A/N: I do wish you are all still following up in my story. Please keep reading!

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RYOMA'S POV:

I couldn't believe that my father's house that I used to live with and the house that my grandfather lives is way too different. I used to walk around few corners of my house with nothing fancy and expensive but to my grandfather's house, there were too many expensive paintings made by known painters, there were glass chandeliers, glass sculptures and brand new electronics. Also, before I even come inside the mansion, there was a passcode lock. It also annoys me why there were too many maids and servants roaming around the house asking me what I want and after I say what I want, they would bow at me.

Currently, my grandfather is talking to his secretary. He's a middle-aged man named Takanayori Musume. I don't know what they were talking about but I could quickly see that they were talking about me. It's obvious. I heard my name. He even bowed in front of me after we had an eye contact. Suddenly, my grandfather looked straight at my hazel eyes and told me, "Secretary Takanayori will show you your room upstairs. After that, you could look at your closet. Don't be surprised if what you see most are polos, coat and ties and few, expensive, rare clothes. Today, I will officially declare you as my heir in front of my business partners, the board of directors, my subordinates and some known politicians in our country. They are excited to meet you, Ryoma. Get used to this life now, ok? He will guide you to the hall next to our mansion where I organized the party."

I was surprised. I wasn't ready to appear to many people. Most of all, I don't know what I will do at that business party. "Grandpa, I think I'm not ready yet."

"Hm? Saying you're not ready yet? You are ready. It seems to me that your father raised you so that you could bear the responsibility that should have been his. You're not that sociable. You only make contact with people who are truly interested at you and whom you are interested in. You've got skills to provoke your enemies. You don't fear them because you are confident. Most of all, you are not like Atobe Keigo whose mind is so boastful and a very cold one. You're not dense or sensitive in front of your girlfriend." he told me.

When he mentioned Sakuno, I blushed and I quickly put my cap down. "Che. So, where's my room?"

"I like that face. How could she make you blush this much?"

"Hn. Where's my room?" I asked again.

He called Secretary Takanayori and he kindly guided me upstairs. The stairs were sparkly white. It seems the whole mansion's floor are well tiled with white. The stairs were too long and it even curves out. "Ryoma-sama, from now on, you should learn that the highest and well respected authority here is your grandfather."

I faced him and chuckled, "Do you think I don't know that?"

He looked at my eyes, "Good." After that, we stopped in front of a large, wooden, double door with beautiful carvings. He asked me to get in at my new room. I was totally taken aback after seeing my room. It was so large. My old room can fit here three times. I sat on my bed at the far corner and I found out that every metal that I am seeing is made with platinum, silver and bronze. The cabinets are all taller than me. The glass table and the three platinum chairs at the center are definitely brand new and expensive.

The gray curtains at the back of my king sized bed is so thick that the sunlight won't even get in. At the sides of the bed are two smaller cabinets with a flat top. I looked at the left side and noticed that there's a folded laptop.

"Are all these mine?" I asked.

Secretary Takanayori replied to me, "Yes, Ryoma-sama. Your things are already at the cabinet near your own library in front of your bedroom."

"So, the front is just my library?" I asked.

"Hai. In time, you can also use it as your office. I'm leaving now."

"Hai, hai. Doumo Arigatou, Takanayori-san," I told him.

He closed my door and I was left alone to wander more inside my new room. In my room, I found my large cabinet in front of my king-sized bed which is covered with silver cloth and white blanket. I opened it and found expensive Rolex watches, different colors of suits, coats and ties. I thought to myself, "All of these are mine?" I closed it and saw the two trolley bags at its right side. I should unpack soon, right?

My new room is so large that it could fit my old room three times. At the very back is my bed, the front is my personal library where it has a glass table at the center. At the sides are shelves full of books and a laptop below the shelves that were pinned at the wall.

The whole room is also so intricately designed. It isn't so western or eastern. It does balance the two sides of who I am and I liked it.

I sat at my bed and noticed another cabinet. It isn't as large as my cabinet in front of my room. I opened it and knew that it is empty. "So, this is where I put my old clothes," I told myself. I started unpacking my clothes and putting my things inside the cabinet but as I am organizing my clothes and personal things, I started crying.

My life...

It totally went into another phase I cannot turn back anymore!

I heard someone knocking on my door. When I opened it, I was just drying my tears. The person who knocked was my grandfather. "Crying?" he asked me.

I hugged my grandpa and asked him, "Why choose me of all people? Can't a woman be your heir?"

