Because he knew exactly how much money he actually had.
Unfortunately, his pride won.
He straightened his back.
Then pressed the service button.
A server quickly entered the room.
Drew waved grandly.
"Bring five bottles of your best wine."
The server nodded politely.
"And your most expensive menu package."
The server's smile became slightly stiffer.
Drew didn't notice.
"Also, book five of your highest-rated guest performers."
Several people gasped.
Those performers were celebrities who usually only appeared for elite clients.
The server maintained her professional smile.
"Of course, sir."
Internally, however, she was already confused.
She knew most of the major clients who visited NOX AURELIA.
The first and second floors were usually reserved for wealthy upper-class guests and she knows everyone face drew face is new and just in a private room in first floor in the lowest private room,each private room have grade.
The third, fourth, and fifth floors belonged to a completely different world.
Prestigious Families.
Gray Families.
True elites family.
Whenever someone from those circles arrived, management informed the staff beforehand.
Yet she had never seen Drew before.
Still...
Anyone capable of booking a private room here shouldn't be underestimated.
At least, that was what she assumed.
Maintaining her flawless smile, she bowed slightly and left the room.
The moment the door closed, Drew leaned back in his chair.
Surrounded by praise, admiration, and envy.
For the first time that evening, he truly felt like a successful man.
He completely failed to notice the faint smile on Prim's face.
A smile that looked almost... amused.
The food and wine continued flowing into the private room.
Five female celebrities had been arranged as entertainment.
One sang softly on a small stage.
One played a beautiful instrument.
The other three performed elegant dances that kept everyone's attention fixed on them.
The atmosphere became increasingly lively.
Wine glasses clinked together.
Laughter filled the room.
Everyone seemed determined to praise Drew into the heavens.
After all, he was now a successful songwriter with connections to Releam Studio.
Who wouldn't want to get on his good side?
Meanwhile, Prim sat quietly in his corner.
Eating.
And eating.
And eating.
Even though he was eating faster than everyone else, his movements remained elegant.
Not a single stain touched his clothes.
His posture was relaxed.
Refined.
Classy.
Ironically, while Drew was desperately trying to act like an elite, Prim naturally looked more like one than anyone else present.
After finishing another plate, Prim wiped his mouth neatly.
Then he glanced toward the curly-haired girl sitting beside him.
She was staring at the celebrities with sparkling eyes.
"I think we should leave now," Prim whispered.
"Huh?"
Before she could react, Prim had already stood up.
He bowed politely toward the room.
"I'll be taking my leave now."
Then he turned and walked out.
Without hesitation.
Without lingering.
Without attempting to network.
The door closed behind him.
Silence lingered for a second.
Then someone laughed.
"Oh my God."
A man shook his head.
"Did Prim seriously come here just for the food?"
Several people laughed.
"How disgusting."
"What did you expect?" another man scoffed while drinking wine.
"He's still just a kid."
"He spent the entire evening eating instead of getting closer to Brother Drew."
"How foolish."
Another person nodded.
"Exactly."
"All he has is his face and that nice personality."
"No matter what happens, he'll always be beneath people like us."
More laughter followed.
Meanwhile, Drew had already become drunk on both alcohol and praise.
Several women surrounded him.
Some hugged his arms.
Others leaned against his shoulders.
One was practically sitting in his lap.
For once, Drew wasn't pushing them away.
The attention felt wonderful.
The admiration felt even better.
Suddenly, he stood up.
The women stumbled slightly as he pushed them aside.
His eyes were fixed on one of the female celebrities.
She had just finished her performance.
Without warning, Drew grabbed her waist.
The woman immediately stiffened.
"Sir, please let go."
The room erupted with whistles.
Several men laughed loudly.
Drew tightened his grip.
"What are you struggling for?"
His words were slurred from alcohol.
"You think you're still some big celebrity?
He smirked.
"If it's money you want, I have money."
The celebrity's face turned pale.
"It isn't allowed."
"Please let go."
The fifth celebrity immediately stepped forward.
"Stop it!"
Several drunk men got up.
