Within a short moment, they were outnumbered by the unknown men. Hibiki and the leader of the bodyguards, Kenzou stepped forward while the other two were on guard at either side of the car. Their eyes were vigilant against the stoic-looking men.
"What are your intentions, blocking our way?" Hibiki straightforwardly asked them, his face was tensed as he was eyeing the mysterious group of men.
Their appearance was bad news!
"Our master wants to meet Mrs. Fuse," One of the men answered. He too didn't beat around the bush. Glancing at the car behind Hibiki, he added, "It's best for your madam to follow us. We don't want any incident to befall on a pregnant woman, no?"
Hibiki narrowed his eyes dangerously. These men came prepared, if not they wouldn't be so daring to utter such request.
"No matter who's your master, aren't you afraid of retaliation when you're trying to kidnap the madam of Fuse household in a blatant way?" Hibiki clenched his jaw. The expression on his face turned darker.
Even though this road was quiet yet the ancestral house of Fuse was just a few miles behind them. Help could arrive at any time. Before he stepped out of the car, he had secretly sent a signal to the security at the old house. They had just to hold the fort for a few more minutes.
As if the man could see through Hibiki's thought, he coolly replied, "No one would come to your rescue. A fire happened right after you left the mansion, of course, it's only a false alarm."
Hibiki scowled, catching the meaning of the man's words.
No wonder they could timely appear here at this exact moment. Someone had sneaked inside the old house to observe the situation. Since they could infiltrate the old house, it meant they were skillful enough to do so.
Madam's safety would be at stake!
"We are from the Souma household," The man calmly disclosed his identity by showing the small family crest pinned on the lapel of his suit. The silver crest beamed under the sunlight, "We won't do anything untoward to your madam but if you continued delaying it, I'm afraid we would have to take an extra length to achieve our Master's objective."
Hibiki's pupils dilated slightly in surprise. He recognized the crest! They were really from the Souma family!
Yes. Only the Souma family's security team could be on par with them from the Fuse's. But why did these men expose their identities frankly?
Hibiki fell into a long silence. The air around him felt stagnant as he intently focused on his earpiece. There was still no response coming from the security room of the old house even after a few minutes had passed.
Nothing.
Hibiki unconsciously clenched his fists tight.
"Mr. Hibiki," Kenzou, who stood beside him whispered after a moment as he sensed the man's struggle as time went by, "What's your thought?"
Gritting his teeth, Hibiki turned back and went to the car.
Tsubaki couldn't hear what were the men talking about to each other but seeing how unsightly Hibiki's expression was, she could tell the situation was unfavorable to their side.
"Do they demand something?" Tsubaki quickly asked once Hibiki got inside the car.
His expression was grave as he nodded sullenly. Without concealing anything, Hibiki spoke the truth, "They said their master wants to meet Madam."
The confusion was evident from the way Tsubaki staring at him. Frowning, she asked, "Who's their master?"
"The Souma family," Hibiki replied in a single breath.
In an instant, shock flickered in her eyes. Her lips parted slightly, her lashes blinked a few times. Tsubaki threw her gaze outside the car window, directing her eyes toward the group of men.
They were from the Souma family? Was it President Souma who sent them?
"What else did they say?" Tsubaki unconsciously put both of her palms over her bump, her blood ran cold when she heard the name.
"There's nothing else," Hibiki was frustrated.
Tsubaki pursed her lips, she didn't let go of her hands on her bump. The dread crept inside her heart turned heavier as each moment passed. Although she appeared quiet on the surface, her brain was constantly buzzing with every single probability of why did these men suddenly come to her.
In the end, she came to her decision.
After what it seemed like a long hour of silence, she raised her gaze and stared at Hibiki, "Let me talk to the men outside."
Surprised, Hibiki almost stuttered before he quickly regained his composure, "Madam... why... it could be dangerous!"
"Guard me," Her usually soft voice was firm when she looked at both Hibiki and Kaede who was also shocked by her decision, "Come. Let's hear what else they want to say."
Unable to refute their madam's resolution, Hibiki instructed the three bodyguards outside to go into a defensive formation. Tsubaki alighted the car, her eyes were impassive as they laid on the men from the Souma household.
It went without saying who wanted to see her. Apart from President Souma, she couldn't think of anyone else.
"Does your master think it's good to invite a guest in this way?" Since they acted in this kind of way, Tsubaki didn't mind being cold toward them. Her eyes narrowed in displeasure, "You guys timely blocked our way and announced that I have to go with you? Where is your master's sincerity?"
"Apologies, Mrs. Fuse," The leader of the man solemnly bowed his head to Tsubaki, his face remained stoic when he swiftly added, "It's best if you follow us, Mrs. Fuse. You could bring one of your bodyguards with you if you like. We shouldn't waste any more time here."
Tsubaki frowned. The threat in his words was clear to her ears. Even though they openly declared who was the master they served yet they were still adamant to bring her with them. If it was handled badly, a feud would occur between the two families.
Glancing at Hibiki, Tsubaki said, "Let one of them follow me. You return and notify the security at the old house. If possible, try to not alerting Grandma about this matter."
Since it had come to this way, Tsubaki had no choice but to follow along. Deep down, a fear began to sprout within her. She was actually afraid if she refused them, something worse would happen. She wanted to avoid even the slightest provocation.
Her side was outnumbered. She didn't want anything bad to fell on her unborn child.
This was her main priority.
"Madam, you don't have to follow them," Hibiki was quick to disagree with her, "The Souma stands on the same height as the Fuse, they are clearly inciting trouble with us by doing this thing. More so with the absence of Master during this time."
Hibiki's claim was plausible but Tsubaki still stuck to her decision, "Hibiki, you should know why does their master seek me."
The words shut his mouth.
Of course, how could he didn't know why did the people from the Souma family suddenly appear if not for that matter? There was the only thing that linked his madam to the household.
Seeing that he couldn't persuade her otherwise, Hibiki turned to look at Kenzou. With a clear voice, he instructed, "Escort Madam safely."
"Understood," The man accepted his task.
"Please follow us, Mrs. Fuse," The man from the Souma gestured at Tsubaki to follow him.
Tsubaki gave a reassuring look toward Hibiki before she followed the man to one of the cars. Kenzou got inside the same car as her.
Hibiki worriedly looked at the closed car door. The Souma's bodyguard gave him a glance before he added, "Don't worry. Our way of coming here is crude yet we never fail to notify your master."
"What?" Hibiki was dumbfounded hearing his words. Flustered, he asked again, "You mean..."
The man refused to answer. He disappeared inside the same car with Tsubaki. In a moment, all of them left without leaving any trace. Only Hibiki, Kaede and the other two bodyguards remained in the same spot.
As if what happened earlier was just a bad dream.
"Quick! Go back to the old house! Alert the security team! Check on their GPS position! Don't let the old lady knows!"
Hibiki promptly gave out more orders. Kaede and the rest scurried on their feet. Time was crucial! Since their madam was willingly going with the men, they had to be quick in retrieving her back.
Yet, before Hibiki could start the car, his phone and Kaede's were blasting with incoming calls at the same time. Both of them exchanged a look.
Kaede got a call from one of the men escorting their master to Country M.
Hibiki got a call from the man himself.