Marshal Dughan acted as if he had received a life-or-death order. He dared not offer any further resistance and gave a signal of approval to his men. Two guards stepped forward, each grabbing one of the bodyguard's arms, and immediately hoisted him up.
"Little girl! Come here!" The hooded man called out to Tess. Strangely, Tess, who had been so spirited while throwing coins earlier, had been hiding behind Wayne ever since the hooded man appeared. Not only did she ignore him now, but she also seemed unwilling to even look at him.
The hooded man let out a low, gravelly sound—it was hard to tell if it was a deep exhale or a sigh—and then looked at Wayne. "You, kid. You do it!"
If Wayne had been prepared to teach these bullying sycophants a lesson earlier, doing so now would feel beneath him, given that they had already dropped their weapons and were kneeling for mercy.
"Senior," Wayne began. He had originally wanted to call him "Old Man" or "Uncle," but considering the public setting, he decided to give the man some face. "These men work for that fat pig. He likely threatens their families constantly. While they committed the foul deeds today, the root of the evil is still that fat pig."
"You have already taught him a harsh lesson, Senior. But a country has its laws. Since the guards are here, we should have them escorted to Stormwind City. We can list his crimes and, with your act of justice as a precedent, give everyone present today a proper explanation."
"If we can only resolve issues with scum like this through personal intervention or vigilante justice, we might manage for a moment, but we can't manage for a lifetime."
Hearing Wayne's words, the onlookers immediately voiced their support.
"Right! Stormwind must give us an explanation!"
"What we want isn't just to see them embarrassed, but to see justice served!"
"Exactly! Does the Kingdom of Stormwind still have laws?! Is it just natural for nobles to bully commoners?!"
"We want an answer! A man like that doesn't deserve to be a noble!"
...
Under the surge of public indignation, the hooded man was clearly dissatisfied with Wayne's answer, but it was no longer convenient for him to strike the bodyguard. He gave Dughan a look. "Then do as everyone says."
Dughan quickly had the guards bind Bowles and his men tightly. He dispatched two guards to call for a carriage and ordered the rest to pacify the crowd and patiently disperse them. It took quite a while before things finally settled down.
During this time, the hooded man walked into the net cafe on his own.
Wayne had originally intended to go out and pick up the gold coins he had thrown, but since he still hadn't figured out the identity of this explosive-tempered man, he had to hurry inside to follow him.
Fortunately, Dughan's guards were sharp. To prevent the crowd from rushing in to grab the money, they secured the area. Tess also took the initiative to help pick up the coins.
Andromath and the others followed Wayne back inside. On one hand, the situation had calmed down, and there was no need for them to show their faces outside anymore; on the other hand, they were curious about this hooded man. Who could slap a Duke with such reckless abandon and make a Marshal obey his every word?
The hooded man walked in and looked around. Even indoors, he didn't remove the hood that covered his forehead and eyes. "Continue with what you were doing. Don't mind me."
Andromath, Sandal, and the others sat down one by one, put on their goggles, and returned to the movie world. However, the six of them shared a silent understanding; after entering the movie, none of them continued the plot. Instead, they muted the sound and strained their ears to hear what the hooded man would say next.
Hooded Man: "Kid, what exactly do you do here?"
Wayne picked up the wooden sign by the door, blew off the dust, and brought it over for the man to see. "This is called a net cafe. You play games, watch movies, drink cold Coke, and eat popcorn. Old Man, do you want to give it a try?"
The hooded man grew somewhat angry. "Absurd! To be at such an age and be so obsessed with play! And with your highway-robbery prices, it's a miracle this shabby shop hasn't been burned down yet."
Wayne chuckled. "Old Man, at least eight or ten people have come in here saying they wanted to burn the place down. And the result? Heh."
As he spoke, Wayne jerked his head toward the group watching movies. "They're all sitting right there. Try getting one of them to stand up right now. Unless there's an emergency, I guarantee their butts are glued to those seats."
Although the hooded man replied with a "Nonsense," he felt it was indeed quite strange. When Andromath had shouted outside earlier, the man had recognized the Archmage emblem on his robes from within the crowd. The others, aside from Marlin, also seemed like formally trained spellcasters rather than charlatans.
Why were these people truly willing to pay such prices?
The hooded man pointed to the only empty seat left in the room. "I... ahem... I will try it." He sat down without further discussion.
Wayne: "Old Man, there are rules in this shop. Pay first, play later."
The hooded man scoffed. "You saw it just now—even a Duke is nothing in my eyes. With just a word, that Marshal wouldn't hesitate to lead his men to tear down this shabby shop. So, kid, you'd better do as I say."
Wayne shrugged. "Old Man, he is him, and I am me. That fat pig deserved it, but I'm a law-abiding citizen. Every place has its rules. Here, it's pay first, play later. It's the same for everyone."
"Besides, an upright figure like you who upholds justice certainly wouldn't tear down my little shop like that bully Duke did, right?"
The hooded man didn't respond to Wayne's words. Instead, he turned around and looked back at Tess, who was outside counting the recovered gold coins. He said to Wayne, "Then call her over. My money is only for her."
From the moment the man appeared in the crowd, to his brutal slapping of Bowles, to his demand to retaliate against the bodyguard who harassed Tess, Wayne could tell that this man cared deeply about the girl.
But as long as he was willing to pay, did it really matter if he gave the money to Tess or to Wayne?
Wayne called out softly to Tess. She turned to look at him but immediately turned back. "Boss, I'm counting money..."
Wayne walked over and pulled her up. "Oh, stop counting. Those guard brothers picked the ground clean and handed it to you; none will be missing."
"And that old man just helped you out of a jam. You should at least go and thank him."
Tess gave a reluctant "Oh" and walked into the net cafe with a frown. However, when she approached the hooded man, she didn't say a single word.
The hooded man took out a 100-gold exchange voucher and handed it to Tess. His voice softened considerably, though it still carried a hint of reproach. "At this age, you should be doing what you're supposed to do. Why stay here? Did those fellows hurt you just now?"
Tess shook her head, keeping her eyes fixed on the ground as if unwilling to make eye contact with him.
Wayne found it increasingly strange.
Nearby, Raymond and the others were squinting through their goggles, gossiping via the in-game voice channel.
Raymond: "This guy is generous. He drops 100 gold without blinking. Incredible."
Zaldimar: "Miller meets all the rich people. But I don't get it—what kind of drama is this man playing out?"
Marlin: "He is definitely no ordinary individual."
Sandal: "Does that even need saying? He beat that Duke like he was beating a grandson. Even the Regent might not be able to do that so freely. But he sure cares a lot about that little girl."
Anita: "I get the feeling he and the girl... know each other?"
Tess took the money from the hooded man but remained silent. She didn't even ask how long he wanted to play so she could calculate the change. She simply tucked the money into her pouch and sat back in her seat behind the counter.
The hooded man let out another "Mmm..."—either an exhale or a sigh. He turned to Wayne and asked, "What are they playing?"
Wayne: "They're all watching a movie."
Hooded Man: "Then let me watch it too."