"What are you thinking?"
Leon rolled his eyes at the girl, wondering if she had gotten the wrong idea.
Sure, he was a dominant tyrant, but he was a tyrant with principles, okay?
Someone as proud as him would never do anything so shameless or despicable.
"Eh? That's not what you meant?"
"Of course not. What's going on inside that little head of yours? Come here and let me flick your forehead."
"Uwah, stop looking at me like that."
Realizing she had let her imagination run wild, Lumine's cheeks turned red, and she wished she could crawl into a hole and disappear from embarrassment.
The blonde girl defended herself mentally.
(Because that's what those books say~!)
Not long ago, she had bought a mature-rated romance novel by Natsume-sensei, freshly released by the author. The male lead looked a lot like Leon.
The novel told the story of a black-haired prince living shamelessly and impatiently ever after with a cute silver-haired elf girl who had blue eyes and a beauty mark.
And yes, the black-haired prince was also extremely dominant.
It suited Leon's image so well—and she had been saved by a hero once too.
Even if that rescue had been just for show…
Her fluttering heart had been real.
All those factors combined made Lumine overthink things, and she ended up making a statement that wasn't very innocent for a supposedly innocent girl.
"So… what did you actually mean just now, Your Highness?"
Too embarrassed to dwell on it, she quickly changed the subject.
Leon went along with it and didn't press the issue.
"Ahem, it's simple… come work for me. I'll give you generous compensation."
"That's it?"
"In my opinion, even though you look like an innocent girl, deep down you're petty and prideful. You do inappropriate things sometimes, and on top of that, you're pretty much broke."
Leon said this with narrowed eyes.
He had absolute confidence in his ability to read people.
Thanks to experiences with Esdeath, Ye Lan, Beta, Faruzan, and others, Leon had come to understand that beautiful women often had internal personalities very different—if not completely opposite—from what they showed on the outside.
The surface in front of him was cute.
But the first time he saw this golden-haired girl, he knew she was hiding something!
"I am not! I didn't do any of that! You're making things up!"
Lumine's eyes widened like a cat whose tail had just been stepped on.
"You're lying."
Leon raised an eyebrow. In his previous life, he'd read numerous books on psychology, and they all told him—this girl had a guilty conscience.
Little Paimon, hovering beside her, silently agreed.
Even though her friend acted cute and kind most of the time, she could be pretty rough.
She often said she'd use Paimon as emergency rations when hungry.
She was also a total gaming addict!
Especially fond of gambling games.
She'd work hard, save up a whole month's earnings, and throw it all into a lottery with less than a 1% chance of winning. And of course, she'd lose all her money.
Paimon: "If she gambled a bit less, our lives would be soooo much better."
Lumine: "Then why not eat Paimon? That way I can save part of our food budget and use it for lottery tickets."
Leon: "Wow, an unexpected character flaw just got revealed. So Lumine is like that after all."
Lumine: "Hmph! One day, I'll hit the jackpot! Either way, thanks for the offer, but I refuse to surrender to you."
The blonde girl placed her hands on her waist and lifted her chin, proudly declaring she would never give in to Leon!
But in response to her pride and resistance, Leon raised one finger.
"One hundred thousand gold coins per month."
"Ahem! What...?" Lumine choked.
"Five hundred thousand gold coins per month." Leon raised five fingers.
"I... I won't give in!" Lumine gritted her teeth and still refused.
The next second, Leon lowered four fingers.
She thought it had gone back to one hundred thousand and felt a little relief. Even though that amount was far beyond anything she could imagine earning, it still wasn't enough to buy her freedom!
As a traveler on a mission to find her brother, someone who wasn't bound to anything—how could she give up her journey for just 100,000 coins a month?
"One million."
"Guhhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Leon's voice hit her like a sledgehammer to the chest. She hadn't expected him to double the offer!
Was she really worth that much?!
Freedom may be priceless—but this much money was a strong contender!
Lumine's breathing became shaky.
One million per month?
She'd never need to grind for commissions again,
No more sleeping and eating outdoors every day,
No more worrying about food for Paimon or betting funds...
Paimon: "Lumine! Lumine! Why are you hesitating?!"
Lumine: "Paimon, you—"
Paimon: "You have to seize this chance! A million gold coins a month! Woooow~ I could eat anything I want!"
Lumine: "Ahem, ahem… Since you're saying that, Paimon… then… I reluctantly accept." Lumine took a deep breath and said.
But the moment she did, she pledged her loyalty to Leon.
Leon smiled pleasantly.
Then he raised five fingers again.
"Five million."
He really raised the price!
Lumine felt like she'd been hit by a shockwave. Her eyes turned into shining gold coins.
"Your Highness, allow me to offer you my deepest loyalty! I would never refuse you, not even if you asked me to walk through fire!"
Paimon: "Me too! Me too!"
Lumine and Paimon couldn't wait to swear allegiance.
Who knew what Leon was thinking, paying so much for them?
Lumine decided to give up on traveling and freedom.
Why chase after her brother when she had this much money? He could go wherever he wanted—she wasn't going to keep looking anymore!
But even then—
Leon still wasn't satisfied!
He held up one finger again, and softly announced the number that made Lumine collapse to the floor.
"Ten million per month."
"Starting from version 1.3, I'm Your Highness' loyal dog!!!"
"Here, take my hand."
"Woof woof woof~!"
Facing Leon's extended hand,
Lumine clenched her fist, placed it over his hand—and barked.
Corrupted. Completely corrupted.
The once proud and free traveler was no more. She had sold her soul for money—and didn't regret it one bit.
Lumine: [Isn't this basically selling my soul? Bah! Tons of people want to sell theirs and never find a buyer! Ah~ ten million per month, brother, I'm so sorry!]
On the other side, Leon wore a devilish smile. He reached out to pet the beautiful girl who had just become his loyal mutt, his smirk stretching like that of a true demon.
In every world—
Money is everything.
(End of Chapter)
"Hmph. If you really want to be useful, then entertain me, try to throw those pathetic power stones at me. Let's see if even your insolence can amuse a king."