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A yellow-and-green taxi pulled up in front of the towering building known as the Keystone Gate.
Asagi Aiba stepped out, scowling the moment she paid the expensive fare. She glanced around quickly, and the instant her eyes landed on her father, her face darkened. Her footsteps were sharp and full of irritation as she stormed over.
"You called me here—what for?"
Her blunt tone and familiar voice caught her father, Sensai Aiba, completely off guard. Staring at the lively, pretty girl in front of him, he blinked in confusion and said awkwardly. "Uh… sorry, miss, I think you've got the wrong person."
Asagi froze for a beat—then let out a sharp, incredulous laugh.
"Senator Aiba, what the hell did you eat this morning? Did it mess with your brain? You seriously don't recognize your own daughter?"
Now it was Sensai's turn to freeze, his expression almost identical to hers from a moment earlier.
He stared, wide-eyed, up and down at the girl before him—long golden hair, trendy clothes, cheerful energy practically radiating off her.
This… is my daughter?
The same daughter who always had her hair in a single ponytail, wore glasses around the clock, locked herself up at home, avoided people, and had no friends?
Sensai fell silent for a long moment, then cautiously asked. "You… got a boyfriend?"
It had to be that. That's the only thing that could explain this dramatic transformation. Now that he thought about it, her mom was like this too—she just suddenly blossomed into someone so dazzling it nearly gave him a complex.
"What's his background? Is he an only child? Would he be okay with marrying into our family? I mean, it's a bit early, but I should probably start grooming someone to take over my political faction—"
Asagi stared at him, completely dumbfounded.
And then her face went red with rage.
"Do you even hear yourself right now?!"
She grabbed the front of his suit jacket, practically yelling.
"Mom's still lying in a hospital bed, and this is what you want to talk about?!"
Sensai's face fell, and he nodded after a pause. "You're right. This isn't the time for that."
"...Huh?"
Asagi blinked in surprise, slowly letting go of his clothes.
She thought her stiff-headed dad had finally come to his senses.
But then he looked down and said in a low voice:
"Lady Minamiya, Asagi has arrived. We're ready to request an audience with His Majesty."
"...Huh?"
Asagi blinked again, confused—then noticed the small girl in a gothic black dress standing behind her father.
"Wait—Natsuki-chan?!"
Whack!
A fan came down hard on her forehead, followed by an annoyed voice. "I told you not to add 'chan' to your teacher's name. How many times do I have to say it before it sticks?"
"Ow!" Asagi clutched her head, eyes watering as she looked at Natsuki with a mix of pain and betrayal.
'Jeez… Natsuki-chan's in a bad mood today. She usually just gives me a verbal warning... Did I piss her off somehow? But she seemed fine the other night when we bumped into each other…'
Seemingly in a better mood after swatting her student, Natsuki said lightly. "Alright, you two—follow me before that guy upstairs gets bored and starts testing out some dangerous experiment."
Still confused, Asagi followed behind the two of them as they passed through the heavily guarded entrance of the Gate of Keystone.
Silence fell between them as they walked, and after a while, Asagi said with a weird look on her face:
"Wait, don't tell me you weren't talking about visiting Mom just now?"
Sensai hesitated for a moment, then said, almost reluctantly:
"Right now… this is more important."
"...What?"
Asagi looked up at him, her expression growing darker.
"So what, you're saying Mom—the woman you haven't seen once in two years—doesn't matter?"
'Here it comes…' Sensai sighed inwardly. His voice lowered with guilt. "I'm sorry. But this really is important."
"And what could possibly be more important than your wife?" Asagi's tone was now laced with biting sarcasm. "Care to explain, Senator Aiba?"
He didn't snap back. He knew full well this wasn't just about today. His daughter had always resented how he practically abandoned his wife during her long illness. She had every right to be angry.
Taking a deep breath to suppress his guilt, he said quietly. "An audience with the Fourth Primogenitor."
"...What?"
Asagi froze. Her expression shifted immediately. "Isn't he just a legend?"
"You haven't watched the news?" Sensai asked, clearly surprised. "This morning's broadcast announced it—Itogami Island has declared independence. It's officially under the rule of the Fourth Primogenitor."
"I've been in the hospital with Mom since early morning!" Asagi snapped. "You think I had time to watch the damn news? I haven't even seen you in seven days, remember?!"
Though her words were harsh, they hit Sensai in the chest.
It had already been a week since he last saw her.
"Asagi… please don't blame me."
"...What?"
She gave him a sideways glance, voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Why would I blame you, huh?"
She thought he was still talking about Mom. But Sensai was focused entirely on the Fourth Primogenitor.
"He asked to see us. Specifically. If we don't go… your mother, your sister—"
He didn't finish the sentence.
Didn't say the word "die."
But Asagi got the message.
She stared at him in disbelief.
"....."
As the silence stretched on, her eyes slowly shifted to Natsuki's back as she led them ahead.
So this Fourth Primogenitor, Natsuki's bringing them to meet…
Asagi couldn't help but picture a certain confident, annoyingly smug young man. Her expression turned… complicated.
If that guy is really the Fourth Primogenitor… this might be good news.
If Ryo Yagami was really the Fourth Primogenitor, then that promise he made—to help cure her mom—wasn't just empty talk.
Her eyes lit up at the thought.
"We're here."
Natsuki stopped in front of a luxurious wooden door and grasped the handle. She glanced back at the father and daughter.
Sensai's face was pale, grim with worry.
Asagi, on the other hand, looked… excited. Almost eager.
Seeing the polar opposite expressions on their faces, Natsuki sighed and opened the door.
Inside, a young man in a sharp black suit stood by the floor-to-ceiling window. Black hair. Black eyes. Striking features.
He turned slightly and smiled.
"Guess this counts as our first meeting, doesn't it… Father-in-law?"
Sensai froze, his stern expression cracking.
...Did he just hallucinate that?!
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