I'm a proper student; I only take nine kinds of potions every day.

Guding Street has fully awakened.

The breakfast vendors set up their tin stoves, and the heat and soot swirled into a grayish-white mist in the cold air.

Newsboys were shouting today's headlines at the top of their lungs on the street corner.

In mid-November, the air conditioning was so cold that people could clearly see white mist coming from their mouths.

Under the sunlight, everyone seemed to have transformed into a dragon-like being capable of breathing.

A milk cart rattled by, the driver with an unlit pipe in his mouth winking at a waitress by the roadside.

Ivan's pace today is completely different from that of the past few months.

There was no head bowing as they walked quickly, no avoidance of eye contact, and no visibly awkward or cautious demeanor.

Head held high, chest out, striding confidently.

"Walk with vigor and speed, make rapid progress every day!"

He hummed a little tune he didn't even know the melody of, and waved to Old Tom as he passed the shoe repair stall.

Just then, a tall figure came crashing into them from around the corner.

A week ago, Evan would have instinctively stepped aside to avoid it.

After all, there are countless people like this who try to extort money or cause trouble on Guding Street.

Behind each of them is a gang, and behind each gang is a protective umbrella.

Ordinary people would obediently walk around such a figure, and no one would dare to provoke him.

He had been extorted for 40 cents before.

But now.

Should I avoid his sharp edge?

Bang.

Their shoulders collided heavily.

The burly man visibly swayed, but he quickly regained his balance, feigned an angry expression, and grabbed Ivan's collar with his other hand.

"Kid, you've run into me!"

He exaggeratedly covered his shoulder with his other hand, his face contorted as if his bones were broken.

You hurt my shoulder!

Upon hearing this, Ivan glanced out of the corner of his eye at several young people on the street who were pretending to be eating breakfast.

They stood up, holding their bowls of porridge, and quietly replaced the spoons in their hands with folding knives hidden in their sleeves.

Ivan grinned.

Since the 13% of brain nerve damage was removed due to the removal of the secondary brain, he feels great.

Never engage in internal strife. Always speak with confidence and conviction.

You're the one who messed with me? That's definitely your problem.

Since you have a problem, then I will solve it.

He reached out his right hand and placed it on the shoulder that the burly man was covering.

"Since you say it's wrong, then I'll help you out."

bang.

The sound of bones dislocating and breaking was as crisp as stepping on a chicken leg bone.

Ah!

The burly man let out a scream so real it stunned everyone, and he knelt down on the cobblestone pavement, clutching his shoulder.

Cold sweat instantly beaded on his forehead; he was in so much pain that he didn't even have the strength to curse.

The scream drew the attention of everyone around.

The four young men pretending to eat breakfast exchanged glances, and almost simultaneously pulled out daggers from their sleeves, surrounding the area from four directions.

The dagger gleamed coldly in the morning light.

then……

Ahhhhh!

Ah!

Screams rang out incessantly.

Ivan's figure weaved among the four people like flowers in bloom.

Every movement was precise, clean, and without any unnecessary actions.

An elbow strike, a sweeping leg kick, a reverse joint lock, and a slashing leg kick.

The pause between each action should not exceed half a second.

Almost instantly.

The four originally aggressive young men all knelt down on the ground.

Each person's right arm dangled at an eerie angle, the bone protruding faintly from the flesh, and blood seeping from the torn cuffs of their shirts.

"Big brother! Big brother! I was wrong!"

"Brother, spare my life!"

The four youths turned pale instantly and burst into tears, just like children caught stealing by their parents.

Evan pursed his lips, ignored them, and turned to look at the corner of Guding Street.

There stood three members with Gus tattoos.

Evan shouted at them.

"Hey! You're from the Gus gang."

"Come wash the floor."

He said it in the most casual tone imaginable.

"Thugs from outside have snuck in and are extorting money from the neighbors. Didn't you see them?"

"You took the protection money but didn't do anything, huh?"

The entire Guding Street fell completely silent in that instant.

The breakfast vendor stopped shoveling.

The newsboy's next shout got stuck in his throat.

The coachman pulled on the reins.

All the passersby turned around in disbelief, staring at the young man who looked like he had just come of age, as if they had seen a ghost.

Old Tom, the shoe repairman, slowly took off his reading glasses, wiped the lenses with the corner of his clothes, put them back on, and then carefully looked at his upstairs neighbor.

The three Guz gang members on the street corner turned pale and then flushed.

They had received clear orders: they must never provoke this guy named Arkham.

After all, they still haven't received any news about where Brother Zack and his group went.

Mr. Knock only told them one thing: "Stay away from this kid."

Now, instead of staying away from them, this kid is treating them like cleaners.

But none of the three dared to utter a single word.

He could only hold his nose and run over in small steps, without saying a word.

They kicked and shoved the five outsiders who were kneeling on the ground and wailing, dragging them up and driving them out of the Guding Street area while cursing all the way.

Ivan clapped his hands.

"Today's a great day to climb the ranks!"

He hummed a new tune that no one could understand, and walked through the cobblestone alleyway bathed in morning light toward the tram stop.

Behind them, the entire Guding Street seemed to have been put on repeat, slowly returning to its original bustling atmosphere.

But everyone who witnessed that scene looked at it differently than before.

Gus gang...

They don't seem to be all-powerful after all.

Chapter 56: Class and the Price of Decentness

Once on the tram, Evan grabbed the shiny, blackened overhead handrail, squeezed among a sea of ​​coats and the smell of smoke and alcohol, and began to mentally assess the situation ahead.

“If Hearst really is just a pawn being used by Pulis, then it’s true that she invited me to be her bodyguard.”

"She seems to be treating me well, and I'll be well-prepared today."

"Conversely. If she were in cahoots with Pulis, she would never have anticipated Pulis's defeat."

"When she sees me, she will instinctively show hostility and defensiveness, and her preparations will seem hasty."

"Those who treat me well are less likely to be accomplices."

"If they treat me badly, be on your guard immediately; if things get really bad, just run away."

The tram clanged and rattled through several blocks before finally stopping in front of the Bolton South Station.

8:30 a.m.

Ivan squeezed off the tram with the crowd.

Looking around, the entire South Station Plaza was packed with people.

Travelers, dragging their suitcases, squeezed through the crowd, their suitcase corners occasionally bumping into other people's calves, drawing curses in response.

In a corner of the square, several vendors selling hot drinks had set up tin stoves, and the steam from coffee and hot cocoa condensed into white mist in the cold air.