Driven by a woman's intuition, Tina was more certain than anyone that Stanley was the [Green-Faced Bandit].
She had also witnessed firsthand the sheer combat power he possessed when wearing the mask.
Right now, her mind was rapidly calculating how she could use the [Green-Faced Freak] to help her break free from the gang's "control."
You had to admit, it was a very smart plan.
But before setting her plan in motion, Tina needed to confirm exactly what kind of person Stanley became when he wore the mask.
After all, no one wants to escape a wolf's den only to walk straight into a tiger's mouth!
Besides, truthfully, the [Green-Faced Freak's] appearance was genuinely a bit unsettling to an ordinary person.
What Tina didn't realize was that her frequent, evaluating glances toward the corner booth were being completely misinterpreted by the [Green-Faced Freak] as flirtatious winks.
Finally unable to contain his excitement any longer, the [Green-Faced Freak] stood up.
With a sudden burst of a miniature whirlwind, Stanley, dressed in his outrageously loud zoot suit, materialized directly on the stage.
[Imagination Attribute +99]... [Mischief Experience +88]... [Dancing Experience +66]...
[Divine Skill: Power of Transformation (Trait)]
As Stanley magically produced an umbrella out of thin air and broke into a goofy rendition of "Singin' in the Rain" on stage, a massive shower of bizarre, glowing orbs dropped from his body. Among them was the exact trait orb Mike had been waiting for.
Power of Transformation: As long as you truly believe it in your heart, you can materialize anything into existence.
Truly worthy of being called a divine power. This ability was essentially a slightly nerfed version of pure reality warping.
Of course, this divine skill had a drawback: once the materialized object left the "master's" immediate range of intent, it would revert to its original form.
"Here, Needy, this is for you~"
Having acquired the new ability, Mike casually transformed the wine glass in his hand into a vibrant, blooming rose and held it out.
Standing beside him, Needy, who had maintained an icy poker face the entire night, felt a flicker in her eyes as she looked at the rose before casually accepting it as if nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, sitting in a VIP booth off to the side of the stage, Dorian—having finally spotted the [Green-Faced Freak] who had ruined his heist cheerfully dancing right in front of him—completely lost his mind.
This was a blatant, naked "mockery"!
"Kill him! Kill him now!"
Blinded by absolute rage, the gang underboss chose to solve the problem with overwhelming firepower.
Instantly, the nightclub erupted into a deafening roar of gunfire.
Dozens of gang members hidden in the shadows opened fire, spraying the stage with bullets as they advanced on the [Green-Faced Freak].
However, when the city gates catch fire, the fish in the moat suffer the disaster!
With bullets flying wildly everywhere, the nightclub descended into pure chaos. Several unlucky patrons in the audience were caught in the crossfire during the panic.
Because of where he was sitting, plenty of stray bullets came flying toward Mike's table as well.
But the moment those bullets entered a certain radius around him, they drastically slowed down, eventually coming to a complete stop and forming a floating layer of lead about a meter away.
Then, like pearls dropping onto a jade plate, they fell to the floor with a series of crisp clinking sounds.
Needy's reaction wasn't slow either. The exact second the gunfire erupted, she stepped in front of Mike to cover him.
Seeing that he was in no actual danger, she drew a compact handgun and expertly dropped several gang members who were getting too close.
At the same time, some of the lower-level thugs who were firing wildly into the crowd were suddenly dropping dead, hit by specialized bullets fired from an unknown location.
Clearly, the John Wick trio stationed outside was providing Mike with heavy sniper and tactical support.
Back on the stage, the [Green-Faced Freak], who had been smoothly dancing his heart out, was caught completely off guard by the sudden ambush, causing him to freeze for a split second.
After all, reality check: even wearing the Mask of Loki, deep down, Stanley was still just a timid bank clerk.
During that brief moment of shock, Tina, who was also on the stage, was nearly hit by a stray bullet.
Reacting quickly, the woman, despite wearing high heels, dashed to the edge of the stage and dove toward the steps to dodge the gunfire.
Her trajectory was dead-on, landing her exactly where Mike was sitting.
And that single, correct decision ultimately saved her life.
"You're safe now, Miss~"
Feeling the soft weight land against him, Mike gently patted the trembling woman's shoulder.
It was only then that Tina realized she was currently sprawled across a handsome young man's lap in an incredibly compromising position.
And right next to him was a terrifyingly cold, goth-looking woman glaring at her with absolute hostility.
