Morning sunlight slowly entered the room.
For once, the mansion felt peaceful.
No alarms.
No gunshots.
No emergency meetings.
Only silence.
Warm silence.
Nithya woke up slowly while still sitting beside Aryan's bed.
At some point during the night, she had fallen asleep holding his hand.
The moment she realized it, her eyes widened slightly.
Dangerous.
Very dangerous.
Before she could move away, Aryan's sleepy voice broke the silence.
"So Devil actually stays beside injured people."
Nithya immediately looked at him.
"You were awake?"
"Just now."
Liar.
His faint smile exposed him instantly.
Nithya narrowed her eyes.
"You enjoy annoying me too much."
"And you enjoy threatening me too much."
Fair.
Again.
Aryan slowly sat up despite the pain.
Nithya immediately moved closer.
"Don't move too much."
Aryan looked at her calmly.
"That sounds caring."
"It sounds practical."
"You stayed awake all night."
Nithya crossed her arms quickly.
"I was making sure you didn't die."
Aryan almost laughed softly.
"That's surprisingly romantic for Devil."
Nithya threw a pillow at him immediately.
Bad decision.
Aryan laughed again while holding his side carefully.
"Ow."
Nithya instantly looked worried.
"Does it hurt?"
Aryan noticed the concern in her eyes immediately.
Real concern.
For him.
Interesting.
"No," he said softly after a moment. "Not much."
Later that morning, the entire mansion staff quietly celebrated one thing.
Eagle survived.
News of the harbor battle had already spread across the underground world.
The eastern alliance officially collapsed overnight.
Routes disappeared.
Leaders surrendered.
Remaining members fled.
War ended.
And the winners were obvious.
Eagle and Devil.
Together.
Inside the dining room, Aryan and Nithya sat beside each other while Rohan updated them.
"The remaining eastern members are disappearing fast," he explained.
Aryan nodded once.
"Expected."
Rohan looked toward Nithya respectfully.
"Your financial attack destroyed most of their backup systems."
Nithya calmly drank coffee.
"People panic when money disappears."
Aryan looked at her briefly.
"You say that too casually."
"It's true."
Rohan almost smiled slightly.
Watching Eagle and Devil talk like this still felt unreal.
Suddenly another guard entered nervously.
"Sir."
Aryan looked up.
"What?"
"There's media attention around the harbor incident."
Rohan immediately looked irritated.
"Handle it."
The guard hesitated.
"There's also another issue…"
Aryan's expression darkened slightly.
"Speak."
"The northern syndicate officially requested partnership."
Silence filled the room instantly.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Because nobody requested partnership unless they truly feared opposition.
Nithya leaned back calmly.
"They surrendered faster than expected."
Aryan's lips curved faintly.
"You sound disappointed."
"A little."
Later that afternoon, Aryan rested inside his office while Nithya reviewed university assignments nearby.
The contrast felt strangely normal now.
Mafia king recovering from gunshot wound.
Mafia queen doing business management homework.
Impossible life.
Aryan watched her quietly for a moment.
"You're really continuing university?"
Nithya looked up.
"Yes."
"You already control an empire."
"And?"
Aryan looked genuinely curious now.
"Why study business management when you already understand business better than most CEOs?"
Nithya closed her notebook slowly.
"Because I want a normal part in my life too."
That answer affected him unexpectedly.
Because deep down…
Aryan wanted the same thing.
He stood carefully and walked toward her slowly.
Nithya immediately frowned.
"You should rest."
"I'm bored."
"That's not my problem."
Aryan stopped beside her chair.
Then softly…
He placed one hand gently against her hair.
Nithya froze slightly again.
Still not used to gentle affection.
Aryan noticed.
"You become quiet whenever I touch you."
Nithya looked up at him.
"That's because nobody touches Devil."
Aryan's eyes softened slightly.
"But I can?"
Silence.
Then quietly…
"Yes."
That single word changed something between them completely.
Suddenly Rohan's voice came through Aryan's phone urgently.
"Sir. Emergency meeting."
Aryan sighed softly already.
"What now?"
"There's movement from Europe."
Nithya's expression sharpened instantly.
"What kind of movement?"
Rohan answered carefully,
"A new player entered the underground world."
Aryan's eyes darkened slightly.
"Name?"
Silence for one second.
Then Rohan answered.
"Lucien Moreau."
The atmosphere changed immediately.
Even Nithya became serious now.
Aryan noticed.
"You know him."
Nithya looked toward him slowly.
"Yes."
"Problem?"
Her eyes turned colder.
"Big problem."
Aryan's instincts sharpened instantly.
Because Devil rarely called anyone dangerous.
And if someone scared the underworld enough to worry Devil…
Then war might not actually be over yet.