Li Chan opens the door of his Pagani, gently steps out. There's a different shine in his eyes. Looking ahead, he says with a slight smile,
"This is really a mansion…"
Behind him stands Yuki, looking at him a bit nervously. Her face shows both confusion and excitement. Li Chan turns to her, and with a confident smile says,
"Yuki, shall we go inside?"
Yuki, slightly trembling, says,
"O-Okay… let's go."
Both head toward the large iron gate of the mansion. Just then, a guard in a blue uniform stops them. His face is a bit serious.
"Hey mister, this pavilion has already been bought by someone."
Li Chan, without saying anything, pulls a golden key from his jacket pocket, twirls it in the air, and says,
"And that buyer… is me."
The guard immediately grabs his ears, his face turns pale.
"S-Sorry sir! I didn't know. Please… come inside."
The gate opens.
As they cross the gate, both their eyes widen in awe. In front of them is a calm and beautiful waterfall pool with a light mist rising from it. In the middle of the pool is a floating garden, where rare white lotuses are blooming.
Li Chan softly says,
"This… is even classier than the model pics."
He looks around. In front, nine different futuristic villas stand. Each villa's design is unique, royal, and modern glass walls, rooftop gardens, and LED edge lighting.
He thinks for a moment and says,
"If we explore all the villas, it'll be night. Come on, Yuki, let's check out villa number 1 first."
Yuki nods in agreement,
"Yes… let's go!"
Both enter villa number 1 through its huge automatic glass door.
As the door opens, a light fragrance spreads in the air. White marble flooring, golden chandeliers, and a crystal spiral staircase welcome them. Natural light comes from the ceiling through a glass roof.
Li Chan says in his heart,
"I didn't think… it would be this big."
Yuki, in astonishment, places her hand on the wall and thinks,
"This… is more luxurious than my entire house."
They move forward and see:
A grand living hall with a 120-inch curved OLED screen.
An automated kitchen where chef bots are ready at the counter.
A private cinema room with a full surround system.
And a glass elevator that goes straight to a jacuzzi.
Yuki stands frozen in place.
Her face still shows confusion, and there are still some questions in her eyes.
Li Chan looks at her, gives a slight smile, and casually asks,
"Yuki, how did you like this house?"
Yuki doesn't say anything for a moment.
Then, hiding her shock, she makes a normal expression and says,
"It's really nice… honestly."
Just then, Li Chan's phone starts ringing.
He pulls the phone from his jeans pocket and looks at the screen Kuro's call.
Li Chan gets a bit confused.
In his mind, he says,
"Why is Kuro calling me now?"
Then he picks up the call.
"Hello, Kuro? What happened?"
But from the other side, it's not Kuro's voice.
Instead, the mixed excited voices of 5-@6 boys are heard in the background.
Kuro, moving slightly aside, says enthusiastically on the phone,
"Brother! You bought a house!?"
Li Chan falls into thought.
In his mind, he says,
"How did they find out?"
Just then, Jin's voice comes from the background.
"Brother! A party is a must… we won't agree without a celebration!"
Li Chan, taking a slightly frustrated breath, says on the phone,
"Okay, fine… but where now?"
Kuro, without pausing, says with enthusiasm,
"Brother, let's meet at Kurozawa Hotel!"
Hearing this, the ground slips from under Li Chan's feet.
In his mind, with a shocked tone, he says:
"Kurozawa Hotel!?
That's Kyoto's most expensive 5-star hotel!
Every dinner meal costs 2-3 lakh yen…"
Before he can say anything, Jin's voice comes through the phone,
"Brother, we've already reserved seats!
Just come quickly!"
Li Chan was about to say "I won't be able to come…"
But before that, the call gets cut.
Lowering the phone slowly,
Li Chan, with a frustrated expression, says,
"Now what do I do…
Oh well…
These guys won't agree without a party."
Then he turns back to look at Yuki,
who had been quietly watching everything until now.
Looking directly into her eyes, Li Chan says,
"Come on… let's go have dinner now."
Hearing this, Yuki looks at Li Chan once.
There's still a bit of doubt on her face, but then she takes a deep breath and says in her mind:
"It seems… Li Chan is some hidden tycoon.
I shouldn't overthink so much."
Then, with a slight smile, she looks at Li Chan and says,
"Okay, let's go…"
Both leave from there.
Some time later, they both sit back in the Pagani.
While putting on her seatbelt, Yuki says to Li Chan,
"By the way… Dayna… is she your girlfriend?
Or… does she have a crush on you!?"
Hearing this, Li Chan gets a bit startled.
He thinks for a moment, then says,
"Why such a question all of a sudden?"
Yuki laughs lightly and says,
"Just like that… actually, whenever I talk about you in front of her,
she gets really excited…
and sometimes even feels jealous."
Li Chan casually says,
"There's nothing like that. We're just good friends."
Hearing his response, Yuki doesn't ask anything more.
She sits quietly.
But something else is going on inside her.
In her mind, she thinks:
"Who is Li Chan really?
And why does he stay so low-profile?
And that black card… I've seen that dragon pattern on it somewhere before…
I have to find out about him…"
A little later, the Pagani stops outside a royal hotel Kurozawa Hotel.
Li Chan looks out the window,
and scans the parking lot with his eyes.
"It looks like Kuro and his friends haven't arrived yet…
I don't see their cars…"
Li Chan says to himself.
Just then, Yuki also steps out of the car.
A light breeze is blowing her hair.
She looks at Li Chan and says,
"Your friends haven't arrived yet, it seems…"
Li Chan comes near her and says,
"Yeah… not yet.
Come on, let's go inside."
Yuki nods in agreement, and both start heading toward the grand entrance of the hotel.
The gate of Kurozawa Hotel is an example of grandeur and elegance,
a red carpet beneath their feet,
but just then…
Suddenly, 10–12 people come in front of them and block their way.
There's hostility in their eyes, and all of them are armed with guns and blades.
One of the boys
with red hair,
a big scar on his face,
and wearing a blood-red coat
comes straight in front of Li Chan.
Li Chan gets confused.
His eyes scan the boy.
Just then…
the red-haired boy points a gun at Li Chan's head!