"Excuse me, let me through," I said as I carried the suspicious man over my shoulder toward the restroom.
"Ugh…"
"Hey, don't puke here. For God's sake."
"What's with today? Nothing but drunken bastards everywhere."
The suspicious man's face turned pale as he vomited onto the floor.
His whole body trembled violently before he collapsed, his face gradually turning deathly white, like a walking corpse.
Pat. Pat.
"Hang in there. The restroom's almost there. Just hold it in a little longer, buddy."
I patted his shoulder while slipping my other hand into my coat to put on a glove.
Since this was the outer hall, hardly anyone paid attention to our corner. People tended to avoid the mess anyway, so as long as the mana output stayed low, it wouldn't draw attention.
Besides, even if someone noticed, we could easily claim we were just cleaning up the vomit.
From behind me, a man in a dark purple suit approached.
He wore white gloves. His collar rose high around his neck, and the skin of his face looked wrinkled—like some kind of leather mask.
"My apologies. It seems he's a friend of mine. If you don't mind…"
As he spoke, he bent down as if inspecting the suspicious man.
But his right hand was already coated in a faint blue layer of mana.
Gently, he pressed a finger toward the crown of my head as I leaned forward.
Without hesitation, I drew my knife while slipping the fork back into my sleeve.
My knife-hand drove straight toward the man's liver, pushing the blade deep into him.
Lightning flickered along the edge of the blade, golden mana wrapping around it.
The pain paralyzed him for two seconds before he regained his composure.
But it was already too late.
I turned around, my back still slightly hunched, now face-to-face with him.
I smiled brightly as if greeting an old friend.
"Ah, hello there. Seems like you're the friend who came with this guy. Earlier we had a few drinks together, but it looks like he overdid it a bit, ah…"
I kept smiling as I spoke.
My black-gloved hand moved, the knife coated in golden mana striking at angles hidden from sight.
The man vomiting served as my shield, blocking the view of others, while the purple-suited man remained hunched over as if helping.
I slipped my hand in and slashed inside the sleeve, into the chest hidden beneath fabric, slammed my fist into his knee, then his elbow.
Two seconds later, the man regained control of his body.
But it was already too late.
He could barely move anymore—his limbs were broken.
In desperation, he tried to reach into the chest of his vest like the one before him.
But nothing worked.
He also tried to pull something from his sleeve.
He couldn't.
Whatever he intended to activate had already been disabled by my knife earlier.
Casually, I raised my hand, slipped the knife back into my sleeve, and touched his collar as if adjusting it.
"Oh my, buddy. Long time no see. You've been well, right? It's been ages since we last met."
I spoke with a cheerful smile as I unbuttoned his vest.
He tried to punch me, while his other hand grabbed at my arm.
But my hand was already moving.
I lifted it and touched the chin that looked like a piece of leather mask.
With my other hand, I brushed his arm aside and grabbed the chin piece, pushing my finger deep inside.
Rip.
The mask tore slightly—just enough for a small finger to slip in.
But that was more than enough.
He kept struggling.
But with his arms broken, he was far slower than me.
I turned my head and glanced at the strange man who was still retching.
Both men in the purple suits were breathing fast and ragged, like people staring death in the face.
"Oh dear! Staff!"
At my shout, several people turned around, but only one staff member walked toward me.
Our eyes met.
She understood immediately.
I pretended to ask her to take care of my "two friends," but in reality I was giving instructions.
The exhausted-looking staff member lifted both men with a telekinesis spell and quietly left