He also hugged me and told me, "Ryoma-kun, you are my son's son. I have chosen Nanjiroh's descendant to keep my corporation and wealth. You need to change to a suit now. Everyone in the hall are waiting for you."

I nodded and after he left, I changed to a white suit. I even put a black tie on my neck. After that, I found Secretary Takanayori outside my room. "The suit looks good on you. From now on, that will be your usual style, Ryoma-sama."

I really feel nervous. What will I do now? Should I tell my grandfather that I will return the golden necklace and tell him to give it to someone more compatible? No.. I can't do that. If I do that, my parents would be disappointed at me. I can't escape now.

Secretary Takanayori guided me at the Hall and when I finally appeared in front of all my Grandpa's associates and some of my relatives whom I still don't know, they all looked at me with enthusiasm and a warm welcome on their eyes except for one.

There was an old man looking at me disgustedly and I wonder who that person is. I walked at the hall happily talking and chatting with everyone. I even found out that Kirihara-san and Tezuka-bucho belong to my family's branches.

Tezuka-bucho fixed his glasses and told me, "My whole family's here. Do you want to meet them, Echizen?"

After a while, a young-looking woman went beside Tezuka-bucho and looked at me. She has blue eyes like him. Bucho smiled and introduced her to me, "Ryoma, this is my mother, Tezuka Ayana."

"Have you met your grandmother? She's currently talking to my husband, Tezuka Kuniharu. He looks very much like your bucho except that he doesn't have glasses and he dyed his hair black."

"It would be an honor," I told them but suddenly, I saw my cousin who's wearing a pretty pink dress outside the hall by the transparent window. He's with Ryoga-niisan.

"Can you wait for a while?" I asked them.

"Uh-huh," she smiled at me.

I was already running outside the hall and I was about to get outside when Kirihara Akaya grabbed me harshly inside and guarded the glass double door. "You can't go. Even you are related by blood with President Echizen Jiroh, there are things you don't know yet. You can't go. Haven't you seen that Nanako's already doing her job?"

"Doiuo iminano? Ryoga's my brother!" I told him. "Are you all saying he's forbidden to get inside my party?"

He smirked his green eyes at me, "He's an adopted child. Anyone who's not bound by blood is a disgrace in our clan!"

"That's a lie!" I screamed. After a while, my grandfather held my shoulders and told me, "It's a lie, yes. He's not disowned just because of that. He rebelled once and put your life in danger before, right? He joined with a man who loves to gamble before and unfortunately, you were one of the victims. That's the real reason, Ryoma," I was so surprised. His eyes fixed on Akaya and told him, "Don't tell him useless things, Akaya but thank you for stopping him."

He bowed at us and left. I was confused at what my grandpa has said. Not long after, we were already at the middle and he introduced me as an heir to all of them.

If only the party isn't a surprise welcome party I could have had my friends flocking the hall, too.

"Hey, how's Ryuzaki Sumire's son, anyway, Jiroh-san?" Kuniharu-san asked my grandpa.

That made me stare at them while talking with Aunt Mayuri. I half-heartedly talk to her while she's asking about my dad and if he's still as pervert as ever. "I wonder how beautiful and elegant Takeuchi Rinko fell for him? Hey, he didn't pass that to.you, right?" she asked me.

"Hn. That can't be, Aunt Mayuri. I'm more of my mother but oyaji passed me his love for Tennis," I told him.

Akaya passed by us again and stared at me, "Still as cold as ever, eh, Ryoma-kun?"

"Hn, leave me alone, Akaya," I asked him but he doesn't want, too.

"What's your problem?" I glowered at him.

"Ooohhh Ryoma-sama... you really are uptight this night. What if I tell you Ryuzaki Sakuno is here with her mother?" he told me. I blushed so quick and he tapped my back harshly.

"That hurts, baka!" I tried stopping him but Atobe Keigo held my wrists quickly.

I pulled my arm away from him. "What do you want?" I asked.

"Your family is choosing whose family is better. Is it Atobe Zaibatsu or Ryuzaki Enterprises. I wonder whom you'll marry but of course, the Atobes always get what they want. Sakuno would soon give up on you."

"My grandpa knows our relationship and he knows we love each other, MONKEY KING!" I screamed at him.

"Hn... just say what you want but ore-sama will get the man my sister wants to marry!" his eyes are glittering and it annoys me.

Suddenly, a familiar voice came up behind me, "Ryoma-kun?"