"I'm so sorry~"
Tina's face flushed bright red as she scrambled to stand up.
But her heel slipped on a spilled drink, and for the second time, she landed squarely back on Mike's lap.
...
Back on the stage, after his initial moment of shock, Stanley finally remembered that he currently possessed "superpowers" thanks to the mask.
Instantly, his body turned to rubber, exaggeratingly twisting, bending, and contorting to dodge the relentless hail of bullets.
"Ta-da! Time for a counterattack!!!"
With another whirlwind spin, Stanley, having found his rhythm, transformed into a green-headed cowboy, a vintage revolver spinning on his finger.
But before the duel could even begin, the revolver in his hand seemingly took a bullet, comically flying out of his grip.
"Dear God, they got me! I'm hit~"
The [Green-Faced Freak] dramatically clutched his stomach and theatrically collapsed into the arms of a charging gang member.
It wasn't until the goofy Stanley was completely surrounded by armed thugs pointing their guns at his head that Dorian, the underboss, finally sauntered onto the stage.
However, entirely focused on the [Green-Faced Freak], Dorian probably hadn't noticed that his crew had already lost over a dozen men in the brief firefight.
Most of those casualties were the handiwork of Needy and the John Wick trio.
On the stage, Dorian glared down at the [Green-Faced Freak], who was currently performing a wildly over-dramatic death scene, spouting nonsensical last words.
"Don't try to play me! Where did you hide my money?! Spit it out right now~"
Hearing the mention of money, Stanley, having had his fun playing dead, instantly sprang back to life.
With another whirlwind spin, he was suddenly wearing a professional bank teller's uniform, a heavy-duty tax calculator materializing on a desk in front of him.
Click-clack-click-clack!
Typing furiously on the keys, the [Green-Faced Freak] announced in an exaggerated voice,
"The prices at this club are absolutely outrageous! As the owner of this establishment... you owe a tax penalty of one hundred million dollars!!!"
"Sir, please ensure you pay your taxes in full by the end of the next business day~"
With that, Stanley theatrically ripped off the printed receipt and politely handed it right to the underboss, Dorian.
"You think this is a joke?!"
Staring at the receipt, Dorian was so furious smoke practically blew out of his ears. He screamed his order once again: "Shoot him! Kill him now!"
The deafening roar of gunfire resumed, but Stanley, having done this routine already, confidently twisted, bent, and danced around the bullets.
"Ooh, so close! Better luck next time, boys~"
Once the shooting finally stopped, Stanley taunted them, elegantly brushing off his suit.
He even had the time to magically conjure a glass of champagne and down it in one gulp.
However, judging by the dozen tiny streams of champagne spurting out of various holes in his body, the gang members' aim hadn't been entirely off the mark.
It was glaringly obvious: wearing the mask made Stanley completely immune to bullets. Everything he had just done was purely to mock and humiliate the gang.
Even someone as thick-headed as Dorian finally realized that the [Green-Faced Freak] had been playing him for a fool this entire time.
He also realized that conventional weapons were completely useless against him.
But quickly scanning the room, Dorian spotted the stunning Tina sitting off the stage.
A brilliant, vicious plan instantly formed in his mind.
"I highly suggest you hand over my money and tell me exactly where you got those powers. Otherwise, I'm going to kill Tina~"
Executing his plan, Dorian shouted his threat at the [Green-Faced Freak] while charging toward the edge of the stage, intent on taking Tina hostage.
He could clearly tell that the [Green-Faced Freak] was obsessed with her.
But before he could even reach the floor, Needy, who was standing right next to Mike, stepped forward and knocked Dorian completely unconscious with a single, brutally precise chop to the neck.
Simultaneously, Mike activated his newly acquired [Power of Transformation], instantly turning the guns in the hands of every remaining gang member into writhing venomous snakes.
"Whoa! Looks like the mob finally met their match~"
Watching the terrified gang members shriek and throw their "guns" to the floor, Stanley, seeing that Tina was safe, let out a massive, exaggerated cheer.
But then, it seemed to suddenly dawn on him that someone else in the room possessed the exact same reality-bending powers he did.
Stanley's expression slowly shifted from shock to pure terror, and ultimately, he chose the flight response.
This was the completely normal reaction of an ordinary person faced with an incomprehensible, unknown threat!
With a massive whirlwind spin, the [Green-Faced Freak] transformed into a giant, green version of Bugs Bunny.
The giant rabbit, looking utterly terrified, bolted for the nightclub exit at blinding speed.