In a business hotel room.
As soon as Noran put down his luggage, he settled onto the leather couch to check his phone. Amidst the flood of work messages and emails, he found no reply from Shuri. Upon landing at the airport an hour ago, he had sent her a message, but he noticed she hadn't read it.
"She shouldn't be busy at this time. Did something happen?" Noran murmured to himself.
After spending twelve years together, Noran knew Shuri's schedule well. She was a simple girl who preferred to lead a routine life and would often update him on her daily encounters and activities. He eagerly looked forward to her updates every time. In fact, he felt strange if he didn't hear from her even for a single night.
Noran proceeded to call Shuri without hesitation.
Anxiety began to creep in as the phone continued to ring without her answering. Was she feeling unwell? Had something happened to her? Was she avoiding him? Did she find out about the incident that night?
His heart jumped by a bit when it got connected as he quickly spoke, "Rin?"
There was a brief silence on the other end before a reply came through, "…Ran."
Her voice sounded a little hoarse.
"Rin, are you alright? Are you crying?" Noran asked, instantly catching the changes in her voice.
"It-It's nothing. I was watching a sad drama…" Shuri quickly came up with an excuse. "I'm glad you arrived safely, Ran."
Noran smiled, feeling relief. "Was the drama really that sad?"
"Yeah… the female lead was destined to die and leave the male lead behind."
"That's indeed sad," Noran replied truthfully.
Shuri paused for brief while before asking, "Ran, what would you do if you were the male lead?"
Noran was surprised by the question but didn't hesitate to answer, "I'll do my best to save her."Top of Form
"What if there's no way to save her?"
"I'll just die with her," Noran answered immediately.
"No, you mustn't!" Shuri raised her voice over the phone, shocking Noran.
"Rin, what's wrong? Why are you getting so worked up over a drama?" Noran asked in concern.
He had hardly seen Shuri getting emotional like that.
"I-I'm sorry, I just feel sorry for the male lead. I want him to live a happy life…" Shuri quickly explained, realizing her mistake.
Noran smiled. "You're always so kind and sentimental."
"Ran…" Shuri breathed his name.
"Hmm?"
"Do you think you can be happy?"
Noran frowned in concern when he thought Shuri was acting strange. "Rin, why do you keep asking me such questions? Is there something you'd like to tell me?"
There was a pause on the other end before Shuri replied, "It's nothing. I just got a bit too emotional after watching such a sad ending."
"Let's watch a comedy together once I come home. I don't like seeing you sad," Noran suggested.
"Sure. I'll wait for you." Shuri managed to smile.
They talked for a while longer before hanging up.
After Noran put down his phone, he thought he had to quickly settle the handover and cut all ties with Sophia, so he could live peacefully with Shuri like before.
However, things didn't go according to what he had wanted.
The handover seemed to take more time than he had expected. For the next few days, Noran worked tediously with the team at the headquarters, and halfway through their meeting, his director came into the meeting room to inform him that he had some important guests waiting for him in his office.
When Noran returned to his office after the meeting, he was dumbfounded to find his parents, Julia Park and Damon Kingston, whom he had never seen for 12 years waiting for him there.
No matter how many years had passed, they remained some of the individuals he never wanted to meet again.
"I have no interest in whatever you have to say. Please leave." Noran didn't bother greeting them and simply left the door open.
Julia scoffed. "We haven't seen you for 12 years, and is that how you're going to greet us?"
Noran realized they hadn't changed even after a decade.
"I have already left the Kingston family 12 years ago. I believe we're no longer related," Noran replied, not bothering to even look them in the eyes.
Damon chuckled sarcastically. "Ha! Son, you can change your last name, but you can't change the fact that you've got the royal bloodline flowing in you."
Besides being known as the Musical Monarchs, the Kingston family held a unique position in society, their lineage tracing back to the hallowed halls of royalty. In the modern era, their prestigious family name carried significant weight, evoking admiration and envy alike.
Although the Kingston name remained a symbol of elegance and tradition, drawing many to yearn for inclusion within its illustrious ranks, Noran wasn't interested in carrying their name or lineage. He had the Kingston name removed from his birth registry, believing he could cut all ties with everyone from the Kingston family.
However, upon returning to the city after twelve years, they had to come looking for him.
How bothersome!
He wanted to get rid of them quickly and finish up his work so he could hurry back home to see Shuri.
"I don't care about what you have to say," Noran continued, speaking to them with a cold tone. "You're disrupting my work by entering my office without an appointment. If you persist on staying, I'll have to call security to escort you out."
Julia smirked. "Do you think the security would dare to touch us? Even your boss doesn't dare to refuse our request."
Noran remained silent, fully aware of the special treatment the Kingston family received from society.
"Well, we're quite impressed by how much you've achieved on your own. When you were young, you excelled as a pianist, and now you've become a renowned architect all on your own. As expected, our son is a genius in everything you do."
Damon paused, a pleased expression crossing his face before he added, "However, no matter how much of a genius you are, you lack power, so this is as far as you can go, son."
"Since you aren't going to leave, then I'll go."
Growing impatient with their nonsensical speech, Noran turned to leave.
"Do you not care about the girl you chose to marry?"
As expected, Julia's question stopped Noran in his tracks.
He turned back to glare at his parents coldly. "Don't get her involved in this."
Julia and Damon were a little startled by his anger, but they weren't shaken because they believed their son could do nothing to them.
"We didn't. She and her sister were the ones who got involved with your ex-fiancée, Sophia," Julia replied.
"What?" Noran was startled.
Julia smirked. "You haven't heard the news yet? It's one of the top stories today."
Ignoring his parents, Noran quickly took out his phone and checked the latest news trend.
His eyes widened with terror.