Harem Startup : The Demon Billionaire is on Vacation-Chapter 679: I’m Still Paying The Price
Chapter 679 – I’m Still Paying The Price
Corvus sighed. "Boss... you’re in a bad position."
Lux tilted his head. "You mean the position where I’m alive?"
"The position where everyone wants you not to be."
The grin faded from Lux’s lips. His tone dropped, quieter.
"Well..."
A beat.
"CFOs tend to have that problem."
He turned back to the hall, hands sliding into the pockets of his slacks.
"Celestials want me erased because my contracts break their sanctity clauses."
Another finger.
"And demons? Especially demons?"
He stopped walking.
His voice grew colder. Softer. Heavy with something Corvus rarely heard from him: fatigue.
"They want me dead... because I didn’t ask for power. I earned it. Faster. Sharper. And with less blood. With a lot of contracts. I weaponized Greed more than any Lord of Greed in the past."
Corvus stayed quiet. His claws tapped faintly against the iron frame.
"You’re tired of this kind of life," he finally said. "Aren’t you?"
Lux stared ahead, jaw set. His shoulders rolled once, as if shaking off invisible chains.
"Sometimes. That’s why I’m taking this vacation."
He reached the end of the hall and leaned against the wall, arms folded. His gaze drifted to the portrait of Greed’s original sin, hanging like ghosts dressed in gold.
Mamon.
"Status," he said. "Wealth. Power."
His voice softened more.
"They never come free."
Corvus’s wings rustled. "So stop. Walk away. Build a farm with your slime and your sexy girlfriends. Bake infernal bread or something."
Lux smiled without humor. "You know I can’t."
"Because of Greed?"
"Because I’m still paying the price."
His fingers curled into his arms. Not tight. Not painful. Just there.
Holding something in.
"I wanted a seat at the table," he said. "Now I’m the table. And everyone’s trying to cut pieces from it."
Corvus looked at him. Really looked at him.
The shadows under Lux’s eyes weren’t from a lack of sleep. The lines on his hands weren’t just from paperwork.
He looked...
Exhausted.
But still standing.
Still smirking.
Still dangerous.
"You don’t regret it," Corvus said quietly.
Lux’s smile returned, smaller. Worn. But real.
"No," he said. "But sometimes I wish the invoice came later."
His voice trailed off, not bitter. Just honest. A whisper that slipped through gold teeth and iron instincts, never loud enough to shatter an illusion but deep enough to leave an echo. It was quiet in the hallway again. Too quiet.
Corvus hopped along the edge of the closest window ledge, his wings folded but his head cocked to the side like he wasn’t sure if Lux was done talking or just buffering emotionally.
"But the power...?" Lux murmured. "I’m Greed. I am craving it. Power. Money. Control."
He tilted his head, the words falling like confession, or maybe sermon.
"That’s how Greed takes over the world. You don’t start with war or blood. You start with a discount. A debt. A smile in a contract no one reads. Control the economy, and you don’t need to rule a nation. You rule hearts."
The silence that followed wasn’t awkward. It was too honest for that.
Corvus finally let out a sharp huff. "Sometimes I don’t know if I should pity you or not at all."
Lux raised an eyebrow, but didn’t interrupt.
Corvus went on, clicking his talons against the window. "You look tired. Worn out. Like someone balancing a collapsing empire on your shoulder blades."
"Mm." Lux gave a soft sound of agreement.
"But you still act like the greed prince you are," Corvus added, and this time, there was laughter in his voice.
Lux smirked. "Why thank you. That’s just who I am."
He leaned back against the wall, arms folded, voice turning colder. Wiser. "I know what happens to the weak. I know what happens to the poor. They don’t get to speak. Don’t get to stand. They belong to the bottom of society. Always do. Mortals. Demons. Celestials. Doesn’t matter the realm, if you’re powerless, you survive on the pity of others."
His eyes darkened slightly. "So yeah. I’ll take power. Every damn time."
Corvus let out a loud laugh now, shaking his feathers. "That’s exactly why I followed you. You know that?"
Lux glanced sideways, mildly curious.
Corvus nodded. "You’ve got that twisted mindset. Like, I’m exhausted, bleeding, emotionally unavailable, maybe cursed, but I’m still gonna dominate the next boardroom I walk into. It’s crazy."
He puffed his chest, proud. "But I like it. That’s the kind of bastard I want to serve."
Lux turned slowly. His smirk sharpened. And with zero hesitation, he flicked Corvus right on the forehead with two fingers.
-Thunk!
"OW—! Dammit!" Corvus cawed, hopping in a circle. "That hurt, you smug son of a—"
"I’m your boss," Lux said, entirely deadpan. "Don’t call me a bastard. It’s bad for PR."
Corvus muttered something infernal under his breath that might’ve translated to "ungrateful sexy tyrant."
Lux stretched slightly. The tension in his back was still there. Old trauma. New weight. But it was quieter now. Like the kind that knew it wouldn’t win today.
Corvus shook out his wings. "Suit yourself. I’m sleeping in the firewall again."
He flapped once, sharp and showy. "Don’t wake me unless the world ends. Or Sira cooks breakfast. Which is kinda the same."
"Noted."
And with one last caw, Corvus vanished in a puff of embers, disappearing into the nearest digital stream like a burnt email attachment.
Lux stood there a second longer. The hallway was still warm from their banter, but the emptiness crept back in. That silence after everyone left the room. The echo of purpose just waiting to be picked up again.
He sighed.
"Yup. That’s life."
His voice echoed faintly. No sarcasm. Just... truth.
He stretched once more, spine popping into place, then glanced down at his bloodstained shirt. Dried, blackened patches still clung to the collar and hem.
"Well," he muttered. "Time to look less murdered. I need to change my clothes."
He turned around to go back to his room.
But as he walked, with a smooth flick of his fingers, Lux swung his hand through the air, and without even thinking, he summoned his system interface.
It appeared with a familiar hum. Warm gold lines, crisp black panels, a soft chime of infernal efficiency.
Lux froze.
"Ah..." he muttered, staring at the floating system dashboard. Contract chains. Debt flows. Interest flames.
"Damn."
He blinked. Slowly.
"Yeah... guess this habit’s not going away anytime soon."
