A thunderous slap echoed through the grand hall, leaving everyone stunned.
Kael Renforth had actually struck someone?
Celine couldn't believe her eyes. Kael, the quiet and unassuming husband of her sister, had just slapped Ezio Joffe, a business partner! By all logic, she should be outraged. Instead, she found herself resisting the urge to applaud.
"You... You dare hit me?!"
Ezio's voice wavered, his disbelief mirrored by the onlookers.
Celine smirked. Despite his family's historical ties to the Denvair House, Ezio was now leading the charge to cut all relations with their crumbling legacy. To her, this was karmic justice.
Kael's voice broke through the tension.
"Leave."
One word. Delivered with chilling calm.
Ezio froze, his body instinctively recoiling. The intensity in Kael's eyes was terrifying, a silent promise of consequences far beyond mere physical pain. Beads of sweat formed on Ezio's brow, and he stumbled backward.
"You'll regret this!" he spat, masking his fear with bravado. "Your company is finished! No one in Port Avallon will work with you now. Bankruptcy is just around the corner!"
But his threats lost their venom as he hastily turned and fled, his earlier arrogance now a shadow of itself.
Celine stood in place, torn between relief and dread. Watching Ezio run away had been deeply satisfying, but the consequences of Kael's actions loomed large.
"What are you going to do if my sister asks about this?" she demanded, shifting blame to Kael. "You'd better own up to it!"
With that, she stormed off, leaving Kael alone in the lobby.
Moments later, the receptionist hesitantly relayed a message.
"Mr. Renforth, Ms. Denvair has asked you to come upstairs."
Kael entered the office to find Lyria hunched over a mountain of paperwork, her usually radiant face clouded with stress. She didn't even notice him at first.
"You're here?" she finally said, glancing up.
"You left in such a hurry this morning. I brought you breakfast—it's still warm," Kael replied softly, placing the container on her desk.
"Just leave it there," Lyria muttered, already returning to her calculations.
Before Kael could say more, Celine burst into the office, her expression panicked.
"Sis, there's trouble outside! People are shouting, demanding answers, and threatening to report us to the authorities!"
Lyria sighed deeply, massaging her temples as the weight of the situation bore down on her. "I'll handle it," she murmured.
But the crisis didn't end there. A flustered assistant rushed in next, clutching a stack of documents.
"Ms. Denvair, we've received a final warning from the bank—they're demanding full repayment by the end of the day. If we don't comply, they'll blacklist us!"