"You want my guarantee?"

Idelos glanced at the message on Deviant’s terminal. "Why don’t you just draft him a contract?"

Deviant replied, "He hasn’t agreed yet. He said he needs to think about it. Hurry up and send him a private message. I’ll go draft a contract, and you can sign it too."

Idelos set down his book, leaned back, and said coolly, "’Thinking about it’ means he’s comparing offers. What you can give him, others can likely give him too."

"Don’t be so down on my chances, Idelos."

Having received a reply from Gu Demiao Ning, Deviant was no longer as frantic as before. He calmly walked over to the liquor cabinet, poured two glasses of wine, and offered one to Idelos. "I know you don’t want to act with a virtual female. That’s fine, we can work it out. Once I get the rights to Yuanbao, you can film any script you want. I can even hire a real female for you."

Idelos didn’t take the glass, his expression flat. "If you can get a real female to act with me, why do you even need to fight them for the rights to this virtual one?"

He had been signed on by Deviant with the promise of a so-called "good script." Back when he signed the contract, he was just a young Beastman with a deep passion and enthusiasm for literature and theater. Deviant painted a ridiculously grand picture of the stage, telling him he would get to act alongside female stars, that he would become the most dazzling male Beastman star of the future. The words had completely captivated him when he was just a teenager.

On top of that, Deviant was his uncle. Trusting him, Idelos completely overlooked Deviant’s cunning nature and signed a twenty-year contract on the spot.

By the time he realized what had happened, he had already fallen into Deviant’s massive pitfall.

Normally, if an underage Beastman signed any kind of work contract, their guardian had the right to void it.

But Deviant just so happened to be his guardian.

An uncle held more guardianship rights than a so-called "beast-father." A beast-father was merely a male Beastman who had been fortunate enough to receive a female’s favor and thereby gained guardianship rights; some were even just older males assigned by the clan. But an uncle was the brother of one’s Beast Mother. Furthermore, a Beastman referred to as an "uncle" was one who had grown up alongside a Beast Mother, living together with his female sisters. As a result, the next generation of male Beastmen who grew up around the Beast Mother formed an especially close uncle-nephew bond with the males of the previous generation.

Even after a male Beastman came of age and no longer needed supervision from the clan or elders, his uncle could still assume certain responsibilities as a senior family member.

If Deviant hadn’t been his uncle, Idelos would have turned on him long ago over the countless empty promises.

"Of course I can hire one." Deviant placed the glass in front of Idelos. "I guarantee it."

Idelos said, "Don’t talk to me about guarantees. Your guarantees have no credibility with me anymore."

Deviant’s face was a mask of sincerity. "This time, I’ll really get you a real female actor." 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Idelos took a deep breath. "Just don’t ask Aunt Shari to act with me again. She doesn’t enjoy acting, and she has absolutely zero talent for it."

Deviant feigned reproach. "Don’t you talk about my dear sister that way. Do you have any idea how much effort it takes me to invite her over each time? I have to endure her lectures, too. She’s very protective of you, you know."

Idelos replied, "I’m always happy to see Aunt Shari, as long as it’s not for filming."

’He quite enjoyed watching Deviant get told off. That unscrupulous uncle of his deserved every scolding he got.’

Deviant shrugged. "It’s just a cameo. What acting skills do you need for that? Besides, Shari is very happy to appear on the front cover of The Paw Print."

Idelos countered, "If you just did a magazine shoot with her, she could be on the front cover of any section."

Deviant said, "Ah, forget it. She doesn’t have the patience for all that. She only agrees to do a cameo because she adores her little nephew. You should respect the affection your elders have for you."

Idelos said, "I respect Aunt Shari very much. That’s why you shouldn’t ask her to act with me anymore. Otherwise, I’ll tell her about you using money to invest in the Zone 5 Wolf Clan and getting involved in their struggles."

The smile on Deviant’s face froze. "How did you know?!"

Idelos pulled a folded piece of paper from his breast pocket. He held it between his long, pale fingers and said to Deviant, "Did you think all I know how to do is act?"

Deviant snatched it away, unfolded the paper, and read it quickly—

It was a detailed record and proof of several payments he had made to the Wolf Clan.

"Those are payments for my investment in Zone 5’s fruit and vegetable industry," Deviant said stubbornly.

Idelos rolled his eyes at him. "Given the current state of infighting within the Wolf Clan, do you think your clever sister will believe that?"

Shari knew exactly what kind of character her brother was. Deviant loved making high-risk investments.

Aside from tricking his young nephew into signing that acting contract—the one deal that was a guaranteed profit—pretty much all his other investments had lost him everything, down to his last shirt.

If Idelos’s acting career hadn’t been making some money for his uncle, Deviant would probably have had to start driving a small tricycle-cart and live as a street vendor.

Deviant crumpled the paper in his hand, crushing it.

An innocent smile spread across his face. "My dear little nephew, what was it you were going to tell my dear sister?"

Idelos smiled faintly. "That’s just a photocopy. I made many copies. Enough to keep Aunt Shari’s fireplace burning for a whole winter."

A muscle in Deviant’s cheek twitched. "Do you have to be so ruthless?"

Idelos said nothing, simply pulling another identical piece of paper from his pocket.

"Alright, no Shari. I’ll get you some other lovely female stars to act with," Deviant said with a shrug.

Idelos no longer believed he would actually hire other females. He picked up the wine from the coffee table, took a sip, and said, "From now on, I get the final say on my acting projects."

A muscle in Deviant’s face twitched again. ’He knew perfectly well what kind of shows made money for Idelos. If Idelos refused to do romance or art-house films and insisted on passionate battle scenes, with his build and pretty face, he’d only be cast as a side character for some brawny beast—the kind that gets his head grabbed and smashed into the ground.’

"Fine." Deviant glanced at the proof of payment on the table and agreed readily.

"A verbal agreement isn’t good enough," Idelos said. "Draft a contract."

The word "contract" immediately set Deviant on edge. He put down his glass and said, "Idelos, have a heart! If it weren’t for me, would you have achieved what you have today?"

He spread his hands towards Idelos dramatically. "Silver Moonlight! The face of our Fox Clan!"

Idelos wasn’t falling for his act anymore. He pulled another proof of payment from his pocket and tossed it onto the table.

"..."

Idelos well and truly had him by the throat now. He gritted his teeth and said, "A contract it is, then. But I have one condition."

Idelos reached for his pocket again.

"Stop pulling them out!" Deviant was practically on his knees. "Film whatever you want, sign whatever contract you want, I’ll listen to you! But you have to help me get the rights to Yuanbao. I’m your uncle, for crying out loud! You can’t be heartless enough to watch me end up sleeping on the streets, can you?"

Idelos deadpanned, "I think I can manage."

Deviant pleaded, "I’m begging you, it’s my only condition! Once I have Yuanbao, I won’t even care if you don’t act. Besides, don’t you enjoy acting? With her, you’ll have more opportunities for good scripts, right?"

Idelos swirled the wine in his glass and took a slow, deliberate sip. "How much did you lose on this investment?"

Leaning against the wall, Deviant sighed at the ceiling. "Well, technically, it’s not a loss yet. It’s just that Alihot hasn’t paid me back."