Tsubaki calmly ended the call after she said a few more words to Ren. Her gaze was cold, it was directed toward the man who sat opposite her. He was the one who acted as a leader of the group.
"You heard him, right?" Tsubaki put her phone inside the bag, she let her eyes lingered a moment longer on the man's face before they settled on her baby bump, "No matter what, return me unscathed."
"We'll do so, Mrs. Fuse," The man remained stoic-looking even after he was threatened by Mr. Fuse himself.
Tsubaki silently understood the fact that she was still under their mercy. Even though these men openly declared their identities as well as didn't restrict her from contacting Ren, it would be bad if they decided to take her hostage.
The decision she made earlier was a gamble.
It was better for her to go with them instead of letting her small number of bodyguards fought with the large number of men sent by President Souma. Even the tiniest provocation could lead her to be harmed.
Since she was carrying their child right now, she needed to opt for the least harmful way when dealing with them.
"Sweetheart, you really don't want me there?" That was Ren's question to her after she turned off the loudspeaker earlier. His voice sounded heavy and a bit helpless, it sent a pang of guilt to her heart.
"You should understand why I ask you to not come back now, darling," Tsubaki answered with patience, "I'll be safe."
"... Alright. I'll come home as soon as possible. Be safe, sweetheart," In the end, Ren relented to her wish.
It was not true when Tsubaki said he didn't have to come back because right now, his presence was what she wanted the most but she was just being realistic. As much as she understood her husband could sacrifice even the most priceless treasure for her safety, it wouldn't work that way.
Although she didn't know much, it was clear that the collaboration was important to all the people involved, either from Ren's side or the other company's. It wasn't wise for him to desert it when it was at the initial and crucial stage.
Her husband was known as a responsible and competent man in his field. She was extremely reluctant to smear his reputation because of her sake.
I'll be safe, darling.
Tsubaki kept her quiet for the rest of the journey. After almost half an hour passed, the car entered a long road heading toward a manor standing proudly on a hill. Judging by the scenery around her, Tsubaki thought it was almost the same as the Fuse old house.
A three-story manor located at the center of the vast yard. The garden was filled with countless flowers as well as other decorations. They were more extravagant than the simpler way conducted by the Fuse manor.
But, when Tsubaki thought they would pass through the gates of the manor, the car took another turn to the left.
Tsubaki arched an eyebrow, wondering where would these men bring her. Considering the location, it was still a place near the Souma main manor. Then, this place was still under the family.
The car didn't stop until the black sedan entered another gate far at the end of the road. It took them another five minutes to arrive at this place.
"We've arrived, Mrs. Fuse," The man unbuckled the seat-belt, he threw a short glance at the building outside the car, "Master wants us to bring you here."
Tsubaki knitted her brows once she saw the building standing in front of her. It was really not the manor. This building was smaller than the manor she saw earlier yet it had four floors.
This place resembled a short apartment instead of a mansion. The distance between this place with the manor was also quite great. She deduced it would take her at least ten to fifteen minutes on foot to reach the manor from this building. There were also gates and fence that separated them.
Kenzou alighted the car first, scanning the surroundings. His sharp sense told him that there was nothing abnormal here. He turned around and gestured for his madam to get off, "Be careful, Madam."
Tsubaki muttered him a soft thanks. Tilting her head up, she looked carefully at the building. It was painted in dark grey, in contrast to the cream-colored manor. Looking at it closely, she thought it was a personal space to someone.
But, this place still resembled a house, did President Souma reside here instead of the main manor?
"Please follow us, Mrs. Fuse."
The man's words broke her reverie. The main doors of the building had been opened from the inside. Tsubaki saw another two men dressed in black suits stood at each side of the entrance.
Tsubaki glanced at Kenzou once. Mustering up her courage, she slowly stepped forward with Kenzou in front of her.
Once she stepped inside, she was greeted by a world of black and white. Most of the decorations used the grayscale color scheme, ranging from the couch, dining table and the rest of the furniture.
"Master is on his way here. You should sit down first, Mrs. Fuse," The man brought her to a hallway before he stopped in front of a room that was situated at the end of it. He brought out a couple of keys and inserted one of them inside the keyhole. The door was opened in a single click, "I'll serve you tea shortly."
Tsubaki almost scoffed hearing how this man would offer her hospitality yet she refrained from doing so. Since the man had generously offered, Tsubaki sat on a single couch while Kenzou stood straight beside her. Both of them took their time looking at the unfamiliar room.
"What do you think?" In a small voice, Tsubaki threw a question to Kenzou.
"Although their way in approaching you is weird, I think they really mean no harm, Madam," Kenzou concluded based on his observation from the start until they arrived here.
Tsubaki nodded in agreement. In the car earlier, the men from the Souma household had thoughtfully given her a blanket and a bottle of warm water as to how Ren usually did once she got pregnant. It was obvious to her that the blanket and water were specially prepared for her.
This kind of act... she wasn't sure how should she point it out. President Souma wasn't unwilling to use this kind of way to force her to meet him yet he still took care of her well-being?
Unable to comprehend the man's intention, Tsubaki shook her head in helplessness. For now, she would just believe that the man would really not harm her.
"Let's just hear what he wants to say to me," Tsubaki breathed in resignation.
It went without saying that President Souma wanted to talk about her birth mother. As Tsubaki had talked to Ren before, that older man must have kept an eye on her or something after realizing she resembled the woman he loved during his younger days.
Maybe, he had sniffed out what she had talked with Mrs. Souma the other day.
Ten minutes passed yet there was still no hint of President Souma's appearance. The leader of the man who brought her here kept mum when Tsubaki asked when would the man arrive. After serving her a cup of hot tea and a few delectable desserts, the man vanished outside of the door.
Tsubaki wasn't in the mood to enjoy the sweets and tea. Being tired of waiting, she slowly stood up from the couch and began to walk around the room.
From a single glance, this room looked like a simple drawing room for any guest who came to visit this abode yet after she paid careful attention to it, various things that should have been personal to the owner of the house were kept inside a cabinet at a corner of the room.
Standing opposite a shelf, Tsubaki swept her gaze over the things laid on the smooth wooden surface. Books from decades ago, school trophies and photographs - all of them were personal to whoever placed them here.
Then, her eyes landed on the photo put at the farthest back among all of the other photos.
That...
Tsubaki slowly picked the photo up, her eyebrows raised slightly as she carefully scrutinizing the photo.
Two people were standing with their arms draped over each other's shoulders. Both of them wore the same school uniforms in black color. The way the lens captured the moment they laughed happily showed that they were in the peak of their youth.
And... their faces were somehow familiar to her.
While Tsubaki was thinking, a voice suddenly came from behind, shattering her thoughts away.
"En, do you like that photo? I think you'd recognize your young father in it."
Tsubaki turned around but when she expected to see President Souma, another person was looking at her with a crooked smile.