After seeing Jul approach the side where the younger generation had gathered, a certain person by the name of Merak quietly put a plan into motion.
It was simple.
Expose Jul's true nature.
If he could provoke him into losing control in front of everyone, then whatever goodwill the chairman held toward him would begin to crumble.
After all, this was Jul's welcome party.
His indifference toward Krone had already irritated Merak. To him, Jul was nothing more than an outsider who had suddenly appeared after fifteen years and expected to be treated like family.
Left to him, Jul was no different from the collateral members of the Mercer family.
What finally snapped his last shred of patience was seeing Jul stop before Jamie—the youngest among them—and extend a hand for a handshake.
A nobody.
Someone who had yet to contribute anything to the family. Yet he was the only cousin Jul willingly acknowledged.
Merak's eyes darkened.
'Then I'll make sure everyone sees who you really are.'
He smiled brightly and approached Jul.
On getting there, he feigned a stumble and crashed into a trolley of food placed beside the banquet table.
Several plates filled with food, pastries, and drinks shot into the air before flying directly toward Jul.
"Hmm?"
Jul noticed immediately.
His instincts reacted, but his body didn't. His injuries slowed him just enough that he couldn't move in time.
Splat!
Sauce, soup, and shattered desserts splashed across his hospital clothes. Several plates shattered loudly against the marble floor.
The commotion instantly drew everyone's attention.
"Ah!"
Jada hurriedly pulled the wheelchair away from the mess.
"Oh..."
Merak wore an apologetic smile as he stepped forward.
"I'm sorry."
His tone carried no sincerity whatsoever.
"It was a mistake."
As he spoke, he deliberately planted his polished shoe on Jul's cast-covered leg.
Then, with infuriating familiarity, he reached out and lightly brushed the side of Jul's face clean with his fingers.
"I hope you understand."
Jada's expression darkened. "It was clearly an accident."
She forced herself to remain composed. "Now please step back."
She signaled for a servant.
"Bring a towel."
The hall fell deathly silent.
The younger generation stopped talking, and the older generation had already turned their attention toward them.
Even Katelyn, Vincent, Lia, and Malik paused halfway through their meal.
"Oh no..."
Katelyn instinctively took a step forward.
"Ma'am." Vincent gently stopped her. "The house rules."
Though his gaze never left Jul.
"Family matters must be settled by family."
Katelyn bit her lip. She hated those rules. Especially when it concerned one of her children.
But she also knew Vincent was right.
Around the banquet table, Jamie had quietly withdrawn the hand he had been about to shake and stepped back before the plates were thrown.
His calm eyes now simply observed.
Merak ignored Jada completely. Instead, he smiled and extended his hand toward Jul.
"Right. I am late in my introductions. I am Merak. Nice to finally meet you, cousin."
A faint snicker escaped somewhere nearby.
Krone.
She had covered her lips with her fan, yet the amusement in her eyes was impossible to hide.
For a brief moment...
Everything around Jul became strangely quiet.
He looked at the hand before him. Then at the food staining his clothes.
Then at the shoe pressing against his injured leg.
Finally...
His eyes settled on Merak.
"I see..."
Jul slowly pushed against the armrests. Ignoring the pain shooting through his body, he stood.
"Jul..." Jada immediately reached out.
"Please. Let it go." Her voice sounded almost pleading. However, it was ignored.
Merak instinctively took a small step backward, not out of fear but out of surprise.
He hadn't expected Jul to stand, and he didn't expect him to be as tall as he was.
The two now faced one another, or rather one looked down on the other.
Still, it didn't seem to stop Merak. He still smiled. Whereas Jul's expression was devoid of anything. No emotion or thought was displayed on it.
Then without warning—
Smack!
The sound echoed sharply throughout the enormous living room as Merak's head snapped violently to one side.
His sunglasses flew from his face before skidding across the polished floor.
Complete silence followed.
Merak remained frozen as, for a moment, his cheeks burned, and his ears rang.
Slowly...
Very slowly...
He raised a trembling hand and touched the swelling imprint on his face, disbelief written all over his face.
"Y..."
His voice quivered.
"You...You slapped me..."
Jul looked at him with the same indifferent expression and then raised his hand again.
Smack!
Another slap.
Merak stumbled backwards, his cheeks now reddish. He stared, wide-eyed, at Jul.
The silence became suffocating. No one had expected that.
Not because of the slap itself...
But because of what it represented.
Within families like the Mercers, where reputations were everything, a slap wasn't merely violence.
It was public humiliation. However, to then be slapped twice?
Libra subconsciously swallowed. Krone's fan stopped moving altogether.
Baron raised an eyebrow in genuine surprise, despite the victim being his brother.
Jamie continued watching Jul quietly, his eyes reflecting curiosity more than shock.
Among the older generation, the reactions were far more restrained.
Eddard narrowed his eyes, though there was no sign of anger. It was assessment.
His gaze shifted once toward Merak's foot, then toward Jul's stained clothes and silently reconstructed everything that had happened.
Mer adjusted the glass of water in her hand. Her attention lingered on Jul's posture instead.
'His injuries should still prevent movements like that…how?'.
Dune sighed softly.
"Duke..."
She whispered.
"...don't step in. You know very well who started this."
"Hmph!" Duke merely grunted. His expression had already darkened beyond recognition. Who here wasn't aware that he was Merak's father? This action was indirectly an insult to him.
Across the room, Vincent smiled almost imperceptibly.
'Interesting...He endured until the humiliation became deliberate.Then answered with exactly enough force. Basically, he is not one to sit and take nonsense.'
Beside him, Katelyn remained rooted to the spot, her heart pounding violently.
She had never seen this side of her son before. A part of her knew that her son had a violent nature. His state in the hospital said it all. However, she wasn't aware of his ability to remain restrained.
Lia and Malik exchanged frightened glances.
The atmosphere had completely changed.
Only moments ago this had been a welcome banquet.
Now...it felt like a courtroom awaiting judgment.
Merak finally found his voice.
"You..." His face twisted with humiliation.
"You dare—"
Then, a calm yet authoritative voice cut through the room like a blade.
"What is the meaning of this?"
Every head instinctively turned at the sound of the voice.
Rose Mercer stood at the entrance.