Chapter 73 What She’s Worth
Three days passed in Mammon’s kingdom like a breath held and slowly released.
Lilith found herself settling into a routine that felt almost normal, or at least as normal as anything could feel when you were living in a demon realm preparing to fulfil an ancient prophecy. Mammon took her through different districts each day, showing her aspects of Greed that went deeper than the simple accumulation of wealth.
The artisan quarter where craftsmen created pieces so perfect they became invaluable. The investment halls where merchants calculated risk and return with mathematical precision. The charity houses where excess wealth was redistributed to those who needed it most, because even Greed understood that a prosperous kingdom required citizens who could participate in the economy.
“You’re surprised,” Mammon observed on the second day as they watched a charity coordinator distribute funds to families whose businesses had been damaged in Armageddon’s attack. “You thought Greed would just hoard everything and let people suffer.”
“Maybe a little,” Lilith admitted. “But this makes sense when you explain it. You can’t extract value from people who have nothing left to give.”
“Exactly. Real Greed is strategic, not selfish.” He smiled, and Lilith noticed how the expression reached his eyes when he looked at her, warming something in his usually calculating gaze. “Though I’ll admit, not everyone in my kingdom understands that distinction as well as they should.”
She laughed, genuinely laughed, and realised it was the first time she’d done so without forcing it since before the execution. The sound surprised her enough that she stopped walking, and Mammon turned back with concern evident on his face.
“Are you alright?”
“I just… I forgot what it felt like. To laugh without it being an act.” She looked at him, this prince of Greed who somehow made her feel valuable instead of like a commodity to be fought over. “Thank you for that.”
Something shifted in his expression, softening into an emotion Lilith couldn’t quite name but that made her chest tighten with complicated feelings. “You don’t need to thank me for recognising what you’re worth.”
They continued walking, and if Mammon’s hand found hers more frequently over the next few hours, if he stood slightly closer than strictly necessary when showing her ledgers or explaining economic theory, Lilith pretended not to notice. It was easier than addressing whatever was developing here, easier than adding one more complexity to an already impossible situation.
The third day, Mammon took her somewhere he admitted he rarely showed anyone. A garden hidden in the palace’s centre, accessible only through a series of corridors that required specific knowledge to navigate.
Unlike the ostentatious wealth displayed everywhere else in his kingdom, this space was simple. Stone pathways wound between plants that grew for beauty rather than value, and a fountain in the centre featured water that flowed for the simple pleasure of sound rather than to showcase expensive engineering.
“This was my mother’s place,” he said quietly as they sat on a bench near the fountain. “She designed it before she died, said every kingdom needed somewhere that existed just for existing, not for profit or display or strategic value.”
Lilith looked around at the peaceful garden, at the plants growing in careful harmony, at the simplicity that felt almost sacred after days of overwhelming luxury. “It’s beautiful.”
“I come here when I need to remember that not everything is about cost and return, that some things are valuable simply because they exist.” He turned to face her fully. “You’ve been carrying something heavy since you arrived. I won’t ask what it is, won’t push you to tell me before you’re ready. But I want you to know that whatever burden you’re calculating, whatever cost you’re paying alone, you’re worth more than that price.”
The kindness in his voice nearly broke something in Lilith’s chest. She wanted to tell him everything, wanted to unload the truth about Machala and the execution and the crushing weight of knowing the real spy was still active while everyone believed justice had been served. But the words caught in her throat, tangled with fear and exhaustion and the certainty that no one would believe her anyway.
“I don’t know how to put it down,” she said instead, the same thing she’d told him before.
“Then don’t, Not yet.”
Mammon’s hand found hers on the bench between them, fingers threading together with the careful deliberation she’d come to recognise over the past few days. “But know that when you’re ready, when the cost becomes too much to bear alone, there are people who value you enough to help carry it.”
His thumb traced patterns across her knuckles, the touch gentle and somehow weighted with meaning
Lilith didn’t want to examine too closely. She knew, on some level she didn’t want to acknowledge, that this meant something different to him than it did to her. That his feelings had shifted into territory she couldn’t reciprocate, not when her heart was already tangled between Azrael and Cain and the impossible choice the prophecy would eventually demand.
But she was so tired of complications. So exhausted from maintaining facades and calculating costs she couldn’t afford. For these few moments in this quiet garden, she just wanted to accept the comfort without drowning in everything it implied.
“Thank you,” she said quietly. “For seeing value in me when I can’t see it myself.”
“That’s what people who truly understand worth do.” Mammon squeezed her hand once and didn’t let go. “They recognise it even when the person possessing it can’t.”
They sat in comfortable silence for a while, Lilith allowing herself to exist in the moment without the constant weight of anxiety crushing down on her. The garden smelled like growing things and clean water, nothing like the incense and old stone of the Vestibulum. Here, she could almost pretend she was just a girl sitting with a friend, not a Seraph caught in ancient prophecies and deadly politics.
Eventually, they had to return to the palace. Sera was waiting with news that the portal back to the Vestibulum would be ready the next morning, that Lilith’s scheduled time in Mammon’s kingdom was coming to an end. The information settled over her like a physical weight, the brief reprieve ending and reality waiting to crash back down.
That final evening, they had dinner in the same intimate dining hall where they’d eaten on her first night. Mammon had clearly ordered his staff to prepare something special, courses that showcased the kingdom’s finest without being ostentatiously expensive. It was a careful balance, and Lilith recognised it for what it was, a gift tailored specifically to her, showing he’d been paying attention to what she valued versus what cost the most.
“I’ll miss this,” she admitted over dessert, something delicate and perfectly crafted. “Your kingdom, the way you explain things, makes me feel like I can breathe without everything pressing down on me.”
“You’re welcome back anytime.” Mammon’s voice was steady, but something in his eyes suggested the invitation meant more than simple hospitality. “My kingdom’s resources are yours whenever you need them. My time, my attention, whatever you require.”
“Mammon…” She didn’t know how to finish that sentence, how to acknowledge what hung unspoken between them without making everything more complicated.
“I know.” He smiled, slightly and sadly. “I know what you’re dealing with, know the prophecy requires choices I might not be part of. I’m not asking for anything beyond what you can give. Just wanted you to understand that my offer stands regardless of where the future leads.”
The words were careful, diplomatic, giving her space to interpret them however she needed. But Lilith heard what lay beneath them, the feelings he wasn’t quite saying out loud, and her chest tightened with guilt and gratitude in equal measure.
They finished dinner making lighter conversation, both of them carefully avoiding the weight of everything unspoken. When Sera finally came to collect Lilith for the night, Mammon stood and took her hand one final time.
“Sleep well. Tomorrow’s journey back won’t be easy.” He pressed a kiss to her knuckles, the gesture formal but lingering just slightly too long. “Remember what I said about your worth. It doesn’t change just because you leave my kingdom.”
Lilith nodded, not trusting her voice, and let Sera guide her back to their quarters. Once inside with the door closed, Sera gave her a look that suggested she’d noticed far more than Lilith wanted her to.
“Don’t,” Lilith said before Sera could speak. “Please don’t ask me to process whatever that was. I can’t handle one more complicated thing right now.”
“Wasn’t going to ask.” Sera began helping her prepare for bed with gentle efficiency. “Just going to remind you that you’re allowed to be cared about, even when it makes things messy.”
They packed in silence after that, Lilith’s few belongings fitting easily into the bag she’d brought. The blue fabric Mammon had purchased at the markets lay folded on top, and she ran her fingers over it wondering what it had truly cost him versus what it was worth.