The already tense atmosphere in the banquet went up a notch as Alex confronted Sir Desmond.
As both men exchanged looks, it was clear that neither wanted to back down.
"It seems after gaining a bit of fame, you consider yourself some kind of bigshot, now?" Sir Desmond mocked. "You think I won't dare to destroy everything the Sanders have worked for just to show you how puny you are?"
Alex didn't immediately respond as he stared intently at the old man.
He knew a bit about him based on the memories of the former 'Alex'
Alongside the Maple family and a few others, the Desmonds were considered one of the founding families of BoneHaven.
Without them, BoneHaven might not have been built.
So it was understandable why Desmond was the one to step up when the nobles needed a mouthpiece to communicate with Nadia.
Someone that was both diplomatic and had the power to subdue if necessary.
Under normal circumstances, he would have had his way since his family was quite powerful compared to Arthur and Nadia in terms of finances and in the world of today, finance was one of the three ways to reign at the top.
Unfortunately for the old man, however, he messed with the wrong youth.
Just as Alex wanted to retort, the banquet hall became quite noisy causing him to pause.
Alex glanced at the door just in time to watch as a robust middle-aged man, wearing a black suit with an added coat that had a gold-plated pocket watch hanging out of one of the pockets slowly made his way inside the hall.
With a well-trimmed beard and monocle on his right eye, he looked quite amiable as he slowly walked with a gold inlaid cane.
Sir Desmond spoke up upon seeing the man. "Ah, Sir Thornheart, glad to see you could join the celebration."
As he said that, he made sure to throw one last glance at Alex and Nadia before making his way over to the man alongside his silent wife.
"Ah, Sir Desmond, what a lovely surprise." Sir Thornheart replied with a smile.
A smile tugged at the corners of Alex's lips as he watched Desmond leave.
"Quite an intriguing man."
Nadia snorted. "I planned to leave his family for last but his actions tonight show me that I don't need to give him any respect."
"Hoho." Alex looked intrigued as he inquired. "What do you have in mind?"
Nadia merely shoved him aside playfully while noticing that Alex was a bit more jovial than usual.
'Maybe tomorrow will be a new day.' she hoped in her heart.
Clink
The sound of glass being struck lightly reverberated across the hall, causing the attendees to quiet down.
Then the lights were turned off, leaving only the one at the stairs from which the Goldbergs descended amidst envious gazes from those below.
With Mrs. Goldberg dressed in a rather stunning gold dress and Mr. Goldberg beside her, they looked like the perfect couple.
Oliver walked beside them with a young girl that shared a resemblance with him.
It was his younger sister, Milicent Goldberg.
Oliver scanned the hall before making eye contact with Alex and of course, Nadia.
Upon seeing them together, he couldn't help but frown.
Nadia had indeed informed him that she would be coming with Alex but seeing them together was too much for him to bear.
Oliver has been obsessed with Nadia since when she first arrived in the city.
He could even claim to be the first nobleman that met her and since then, he had tried to win her heart.
Poems, love letters, dates, banquets… He had used every means but none had ever managed to click with Nadia and instead, she only ever saw him as a try-hard.
Then out of nowhere, she began to date a no-name bumpkin that had nothing worthy of note.
If it were a fellow bachelor, Oliver would have felt a bit better and maybe even thought of ways to cuck the bastard but in Alex's case, he didn't consider him worthy to be cucked.
Outrightly taking her from him would be the greatest satisfaction and for Nadia, he didn't love her.
But for his troubles, he deserved a little taste, no?
"Ladies and gentlemen." His father's voice caused Oliver to calm himself for the time being.
In any case, Fatima had promised to take care of Alex tonight.
He couldn't be sure of how she would do it but Oliver wasn't about to bother himself with the process as long as the end goal remained the same.
'Come on, Fatima, what do you plan to do?'
"I invited you all today to celebrate the 45th birthday of my beautiful and amazing wife, Rachel. She has been a great part of my life and on this special occasion, I would like to wish her many more years and an ever-radiant beauty."
As Mr. Goldberg spoke, the nobles listened with some cheering.
Meanwhile, Alex and Nadia couldn't be bothered to waste their time listening.
"How sure are you that the Hyenas and the mysterious lady are still in the basement?" Nadia asked.
Alex pursed his lips. "Sure enough."
He had seen the expression on Oliver's face when their eyes met.
At first, he also had doubts that the Hyenas would still be in the Goldberg Manor but Oliver's expression showed that he hadn't given up yet.
Would such a person allow them to leave without at least having the means to contact them the moment he thought Alex was vulnerable?
So even if the Hyenas were gone, Oliver would surely have a way to contact them and so, Alex prepared for the inevitable clash.
"I propose a toast to the long life of Mrs. Goldberg and the added prosperity of the Goldberg house."
"Cheers!"
With that, fanfare returned and the previously tense atmosphere disappeared like a lie as the supposed banquet turned into a meeting for the powerful figures in BoneHaven.
However, with all they did, no one would know that just beneath their feet, a terror like no other was about to erupt.
"Just a little more." Fatima's voice echoed in the dark basement.