But how could those men possibly let the two of them leave so easily?
Lucien Vale had shown them nothing but a cold, offended face.
And now he wanted to flee the moment he stepped in?
To them, it screamed guilt—
the reaction of someone weak,
unimportant,
unbacked.
After all, if he truly came from a powerful family,
why hide it?
"First time in the black market, huh?"
one man drawled, eyes narrowing with cruelty.
"We don't mind teaching you the rules."
The gazes surrounding them
grew increasingly contemptuous—
as though they were looking at disposable toys,
not people.
There were still ten minutes before the auction began.
Plenty of time
for them to find a little "fun."
Besides,
most of the people standing around here
weren't planning to bid on anything anyway.
They were just here for the spectacle.
The real powerhouses—
the ones with money and influence—
were seated inside.
Seeing the crowd's mocking attitude,
Lucien Vale's eyes reddened with fury.
As the young master of the Vale family,
when had he ever been treated like this?
But he couldn't reveal his identity now—
not when he had snuck in behind everyone's back.
He could endure the insult himself,
but there was one thing he absolutely couldn't tolerate:
His little sister being looked at like that.
He wanted nothing more
than to gouge out those filthy eyes staring at her.
But right now,
he wasn't in a position to act.
Not yet.
But being a top student had its advantages.
Lucien Vale possessed an exceptional memory—
and in mere seconds,
he etched every one of their faces
deep into his mind.
Once he got home,
he was going straight to Elias.
These men were finished.
All of them.
Every last one.
He held Serena tightly behind him,
shielding her with his entire body.
She could feel the tremor in his hand,
the panic pulsing through him.
Yet Serena said nothing.
She simply raised her free hand
and began tapping lightly
across the screen of her phone.
Calm.
Precise.
Lethal.
At first, Lucien Vale had intended to look for one of the patrolling guards.
If someone started trouble,
surely those men wouldn't just ignore it… right?
But after waiting and watching—
Not a single guard appeared.
"Looking for someone?"
one of the men sneered.
"Don't tell me you were hoping the patrol would help you.
How adorable.
Those guys only serve the powerful.
They won't even look at you."
Of course.
That was exactly why these men dared to behave so recklessly.
"No one's going to save you here."
Lucien's jaw clenched.
He wanted to hit them—
but he couldn't risk dragging Serena into danger.
So he did the only thing he could:
he tried to bluff.
"I'll warn you once," he said coldly.
"Don't even think about touching us.
The consequences are beyond anything you can handle."
His voice was steady—
but his hand was trembling.
And behind him,
Serena Vale remained silent,
her expression calm,
her thumb still moving across her phone…
as if quietly writing someone's death sentence.
But seeing Lucien Vale's strained expression,
the men only grew more arrogant,
assuming he was bluffing out of fear.
"Consequences?
I've never cared about consequences in my life,"
one of them snorted.
"You don't even dare report your family name,
and you're still barking here?
Clearly you've never had a proper beating from society."
"Look at that delicate skin.
One punch from me and you'd be gone."
Several of them were from the underworld—
not petty street thugs,
but men with real power and influence.
And the loudest among them,
the one with the foulest temper,
was Huang Chi,
the second-in-command of a major Velencia City gang.
A swarm of his subordinates loitered behind him,
grinning like hyenas.
The entire corner of the black market
seemed to tilt toward violence.
And through it all,
Serena stood in her brother's shadow,
silent, composed,
thumb still tapping her phone—
as if marking each of their faces
for execution.
Years of throwing his weight around
had made Huang Chi arrogant,
and today he was eager to show off inside the black market—
a place where he couldn't bully many people,
but these two?
They looked easy.
The crowd watched with eager amusement.
"Teach the boy a lesson if you want,
but don't mess up that pretty girl,"
someone jeered.
"Relax," Huang Chi chuckled.
"I'm very gentle with beauties."
His gaze locked on Serena,
a wild, vile grin stretching across his face.
Then he turned to Lucien.
"Tell you what, kid.
Let your girlfriend keep me company for one night,
and we'll call this whole thing even.
How about it?"
The moment the words landed,
Lucien Vale snapped.
Rage exploded through him.
He lunged forward without hesitation
and slammed a fist straight into Huang Chi's face.
"You're courting death!"
Serena hadn't expected Lucien to move that fast.
She reached out to stop him,
but his small, lean frame was no match for the brute force of Huang Chi.
And as expected—
Huang Chi burst into fury.
He grabbed Lucien by the collar with one hand
and lifted him clean off the ground
before slamming him hard onto the floor.
He was just about to strike again
when Serena suddenly threw herself over Lucien,
shielding him with her entire body.
"Don't hurt my brother!"
Her voice rang out sharp and trembling,
crystal-clear with a fragile sob
that cut straight through the noise.
That sound—
that vulnerable plea—
hit every man's instinctive weak point.
Huang Chi froze for a beat,
then his grin twisted into something filthier,
hungrier.
"Oh?
So you're his little sister."
His tone dripped with vile amusement.
"If you come over to me like a good girl,
I won't hurt your brother."
His eyes crawled over her like hands,
full of the kind of lust
that had always gotten men like him killed
in Serena's world.
Lucien pushed himself up from the ground,
eyes bloodshot, fists trembling with barely contained rage.
Humiliation burned through him—
he had dragged his sister into danger,
and in the end she had shielded him.
Desperation cracked his voice as he shouted:
"I'm a friend of Adrian Harrington—
try touching me again!"
He hated himself for it.
Hated that all he could do now
was invoke another man's name to protect his sister.
Adrian Harrington—
eldest son of the Harrington Syndicate,
one of the three dominant power clans of Velencia City.
A man who ruled half the black market's shadows,
whose name alone forced people to watch their step.
The moment Lucien shouted it,
the entire crowd froze.
Even the elite seated inside the auction hall
heard the disturbance and began stepping out.
"What happened out here?" someone demanded sharply.
"Who just mentioned Young Master Adrian?"
The men who had been so loud and arrogant moments earlier
immediately fell silent.
Anyone qualified to sit inside the auction hall
outranked them by several tiers—
far too dangerous to provoke.
Only Huang Chi remained unfazed.
With an entire gang at his back,
he wasn't afraid of much.
Even if the Harrington Syndicate wanted to deal with him,
they would think twice before making a move.
"It was him."
Huang Chi jabbed a finger straight at Lucien Vale,
eager to watch him fall apart.
As the crowd's attention shifted to Lucien,
Lucien was also scanning their faces—
and to his shock,
he recognized several of them.
They were members of Velencia City's upper circles—
elite families tied to wealth, influence,
and the darker parts of the city's underbelly.
And at that same moment,
some of them
recognized him.