Chapter 5 I will kill all the Cross family

"Mrs. Cross's blindness must be a serious condition," Landon said as he looked around the table. "Because only someone truly blind could look at Luther Cross and believe he was more capable than Ethan."

The words struck the room like a hammer.

Luther rose from his chair so suddenly it nearly toppled over. The smile on his face vanished, replaced by an expression that made several people immediately lower their heads. Around the hall, guests and family members exchanged stunned looks. Nobody had expected a stranger to walk into the Cross Estate and compare Luther to Ethan in front of everyone.

Whispers quickly spread through the room.

"Did he just mention Ethan?"

"Who is this man?"

"Has he gone insane?"

"He actually said that in front of the young master."

"Damn it!"

Cyrus slammed his palm against the table and shot to his feet.

"Who the hell do you think you are? Do you have a death wish?"

Landon didn't even spare him a glance. His eyes remained fixed on Luther.

That only made Cyrus angrier.

Taking another step forward, Landon spoke calmly.

"Since everyone here seems so eager to avoid the topic, let me ask directly. Luther, can you tell me exactly how Ethan died?"

The hall fell silent once more. Several family members shifted uncomfortably in their seats while others avoided eye contact altogether. No one seemed willing to answer.

Then Cyrus laughed.

It was a harsh, mocking sound.

"I knew it. You're just another fool looking for trouble."

He walked around the table until he stood only a few feet from Landon.

"Whatever happened to Ethan has absolutely nothing to do with you. You're standing inside the most powerful family estate in the country, yet you're talking about a dead man as if he matters."

His gaze swept across the room before settling on Luther.

"Look around carefully. This family only has one true young master, and that's Luther."

He pointed proudly toward him.

"As for Ethan, he was a disappointment from the day he was born. Nobody here misses him. Nobody here needs him. If you ask me, this family is better off without him."

A few people looked uncomfortable. Some lowered their heads, but no one interrupted.

Mistaking their silence for support, Cyrus became even bolder.

"If you have any sense at all, you'll get on your knees right now and beg for forgiveness. Apologize to Luther. Apologize to Sophia. Then maybe they'll be generous enough to let you crawl out of here alive."

He laughed and took another step forward.

"What happened? Have you finally realized how stupid you sound?"

Only then did Landon look at him.

Just once.

The smile on Cyrus's face immediately stiffened. Something in those eyes made him uneasy. For a brief moment, he even considered stepping back.

Then pride took over.

"What?" he snapped. "Why are you staring at me like that?"

Landon's expression remained calm.

"You've talked enough."

Cyrus frowned.

"What did you say?"

The next moment, Landon moved.

No one saw exactly what happened. One moment Cyrus was standing there. The next, he let out a strangled gasp.

His eyes widened.

His body froze.

Slowly, he lowered his head.

Blood spread across the front of his clothes.

The color drained from his face.

"You..."

His voice trembled.

"You..."

His legs gave out beneath him.

He crashed onto the marble floor.

The banquet hall erupted.

Women screamed. Guests jumped to their feet. Servants dropped trays. People stumbled backward as blood spread across the polished marble.

Above all the chaos came Sophia's voice.

"Cyrus!"

She rushed forward and dropped to her knees beside him. Her hands trembled as she tried to stop the bleeding.

"Cyrus! Stay awake! Look at me!"

The young man could barely speak. His lips moved, but no words came out.

The entire room had descended into panic. Guests shouted over one another, servants rushed about in confusion, and several people scrambled away from the spreading blood.

Then Landon's voice cut through the noise.

"Enough."

The single word echoed across the hall.

Somehow, it carried more authority than all the shouting combined. The screaming gradually died down, the panic subsided, and one by one, people turned toward him.

Carter walked forward without the slightest concern and handed him a neatly folded handkerchief. Landon accepted it and calmly wiped the blood from his hand.

The simple action sent chills through the room.

Nobody could understand how he remained so calm.

Sophia looked up at him, tears shining in her eyes.

"Why?"

Her voice cracked.

"Why would you do this?"

Landon remained completely unfazed by the accusation. He looked at her for a moment before speaking in a calm voice that somehow carried throughout the entire banquet hall.

"There are certain people in this world whose names should never be dragged through the mud. Your brother chose to ignore that rule, and what happened to him afterward was the result of his own choices."

Sophia stared at him as though she couldn't believe what she had just heard.

Around the hall, the silence grew heavier. Even those who had been whispering moments earlier now watched without daring to interrupt.

Luther could no longer contain himself.

"Who the hell are you?"

He stepped forward, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

"You've walked into my family's home, injured people under my roof, insulted my family, and now you're questioning me as if I owe you answers. Who exactly do you think you are?"

Landon let out a small sigh.

"I really dislike repeating myself."

His gaze remained fixed on Luther.

"Since nobody seems interested in answering a simple question, I'll ask again."

He paused.

"How did Ethan Cross die?"

