The hall was already full.
Noise layered over noise.
Glass clinking.
Low conversation.
Controlled smiles that meant nothing.
Everything carefully placed.
Everything carefully watched.
Leah stayed close to Izana.
His hand never left hers.
Not once.
Dante walked slightly behind.
Eyes moving constantly.
Elias had already disappeared into the crowd.
Like he always did.
Like he was already somewhere else entirely.
The first hour passed without incident.
Too smooth.
Too controlled.
That alone felt wrong.
Leah shifted slightly beside Izana.
Just enough for him to notice.
His grip tightened instantly.
"…Too much."
Low.
Close.
Leah shook her head slightly.
"…I'm fine."
He didn't believe her.
Didn't argue either.
Just adjusted his position so she was more behind him than beside him.
Blocking angles.
Natural.
Instinctive.
Across the hall—
someone laughed too loudly.
A rival family.
Leah felt eyes drift across her.
Quick.
Measuring.
Then gone.
She didn't like it.
But she didn't say anything.
Izana already felt the change.
His gaze lifted.
Slow.
Controlled.
The laughter stopped half a second later.
Dante appeared beside them.
Quiet.
"…Someone's watching her."
Izana didn't turn.
"…I know."
Dante's eyes scanned the room again.
"…Not random."
A pause.
"…He's inside."
Leah didn't hear the words clearly.
But she felt the shift anyway.
The air changed.
Izana's hand tightened slightly around hers.
Not painful.
Just final.
Leah leaned a little closer.
"…Is everything alright?"
Izana didn't look at her.
"…Yes."
Too fast.
Too clean.
Not convincing.
She didn't push.
But her fingers curled slightly around his.
Elias appeared again briefly.
Passing behind them.
He didn't stop.
But his eyes moved over Izana.
Then Leah.
Then the hand between them.
A pause.
"…Still attached."
It wasn't said to them.
But loud enough.
Izana didn't respond.
Didn't need to.
Elias continued walking.
Dante exhaled quietly through his nose.
"…He's in a mood."
Izana's voice stayed low.
"…He always is."
The banquet continued.
But Leah felt it again.
That pressure.
The same one from before.
Not loud.
Not obvious.
Just there.
Watching.
Waiting.
She turned her head slightly.
Slow.
Careful.
Nothing.
Only people.
Only distance.
Still—
wrong.
"…Iz."
He responded instantly, but soft and warm.
"…What is it?."
"…Nothing."
A pause.
He looked at her now.
Properly.
"…Li."
She hesitated.
Then shook her head.
"…I just feel weird."
Silence.
Dante stepped half a step closer.
Izana didn't ask again.
Just scanned the room.
Every direction.
Every corner.
Every shadow.
Then—
a break in the noise.
Too sudden.
A man stepped forward.
Not from Izana's side.
Not from Elias's.
From somewhere in between.
A rival.
Confident.
Too confident.
His eyes landed on Leah.
Stayed there a moment too long.
"…So this is her."
Silence spread instantly.
Not gradual.
Immediate.
Izana didn't move.
But the air around him changed.
Cold.
Still.
Dangerous.
The man smiled slightly.
"…Didn't expect the highest ranking boss to bring—."
He stopped.
Not because he chose to.
Because Dante had shifted.
Subtle.
But enough.
Leah's hand tightened slightly in Izana's.
He felt it.
Immediately.
The man continued anyway.
A mistake.
"…You know, it's rare to see—."
Izana spoke.
Low.
Cutting through everything.
"…Say that again."
Silence.
The man blinked.
"…I was just saying—."
Izana turned slightly.
Just enough.
Not fully facing him.
Didn't need to.
"…You misunderstand your position."
The room went quieter.
Not silent.
But close.
Close enough.
The man's confidence flickered.
Just slightly.
But he recovered.
"…It's just a compliment."
Izana stepped forward half a step.
Leah felt it instantly.
The change.
The shift from calm to something sharper.
Dante stopped moving entirely.
Elias, somewhere in the distance, also stopped.
Like everyone had felt it at once.
Izana's voice lowered further.
"…Leave."
A pause.
The man hesitated.
Bad decision.
"…Or what."
Silence.
Longer this time.
Leah looked up at Izana.
Just slightly.
His expression hadn't changed.
That was the worst part.
Still calm.
Still composed.
But everything underneath it was already gone.
He spoke again.
"…You don't want to find out."
That was it.
No threat.
No warning.
Just truth.
The man stepped back.
Once.
Then again.
Then turned away quickly.
Gone.
Like he had never been there.
Leah let out a slow breath.
Only then realizing she had been holding it.
"…That was—."
"…Finished."
Izana interrupted immediately.
Not harsh.
Just final.
Dante exhaled quietly.
"…That guy's an idiot."
Izana didn't respond.
His hand was still on Leah's.
Still steady.
But not relaxed anymore.
Leah shifted slightly again.
The feeling was back.
Worse now.
Not from the man.
From somewhere else.
She turned her head again.
Slower this time.
Across the hall.
A figure stood still.
Not moving.
Not participating.
Just watching.
Not Izana.
Her.
Leah felt it instantly.
Her breath caught slightly.
"…Iz."
He didn't look at her first.
He followed her gaze.
Immediately.
And the air changed again.
Sharper.
Colder.
Dangerous in a different way now.
Dante noticed instantly.
"…You see him?"
Izana didn't answer.
Didn't need to.
The figure didn't move.
Didn't react.
Just watched.
Leah swallowed slightly.
"…Who is that?"
Silence.
Longer this time.
Izana's grip tightened once.
Controlled.
Final.
"…No one important."
But his eyes said otherwise.
Because he was already watching him back.
The banquet continued like nothing had happened.
But nothing felt the same anymore.
Leah stayed close to Izana.
Closer than before.
His hand didn't leave hers.
Dante didn't stop scanning the room.
And somewhere in the distance—
Elias finally spoke to someone else.
Low.
Controlled.
"…It's starting."
And Izana heard it too.
Without even being near him.
Because something had already shifted.
And it wasn't finished yet.