It wasn't hard for hatred to gather at the door.
"Guards! Where are the guards?!" someone shouted desperately.
But the scene was so chaotic that even the bodyguards struggled. They shoved and blocked, but the crowd was wild, driven by anger and pain.
They didn't care about rules. They didn't care about consequences.
One of the intruders suddenly lifted a container. The sharp, suffocating smell hit the air immediately.
Before anyone could react, the person began hurling it around madly, splashing it across the floor and onto nearby tables.
People screamed and jumped back. The hall instantly turned into panic.
The man roared like a beast, eyes crazed. "Anyone who tries to stop us, I'll burn you along with her!"
"What are you doing?! This is illegal!" a guest shouted, his clothes soaked in gasoline, his voice shaking with panic and fury.
"It wasn't me! I didn't bully anyone!" Tiffany shrieked, her face twisted with fear as she looked wildly around the room, desperate for an escape, desperate for someone else to blame.
Then her gaze suddenly locked onto Nina and Levi.
A vicious thought struck her.
She lifted her trembling hand and pointed straight at them.
"Go ask them! They're friends with Yeri Zhi! She's the one who bullied so many students! I'm just one of her lackeys! I was also forced to do it!"
Marco's face darkened instantly. "Are you fucking crazy?! What nonsense are you talking about?!"
He hadn't forgotten the person behind Yeri. Why provoked someone they couldn't afford to offend?
But Tiffany couldn't be bothered, in a life and death situation, what matter first was saving herself.
Meanwhile, Nina and Levi had heard everything.
Nina's face went blank for a moment, then her anger shot up like fire. She was so furious she almost wanted to storm forward and burn Tiffany herself.
The outrageous part was, some people actually believed Tiffany's words.
Their eyes sharpened with suspicion, and a few began moving toward Nina and Levi, like wolves who had just been given a new target.
"Damn it, come and fight me if you have the guts!" Nina wasn't afraid, her dress was uncomfortable, but she could still defend herself if they tried anything.
Yet it wasn't Nina who stepped forward.
Levi moved in front of her without hesitation, blocking her with his body and stopping the crowd before they could reach them.
To Nina's shock, Levi's stance was steady, his movements sharp.
Wasn't he just a twig who spent most of his time playing Tartarus online?
Nina stared at him, stunned.
"How can you blindly harm innocent people just because of some taunting words, without evidence?" Levi said, his voice firm and cold, "You should all calm down, otherwise, how are you any different from the bullies you claim to despise?"
At least his words drilled some sense into most of them.
People slowed, uncertain, shame creeping into their expressions.
But while the crowd was distracted, no one noticed that Tiffany had already slipped away. She had fled backstage.
Marco, too, tried to take advantage of the chaos.
He had already obtained the USB containing that video of him and the others. Now, with the hall in disorder, he wanted to disappear before things became worse.
But before he could escape, police sirens wailed outside along with the ambulance.
The moment the authorities arrived, the chaos finally died down.
The intruders were apprehended immediately, including the man who had brought the gasoline. He was pinned to the ground, screaming and cursing while officers handcuffed him.
Most people assumed the police had come because of the uninvited crowd.
But then the head officer walked straight toward Marco, who was trying to quietly slip away.
"Are you Marco Fabian?" the officer asked.
Marco's throat tightened as if someone had grabbed him by the neck.
Before he could respond, Master Fabian stepped forward sharply, shielding his son like a wall.
"What do you want with my son?" he demanded.
The officer's expression remained stern as he directed to Marco, voice loud enough for everyone to hear.
"Someone reported you for organizing prostitution, hosting orgies, and sharing obscene photos of women without their consent."
Master Fabian's face turned stiff with disbelief.
"This is slander!" he shouted. "My son is not that kind of person! Since you're here, you should investigate who's harming my son and daring to ruin his wedding instead!"
The officer's gaze hardened, displeased, but he remained professional.
"Sir, we will investigate. But your son must come with us to the station to provide a statement."
Master Fabian immediately refused, his anger flaring, arguing with the police.
Marco, on the other hand, shrank behind his father like a drenched chicken, trembling so hard his shoulders shook.
Then suddenly a blood-curdling scream rang out from backstage.
The sound was so sharp it cut through everything, making the entire hall fall silent.
The police moved, pushing through the crowd while people trailed behind them, fear and curiosity tangled together.
At the dressing room entrance, they stopped.
Inside, Tiffany lay on the floor in her ostentatious bridal gown, now dyed red.
