At first, they thought it was Duke who had finally decided to drop the facade and reveal his true power, but upon looking at him, they realized even he was in a state of confusion and he had a wary look on his face.
"Ha ha ha! We've...got y-you cornered...now you fucking...prick!" The biggest thug struggled to complete the sentence as he tried to catch his breadth.
His mask suddenly parted, revealing his handsome face. And fortunately/unfortunately (depending on who's side you are on) one of the thugs immediately recognized him. This was because he had been a huge fan of Duke Priester's work before now. So recognizing him (his real face) was easy.
Duke Priester would never dare to reveal his true face to the world ever again after what he did and so, if said mask was under investigation, there would literally be nowhere else to hide in Haveiton which would undisputably lead to a 'plan failed' scenario. And what was worse, he had no 'plan B.'