Harem Startup : The Demon Billionaire is on Vacation

Serelina had that look now—half confusion, half indignation. The kind of look that said 'why isn't this working mixed with maybe if I pout harder, he'll cave'. Lux didn't even bother to sigh this time. He just picked up the edge of his linen napkin and gently unfolded it over his lap, like her presence wasn't worth even acknowledging verbally anymore.

The staff returned just in time to spare Serelina further embarrassment.

A silver tray.

A steaming cup of herbal tea in a thin white porcelain cup with gold trim.

A plate of smoked duck slices over sweet potato mash and grilled persimmon, drizzled with something honeyed and infernal. Lux didn't ask what it was, but the smell said expensive sin.

The waiter placed the meal in front of him and smiled politely.

"Here you go, sir. And for your guest—?"

He turned toward Serelina, still lounging in Lux's booth like she thought this scene belonged to her.

"Would you like something as well, miss?"

Before anyone could answer, the temperature changed.

It started in the space behind Serelina's back—subtle at first. Like velvet heat licking at your collar. The air thickened. Every breath felt heavier. Richer. The faintest tremble of sulfur and rosewood. The room didn't go cold—it went warm.

Warm like fire trapped in silk.

Like power dipped in elegance.

"Move," came the voice.

Serelina blinked. Looked to her right.

Lux sipped his tea. Calmly. The cup clinked gently against the saucer.

Ah. Finally.

She'd arrived.

The woman who stood beside Serelina was striking in the kind of way that broke atmospheres.

Red hair. Red like a slow, burning heart. Red like wrath dressed for court. Eyes the same color—luminous, ancient, lined with kohl and menace. Her outfit was black and flame, tailored close to her body like it belonged to her and only her. Not skin-tight, but lethal. Shadow-flame silk. Long sleeves. A slit that showed just enough thigh to make angels squirm and mortals reconsider their life choices.

She didn't need to sing.

She didn't need to flirt.

Her presence commanded.

And the staff boy who had just asked Serelina for her order?

He turned red.

Several men in the restaurant openly stared. One dropped a fork. Another whispered something to his date and was promptly smacked.

Lux set his cup down gently.

"She is my partner," he said, finally addressing the new woman. His voice was calm. Polite.

But cold.

"Please move, Miss."

Serelina opened her mouth to object. "I—"

But something in Lux's eyes—something colder than money and sharper than sin—froze her mid-sentence.

She stood. A little too fast. Smoothed her dress awkwardly. And walked back to her original table with the grace of a cat caught falling off a shelf.

The red-haired woman sat down smoothly in the booth across from Lux, one leg over the other. Her fingers barely grazed the table. She didn't speak right away. She didn't need to.

The staff boy stammered, "W-what can I get you, miss?"

She glanced at Lux. "Same as him."

"And bring your wine," she added. "The good one. You know which."

The boy nodded way too fast and vanished before he could combust on the spot.

Lux watched him go, then leaned back in his chair and exhaled like he'd just survived an opera.

"So," he said dryly, "why'd you come here, Officer Malris Korr?"

She scoffed. "Oh, cut that 'officer' crap. We're not in a boardroom."

"Fair enough," Lux said. "Then why the dramatic entrance?"

"I will ask you a question," she said instead. "Why'd you turn me down?"

Lux arched a brow. "Turn you down?"

"The bodyguards."

Lux smirked. "Ah. That."

She leaned forward. "They just attacked you. High-level demons. You know that's not random."

"I do."

"And yet you still think you don't need anyone watching your back?"

"I don't," Lux said, calm as hellfire. "What I need is space. And I don't want an entourage of muscle interrupting my breakfast because someone twitches near the minibar."

Malris tilted her head, eyes narrowing. "You're impossible."

"I'm efficient."

"You're reckless."

"I'm bored."

She sighed and leaned back, eyes scanning him. The kind of scan that could strip a man of lies, clothes, and confidence—depending on the day.

"You're different than the last time I saw you."

Lux smirked. "You mean hotter?"

She ignored that. "I mean angrier."

He went quiet for a second. Picked up his cup again.

Sipped.

"I was hunted," he said. "Again. I didn't start it. But they wanted me dead. Both angels and demons."

"So hire protection—"

"I am the protection."

She stared at him, lips parting just slightly.

"You think you're untouchable?"

"No," Lux said. "I think I'm dangerous. That's not the same thing."

Malris was quiet. Then—finally—she let out a soft laugh.

It wasn't nice.

But it was real.

"You're still an arrogant bastard," she said.

Lux didn't even blink. He just sipped his tea and replied smoothly, "All demons are. Including you."

Malris gave him a look.

That sharp, narrowed, barely-smiling kind of look that said touché and I could still kill you with my heel in the same breath.

She lifted her wine glass and murmured, "At least I'm the elegant kind."

Lux tilted his head. "Oh, I don't know. Elegance is a flavor. Arrogance is the whole meal."

The food arrived with perfect timing.

The server nearly dropped a spoon when Malris smiled at him—just once, faint and distracted—and Lux caught the flicker of heat that radiated from her skin like a subtle warning.

They both ignored it.

"So," Lux said, slicing into his duck, "do you have a report? An update? Or are you just here to watch me eat like an exhibit?"

"I came for answers," Malris said. "The system flagged you. Not just for the bounty. Something else. Something buried."

"Let me guess," Lux said, chewing, "bloodline? New power?"

She nodded slowly.

"Something encrypted. Something that shouldn't exist. Your core signature doesn't match any known demonic origin catalogued in our registry."

Lux smiled around his fork. "That's because I don't belong to their system."

"Whose system do you belong to, then?"

"I'm working on that."