For Haru, money was never a problem. After he made it big and became the youngest billionaire in history, he fulfilled all of his lavish desires.
A penthouse, luxury cars, designer suits, a hundred-floor office. He had it all.
But before the Rebirth of Fivefold Calamity development phase, Haru was all on his own. He created the entire game's architecture from system logic to visual rendering, all by himself.
And after the release, when the game won Game of the Year and sponsors lined up outside his door, he just did what most founders do.
He hired a bunch of people to handle everything for him. From the company's finances to server management. All of it.
"Uh, I don't have my wallet with me," Leon said, staring at the waitress.
"You what?"
It was Haru who was a billionaire, not Leon.
"So, are you going to pay or not?" the waitress asked again. "It's just two silver coins."
"..."
Cold sweat beaded out from Leon's forehead, but he didn't let the tension display in his face.
Right now, he doesn't even have a single copper on him.
It's not like House Valentine hadn't provided him any finances. It's just that he'd used it all up last night.
Last night, in the red-light district, he had given away all of Leon's monthly savings to Hibuki.
She had demanded an extra 10,000 gold coins from him, even though he had already handed her the [Drop of Limitless].
Leon didn't bargain with her.
He knew Hibuki normally charged millions of gold coins just to provide intel on the king himself. And Leon wants information on Veronica herself, who was one of the heads of the Calamity Towers.
She needed every resource she could get to dig up intel on her.
And knowing Hibuki, Leon was sure she'd give him something worthwhile in return.
He planned to put a spy behind his sister.
And Hibuki was the perfect candidate.
In the game's original storyline, she was the protagonist's personal informant, who had almost all the intel the protagonist needed.
Just then, a thought struck Leon.
Taking Hibuki to his side before the MC did was a brilliant move.
But…
'I made a blunder.'
Now that he earned Hibuki's favor before the MC did, the MC would have no one to get his information from…
'Did I just indirectly doom the MC?'
"Um, sir, your bill." The waitress called him, but Leon was still racing through his thoughts.
'Nah, it will be fine.' His mind relaxed.
The game's protagonist was not some kind of half-ass idiot who would lose without an informant. And also, if needed, Leon could always instruct Hibuki to meet the MC first.
'The world is big after all, and also… that guy has the king's back.'
Leon wiped his hands on the napkin tucked around his neck, then glanced at the empty plate.
"Sir?" The waitress still stood there.
"We can put it in your tab if you want—"
"No." Leon said, stepping out from his table.
"What, then how are you going to pay—"
"Haah…"
After breathing out a sigh, Leon raised his hand and took off the gold ring from his finger.
"Here."
He gave it to the waitress.
She blinked, looking down at her hand.
A golden ring with an intricate pattern.
"You can keep the change," Leon said, as he started walking toward the exit.
Click—
"H-Hey sir, that's too much!"
He could hear the waitress screaming, but he paid no mind.
Right now, he was in a hurry to check on his maid.
'She sure is taking her time.'
— — —
At the same time.
Eula flipped another page of her book she was holding.
She sat quietly in the corner of the library, right next to a massive floor-to-ceiling window. From here, most of Eclipse's front yard was visible.
The library, despite being large enough to fit an entire mansion inside, had only a handful of students scattered across the tables.
As expected, most of the students were in class.
Eula didn't mind.
She preferred it this way.
A teacup rested on the table, right next to a stack of books.
Just then, the girl wearing the same uniform as Eula slightly adjusted her specs.
She was holding a book too, but oddly close to her lips. Almost like she was hiding behind it.
Eula didn't turn her head.
"Why did you want to meet me at this hour?" she asked, calmly turning another page. "You do know I hate skipping my classes."
The girl whispered from behind her book.
"My lady, we have a situation."
Eula didn't look away from her book as she spoke.
"Oh? And what is it?"
The girl beside her lowered her voice further.
"At the fourth block of Capital Shinra… the locals have discovered dead bodies."
This news didn't affect her.
"So? That's common. People die more often in that region."
She brought the teacup to her lips again, taking a quiet sip.
The girl continued.
"No. What's odd is… the bodies were sucked dry from the inside out. Completely drained to a crisp. And they had several bite marks all over them."
Eula's fingers paused around her cup.
Now that… got her attention.
"We've already sent Shiro to investigate," the girl continued, "and she reported that it was likely done by a demon."
At the word "demon," Eula stopped sipping.
Slowly, she placed the cup down. Her ocean blue gaze, which had always been distant, finally turned toward the girl beside her.
"Do you think this has something to do with Lucian? I mean… the Primordial demon?"
Lucian Thorne.
The man that boy Leon had warned her about.
He's a Primordial-ranked demon.
That was what he claimed.
Of course, Eula hadn't believed it outright. But just in case, she had secretly sent Yoru to keep an eye on Lucian.
Still… something about Leon's words back then made her feel unsettled.
He didn't seem like he was lying.
The girl hesitated.
"If it's a Primordial demon… then anything is possible. But we still don't have proof that Lucian is one."
"Hmm… how much progress has Yoru made?"
The girl's lips tightened.
"My lady… about that…"
"Speak."
The girl lowered her eyes.
"We lost contact with Yoru this morning."
The fingers flipping through the pages abruptly halted.
A heavy silence fell between them.
Flap!
Eula closed the book with a thud, and placed it on the table.
She looked at the girl calmly, and said.
"Don't you have classes to attend?"
The girl blinked, surprised. But she nodded.
"Y-Yes, my lady. I must go now."
Without another word, she quietly collected her books and walked out of the library.
She understood what Eula meant… she wanted to be left alone.
Once the girl disappeared past the shelves, Eula rose from her seat and stepped in front of the giant floor-to-ceiling window.
She gazed at the scene in silence.
"If only we had more information about this Lucian guy…" she murmured.
The disappearance of one of her most trusted agents after being sent to monitor Lucian was no coincidence.
It raised every alarm in her mind.
There was something off about that man.
But a Primordial demon?
"…Haaah."
She exhaled softly.
"Why didn't I ask for more information from that boy… Leon?" she muttered.
Back then, she had a chance. Now, with things moving this fast, there was no way she could meet him directly.
Her stomach gave a slight twist.
'Thinking makes me hungry…'
Indeed, her brain needed sugar if it was going to keep working at this speed.
'Let's eat something first.'
With that thought, she picked up her cloak and made her way out to one of the restaurants inside Eclipse.