Chapter 186: A Royal Family Dinner
{Third Person}
By the evening of the next day, the mages had already departed from the Werewolf Kingdom.
With their departure, the palace seemed to settle into a quieter rhythm, and perhaps because the recent tension had finally eased, King Sebastian decided to host a private family banquet in his own palace quarters.
Unlike the grand banquets held in the main hall, this dinner was strictly for the royal family and their spouses. It was meant to be intimate, relaxed, and above all, a celebration that Alexander had recovered.
Fortunately for Queen Lysandra, one person was absent.
The heavily pregnant concubine remained confined to her chambers under strict orders from the royal physicians and therefore could not attend.
To Lysandra, that was one less annoyance to tolerate.
By the time everyone had gathered, the dining hall in the King’s palace was filled with an unusual warmth.
Zarek arrived with Julia. Rowan came with Yara. Princess Elowen was also present.
Alexander and Amara arrived together.
King Sebastian appeared to be in especially good spirits. The relief of seeing Alexander sitting there, alive and healthy enough to attend dinner, visibly lightened his mood. Throughout the evening, he wore an ease that had been absent from him for days.
As expected, Queen Lysandra played the role of the gracious queen perfectly.
Anyone watching from the outside would have thought her warm, elegant, and deeply caring.
She began making polite conversation with her daughters-in-law, one after the other, asking how each had fared at the recent banquet and whether the chaos from that night had unsettled them.
Julia answered first, wearing her usual polite smile. Yara followed with a graceful and equally diplomatic response.
Meanwhile, Amara quietly focused on her meal. She ate calmly, saying nothing. But most importantly, she refused to make eye contact with the Queen.
Lysandra noticed. Of course she did. Her fingers tightened almost imperceptibly around her cutlery, but she quickly suppressed the irritation rising inside her.
That girl, even now. Still daring to ignore her.
Lysandra swallowed her anger and maintained her pleasant expression. Then she shifted her attention directly to Amara.
"Amara."
Her voice was smooth and controlled. And that immediately drew everyone’s attention. Amara slowly lifted her gaze.
With a smile on her lips, Lysandra inquired, "How is your health?"
The question sounded caring, concerned and almost motherly.
Amara held the Queen’s gaze for a brief moment before replying. "I am in perfect health, Your Majesty." Her tone was polite, calm and measured.
Then she added, "Thank you for your concern."
Her response was flawless. Respectful enough to leave no room for criticism, yet detached enough to make Lysandra feel strangely irritated.
The Queen smiled, but inwardly, her temper worsened. Unfortunately for her, no matter how pissed she was, she couldn’t vent it.
As dinner continued, conversation rose and fell around the table. Unfortunately for Alexander, one constant remained.
Lysandra’s voice.
He heard it over and over again. At some point, he could no longer focus on his food. A faint irritation began settling over him.
He truly could not understand why the Queen enjoyed meaningless conversation so much during meals.
Was there truly something wrong with eating in silence? Did every dining experience require endless small talk?
The more he listened, the less appetite he had.
Eventually, Rowan spoke. As the good and attentive brother, he turned toward Alexander with a polite expression.
"Your Highness, how is your health now?"
Alexander slowly shifted his gaze toward Rowan, and their eyes met. Then he gave his answer. "Fine."
Just one, simple, flat word.
Rowan gave a small nod and did not press further.
On the other side, Zarek had no intention of speaking to Alexander at all. In fact, he had been avoiding direct interaction the entire evening. However, after accidentally meeting their father’s gaze, he immediately understood the silent expectation behind it.
So he forced a smile and even let out a light laugh. Then, turning toward Alexander, he said, "We are all glad the storm has passed and that you are in good health now."
Alexander stared at him, then released a deep sigh. He said nothing at all, and that was enough to make Zarek feel uncomfortable.
Meanwhile, Julia had been quietly stealing glances at Alexander throughout dinner. Her actions were subtle, but not subtle enough. Amara had already caught her twice.
By now, Amara found it impossible not to notice. Julia clearly had something on her mind.
Eventually, Julia chose an opportunity to speak. She looked toward Alexander and said softly, "Your Highness, I am glad your health has been restored."
The entire table seemed to pause for a moment.
Alexander did not even look at her. He ignored her completely as if she had never spoken. If she existed at the same table, he was not aware of it.
The silence that followed felt almost brutal.
Julia’s expression stiffened slightly. Before the awkwardness could linger too long, Alexander calmly turned toward King Sebastian.
"Father."
Sebastian immediately looked at him, lifting a brow.
Alexander’s expression remained unreadable. "Do you have time after dinner? There is something important I need to inform you about."
A slight seriousness entered Sebastian’s expression. Still, he nodded. "Of course."
Then, almost immediately, his fatherly concern returned. "In the meantime, you should eat more first."
Then his gaze dropped to Alexander’s plate. "You lost weight." His tone softened. "Put some of it back."
Alexander glanced at his plate. There was still food there, but the problem was that he had already lost interest in eating.
Without saying a word, he reached for his plate. Then, to everyone’s surprise, he calmly transferred the remaining food onto Amara’s plate.
The movement was so natural that for a second, no one reacted. Then silence spread across the dining hall.
Several pairs of eyes turned toward them.
Amara herself froze. She stared down at the extra food now sitting on her plate, then slowly looked at Alexander.
Her eyes were full of confusion.
Alexander met her gaze calmly. "Eat some more." That was all he said.
Amara blinked. Her confusion deepened. What was this? Why would he suddenly do this? And in front of everyone?
The silence around the table made everything feel even more awkward. She could feel everyone watching.
King Sebastian looked mildly surprised while Elowen looked delighted.
Though Barron was absent, Amara could already imagine the kind of expression he would have worn if he were here.
Even Lysandra’s expression shifted slightly.
Under the weight of so many watching eyes, Amara had no choice. She lowered her gaze and quietly said, "Thank you, Your Highness."
Then she picked up her cutlery again.
Outwardly, she appeared composed and respectful, but inwardly, her thoughts were in complete chaos.
She truly wanted to know what exactly had inspired Alexander to force her to eat his leftover food in front of the entire royal family.