Astrid stepped through the front door with an energy she hadn't felt in days.
She set her briefcase on a console table in the foyer and loosened the knot of the scarf around her neck.
For the first time in a long while...
things had gone her way.
The project had been approved.
With a few revisions.
Several comments.
But approved.
It wasn't a favor.
It wasn't a concession.
She had earned it on equal footing with everyone else.
And that meant far more than any contract ever could.
As she climbed the marble staircase, she couldn't help smiling.
She remembered the meeting.
The committee's questions.
The objections.
And Adrian, seated at the far end of the table, doing exactly what he was supposed to do.
No special treatment.
No unfair demands.
Just professionalism.
For years, she had believed the only thing he knew how to do was protect her.
Today, she had discovered something else.
He also knew how to respect her.
The thought drew an involuntary smile.
"What are you smiling about?"
Her father's voice made her stop.
Astrid looked up.
Leonhardt Roche was waiting for her in the main sitting room.
He wasn't alone.
A young man stood beside one of the windows.
He was dressed simply.
His back was straight.
His hands were clasped behind him.
He didn't look like a guest.
He looked like someone who had been waiting for hours.
The smile slowly faded from Astrid's face.
"Is something wrong?"
Her father hesitated.
For far too long.
"Astrid..."
"There's someone who wishes to speak with you."
The young man stepped forward.
He inclined his head slightly.
"My name is Li Shen."
Astrid acknowledged him with a polite nod.
"It's a pleasure."
She waited a few seconds.
No one said another word.
She frowned.
"Well?"
Li Shen spoke with complete composure.
"I've come to claim the fulfillment of a promise."
Astrid blinked.
"What promise?"
The silence that followed was enough for an uneasy feeling to settle over the room.
Leonhardt avoided her gaze.
That was never a good sign.
"Many years ago..." he finally said, "a man saved my life."
Astrid still didn't understand.
"And?"
"In return..."
"I promised that the hand of my future daughter would be given to his disciple."
The room fell utterly silent.
Astrid stood frozen for several seconds.
She waited.
Certain that someone would break into laughter at any moment.
No one did.
She looked at her father.
Then at the young man.
Then back at her father.
"..."
A short, disbelieving laugh escaped her.
"That's a terrible joke."
No one answered.
The smile vanished from her face.
"...You're serious?"
Li Shen slowly removed an old bamboo tube slung across his back.
He pulled out a yellowed scroll.
Holding it carefully in both hands, he presented it.
The red seal was still unbroken.
"The contract was signed twenty-two years ago."
Astrid felt as though she'd been ripped out of the twenty-first century and thrown several centuries into the past.
"No."
She looked straight at her father.
"Tell me you didn't sign something like that."
Leonhardt slowly lowered his head.
That gesture was answer enough.
The days that followed were a blur of meetings, blueprints, and contracts.
The project had been approved.
Now the real work began.
Astrid personally toured every available building in the financial district. She compared costs, estimated renovation expenses, and debated layout, security, and future expansion with architects.
On the third day, she found the perfect place.
A tower of glass and gray marble—sleek, understated, and modern—with more than enough room to house the company she had spent months envisioning.
As she signed the purchase agreement, a sense of satisfaction washed over her that was difficult to put into words.
This was hers.
Not a gift.
Not a favor.
Not an inheritance.
Her very first step.
When she finished signing, she looked up.
Li Shen was still there.
Silent.
Standing two meters away.
As if he had been born in that office.
Astrid slowly closed the folder.
"Have you been following me all day?"
"Yes."
The answer came so naturally that, for a moment, she didn't know how to respond.
"Why?"
"Because you're my responsibility."
Astrid took a deep breath.
"No.
I'm not."
Li Shen looked at her with complete calm.
"Not yet."
That was enough to make her close her eyes for a few seconds.
"I'm starting to understand why monks live in isolation."
"Hm?"
"So no one feels the urge to punch them."
Li Shen seemed to give the idea serious consideration.
"Violence rarely solves a problem."
Despite herself, Astrid laughed.
"You're impossible."
"My master used to say that perseverance is often mistaken for stubbornness."
"Your master was right."
They left the building.
As they walked toward the car, Astrid tried again.
"Listen.
How much money do you want?"
Li Shen looked at her in confusion.
"I don't understand."
"The agreement.
Ten billion.
Twenty.
Thirty.
Name your price."
He slowly shook his head.
"I don't want money."
"Shares?"
"No."
"A company?"
"No."
"A house?"
"No."
Astrid was beginning to lose her patience.
"Then what the hell do you want?"
Li Shen answered as though it were the simplest thing in the world.
"My fiancée."
Astrid nearly choked on her own coffee.
A few days later, while supervising the installation of the furniture in her new office, a Roche family employee handed her a sealed envelope bearing the family crest.
Astrid broke the seal.
An official invitation.
The annual Valenheim Banquet.
The political elite.
The founding families.
The country's leading business figures.
The entire chessboard gathered in one grand hall.
Her father appeared behind her.
"You need to attend."
Astrid nodded.
She had expected as much.
"And I'd like to ask one more thing."
