After a brief silence, the tavern erupted in laughter.
"Another Lil' Will just left, and now another one. Captain Marz really has the sincerity!"
"You don't say? If you hadn't gone wild yesterday, could Lil' Will have been scared off? That kid is so obedient, leaving him here for a few more days would've been great…"
"But this one looks better than yesterday's, not bad looking."
"Take it easy today. Old Qian said if we scare this one off, there will be no one left…"
"Run? Don't think you're going anywhere this time." A thin man slowly stood up, his hollow eye sockets staring at Evan Stone like a zombie. "Not bad, quite young, good complexion. The parts on him should fetch a good price."
"Bone Knife, playing too big a game, won't end well for you…"
"Hmph, Ice Spring Street got massacred, and it's the enforcers' fault. What, now we can't even ask for some compensation?" The thin man, known as Bone Knife, sneered.
The people in the tavern began eyeing Evan Stone like a pack of hungry beasts examining their prey.
Evan Stone stood still, seemingly ignoring their words. He took a pen out of his pocket and tapped it lightly on the form.
"Bone Knife, huh?" Evan Stone wrote down the name.
"Let's start with you… the night of the Ice Spring Street massacre, where were you?"
Seeing the young man daring to ask questions, the crowd exchanged surprised glances. Just yesterday, William Young couldn't even speak when faced with this scene… Was this kid being reckless or just plain dumb?
Bone Knife narrowed his eyes. He stood up and slowly walked towards Evan Stone.
"Where was I?" Bone Knife blew on his black nails, then his pale fingers, resembling eagle claws, reached for Evan Stone's neck!
"I was in your mother's bed!!"
In a flash, a cold glint appeared in Evan Stone's eyes. His right hand, still holding the pen, suddenly stabbed forward, and the pen tip pierced through Bone Knife's palm!
The excruciating pain made Bone Knife scream, and before he could react, a hand appeared in his field of vision, slammed his head to the ground!
God of War Path, [Judgment] Path, Third Stage — [Dance of Death]!
Boom—!!
Wood shards splintered, and blood flowed.
The crowd blinked in confusion. Bone Knife was slammed into the floor by the young man's single hand, his thick cotton coat fluttering, and the entire tavern fell into silence.
"Attacking an enforcer, a serious crime." Evan Stone said flatly.
He slowly stood up, brushed the blood off his hands, and swept his gaze over the crowd.
[Audience Expectation +2]
[Audience Expectation +2]
[Audience Expectation…]
After a brief silence, the people in the tavern finally regained their senses. Shock and disbelief were quickly replaced by rage and murderous intent. Three of them immediately drew their guns and aimed them at Evan Stone!
"Damn, a tough nut to crack?!"
Evan Stone had already anticipated they had guns. The moment they drew their weapons, he flipped the nearby wine table!
The massive table flipped in mid-air, forcing a group of figures to retreat to the sides, causing chaos in the front. Meanwhile, Evan Stone crouched low, darting from under the table, and swung a wine bottle at the nearest gunman's face!
Smash!
The bottle shattered, and sharp fragments scraped across the man's cheek, leaving bloody streaks.
Evan Stone followed up with an elbow strike, knocking the man unconscious.
In the next instant, two gunshots rang out from a distance, and whistling bullets flew straight at Evan Stone!
In the dim light, Evan Stone moved like a phantom, his thick cotton coat fluttering, dodging the two bullets that pierced the air but never landed on him.
This was Evan Stone's first time using [Dance of Death], and the most obvious feeling was that his body had no weight, like a ghost.
In such a cramped and chaotic tavern, he could glide through effortlessly. As long as he could anticipate the gunmen's movements, he was confident he could dodge their shots… as long as there weren't too many of them.
As he took down the first gunman, the remaining two immediately felt the danger. Their eyes tried to track Evan Stone's position, but with Evan Stone flipping tables and chairs to block their sight, this became almost impossible.
A sharp sound cut through the air, and Evan Stone felt a heavy blow to his head, knocking him unconscious.
Evan Stone took down another gunman, grabbed their gun, and shot at the several men charging at him with knives.
Bang Bang Bang—!
Several blood blossoms bloomed on their legs, and they immediately screamed, falling to the ground.
The cries of pain, curses, gunshots, and the sounds of tables and chairs crashing echoed through the tavern. In just thirty seconds after Evan Stone entered, the place was in ruins. Out of the fourteen people who had been in the tavern, thirteen were knocked out!
Evan Stone casually tossed the empty handgun aside, stepped over a man with four broken ribs, and, as the man screamed, he slowly walked to the only remaining intact chair in the room.
"Boss, a glass of whiskey." Evan Stone kicked the man again, and his screams rang out once more. "Put it on his tab."
The one-eyed bartender, who had been standing behind the counter, finally snapped out of his daze. Looking at Evan Stone, his eyes filled with fear.
Running a tavern in Ice Spring Street, and serving as a gathering place for most of the residents, the one-eyed bartender was no ordinary person. He had traveled across the seven districts and seen many people, but someone as decisive and ruthless as Evan Stone was the first he had ever encountered.
Is this guy really a rookie?
If someone told him this man was an enforcer, he would believe it!
The one-eyed bartender smartly put away the revolver he had secretly held, lowered his head, and began preparing the whiskey.
"Name." Evan Stone crossed his legs, placed the form on his lap, and said lightly.
The tavern fell silent. No one answered.
"I'm talking to you!"
He kicked the man's broken ribs.
"Aaaahhhh! Leo Marks! Leo Marks!" The man immediately caved.
"The night of the disaster invasion, where were you?"
"I... I was in the tavern."
"Did you see the appearance of the disaster?"
"I think I did... I was just coming out to use the bathroom when I saw it pass by the street... It seemed humanoid." The man trembled and spoke the truth.
Evan Stone didn't speak anymore. He stood up, grabbed the whiskey from the counter, and gently swirled it, the ice cubes clinking against the glass.
Then, he raised the glass and slowly poured the liquid over the man's bleeding wounds...
"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!!" The man screamed in agony.
"I swear it's true!!! Everything is true!!!"
"Do you know? Without solid evidence, reporting with words like 'I think' and 'it seemed' to the enforcers... is considered spreading rumors." Evan Stone's eyes narrowed slightly.
"I'll ask you again... did you see it?"
"I... I really..."
Evan Stone slowly tilted the whiskey glass. More and more liquor was poured over the man's wounds, causing his entire body to tremble!
"...No!! I didn't see it!! I saw nothing!!!"