Harem Startup : The Demon Billionaire is on Vacation-Chapter 549: I Smell Espionage

Chapter 549 – I Smell Espionage

Elyndra flinched.

The silence afterward was heavy. Way too heavy for breakfast. The kind of quiet where even the clink of silverware felt rude.

Ely hesitated. She was still standing there like a statue. Her gaze flicked to Lux, then to the empty chair across from him, then back to Lux again. Her mouth opened. Closed. She shifted on her heels, hands clasped awkwardly in front of her like a guilty schoolgirl about to confess a crime.

Lux tilted his head, and in that lazy, tired voice of his, said, "I smell espionage."

Mira’s eyes narrowed instantly. "Ely..."

Ely groaned under her breath. "Okay, okay, fine! I’ll explain, alright? But I need to sit."

Nobody invited her. But she still grabbed a chair and dragged it across the polished floor with the most excruciating screech ever created by mortal furniture.

Rava winced.

Lullaby’s ears flattened.

Corvus, who was pretending to be a totally normal crow on the curtain rod, actually lifted one claw to his head like he had a migraine.

Ely sat down beside Lux and gripped his hand.

Just... grabbed it.

Like it was some kind of emotional life raft.

Lux’s body stiffened. His brow twitched. The girls all collectively cringed, and Mira looked like she might reach across the table and slap the chair out from under Ely.

But Ely didn’t even notice. Or maybe she did and just didn’t care.

She took a breath.

"So last night," she began, still clinging to Lux’s hand like she needed to siphon his mana or something, "I felt it. The resonance. Like holy magic... no, not just holy magic. It was bigger. It was music. Melody. Hymns that felt like they weren’t even from this world."

Lux’s expression didn’t change, but his eyes sharpened a bit.

"I followed the trace," Ely continued. "And it led me here."

Sira folded her arms. "So you broke into the house because you heard... church music?"

Ely shot her a glare. "I didn’t break in! I—okay, I might’ve... snuck in. A little. Just a little. Not even past the gate since that security of yours rejected me. Said you have important guests. I was going to ask Lux directly. I was! But then..."

Her cheeks flushed. Her voice dropped.

"...I felt weird."

Lux blinked. "Weird?"

Ely coughed. "Let’s call it a... personal matter."

That earned a scoff from Naomi, who was buttering toast with far more aggression than needed.

Lux raised an eyebrow. "Okay. And this... personal weirdness led you to what, exactly?"

"I wanted to take a look around. That’s all," Ely mumbled. "Just to see if I could understand the source of that hymn. That resonance. It was like someone opened a divine rift or something. It didn’t feel... stable. It was like this whole place got touched by something ancient."

Rava, sipping her tea like the composed kraken she was, finally spoke. "Ancient things tend to be dangerous when you stare too long."

Ely nodded slowly, unaware of just how on-the-nose that was. "Exactly. So I tried another way. Like... spying. A bit. Since... I wanted to know."

Mira stabbed her fork into her rice like she was imagining it was someone’s face. "Still not explaining how you knew Lux was injured. All that blabbering, and you’re dodging the actual question."

Ely straightened. "Oh! That part’s easy. The hospital told me."

Everyone froze.

Even Corvus made a sound that was definitely not a caw.

Ely glanced around, confused by the sudden shift in mood. "What? Naomi called the hospital, right? My family owns that hospital. We get notified about everything that happens there."

Naomi, eyes wide, whispered, "Oh my god."

"You own the hospital?" Mira deadpanned.

"We just bought it," Ely said. "And I’m on the board. They keep me in the loop. I was notified when Naomi called in panic, and I bet something happened. So... here I am."

Lullaby leaned over to Sira and whispered, "Should we smother her with a pillow now or later?"

Sira grunted. "Later. I want to hear her dig this grave deeper."

Ely, to her credit, still wasn’t picking up the danger in the room. "Look, I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I panicked. Then I thought about last night’s resonance. And I thought it was related. Now I see you, and you look like you just got punched by a demon lord."

Lux rubbed his temple. "I was, actually."

Ely blinked. "Wait, seriously?"

Lullaby’s tiny gasp was adorable and not at all reassuring. "Oops."

Sira rolled her eyes. "Yeah. Demon-punched. Realm-scanned. Sealed-level magic signature clash. The usual Tuesday."

Ely’s jaw dropped. "Are you joking?"

"No," Naomi muttered, pushing her chair back with a tired sigh. "He fought his uncle."

"Wait..." Ely blinked, trying to compute the words. "You mean, like... they actually fought? As in... threw punches? Tried to kill each other?"

Lux, sitting on the couch with a half-buttoned silk shirt and gauze still hugging his ribs, gave her a dry look.

"Thanks for the summary," he said flatly.

Ely gasped. "That’s awful!"

"It was," Lux replied calmly, then went back to sipping the last of his golden-recovery potion like it was espresso. No emotion on his face. No drama. Just the kind of serenity that came after burning the world and realizing it hadn’t helped.

"Are you..." Ely hesitated. "Are you okay now?"

There it was. That soft edge in her voice. That tremble of worry trying not to sound like something more.

Lux exhaled, then offered her a tired but polite smile. "I’m fine."

"Do you... need anything?" she asked gently. "Any help? I can call someone or—"

"No," he said. "Thank you. But I’m good."

"Oh," Ely mumbled, blinking again. "Okay. I just... wanted to offer."

Then she cleared her throat awkwardly and tried to change the subject. "And—about last night. That resonance... the light, the hymns, the divine singing...?"

Naomi raised a hand before she could finish. "That’s a secret, Ely."

Ely blinked. "A secret?"