A few hours later Mio eyes slowly opened and she gazed at a wooden ceiling. Confused she started to look around to figure out where she was. She gazed around the room and realized she was laying on an incredibly fancy four post bed and the wooden ceiling she just saw was the top. She couldn’t help but notice the sheer curtains that covered every side. Her mind started to wander as she was trying to remember how she got there. “Wait, that’s right. Eizan and I were talking and I suddenly started to feel light headed. Did he carry me here?” She sat up in bed and looked around the room that was slightly obscured by the curtains around her. She could see the silhouette of someone sitting in a chair across the large room. “Eizan is that you?”

The sound of a book shutting could be heard and the silhouette of someone standing up from a chair could be seen. He spoke calmly in a sweet voice. “You’re awake. Did you have good dreams.” He slowly walked up to the bed and peaked through the curtains. She was in a daze as he she saw his face.

“Did you carry me here?”

“Yeah, you suddenly fainted. So, I carried you to our room.”

She blushed and looked down at the bed. “I’m sorry.”

He slowly parted the curtains and crawled onto the bed next to her. “What are you apologizing for? Do you remember what we were talking about before you passed out?”

She shook her head. “No, I don’t.”

He let out a long sigh and rubbed the top of her head. “I guess I should have waited for a better opportunity to unload that much information on you. That’s why I was waiting to tell you.” He grabbed her hands. “I’m the one who should be sorry.”

She shook her head. “No, I’m the one who should be sorry. So, what did you tell me that made me faint?”

“How about we go sit down and have a cup of tea first. The maids just brought me a fresh pot a few minutes ago.”

She nodded her head and he led her to the sitting area on the other side of the room. He sat her down on one side of the small table and he took the seat on the other side. He poured her a cup of tea and sat it down in front of her. She picked it up and took a sip. He was staring at her with a serious look on his face. She sat the cup down in front of her and took a deep breath. “So, what do you want to talk about?”

He picked up his cup of tea and took a sip. “Honestly, I don’t know where to start. I guess I should start at the beginning. It may be a long story but will you listen to it?” She nodded her head. “I haven’t been completely honest with you about a few things.”

She frowned. “Have you been lying to me?”

He took a sip of his tea again. “Not exactly, I just omitted a few things. I kind of thought you might run away if you knew. Like I said it’s a long story. First, I already told you that I’ve always wanted to live a normal life. But truthfully, I’ve always known it wasn’t going to be possible.”

“What do you mean you’ve always known?”

He lightly chuckled. “You’ve been living with me for awhile now. Do you really think it’s possible for me to live a normal life?”

Mio sat there lost in thought for almost half a minute watching him slowly drink his tea. “No, I don’t think it’s possible.”

He sat back in his chair and sighed. He looked like he was looking a thousand kilometers away. “Yeah, I wish it were though.” He sat up in his chair and got a serious look on his face. “I’ve known since I was thirteen that I was going to take over my grandfather’s company. I’ve been rejecting it for years knowing that it was inevitable. But in truth I’ve just been delaying my takeover for as long as possible. If it was up to my grandfather, I would take over for him today. When I was thirteen was the first time, he approached me about running his company. He would come over to our house and have dinner frequently when I was a kid. It was funny at the time I never really thought much about our little talks. He would talk about his business and different things he had experienced on his travels. He would always ask my opinions on different problems he was having. In hindsight that’s probably why I call him a demon. Who asks a ten-year-old his opinion on wars, business deals, or politics. It confused me for years until one day when I was playing in our back yard, I heard grandpa and mom arguing. I couldn’t quite make out what they were fighting about. I eventually made my way inside and found them sitting quietly at the table together. I could tell my mother was upset and my grandfather seemed unhappy. They both turned and looked at me as soon as I entered the room. My grandfather beckoned for me to sit down.”

Eizan let out a small laugh. “You know what’s funny?”

She shook her head. “None of this sounds amusing so far.”

He got a small smile on his face. “Yeah, you might be right about that. But, at the time I thought I was in trouble for something that I had done. I thought I had done something to make them fight. I didn’t realize they were fighting about me. You see my mother wanted me to live as close to a normal life as possible. But my grandfather knew it wasn’t possible for me. That was the day they sat me down and told me that I was the most likely candidate to take over for him. I sat there in shock for a few minutes. I didn’t know what to say. Finaly, I stood up and told them I wanted to think on it for a little while. I could hear my mother crying as I walked away.”

“What was you’re answer at the time?”

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

“Funnily, when I first heard his offer, I wasn’t opposed to the idea. But the look on my mother’s face made me think I might be making the wrong choice.”

“She was worried about your future. She probably just wanted you to be happy.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right. I ended up going for a walk and eventually ended up in the dojo with my father. Of course, he already knew what was happening. He asked me if I had made a decision. I told him I was still thinking about it. We sparred for hours. I was completely lost in thought the whole time. It was the first time I actually landed a hit on him. I don’t even know how it happened. I always wondered if it was because he was distracted.” He picked up his tea and took another sip. He went quiet for almost a full minute.

