Felix cursed internally, furious at the absurd situation he hadnded in. No matter how carefully he had nned, he had never ounted for the irrational jealousy and arrogance of someone like this wealthy heir.


    "Who doesn''t have friends of the opposite gender?" Felix thought bitterly.


    He and Laura had maintained a noticeable distance while walking into the city, and their time together had been brief before splitting up at Harmony Clinic. Yet somehow, someone had decided to make it into a scandal.


    "You''ve got it all wrong. Laura and I—" Felix began.


    Before he could finish, the young man cut him off sharply, "Save it! I have no time for your excuses! I, Jared Windson, have made it clear to everyone in North City that no man is allowed to even get close to Laura! And you dare break my rule? Take him away!"


    Two men grabbed Felix''s arms, forcing him to remain still. Confused, Felix frowned. Weren''t there rules about no fighting in the city?


    "Jared, right? I''m a member of Harmony Clinic. Do you think you can get away with this?" Felix said, attempting to invoke the organization''s name for some


    leverage.


    Jared chuckled darkly. "Oh, I''m grabbing you right outside Harmony Clinic, and look-no one''s stepping in. Do you see anyone from inside caring about what happens to you?"


    He tightened his grip on Felix''s neck, a smug grin stered on his face. "You''re just another wannabe doctor using Harmony Clinic''s name to stir up trouble. Harmony Clinic won''t bother cleaning up trash like you—they''d probably thank me for doing it for them."


    In truth, Jared was itching for Felix to fight back. In Martial City, the rules were simple: whoever struck first bore the me. If Felix retaliated, Jared could im self-defense and kill him on the spot without consequences.


    Felix''s mind raced, recalling what Xena had exined about the city''sws. It all made sense now-Jared was provoking him intentionally, trying to force him into making the first move.


    "I''m not going anywhere. What can you do about it?" Felix retorted calmly, refusing to let the provocation rattle him.


    No matter how the men pulling at his arms tried, Felix did not budge an inch.


    Jared''s expression darkened. "Useless fools! Drag him away!"


    Several more men appeared, all clearly in Innate Realm. Their eager expressions showed they were more than willing to do Jared''s dirty work, a stark reminder of how Martial City differed from the capital.


    "Stop!" a familiar voice rang out as Laura appeared, stepping directly between Felix and Jared.


    Jared''s scowl immediately softened into a grin. "Laura, it''s nothing. I was just joking around with your friend."


    Having spent the trip into the city exining Martial City''s rules to Felix, Laura had pushed Jared to the back of her mind. But something about him nagged at her memory, athe


    and at thest moment, she rushed to Harmony Clinic''s entrance, only to find she was almost toote.


    "Then, let him go," Laura demanded firmly.


    Jared shook his head, his grin widening. "You know me, Laura. When I say something, I follow through promised to joke around, so I''ll keep joking around. Besides, my men haven''tid a fingeron him. He''s perfectly fine, see?"


    Felix clenched his fists, his anger barely contained. He had hoped that Laura''s arrival might defuse the situation, but Jared was determined to escte things.


    The fact that all of this was happening right outside Harmony Clinic-and no one from the clinic seemed to care-only added to Felix''s frustration.


    Just as he was about to voice his anger, something caught his eye. Felix turned abruptly to his right, his expression shifting to one of


    disbelief-the final piece of the ne


    Dragonspine here in Martial City.


    ROUMS