As they arrived at their destination, he was greeted by familiar scenery around the area. He had always thought that the place where the party was held would be on a classic, luxurious, or elegant building, yet it seemed it was grander than that.

If he had to say, this place was like a botanical garden.

Many trees were planted around the area from Zelkova to Elm, which was large enough to cover the surrounding area. He could even see some ancient trees, which age should reach hundreds or even thousands of years in the area, which was something one wouldnt think would be able to see here.

As he walked, he felt like he was walking under the canopy of trees. It was a unique feeling, especially when he could see the stars and moon through the gap in the tree branches.

Even if you have money, it is impossible to buy this place.

I never thought Id buy this place.

His lips twitched, but the reason why he was quite stunned was that this place was quite similar to his villa in Karuizawa. However, this place was more expensive since it was located in the center of Tokyo, where the land price was so high.

Still, he also couldnt deny his fathers words since even if you had money, sometimes, there was something that you couldnt buy. This place, if it was sold, would give a lot of money to the Imperial Family, but when someones money had reached a certain threshold, they didnt need money. Instead, what they needed was status.

This land and everything in this place was a symbol.

A symbol that the Imperial Family still existed from 660 BC until now.

Is that the place?

Yes.

After leaving the car, they saw the most prominent building at the parks center. As expected, the building might not seem extraordinary, screaming how amazing or grand this place was, yet if one looked closely, one could see the subdued and intricate beauty that came from this building.

If people would picture the best building as gold or something that attracted the eyes the most, shining, brightly, almost blinding, this place was like a moon. It might not be the brightest, and compared to the stars, it was rather dim, yet among millions of stars, only the moon was the most beautiful.

Somehow he wanted to build this kind of place in Kyoto in the future.

He didnt doubt that Kyoto would be his base in the future, where he would build his roots before extending his branches everywhere.

There are sure a lot of maple trees here. It was his first time here, so this collection of maple trees surprised him.

Along the path where they walked, there were many types of maple trees. Unlike the giant one, it was small and beautiful. They were like beautiful ladies coquettishly winking in their direction, hoping to stop and appreciate their beauty.

Its normal. The maple has a meaning of longevity. Having an old age, isnt that the hope of people with power? Takumi said frankly.

Unlike those peasants that were cruelly beaten by fate, the noble, the one who stood at the top, and was led by everyone, naturally lived at best. It wouldnt be strange to call their life heaven on earth. Naturally, they were reluctant to die and wanted to enjoy their life as long as they could.

Hearing that, the beautiful maple trees somehow became ugly, and it made him sigh.

Stand straight. Dont show a shameful action or words like you used before, okay? Shioriko reprimanded him. This wasnt her first time being invited to this kind of occasion with her husband, but they had never invited Shishio in the past since they were afraid he might create trouble. They also knew he didnt like this kind of trouble, so they didnt invite him. However, he is different now.

Shishio has changed.

He was like an elegant butterfly that emerged from an ugly caterpillar.

If Shishio knew that his parents would compare his past to a caterpillar, he would be speechless, but talking back to his parents was definitely the most tedious thing in the world. It was fortunate that neither of them talked about this problem since they were about to enter the party.

Before they entered, they were greeted by a group of Imperial Guards consisting of 900 strong police forces and a group of servants tasked to greet the guests.

He didnt do anything and just stood in silence next to his mother.

The three of them were together, and his mother was in the middle between him and his father. Still, he could feel many gazes on him, but this was normal since he knew how handsome he was. He knew that he seemed narcissistic, but it might not be strange to compare him to either Narcissus or Adonis in the Greek Myth.

Welcome, Oga-sama. Please let me lead you inside.

As the servant led them, they entered the building where the party was held. An imposing wooden tree appeared before them before it was opened by the servant. As the door opened, they could see the scenery inside. The bright yet gentle bright were easy to see.

Shishio didnt look around like before but appeared calm as he had been on this type of occasion thousands of times. Still, he had to say this place was grand and luxurious. The ground was fully covered with a soft maroon carpet, many chandeliers decorated the ceiling, and there was a large wall made entirely from glass, so one could see the scenery of the garden and man-made lake.

On the other hand, the food was also luxurious.