I faced her and found her looking at me. She's wearing a dark blue dress. She wasn't in braids but rather, her hair's down. She doesn't stop making me amazed at her. She looked at me in the eye and told me, "My father wants to meet you." She's really so shy and quiet. When she said that to me, she seemed to be so distant from me.

I walked beside her and held her hand. Everyone looked at us and murmured to each other, "The Ryuzaki Enterprises seems to be so lucky that the heir of Echizen Brothers Corporation fell in-love with Ryuzaki Ishida's heir!"

"So, you're an heir like me. I understand now why my grandpa did approve of us," I told him.

"Was that so bad? Maybe you thought that I'm poor, right?" she told me with her eyes shining.

I blushed. My cheeks are flaming so hard. After a while, my grandpa and a red-haired man went beside us. We both bowed at them and the red-haired man wearing a black tuxedo with white gloves on reached out his hand to me so we can shake hands together.

I shook his hand and he quickly introduced himself, "I'm Ryuzaki Ishida, Sakuno's father."

"Oh...," that's the only thing I have said. I looked at him more and he seemed to have long hair, small eyes and pale lips. She looks like Fuji or Yukimura for having a female-looking feature. I am blushing. It's an honor to finally meet the father of my woman. I heard her chuckling behind me. She must have noticed that my hands are sweaty and shaky as I reach his hand so we can shake hands. "Echizen Ryoma, sir."

He smiled. "Call me father for a while. I do wish both of you won't break up so that at the end of your college, we can already organize marriage."

Both of us beamed, "Father! Please, it's too early for a marriage!"

The party went fine and in the end, I can already socialize with all of them. As an elite, I have to have good relationship with people. Thanks to Sakuno, I am actually having conversation to all the people she knows. She even introduced me to her friends who are also present at my party.Some of them are men and women who are also heirs of different companies and sons and daughters of politicians who came here to see me. My new life will be spent with all of these people now. I can't go back to who I am before if I'm socializing with them. Maybe I can still do it if I'm at school. It isn't an exclusive school anyways. It's just a private school.

The night has fallen and little by little, our guests went back to their private lives.

Secretary Takanayori guided me back at my room in our mansion and I started to undress myself. I took off the tie on my neck and there, I sank back on my bed.

I blushed when I remembered that I and Sakuno were told to marry after college. Is this how rich people arrange marriages? To think about it... I'm not the one who's rich nor my father but my grandfather. Also, he and his brother has a difficult relationship. They don't seem to get along together well. I want to know more why. I need to learn the reason more and I will do my best to learn the reason why!

I went outside my room and roamed around the mansion. I kept looking all around the walls. Our mansion seemed to be a painting museum due to so many paintings plastered on the wall. Also, there are so many different sculptures lined up around the halls. I found it odd that the whole place seemed to be very European and my room is a bit American mixed with some Japanese Culture. How? My door is Japanese and the inside is very western.

As I was walking and looking at all of the amazing sculptures and paintings which are displayed around the hall, I noticed a door that seemed so out of place in our mansion. It seemed to be made of platinum. I went closer there and after I opened it, I found Secretary Takanayori inside a very modern and high technology control room. That room seemed to be the place where he can monitor everything that is happening inside the mansion. "Ryoma-sama... why are you here and how did you find this place?"

"Oh... I was just.. walking around and found this place. So, whenever we are home, you're still working," I told him.

"I have too, anyway. Ryoma-sama, if you are still adjusting, I am also still adjusting from my job."

"Your job?"

"My job is to protect you and guard you from people who might endanger your life," he stood up from his seat and pinned me on the wall. I can feel fear for the first time. His face went closer to me and told me, "Your grandpa has just recently hired me as his secretary."

After s while, he went back to his black leather chair. "Why are you out of your room?" he asked me.

"I'm bored out there! Also, I have so many questions which I want to ask to my grandfather!" I told him.

"Do you know where he is?" he asked me.

"No. I don't know," I replied back.

He stood up again and held my arm and dragged me outside the control room. He stopped for a while and when we are finally at the right side of the control room, I was surprised to know that it is an elevator. I was so astounded to learn that we have an elevator in our mansion. I know that the mansion has two stairways side by side on the ground floor and now that I saw an elevator, I knew that our mansion is really a large one. After some minutes, we are finally inside my grandfather's room.

I don't have to be nervous enough. This is what I wanted. I need to know more of the truths they are hiding from me!

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A/N: The picture on the right is not at all what's in my mind but it looks like that in some ways. I wish you liked this portion in my story!