Harem Startup : The Demon Billionaire is on Vacation

Lux watched. Silent. Studying.

Like a stockbroker watching the market crash just right.

Like a bored king watching rats in a maze.

"C'mon," he murmured, voice low and amused. "Entertain me more."

He didn't even blink as one tendril slammed through Kaelin's wing and pinned her down like a divine butterfly on display. She howled, pain and humiliation mixing beautifully.

Elio flailed, the only one left moving—one tendril missed his head by inches, another snared his boot but he kicked out of it, blood trailing.

He crawled. He sprinted. He leaped—

And somehow—

Just barely—

He made it out of the edge of the trap.

Panting. Bleeding. Crawling on the ground.

Lux raised a brow.

"…Huh," he mused. "Look at that. The golden boy wins."

He clapped slowly.

"Congratulations, Elio. You just won the world's most terrifying internship."

The other two?

Kaelin was twitching, unconscious. Vahl had passed out, still wrapped like a meat gift.

Lux snapped his fingers.

The tendrils tightened.

One final scream.

Then silence.

He looked down at Elio again.

"You'll tell them what happened," he said, crouching beside him. "You'll describe everything. Every lash. Every blood drop. Every time your pride shattered."

Elio whimpered.

"And you'll tell them…" Lux leaned in close, voice low, cold—

"…that I let you live because I'm generous."

A beat.

"Not because I'm weak."

Then he stood. Turned.

"Let him go, Corvus. He's got a story to sell."

Corvus cawed. "Yes, boss." But yes, secretly, Corvus placed tracking sigils on Elio.

And just like that, the trap began to fade.

Leaving behind smoke, blood, and the gentle whisper of fear burned into angelic bones.

Elio didn't look back.

He couldn't.

His entire body screamed in agony, his grace was fractured, his vision blurred—but survival overrode everything. His wings were half-torn, his robes scorched and bloodied, and one arm hung limp from the shoulder.

But he flew.

Like a desperate bird shot mid-flight.

He clawed through the air like it might devour him if he paused.

Wings beating erratically. Breaths ragged.

The moment the dimensional veil thinned behind him, the system pinged.

[You gained EXP!]

[System Notification: Celestial Pocket Field collapsing in 10… 9… 8…]

Lux tilted his head at the countdown.

"Well, that's my cue."

He took a long breath in through his nose. Smelled blood, ozone, engine oil, and the rich tang of divine sulfur.

He took his helmet, exhaling slowly, and dismissed his battle form in a ripple of shadow and smoke. The armor peeled away like ash caught in reverse wind, revealing black jeans and his charcoal-fitted shirt underneath.

Still intact.

Still annoyingly stylish.

"Shadow Step."

His form flickered—blinking across the now-dissolving pocket world—and appeared beside what was left of his motorcycle.

Lux stared at it.

Then cringed.

The frame was twisted like licorice, one wheel gone, engine leaking, the handlebars bent like someone tried to fold them into origami.

"…Right," Lux muttered. "Beyond reparation."

He crouched, poked at a molten tire with the tip of his boot, and sighed. "So much for mortal stealth. Guess I'm casting out that lowkey thing completely now."

Corvus fluttered overhead and perched on a broken branch. "Oh dear."

Lux grinned. "Oh yes."

He reached into his dimensional inventory and pulled out a long, thin obsidian shard pulsing with molten veins. The edges shimmered with gold runes, and it hummed like something alive.

[Item Retrieved: Abyssal Upgrade Rune – Variant X-77]

[Item Type: Artifact Class]

[Description: A powerful demonic rune forged in the 7th Vault of Greed. When applied to a non-magical or mortal-grade item, it corrupts and evolves the object into a unique infernal-class variant. Results may vary based on target soul resonance.]

[Warning: This item cannot be undone. Casualties may occur in proximity if used improperly.]

Lux held the rune over the mangled motorcycle. It thrummed like it recognized prey.

"Time to wake up, sweetheart."

He tossed the rune.

It hit the motorcycle's wrecked chassis— and detonated.

Not an explosion.

An evolution.

A rush of black fire coiled out like a heartbeat of hell. Chains snapped into place. Metal groaned. Runes crawled along the bike like hungry spiders, engraving themselves into the frame.

The engine ignited with a sound like a dragon growling through a megaphone.

Lux shielded his eyes for a moment, then looked.

And grinned.

[New Mount Acquired: SIN-EATER MK.I]

[Type: Infernal Motorcycle – Bound Mount]

[Description: A demonic vehicle forged through corruption and rage. Fueled by sin, arrogance, and acceleration. Capable of planar travel, wall-riding, hellfire boosts, and sonic bursts. Scales speed based on user's Greed stat. Leaves behind a trail of branded flames.]

[Perk: Lust Trail – Increases attraction aura by 50% while in motion.]

[Perk: Highway to Hell – Automatically repairs any damage to the motorcycle over time. Repair speed scales with the user's Greed stat.]

The newly-forged motorcycle was sleek—smoother than obsidian, humming with red-orange fire under blackened metal.

Lux whistled low. "Now that's sexy."

Corvus landed on the seat's edge and fluffed his feathers. "That thing looks like it runs on sex appeal and wrath."

"Exactly."

Lux swung a leg over, slid into the seat like a CEO in a throne, and revved the engine.

-VRROOOOOM!

The bike purred. No, growled.

[1… 0.]

The pocket dimension cracked. A high-pitched shatter echoed through space as the fabric around them peeled away like burning wallpaper.

And then it popped.

Reality reasserted itself.

Lux was back in the mortal realm.

Side street. Rooftop view. Smoggy skyline.

But the moment he reached for the throttle—

Corvus tilted his head. "Boss."

Lux paused. "Hm?"

"I detected a camera."

He glanced over his shoulder. Sure enough. Across a building's edge, hidden in the rooftop's security grid, a mortal lens flickered faintly—recording.

Lux sighed, rolled his neck, and casually tapped his temple.

"I'll leave it to you. Hack them. Kill the link."

Corvus flapped off his shoulder, claws sparking with infernal code. "With pleasure."

Lux smirked and looked forward again, eyes gleaming red.

The engine roared.

He shot forward—trail of fire in his wake, and a smirking demon on his throne of motion.

And Lux?

He didn't look back.