Instead of helping, they joined the chaos.
Some tried forcing selfies.
Some demanded hugs.
One even attempted to kiss a celebrity.
Several women became jealous and started arguing with the performers.
The entire room descended into madness.
Meanwhile
The curly-haired girl had already grabbed her bespectacled friend.
"Move!"
She dragged her toward the exit.
The two escaped into the corridor just as the situation exploded behind them.
"What just happened?"
The glasses girl asked drunkenly.
Before the curly-haired girl could answer, she noticed something.
A group of armed security guards.
The restaurant manager.
Several senior staff members.
All moving rapidly toward Drew's private room.
The curly-haired girl's eyes widened.
"Oh shit."
Instead of running away...
She immediately pulled out her phone.
The glasses girl stared at her.
"Why are you recording?"
The curly-haired girl continued filming.
"Because somebody is about to get their ass beat."
The glasses girl looked horrified.
"Shouldn't we leave?"
"Why?"
The curly-haired girl pointed toward the approaching guards.
"If an establishment can afford celebrities like that to perform for guests, do you seriously think they'll let customers treat them like trash?"
She snorted.
"If they were escorts, maybe that'd be a different story."
"But those women are celebrities for Christ sake."
"They're part of the restaurant's reputation."
The manager was already standing outside the private room.
Security formed a line behind him.
The curly-haired girl zoomed in with her camera.
"This is going to be good."
The glasses girl looked at her as if she were insane.
"One day your obsession with recording everything is going to get us killed."
The curly-haired girl puffed out her chest proudly.
"Then I'll die famous."
The glasses girl slowly removed her normal glasses.
Then she pulled out another pair from her pocket.
The curly-haired girl blinked.
"...Why do you have a second pair?
"
The glasses girl calmly put them on.
"My drama glasses."
The curly-haired girl nodded seriously.
"Understandable."
Together, they continued watching the disaster unfold.
"What the hell is going on here?!"
The manager's furious roar echoed throughout the private room.
Everyone instantly froze.
The drunken atmosphere disappeared completely.
Several security guards moved forward without hesitation.
The five celebrities were immediately escorted behind the guards and away from the guests.
The manager's expression was ugly.
"You broke the rules of our establishment."
His cold gaze swept across the room.
"Forced sexual behavior is not allowed."
His eyes landed on Drew.
"And attempting to force yourself onto a celebrity guest or performer is grounds for legal action."
Several people turned pale.
The manager continued mercilessly.
"You will also be punished for violating NOX AURELIA's regulations."
He pointed toward the people who had actively participated.
"Those directly involved will remain."
Then he pointed toward the others.
"As for those who sat there and watched..."
His smile was cold.
"Each of you will be fined two hundred CU dollars."
The room went silent.
Then several people gasped.
Four million zen.
Just for sitting there.
Some nearly fainted.
The manager folded his arms.
"Or..."
His smile disappeared.
"You can choose jail."
Nobody spoke.
Nobody even dared breathe loudly.
The guards immediately began dragging people out of the private room.
The once-proud guests stumbled into the hallway like criminals.
Drew struggled violently.
"Do you know who I am?!"
The guards ignored him.
"I'm a songwriter for Releam Studio!"
Still ignored.
"I know Lucas!"
This finally made the manager stop.
The room became silent.
Drew immediately straightened.
Finally.
Someone important.
Surely they would back off now.
The manager slowly turned around.
Then frowned.
"Who the hell is Lucas?"
Drew froze.
The manager looked genuinely confused.
Then he laughed.
"You came to an establishment owned by the NYX Family..."
His eyes were filled with mockery.
"And you think your background is enough to threaten us?"
Drew panicked.
His mind raced desperately.
Then he shouted the first thing that came to mind.
"I know Prim!"
The manager paused.
For the first time that night.
He actually paused.
Drew's eyes lit up.
It worked!
The manager stared at him for several seconds.
Then casually waved his hand.
"Take them to the lobby."
The guards immediately obeyed.
While everyone was being dragged away, the manager pulled out his phone.