She looked up.
"Take Li Shen with you."
The silence was immediate.
Astrid slowly set the invitation down on the table.
"No."
"Astrid..."
"I already told you I'm not marrying him."
"I'm not asking you to."
He paused.
"Just...
avoid creating a conflict."
She let out a short, humorless laugh.
"Avoid a conflict?
After bringing a complete stranger into my life to claim me as though I were part of a contract?"
Her father lowered his eyes.
He had no answer.
Astrid picked up her handbag.
"If you want me to attend the banquet, I'll go.
But Li Shen is not coming with me.
And don't bring it up again."
She walked out of the office without waiting for a reply.
Li Shen watched her leave.
He made no attempt to stop her.
He merely lowered his head in a slight nod.
Days later, Astrid's car pulled up in front of the Imperial Hotel.
Its façade of white marble and glass reflected the city lights, while a red carpet guided the guests toward the grand ballroom.
It wasn't a party.
It was a display of power.
Every influential family was there.
Every prominent business leader.
Every politician.
To walk through those doors was to be acknowledged as a player on the board.
Astrid took a deep breath before stepping out.
She had attended dozens of events like this since childhood.
She had never enjoyed them.
She smiled out of courtesy as she greeted familiar faces, shook hands, and accepted congratulations on her new project.
But the moment she crossed the ballroom...
she saw him.
Adrian.
He was dressed in a flawlessly tailored dark suit.
He was chatting with several business leaders with the easy confidence of someone who naturally belonged there.
And beside him...
Katherine Starling.
They weren't doing anything remarkable.
They were simply talking.
She smiled.
He answered with his usual calm.
It was a perfectly ordinary scene.
And that was exactly why...
it hurt.
Astrid stopped in her tracks for a brief moment.
Why?
She had no right to feel this way.
She had been the one who rejected Adrian for years.
She had chosen to keep her distance.
So...
why did it bother her so much to see another woman standing where, only a few days earlier, she herself had been?
She tightened her grip on her champagne glass.
Ridiculous.
Completely ridiculous.
They had shared meetings.
A few conversations.
One impulsive kiss.
Nothing more.
There had never been a relationship between them.
And yet...
the sight of Katherine standing beside him felt strangely... natural.
As though she had always belonged there.
As though Astrid had arrived too late.
With a faint look of irritation, Astrid tore her gaze away.
"Focus," she murmured to herself.
She was here for business.
Not to wonder why something that, by all rights, shouldn't matter to her hurt so much.
Retired Minister Edmund von Albrecht, the architect of the reforms that had transformed the country, had returned to the city where he was born.
Officially, he had come back to enjoy a peaceful retirement.
Unofficially...
he had returned to remind everyone that he was still a man capable of moving the pieces on the board.
Wherever Edmund von Albrecht appeared, contracts changed hands.
Investments came alive.
And alliances were renegotiated.
Adrian Valmont surveyed the ballroom from an unobtrusive spot, a glass of wine in his hand. Beside him, Katherine Starling conversed with the effortless grace of someone who had grown up attending receptions like this.
"I never imagined Valenheim needed this much ceremony to welcome a retiree," she remarked with a faint smile.
"They're not doing it because he's retired," Adrian replied without taking his eyes off the room. "They're doing it to remind everyone who's still influential."
Katherine followed his gaze and understood.
That night wasn't honoring a man.
It was honoring his power.
A few yards away, Astrid absently adjusted the hem of her dress.
She had come only because her father insisted.
She had never enjoyed gatherings like this.
Or the endless game of appearances that came with them.
Even so, almost by instinct, her eyes searched for him.
Adrian.
She found him chatting naturally with Katherine.
Calm.
Confident.
As though he had always belonged in that world.
Astrid looked away immediately.
And yet...
the image lingered in her mind.
The speech began to restrained applause.
Edmund raised his glass.
"Valenheim has always been a city built on—"
His voice broke.
The glass slipped from his fingers.
Crystal shattered across the floor.
The minister staggered back one step.
Then another.
His hand clutched desperately at his chest.
The color drained from his face.
His knees gave way.
The entire ballroom froze.
For a moment, no one moved.
Then the shouting began.
"Call an ambulance!"
"Is there a doctor here?"
"Step back!"
Chairs scraped across the floor.
Security rushed forward.
Guests retreated, forming a widening circle of confusion.
Astrid felt her stomach tighten into a knot.
Katherine quickly assessed the situation, scanning for exits, medical personnel, and any potential threats.
Adrian set his wineglass on a nearby table.
He didn't rush in.
He watched.
There was something about the collapse that didn't sit right with him.
Then a figure stepped through the crowd.
He was dressed simply.
His expression remained calm.
Every step carried a confidence utterly at odds with the chaos around him.
Li Shen.
"Don't move him," he ordered firmly. "His pulse is collapsing. This isn't an ordinary heart attack."
Some people hesitated.
Others reacted with outrage.
"Who are you?"
"Get away from him!"
Li Shen didn't answer.
He was already kneeling beside the minister.
He opened a small wooden case.
Inside were several impossibly fine needles.
