Su's words didn't just hang in the air.
They crushed it.
Sid felt her trembling against his chest. Her fingers were clutching his shirt like if she let go, the world would rip them apart.
"I wish we could be together… but I don't know if it is possible…"
For the first time since he stepped into Sagurakaoga High, Sid felt something he hadn't planned for.
Uncertainty.
He had calculated outcomes.
Manipulated first impressions.
Engineered proximity.
Orchestrated sympathy.
But he hadn't calculated tears.
"Explain," Sid said softly now. The anger was gone. His voice steadier. Quieter.
Su wiped her eyes, but they kept filling again.
"My marriage… it was decided when I was five."
Sid's heart stopped for half a second.
"…What?"
She nodded slowly.
"It's a business agreement between my father and the Lee family in China. When I turn twenty-one… I'm supposed to marry their son."
Silence.
Pure silence.
Sid's mind, normally a machine running a thousand scenarios per second, blanked.
Married.
To someone else.
His entire long-term objective—marrying the heir to the most powerful family in Japan—just collided with an even bigger empire.
He stepped back slightly.
"And you're just… okay with that?" he asked, his tone unreadable.
Su shook her head.
"Do I look okay with it?"
She laughed weakly. It wasn't funny.
"You think I don't know what I am? I'm not a daughter, Sid. I'm leverage. I'm a contract with legs."
That hit harder than anything.
For a moment, Sid forgot about strategy.
Forgot about status.
Forgot about his so-called "end goal."
All he saw was a girl raised in a golden cage.
"You never tried to fight it?" he asked.
Su looked at him like he had asked if she'd tried to fight gravity.
"My father isn't just rich. He controls politicians. Media. Corporations. He doesn't raise his voice. He doesn't need to."
Her expression hardened.
"When he decides something… it happens."
Sid's jaw tightened.
He hated powerful men who thought they controlled everything.
He especially hated that this powerful man stood between him and his objective.
And then another thought crept in.
The Lee family.
If Su's father was the most powerful in Japan… and Lee was the most powerful in China…
This wasn't just a marriage.
This was a merger of empires.
Sid exhaled slowly.
"And the son?" he asked. "This Lee guy. What's he like?"
Su's expression darkened further.
"I met him twice."
"And?"
"He's polite."
"That doesn't sound bad."
She looked at him again.
"Polite like a shark."
Sid didn't miss that.
"What do you mean?"
"He doesn't smile with his eyes. When he talks, it feels like he's evaluating you. Like you're an asset."
Sid almost smirked.
Sounds familiar.
He pushed the thought away.
"And you don't like him?"
Su's answer came instantly.
"No."
That was enough.
Sid stepped closer again.
"Then don't marry him."
She let out a broken laugh.
"Sid… this isn't a high school crush situation. This is international corporate politics."
"And?"
"And if I refuse, it won't just hurt me. It could collapse deals worth billions. It could start corporate wars. People could lose jobs. Companies could fall."
Sid's mind clicked back into motion.
Corporate war.
Financial damage.
Leverage points.
Power structures.
He finally understood the true scale of the battlefield.
This wasn't about getting a girlfriend anymore.
This was about dismantling a strategic alliance between two empires.
And weirdly…
That excited him.
But he kept his expression soft.
"So what are you saying?" he asked. "That you like me… but you're choosing them?"
Su's hands clenched.
"I'm saying I don't want to hurt you."
He laughed lightly.
"Too late."
She looked up at him.
"I'm serious, Sid. If my father finds out you're getting close to me, he will investigate you. Your family. Your bakery. Everything."
Sid felt a flicker of danger.
Good.
Let him look.
Out loud he said, "Let him."
Su's eyes widened.
"You don't understand."
"No," Sid replied quietly. "You don't understand."
The air changed.
For the first time, there was something dangerous in his voice.
"You think I worked my ass off for a scholarship just to play background character in someone else's story?"
Su stared at him.
"You think I don't know what kind of world this is?"
He stepped closer, lifting her chin gently so she'd look at him.
"I don't lose, Su."
That wasn't romantic.
It was a promise.
Her heart was pounding.
"Sid…"
He softened again.
"I asked you to be my girlfriend. Not my wife tomorrow. Not the mother of my kids next week."
He smiled faintly.
"Just my girlfriend."
Her lips trembled.
"And when the time comes?" she whispered.
"We'll deal with it."
"How?"
He leaned closer.
"Trust me."
Dangerous words.
She knew it.
He knew it.
But she wanted to believe him.
Because for once in her life…
Someone wasn't choosing her for her last name.
At least, that's what she thought.
She closed her eyes.
"…Okay."
Sid froze.
"Okay?" he repeated.
She nodded slowly.
