Ced stood himself upright as he clutched at his own finger. “Are you little b*stards looking to get fired?
I’m going to make you pay till your pants drop!”
Patting on the piano, Casper said, “It’s a good instrument, but I like your suggestion better!”
He went on to dent the piano body by driving a fist down into it and then pointed to the damage done,
“How much for this blow?”
Ced and the music store owner exchanged glances, a little bamboozled by Casper’s antics. However,
they simply could not believe how a student who reeked of cheapness like him could ever afford to pay
for a piano.
“Do you really think you can scare me, you cocky little b*stard? Don’t expect to be able to walk away if I
can’t get a ten thousand off you which would require your own pitiful parents to farm for an entire year
to put together.” Ced’s eyes and his inflection were full of malice.
“Farmers are more worthy of respect than someone like yourself.” Casper pulled out his phone to call
Elena. “Have you got the money, Ms. Schneider? Are the boys from Firewolf Chamber here yet? Good.
Have them help bring the money up.”
“Really? A penniless idiot like you having a secretary?” Ced also made a call himself, but this time, he
dared not point at Casper any more. “Hit me will you, you little whelp! Don’t you go anywhere, as I’ll
have you regretting that you’ve ever been born in a bit.”
“Casper…”
An agitated Felix cried out but Casper had him restrain himself by casting him a reassuring look.
“Do not hesitate to express your outrage, my friends, as today, I’ve got all the bases covered!”
Goodyear arrived in a jiffy with several men in tow and was already cussing at Casper from a distance
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtthe moment he spotted him. “Are you tired of living, you rascals?”
Casper glanced at those trailing behind the portly man and realized that they were the same students
from Business University who came with them. Daring to look for a fight with them as your crew? Are
you really treating the students like your own lackeys?
“Coming out to work expecting to be treated like kings? Every student these days are frigging morons
who don’t know their own place,” Ced cussed after being emboldened by the arrival of these
reinforcements.
The utterly furious Felix interjected, “Shut your trap. Have I slackened even for a minute while I was
being worked like a horse yesterday by this fatso? I got paid a measly ninety bucks, and we still had to
pay for our own meals! Y’all just taking advantage of us because we’re students that nobody listens to.”
Casper glanced at his finger. He then peeled the Vamanos Manpower uniform off his own back before
turning to address those students. “My schoolmates, feel free to stand with this fella if you want to, but
if you are willing to take my side, get yourselves out of that uniform.”
The students were apprehensive as they only got into doing these gigs because of financial difficulties
at home, and had no desire to be embroiled in any conflict. Colton knew that Casper was only testing
them and would ensure that they were properly compensated afterward. “Friends, I know that y’all are
like us, only out to make some cash. But these leeches are way out of line, blatantly bullying us and
exploiting us because they know we won’t dare to tell anyone that we’ve been working on the side after
we return.”
Remy, too, chimed in, “That’s right. They’re taking advantage of the fact that we’re poor and climbing all
over our heads.”
These words resonated with more than a few of the students. That’s right, which one of us is not here
to work these crappy jobs owing to the lack of options? Those born into affluence would never have to
contend with anything like this, and these evil manpower companies were just taking advantage of the
underprivileged.
“I’m sick of these fools, and done with this crap! I’ve got your back, my man!”
A hot-blooded youth stomped upon the Vamanos Manpower uniform he hurled onto the floor and
crossed over to Casper’s side.
Goodyear sneered, “Y’all young ones don’t really think too much about consequences, do you. Do you
know how much causing a delay to the show in the mall today is going cost you?”
That cowed the restless students into silence, but the fieriness from that one student who stood forward
from before remained undiminished while he regarded Goodyear. “Keep yapping. With a strong drink, I
could stare down a bull. I’m standing here right now, so what are you going to do about that?”
Casper looked to this lad with appreciation as Elena and Jeremy finally arrived.
“This mall’s so huge, we almost couldn’t find our way here.”
The two calls Casper made earlier in the morning were to Elena and Jeremy respectively, the latter of
which immediately brought along thirty men with him.
The sudden emergence of this dark mass of people caused the faces of Goodyear, Ced and the music
store owner to shift from arrogance to alarm.
Ced could tell immediately that the men Casper called upon were not from the university, but from the
triads. He promptly fished out a cigarette which he extended out to Jeremy. “How shall I address you,
good sir?”
Jeremy looked askance at this man and did not accept his offer. “Is this the fella who pissed you off,
Boss?”
Boss?
The students, Goodyear, the music store owner and Ced variously arched their heads toward Casper.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmThis vicious looking gangster, hailing a student as his boss?
Casper raised a hand to signal for him to keep a low profile. “Where’s the money?”
Jeremy immediately got his boys to bring forward a considerably bulky bag which looked to contain
quite a lot.
“Are that all the coins for twenty-thousand? That’s not quite enough. Go fetch another ten-thousand.”
Casper looked at the bag of money with some dissatisfaction.
Ced panicked as soon as he realized that he was dealing with someone he could not afford to offend,
and quickly started to speak more obsequiously. “This gentleman here, it would seem that we have
ourselves quite the misunderstanding. I’m sure you could see how having to manage such a large mall
might cause one to have a shorter fuse.”
Casper did not look at him and simply placed the money in his own hand on top of the piano. “No, I’ve
you to thank for providing me with a justification to push people around with money. Though I’ve sworn
to never allow myself to become such a person, it is still a measure I would gladly employ when it
comes to dealing with certain types.”
He then turned to Felix and the others. “Gather round, friends. Grab the money and start pelting!”
Sensing the turning of the tide, Goodyear tried to slink away, but was seized back by men from the
Firewolf Chamber. Nevertheless, he tried to act level-headed. “What do you think you’re doing? This is
illegal, and you could go to jail for this!”
“Relax. Us students understand the law better than you do. We know that assault is unlawful, so we’ve
prepared this money for the purpose of compensation! Is there any better solution than using this to
make up for your losses? Is there anyone in this world who doesn’t want money?” Casper said
chillingly.
His stellar words left Goodyear and his group without any means of retort, and won a thumbs-up from
the lad who switched over to his side from the beginning. “Well said, my man. I, Godfrey Yorke, am
mighty impressed!”