nyslfriends Chapter 925: Promoted to Furniture
Chapter 925: Promoted to Furniture
One hour.That was all Lux had.
One hour before he had to walk into the Upper Realm again, sit across from Celestaria, Archon Vizreel, and several council members who were probably already sharpening their divine side-eyes, and discuss why the King of Hell had suddenly decided to perform public diplomacy theft on a livestream while his own market value fell through the floor.
Plenty of time.
In theory.
Unfortunately, theory did not account for Sira.
Sira, daughter of Pride, menace in expensive skin, was still perched on his lap like the couch had rejected her application and Lux had been promoted to furniture. She had one arm loosely around his shoulders, her cheek near his temple, and every few seconds she shifted just enough to remind him she was absolutely not helping his concentration.
Lux stared at the system screens.
Sira hummed.
Lux scrolled through hidden reports.
Sira traced lazy circles near his collar.
Lux opened Shadow Corridor market activity.
Sira rested her chin on his shoulder.
Lux exhaled through his nose. "Sira."
"Hm?"
"You are obstructing official interrealm crisis analysis."
"I’m improving morale."
"My morale is confused. As well as ’my below’."
"Then I’m doing great."
He closed his eyes for half a second.
Not because he was tired.
Because murder was illegal in several jurisdictions, including the Upper Realm, and he was trying to maintain diplomatic compatibility.
Yue, meanwhile, sat beside him with a completely different energy. If Sira was a spoiled cat using his lap as conquered territory, Yue was an ancient dragon scholar who had found an interesting artifact and wanted to poke it until secrets fell out. Her body leaned slightly toward him, her gaze constantly moving between the screens, Lux’s face, Kaelmor’s frozen livestream, and the contract diagrams that still hovered faintly in the air.
She was curious.
Very curious.
About him.
About Kaelmor.
About why the Upper Realm, of all impossible places, had chosen to tolerate Lux Vaelthorn, son of Greed and Lust, instead of any other demon.
Lux could feel her questions forming before she asked them.
Ancient beings always did that.
They didn’t just ask things.
They circled them.
Like dragons around mountains.
"Why you?" she asked.
Lux didn’t answer immediately.
Not because he didn’t know.
Because there were too many answers, and none of them were simple.
Because he was useful.
Because he was powerful but not uncontrolled.
Because he could bind contracts into his soul.
Because he understood leverage.
Because unlike most demons, he could walk into a celestial office without immediately trying to seduce, threaten, bribe, or eat someone.
Low bar.
Still somehow difficult for Hell.
"I’m tolerable," Lux finally said.
Yue stared at him.
Sira laughed.
Lux sighed. "Fine. I’m useful, disciplined, and expensive to betray."
"That sounds more honest," Yue said.
"It was less humble."
"You are not humble."
"I cosplay humility for tax reasons."
Sira nodded solemnly. "He does. It’s terrible."
Lux ignored her and focused on the system.
Kaelmor had to know something.
That was the problem.
The king was arrogant, yes. Controlling, yes. Ruthless, absolutely. But reckless? Not without a reason. Kaelmor did not burn reputation for theatrical satisfaction unless he believed something more valuable was at stake.
Control.
Information.
Fear.
Or opportunity.
Lux opened another layer of his system.
"Show me hidden network activity for the last twenty-four hours. Cross-reference Shadow Corridor rumors, Abyss Lord mentions, ancient power theory, goddess-related speculation, and Kaelmor’s royal response timeline."
[Command Accepted.]
[Scanning Hidden Infernal Networks...]
[Scanning Shadow Corridor Channels...]
[Scanning Noble Private Forums...]
[Scanning Contract Broker Exchanges...]
[Scanning Forbidden Myth Archives...]
Sira leaned closer. "Oooh. Forbidden myth archives."
"Don’t sound excited."
"I love forbidden things."
"I know. That is why I monitor you."
"You monitor me because you love me."
"I monitor you because you are a walking reputational liability."
"Same thing."
Yue’s eyes stayed on the screen.
The system flickered.
Then the first log opened.
[Hidden Network Log Retrieved]
[Time Stamp: 12 Hours Ago]
[Source: Shadow Corridor / Ancient Channel]
[Speaker Identity: Partially Masked]
[Probable Classification: Ancient Lord]
[Topic: High Goddess Core Amplification Theory]
Lux’s smile faded.
Not completely.
But enough.
Sira noticed.
Yue noticed too.
"What is that?" Yue asked.
Lux didn’t answer at first.
He read.
[Archived Myth Reference Detected]
[Arumornot Doctrine]
[Status: Publicly Dismissed / Privately Preserved]
[Ancient rumor claiming the power of a High Goddess may multiply demonic authority if consumed, corrupted, bound, or parasitized.]
[Methods Mentioned: Core Consumption / Soul Devouring / Curse Anchoring / Divine Authority Leeching]
The room cooled.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
Yue went very still.
Lux felt it before he saw it.
Her breath slowed.
Her fingers tightened once over her sleeve.
Kaelmor’s face remained frozen on the side display, still wearing that infuriating royal calm.
Lux’s gaze shifted from the log to Yue, then back. "Well," he said quietly. "That’s ugly."
Sira’s expression sharpened into real disgust. "High Goddess power amplification? That old myth?"
"You know it?" Yue asked.
Sira shrugged, but her eyes stayed serious. "Every demon noble hears some version of it. Most treat it like ancient horror literature. Monsters whispered before the current seven houses stabilized Hell."
Lux scrolled.
[Log Expansion]
["If the mysterious sovereign rumored to exceed Kaelmor’s authority is real, then such power was not born naturally. Someone of that caliber may have consumed, bound, or parasitized a divine source."]
["A High Goddess, perhaps. Or something older."]
[Thread Reaction: Rapid Spread]
[Shadow Corridor Capital Movement Detected 18 Minutes After Initial Post]
[Royal Intelligence Sweep Detected 2 Hours After Initial Post]
Lux leaned back.
Not proof.
Not truth.
But enough.
Rumor didn’t need proof to destroy a king’s sleep.
Especially when the rumor described something the king had already done in another form.
Yue.
Lux didn’t say that part aloud immediately.
He didn’t need to.
Yue understood.
Her gaze remained fixed on the log, but her eyes had gone distant. Not blank. Just pulled backward into memory.
Kaelmor had cursed her.
Parasitized her power for centuries while she slept beneath dragon stone and silence.
And now a hidden network rumor had surfaced claiming that a being stronger than the king might have achieved power by taking a goddess.