Though paralyzed, still radiantly charming!

"What are you doing?"

Vanessa was momentarily stunned as Sophia suddenly jumped out in front of her.

"Isn't this guy harassing you?"

Sophia pointed at the blonde guy she had just kicked to the ground.

"Well... yeah, but that was a bit extreme."

Vanessa wanted to be mad, but she couldn't quite muster the anger. After all, Sophia had done what she'd been wanting to do for a while. She was really fed up with this guy constantly bothering her.

At that moment, the blonde guy struggled to get up from the ground, clutching his side where he'd been kicked. His face twisted in pain and embarrassment.

"Where the hell did this crazy woman come from? You dare lay a hand on me? I'm calling the cops! I'm calling the cops!"

As satisfying as it was for Vanessa, she knew this was going to be a headache.

"Sorry, Mr. Weston, my friend didn't mean to."

Despite everything, Vanessa stood by Sophia's side and apologized for her.

The word "friend" made Sophia's heart melt, and her expression softened without her even realizing it.

"Didn't mean to? What, did she just slip and accidentally kick me!?"

Weston sneered, about to say more when suddenly, another voice shouted from the side.

"Watch out, I slipped!"

Instinctively, Weston turned his head, only to see a foot flying straight at him. He was kicked to the ground again.

"..."

Vanessa froze for a second, then realized it was Ethan who had done it. She immediately covered her face with her hand.

Sophia, on the other hand, smiled for once and gave Ethan a thumbs-up behind her back.

"And what are you doing?" Vanessa asked, exasperated.

"I slipped," Ethan replied, completely unapologetic.

"Me too," Sophia chimed in, backing him up.

Vanessa almost laughed out of sheer frustration. "And what now? You guys kicked him twice. He's definitely not going to let this go."

"Vanessa's right," Sophia said, turning to Ethan. "Come on, think of something."

"We're the ones who did it. Why are you worried, Nessa?" Ethan said, shrugging it off.

Sophia nodded in agreement and looked at Vanessa. "Exactly. He's right. We did it, so it has nothing to do with you."

"Don't be ridiculous. We're friends." Vanessa couldn't just stand by, but she was starting to feel exhausted. What could've been a simple situation was now spiraling out of control.

"How about we just get rid of him? Dump him in the Pacific?" Ethan suggested casually.

Both Sophia and Vanessa froze, their expressions clearly saying, Are you serious right now?

"But seriously, who is this guy?" Ethan asked, confused.

Vanessa explained, "He's the son of one of the higher-ups at the company I work for. We ran into each other in the elevator a few days ago, and ever since, he's been asking me out. It's getting annoying."

Vanessa sighed. She already didn't like her job much, and now this guy was making it worse. She'd heard from her coworkers that this guy had hit on quite a few women at the company.

She was seriously considering quitting.

Hearing this, Sophia's anger flared up. She turned to Ethan. "What are you waiting for? Let's go make him into a concrete block right now."

Sophia would never go easy on anyone who had bad intentions toward her Vanessa.

"What the hell are you all whispering about!?"

Weston, once again, managed to get up from the ground, though his legs were shaking. It was clear Ethan's kick had really done a number on him.

"Sorry, man, we slipped. My bad," Ethan said, not sounding sorry at all.

"Who the hell wants your apology!?" Weston was fuming.

"Oh? So what do you want?" Ethan thought for a moment, then stepped in front of Sophia protectively. "How about I let this lovely lady here take you out for dinner or something?"

"Hey!?" Sophia's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Uh..." Weston was also taken aback. He suddenly noticed that this brunette girl wasn't bad either—at least, she was just as attractive as Vanessa.

However, agreeing just like that felt a bit humiliating for Weston. He glanced at Vanessa, thinking that if he was going to let this slide, he should at least get both of them involved.

"You think after what you did to me, you can just get away with a simple apology?" Weston tried to apply some pressure.

Unfortunately for him, Ethan wasn't having any of it and had no interest in dragging this out.

"Well, if you're not happy with it, then forget it."

Ethan let go of Sophia and said to Weston, "If you want to call the cops or do whatever, go ahead. We're in a bit of a hurry."

"Son of a..."

Weston had met plenty of arrogant people before, but this was the first time he'd encountered someone this brazen.

He didn't even want to negotiate with Vanessa anymore. He pulled out his phone and made a call, glaring at the three of them. "You better not run."

"Maybe we should run," Vanessa suggested to the other two.

But then she saw Ethan pull a picnic blanket out of his backpack, lay it on the ground, and take out a deck of cards. He looked at them and asked, "Wanna play some cards while we wait?"

"..."

Sophia, still a bit cautious, took off her shoes and sat down on the blanket next to Ethan. She leaned in and asked, "Are you sure this won't turn into a problem?"

"Relax. Let's just get this over with. I've got dinner waiting for me at home," Ethan said, completely unfazed. Whether Weston called the cops or someone else, it didn't matter to him. It was just a matter of who could call more people. Who was afraid of that?

Soon enough, several cars pulled up by the side of the road, and about a dozen guys who looked like street thugs got out.

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The sight of Ethan, Sophia, and Vanessa caught their attention, and they hesitantly walked over to Weston. It didn't take long for them to figure out that the young man among the trio was their target.

"You're not even going to try to handle this legally?" Ethan asked, sounding genuinely surprised.

"Scared now?" Weston sneered, his face twisted with malice.

"Not really," Ethan shook his head. "I just didn't think someone as 'badass' as you would exist in New Tokyo."

Weston felt like a thousand curses were running through his mind. I've already called my guys, shouldn't you be scared by now? Instead, Ethan was still acting cocky. Did I call these guys for nothing?

Just as Weston was about to give further orders, a beam of light suddenly shone down on him from above.

Then, about a dozen black sedans pulled up along the road. The doors opened, and at least fifty or sixty men in matching black suits stepped out, surrounding everyone.

Weston was completely dumbfounded by the sight.