Meanwhile, the confrontation continued as both men gauged each other.
"Let me leave, or we all die together," the leader said seriously, though it was clear he was merely acting.
Ethan looked at him with disdain, recognizing the hollow bravado behind his threats.
"Go ahead; no one is stopping you," he replied, his voice steady and unyielding.
Unfazed by the confrontation, Ethan was well-versed in psychological warfare, skillfully detecting the leader's underlying fear masked by his desperate façade.
As he watched his enemy's anxious and panicked state, he realized that the leader was just bluffing to protect himself.
"Do you think I won't do it?" the leader shot back, but inside, he was nervous.
His strong will to survive was the only thing that pushed him to act.
'That shameless old woman lied; the residents above were far more dangerous.'
