REVENGE OF THE MOURNER

How Dare You Hug My Wife?!

A strange silence suddenly gripped the ballroom. People stared at the doorway in confusion. A man stood there, looking muscular in the navy slim-fit t-shirt he wore. His sharp eyes were locked on the stage.

"Hey, isn't that Leonidas Vale?" someone suddenly blurted out.

Instantly, the ballroom erupted in noise. One by one, the party guests confirmed that the man they were looking at was Leon, the criminal who was jailed for a rape case that went viral six years ago.

"Why is he here?"

"Shouldn't he be in prison?"

"Did his sentence end?"

"That's impossible. He should have gotten a sentence of over a decade."

These were some of the comments from the guests.

Leon ignored them. With his eyes locked on Evelyn and Jonathan, he stepped forward. The powerful aura radiating from his body made the ballroom guests automatically give way.

"This... how could this be...?"

Jonathan stared at Leon in disbelief. He had initially doubted what the guests were saying because, as he recalled, Leon wasn't this muscular. But his voice... No doubt about it, it was Leon's voice.

"Let go of me!"

Evelyn used Jonathan's confusion to push him away, and this time she succeeded. Jonathan shot her an annoyed look for a moment, then turned his eyes back to Leon. He felt threatened for some reason.

"Stop this ridiculous proposal! How dare you propose to a woman who's still married? Where the hell is your brain, Jonathan?" Leon said loudly.

Jonathan snorted. He was about to curse at Leon but was beaten to it by The Harrington family.

"Hey, stop right there, you bastard!"

Gregory stepped forward to block Leon. Verona, Roger, and Margot did the same. Their gazes were full of hatred.

"You son-of-a-bitch! How dare you show up at an important event like this! Did you escape from prison, huh?!" Margot snapped, hands on her hips.

"This is ridiculous! What are the police doing that this scumbag could escape like this? And what are those hotel security guards outside doing? Why did they let this stinking piece of garbage in?" Verona ranted.

"Something must have happened. We need to call the police," Roger said.

Leon looked at the four people one by one. He ignored Gregory's order and kept moving forward in the space the guests had voluntarily cleared.

"Bastard! Are you really challenging us, huh?!"

Gregory glared, his left hand reaching into his pocket.

"Fine! I'll call the police!"

Gregory raised his phone to his ear, but his threat meant nothing to Leon. The days when Leon had to degrade himself in front of The Harrington family were long gone. Now, he wouldn't let them bully him.

"Damn it, this trash is seriously crazy!" Margot exclaimed, starting to worry.

Verona was furious. She sneered and clenched her fist. As Leon got closer to them, she stepped forward and raised her right hand.

"Trash like you shouldn't be here!" she shouted emotionally, aiming to slap Leon.

Snap!

Unexpectedly, Leon caught his mother-in-law's hand, gripping it tightly.

"Ouch! My hand! Let go! Hey!"

Leon flicked Verona's right hand away, causing her to fall. Margot and the others were stunned.

"I do have business with you, but I'll deal with it later," Leon said, staring at each of them coldly. "Now, get out of my way."

There were no screams or shouts, but Verona and the others suddenly felt intense pressure. What was really happening? Was the man challenging them truly Leonidas Vale?

"You really are scum, Leon. You only dare to hurt women. Years in prison didn't teach you a damn thing!" Gregory sneered, rolling up his shirt sleeves. He stood where Verona had been, his large eyes looking like they wanted to devour Leon.

Leon tilted his head up slightly. Gregory was indeed taller and heavily built. His hands were large, too. But Leon stared into Gregory's eyes without fear. His brother-in-law was the one who reported the false accusation to the police. He would never forgive him.

"You know, I just informed the police that the rapist from five years ago is here. The cops will be swarming this place soon. I don't mind messing you up until they arrive, if you've got the guts," Gregory taunted.

"Are you challenging me to a fight?" Leon narrowed his eyes.

Gregory smirked. He raised his large hands, then slowly clenched them into fists right in front of Leon's face.

"You won't even last one minute--"

Thud!

Suddenly, Gregory bent over, then collapsed as Leon walked past him.

The people in the ballroom gasped. They didn't understand what had just happened.

Leon continued his walk, passing Verona, Margot, and Roger, who were no longer blocking him. Their courage suddenly failed them after seeing Leon so easily take down Gregory.

The same thing happened to Jonathan. Witnessing Leon take down Gregory without even appearing to touch him, the hair on the back of his neck stood up. He instinctively took a step back. His face was starting to turn pale.

"How dare you hug my wife in front of all these people, and in front of me. Now choose, which hand should I break?" Leon asked, staring at Jonathan coldly.

Jonathan swallowed, starting to break into a cold sweat. He thought about calling his father's men who were outside, but he wasn't sure they would arrive in time. Besides, shouldn't they have kept Leon from getting into the ballroom?

In a panic, Jonathan glanced at Evelyn, finding the woman's gaze locked on Leon. An idea then crossed his mind. He leapt behind Evelyn and grabbed the front of her neck with his right hand. His other hand pulled Evelyn's body close to his.

"Don't try anything, or she gets hurt!" Jonathan threatened, emboldening himself to glare at Leon.

Jonathan's action caused an uproar in the room. The party guests certainly never imagined that this proposal party would turn into a hostage incident.

"Le-Leon..." Evelyn struggled to speak.

Leon looked at his wife. The coldness in his eyes instantly changed; a kind of sadness was now visible there.

"Don't worry, Eve. I'll handle this," Leon said, then shifted his focus back to Jonathan—his gaze turning cold again.

"Don't mess around! I warned you!" Jonathan said, still glaring at Leon.

Leon narrowed his eyes slightly, then shook his head. "You're truly stupid, Jonathan."

"Shut up! I will--"

Whoosh!

Crack!

"AAAARRRGGHHH!"

Suddenly, Leon was behind Jonathan, holding Jonathan's right arm, which now hung broken.

...