10:00 AM (One week after Rion's confession)
High Commissioner Den's Office – Police Headquarters
Ironport is enjoying the most peaceful "lull" in a decade. Street crime has plummeted, and Sinclair's reputation as the "Hero of the City" is at its peak. However, within this wood-paneled room, a bizarre and dangerous new tension is brewing.
Sinclair sat across from Den, dressed in his finest ceremonial uniform. He appeared nervous, a rare sight for a man usually defined by his arrogance.
Sinclair's Bold Move
"High Commissioner Den," Sinclair began, his voice trembling slightly. "Thanks to your help and that of your daughter, Ren, this city has finally returned to the right hands. I feel that this success is the start of a new era."
Den sipped his coffee, his expression remaining flat. "Get straight to the point, Sinclair. I don't have time for political pleasantries this morning."
Sinclair took a deep breath. "I would like to officially ask for your permission... to propose to Miss Ren. I believe that a union between the police force and your family would create an unbreakable foundation for Ironport. I want to make her my wife."
Silence. A silence so thick that the ticking of the wall clock sounded like cannon fire.
Shockwaves Behind the Scenes
Unknown to Sinclair, the conversation was being broadcast live via an encrypted audio system to Sector 7 Headquarters, where Rion and Ren were monitoring routine operations.
Ren, who was holding a crystal glass of orange juice, froze. The glass nearly slipped from her fingers. Her usually unreadable face now showed a combination of pure disgust and absolute shock. "He... he said what?"
On the other side of the monitor desk, Rion slowly stood up. The hand holding his tablet cracked the screen from the sheer force of his grip. His eyes, usually cold, now burned with a murderous rage that no other member of Nero Familia had ever seen.
"Sinclair just signed his own death warrant," Rion hissed, his voice low but lethal.
Den's Unexpected Reaction
Back at the police office, Den slowly set down his coffee cup. He wasn't angry; instead, he laughed—a short, dry laugh that sounded like cracking bone.
"You want to marry my daughter, Sinclair?" Den asked, his eyes piercing the man across from him. "A police officer barely recovered from a mental breakdown wants to woo the woman who pulled him out of the mud?"
"I am serious, sir," Sinclair insisted, unaware of how thin the ice beneath his feet had become. "I will give her everything. Status, security, and power."
Den stood up and walked to the window, turning his back on Sinclair. He was actually restraining himself from exploding. "I will discuss this with Ren. But my advice, Sinclair... do not let your personal ambitions cloud your vision. Focus on your job before you lose everything again."
Storm at the Base
Once Sinclair left the office with soaring hopes, Ren immediately cut the audio feed. She turned to Rion, who was already packing his throwing knives into a tactical bag.
"Rion, don't you dare go over there right now," Ren commanded, though she was still visibly shaken herself.
"He touched what belongs to me, Ren," Rion replied without looking back. "He shouldn't even have that thought in his dreams."
"This is part of the plan to make him our puppet, remember?" Ren tried to use logic, despite her trembling voice. "If you kill him now for a ridiculous reason like a proposal, all our hard work is destroyed!"
Rion stopped, turned, and looked at Ren with a gaze that was deeply wounded yet intensely possessive. "You told me on that balcony that love is a weakness. But for me, seeing another man ask for you is the only thing that could make me lose control completely. I don't care about the plan if it involves you in that man's arms."
That night, the "peaceful lull" of Ironport might have felt real to the civilians, but within the core of Nero Familia, an emotional civil war had just begun.