He didn’t know what his specific ability was yet.

"Oh, you don’t remember our boss? Don’t worry about that, you will remember him after he arrives. Until he gets here, let me play with you..."

The man smiled widely and sat down on the rusted bench calmly. He placed his hand on the top of the bench backrest and crossed one leg over the other, acting like a king sitting on a throne. His face was scrawny and pale, marked with dark circles under his eyes. A disgusting smell of stale cigarettes constantly leaked from his mouth every time he breathed.

"Hehe... So... What should we do with them?" He looked around at his assembled men and continued talking. "What do you think we should do, my dear friends?"

One of the lanky guys in a black suit stepped forward from the crowd.

"Hehe... We should make them dance until the boss arrives. It will entertain us while we wait..."

Another figure stepped out from the shadows. He was tall and well-built, cracking his knuckles.

"No, I suggest we should torture him until the boss returns, so that he will be happy to see their bruised faces, hehe..."

"Oh, no, I suggest we should make them beg for mercy. It is always fun to see pleading, crying kids beg for their lives..." a third man chimed in.

"Hey, but who is that silver-haired kid standing in the back? Judging by his looks, he must be from some renowned noble family..."

"Whoever he is, if that guy is staying beside the cloaked guy, then he must be one of his companions. He is fair game..."

The scrawny Walker smirked at everyone’s cruel suggestions. He glanced back at the two figures standing in the park.

"Well, I appreciate everyone’s creative suggestions, but, sigh... The boss specifically told me that torturing them is not allowed. At least, not in his absence. He is going to do it himself when he gets here..."

Suddenly, his smile widened, revealing yellow teeth as he looked at the silver-haired boy standing right beside L.

"But, the boss didn’t tell me anything about not hurting his companions. That means we can still play with that little guy’s friend over there... Hehe... It will be fun to break him..."

Alen’s gaze sharpened immediately as the hostile gazes of around fifty men turned toward him. The bodyguards took a unified step forward.

’Damn, why in the world have I even gotten into this mess? I didn’t even do anything to anyone today...’ Alen complained in his mind.

L stepped forward, blocking their line of sight, and spoke flatly.

"Don’t touch him. If you have anything to say or do, then do it directly with me. But don’t you dare hurt him..."

L looked at the crowd with a freezing cold expression. Suddenly, the surrounding temperature fell down a few degrees as he actively released his killing intent into the air.

The other people in the suits stiffened. The suffocating killing intent released by L made them involuntarily take a step backward in fear. They looked at the cloaked guy with a clear hint of caution.

Even though L appeared weaker than some of them, they still felt something was uniquely different about that guy. They realized they had to remain cautious around him for some unknown reason.

The Walker sitting on the bench smiled widely at L. He didn’t move an inch, just stared at them with an unnervingly calm expression, unaffected by the killing intent.

"Impressive. Judging by your intent, it seems you are not weak at all..."

He tapped his fingers on the wooden bench while looking at him with a mocking smile.

"But you are still vastly outnumbered, even if you manage to make some of my guys fear you."

As he spoke, more of the men standing behind them stepped forward. They unsheathed their weapons in unison. All of them held expensive-looking daggers or long swords, which shined menacingly in the bright afternoon sun.

Alen looked at the armed crowd with high caution, then glanced at L’s back.

’He won’t be able to fight everyone at once. Even if he has some hidden power or a secret artifact, the numbers are too great. I have to join this fight. I am glad we didn’t use any mana in our last duel, or it would have been much more difficult to handle this current situation with drained reserves. But still, we have to take care of that specific Walker on the bench, even while facing these hundreds of goons... It seems impossible at first glance, but we can’t lose hope now...’

Suddenly, the scrawny man stood up from the bench.

"It seems you really care about your little friend, I see... So, how about I talk with him directly and let him choose his own fate..."

Suddenly, with a blinding blur of speed, the Walker bypassed L and appeared directly in front of Alen. Alen tried to step back in defense, but he was too slow. The man caught him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him up off his feet.

Alen started to pull away, struggling to break free, but the man’s hands were as firm as iron and didn’t budge an inch. Even Alen’s magic failed to manifest properly in front of the Walker’s oppressive aura.

L tried to move forward to intercept, but the man released his own heavy intent. L felt an oppressive, suffocating pressure wash over him, which paralyzed his muscles and didn’t let him move a single step. He could only look forward in frustration while Alen was held effortlessly in the enemy’s hand.

"So, little guy, tell me. What special treatment should I give you? Don’t be shy, tell me your preference~" the Walker taunted.

"F*ck off, let go of me! Your body is incredibly stinky..." Alen cursed, wrinkling his nose.

The man’s lips twitched in annoyance at this disrespectful response.

"Oh, come on, little guy. Don’t ignore my questions... Tell me what kind of pain I should give you..."

"Just f*ck off! I don’t need anything from you except getting away from your stinky breath. Do you not bathe daily? Even the smell of L’s female shampoo feels a million times better than your body’s shitty smell..."

Alen spat back without an ounce of fear.

The man’s cocky smile slowly vanished. His grip tightened on Alen’s collar as he pulled the boy’s face much closer to his own.

"What did you just say to me?..."

Alen looked right back at him calmly. He reached up, holding the man’s hand that was gripping his shirt.

"I am saying, f*cking get your shitty face away from me. It smells disgusting..."