Chapter 60 Sister-in-law

Chapter 60 Sister-in-law
Ryzen returned to the dinner hall like winter walking into spring.

The moment he stepped through the wide doors, the warm noise of the ballroom softened then slowly died. It wasn’t because the music stopped. The instruments still played, light and elegant, but the people’s voices fell into uneasy whispers, like everyone suddenly remembered who owned this place.

He didn’t come back smiling.

He didn’t come back relaxed.

He came back as the Alpha.

His posture was straight, shoulders squared, steps steady and heavy. The lights from the chandeliers caught the silver on his suit, but none of that softened the coldness in his face. His eyes moved across the hall like a blade, calm and sharp, cutting through laughter and comfort.

Some guests lowered their heads immediately.

Some forced stiff smiles that didn’t reach their eyes.

And some—especially the council—froze in place like prey caught in a wolf’s shadow.

Ryzen’s gaze landed on them.

Not all of them.

Just the ones he wanted.

The council members sat in their honored section, dressed in fine clothes and heavy jewelry, wearing faces that pretended to be calm. But Ryzen could see the tension in their fingers, the tightness in their jaws, the way their eyes avoided his.

Then his gaze stopped right on one man.

Old, broad-shouldered, gray-haired, with a proud face carved by years of authority.

Lyria’s grandfather.

Councilman Avenhart.

The man didn’t flinch at first… but his eyes did. They shifted, just a little, betraying him before his mouth could.

Ryzen stared at him coldly.

Avenhart’s throat bobbed as he swallowed. Then he pushed himself up from his seat with a forced smile, raising his hands slightly like he was calming a room.

“Alpha,” he greeted, voice loud enough for nearby guests to hear. “Please—allow me to apologize. My granddaughter acted without thought. She embarrassed your guest and disrespected this hall. I ask for your forgiveness.”

His words sounded respectful but Ryzen knew better.

It wasn’t shame.

It was fear.

It was damage control.

Ryzen didn’t answer.

He didn’t even blink.

He simply looked at the old man like he was nothing.

The silence that followed was so sharp it cut the air.

Avenhart’s smile trembled for half a second. His hands slowly lowered. His eyes flickered around, searching for support, but none came. The council members beside him stayed still, pretending they didn’t see him being ignored.

Ryzen stepped forward.

One slow step then another.

He walked past the council section like they weren’t even there.

Like the apology didn’t deserve breath.

Avenhart’s face tightened, humiliation burning across his features. He opened his mouth again, but no sound came out. He sat down slowly, stiff, like the chair had suddenly become too small.

Whispers rose immediately across the hall.

“The Alpha never ignored someone from the council…”

“He didn’t even respond…”

“Councilman Avenhart… got dismissed like a servant.”

Ryzen didn’t care.

He kept walking, his eyes scanning the room, cold and controlled. Every sound felt smaller under his presence. Even the servants pouring wine moved more carefully, heads lowered.

Shaux followed a step behind him, calm as always, but his eyes were alert, watching everything.

Ryzen’s seat at the head of the hall waited—an elevated table that made his position clear. It wasn’t just a seat. It was a reminder that he was the one who ruled here.

As Ryzen approached, someone moved quickly into his path.

A soft laugh.

A sweet voice.

“Alpha Ryzen,” Lyria greeted.

Ryzen stopped.

Slowly, he turned his head.

Lyria stood there in a dress meant to steal attention—deep red, tight at the waist, open at the shoulders. Her hair was styled carefully, glossy and perfect. Her lips curved in a flirtatious smile, eyes shining like she was innocent nut her hands gave her away.

They were shaking slightly.

She forced them to rest on her skirt, trying to look graceful.

“I’m relieved you returned,” Lyria said, voice silky. “The hall felt… incomplete without you.”

Ryzen stared at her without expression.

Lyria stepped closer, careful not to cross the line between bold and disrespectful though she was clearly trying.

“I was worried,” she continued softly. “About you. About your night. I hope you’re not too angry at what happened earlier.”

Her eyes flickered upward, trying to catch his gaze like a hook.

“I truly didn’t mean any harm,” she added sweetly. “And if you need someone to accompany you for the rest of the evening… I would gladly—”

Ryzen’s eyes narrowed slightly before he spoke.H is voice was low and calm but it carried across the hall like a quiet warning.

