CC Headquarters
Misaki kept walking back and forth outside Kro's office, nervously biting her fingernails. Her plan seemed to have backfired, sooner than she expected. She had made a careless move and that gave her massive a headache.
Talking to Kro about it seemed like a good idea, but she was scared
"What if she's in a bad mood? But I have to tell her, if I don't things will get messy! What should I do? Think Misaki, think!",
The door slowly fell open behind her and the secretary peeped outside. She had been seeing her shadow moving under the door for almost 10 minutes. She needed to see if she could help the person with something
"Hi there!", called the secretary
Misaki quickly turned around, a bit startled from the sudden greeting. She changed her expression,
"Hi, I'm Misaki. Is the president in?", she asked as she took some steps forward
"Yes, she is, do you want to speak with her?",
"Well yes. If she's in a good mood",
"Don't worry, let me tell her you're here",
"Appreciate it",
The secretary went back inside, and a minute later she opened the door again
"She'll see you now",
"Okay, thank you",
Misaki gulped nervously, exhaling heavily while cracking her knuckles. She was ready to drop the bomb.
Kro patiently waited for her to walk in. She was alone in the office, Uk outdoors performing his duties. From the way she observed Misaki as she stepped inside, she could see the worried look in her eyes. It became certain that whatever she wanted to talk about wasn't work-related
"Morning Misaki, please have a seat", said Kro, making her comfortable
"Thank you, boss",
She pulled a chair and sat. Her hands rested on her lap, finding the correct phrase to commence,
"How may I help you?", asked Kro, clearing Misaki's way to start stating her concerns
"I'm really sorry Miss Kro. I'm supposed to be here talking about work, but instead I'm here talking about my dad",
"Oh!",
"I know you guys aren't in good terms after he came here and destroyed your day. That really disappointed me and _ and I became worried",
"About what?",
"Miss Kro, my dad has an anger issue, he can't control himself when he's mad. He'll do anything to get his revenge. I don't want anything bad to happen to you",
"I know it's hard for you, but you don't have to worry about it_",
"I'm friends with one of his bodyguards, so yesterday when I left his office, he told me what went down, you know what I mean?", she interrupted her, wanting to finish explaining herself first
"No Misaki, I don't know what you mean",
"I thought I did the right thing by going to my dad's office and threatening him. I made him think I was going to make a scene at the lobby, but I left. So, he thinks you're responsible for what I did",
Kro leaned back on her chair with a chuckle. It was a serious news, but she didn't look bothered at all. Compared to all the things she'd gone through over the centuries, that was nothing. She understood why Misaki was terrified, she was human afterall
"Misaki, girl, just get back to work, okay? I'll solve this with your dad very soon, you won't even know it",
"Look, you need to be careful. Don't be by yourself all the time, have someone beside you_",
"If your dad wants to kill me, he can do that even if I have 100 people around me, he'll just target the bullet over my neck then boom! I'll be gone, just try to think of other things, okay?",
"But boss_",
"Hey, I won't die. That's my assurance, I will neither die nor the minister",
Misaki remained staring at Kro pitifully. She knew people who told her the same thing but ended up in the pits, she never saved any of them. May be now, she would be able to stop Kro's fate, thinking she was like everyone else.
....
The Marketing Director's Office
Sue's memories of the night she went drinking with Kro were still juggled up. She couldn't even remember what they talked about, but one thing though was that one memory of her speaking of her husband's death. It was the darkest secret that she never wanted anyone to know about. It was also something her mother-in-law used to torture her.
It bothered her whenever the voice of her talking about it popped in her head. She really needed to know if she really said something about it to Kro or not. She wasn't peaceful, feeling so naked
"Did I _ did I tell her about it?", she asked herself, working her brain hard
She suddenly heard a knock at the door. She quickly opened the files which were resting in front of her, acting like she wasn't in deep thoughts a second ago
"Come in", she said
"Thanks, I thought you'll make me stand out there for so long", said Kro as she closed the door behind her
Sue felt her heart skipping a beat. She kept looking at Kro as she walked towards the table and finally sitting down. She looked so dumbfounded, like a thief caught red-handed.
Kro couldn't understand the vibe Sue was giving her. She looked so terrified
"Okay. What's going on?", she asked, trying to see if she could help her too
"Miss Kro",
"I've been waiting for those files to get to my office, but they never seemed to arrive Are you still going through them?",
"Oh, yes, I'm really sorry. My mind's been really messed up",
"Why? Because of Zoe and the boarding school?",
"Uh, yeah! How did_",
"You told me about it over the drinks, you were drunk so it's natural for you not to remember anything",
She needed to ask. She needed to know if her secret was safe or not. She needed to be aware. She nervously bit her lower lip as she leaned forward
"Miss Kro, tell me the truth, did I tell you something else? I mean, different from Zoe",
"Is there something you wanted to tell me about?",
"No, it's just that I feel like I said something crazy. Did I perhaps say something which sounded serious?",
"(She's bothered by it. She can't even say it to my face, then it means one thing, she was telling the truth)", thought Kro as she quietly looked at her.
The silence bothered Sue, she became more and more uneasy
"Boss, please, did I_",
"Oh, I remember! You called your mother-in-law a 'stupid devil'! That really sounded serious",
"That's it?",
"That's it", Kro stood up and pushed the chair forward, "Now, finish putting your signature on the files and bring them to me, we don't have time to waste",
Sue felt relieved to the point of smiling at her boss' comment. She thought her secret was out (which was true), but it became the best day for her that week when Kro proved she didn't know about it
"Okay boss. I'll bring them to your office myself", said Sue, brightly
"Good",
....
