Esper Harem in the Apocalypse

Chapter 1111: Speed Running Life events (11) || Maria and Lilim

Rudy set his glass down. The playful smirk vanished, replaced by a look of intense, ancient affection.

"I reset the world," Rudy said simply. "I turned back the clock to save everyone. But the price was your memories. You forgot the Casino. You forgot the ’Wedding’ we had. You forgot that you belong to me."

He stepped forward. Lilim instinctively stepped back, but Maria didn’t move. She felt a magnetic pull, a resonance in her soul that she couldn’t explain.

"I can’t explain it with words," Rudy said. "So I’ll just show you."

He raised both hands. "Come here."

Drawn by a command that bypassed their logic, they stepped forward. Rudy placed his right hand on Maria’s forehead and his left on Lilim’s.

"Close your eyes," he whispered. "And remember."

FLASH.

Maria’s Vision: She saw the bright lights of the Casino. She saw Rudy winning millions for her. She felt the adrenaline of the high-stakes games. She saw the night in the car where she kissed him. She saw their private "wedding" in the bedroom, where Lilim acted as the priest. She felt the overwhelming love of a girl who had found her equal.

Lilim’s Vision: She saw the ’interrogation’ in her room where she tried to seduce him, and he turned it into a "friends with benefits" deal. She remembered calling him "Daddy". But deeper than that, she saw a memory from 1989—a little girl with horns wandering in a forest, saved by a young man who brought her home and fed her. She realized he had been her savior not once, but twice.

The memories crashed into them with the force of a tidal wave. The emotional weight of years compressed into a single second.

Rudy pulled his hands back.

Maria gasped, her knees buckling. She grabbed the desk to steady herself, tears streaming down her face. The confusion was gone. The cold Mafia Don persona shattered.

"Rudy..." Maria whispered, the nickname slipping out naturally.

Lilim didn’t grab a desk. She dropped to her knees. Her horns manifested, no longer hiding her true nature. She looked up at Rudy with eyes full of absolute devotion and hunger.

"Daddy..." Lilim choked out.

"Took you long enough," Rudy smiled, opening his arms.

Maria didn’t hesitate. She threw herself at him, burying her face in his chest, sobbing. "You idiot! You absolute idiot! You made us forget! Do you have any idea how lonely it was?!"

"I know," Rudy said, wrapping one arm tightly around her waist. "I’m sorry."

Lilim wrapped her arms around his legs, pressing her face against his thigh. "I knew it," she murmured, her voice trembling. "I knew my soul recognized you."

Rudy looked down at the Demon and the Mafia Princess—the chaotic, dangerous, gambling-addicted duo of his harem.

"I promised I’d come back," Rudy said, kissing the top of Maria’s head. "Now, dry your eyes. We have a syndicate to run, and I believe Lilim still owes me a few rounds of ’punishment’ for trying to stab me earlier."

Lilim looked up, a familiar, mischievous grin cutting through her tears. "Only if Lady Maria joins us this time."

Maria laughed through her tears, wiping her face on Rudy’s shirt. "Shut up, you pervert demon. Just... just hold me for a minute."

Rudy held them close, the pieces of his underworld empire finally restored.

"Welcome back," he whispered.

The tears had dried, replaced by the grim determination of three people who remembered exactly how the world used to be, and how broken and changed it was now.

Maria sat on the edge of her mahogany desk, swirling the last of her whiskey. She watched Rudy, who was looking out the window at the ruined skyline. Lilim stood by the door, her hand resting on the hilt of her shadow blade, her eyes tracking Rudy’s every movement with a mixture of awe and possessiveness.

"So," Maria said, breaking the silence. "You have your memories. You have your powers. And now, you have us. What’s the play, Hubby? Do we take over the Central District? Or do we hunt down the S-Rank monsters nesting in the subway?"

Rudy turned from the window. "We need capital. And I don’t mean money."

He tapped the glass of the window, pointing toward the northern horizon where a garish, neon-purple glow stained the night sky.

"We need the Neon District," Rudy said.

Maria’s expression tightened. She set her glass down. "Rudy, that’s... complicated. The Neon District is a neutral zone. It’s a cesspool of vice, illegal artifacts, and Awakened who don’t want to follow the rules of the Sanctum or the Syndicate. If we march an army in there, the Warlords will unite against us."

"I’m not marching an army," Rudy said. "I’m walking in the front door."

"You can’t just walk in," Lilim interjected softly. "The District is run by the ’Gambling Queen’. She has a barrier that nullifies most combat magic inside her territory. She calls it ’The House Edge’. Anyone who fights inside her casino loses their powers temporarily."

Rudy smirked. "I know. That’s why I need to talk to her."

He looked at Maria. "It’s Ruby... right? She’s your sister, isn’t she?"

Maria flinched. She looked away, a shadow crossing her face. "Half-sister. Ruby... she and I didn’t exactly part on good terms. After Father and... Rusher...died, I tried to keep the Syndicate together. Ruby took half the treasury, bought a literal army of mercenaries, and built her own kingdom in the Neon District. She thinks I’m weak for trying to maintain order. She believes in chaos."

"She believes in profit," Rudy corrected. "Which is exactly why she’s holding the ’Jackpot Event’ tonight."

"The Jackpot?" Maria’s eyes widened. "You know about that? It’s a rumor. They say she found a Mythical Item in a high-tier Dungeon and is auctioning it off to the winner of a high-stakes game."

"It’s not a rumor," Rudy said. "It’s the Key of Solomon. Or at least, a fragment of it. And I need it."

He walked over to Maria and tilted her chin up. "And I need her. The Ross sisters were a package deal in the old world. I intend to complete the set."

Maria sighed, leaning into his touch. "You’re insatiable. Fine. But Ruby hates me right now. If I walk in there, she might just shoot me on principle."

"She won’t shoot you," Rudy promised. "Because you’re not going as her sister. You’re going as my lucky charm."

He turned to Lilim. "Get the car. The nice one."