CHAPTER 521: SNUGGLING?

Chapter 521 – Snuggling?

She turned, the soft click of her boots fading into the hallway.

Corvus watched her go. "You know she’s terrifying, right?"

"She once castrated a noble demon with a salad fork because he touched her without consent."

"...Remind me never to flirt with Lyra."

Lux poured the wine. The bottle hissed with a faint mist as the cold vapor curled over the rim. The scent hit fast—sweet citrus, tart plum, with a spicy afternote that left a pleasant burn in the nose.

"So. We’re back where we started. No proof. No clean path. And a bastard uncle puppeteering things from the shadows."

"Basically."

"Then what’s the plan?"

Lux stared into his glass. The wine glimmered like garnet in the lamp glow.

"I’ll force him to move," he said quietly. "He wants to stay hidden. So I’ll light enough fires that he’s forced to act. And when he does..."

Corvus nodded. "That’s when we strike."

"Exactly."

The room felt colder now. Not from fear. From focus. From something sharp and dangerous curling in Lux’s chest like a loaded vault key waiting to snap open. The wine sat heavy in his hand, untouched for the past few minutes.

Corvus didn’t say anything at first. He just studied him. His contractor. His friend, in the strange, infernal way that meant standing beside someone while they burn the world down and offering to fan the flames.

But even Corvus knew when to bow out.

So when the knock came again, lighter this time, more hesitant, Corvus didn’t move.

The door creaked open and Naomi stepped in. She blinked at the scene—Lux standing near the open window with his wine glass, shirt loose—and Corvus.

She blinked again. "...Am I interrupting?"

Corvus smirked. "Guess that’s my cue. At least try to relax, Lux. You’ve got too much darkness under your fingernails these days."

Lux exhaled softly. "Yeah. I’ll try."

Corvus tilted his head. "No promises, huh?"

Lux nodded. "You know me."

With a quiet flutter of wings, Corvus morphed into his raven form in a smooth burst of black feathers and a flick of shadow. His form dissipated midair like smoke inhaling itself, and then he was gone. Just silence and a few stray feathers drifting down.

Naomi stepped further in, gently closing the door behind her. She looked at the wine bottle, then the tray Lyra had left. "I see she brought the good stuff."

"She always does," Lux said, setting his glass down untouched.

Naomi hesitated for a second. "If you want to rest, I can leave. Or at least stay quiet while you—"

"No."

His voice was low. Firm. Not cold. Just... final.

He walked toward her slowly, his white blazer unbuttoned with a quiet rustle of fabric. He slipped it off his shoulders in one smooth motion, revealing the silk shirt underneath, collar open.

His true nature. Demonic. Raw. Not polished like when he dressed up for contracts or diplomacy. This was him. Bare. Exhausted. Honest.

He tossed the blazer to the couch, then looked at her with eyes that didn’t glow for show. Just for need.

He patted his lap. "Come and comfort me."

Naomi raised an eyebrow, but walked toward him anyway. "You mean like snuggling? Or like... the other kind of comforting?"

"I don’t even know anymore," he muttered, sitting down on the long, deep couch beside the wine tray. "Just... be here."

So she came.

Without more questions, without performance, Naomi sat on his lap sideways, her arms instinctively wrapping around his neck. Her body curved into his like it belonged there. She expected heat. A touch. A whisper. That usual glint in his eye that meant he was about to tease or tempt or unravel her.

But instead...

He leaned forward. Slowly.

And hugged her.

Tightly.

One arm curled around her waist, the other across her back, pulling her into him like she was the only solid thing left in a world built on contracts and shadows.

She froze at first. Not because it was bad. But because it wasn’t what she expected. His scent filled her lungs—spice and something darker, faint traces of old ink and the residual heat of his magic.

Lux closed his eyes against her neck, lips not kissing, just breathing her in.

"Lux..." she whispered.

"It’s supposed to be a vacation, Naomi..." His voice cracked just a little. Not from weakness. From honesty. "I just wanted good coffee. Warm mornings. A few peaceful nights. I wanted to enjoy life. Eat too much. Touch you. Sleep in. Laugh."

She didn’t speak. Just rubbed the back of his neck gently with her fingers.

"I have all the wealth," he murmured. "All the gold. All the power. My name alone bends cities. I could buy kingdoms and still have enough left to build a tower made of soul-gems. I could—"

"Lux," she interrupted softly.

He paused.

"You don’t have to list it. I know."

He exhaled slowly against her skin. "Then why does it feel like none of it matters right now? Why am I sitting here... planning to kill someone. Again. Investigating. Negotiating. Managing broken seals and traitorous bloodlines."

Naomi’s hand moved to his hair, gently brushing back a few stray strands. "Because you care," she said. "That’s the part you always skip over. You could’ve walked away, Lux. You could’ve ignored it. But you didn’t."

"I didn’t walk away because I can’t," he said. "I’m tied to all of this. Every coin. Every debt. Every name carved in the ledger."

She smiled faintly. "Yeah. But also because you chose to stay."

He was silent.

She leaned her forehead against his. "You think I fell for you because you’re a hot demon with fancy suits and a tragic backstory?"

Lux smirked. "I mean... that is part of it."

Naomi snorted. "Okay, fair. But the rest of it? It’s this. The tired version of you. The one who holds on even when the world is giving him every reason to give up."

Lux’s fingers twitched against her back. Not from nerves. Just overwhelmed by the softness.

"You don’t have to keep proving your worth to the world," she said. "Not to me. Not to anyone."