Chapter 28: Alex No Longer Holds Back

The crowd in the shopping district grew larger as people gathered to watch the commotion.

More than a dozen elite soldiers from Terra Bunker’s resistance force were tied up on the ground.

Ten minutes earlier...

When Alex stepped aside, letting those elites continue picking out clothes, he secretly used his Qi to pull down their pants one by one, humiliating them on the spot. Not stopping there, he also tied their shoelaces together, making them trip and fall in a tangled mess. The surrounding crowd burst into laughter.

Alex kept using his Qi to prank the elites until Leonardo arrived with a squad of resistance soldiers.

Seeing his elite troops being humiliated, Captain Leonardo was furious. However, he couldn’t figure out who was responsible, which only made him angrier. He shouted:

"Who did this? Step forward!"

The resistance force from Terra Bunker operated under strict military discipline, where authority could not be challenged. Their mindset was completely different from Rockhill Valley’s more easygoing and community-driven approach.

But the only response Leonardo got was laughter.

Meanwhile, Alex stayed hidden in the crowd, struggling to suppress his grin.

That was the last straw.

Enraged, Leonardo grabbed the shop owner and declared loudly:

"If no one confesses… I’ll start arresting people!"

The crowd was stunned. No one expected the Terra Bunker resistance to be this oppressive.

Then, chaos erupted as Leonardo’s men started detaining random civilians.

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And at that moment, a voice cut through the turmoil.

"I did it."

Everyone turned toward the source.

Alex stepped out from the crowd, wearing a smug grin that practically dared Leonardo to do something about it.

"Wow, so this is how the great Terra Bunker resistance operates?" Alex taunted. "Taking clothes from a small business without paying? Classy."

Leonardo immediately recognized Alex—the same guy who had confronted him over Anna before. His tone hardened.

"Oh… So you’re that spoiled rich kid from the Hawk family, huh?"

Alex smirked.

"Cut the crap, future commander. Let everyone go. It was all me. So, what are you gonna do about it?"

Leonardo, still not officially appointed as Rockhill Valley’s commander, didn’t want to escalate things further. He released the shop owner and prepared to leave, swallowing his pride.

But Alex wasn’t done.

"Oh, so you’re just gonna walk away without compensating the shop owner? That’s your leadership style? And you think you deserve to marry Anna?"

That last remark hit a nerve.

Leonardo spun around, his anger flaring, and threw a punch at Alex.

But before it could land, Alex effortlessly deflected the strike with his Qi, sending Leonardo stumbling to the ground.

Alex scoffed and turned away—

SMACK!

A sharp slap landed across his face.

The entire scene froze.

Anna had appeared out of nowhere.

She didn’t even know the full story. She didn’t ask. She just slapped Alex.

Her expression was cold, unreadable, but her voice carried weight:

"Enough. Stop causing trouble, Alex."

It was the second time Anna had slapped him.

And this time… it broke something inside him.

Alex chuckled bitterly.

He felt like the biggest fool.

Even though he could’ve explained everything—even though bystanders were ready to speak up for him—he didn’t bother. He just gave them a look, silently telling them not to.

Instead, he laughed and said to Anna:

"Yeah, you’re right. I was just messing around… So, you really do like this guy, huh? And to you, I’m just some spoiled brat?"

Anna met his gaze.

She wanted to tell him the truth. She wanted to explain her reasons.

But she couldn’t.

So, she forced herself to keep her cold facade.