Blood pooled beneath her like a dark, blooming flower.
Marco's eyes widened in horror.
"Tiffany!" he cried out.
He lunged forward, but the police stopped him immediately, holding him back.
An officer crouched and checked her pulse. "She's still breathing, is the ambulance still outside?!"
At that moment, Marco's panic twisted into rage.
His eyes snapped toward Nina and Levi, who were already there firsthand.
"What happened?!" Marco roared. "What did you two do to her?!"
He grabbed Levi by the collar and yanked him forward viciously. "Don't think I'll let you get away with harming my wife!"
"Are you insane? Let go of him!" Nina shouted, quickly pocketing the phone she had been holding.
"We didn't touch her," Levi said firmly, forcing calm into his voice. "She was already like that when we arrived."
"You think I'm easy to fool?!" Marco snarled, spittle flying as rage took over. "Many people heard Tiffany earlier, telling those lunatics to attack both of you! After that, I saw you two chase her here!"
"So what? Not everyone is a lunatic like your wife!" Nina snapped back. "Why would we resort to violence when the police are already here?!"
Their shouting was cut short when the ambulance team rushed in. Medical staff pushed through the crowd with a stretcher.
Then, in the middle of the frantic treatment, someone suddenly blurted.
"Wait…that doesn't look like the bride."
Marco, still fuming and arguing, stiffened. He turned back sharply, and sure enough, the woman in the bridal dress wasn't Tiffany.
"Is the bride pregnant?" the medical staff asked, lifting the blood-soaked fabric slightly, eyes narrowing in concern.
Marco barely processed the question. His mind seemed to explode and his pupils trembled violently as recognition struck him like a hammer.
"Rita…!" he choked out. "No… how could this be? Why is it you?!"
Nina and Levi were dumbfounded.
What kind of ridiculous twist was this?
The police, seeing the confusion, immediately stepped in.
"Can you two tell us what happened?" an officer asked, his tone stern as he looked at Nina and Levi.
Levi shook his head. For a moment, he looked genuinely stunned, as if even he couldn't process how things had turned out.
Then he spoke slowly, choosing his words carefully. "It's true we came here first, but we didn't find Tiffany immediately. There were other people here too, including some of those who were chasing after her. We heard a scream, and only then did we rush in. When we arrived, she was already like this."
Marco's expression twisted into something ugly. "If anything happens to the baby in her womb, I swear I'll make you two regret it."
Nina's anger flared like wildfire.
"Bah! Who's afraid of you, you scumbag?! We already said we had nothing to do with this! What do we gain from hurting your mistress?!"
Marco's face contorted, as if he wanted to lunge again, but the police restrained him.
Rita was quickly lifted onto the stretcher as the medical team wheeled her out.
Marco stumbled after them while officers followed closely, keeping him under control.
He didn't stop glaring back at Nina and Levi. He kept hurling threats like curses, like he was certain they were guilty.
"Officer," Nina said quickly, "I've been livestreaming to my friend this whole time. I have evidence to prove our innocence!"
Levi, however, was staring at the dress, his brows knitted tightly.
"It's not the same dress…" he muttered.
Nina blinked. "Huh? What did you just say?"
"The bridal dress Rita was wearing wasn't the one Tiffany wore earlier," he said. "It's most likely a spare dress."
Only then did Nina realise it too. Because Marco had been hysterical and the situation had been so chaotic, they hadn't paid attention at all.
In the end, the police invited both Nina and Levi to go to the station as well, to provide full statements.
The lavish wedding between two second-tier families ended in humiliation, tragedy, and complete chaos.
Guests left furious and disgusted. This wasn't just about compensation anymore with most of the people present were upper class.
Being dragged into such a scandal, being exposed to danger, and being forced to witness such disgrace, both families offended far too many people.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the screen, Yeri sat frozen, watching everything unfold.
From the moment Rita stormed into the ceremony, to Marco's shocking scandal, the violent crowd, and the unexpected crime backstage.
She didn't have time to think deeper, worry crashed over her and without hesitation, she bolted out as she sent a message to Nina.
[Nina, which police station did they take you to?]
At the same time, indignation burned in her chest like a slow flame.
Tiffany had tried to shove the blame onto her so easily, without even thinking whether her words would hurt innocent people.
Yeri couldn't understand it. What had she ever done to Tiffany for her to hate her this much? Was it just because of Marco Fabian?
If she had attended the wedding today, there was no doubt Tiffany would have pinned all her crimes to her.