The air was thick enough to choke. Jayden's aura raged like a storm contained within human flesh, suffocating, electric, primal. His golden eyes glowed through the mask, drilling into Felix with unflinching menace.
Felix staggered back a step despite himself, his grip instinctively loosening on Penelope's arm before pride forced him to tighten it again. His chest heaved under the invisible weight pressing down on him, yet still he bared his teeth, refusing to look weak before an audience.
"W-Who the hell are you?" Felix rasped, forcing his voice into something resembling authority, though it cracked at the edges. His eyes darted between Jayden's glowing gaze and the gathering crowd.
Jayden didn't answer. He simply advanced, each step slow, heavy, deliberate, like a predator closing in on prey.
"You dare posture before me?" Felix spat, trying to mask the tremor in his voice. "You don't even have the courage to show your face—hiding behind a mask like a coward."