“So, what did you decide?”

“After completely exhausting myself physically I finally had an epiphany. I had already figured out that I would accept his proposal. I didn’t like it one bit, though. It sounded like a huge headache. I decided then and there that I was going to try to live as normal a life as possible until it was no longer possible. The next day, the old demon showed his smiling face again. What surprised me was that he accepted my decision not to take over his company so easily. I didn’t know at the time but he had seen right through me. He knew I would eventually accept. After a while I figured out that he had seen through my little ruse from the beginning. So, we sat down and had a little talk. He agreed that he would let me live a normal life as long as it was possible.”

“You make it sound like you made a deal with the devil. Do you really hate your grandfather that much?”

Eizan burst out laughing and he wiped a tear from his eye. “Why does everyone think we hate each other? We actually get along very well. He’s, my grandfather. I actually like him a lot. He can be a giant pain in my ass, but he is still family.”

Mio’s eyes widened. “But you call him a demon.”

Eizan’s got a blank look on his face. “That’s because he is.”

Mio burst out laughing. “Yeah, you might be right about that. You really did make a deal with the devil.”

Eizan nodded. “Yup.” He got a small smile on his face. Then he started laughing. “A-Actually, I started calling him that to mess with him. The funny thing is that it has spread all over the world now. People call him that behind his back everywhere now.”

Mio’s mouth gaped open in surprise. “You didn’t?”

“I did.”

“That’s so mean.”

Eizan started giggling. “So, is dropping the weight of the world on a thirteen-year-old. I had to get back at him somehow”

Mio nodded. “Yeah, that’s fair.” She tilted her head to the side. “I don’t think that would have made me faint though.”

Eizan shook his head. “Do you realize how much money is really at stake here?”

“N-not really. I know it’s a lot.”

Eizan sighed. “A lot is an understatement. Mio, there is almost nothing on the planet he couldn’t buy.”

She got a blank look on her face.

“I’m going to inherit that fortune.”

She continued to stare at him. She wasn’t even blinking.

“And you are planning to marry me.” She wasn’t blinking she was just staring at him. After a few seconds he started to wave his hands in front of her face. “Did you faint again?”

She shook her head but still didn’t speak. Eventually her mind finally overcame her shock. “Are you saying that I’m going to be one of the richest people in the world?”

Eizan shook his head. “No, I’m saying you will be marrying the richest person in the world one day. You will need to sign a prenup. I won’t be aloud to marry you otherwise.”

“T-t-the richest person in the world.”

He nodded. “I mean as long as we don’t get passed up by someone else. But the way things are looking now. That may take a while. No, one is close. In all honesty, a lot of the money is hidden away. The public numbers aren’t even half of the wealth he has accumulated. It’s spread out in so many places I’m not even sure if grandpa even knows how much he is worth. It’s stupid really. It’s like he was playing a game of monopoly with the whole planet and winning.”

“But wait. I always heard that secretly the oil barrens in the middle east were the wealthiest people.”

Eizan shook his head. “Nah, there probably fifth. Don’t get me wrong. They are stupid rich as well. Mio, I still don’t think you truly understand.”

She shook her head. “No, I think I get it.”

“Do you? Truly?”

She stared at him for a few seconds. “Do I not?”

“Mio, I don’t think you do.”

“No, I think I get it.”

“Mio, this is buying a private jet for everyday of the week kind of money. You were fretting over the price of a dress a month ago.”

She tilted her head to the side. “Why would you need a jet for different days of the week?”

He laughed and put a hand on his forehead. “That’s what you got from that. You fainted when you found out that one day we will own a castle. That’s not even that expensive of a thing to own.”

“WHAT. A castle isn’t that expensive?”

Eizan shrugged. “I mean it’s probably in the millions. But still in the grand scheme of things it’s not. When you own companies that are worth billions. It’s pocket change.”

“I think I need to lay down again.”

“Nope. Not this time.” He stood up and walked around the table. She was slightly startled at his actions. He grabbed her hands and knelt down in front of her. “Come on you need to stay awake for this.”

She nodded. “So, why are you telling me all this now?”

“Well, I might have already screwed up. I’m not sure if I can go back to a normal life again.”

“What? Why? Is it because who is following you?”

He nodded. “Yeah.”

“Is it that serious?”

“I’m not sure yet. But for I need to ask you. Are you sure you still want to marry me?”

She smiled softly. “Yeah, I’m sure. I already knew you were going to be rich. This doesn’t really change anything. I liked you when I thought you were poor.”

Eizan smiled. “Good. But you’re probably not going to be too happy about the next part. Mio, you are only going to be staying here for three days.”

“Where am I going?”

“You’re going back to your parents’ house.”

“Wait, wait, what?”

He sighed. “And that’s not the part that’s going to make you unhappy.”