"What price can you pay?"
Mu Xiaoxiao glanced at his own lifespan, ticking away rapidly. Skills like stopping time and reversing time consumed massive mental energy. For now, he could only fuel them with lifespan.
He winced inside. Showing off was great, but at the cost of his life. Literally paying with his life to flex.
Luckily, he'd stockpiled plenty.
With such a huge cost, of course he wouldn't help them for free. Besides... he was here for them.
'Ladies, I'm not a nice guy.'
"Price? We'll pay whatever you want!"
It wasn't Tsubakihara Mira who spoke, but Tsubakihara Yuna. The elder twin was usually more introverted, but when it came to Yuji—the one she loved—she found courage.
Childhood bonds ran deep.
This stranger brought hope, and Yuna couldn't hold back. But Mrs. Mira stayed silent, watching the young man beneath the hat.
As a businesswoman, she sensed this "price" would be anything but simple.
"Oh? Anything?"
Mu Xiaoxiao drew out the words. Their meaning made Yuna freeze. She felt his gaze wander over her body. She trembled.
She was sensitive to men's stares.
'What does he mean? Could it be...'
"Including yourself?"
"No!" Mira's refusal came instantly. This woman, who controlled major corporations, blocked her daughters. "Yuna and Nina are my daughters. I won't use them as bargaining chips!"
Yuna looked at her mother, moved. But...
"What maternal love." Mu Xiaoxiao wiped his eyes mockingly. "If I were a merciful god, I'd help for free. But I'm just a businessman."
He sneered. "Miss Mira, you don't expect a free ride, do you?"
"Of course not." Mira gritted her teeth, eyes wary. She sensed his real target—her daughters. He wasn't hiding it.
"I'll pay. I have money. Plenty. I can give you—"
"Tempting." Money had been his original goal. But seeing them changed his mind. Get the women, and money follows, right?
'Man, I'm really something.'
"Too bad I don't want it. Or rather, you don't have enough chips." His smile vanished. His voice turned cold. He raised his head, revealing his mouth and half his face.
"I'm the only one who can fully heal that boy. You think mere money buys a miracle? You underestimate me—or you're just naive."
The three women shrank under his aura.
Instinctively cowed.
Even Mira felt it. She needed something from him.
"To save him, you pay my price. And I decide what that is." He tilted his head. "If you still want to save him... Mrs. Mira, your daughters are quite lovely~"
"You—"
Mira panicked. Behind her, Nina looked at her mother, then at her sister. The glasses-wearing girl, perfect at sports and studies, gritted her teeth.
"I'll do it! Save Yuji, and I'm yours—body and soul. Just don't hurt my sister or mother!"
"Nina!" Mira grabbed her daughter.
"Mrs. Mira, think carefully." Mu Xiaoxiao's sneer returned. "I can make a vegetable walk again. Or... if you hesitate, he could die anytime. Think I can do it?"
'Threatening—classic hentai move. Don't even need Absolute Control or hypnosis.'
'These women will bend.'
The sisters panicked. So did Mira.
"Mom, we can't give up on Yuji..."
"We can't give up, but I won't let you, Nina. I'll do it. I'm the older sister." Yuna interrupted. "Even if I'm gone, you and Yuji can be happy."
"Never! Sacrificing you—Yuji and I could never be happy!"
Mu Xiaoxiao: "..."
'These two... still debating who gets to be happy with him? None of you are escaping.'
Mira suffered most. She couldn't abandon either daughter. But Yuji was family too.
Why was this happening? Why them? Pale and torn, she looked at unconscious Yuji, then at her arguing daughters.
Finally, she made a choice.
"I don't know who you are or where you're from." Mira took a deep breath and stepped forward. Her perfect figure curved under her skirt. A vision.
She stopped before Mu Xiaoxiao. "I'll pay the price myself."
"Oh?"
He tipped his hat. Their eyes met. Mira saw his face clearly—so young. A child. His daughter's age.
Dealing with someone so young...
She bit her lip, uncomfortable.
"I'll do it. Take me instead of my daughters. Will that work?"
'Of course not. I want all of you.'
But he kept quiet. Pushing for the daughters too might make her refuse. Their value to her was no less than Yuji's.
"Deal, Tsubakihara Mira. You're mine now." He agreed. The daughters would come later.
For now, this gorgeous widow was his.