CHAPTER 452: HERE’S YOUR GOLD

Chapter 452 – Here’s Your Gold

Lux smiled—innocent, almost sweet again.

He turned to the trembling girls.

"Here’s your gold," he said softly.

They didn’t move.

Didn’t breathe.

He pointed lazily toward the body on the floor. "He’s worth around 5.2 million, depending on the market. All yours. As long as you can cut it."

One of the girls whimpered. "Cut...?"

Lux gestured toward the bar counter.

There—knives. Dozens of them.

Silver steak knives, bottle cutters, a champagne sabre.

The kind meant for parties.

Now?

For pieces.

Lux smiled again, softer now. "He wanted to burn things for profit. I gave him a better business model."

Then he turned.

Just like that.

Not waiting for thanks.

Not watching them freeze in fear.

He walked toward the door, every step quiet, measured.

Behind him, the sound came slow—metal scraping wood.

A sob.

A whisper of greed breaking through terror.

He didn’t look back.

Because he knew how it always went.

Humans screamed about morality until they saw the shine.

Then they cut.

Outside the club, the wind was cool again. The neon reflected against the puddles, soft red light flickering over his shoes.

Lux reached up, loosened his tie, and exhaled.

"Corvus," he murmured.

The crow swooped down from a lamppost, landing neatly on his shoulder.

"Done?" the bird rasped.

Lux smiled faintly. "Yeah. Let’s go home."

He snapped his fingers once.

[You have opened a portal.]

The air folded inward. Space rippled like water disturbed by a pebble. In a heartbeat, a swirling oval of gold and black opened before him—smooth, humming, the faint scent of ozone and burnt incense curling from its edges.

Lux stepped through without looking back. The city light bent, swallowed whole, and the world snapped.

When it cleared—

Warmth.

The smell of cooked meat, roasted garlic, and honey wine hit him first. Candles flickered along the walls of the grand dining hall, their glow bouncing off black marble floors and gold-veined pillars.

And voices.

Soft chatter. Laughter. Familiar.

Sira’s laugh was unmistakable.

Mira’s was elegant but smug.

Naomi’s sharp and dry.

Lullaby’s small, sleepy hum melted somewhere between them, like a lull in the chaos.

Lux stepped through the gate, letting it close behind him with a soft hiss.

Corvus flapped once, landing on the chandelier beam above the table. "Oh, they’re all here," the bird croaked. "Guess I’ll excuse myself, boss."

"Good idea," Lux murmured.

Corvus cawed and threw his random quote. "No one should die over their bad portfolio."

Lux rolled his eyes.

The crow vanished in a puff of shadow feathers.

Lux exhaled slowly, his steps echoing against the marble as he made his way toward the long mahogany table.

The sight was... grounding.

Sira, lounging in her chair like she owned the house.

Naomi, all business even in a silk blouse, papers tucked beside her wine glass.

Mira in her embroidered robe, sitting cross-legged like royalty.

And Lullaby—half-asleep on her seat, face pressed into a pillow she’d dragged from who-knew-where, humming lazily as the maids moved around her.

Lyra and the servants had just begun placing the last of the food: roasted lamb with crimson glaze, buttered potatoes, fruit salad dusted with mana sugar, and a steaming cauldron of seafood stew that smelled like home.

"Lord Lux," Lyra said softly, bowing her head. "Welcome back."

He gave her a small smile. "Thanks, Lyra."

Sira looked up immediately. "So," she drawled, stretching her legs under the table until her foot brushed his. "You said you went to the upper realm, didn’t you?"

Lux nodded, pulling out a chair and sitting down across from her. "Yeah."

Sira leaned forward, sniffed the air lightly, and squinted. "Hmm. But you smell... different."

Lux’s brows arched. "Different?"

"Yeah." She tilted her head, her silver hair slipping down her shoulder. "Not like angel perfume and feathers. More like... smoke. Ash. And..." She sniffed again. "Gunpowder?"

Lux stilled.

Mira set her chopsticks down, eyes narrowing. "That’s oddly specific, Sira."

"I know my scents," Sira said lazily. "And that’s not Heaven’s brand of chaos."

Naomi leaned her chin against her hand, studying him. "So," she said quietly, "you made another stop after that, didn’t you?"

Lux hesitated for a second before giving a soft chuckle. "You’re getting too sharp for my liking, Naomi."

She smiled faintly, though there was concern behind her eyes. "Lux... what happened?"

He waved a hand dismissively. "Nothing. Just—nothing important."

Mira leaned in, her eyes glowing faintly under the candlelight. "Oh, come on," she said. "That face of yours? It screams ’something happened.’ You forget you’re surrounded by women who read people for a living?"

He tried to smirk but didn’t quite pull it off. "I was hoping my poker face was still intact."

Sira tilted her head, eyes narrowing in that feline way of hers. "You only get that look when you’ve done something dangerous or stupid. Or both."

Lullaby finally stirred, half-awake, rubbing her eyes. "Mmm... is it because of the angels?" she mumbled. "You always look weird after seeing them."

Lux smiled faintly, shaking his head. "No. Not them."

She blinked, confused, then sat up a little straighter. "Then what?"

He stared at the table for a moment. The silverware gleamed back at him, distorted reflections of too many faces. Too many flames.

Then he sighed, leaned back, and said softly, "The orphanage. It burned down."

The room went still.

The only sound was the faint clink of a glass that Mira set down, slow and deliberate.

Naomi’s lips parted. "The one you... helped?"

Lux nodded once. "Yeah. The same one."

Sira stopped lounging. Her tone lost its usual lazy arrogance. "How?"

"They called it an accident," Lux said quietly. "But it wasn’t. Three fires, perfectly timed, all runes disabled the night before. Someone wanted the entire block gone."

"Why?" Naomi asked softly.

"Land," Lux said bitterly. "Cheap, profitable, strategic location. The owner got threat letters, ignored them, reported it to the police—they ignored her. Then someone paid a cleanup team to finish the job."

Mira’s nails tapped against her cup, her expression dark. "And you found the team, didn’t you?"

Lux nodded slowly.

Lullaby whispered, "You punished them."