"Hey, you!"

Leonard froze for a moment after hearing that deep and arrogant voice. He turned his head toward the voice and saw a group of five men walking toward them. The guys' steps were heavy and slow as if they wanted everyone on the street to notice them.

The one in front, a tall man with a scar running from his temple to his chin, grinned mockingly.

"Well, well. If it isn't the famous Leonard, huh?" he said, dragging out the words in a tone that sounded like an insult rather than a compliment.

The others behind him started laughing too. Some even repeated his words.

"Oh yeah, Leonard… the man who turned Alder Street into a circus," one sneered out loud. "You've made this place really lively, haven't you?"

Leonard didn't answer them. Instead, he looked at them, his eyes narrowing slightly. He looked at their faces, trying to see if he was familiar with any of them. He recognized a few of them.

They were men who used to go around outside the den. He noticed them a few times because they just stayed outside, looked at the distance, but never really entered.

The old caretaker beside Leonard moved nervously. He lowered his head as he took a small step back. His hands trembled slightly, clutching his hat. It was clear that he knew them, and probably not in a good way, too.

Anika, who noticed the tension, took a small step closer to Leonard. Her cheerful look from earlier faded, replaced by a slight unease.

"Leonard…" she whispered softly, tugging on his sleeve.

Leonard didn't look at her, but he smiled and nodded.

"It's fine." Then, he looked back at the men, giving a small smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"I didn't think people would remember me that easily," he said to them with no animosity in his voice.

"Oh, we remember you all right," the scarred man said, stepping closer until he was only a few feet away from Leonard. His grin widened, showing a chipped tooth in front.

"Before you showed up, this whole street was ours. Everyone respected us. Then suddenly, you build your den, and all our regulars go crawling to your place! Do you think that sits well with us?"

The men behind him laughed again, but their eyes weren't friendly. One of them kicked a pebble aside, and another cracked his knuckles as if threatening Leonard not to mess with them.

The group that approached ran an old drinking spot down the road. They were located at the other end of Alder Street, just as you enter. Their drinking spot used to be a noisy place where people used to waste their coins on cheap drinks.

For years, their spot was where the locals went when they wanted to drink from morning to night. The men running it treated the street like it was their own, calling themselves the "Kings of Alder Street."

But things started to change when Leonard's den opened. People who used to go drinking stopped showing up.

When they asked why, the people just said that it's better to waste their money on gambling. That drinking would just prevent them from going to Leonard's store early. And that, spending their money on those, would prevent them from winning big because they're losing their starting money.

Still, some continuously went into their den. A few even spend a fortune after winning in Leonard's gambling den. But it was not enough, and they're losing face!

Now, those men had nothing but broken pride. The customers they once bragged to others about were slowly disappearing. Their business was dying, and the sight of Leonard only reminded them of it.

They also weren't happy with how noisy and chaotic Leonard's den had become. For them it's not a good sight, especially with too many people inside.

"Who do you think you are, huh?" the scarred man barked, his grin twisting into a snarl. "You think you can just walk in here, change our street, and steal our customers like it's nothing?"

Leonard raised his hands slightly, keeping his tone calm.

"I'm not stealing anyone. People choose where they want to go. I didn't come here to fight—"

"Fight?" one of the men interrupted, cracking his knuckles again. "Why are you talking like we're looking for one?"

Leonard exhaled quietly. It seemed like he was talking to fools right now.

"Look, I get it. You're upset. But I'm not trying to take anything from you. I'm just running my business like everyone else."

The scarred man took another step closer, his shadow falling over Leonard.

"Running your business?" he repeated mockingly. "You mean you're ruining ours." His voice grew lower, "You've made fools out of us, and you think we'll just let that go?"

Leonard's jaw tightened, but he didn't back away.

"I apologize if you feel that way," he said firmly. He didn't really want to fight anyone right now. Not when they just successfully found a place, and they were all happy.

"Now, can you let us go?"

The men looked at one another, then started laughing. The sound was loud and full of mockery.

"Go?" the scarred man repeated, his grin returning. "Sure. Go ahead…" He leaned forward slightly. "…Go to hell."

Before Leonard could react, the man swung a punch straight toward his face. Leonard barely tilted his head in time. The punch landed on his cheek.

'Shit,' the sudden impact shocked Leonard.

He hadn't even recovered when the rest of the men started closing in.

"Anika!" Leonard shouted as he quickly shoved her aside. She stumbled backward, landing near the Old Man as chaos erupted in front of her.

The five men surrounded Leonard quickly. One grabbed his collar while another tried to kick his side. Leonard managed to twist his body, pulling himself free, but another fist caught his jaw.

He staggered back, tasting blood on his lips.

The men were obviously bigger and stronger than him. Each move they made carried anger.

'This guy…' Leonard ducked under a swing when he saw another punch coming his way. He had woken up after that second punch. He quickly countered with a quick punch to the ribs of the man closest to him.

It made the man grunt, but the others didn't stop. One of them kicked his leg, forcing Leonard to stumble.

He was clearly at a disadvantage. He was outnumbered and surrounded. But then his hand brushed against his pocket, looking for something in it.

He might be disadvantaged and clearly losing, but he couldn't just back down. He had to fight. And he will fight with a dagger in his hand. Ever since the night he saved Anika, he never went anywhere without it.

Leonard's fingers tightened around the handle. When one of the men lunged at him again, he moved fast, drawing the blade just enough to defend himself. He swung it across in a quick arc.

A sudden cry broke through the noise. The scarred man froze, his eyes widening. He was the man who attacked. All he knew was that, after a second, a thin line of blood appeared across his cheek. It was the opposite side of where his first scar was.

The man quickly took a step back, clutching his face that had been sliced by the knife. Blood quickly dripped down on it. And his expression? It was a mix of shock and fury.

"Y-you bastard!" one of his men yelled, charging at Leonard again. But Leonard turned, blocking the next attack and shoving him hard into the wall.

The others hesitated now, seeing the blade in his hand and their wounded leader. The scarred man's breathing grew ragged. For a moment, it looked like he wanted to keep fighting, but his knees wobbled, and he dropped to the ground, his hand still covering his face.

"Boss!"

The Shove men ran to their fallen leader, crouching beside him as he groaned in pain. The other three stayed standing, their eyes darting between Leonard's blade and their wounded boss.

"Get him!" he shouted, but the order came out shaky.

The three lunged at an attack anyway. They were more scared of their leader since he sounded so serious.

Leonard braced himself for the attack.

The first man came swinging wildly. Leonard ducked and drove his elbow into the man's stomach, knocking the air out of him. Another one tried to grab him from behind, but Leonard twisted his body, slamming his heel backward into the man's knee. The sound of bone hitting the ground echoed through the street.

But even as he fought back, Leonard was hit again. A fist landed hard on his ribs, then another kick to his side. He stumbled, gasping for air.

His dagger slipped from his grip for a moment, clattering against the ground. One of the men rushed to take advantage of it, but Leonard won't just let him be. He tackled the man down before he could grab the weapon.

They rolled across the ground until Leonard was able to be on top of the man. He finally got the upper hand, punching the man square across the jaw multiple times.

"Y-You Bastard!" The man could only shout as his face got wrecked by Leonard's punches.

After some time, Leonard stood again, grabbing the dagger from the ground. He turned toward the last two standing.

The two hesitated now.

"Enough," Leonard muttered. "You've already lost."

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