Ukraine threw his coat on the bed. He just got off work. He was in the perfect mood to finally confront his father. He gave him a whole day to breath, and now it was time for the interrogation.
He scrolled through his phone till he saw Song's number. He called it, put it on speaker and placed it on the table. He eagerly waited for him to pick up, he impatiently waited, and things became real when his father responded.
"Ukraine",
"Dad, evening",
"Evening, let me guess, this phone call is about my visitation at your job", said Song, not choosing to beat around the bush
"Correct! All I want to know is why? Why do that? Why go against our plan?",
"The plan is still the same son, what I did was my plan",
"Care to tell me about it?",
"Then what?",
"Then I'll know what to do once you do that shit again!",
"Shit? You think what I did was shit? Is this how you're going to be now, huh?",
"Dad, what do you want with her? Why did you act all lovey-dovey with her? I saw that look, it's the same vibe you gave the girls at the gym! Do you want to mess with her?",
"That is none of your business!",
"Do you like Kro?", asked Uk, surprise detected all over his tone
"I don't have to explain anything to you, you hear me? Do your mission and let me do mine!",
"DAMN MAN! She's a freaking ghost! You want to mess with a ghost too! What has gotten into_",
"TREAT HER WITH RESPECT! DON'T INSULT HER!", Song harshly commanded,
"AND YOU'RE CRAZY, MAN! Are all the women dead? Oh, sorry, my bad, that's your type now, dead girls!",
"HEY!",
"She's going to find out about this mission very freaking soon if you keep appearing in front of her like yesterday! She's going to know who you are, she's going to know who I am and who grandpa and grandma are! I don't know what she'll do to all of us!",
"If you're scared, just back off! As I said, nobody forced you to do this_",
"So, when did all this begin? When you saw the photos? When? 2 years ago?",
"30 years ago",
"What?", Ukraine was definitely taken aback, "Did you say 30 years ago?",
"Yes, she came to my presentation, and I fell in love with her. From there onwards, I swore to make her mine, and after waiting for many years, I finally have a chance to do that",
"I don't mean to sound hateful, but then what? She doesn't even remember you_",
"SHE WAS GOING TO BE YOUR MOTHER!",
"OH, HELL MAN! You wanted to make me the son of a ghost? C'mon, stop this dad, you're crazy! It's a bad idea all way around",
"I think this conversation is over! Have a good night",
"Dad-da-dad_", he couldn't finish what he wanted to say as his dad hung up on him.
That conversation was a nightmare, he regretted having it.
"I need a long shower!",
He was frustrated.
.....
AZARADAN
The palace-Night
Kro stood guard outside the crown prince's chamber, holding her sword tightly in her hand. The night was cold, very cold that it passed through her leather armor. She was lowkey trembling, but it didn't bother her since she was a soldier, it was something she was used to. It was her day one to walk with him. She was just waiting for him to finish taking his bath, getting dressed in something warm and proceed with the night walks.
The door slid open, and one maid jumped outside. Seeing Kro's back, she directly assumed it was a man
"Sir, the crown prince is requesting your presence_",
"Sir?", Kro, surprised, said as she turned around to see who said that,
When the maid saw that it was a woman, she quickly bowed her head
"I apologize, I didn't expect it to be you, captain Kro!",
"It's okay, let's go!",
But she was surprised to see the maid blocking her way, her head still bowed down
"What's going on? You said the crown prince requested my presence",
"I thought you were a man, he needs you to be there as he takes his bath!",
"I'm sorry, what?",
"The crown prince asked all the maids responsible for his bath to leave, he needed you to handle the task",
"Oh my!",
The maid turned around and led the way. Kro had to follow her inside too, she had to comply. She got shown the crown prince's bath robe, essential oils, brushes and hair bands. She just kept nodding like a kid, having no clue of what was happening
"That is all, captain, I'll take my leave now", said the maid after finishing her job,
"Aren't you supposed to stay_",
"No, it's the crown prince's order",
"KRO! COME INSIDE WITH MY ROBE!", shouted the prince from his bathroom chamber,
The maids rushed out of the room.
Kro had no other choice. She carried the robe and slowly walked to the bathroom. She had been spending time with men all her life, watching them as they bathed and as they got dressed, it was normal to her. But it felt weird to see the prince bathing.
The prince was laying in his wooden tab, eagerly waiting for her to walk inside. Kro's head was lowered. She didn't even want to see his skin. His robe was now resting around her knuckles,
"How's this? Warm, right?", asked the prince
Kro nodded.
"I knew it. By the way, it's very cold outside, I think I'll spend the night in my room, or should I just walk despite it? What do you think?",
"Both ideas sound great_",
"But if it was you, what would you choose?",
"My choice doesn't matter_",
"It matters to me, I want to listen to you, what would you choose?",
"Having a walk outside. The night is cold, but it's calm and beautiful, it will be relaxing",
"Okay, we'll take a walk then", said Buk, smiling,
Kro nodded,
"You know, I find this fascinating. All women I met either liked beauty or culinary, so I don't know why you decided to be a soldier instead, why?",
"I was born like this, my prince",
"Until they made you the captain, it means you're extraordinary",
She nodded, her head still lowered,
"I want you to teach me how to fight!", said Buk
"I will hurt you",
"And why is that?",
"My training is the hardest thing a man could ever go through. You won't be able to walk straight for 30 days",
"And you think I can't handle that?",
"I think I'm not ready to see you crying in front of a woman",
A heavy laughter escaped his lips, and it went on for some time. Whenever he looked at her, he began laughing again. Maybe it was also because he was happy that she was there, but in his imagination, she was the closest thing to perfection.
*****