The hall immediately fell silent once more.

The question seemed to strike a nerve with everyone present. Several members of the Cross family exchanged uneasy looks while others lowered their heads and avoided eye contact altogether. The reaction did not escape Landon's notice.

Luther opened his mouth, clearly prepared to respond, but before he could say a word, another voice echoed through the room.

"What is going on here?"

The voice wasn't loud, yet it immediately commanded everyone's attention.

"Who is responsible for creating such a disturbance inside this house?"

Every head turned toward the entrance.

Guests and servants quickly stepped aside, creating a path through the crowd.

"The matriarch."

Someone whispered nervously.

"Old Madam Cross has arrived."

The atmosphere changed instantly.

Luther's anger vanished as though it had never existed. He immediately walked toward the elderly woman entering the banquet hall.

"Grandmother."

For the first time that evening, his voice carried genuine respect.

He carefully escorted her toward the seat positioned at the head of the table.

The old woman didn't speak immediately. Instead, she surveyed the scene with cold, calculating eyes. The blood on the floor, the injured guests, the frightened faces, and the body lying nearby—nothing escaped her notice.

"Who did this?"

The question was simple.

Yet nobody rushed to answer.

Draped in emerald silk and adorned with jewelry that reflected generations of wealth, she looked every bit like the ruler of an empire. Age had added wrinkles to her face, but it hadn't diminished her authority. One glance from her was enough to make grown men lower their heads.

Her gaze shifted to Luther.

"Explain."

For the first time that evening, Luther appeared uncertain. He glanced toward Landon, then toward the blood on the floor, before looking back at his grandmother.

His lips parted.

No words came out.

The old woman's expression darkened.

Then she turned her attention elsewhere.

This time, her eyes settled on Landon.

The entire hall seemed to hold its breath.

"You."

Her voice carried a sharp edge.

"Was all of this your doing?"

Landon met her gaze directly.

"Yes."

The straightforward answer triggered another wave of whispers.

The old woman's eyes narrowed.

"And who are you?"

"My name is Landon Hayes."

The old woman repeated the name quietly.

"Landon Hayes."

A brief silence followed.

Then something changed in her expression.

Recognition.

"You are Landon Hayes?" she asked again. "The adopted son of House Sterling?"

The moment those words left her mouth, the hall erupted with whispers.

"So it's really him."

"The adopted son of the Sterling family."

"I thought he disappeared years ago."

"Nobody has seen him in nearly a decade."

"How dare he return and create trouble here?"

The insults continued flying across the hall. Some called Landon arrogant. Others called him a fool. A few even laughed openly, convinced he had already dug his own grave the moment he stepped into the Cross Estate.

Landon heard every word and simply let them talk.

People always became fearless when they believed power stood behind them.

The old matriarch's face darkened as she stared at him. Her authority had ruled this family for decades, and no one had ever dared challenge her publicly, much less threaten her in her own home.

"You had better give me a reason, Landon Hayes," she said, raising her chin slightly. "A reason why I shouldn't erase House Sterling from this nation after the humiliation you've brought upon my family today."

Silence swept through the hall.

Some looked at Landon with pity. Others looked at him with excitement. Everyone wanted to see how long his courage would last.

Luther folded his arms and smirked. In his eyes, the old woman had already cornered him. No matter what Landon said next, he had lost.

Instead of retreating, Landon stepped forward.

Several bodyguards immediately tensed, but Carter remained completely relaxed, watching from behind with a faint smile.

Landon stopped before the matriarch and met her gaze.

"Perfect," he said. "Then let's make it mutual, Madam Cross."

The confidence in his voice instantly erased Luther's smile.

Uneasy glances spread among the guests. Something about the way Landon spoke made them uncomfortable. He wasn't acting like a man standing before one of the most powerful families in the country.

He was acting like a judge standing before the accused.

Landon slowly swept his gaze across the room.

"Because if you're asking me for a reason not to destroy House Sterling, then I have a question of my own."

The hall became deathly quiet.

Landon pointed toward the family seated around the table.

"Ethan Cross was born into this family. He called that man brother."

His finger shifted toward Luther before moving to the old matriarch.

"He called you grandmother."

A cold edge entered his voice.

"Yet since I walked through those doors, all I've seen is a family pretending he never existed."

Several people lowered their heads. Others looked away.

Not one person spoke.

Landon took another step forward.

"If you cannot explain Ethan Cross's death... if you cannot tell me why his body was found under suspicious circumstances... if you cannot explain why every person in this room becomes nervous whenever his name is mentioned..."

His gaze swept across the hall.

"Then perhaps the real question isn't why I came here."

The silence deepened.

"Perhaps the real question is what all of you are trying so desperately to hide."

The silence became suffocating.

Luther's jaw tightened while Sophia's face turned pale. Around the table, several older family members shifted uneasily in their seats, but no one spoke.

Landon's eyes swept across the hall.

"Then the Cross family has no reason to continue existing either."