Light flooded Barbara’s vision, forcing her to squint.

For a brief, blissful moment, she thought she was in heaven. After all, the last thing she remembered was Alex’s hand closing in on her throat and darkness consuming her consciousness.

‘Is this the heaven?’ She wondered.

But the illusion was quickly shattered.

As her eyes adjusted, the first thing she saw was not the gates of heaven nor the abyss of hell. It was Alex, sitting across from her, a calm smile on his face.

She momentarily paused, instinctively trying to move—but couldn’t.

But then, she realized something. She was stuck. Her wrists and ankles were bound by chains shimmering with faint, golden runes. They weren’t normal restraints; they were enchanted.

Those chains continuously absorbed her mana rapidly, making it impossible for her to use magic. But that was not all, as any physical struggle sent a numbing sensation through her limbs, making escape impossible.

‘What’s happening? Why am I alive?’ Barbara’s mind raced, her gaze darting around, taking in the scene.

Her subordinates—every single one of them—were piled together in an unconscious heap against the far wall.

Some groaned faintly, but none of them were awake. A few had dried blood caking their wounds, but Alex had been careful. They were alive.

‘Does he want something from me?’ She thought as she let out a slow breath, knowing full well that nothing in this world was for free.

If Alex had let her live, then there must be something he thought was more worth than letting her die.

“You’re awake,” Alex’s voice broke through her thoughts.

Barbara turned her gaze back to him, tension coiling in her muscles. He sat leisurely, one arm draped over his knee, looking completely at ease.

“What… what are you going to do with me?” She asked, her voice steady despite the racing of her heart.

Even after having dealt with more people—sly old people—than she could remember, Barbara still found it hard to calm herself down with Alex in front of her.

‘Maybe I feel like this because my life is in his hands,’ she reasoned, knowing that her will to survive was the one reason behind her behavior. After all, this resolve was the reason for her being despite her family being wiped out.

Alex, on the other hand, tilted his head slightly, amusement flickering in his glowing blue eyes. “That depends on you.”

Hearing those words, Barbara swallowed, gritting her teeth. “What do you mean?”

She knew she shouldn’t get angry as her life depended on how she behaved, but Alex’s annoying smile made it hard for her to do that.

Alex, however, ignored it. Leaning forward slightly, resting his elbows on his knees, he spoke. “I heard that you guys did some rather shady things in this city.”

Barbara frowned at that, not understanding what Alex was talking about. “What do you mean?”

A flicker of something unreadable passed through Alex’s eyes as he looked deep into her eyes. “Are you trying to play dumb?”

Barbara clenched her jaw. ‘What the hell is he talking about?!’

She really had no idea what Alex was talking about, and Alex, looking at her expressions, frowned.

“I was told that your organization forces people into doing things… things they didn’t want to,” Alex paused, observing Barbara’s expressions as he continued, “I heard it included slavery, prostitution, body transactions, and many more.”

As those words fell, Alex finally saw realization flashing past Barbara’s eyes. “We don’t force anyone,” she simply said.

Seeing Alex unconvinced, she went on.

“Here, people do whatever they can to survive. We don’t initiate or process those things; we just oversee it.” Taking a deep breath, her eyes devoid of any deception, she added, “We are like a third party who sees things and judges them fairly.”

As Alex heard those words, he realized what was going on.

The guy who had told him about this organization’s work had misunderstood things, and Alex had believed in him, but now it made sense. After all, Barbara was a heroine candidate; there was no way she would do some shady work.

A long silence followed until Alex broke it.

“I want you guys to work under me. If you cooperate, I assure you that no unnecessary harm will come to you or your people.”

He changed the topic—or, more like, moved to the main topic.

Barbara stared at him for a while before she asked, “What if I say no?”

Alex leaned back again, his expression growing colder. “I will kill you guys and then bring some people who are loyal to me and give this city to them.”

His finger was tapping the armrest of his seat as he tilted his head. “I don’t enjoy resorting to force when words will suffice, but make no mistake—I will have this city one way or another.”

Barbara shivered despite herself. The memory of his overwhelming power was still fresh in her mind.

Even if she had all her subordinates at full strength, she wasn’t sure they could’ve stopped him. And now, bound and helpless, she had no leverage.

Silence stretched between them, heavy and suffocating.

Alex, however, seeing Barbara hesitate, added with a thoughtful expression. “I’m not someone unreasonable. So, if you serve me, no royal or imperial demon would come for you.”

As soon as his words fell, Barbara’s eyes went wide in disbelief. It was clear from her expression that she didn’t believe him. After all, she didn’t know who he was.

“You don’t believe me?” Alex chuckled only to turn speechless when he saw her nodding her head.

“Hah…” A sigh left his lips before he called out. “Lilia.”

A second later, Lilia entered the hall, and the chibi spirit, Jessica, strode beside her with an expression of unnatural pride.

Gesturing at Lilia, Alex spoke to Barbara. “Would you believe the words of the eldest princess of the demon empire, then?”

Another silence. This time, it was filled with incredulity.

But it wasn’t just Barbara who was shocked…

“Wait—! What?!” Jessica, who heard of Lilia’s background for the first time, was equally shocked. “Why did no one tell me that?!”

Her roar, however, was met with a blank gaze from both Lilia and Alex.

“You never asked,” Lilia replied, causing the chibi spirit to go silent, realizing she was at fault.

Barbara, on the other hand, tried to recall the looks of the eldest princess of the demon empire. She had seen her once, around ten years ago.

‘Now that I think about it, her features are similar.’ Barbara muttered inwardly, wondering what she should do now.

She realized that Alex, who seemed mysterious, might also be someone with a very strong background to be able to stand beside Lilia and force Keryu into retreating without fearing the consequences.

‘A monster like him can’t be a normal person.’

Finally, after a bout of silence, she exhaled through her nose, her shoulders sagging slightly. “You’re really not going to kill any of us?”

“As long as you don’t give me a reason to,” Alex replied smoothly.

Barbara studied him for a long moment, searching for deception. But all she saw was unwavering certainty. He wasn’t bluffing. He truly had no intention of killing them unless absolutely necessary.

A mix of relief and frustration welled inside her. “Fine.”

Alex raised an eyebrow. “Fine?”

“We’ll follow your orders,” she muttered, hating the taste of defeat on her tongue. “But you’d better keep your word.”

A small smile curled Alex’s lips, and for a second, she wasn’t sure if it was amusement or genuine satisfaction. “I always do.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep