They Told You, I'm Robbing You

This unbelievably comical scene drew repeated gasps from the crowd.

A security guard shook his head as he struggled to get up from the ground. Before he could spit out a few threats, a hollowed-out watermelon rind was plopped squarely over his head.

His vision was abruptly blocked. Before he could think of a response, his legs inexplicably gave out, and he fell again.

Thud!

This fall was much worse. Without even a groan, his eyes rolled back and he passed out.

One socialite failed to hold it in and burst out laughing.

The surrounding guests wore smiles as well. They were not worried about their situation in the slightest; instead, they watched with a certain arrogance and amusement, as though they had just seen a marvelous magic act rehearsed by a circus.

If the occasion had been more appropriate, someone might have started applauding.

Every person present was a wealthy and influential member of New York's upper class. No one took this strangely dressed "clown" seriously.

But Tony alone felt uneasy.

"Hey, green-faced buddy, could you let Miss Vita go first?"

Secretly pressing a concealed button on his watch, Tony calmly adjusted his collar.

"If you leave now, I can pretend none of this happened. But if you insist on this, then what comes next won't be something a little scuffle can settle."

Following his warning, seven or eight black-clad bodyguards carrying guns emerged one after another from different parts of the banquet hall.

None of them spoke. Their cold, military-like presence and silent gazes clung to Loki like curved blades.

As if the moment Loki made a dangerous move, they would gun him down.

"Miss Vitasoy."

Loki ignored them and instead put on an expression of deep affection.

"Vita. It's Miss Vita."

Miss Vita twitched at the corner of her mouth and weakly corrected him.

"Fine, fine, Miss Vitasoy."

At some point, Loki had once again placed a vivid rose between his lips.

Pressing one of her hands against his chest, Loki spoke gently.

"Miss Vitasoy, can you feel the depth of my love for you?"

".It's Vita, not Vitasoy!"

Miss Vita had wanted to correct him in irritation, but the violent pounding from his chest was far too intense, as if his heart were about to leap out.

"Gasp—"

Frightened, Miss Vita quickly pulled back her hand and pointed at his beating heart in disbelief.

"You, you..."

Accompanied by loud heartbeats, the heart pulled outward in an utterly unscientific heart-shaped bulge.

As Loki shifted through a series of dance steps and struck a strange pose as though cradling his heart, a pink heart-shaped bubble floated out of his chest and drifted unsteadily through the air until it reached Miss Vita.

Unable to resist, she lightly poked it with one finger.

Pop.

The bubble burst, releasing even more glittering little bubbles that fluttered around the two of them like butterflies.

[Emotional Value from Miss Vita +1.8]

[Emotional Value from Banquet Guests +17.9]

[Emotional Value from Tony Stark +199]

The scene was too absurd, too unreal, like something out of a fairy tale.

The crowd began to stir. Tony's face darkened as he was about to order the bodyguards to rush forward and rescue Miss Vita.

Tap, tap, tap.

Obadiah Stane hurried in from outside with several men, shouting as he ran.

"What happened? Tony, I received your distress signal!"

The instant he entered, he spotted the uniquely dressed Loki.

Without a second thought, Obadiah gave the order.

"What are you standing around for? Take him out!"

"Wait, you'll kill them!"

Tony Stark was shocked. He had not expected his uncle to be so reckless.

But rapid gunfire had already erupted, and he could only watch furiously as the bullets flew toward Loki and Miss Vita.

The crowd cried out in unison and quickly backed away. No one believed they could survive such a hail of bullets.

"Heh heh."

Loki let out a soft laugh, and his body began spinning at extreme speed, becoming a red whirlwind that firmly shielded Vita.

Only when the gunfire stopped did the whirlwind return to human form.

However, Loki's clothes now looked utterly tattered, riddled with bullet holes from head to toe.

The air was thick with the smell of gunpowder, yet strangely, not a single drop of blood had spilled.

Seeing that Vita was unharmed, Tony first looked relieved, then immediately turned to Obadiah in anger.

"Obadiah, what you did was far too reckless!"

Even if Obadiah was his uncle, Tony could not agree with him on this matter.

But Obadiah merely curled his lip in disdain, putting on a hypocritical expression.

"Tony. I was saving you."

"You—"

Clink, clink, clink.

The sounds in the distance drew everyone's attention back.

That tattered-looking figure seemed to come back to life, beginning to shake his body.

As he shook, brass-colored bullets fell to the ground in a rapid clatter.

[Emotion Points from Vita +1.99]

[Emotion Points from the banquet guests +20.3]

[Emotion Points from Obadiah Stane +169]

[Emotion Points from Tony Stark +233]

At that moment, everyone recognized Loki's extraordinary nature.

"God, he didn't die?!"

"Unbelievable!"

"Was he wearing military-grade body armor?"

"..."

Listening to the shocked cries around him, Obadiah's face darkened. He had already been unhappy after Tony yelled at him, and now that the person he wanted dead was completely unharmed, he stopped caring about anything else and simply urged his men to continue the attack.

But Loki clearly had no habit of passively taking a beating.

With a strange cry, he transformed into a red whirlwind and swept through the gunmen in the blink of an eye.

When he returned to where he had been standing, he was holding a gun—and a piece of... clothing.

"Wait. Clothing?"

Obadiah felt far too much cool air around his lower body and could not help looking down.

Buzz!

His mind went blank. His face flushed crimson, and aside from a pair of red boxer shorts printed with little bears, every other piece of clothing on his body had vanished.

Humiliation and rage.

Obadiah screamed, his eyes red.

"What are you standing around for?! Kill that damned bastard!"

The gunmen snapped out of it and hurriedly pulled daggers and batons from their bodies, charging at Loki with murderous intent.

"Wow. Honestly, your taste is rather unique."

Wagging a finger, Loki mocked Obadiah in a strange tone.

Seeing the hatred in the other man's eyes, he tossed away the weapon in his hand and grinned teasingly.

Grabbing the clothing with both hands, he violently tore it apart.

Crack, crack, crack.

An exaggeratedly dense cluster of gun barrels emerged from his chest.

Screech—

The charging gunmen came to an abrupt stop. Seeing the sight before them, their faces turned pale with fright.

They were terrified.

Guns did not care who you were, what status you had, or how much money you possessed.

Once the shooting started, everyone would be finished.

Looking at the fear in their eyes, Loki swept his guns past them one by one.

His eyes narrowed, the corners of his mouth lifted, and in an utterly delighted tone, he said, "Now. This is a robbery!"

[Emotion Points from Vita +2.1]

[Emotion Points from the banquet guests +29.3]

[Emotion Points from Obadiah Stane +199]

[Emotion Points from Tony Stark +299]