"I'll be your girlfriend."
For half a second, something genuine flashed across his face.
Victory.
But then something else followed.
Warmth.
He pulled her into a hug.
And this time…
He didn't feel like he was acting.
The Next Morning
Rumors spread faster than WiFi at Sagurakaoga High.
By lunchtime, everyone knew.
The scholarship kid.
Dating Su Light.
Whispers flooded the hallways.
"Is she rebelling?"
"Is he using her?"
"Does he even know who she is?"
"He's dead."
Three specific students were especially furious.
The bullies.
They cornered Sid near the lockers.
"You think you're funny?" one of them growled.
Sid calmly closed his locker.
"I usually am."
The biggest one shoved him.
"You're dating her to climb up, right? Know your place."
Sid looked at him.
Really looked at him.
Measured height.
Weight.
Center of gravity.
Dominant arm.
Foot placement.
He could end this in five seconds.
But no.
Not yet.
Instead he said calmly, "You're mad because she chose me. That's not my fault."
Wrong thing to say.
The fist came fast.
Sid didn't dodge.
It hit his lip.
Blood.
Students gasped.
The bully smirked—
—and then found himself on the floor.
Because Sid moved after the hit.
Fast.
Clean.
One twist of the wrist.
One sweep.
Controlled impact.
He didn't break anything.
Just demonstrated hierarchy.
Sid crouched beside him.
"Don't mistake patience for weakness," he said quietly.
Then he stood up.
Su had seen everything.
Her eyes weren't scared.
They were confused.
That… wasn't beginner luck.
That wasn't random defense.
That was trained.
Professional.
Later that evening, she confronted him in his room.
"You said you wouldn't fight back."
"I said I wouldn't start it."
"You're not just some bakery kid, are you?"
He smiled faintly.
"What do you think I am?"
She stared at him.
"I don't know anymore."
And for the first time…
She wasn't entirely wrong.
Meanwhile — In Tokyo
Inside a glass-walled office overlooking the city skyline, Su's father sat calmly.
A man in a black suit stood before him.
"We have something, sir."
Light didn't look up.
"Speak."
"Your daughter has begun dating a scholarship student. Name: Sid. No notable family background."
Light's fingers paused over his tea cup.
"Scholarship?"
"Yes, sir."
Light finally looked up.
"Full report."
"Yes, sir. However…"
"However?"
"There are inconsistencies."
Light's eyes sharpened.
"Such as?"
"His academic records prior to the scholarship exam are… minimal. Almost too clean. No digital footprint before age twelve. No social media history. No competitive exam participation records."
Light leaned back slowly.
"A ghost?"
"Possibly curated identity, sir."
Silence.
Then Light smiled faintly.
"Interesting."
He stood up and walked toward the window.
"My daughter has never shown interest in anyone."
"Yes, sir."
"And now she chooses a ghost."
He took a sip of tea.
"Dig deeper."
"Yes, sir."
"And inform Mr. Lee."
The assistant hesitated.
"Sir… if Mr. Lee hears of this, he may take action prematurely."
Light's expression turned cold.
"Then let him."
Back at School
Su lay awake that night.
Sid's words replaying.
"I don't lose."
They sounded confident.
Too confident.
She liked him.
She really did.
But something about him felt… layered.
Like he was holding back parts of himself.
The next day during lunch, she asked casually:
"What's your dream, Sid?"
He didn't even blink.
"Comfortable life."
She narrowed her eyes.
"That's vague."
He shrugged.
"Simple things are the best."
But inside?
He was recalculating.
If Light was investigating him, time was shorter than expected.
He needed leverage.
Information.
Allies.
And possibly…
Chaos.
Because empires don't fall from the outside.
They crack from within.
And if marrying Su meant entering that empire…
Then maybe he didn't need to stop the alliance.
Maybe he just needed to control it.
Sid looked at Su laughing at something trivial.
For a second…
A very small, very inconvenient part of him whispered:
What if this stops being a game?
He shut that thought down immediately.
Attachment clouds judgment.
Judgment wins wars.
But still…
When she smiled at him, it didn't feel strategic.
And that was dangerous.
Very dangerous.
Far away in China, in a luxurious estate, a young man stood watching a video on a tablet.
It showed Sid flipping a student onto the locker room floor.
The young man smiled faintly.
"Interesting."
This was Lee's son.
"And this is the boy?" he asked calmly.
"Yes, sir."
He paused the video on Sid's face.
"He doesn't move like a civilian."
"No, sir."
The young man's smile widened slightly.
"Good."
"Good, sir?"
He handed the tablet back.
"I was getting bored."
He looked out over the estate.
"Book me a flight to Japan."
And just like that—
The real game began.