chapter 158 mark is happy

A Moment of Silence

The air in the lavish Mirage Estate meeting room was thick with disbelief.

Mark sat rigidly in his seat, fingers interlocked in front of him, staring at the signed contract as if it might suddenly rewrite itself.

Mist Low, still gripping his half-eaten melon slice, looked between Brainless Girl and the documents like she had just rewritten the laws of the universe.

Brainless Girl?

She leaned back comfortably, arms behind her head, the picture of absolute confidence.

The silence stretched.

Finally, Mist Low exhaled and broke it.

"Wait. Hold up."

Brainless Girl glanced at him, her smirk widening.

Mist Low pointed at the contract, his voice slow and careful.

"You—you just saved us thirteen million credits."

Mark rubbed his temples. "We were prepared to pay twenty million."

Brainless Girl shrugged. "I know."

Mist Low let out a slow, disbelieving chuckle. "So you're telling me… we were about to casually toss twenty million credits at this deal like a bunch of reckless morons—"

"—Which you were," Brainless Girl added.

Mist Low waved his melon slice in the air. "—And you just… talked them down to seven million? Like it was nothing? Seventy percent off?"

Brainless Girl gave an exaggerated sigh. "It wasn't nothing. I put effort into it. Used my brain, unlike some people."

Mist Low gasped dramatically. "How dare you?"

Brainless Girl smirked.

---

Processing the Shock

Mark was still mentally processing the financial earthquake that had just occurred.

Thirteen million credits.

That wasn't just a small win—it was an entire restructuring of the deal.

Mirage Estate was worth the original twenty million. The market had fluctuated, and even at full price, it would have been a solid investment.

But now?

Brainless Girl had hacked the price down to a mere seven million, making it one of the greatest real estate steals in history.

Mark let out a slow breath. "I don't even know how to react to this."

Mist Low, still chewing his melon, suddenly stood up. He carefully placed the fruit slice down, like he was preparing for something dramatic.

Then, he turned to Brainless Girl and gave her a deep, theatrical bow.

"Madam," he declared, "you are a damn wizard."

Brainless Girl laughed. "Glad you finally noticed."

Mist Low straightened, shaking his head in awe. "I mean, I was just here for the drama, but that was actually terrifying."

Mark sighed, massaging his temples. "You just left us with thirteen million extra credits."

Brainless Girl winked. "You're welcome."

---

Mist Low's Appreciation (And Slight Panic)

Mist Low sat back down, still staring at Brainless Girl like she was a demon of negotiations.

"You know," he mused, taking another bite of melon, "I think I might love you."

Brainless Girl smirked. "Understandable."

Mark shot Mist Low an unimpressed look. "You fall in love with anything that saves you money."

Mist Low grinned. "Damn right. That was the sexiest negotiation I've ever seen."

Brainless Girl chuckled. "It's all about understanding leverage."

Mist Low waved a hand. "Forget leverage. Do you know how much food I could buy with thirteen million credits?"

Brainless Girl arched an eyebrow. "That's your takeaway?"

Mist Low nodded solemnly. "I could live in a melon paradise."

Brainless Girl rolled her eyes. "Unbelievable."

---

Mark Tries (and Fails) to Understand

Mark, still struggling to process, finally shook his head.

"Okay, explain to me how you did that."

Brainless Girl stretched, completely unfazed.

"Well, first off, Mr. Callahan wasn't the real decision-maker. He was just the sales rep. The actual owner was desperate to offload the estate but didn't want to look weak in the market."

Mist Low blinked. "Wait, so… he needed to sell?"

Brainless Girl nodded. "Yup. I could tell because Callahan mentioned 'multiple offers,' but his body language screamed 'please take this off our hands.'"

Mark frowned. "But we were willing to pay twenty million. You could've just let us buy it."

Brainless Girl smirked. "And waste thirteen million credits?"

Mist Low shook his head. "See, Mark, this is why you need me. I appreciate her genius."

Mark crossed his arms. "I don't trust you with money."

Mist Low gasped. "Rude."

---

Brainless Girl's Breakdown of the Deal

Brainless Girl sat forward, eyes gleaming.

"I played into Callahan's desperation. Instead of matching the other offers, I acted like I wasn't even sure we wanted it."

Mist Low nodded slowly. "Reverse psychology?"

Brainless Girl grinned. "Exactly. By pretending we weren't desperate, we made them desperate. They wanted to lock us in before we 'changed our minds.'"

Mark exhaled. "You really think that worked?"

Brainless Girl gestured to the contract. "Proof's right there."

Mist Low gave a slow clap. "You are dangerous."

Brainless Girl smirked. "Oh, I haven't even started."

Mark sighed. "Next time, you're handling every one of my deals."

Brainless Girl leaned back. "Smart decision."

Mist Low grinned. "So… about my rent?"

Brainless Girl burst out laughing. "Not happening."

Mark leaned back in his chair, staring at the signed contract on the table. The numbers stared back at him—7 million credits instead of the 20 million they had originally planned to pay.

His mind still struggled to wrap around the fact that they had just saved 13 million credits in a matter of minutes.

And it was all because of Brainless Girl.

He turned to look at her, sitting there with the most smug, satisfied smirk he had ever seen. She was leaning back, completely at ease, as if she hadn't just single-handedly destroyed the seller's price expectations and walked away with a deal that should have been impossible.

For someone called "Brainless Girl," she had just outplayed an entire negotiation team without breaking a sweat.

Mark exhaled, a small chuckle escaping despite himself.

"You know," he said, voice quieter than usual, "I should be more shocked, but at this point… I'm just impressed."

Brainless Girl grinned. "Took you long enough to admit it."

Mark shook his head, still staring at the contract. "I don't think you understand, you just saved me 13 million credits."

Brainless Girl shrugged. "I do understand. That's why I did it."

Mark let out another quiet laugh. It wasn't often that he was caught off guard—he was usually the one controlling the situation, staying ahead of everyone else. But today?

He had been completely outmaneuvered.

By her.

He met her gaze and gave her a rare, genuine nod of appreciation.

"Thank you, Brainless Girl," he said, his tone serious. "Really. You didn't have to do that, but you did. And I appreciate it."

Brainless Girl's smirk softened just a little, and she waved a hand dismissively. "Yeah, yeah, don't get all emotional on me now. You know I love messing with people in negotiations. This was just fun for me."

Mark smiled. "Still. I owe you one."

Brainless Girl raised an eyebrow. "Oh? So you admit I'm useful?"

Mark sighed. "You're annoying, but yes, you're useful."

Brainless Girl leaned forward, placing her elbows on the table. "I think what you meant to say was: 'Brainless Girl, you are a genius, and I am forever in your debt.'"

Mark rolled his eyes. "Let's not get carried away."

Mist Low, who had been watching this exchange while munching on his melon, suddenly chimed in.

"Mark, buddy, you should just accept it. She saved you enough money to buy an entire fleet of luxury cars."

Mark sighed again but finally allowed himself to fully relax, the weight of the deal finally settling in.

"Fine. You win," he said, looking at Brainless Girl with amusement. "You're a genius."

Brainless Girl beamed. "Damn right."

Mark exhaled. "Just… promise me you won't use these powers against me one day."

Brainless Girl smirked. "No promises."

Mark chuckled. "Figured as much."