He could see caviar, bluefin tuna, wine, and other various ingredients prepared by the dedicated chef on the spot.

Thats how noble the party is.

Still, if one thought that this party would be stiff and formal, with one having to watch each one of their etiquettes, it would be wrong. Instead, they were rather free, and he could even hear them telling a dirty joke on the side with a great laugh.

Yet he wasnt surprised by this.

Everyone in this place, all of them, was part of 1% of the population in this country. In other words, they were leaders. When they were outside, they needed to maintain their image since, as the boss or someone with prestige, they needed to act like the people of their standing do.

If he gave an example, it was like how a boss would usually communicate with his followers, employees, or the people below him. The boss had to act with dignity, pride, and an air of importance, showing everyone that he was at the top of the organization, so their subordinates would follow his words and orders as if their lives depended on it. Most people might not agree with this, and many might think this is arrogant.

However, he felt this wasnt wrong. Instead, it was correct.

If the boss acted too closely with his subordinates like they were friends, their subordinates would lack respect and fear toward the boss. They would all be lazy since they knew their boss wouldnt do anything against them. When they hear their bosss order, they might argue, telling them their method might be better.

This was why it was necessary to put an air of importance, especially when one was a leader. It wasnt because they were arrogant. Instead, it was demanded.

When that happened, one could see what would happen to the organization, right?

If this was a company, this company would go bankrupt since no one would listen to the boss.

In other words, appearance, etiquette, style, the choice of words, and many others werent there because it was to show off. Instead, all of them were necessary for life.

However, this place was different. All of them were in a similar status, so there was no need for them to act like they were outside, and they could talk freely without the worry of anything. Still, minimum etiquette was still necessary, so those who talked about sex were talking on the side, and most of them were talking about economics or something that had happened around them lately.

Huh? Are they talking about an underground arena?

His ears were good, so he could hear what was happening around him, but he didnt expect that he would hear about the fight in the underground arena. However, suddenly, he felt it was normal since he knew that the people who could enter this place had a qualification to watch the underground arena.

Still, as they entered, they immediately became the center of attention, and he could see many eyes on him.

Ah, Takumi! Its been a while!

Yo.

Takumi and Shioriko quickly found their friends before they were all looking at him.

This is my son. Shishio Oga.

Oh! I didnt expect that his son would be so handsome.

After all, Takumi or Shioriko had never brought Shishio to this type of party, so everyone was surprised when they saw him. Still, some people somehow looked at him with doubt, wondering where they had seen him.

Are you the writer of the Kitchen, Shishio-kun?

Yes.

Unlike Takumi and his friends, Shiorikos friends were more excited about him.

If I know you have such a handsome son, I will engage my daughter with your son

Many somehow regretted it, but they knew that everything about his engagement was on the way.

He was silent and sighed, thinking that everyone in this place should have heard about his engagement, but this wasnt a good thing since it would be hard for him to reject it.

The engagement hasnt been settled yet, right? Its better for him to be with my daughter.

.

He felt speechless since he wasnt treated as a human but as a property to prosper a family. This annoyed him, but he ignored all of them since, in his eyes, they were nothing but a lump of meat. If he talked, he knew they would think of him as rude for talking back to an elder. He also didnt want to trouble his parents.

Still, he also knew that they were excited because of his genes.

I have never forced an engagement. He might reject this engagement since he has a girlfriend.

Hearing Takumis words, his mood was slightly better.

Is he going to follow your route, Takumi?

As they talked to each other, he was stunned when he saw someone unexpected.

Haruno-san?

Yukinoshita Haruno.

He could tell that she had been watching him the moment he entered. While she didnt show her usual hyperactive gesture, the smile in her eyes was obvious. It was like she was teasing him. Still, he didnt think to approach her. Instead, it was better to talk with a group of cute young ladies in front of him. Unlike Haruno, they didnt seem good with conspiracy, and as a flower in the greenhouse, no one would expect that he was a caterpillar that would greedily eat all of them.

Yet the plan couldnt keep up with the change.

Shishio!

This voice was rather loud, so everyone was quickly attracted, but his lips twitched when he saw the person who called him out. Tokugawa-san?