"Young Master, wake up. It's already nine."
Kai groaned and burrowed deeper into the silk sheets. "No, Aunt Sofia. Stop disturbing me. Yesterday Father dragged me through hell until three in the morning. That old bastard is going to squeeze me dry."
The personal maid let out a long-suffering sigh. "Young Master, I'm not here to drag you to the office."
Kai cracked one eye open through the blanket, grinning lazily. "Then what grand mission does my dear aunt have for me this fine morning?"
Sofia's expression remained stone-cold. "Today is the day of your engagement to Miss Mira of the Yi family."
Kai's smirk froze.
Miss Mira… twenty-five years old. The illegitimate daughter the Yi family never bothered to give a proper surname. Funny — I'm an illegitimate son of the Qi family myself. A bitter laugh almost escaped him. Two discarded pawns being traded like cheap stock for some business merger. And I'm supposed to marry a complete stranger I know nothing about.
His stomach twisted. Just the thought of standing in front of a woman he had never met made his blood run cold.
---
Sofia watched the bitter twist on Kai's face and frowned. "What? Your family has already arranged a marriage with a fine young lady, and instead of being grateful, you're grumbling like this? What more do you want?"
She shrugged, crossing her arms under her chest. The motion made her maid uniform strain slightly — nothing seductive, just the everyday reality of a woman who had practically raised him. "Or… do you actually prefer an old hag like me? Forty years old, wrinkles starting to show. Want me to be your bride instead?"
Kai's eyes shot wide open. A surge of ridiculous energy flooded his veins, as if someone had injected pure chicken blood straight into his heart.
In one dramatic motion he hurled the blankets aside, leaped onto the bed like a knight declaring his love, dropped to one knee on the mattress, and pressed a hand to his chest with theatrical sincerity.
"Yes! Yes, Princess Sofia! It would be my greatest honor to marry you!"
Sofia's mouth twitched. Once. Twice. Then she pinched the bridge of her nose, fighting the laugh that threatened to break her professional mask.
Idiot.
Cut.
Kai stood in front of the bathroom mirror, toothbrush in hand, still grinning like a lunatic at his own stupidity.
Heh. At least I can joke my way out of—
He spat.
Two teeth clinked against the porcelain sink.
Kai froze. His reflection stared back with two perfect gaps in the upper row. He poked the empty spots with his tongue, eyes slowly widening in genuine horror.
"…What the actual fuck?"
---
Kai stepped out of the bathroom, tongue still probing the two fresh gaps in his smile. He shook his head, muttering, "Must've brushed too hard… whatever."
He grabbed the first suit hanging in his walk-in closet — nothing fancy, just a charcoal slim-fit he'd worn a dozen times. In front of the full-length mirror he tried knotting the tie, fumbled it twice, and finally gave up with a sigh. The silk landed in a crumpled heap on the floor.
Doesn't matter anyway. Not like I'm trying to impress anyone today.
He reached for the door handle when his phone buzzed in his pocket. Unknown number. He frowned, thumb sliding across the screen.
A soft, melodious voice filled his ear — warm, teasing, and painfully familiar.
"Yo, Kai~ How's my little bro doing? This is your big sister from college. Remember me? Liora."
Kai froze. His heart slammed against his ribs like a war drum. The phone nearly slipped from his suddenly sweaty palm.
Liora.
The senior he had worshipped for three years. The girl whose laugh could make his entire day brighter. The one who got married right after graduation and vanished into the Northern Empire with her husband. Five whole years of radio silence… and now she was calling him on the day he was supposed to get engaged to a stranger.
His throat went dry.
---
Meanwhile, across the city, Mira sat rigid in the back of the sleek black sedan as it glided toward the Grand Imperial Function Hall. Her jaw was clenched so tightly that the faint grind of her teeth echoed inside the quiet cabin like a warning.
The elderly driver glanced at her through the rearview mirror and sighed. "Miss Mira… please stop making that noise."
She blinked, yanked out of her spiral, and frowned. "What noise?"
The old man shook his head wearily. "Forget it."
Mira raised one elegant eyebrow. Was I really that loud? She forced her teeth apart and exhaled slowly, turning her gaze to the blurred city lights outside.
Fifteen years.
For fifteen long years she had poured every drop of her blood, sweat, and pride into the Yi family. She had studied until her eyes burned, taken every humiliating task without complaint, and smiled through every whispered insult — all for the desperate hope that one day they would finally look at her and say, "You belong to us."
In the end, this was her reward.
A cold, emotionless engagement to a complete stranger. A business transaction wrapped in silk and diamonds. Nothing more than two illegitimate children being traded like chess pieces so the Qi and Yi families could sign another profitable contract.
Her nails dug into the leather seat until her knuckles turned white.
Kai Qi… She didn't even know what he looked like. Didn't care. All she knew was that today she would smile, shake hands, and sign her future away.
And tomorrow… she would start counting the days until she could walk away.