A call connected almost immediately.
"Young Master."
His tone became respectful.
"Someone causing trouble here claims to know Prim."
On the other side of the call, Jake paused.
At that exact moment, he was visiting the Quinn Family estate.
Specifically...
Ava's room.
Ava was still wearing her pajamas.
Meanwhile, Luna was helping her take pictures.
Every few seconds Ava would strike another pose.
All of them were apparently being sent to Matthew.
Jake looked up from his phone.
"Ava."
"Hm?"
"Does your brother know someone named Drew?"
Ava blinked.
Then stood up.
She walked onto her balcony and took a deep breath of fresh air.
Next door.
The curtains on another balcony were closed.
Ava took a deep breath.
Then yelled.
"LUIS!"
Silence.
"LUIS!"
Still silence.
"LUIS!"
The balcony doors next door slammed open.
A furious Luis appeared.
The first thing he did was throw a pillow directly at her face.
"You fucking bitch!"
Luis pointed at her.
"What the hell is your problem?!"
"Can someone not sleep in peace?!"
Ava caught the pillow.
Completely unfazed.
"Do you know a guy called Drew?"
Luis frowned.
"Drew?"
"He broke some rules at Jake's father's restaurant He keeps screaming your name."
Luis stared at her.
Then rolled his eyes.
"Only girls scream my name."
Ava immediately burst out laughing.
Luis looked annoyed.
"And even if I know him, what exactly do you want me to do?"
He pointed at himself.
"I'm not his father."
A pause.
Then he shrugged.
"Just don't punish him too much."
"He makes money for me."
Without another word, Luis turned around.
The balcony doors closed.
Silence
Ava blinked.
Then looked at Jake.
"You heard him."
Jake had heard every word.
Including the part where Luis called Ava a bitch.
Completely normal sibling behavior.
Jake sighed.
Ava and Luna choose which picture should be sent to Matthew.
The two of them were taking this very seriously.
Jake rubbed his forehead.
Then spoke into the phone.
"Bill him."
A pause.
"And beat the crap out of him."
The manager immediately replied.
"Understood, Young Master."
The call ended.
The manager calmly put his phone back into his pocket.
Then he looked toward the lobby.
Where Drew and the others were currently waiting.
His smile slowly appeared.
Unfortunately for them.
Their night was only beginning.
The curly-haired girl and her friend, who had been hiding and recording the scene, paused.
"Four million zen just for watching? Damn!" the curly-haired girl gasped.
"How are they supposed to come up with that kind of money? At this point, they should just go sell their kidneys. Thank God we left quickly, because I would've just said, 'Let me work.' Where is that money supposed to come from? I already spent all my money on skincare and new clothes," the glasses girl said with a pout.
"I knew Drew would get himself into trouble one day. I've always hated his character. Proud idiot. And suddenly he's a songwriter? So fishy. He's definitely up to something," the curly-haired girl said as she looked around.
"Don't tell me you still want to watch. What if we go to the lobby and one of those stupid coworkers sees us and points us out as part of their group?" the glasses girl asked nervously.
"That's their business. Do they have any proof? Besides, didn't Drew offer both of us eight million zen to sleep with him?" the curly-haired girl said.
"He offered you too?" the glasses girl asked in surprise.
"Obviously. I'm hot."
The glasses girl rolled her eyes.
"After he offered me the money, I told him I had a sexual disease."
The curly-haired girl burst out laughing.
"I told him that money wasn't worth opening my legs for him. He could go shove it up his ass. Then the idiot kept sending me gifts. He probably wanted to feed his ego by sleeping with us. What an ass."
With that, she dragged her friend toward the stairs leading to the second-floor hallway so they could continue watching the drama from above.
Everyone from the second to the fifth floor had come out of their private rooms. Even those who couldn't afford private rooms crowded into the hallways on their respective floors, all eager to watch the unfolding drama in the lobby.
Out of the original thirty-one people, Prim, the curly-haired girl, and the glasses girl had already removed themselves from the group, leaving only twenty-eight.
