"Who are you? Youâre not from our building."
"How did you get in here?"
"Cut the crap, you bitch! Hand over all the food in your house!"
"Heh heh, didnât think weâd get so lucky. Of all the places weâve robbed on our way up, they either had just old folks and kids... but now we find you two families. One has no men, and the otherâs is a complete wuss who doesnât even act like a man. Donât tell me all the men in this building have died out!"
"Heh heh, itâs great if theyâre all dead. If thatâs the case, we wonât be holding back."
"Brothers, this is our first step! First, weâll take all the food in this building. Then, the good-looking women can serve us, and weâll kill the ugly and old ones so they donât waste food."
The voice was arrogant and unrestrained, the words vile and obscene.
Moreover, the voice seemed to be coming from a floor below the 23rd.
It seemed those people had broken into the building a while ago. They just hadnât noticed before, only hearing them now that they were closer.
Hearing those words and thinking of their families at home, everyoneâs expression changed as they shot to their feet.
"What kind of bastards are these, bullying us right on our own doorstep!"
Furious, they got up and charged downstairs.
Felix Lawrence was surprised, wondering where those people had come from. But now wasnât the time to dwell on it. He quickly got up and called for everyone to go downstairs. "Letâs all go take a look! Grab a weapon if you have one. If someoneâs really come to our doorstep to bully us, we donât need to be polite!"
All forty of them surged to their feet and headed downstairs, looking imposing and aggressive.
Stella Sterling thought for a moment, then grabbed her large blade and followed behind them.
âBefore, I didnât get involved because it had nothing to do with me. But things are different now. I want to use the strength of the others in this building to clear the underground tunnel, so of course I canât just stand by and do nothing!â
On the 22nd floor, a dozen or so unfamiliar young men and women stood at the entrance to the stairwell, grinning wildly. A few of them had dragged the residents of two apartments out into the hall, while two more from their group were in each home, carrying things out. Besides food, anything useful was being taken.
Behind them, more than twenty people were tied up. These were the people they had just captured. After robbing them of their food, the gang had no intention of letting them go.
Their leader was a man of about twenty-seven or twenty-eight. A young woman with matted hair was leaning coquettishly against him, a look of disdain on her face. "These two families are pretty poor. They have so little. Does everyone in this building have this little?"
"Alright, be grateful. Itâs not bad that they have any food left at all these days!"
The man turned to look at her and pinched her cheek. His hand came away greasy, and a look of disgust flashed in his eyes, but he suppressed it.
Just as he was about to call for his men to continue upstairs, he heard a commotion from above. He paused, then sneered, "Well, look at this. Some eager beavers, actually charging down on their own initiative!"
But in the next moment, he and his people were dumbfounded. The "eager beavers" heâd imagined werenât just one or two people, but a whole group. The sight of thirty or forty people rushing down was quite spectacular and stunning to behold.
Seeing the group come down, the eyes of the people tied up behind the invaders lit up. Someone shouted a warning, "Be careful! This gang has knives!"
"You talk too much." The guard standing next to the person who shouted kicked them to the ground.
The womanâs husband burned with rage and tried to rush forward, but was held back by the person next to him.
Quentin Chase, who had been dragged out of his home, began to struggle and shout, "Lawrence, save us! This gang robbed our home! You have to help us get our stuff back!"
Because of his crazed behavior that one time, Quentin Chaseâs family wasnât well-liked in the building. He later started hanging out with Bell and the others. After Bell and Tripp Pence died one after another, he hadnât left his apartment. His family had been worried about retaliation from the other residents, so they hadnât attended the gathering.
But he never expected that while just staying quietly at home, someone would break down his door, beat him up, and rob him!
Now, his only hope was for Felix Lawrence to get revenge for him.
The next moment, his gaze fell on Stella Sterling standing beside Felix Lawrence, and he instantly shut his mouth and stopped struggling.
The pain from the beating heâd just received seemed to fade. He was remembering the time he was beaten senseless by that crazy woman, punch after punch. âNow *that* was an agony worse than death!â
âWhy is *she* here? She killed Boss Tripp Pence and the others... Is she going to kill me now too?â
Stella Sterling didnât notice him at all. Her eyes were on the gang; they were clearly not from this building.
âConsidering the situation outside, how did these people manage to get into the building?â
She glanced at Felix Lawrence, who was standing at the front of the crowd, then leaned against a nearby wall, intending to observe the situation first.
Felix Lawrence looked at the twenty-seven-or-twenty-eight-year-old man and frowned. "Youâre Finn Shaw from Building C?"
Finn Shaw wasnât surprised that someone knew his name. They were all from the same residential complex; it was normal to have seen or known each other before.
He looked over at Felix Lawrence, and when he saw the intimidating group of dozens of people behind him, a flash of apprehension crossed his eyes.
He laughed. "So itâs you, Felix Lawrence. What, are you the one in charge of this building now?"
"Itâs just that you seem to be failing a bit as a leader!"
Before Felix Lawrence could even speak, his men couldnât take it anymore.
"What did you say? Show some respect!"
"Damn it, weâre from the same complex, and youâre targeting your own people. Real classy of you."
"You come here to bully us? You think weâre just going to let you? Brothers, get âem! Throw them out!"
As they spoke, they charged forward. Felix Lawrence didnât stop them. These intruders didnât come in peace, and it was clear they had already robbed several people in the building. This matter wouldnât end peacefully today.
Seeing the forty-plus people about to charge, Finn Shaw and the woman beside him took a few steps back. Finn Shaw shouted, "Stop, stop, stop! Why resort to violence without even talking? We werenât robbing you. How about this? Iâll take my people and leave right now. Weâll go our separate ways. What do you say?"
He hadnât expected there to be over forty people upstairs, all gathered together. He had only brought about twenty men with him today. Heâd be at a disadvantage in a fight, so it was better to back down for now.
Felix Lawrence signaled for everyone to stop. He held considerable authority now, and the others restrained themselves.
Felix Lawrence looked at Finn Shaw. "You want to leave? Fine. But youâre leaving those people behind. And all the food youâve stolenâyouâre leaving that, too. Otherwise, you can just stay in this building and not leave at all!"
Finn Shawâs face darkened. "Felix Lawrence, youâre going too far. My brothers didnât rob you. As for this stuff, itâs the result of our hard work. Why should we leave it for you?"