“Why is it,” Ryzen said, “that a pest is still in the dinner hall?”

The words slammed into the room.

Lyria’s smile froze on her face, cracking like thin glass.

The whispers stopped completely, like the entire hall had held its breath.

Shaux’s eyes widened slightly—just slightly—because even he didn’t expect that bluntness.

Lyria blinked, stunned.

Her cheeks flushed hot. Her eyes darted around, seeing all the faces watching her.

Hearing the word again in her head.

Pest.

Humiliation hit her so fast her throat tightened.

Ryzen didn’t look away.

He didn’t soften it.

He just watched her like she was dirt that tracked into his hall.

Lyria swallowed, lips trembling. “A-Alpha… I…”

Shaux cleared his throat and stepped forward carefully, ready to speak before this became bloodshed in silk but before he could—A voice cut in smoothly.

“Brother.”

The hall shifted again.

Heads turned.

Servants stiffened.

Council members straightened.

Ophelia Brixx Montclair entered the dinner hall like she owned the light itself.

She walked in slowly and confident. Her presence made the room feel smaller.

She didn’t need to raise her voice but everyone heard her.

Ophelia’s gaze flicked over Lyria once—just once—and it was enough to make Lyria’s body stiffen then Ophelia looked at Ryzen.

Her expression softened just a little, but her tone remained controlled.

“Just do what you need to do, brother,” Ophelia said. Then she stepped closer, placing herself slightly between Ryzen and the crowd like she was claiming the situation.

“I can handle this,” she continued calmly and then she added, her voice louder than before and clear enough for the hall to hear, “I do not want my sister-in-law to suffer.”

The words landed like a thunderclap.

Sister-in-law.

The hall went dead silent.

Lyria’s eyes widened so hard they looked like they might tear. Her mouth parted, but no sound came out.

The council members exchanged sharp looks.

Some guests gasped openly.

Others covered their mouths with their hands.

And some—especially the women who had been whispering earlier—looked like they had been slapped.

“Sister-in-law…?”

“Does that mean…?”

“The Alpha’s guest…”

“She’s—?”

Lyria’s face drained of color.

Her lips trembled.

Her eyes flicked toward her grandfather like a desperate child looking for help but Councilman Avenhart looked like he had just swallowed poison.

Ophelia’s gaze stayed calm.

Almost amused.

Like she had said it on purpose.

Like she wanted the hall to choke on it.

Ryzen, on the other hand—froze. For the first time all night, his cold mask cracked.

Not fully but enough for some of the guest to notice. His ears turned red. A faint flush crept up the side of his neck, like his body betrayed him even when his face stayed mostly unreadable.

He stared at Ophelia.

Stunned.

Shaux looked down quickly, like he didn’t want to be caught smiling.

Ophelia didn’t even glance at Ryzen’s reaction. She only turned slightly toward Lyria, her voice still smooth.

“You may leave,” Ophelia said quietly. “Before you embarrass your family further.”

Lyria’s breath hitched.

Her pride tried to resist, but the hall was watching, and she could feel the Alpha’s disgust like a hand around her throat.

With trembling hands, Lyria bowed stiffly.

“I… I apologize,” she whispered, but her voice sounded broken now.

She turned quickly and walked away, almost running, her heels clicking too fast against the floor.

The moment she disappeared into the crowd, the whispers returned.

Ophelia turned back to Ryzen.

Her eyes narrowed slightly, like she was teasing him without smiling.

Ryzen’s jaw tightened.

His ears were still red.

He hated that the whole room had heard it.

He hated that Selene wasn’t even here and yet her name—her place—had just been declared in front of everyone.

Ryzen took one step back.

He turned sharply.

Without a word, he walked away from the dinner hall.

Straight toward his office.

The doors to the hall closed behind him and the silence he left behind was louder than any music.

Shaux exhaled slowly, then glanced at Ophelia.

Ophelia lifted her champagne glass calmly, as if nothing happened.

“Handle it,” she repeated softly, eyes glinting. “Just like I said.”

And behind a closed door, the Alpha stood alone in a quiet hallway—ears red, heart pounding, realizing that his sister had just thrown Selene into the center of Montclair politics.

Whether he was ready or not.