Harem Startup : The Demon Billionaire is on Vacation-Chapter 720: I Mind Being Reduced

"It's not a crime," Lux said. "It's inefficient."

Fiera rolled her eyes. "There it is. The CFO logic."

He smirked faintly.

"I thought," he admitted after a pause, "that getting a lap dancer might reduce my stress. Physical stimulus. Environmental distraction. Money removes tension from the equation."

"And?" she asked.

"And it worked about four percent."

She choked slightly on her drink. "Four percent?"

"System estimate."

She stared at him. "…You measured it?"

"I measure everything."

She leaned back, tail flicking lazily behind her.

"I see…"

He swirled his wine, watching the deep red catch the dim lighting.

"But the part where they were only there for the money?" he added quietly. "That's the turn off. I don't mind being desired. I mind being reduced."

Fiera's expression softened slightly.

"You're a billionaire," she said flatly. "People are going to reduce you."

"Not the ones I keep," he replied.

That hung in the air.

She didn't argue.

Instead, she shifted slightly closer on the couch.

"That female fox earlier…" Lux said after a moment. "Is Aelitha, right?"

Fiera's jaw tightened.

"…Yeah."

He raised a brow. "Making problems again?"

She exhaled sharply through her nose.

"I saw it…" she said. "The live stream."

Lux took a sip of wine. "Did she go to Vincent Albrecht?"

Fiera snorted. "Oh, she tried."

He looked at her more directly now.

"She demanded compensation from the Albrecht family for her pregnancy," Fiera continued. "Claimed it was his."

"And?"

"And she got turned down too."

Lux hummed. "The Albrechts are facing bankruptcy. Can't blame them."

"Yep. Vincent's scandal tanked their last liquidity buffer. Investors pulled out. The family's scrambling."

Lux's eyes gleamed faintly. A smirk bloomed.

"I heard."

Fiera leaned forward, elbows resting on her knees.

"Our family investigated her claim," she continued. "Because honestly? Her testimony sounded like garbage."

"Too convenient," Lux said.

"Too fast," Fiera corrected. "The pregnancy timeline didn't add up. We ran tests."

"And?"

"She faked it."

Lux's lips curved faintly.

"I assumed."

Fiera gave him a sideways look. "You assumed?"

"The acceleration in her story was sloppy," he replied calmly. "Emotionally dramatic but structurally weak."

"She bought a fake scan," Fiera said. "Paid some back-alley medic to fabricate it. When we confronted her…"

"She ran."

"Yeah."

Lux leaned back again, exhaling slowly.

"And now she's here," he said.

Fiera nodded. "I just got the alert. She maxed out her card. Drinking like crazy. Refusing to go home."

"So those men—"

"Family bodyguards," Fiera confirmed. "We weren't going to let her spiral publicly again."

Lux glanced toward the hallway.

"She looked mess up."

"She always does when consequences show up," Fiera replied dryly.

He studied her profile.

"You care."

She shot him a look. "She's an idiot. But she's still family."

Fiera hadn't meant for her voice to soften at the end, but it did anyway.

Lux studied her for a moment. Not in that detached, analytical way he looked at dancers. This was different. Slower. Almost thoughtful.

"I guess," he said quietly, "you have a kind heart."

Fiera blinked.

"…Excuse me?"

He leaned back casually. "You came personally. You didn't delegate it to a manager or a lawyer. That's not efficient."

She rolled her eyes, trying to hide the small flutter in her chest. "Not everything has to be efficient."

He gave her that faint, dangerous little smile. "It usually does."

She ignored how warm her face suddenly felt and took a sip of champagne.

"…Thanks," she muttered.

Then she straightened slightly, expression turning more serious.

"Lux," she said, clearing her throat. "I'm sorry. For all the mess Aelitha caused."

He tilted his head slightly.

"She dragged your name everywhere. Media. Streams. That ridiculous pregnancy stunt." Fiera's ears dipped briefly. "Our family will clear your name properly. We'll make an official statement."

Lux stared at her for two seconds.

Then he laughed.

Not a polite chuckle.

An actual laugh.

Fiera frowned. "What?"

"I already bought the media," he said.

She blinked.

"…Your PR team?"

"No."

"You bribed them?"

He laughed again, shaking his head. "Bribe?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Don't tell me you intimidated them."

"I bought the companies."

Silence.

"…Companies?" she repeated slowly.

"Three of them."

Her brain stalled.

"…Three," she echoed.

He emptied his wine glass and set it down casually, like he'd just said he bought coffee.

"If you need some narration," he added lightly, "I could create it for you."

Fiera stared at him.

Speechless.

Her brain replayed the sentence several times.

You bought… three media companies.

"I thought you only did your family's funeral business," she said weakly.

Because that was what everyone thought.

Lux Vaelthorn.

Funeral conglomerate CFO.

Quietly rich.

Slightly intimidating.

But still… niche.

He smirked.

"Nah. I have a bank now."

She froze.

"…A bank."

"And three media companies."

Her ears twitched.

"Oh, and a small VR game development studio."

Her champagne almost slipped from her fingers.

"W-What?"

He shrugged. "I was bored."

She stared at him like he'd just told her he owned the moon.

"You were bored."

"I had money," he said simply. "So… why not?"

Her entire mental framework about this man cracked in half.

She'd known he was rich.

But this?

"You just… buy industries when you're bored?" she asked faintly.

"Diversification," he corrected calmly.

She leaned back into the couch, tail twitching erratically.

"Lux," she said slowly, "do you realize how insane that sounds?"

He poured himself another drink.

"Completely."

"And you're just casually sitting here in a strip club."

"Like now," he said, lifting the glass. "Yes."

She stared at him.

"You're bored?"

"No," he replied.

"Then why are you here?"

He swirled the wine once, thinking.

"Because if I go home in this condition," he said calmly, "they'll tie me up again."

Fiera blinked.

"…What."

He took a sip.

"On the bed."

Her brain short-circuited.

"W-Wait," she sputtered. "You got tied up?"

He nodded casually.

"For a week."

Her entire body went rigid.

Her imagination, traitor that it was, filled in the blanks immediately.

Mira.

Naomi.

Rava.

Ely.

All of them surrounding him.

Lux tied to a bed.

Her face burned instantly.

"Shame no one rode me though," he added with complete seriousness.