His movements were swift, precise, almost mechanical.
One needle descended toward the minister's neck.
Another into his wrist.
A third into a point none of the onlookers could identify.
The minister's body shuddered once.
Then the ballroom fell silent again.
Astrid held her breath.
Adrian watched every movement without missing a single detail.
He didn't see improvisation.
He saw expertise.
Thirty seconds.
Perhaps forty.
The minister suddenly drew in a sharp breath.
Then another.
Color slowly returned to his face.
His breathing steadied.
Li Shen removed the needles with the same calm precision with which he had inserted them.
"He'll live," he said as he closed the case. "But he needs complete rest. He must not continue tonight's event."
The silence lasted only a heartbeat.
Then came the applause.
The gasps.
The expressions of disbelief slowly transformed into admiration.
Astrid barely noticed the commotion.
Her attention was elsewhere.
Not on the minister.
Not even on the man who had just saved his life.
But several yards away.
Where Adrian still stood beside Katherine.
And for the first time...
the sight of them hurt more than she was willing to admit.
The banquet carried on as though nothing had happened.
The doctors had already taken the minister away.
Conversations gradually resumed.
Glasses were raised once more.
But Astrid barely heard the hum of the ballroom.
Her eyes kept finding Adrian again and again.
He was talking to Katherine.
Listening.
Responding.
He even smiled from time to time.
A small smile.
Natural.
She had never seen it before.
Not with her.
A strange ache tightened in her chest.
She looked away.
It didn't make any sense.
She had no right.
She had been the one who turned him down over and over again.
He had been the one who finally chose to walk away.
So...
why did it hurt?
She took a deep breath.
"I need some air."
She stepped out onto the balcony.
The cool night breeze brushed against her face.
She closed her eyes.
What's happening to me...?
She had always believed she understood her own emotions.
She categorized them.
Analyzed them.
Solved them.
But this...
This didn't fit into any category.
She heard the balcony door open behind her.
"I thought I'd find you here."
Adrian's voice.
Astrid turned slowly.
He was holding a glass of water.
He didn't look uncomfortable.
Just...
careful.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
She gave him a weary smile.
"I don't know."
Adrian fell silent.
He waited.
As though he understood this wasn't the moment to fill the silence with words.
Astrid lowered her gaze.
"Do you know what's the worst part?"
He shook his head.
"For years, I thought I knew you."
She slowly looked back up.
"And now I've realized I have no idea who you really are."
Adrian looked away.
"Maybe that's for the best."
"Is it?"
Silence.
"You were always there before."
The words escaped before she could stop them.
So quickly that even she hadn't seen them coming.
Adrian remained motionless.
"And now..."
She let out a soft laugh.
One devoid of joy.
"Now I look at you..."
"...and you feel like a stranger."
Silence settled between them again.
Then, almost in a whisper, she added,
"And I think that scares me."
For the first time since they had stepped onto the balcony, Adrian looked directly into her eyes.
There was no irony.
No pride.
Only a quiet sadness.
"Astrid..."
"Yes?"
"That's how it was supposed to be."
The words landed with unbearable gentleness.
There was no accusation.
No resentment.
Only acceptance.
And somehow...
that was what finally broke something inside her.
Because she understood.
He really was leaving.
It wasn't a strategy.
It wasn't a game.
He wasn't waiting for her to change her mind.
He had simply...
let her go.
A ridiculous impulse rose within her.
One she couldn't explain.
Before she could think it through, she took a step.
Then another.
She stopped in front of him.
Too close.
Adrian forgot to breathe for a moment.
"Astrid..."
She didn't understand what she was doing, either.
She knew only one thing.
She didn't want this conversation to end like this.
Gently, she took his hand.
He didn't move.
The surprise on his face was so obvious it was almost painful.
Astrid felt the slightest tremor run through Adrian's fingers.
It made her smile.
A small smile.
A sad one.
"You still get nervous..."
she murmured.
He parted his lips.
But no words came out.
Astrid slowly raised her other hand.
Her fingertips brushed his cheek.
So slowly that she still had time to stop herself.
She didn't.
Rising onto her toes, she rested her forehead against his.
Neither of them moved.
The world seemed to fall completely silent.
"What if...?"
She never finished the question.
She wasn't even sure what it was.
What if I was wrong?
What if you really did love me?
What if it's already too late?
The three questions blended together until they became one.
She closed her eyes.
And without allowing herself another thought, she crossed the last bit of distance between them.
Her lips brushed Adrian's.
It was a brief kiss.
Awkward.
More a question than an answer.
When she pulled back only a few inches, neither of them had moved.
Astrid slowly opened her eyes.
Reality came crashing back all at once.
...What have I done?
She took one step back.
Then another.
Her breathing grew uneven.
Adrian remained completely still.
As though his brain had simply stopped working.
"I..."
Astrid tried to speak.
No words came.
She turned on her heel.
And almost ran from the balcony.
Adrian remained where he was.
Alone.
His eyes fixed on the door through which she had just disappeared.
His mind slowly began to reboot.
...No.
This wasn't in any novel.
Did... the heroine just kiss me?