The group was walking through a quieter part of the city, heading toward a food street Mary recommended before heading towards museum because girls are felling hungry so they decided to eat first.
The sun was lowering, evening lights flickering to life.
MJ stretched her arms.
"Man, the city gets pretty around this time."
Gwen nodded.
"I love the atmosphere."
Mary pointed ahead.
"The market is just three blocks awa—"
She froze.
All three girls froze.
Arin instantly sensed it.
Up ahead, blocking the path, stood eight or nine men—tattooed, drunk, grinning with sick intentions.
Locals quietly backed away, avoiding eye contact.
One of the gangsters whistled.
"Well well… look what we got here. Three beauties walking alone."
Another sneered.
"Blonde, redhead, and the sweet black haired girl. Jackpot."
Gwen stepped closer to Arin, pretending to frightened but actually looking at thugs with angry eyes but she know she can't use her power openly which will create trouble for her later but if this thugs dare to hurt Arin she don't mind beating them to death .
MJ's hand clenched her bag.
Mary quietly moved behind him.
Arin's eyes narrowed.
He hated this type.
And worse—he could feel their intentions was very bad
So without hesitate Arin stepped forward quietly.
Before the thugs even finished speaking—
The leader smirked.
"Hey boy, move aside if you don't want to—"
He didn't finish.
Arin Moves
His eyes flashed cold.
In one smooth motion—
PAK!
He grabbed the first thug's wrist and twisted it—
CRACK!
The man screamed and fell.
Everyone froze.
Before the others reacted—
Arin vanished from their sight.
To the girls, he barely blurred.
To the thugs, he was death itself.
BAM!
A knee to the gut—one thug collapsed.
THUD!
Another was thrown over Arin's shoulder like a ragdoll.
CRACK—BAM—THUMP—
Two punches, a kick, a sweep—
Arin moved like a tempest, elegant and deadly.
Every time a thug tried to attack
He broke their stance and
balance easily
And all without using 1% of his real strength.
Within ten seconds, all eight or nine men were on the ground.
Groaning,Crying and where
Some unconscious while
Some begging for help.
Arin dusted off his hands.
"...Pathetic."
People who had been afraid before now stared in stunned silence.
And then—
They started clapping.
A few students from Philadelphia High who were nearby cheered loudly.
"He beat THEM?!"
"No way—those guys have been harassing people for months!"
"Finally someone taught them a lesson!"
"He took down eight guys alone… what a monster!"
"He's so cool!"
A group of shopkeepers even came out, relieved.
One woman shouted:
"THANK YOU, YOUNG MAN! Those thugs bothered us daily!"
Gwen's eyes sparkled with admiration.
MJ stared at Arin like she was falling deeper and deeper.
Mary covered her mouth—
eyes wide, face red, heart pounding.
Gwen ran forward and hugged Arin's arm, trembling.
"Arin… are you hurt?"
He shook his head.
"Not even close."
MJ grabbed his other arm, eyes shining.
"You were… insanely cool just now."
Mary took a step closer, voice soft but filled with awe.
"Arin… you were amazing."
Arin simply shrugged.
"They deserved it."
He looked down at the thugs.
"Trying to touch girls without their consent… trash."
As Arin stood there calm, protective, powerful
Mary felt her heart skip a beat.
This wasn't just a crush now.
This was admiration.
And Respect.
He's strong… but gentle.
Fearless… but not arrogant.
He protects people without hesitation.
Mary swallowed hard.
I… really like him.
.....
Police sirens echoed in the distance—someone must have reported the fight.
Arin turned to the girls .
"Let's go before this becomes annoying."
Gwen nodded.
MJ smiled.
Mary looked at him with soft eyes.
As they walked away, the crowd continued cheering—
And Arin, calm as ever, led his three girls forward.