Chapter 17
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: Slave Succubus (2)
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"Hic... Hiccup... Mom, I'm sorry..."
"Why are you sorry? Our A-jun stayed behind to save you all..."
Park A-young and Yoo Hye-rin, the mother and daughter, clung to each other, sharing their grief.
One mourned the loss of her twin brother, the other the loss of her son.
"Hunter Yoo Hye-rin...? We're truly sorry this happened. The Association has finally sent an official notice. They understand if you don't participate in this operation. And if you wish, the Association can prepare the funeral..."
"Gahk-!!"
"How dare you speak such nonsense when the gate hasn't even collapsed? Should I drag your son in there and kill him for you?"
Even as they shared their sorrow, an insensitive Association employee showed up and spouted those words, causing Yoo Hye-rin to lose her reason.
He wasn't born from her womb, but Park A-jun was her son. For someone else to casually mention his funeral...!
Sudden rage boiled up to the top of her head.
Death Sentence activated!
"Keurgh-!!"
The Association employee paid dearly for his one foolish word, his body pierced by black thorns, teetering on the brink of death.
"That's enough."
With the sharp crash of shattering glass, an S-Rank hunter intervened. The Association's S-Rank had been watching the situation, prepared for such an event.
Some harm to Association staff could be tolerated as stress relief.
But killing was an entirely different matter.
"My son wouldn't want his mom to become a criminal."
"You...! What do you know!!"
A-Rank and S-Rank were just one step apart, but the difference was like heaven and earth. Yoo Hye-rin's furious attacks rained down, but they fell short of breaching the S-Rank hunter's defenses—it was utterly futile.
"Something's coming out of the gate!!"
"Hm?"
"It's a person! A person's coming out!!"
As Yoo Hye-rin vented her rage, shouts from the crowd echoed. Ignoring the S-Rank hunter, the mother and daughter bolted away.
"That crazy bastard... Did he just tame a succubus...?"
"Son... has bold tastes. A bit hardcore... Ahem! But doing that in front of all these people..."
The hope that their son and brother might be alive briefly lit their faces, but soon they flushed red as if painted with blush.
It was only natural.
Anyone seeing a succubus leashed by the neck and dragged out would think the same.
Who in their right mind would imagine putting a leash on a succubus—beautiful enough to seduce any man with her human-like allure—and bringing it out of a gate!
No one sane would even consider it unless they wanted to commit social suicide...
Now that their brother and son had returned alive, the embarrassed mother and daughter couldn't even lift their heads...
Whew...
Getting out of the gate was fine. But I'd overlooked something.
Even though quite some time had passed while I enjoyed sex with Bianca, why hadn't the rescue team entered? I hadn't thought of that.
Judging from Bianca's status window, they'd probably assessed her as at least an S-Rank monster.
That explained the current situation.
"Don't move! The moment you do, we'll trigger the floor traps!"
Dragging a powerful monster from a gate on the verge of dungeon break into it for disposal was too risky. So, covering the area in advance with all sorts of magic and traps, then activating them the instant the monster emerged—this minimized burden and damage.
Thus, the moment I emerged dragging Bianca, having every weapon from the hunters trained on us and standing still was just common sense.
I raised both hands, signaling no intent to resist, and quietly waited as the hunters approached.
"How dare you humans threaten my master?"
"Eek?!"
Bianca, who usually spoke in a flirty, seductive tone to tempt men, suddenly unleashed overwhelming pressure and mana at the approaching hunters.
"Bianca!"
"B-But Master..."
"Stay still."
"Yes..."
Bianca withdrew her murderous intent and mana, then, like me, simply watched the hunters approach with hands raised, showing no resistance.
"Did you tame the succubus?"
"Yes."
After binding our unmoving hands, one hunter asked me.
"To be safe, leave the monster as is and escort only the academy student to the inspection room!"
"Yes!"
I'd deliberately leashed Bianca around the neck to show I'd tamed her, but inspection was unavoidable.
Not that I'd expect otherwise—who wouldn't suspect a succubus manipulating me into faking it? It was standard procedure.
"Hmm... No signs of brainwashing or mental manipulation."
Entering the inspection room, a familiar face greeted me: Dr. Kim Yun-ji, specially authorized by the Association to monitor me.
Due to a past villain with the Rape Demon job, as a Sex Master, I underwent periodic checks with Dr. Kim Yun-ji for mental manipulation skills.
She usually worked as an emergency medic at the academy, though.
As her mana scanned my body, she quickly finished and stared at me intently while reporting the results.
"Hmm..."
"..."
"Hmmmmmm..."
Why was she staring at me like that?
"Well, we'll look into it later. You must be in shock today..."
It was surprisingly considerate. She seemed curious but held back to spare my feelings.
She always looked expressionless, with dark circles under her eyes giving off a decadent vibe, buried in research.
"Yes. But what about the succubus?"
"Once the investigators deem her safe, she'll be registered as your tamed monster."
Some hunters had the Monster Tamer job.
They tamed and strengthened monsters to fight alongside them. Unlike summons, tamed monsters had to be out constantly, so national recognition was required.
Otherwise, people would panic seeing them on the streets.
"The lewd seal on the succubus's belly confirms she's been properly tamed."
"But for an academy student who just awakened to tame such a powerful monster?"
"It seems his job's unique traits meshed with the succubus species' characteristics, making it possible."
The monster investigator—a hunter with that non-combat S-Rank job—gave his conclusion after examining Bianca.
With database access thanks to his job, he'd contributed massively to global monster data on strategies and traits.
"Still too dangerous. Leaving an S-Rank monster unchecked..."
"SS-Rank."
"Hm? SS-Rank?"
"Yes. Just confirmed—SS-Rank. Bordering on SSS..."
The Association hunter swallowed hard, face tense, staring at the investigator.
"That means..."
"If she rebels... we'd suffer massive casualties. If you're eliminating her, don't do it now—call in the International Hunter Federation later."
As the investigator said, a first-appearing SS-Rank monster's power was unknown. Handling her with Korea's hunters alone was far too risky.
It could upset Asia's balance. Since hunters defined national strength post-emergence, losing Korea's top hunters might invite threats from Japan, China, Russia, and neighbors.
"I can hear everything. Want me to help you decide?"
"??"
They were far away, with a sound-blocking spell cast—not just any, but by an S-Rank Archmage hunter.
Yet the succubus spoke as if she'd heard it all from afar.
Kwachik!Kwajijik!!!
At that moment, the traps and magic circles set by dozens of S- and A-Rank hunters shattered in unison.
"F-Fucking insane..."
Seeing this, the Association hunter and investigator realized she was beyond Korea's capacity. That the hunters here lived only by her mercy. Resigned, they could only hope the academy student who'd tamed Bianca would use this power wisely.
'Whew... Master is amazing!'
Absorbed stamina beyond limits. All stats rise by one rank for a set time.
Mana insufficient. Female Slave skill converts Master's stamina to mana.
Of course, this was a huge misunderstanding.
No SS-Rank monster could shatter dozens of A- and S-Rank hunters' traps and magic circles in one blow.
But the investigator overlooked something.
Succubi grow stronger for a time after absorbing stamina. Mistaking this, he and the Association hunter misjudged her SS-Rank power.
And feeling the intense mana surging even beyond her expectations, Bianca deepened her loyalty to her master from the heart.