CHAPTER 251: CHAPTER 251 PUNISHMENT

The dangerous smile that tugged at his lips was enough to make grown men shudder.

He then lowered his eyes to Bella, the shift in his tone so drastic it made the crowd gape. His voice turned soft, velvety and intimate like he was speaking to no one else in the world. "So, Bella... what’s the punishment you’ve decided?"

Bella’s lips parted. Her heart raced, torn between fear, disbelief, and the strange heat flooding her chest at the way he shielded her. "I... I don’t know..."

Click.

The trigger moved beneath his finger, the sharp sound of metal scraping against metal filling the air. He chuckled, a dark, amused sound that sent chills racing down every spine in the hall.

"BELLA! PLEASE PUNISH US!"

Sherly collapsed to her knees with a shriek, palms pressed together as tears streamed down her face. The once-smug woman shook violently, her pride shattered as she begged like a worm crawling in the dirt.

Humiliation painted Stella and Alexa’s faces. Their lips trembled, their bodies rigid, but fear kept them silent. Stella clenched her fists so tightly her nails dug into her palms, blood threatening to seep out, while Alexa’s face twisted as she shot her husband a desperate look.

But Archer...her husband stood off to the side, his jaw locked, his eyes cold. He didn’t move. Didn’t say a word.

Alexa’s heart stopped. He wasn’t going to save her.

Leo tilted his head, gun still steady, his gaze flicking to Bella once more. He looked calm..too calm as if ending lives here would be as effortless as breathing.

And Bella... Bella’s heart pounded so hard she thought it might burst.

Leo’s finger rested dangerously against the trigger. His eyes gleamed with a stormy gray fire as he tilted his head, looking down at Bella like she was the only person in the room.

"So, Bella... I’ll ask you once more." His voice was deep and smooth, curling around her like smoke. "Tell me—what’s the punishment you desire for them?"

Bella bit her lips, her small hands trembling as she clutched the hem of her dress. Everyone’s gazes were on her. Her heart pounded, and her throat felt dry.

"I... I still don’t know..." she whispered honestly, her lashes fluttering as her wide brown eyes lifted to meet his.

The silence that followed was suffocating. Then—

Click.

Leo’s finger pressed the trigger halfway again, the sharp metallic sound echoing in the hall like thunder. His lips curled into a cold smile as his arm straightened, the gun pointing steadily at the trembling women.

"You’re lucky my wife is merciful..." His voice dropped, deadly and smooth. "...but I am not."

"No!! Please!!" Stella’s knees gave out, and she dropped to the ground with a thud, clutching at her gown as she cried. Her earlier arrogance was gone, her voice hoarse as she begged, "Bella! Sister!! Please, tell him to stop! Please punish us yourself, but don’t let him shoot!"

Alexa’s face twisted, her pride collapsing as fear overtook her. She stumbled forward, her hands stretched toward Bella, tears streaking her makeup. "Bella—sweetheart, listen to me! Please! Punish me however you want! I’ll kneel, I’ll beg, anything you say—just don’t let him kill me!"

The sight of the two proud women—reduced to nothing but groveling shadows—sent murmurs through the hall.

Leo didn’t lower the gun. His expression didn’t soften. He looked every inch the cold, merciless king of the underworld he was.

Only when Bella tugged lightly on his sleeve with her trembling fingers did his jaw flex, his gray eyes flicking down to her.

"Leo..." she whispered, her voice soft, almost pleading.

For a moment, the crowd forgot to breathe. The infamous Leonorado Moretti, the man who had never once spared anyone, stood there... holding back because of a girl’s single touch.

He still didn’t lower the gun, but his lips curved slowly, dangerously, as he looked back at the women.

"You hear that?" His voice was like velvet and venom all at once. "Your lives aren’t in your hands. They’re in hers."

And that humiliation being reduced to beg under Bella’s mercy was worse than death itself.

"Bella... please punish us! Please, sister..." Stella’s voice cracked as she crawled forward, mascara staining her cheeks. She had never felt so small, so powerless, in her entire life.

Sherly’s voice followed, shrill and trembling, "Please, Bella! Kick us, slap us, do whatever you want but don’t let him kill us!" She pressed her forehead to the floor, her pride shattered into dust.

Bella’s lips trembled. She didn’t like this—not the begging, not the fear in their eyes. Yes, they were cruel, yes, they had hurt her, but seeing anyone reduced to this... it twisted something uncomfortably inside her. She wasn’t like them. She could never enjoy tormenting others.

"O... okay," she whispered finally, her doe eyes wide as she looked between them.

The three women let out shaky breaths of relief, sagging like lifeless puppets.

Leo’s gray eyes snapped to Bella. His grip on the gun loosened at once, and slowly, only for her—he lowered the weapon. His expression softened just enough for the crowd to see that only one person in this world could tame the beast inside him.

Bella’s small hands fidgeted with the hem of her dress. She thought for a long moment, then said firmly, "You three... have to clean this whole venue together... after the guests leave." Her voice shook, but her wide brown eyes shone with quiet determination.

The silence in the hall broke. Whispers spread like wildfire—humiliation thick in the air.

Stella’s mouth fell open. That’s it? Just cleaning? She let out a long sigh of relief and even dared to smile bitterly. "Huh... not bad..." she muttered under her breath.

But before she could breathe too easily, Leo’s voice sliced through the room.

"Not bad?" He chuckled darkly, his gray eyes pinning her down like knives. "To people like you being treated like a maid, scrubbing floors in front of the very guests you tried to impress that’s worse than any bullet I could give you."

The women’s faces turned chalk-white.

Bella blinked, startled by how easily he twisted her innocent punishment into something ten times more humiliating. She bit her lips to stop the laugh bubbling in her chest. Leo really knows how to make things scary...

Leo leaned down close to her ear, his voice a velvet murmur meant only for her. "Good girl... I like how merciful you are." His breath tickled her skin, and Bella’s cheeks flushed pink as her heart fluttered wildly in her chest.