Chapter 1172: Resource Allocation

Chapter 1172 – Resource Allocation

Silence.

The kind of silence that suggested everyone in the room had independently reached the same conclusion about him.

Lux looked around and frowned. "What?"

Gula lowered her pastry. "That sounds so sad."

Lux blinked. "Sad?"

"Yes."

"How? That’s called resource allocation."

"That’s called sad resource allocation."

Lux stared at her.

Gula took another bite.

He turned toward Sira for support.

Mistake.

Sira shrugged. "Coming from you, I get it. Still doesn’t sound normal."

"It is completely normal." Lux gestured vaguely. "Greed exists for Hell’s finance and economy. We guard it. We manage it." He paused. "Ehm... We also spend it."

Sira snorted.

Gula nodded solemnly. "Mostly that."

"Strategically." Lux continued before his household could begin auditing him. "The point is, Prime Nexus is Greed House’s responsibility. When Hell’s financial infrastructure is threatened, Greed protects it. That’s literally our purpose."

Vaelor looked thoughtful. "Your House protects money instead of territory?"

"Money is territory with better mobility. And we have both."

Vaelor actually considered that.

Lux pointed at him. "See? He gets it."

"I didn’t say I agreed."

"Close enough."

Sira crossed her arms beneath her chest.

"You still could’ve brought backup."

"I can summon my servants."

Sira immediately pounced on that. "How many did you summon today?"

Lux paused. "One."

Gula slowly lowered another pastry. "One?"

"Gormaw is a highly specialized Gluttony-aligned security asset," he explained.

"Gormaw? From Gluttony? He eats people."

"Specialized."

Sira stared at him.

Lux sighed. "Each of my servants has their own jobs and responsibilities. I can’t pull everyone away whenever I feel like being dramatic."

Gula raised her hand. "Let me guess. Prime Nexus again?"

"Not all of them."

Lux leaned back against the sofa. "Greed has assets all over Hell. Prime Nexus is the center, but putting everything valuable in one tower would be financial suicide."

He began counting casually on his fingers.

"Vaults. Trading hubs. Contract archives. Soul-coin reserves. Transportation corridors. Warehouses. Artifact repositories. Emergency treasuries. Investment offices. Resource-processing facilities."

Vaelor stared at him. "How much does your House own?"

Lux looked at him. "You don’t want to know. But I can buy literally anything..."

Vaelor blinked.

Sira snorted.

Lux continued, "Different territories have different assets, and my servants guard the important ones. They aren’t decorations I keep around waiting for someone to attack me."

Gula nodded slowly. "So everyone has a job."

"Exactly." Lux pointed at her approvingly. "Someone finally understands management."

"I understand food management."

"Close enough." He folded his arms. "And right now, keeping them stationed is more useful than dragging them around as my personal army. Kaelmor’s forces are moving openly. Royal enforcement is spread across multiple territories, which means my servants aren’t limited to defending Greed assets anymore."

Sira’s eyes sharpened. "They can attack."

Lux smiled. "There you go."

His red eyes gleamed. "If royal forces enter their territories, my servants already have secure positions, supplies, formations and local intelligence. They can defend our assets while hitting Kaelmor’s forces from behind."

Vaelor slowly understood.

Lux hadn’t gone without backup because he lacked it.

He had deliberately left his pieces spread across the board.

"Every servant has responsibilities," Lux continued. "Every asset has someone guarding it. And now every territory containing Greed property also happens to contain something capable of making His Majesty’s soldiers have a very unpleasant day."

Gula grinned. "So you’re using your businesses as military positions."

"Temporary diversification."

Sira laughed. "That’s not what diversification means."

"It does today."

Then space rippled.

Everyone turned.

A portal appeared in the middle of the living room.

Lux straightened. "Yue?"

That would make sense. Yue’s team hadn’t returned yet.

A feminine silhouette stepped through.

Long black hair.

Obsidian horns.

Ancient confidence practically dripping from every movement.

Not Yue.

Lilith.

"Hello, guys~"

Lux stared.

Lilith smiled brightly, looking far too pleased with herself for someone returning from a royal prison raid.

Then Lux noticed what she was carrying.

A snake was wrapped elegantly around one arm.

On the other...

A bunny.

Lux blinked.

Once.

Twice.

He looked behind Lilith, expecting prisoners.

Nobody.

His eyes returned to the animals. "A bunny and a snake?"

Lilith’s smile widened. "Yes~"

Lux stared at the bunny.

The bunny stared back.

Tiny.

Soft.

Black fur.

Long ears currently folded timidly against its head.

The snake, meanwhile, was dark violet with silver markings running along its scales and looked significantly more confident about existing.

"Well." Lux leaned forward. "I assume those aren’t normal ones."

"Of course not."

"Good. Because if your target was a royal prison containing one rabbit and one snake, I would’ve had questions about Kaelmor’s priorities."

Lilith stepped farther inside.

She lowered her arms.

The bunny hopped onto the floor.

The snake slithered down beside it.

Magic immediately stirred.

Black mist surrounded the bunny.

Violet smoke enveloped the snake.

Lux watched both silhouettes stretch upward.

Seconds later, two women stood where the animals had been.

The first remained visibly nervous.

Petite, with long black hair and two soft rabbit ears rising from her head. Her dark-red dress looked almost oversized around her slender frame. She immediately clasped her hands against her chest and glanced around the crowded room with wide crimson eyes.

The second woman was entirely different.

Tall.

Elegant.

Long violet-black hair fell down her back, and narrow eyes swept across the room with lazy confidence. Faint scale-like markings decorated the sides of her neck. Her fitted dark dress carried silver patterns resembling winding serpents.

She looked at Lux.

Lux looked back.

The woman smiled.

Not shy.

Definitely snake.

Lilith gestured proudly. "Everyone, meet Buni and Mimi."

Lux waited. That was apparently the entire introduction.

"Buni."

The rabbit-eared woman flinched slightly.

Lilith touched her shoulder reassuringly.

"Buni is the Demoness of Misfortune."

Lux’s eyebrows rose.

Okay.

That title had significantly improved the bunny situation.

Lilith continued, "Whenever Buni becomes genuinely frightened, misfortune strikes whoever frightened her."

Sira tilted her head.

"What kind of misfortune?"

Lilith smiled. "You don’t want to know."

Sira’s smile vanished.

Lux immediately understood. "So Kaelmor imprisoned her because..."

"He frightened her."

Lux waited. "And?"

"And then several terrible things happened to him."

Buni looked down apologetically. "I didn’t mean to..."