Fifteen of them were required to pay four million zen each, for a total of sixty million zen.
The color drained from their faces.
They only earned ninety-six thousand zen a year. How were they supposed to come up with four million?
As for the remaining thirteen people, including Drew, their legs weakened as well.
Those who had only watched the incident were fined four million zen each. The others had it even worse. They had touched the celebrities, tried to hug and kiss them, and some of the women had even attacked them.
"This is what happens when nobodies are allowed in," a man from the fourth floor said, causing his companion to nod in agreement.
"Who are these 'nobodies'?" someone from the second floor asked.
To get a private room—or even a table—in this restaurant, a person either had to be someone's mistress or sugar baby, possess powerful connections, be related to an influential family, or have won a special invitation.
The world's social hierarchy was divided into five levels.
At the very top were the Gray Families and the Prestigious Families.
Below them were the Elite.
Then came the Upper Class.
The fifth division consisted of everyone else: the upper middle class, middle class, lower class, the poor, and even those buried in debt.
People in the fifth division viewed the Upper Class as the highest level of society.
The Upper Class believed the Elite were untouchable.
The Elite, however, knew that the Prestigious Families and Gray Families were the true powers that should never be offended.
And among the Gray Families stood the Nyx Family, whose influence stretched not only across this nation but throughout all six nations and over one hundred and twenty countries.
Because of that, everyone familiar with establishments like NOX AURELIA understood the rules.
The Upper Class guests present immediately recognized that Drew's group did not belong.
They were nobodies who had wandered into a place far above their station.
"Drew! Drew! You have to help us!"
All fifteen people, men and women alike, crowded around him desperately.
"Are you all crazy?" Drew shouted. "If I help you, who's going to help me? That's sixty million zen! I'm an employee, not the owner of the releam studio!!Why are you expecting so much from me?"
"It's only three million CU dollars prim said You could afford to spend two million CU dollars on food! Why can't you help us? You're the reason we're in this mess!"
Drew's face turned purple.
His hatred for Prim shot through the roof.
Two million CU dollars for a meal?
Lucas had paid that bill.
How could he possibly have that much money?
Before Drew could process it, the manager spoke again.
"Oh, and one more thing."
Everyone froze.
"The food, drinks, and private entertainment provided by the five celebrities amounted to five million CU dollars. The five bottles of wine cost fifteen million CU dollars. Combined, your total consumption comes to twenty-five million CU dollars."
The manager smiled professionally.
"In addition, for harassing the celebrities, each of the five victims will be filing a claim for five million CU dollars. That adds another twenty-five million CU dollars."
Several people nearly fainted.
"And finally, for violating NOX AURELIA's regulations, there is an additional penalty of ten million CU dollars."
The manager adjusted his sleeves.
"That brings your total outstanding balance to sixty million CU dollars."
The manager then turned to the remaining twelve people.
"And you guys also broke the rules. You will each pay thirty-five million CU dollars. Cash or card?" he asked calmly.
Upstairs, the glasses girl's mouth fell open.
The curly-haired girl covered her mouth, her body shaking with laughter as she continued recording.
"Girl, I'm going to watch this every time I'm lonely," the curly-haired girl said.
Also known as Amanda, she couldn't stop laughing.
"Clock it," the glasses girl replied. Also known as Rachel, she tapped her index finger rapidly against her thumb, completely absorbed in the chaos below.
The two girls were so focused on the drama that they didn't notice the attention they were attracting.
From the second floor—on the same level they were currently on two men had started watching them.
One was smoking slowly, the other sipping wine.
They had noticed the girls earlier, the moment they stepped out of their private room to get fresh air, and had been observing them ever since.
Meanwhile, Prim had already left the restaurant.
The moment he got outside, he realized he was being followed.
Even when he stopped a taxi, he knew the driver was working with the men trailing him.
He said nothing.
Instead, he closed his eyes and pretended to faint from the incense the driver had lit inside the car, holding his breath the entire time.
The driver immediately smiled and stopped the car.
At that moment, four more men got inside.
The car drove off.
These were men sent by Drew including the driver