The engagement party

Akira knew exactly what he had done and when he saw the public suddenly become suspicious of the KS fashion group, he couldn't help but sit back and laugh like a true villain.

Zaelek, who saw this side of the man, was both a little scared and intrigued.

On the fourth day, the KS fashion group came out and denied all accusations, even going as far as to claim that the car was not theirs. On the same day, the news of Ayami marrying Asahi was once again making headlines, this was a deliberate move done to distract the public and bury the car accident. However, this only worsened the situation even more.

The more KS tried to hide it, the more suspicious it seemed.

On the fifth day, Akira started a live stream with Zaelek by his side.

In the beginning, he avoided talking about the incident and ignored all the comments asking about the same. The live stream was light-hearted and fun for the most part of it but at the end, Akira said something that once again gave birth to a heated discussion.

"I went there to meet Mr. Akira but it seems like no one there knows where he is. I have worked with Mr. Akira before this and from experience, I can tell that he is not such an irresponsible man who would suddenly break off his engagement and announce his retirement. I'm sure something must have happened to him. I can only hope that it's not something serious."

Everyone immediately looked at Mr. Watanabe for answers but the man continued to be silent.

Three days later, an engagement party was organized for Ayami and Asahi. Yuzu and Kaito were also invited to the party in order to show the world that there was no bad blood between the company and them.

Akira attended the party with Zaelek and once again met Mr. Watanabe who did not look pleased to see him.

"You have been causing me quite a lot of trouble recently," Mr. Watanabe gritted out through his forced smile, "It's almost as if you are begging for some attention. If there is a problem, why don't we talk it out? Why involve the media like this?"

Akira wanted to laugh at the man's face as he heard this.

"Mr. Watanabe, what problem could I possibly have with you? I was only worried about the welfare of Mr. Akira. Who knows if he's alive or dead."

Mr. Watanabe's face stiffened as he heard this but he said nothing in response.

"By the way, this wine is excellent," Akira added as he raised his glass with a smirk, almost taunting Mr. Watanabe.

"What the hell do you know?" No longer pretending to be nice, Mr. Watanabe harshly grabbed Akira's arm as he threateningly questioned.

Akira smirked as he saw this reaction and spoke in a whisper, "Mr. Watanabe, do not get so worked up. You don't want to attract unwanted attention today, do you?"

Mr. Watanbe gritted his teeth as he let go of Akira's arm and warned, "Do not make an enemy out of me."

"I could say the same to you as well," Akira replied, shrugging his shoulder as he walked away and joined Zaelek.

"Be careful," Zaelek whispered with a sigh, "You might give the man a heart attack."

"Don't worry, he's not that weak."

Ayami, along with Asahi, climbed on the stage and tapped the mic as she spoke, "Thank you so much to everyone who has come here to congratulate us. Things have been really rough lately and your support means the world to us."

When Akira saw Asahi, he almost felt his heart stop. He was reminded of that day when Asahi pushed him off the balcony. His fingertips turned cold and his face stiffened up. Till now, he had managed to handle everything quite well, but as soon as he saw Asahi's face, there was a rush of anger that almost took control of his body.

Zaelek, who noticed the change in Akira's expression, softly grabbed the man's face and reassuringly squeezed it as he spoke, "It's okay. I'm here."

Akira let out a soft chuckle as he distracted himself with Zaelek and asked teasingly, "Are you trying to comfort me?"

Zaelek rolled his eyes as he heard this and clicked his tongue without saying anything.

"Thank you," Akira spoke, genuinely feeling grateful for the man's reassurance.

Zaelek couldn't help but feel an unknown emotion sweep through his heart and he immediately coughed as he changed the topic and asked, "So what's the plan?"

"It's staring at you right in the face," Akira replied with a small smile as he looked over at Asahi Sato, who was staring back at the two of them.

Zaelek's eyebrows creased together and he frowned slightly as he saw this.

The party enthusiastically continued till dawn and Akira got to talk to Asahi somewhere during the night.

It would be a lie if he said it was a coincidence. After all, Akira had planned this and approached Asahi on purpose.

Asahi looked as if he was a bit vary of Akira. It seemed like Mr. Watanabe had already warned him about Yuzu.

"I have to say, your engagement was quite the surprise," Akira softly chuckled as he spoke.

Asahi awkwardly chuckled as he heard this but said nothing.

Akira brought over a glass of wine and handed it over to Asahi as he spoke, "Do you care to join me for a drink?"

Asahi looked at the glass of wine and was a bit surprised as he spoke, "How did you know what I like?"

Akira smiled, "There's not much that I don't know about you. I'm a fan."

Zaelek suddenly appeared and joined the two as he spoke, "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"Mr. Kaito," Asahi happily greeted the man, "It's a pleasure to have you here. I hope you are enjoying the party so far."

"Well, I was enjoying it till my partner suddenly decided to ditch me and flirt with you instead," Zaelek joked, not actually looking to be amused.

Akira chuckled as he heard this and hooked his arm around Zaelek's arm as he spoke, "What are you talking about? I was only trying to make new friends."

"Friends?" Zaelek raised an eyebrow as he looked at Asahi and continued, "What an unusual pair."

Akira stepped on Zaelek's foot and glared at the man, not understanding why Zaelek was suddenly interrupting them and ruining Akira's plan.

Asahi coughed and cleared his throat as he took his wine glass and spoke, "It looks like you guys have a lot to talk about. Perhaps we can drink together another time."

Without even waiting for a response, Asahi turned and left the two.

"What the hell was that?" Akira crossed his arms as he questioned.

Zaelek shrugged his shoulders, "What do you mean?"

"You chased him away!"

"I just chased away your murderer, shouldn't you be a little thankful?"

Akira pursed his lips into a thin line and glared at the man as he heard this.

"Why are you even trying to get close to him? Don't you want to know how and why you died?"

"I need to know," Akira firmly spoke, his eyebrows creasing together, "That's exactly why I need to get close to him."

"He won't say anything. You are wasting your time."

"Well, you don't know him as I do," Akira argued.

"I might not know him as you do but I've seen plenty of guys like him. They pretend to be innocent till the end and blame the world for their wrongdoings. Your Asahi is no different."

Akira clenched his fist as he heard this and shouted, "Why do you always have to argue with me?! You act like you know everything but when it comes down to it, you know nothing! You are supposed to be fulfilling my wish but all you do is get in my way!"

"I'm only trying to help you."

"Well, I don't need your help!" Akira angrily shouted as he kicked the man's shin before turning to leave, "Don't follow me out!"

"Fine!" Zaelek also shouted back stubbornly, "Since you don't want my help, I won't bother!"

Akira went straight to his car and got in, but did not drive off just yet. Although he was angry, he still waited for Zaelek to come.

After about ten minutes, Kaito showed up and got in the car.

As soon as Akira saw him, he scoffed as he asked, "What the hell took you so long?"

Kaito tilted his head in confusion, looking to be a bit stunned by Yuzu's behavior.

"Let's just go," Akira clicked his tongue in annoyance as he started the car and drove off with Kaito.

Throughout the whole drive, Kaito did not dare say anything and Akira also kept his mouth closed, refusing to speak to the man.

Only when they got back to the villa did Akira realize that there was something wrong with 'Kaito'.