As soon as Nanjō Honami sat down, Asakura Yasuzumi spoke first.
"About what happened last Friday… I'm truly very sorry. I'd had too much to drink that night. Please allow me to offer you my sincerest apologies."
Honami very nearly pointed straight at his nose and shouted: Liar! Just now you were saying that after today, I'd be yours!
But she held it in, keeping her polite façade firmly in place.
Yet, seeing the look on her face, Asakura Yasuzumi actually chuckled.
"Come now, no need for that expression. A young lady's smile is her greatest beauty."
With that, he brazenly reached out to touch her face—
Instinctively, Honami slapped his hand away.
The moment she did it, she realized: Oh no… after holding back so long, I blew it!
Asakura Yasuzumi's face—still swollen from last Friday—had yet to recover. Now, with Honami's slap landing full force, he let out a piggish wail of pain.
Instantly, all eyes in the room turned to the "little couple."
Out of the corner of her eye, Honami caught a glimpse of her grandfather and made a snap decision to keep up the act. Drawing on every ounce of her acting skill, she plastered her face with concern and apology.
"A-ah, I'm so sorry! It was an instinctive reaction. I… I attend an all-girls' school—I'm not very comfortable around men."
A complete lie, of course. She got along just fine with Kiryu Kazuma.
Asakura Yasuzumi pointed a trembling finger at her. "You—!"
He looked ready to explode—but at the last second, changed his mind. A sly grin crept across his face.
"Ah, no worries, no worries." He waved a hand. "But I'll probably need to ice this face… Someone, fetch me some ice. Nanjō-san, could I borrow your lap for a bit? I'd like to rest my head for a while."
He was openly angling for a lap pillow.
Without missing a beat, Honami replied coolly, "Asakura-san, we are merely engaged. Such an intimate gesture would be inappropriate. Have you forgotten why your father slapped you last Friday? Does the side of your face he struck no longer hurt?"
She knew that by responding this way, her grandfather might suspect she'd been putting on an act earlier. But there was absolutely no way she would let Yasuzumi rest on her lap.
"It's just a lap pillow! Perfectly normal for a fiancée to give her fiancé a lap pillow—and maybe even clean his ears while she's at it!" Yasuzumi pressed.
"I must refuse."
Honami began to slide her seat further away. But Yasuzumi suddenly grabbed the long flowing sleeve of her kimono.
"Don't push your luck! Have you forgotten how you shamed the Asakura family last Friday?"
"I would argue that the one who shamed the Asakura family was you—groping your newly engaged fiancée in public," Honami shot back, her tone sharper than intended as she tried to yank her sleeve free.
But Yasuzumi yanked harder, trying to pull her into his arms.
That's when disaster struck.
Riiip—
The sleeve of Honami's expensive kimono tore with a sharp sound.
And worse—a kitchen knife, concealed inside the sleeve, tumbled out and clattered to the floor.
For a moment, both Honami and Yasuzumi simply stared at the fallen knife.
The air seemed to freeze.
Honami hadn't seen Shaolin Soccer, so she didn't know that the proper response here was to calmly pick up the knife and explain: "As a soon-to-be homemaker, it's perfectly reasonable for me to carry a kitchen knife to prepare meals."
By now, the others had also noticed the fallen knife.
One of the maids let out a sharp scream.
The piercing cry snapped Honami out of her stunned state. Without hesitation, she grabbed the knife.
Her first instinct was to take Yasuzumi hostage.
But even as she thought it, she realized: that would be a crime.
Such an act of violence would forever stain the Nanjō family's reputation.
In a split-second decision, she changed tactics—pressing the blade to her own neck.
Surely holding myself hostage doesn't count as a crime…?
"Nobody move! Stay where you are—or I'll spray blood all over you!"
Honami's fierce shout had an immediate effect.
Everyone froze—bodyguards and maids alike—as if struck by a paralysis spell.
Even Nanjō Hiroshi halted mid-motion, his raised hand poised to give an order, eyes locked on Honami.
"Yes, that's right! Stay put!" Honami barked.
Taking advantage of their hesitation, she dashed toward the edge of the hall—and bolted through the door.
Good—Step One complete: I've escaped the ring of bodyguards and maids!
She quickly sheathed the knife and sprinted at full speed.
Behind her, Nanjō Hiroshi's furious shout echoed through the air.
"Catch her! Now!"
The bodyguards surged after her.
Honami had confidence in her running ability, but these were professional bodyguards—and rumor had it, one of them was a specialist in pursuit.
Relying on her mental map of the building, she took the shortest path toward the stairs—but at the first corner, ran straight into an ambush.
She barely avoided colliding headlong into a bodyguard.
The man was momentarily stunned, but quickly reached out to grab her.
Honami charged straight into him, shoulder-first.
A textbook shoulder strike.
Where she got such strength, even she didn't know—but the much heavier man was sent flying backward, crashing through a paper-paneled window and tumbling to the floor below.
Only then did Honami realize: the hallway's decorative panels weren't frosted glass—they were paper!
No need to take the stairs—I can just jump through the window!
She sprinted toward it.
But just then, a female bodyguard tackled her from behind, wrapping her arms around Honami's waist.
They tumbled to the floor.
"Let me go! Let me go!" Honami screamed desperately, twisting to stab the knife toward the woman's shoulder.
Instead, the blade struck the arm of a male bodyguard who'd just lunged in.
He howled in pain.
But more bodyguards piled on, pinning Honami down.
Struggling fiercely, she lifted her head—staring at the window just within reach.
So close. Just a little more—and I could've leapt out.
Through the rain-streaked window, the night sky was pitch black—no stars, no moon in sight.
But still, Honami reached out toward it with all her strength.
Immediately, several strong hands forced her arm down, pinning her completely.
This is it, Honami thought grimly.
If it comes to this, I'll have to bite my tongue.
She would rather die than marry Asakura Yasuzumi.
That's how deep her revulsion ran.
She suddenly recalled reading that women who bit their tongues to death must have been in unimaginable despair—because it was an excruciating way to go.
Well… whether it's painful or not, I'll know soon enough.
Her resolve hardened.
Just then, a narrow break appeared in the clouded sky.
A single shaft of moonlight pierced through the window, illuminating the corridor.
And in that moment, a familiar figure appeared in Honami's vision.
Bathed in moonlight.
Sword in hand.
(End of Chapter)