Harem Startup : The Demon Billionaire is on Vacation

Chapter 987 – You Paid The Wrong Demon

Sira deadpanned instantly. ”They are weird. I’m not.”

Lux closed his eyes for half a second.

Not because he disagreed.

Because this was not the time, and somehow that had never stopped Sira once in her entire existence.

The first elf looked at Sira with the quiet patience of a forest watching a noble child attempt to insult a mountain.

”You carry Pride like a crown even when no throne is near.”

Sira lifted her chin.

”Exactly. Dignity.”

Lullaby whispered, ”Arrogance.”

Gula whispered back, ”Narcissistic.”

Sira’s ear twitched. ”I hear both of you.”

Yue calmly stepped closer.

Not aggressive.

Not submissive either.

She moved with the slow grace of something old enough to be polite because she knew exactly how much destruction she could cause if politeness failed.

Her jade-bronze spear rested beside her, point lowered. Her ancient eyes studied the hologram, then the pale tree behind it, where the real first elf remained trapped between bark and oath.

”You think I am a weirdo too?”

The first elf finally turned toward Yue fully.

For the first time, something like recognition appeared in her pale gold eyes.

”A dragon.”

Yue inclined her head.

The first elf’s gaze narrowed faintly.

”An old one. It is rare to see one still walking.”

”Good,” Yue said. ”If you recognize me, then you know I am not here for a childish prank. Now can we talk?”

The first elf looked at her for a few seconds.

Then her gaze drifted past Yue.

To Grivven Tollclaw.

The Debt Collector Ghoul had been standing behind them with the posture of a proud corpse accountant, one claw resting on his ledger, his coin-sewn eyelids shining, his grin still too wide. Around him, his corpse soldiers stood in formation. Two reanimated Ashroot Carrion Crawlers, one Hollow Vine Maw clinging to the ceiling like a dead chandelier, and two Charcoal Thorn Wolves with dark-gold chains around their ribs.

The first elf stared.

Then said, ”No.”

Grivven’s grin faltered.

Sira snorted.

Gula coughed into her hand.

Lux inhaled.

Then he stepped forward.

The movement changed him.

Not physically. His clothes were still a disaster. His shirt was torn, one sleeve hanging in offended fabric strips. Black spring water marked his chest and cheek. His hair was messy. He looked like he had fought an ancient devouring guardian, repossessed its organs, and then walked into a meeting without changing because time management had lost to emotional urgency.

But his posture changed.

The playful sharpness quieted.

Professional.

Hell CFO mode.

The battlefield accountant.

The demon who could sit across a table from warlords, demon princes, corrupt gods, and collapsing economies, then smile while explaining exactly how ruined they were.

Lux placed one hand over his chest and bowed.

A clean bow.

Elegant, despite the mud, blood, and torn cloth.

Then he swept one hand outward with practiced courtesy.

”Good afternoon, Madam.”

The first elf looked at him.

Really looked at him this time.

Lux raised his head.

”I’m the Hell CFO. Name, Lux Vaelthorn.”

Sira muttered, ”He introduced himself like a disaster with a business card.”

Lux ignored her beautifully.

The first elf’s expression turned colder. ”Hell CFO.”

”Yes.”

”Greed.”

Lux smiled politely. ”Among other things.”

Her eyes flicked briefly to him, as if she sensed the Lust blood too and did not appreciate the footnote. ”Why did you come here?”

Lux held her gaze.

She continued, voice quiet. ”Did he order you to visit me? I thought he said only he gave permission to say enough for my debt.”

The shrine seemed to still at those words.

Even Ely stiffened.

The phrasing was too clean.

’Only he gave permission to say enough for my debt.’

Lux’s smile faded by one degree. ”No.”

The first elf watched him.

”I came here to audit.”

He snapped his fingers.

Grivven Tollclaw immediately straightened. ”Boss?”

”Dismiss.”

The ghoul looked heartbroken. ”Already?”

Lux gave him a side glance.

Grivven hugged his ledger. ”Understood, boss. Temporary contract concluded. No severance requested. Unless—”

Lux’s eyes narrowed. ”No.”

”Fair.”

Dark-gold light opened beneath the ghoul and his corpse soldiers. Grivven bowed dramatically toward Lux, then toward the first elf.

”Madam Tree Ancestor, your shrine has excellent antique assets.”

The first elf’s expression did not change.

The summon circle swallowed him and his horrible little army before he could add more emotional damage to the negotiation.

[Summon Dismissed]

[Temporary Units Released]

[Remaining Corpse Residue: Cleared]

The shrine felt cleaner immediately.

Lux turned back toward the first elf. ”There. No more employees.”

The first elf looked at the empty place where Grivven had been.

Then at Lux again.

”Audit what?”

Lux’s voice softened, but the edge inside it sharpened.

”Your debt, Ma’am.”

The first elf went still.

Lux continued. ”Who holds it. Who benefits from it. Who you have paid all this time.”

Her eyes narrowed.

His gaze became serious. ”You paid the wrong demon.”

The shrine went silent.

The first elf’s face did not move.

But the barrier around the tree brightened.

”What do you mean?”

Lux took one careful step forward, stopping before the barrier could flare. ”The demon who holds the claim now is not the direct bloodline of the one who saved you.”

Her gaze did not leave him.

Lux said, ”He is a stealer. They belong to the same kin, same sigil, same clan, whatever word your era used. But he is not his son. Not the rightful heir of that specific debt.”

The first elf’s light flickered.

Only for a blink.

Then steadied.

”How do you know about it?”

Lux lifted his hand slowly.

Not threatening.

Offering.

Dark-gold light gathered faintly in his palm, but not as a weapon. His Sovereign Absorb stirred beneath the skin, ready to identify stolen ownership, parasitic links, oath-bound corruption, and forced siphoning channels.

”Want to see the truth?”

His hand remained extended.

Not like a demon offering temptation.

Not like a CFO offering a contract.

More like someone standing at the edge of a prison door, offering a key to someone who had forgotten keys existed.

The first elf stared at his hand.

For a while, she said nothing.