Chapter 131
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 131
Chapter Title: 34. Succubus
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Ellie stared blankly at the woman before her eyes.
Rub rub. Rub rub.
The black-haired woman pressed her pussy mound firmly against Balkan's crotch, clinging tightly to him.
The woman buried her nose in Balkan's neck and drew in a deep breath.
"Master... haa... Master... sniff sniff. It's really Master's scent. The real, real Master... I missed you so much, Master..."
The moment he gazed at the woman savoring Balkan's body scent with an ecstatic expression...
Crack.
Ellie felt something snap inside her head.
Whoosh!
The tips of Ellie's hair ignited faintly.
A minor side effect from the sudden mana release.
It wasn't something to worry about right now.
A far more important problem was right in front of her.
Two fireballs formed in Ellie's hands in an instant.
Right then...
Twang!
From deep inside the cave the black-haired woman had burst out of, the sound of an arrow being nocked echoed.
An arrowhead gleamed in the darkness.
The arrow was aimed squarely at Ellie's forehead.
Taking it as the signal for battle, the party members raised their weapons.
Just before combat could erupt, in that split-second tension...
"Stop!!"
Balkan, who had been watching the woman rub her cheek against his chest with a lewd expression, shouted urgently.
Ellie's body—which had been brimming with the intent to blast the woman in front of her into a pile of ash with the fireballs—froze solid like stone at Balkan's command.
Her mind raced with other thoughts, yet her body meekly obeyed his order.
Doubt followed immediately.
Why?
'Why stop? She's the enemy. A filthy pervert groping and teasing Oppa without permission!'
She could accept—could even understand—her relationship with her adoptive mother.
Whether her adoptive mother and Oppa shared those sticky, heartfelt deep kisses, or even if they hadn't yet, someday had sex...
...It made her a little jealous, quite envious, and filled her with the desire to do it herself soon.
But for Ellie, it was all within acceptable bounds.
Her adoptive mother and Oppa had shared their affection long before her, so she was grateful they'd embraced her too.
But some other bitch? That was a whole different story.
"Balkan. Explain."
Joy Hog demanded, his shield raised high.
Balkan sighed and shoved away the black-haired woman clinging to him.
"...She's a former party member of mine."
"F-For-mer? Master! I'm still your—khek!"
Clank!
Balkan casually grabbed the collar looped around the woman's neck.
"And."
"...H-hek... M-Master... kek... You're still the same... The best..."
The black-haired woman dangled by her neck, her face alight with rapture and joy as she choked and gasped.
"She's my slave."
The party members blankly lowered their weapons at Balkan's declaration.
Fizzle.
The flames flickering in Ellie's hands rapidly dimmed and cooled.
"...Huh?"
Ellie's hollow voice echoed into the sky.
Fortunately—or maybe not—Kakchi's party let us into the cave.
Considering how territorial ordinary explorers could be, it was a massive concession.
The cave was surprisingly cozy. The campfire's warmth thawed our frostbitten bodies.
"Wind Valley's Squeak-Squeak?"
"Y-Yes. In the flesh!"
The party member traveling with Kakchi was none other than the pint-sized onahole... er, no.
The mid-rank explorer Wind Valley's Squeak-Squeak, whom we'd met before.
"The spirit archer who acts on trust alone! Why pair up with her of all people...?"
"Nah, doesn't it mean she's decent enough for a spirit archer to party with her?"
"Could be. No matter how skilled a woman is, biology's biology. She's still drawn to men on instinct..."
"Women can lose it around a guy, sure... but that?"
Joy Hog, Hitollis, Lamel, and Jubeol all turned their gazes toward me.
More precisely, toward Kakchi plastered right against my side.
"Heh... Maaaster..."
The party members' expressions grew increasingly awkward as they watched Kakchi grinning happily, her collar gripped in my hand.
"...Still, isn't that a little off?"
"A collar, and crawling on all fours... Feels like we've stumbled into another world."
"...From a crook's perspective, maybe it's too soon..."
"Slave play... terrifying..."
Even Jubeol shook his head at the sheer eccentricity.
"Master. Everyone's staring at me and you. This thrilling feeling after so long... ngh, ah, I'm cumming, cummiiing!"
Twitch. Twitch.
Kakchi shuddered violently, throwing her head back.
A natural-born masochistic pervert, climaxing effortlessly from mere contemptuous stares.
Whatever she'd been through, she seemed even more unhinged than before.
The party members shook their heads and averted their eyes from the orgasming Kakchi.
The initial encounter had been tense and hostile.
But Kakchi showed no outright malice, and Wind Valley's Squeak-Squeak commanded serious trust simply for being a spirit.
They weren't major threats.
Having reached that conclusion, the party members began easing their guards.
One person, however, still eyed Kakchi warily.
"...Oppa."
Ellie glared at Kakchi, her elf ears twitching furiously.
"You sure this is okay?"
I gave a wry smile at Ellie's overprotectiveness.
"It's fine. We partied together before, remember? She's capable and always listened to me."
Pat pat.
Kakchi shuddered again, her face melting into lewd bliss as I stroked her head.
Ellie's gaze sharpened once more. She couldn't look away.
"Still, just to be safe, maybe keep some distance..."
"Hey. Kindling elf."
Kakchi, who'd been listening quietly, hardened her expression.
Ellie's bewildered face reflected in Kakchi's sharp purple eyes.
"K-Kindling?"
"Yeah, you. Know your place. If you hate it that much, get out alone. Who let you into my cave? I could've booted everyone but Master. But I didn't. Shouldn't you be bowing and thanking me instead of calling me dangerous? Got no shame, you bitch—hngh!"
Clank!
One tug on the chain collar, and Kakchi's snarling face dissolved into dreamy haze.
"Ellie. Go back and rest up for now. Warm yourself by the fire."
"B-But..."
"Ellie."
"......Okay."
After I insisted, Ellie bowed her head deeply.
Snicker.
Kakchi flashed a triumphant smirk and hugged me even tighter.
Ellie shot Kakchi a glare laced with fury and humiliation, but she ultimately obeyed and returned to the party.
She looked like a puppy watching its family move away—or someone defeated after losing their precious lover.
I'll talk to her later, I thought, turning my full attention to Kakchi for now.
We had plenty to discuss. Questions, too.
"You. Where the hell have you been all this time?"
"Well... It's kind of a long story."
Kakchi gazed into the past, slowly recounting her tale.
When Derucio—that so-called reformed explorer—dropped me to the 5th floor, Kakchi had realized her own shortcomings.
"That's when a voice spoke to me. Asked if I needed power."
"A voice... in the Labyrinth?"
"No. Jermi was right there and heard nothing. It echoed in my head."
A mysterious voice targeting only Kakchi.
I couldn't identify its owner, but I had a rough guess at the cause.
[◆ 30th Puppet's Curse]
The first time Kakchi contracted that curse, she'd beaten it back a thousand times over.
Yet now, it had climbed all the way to the 30s.
Clearly, some major change had occurred.
"I followed where the voice led, met a mentor of sorts, went through a lot, got stronger... but it's still not enough."
Kakchi gazed at me with earnest longing.
"I don't want to be separated from you like that again, Master."
"......"
"That's why... I want the strength to protect you."
...Had she been through hell in the meantime?
She'd always been bold, but not this bold. She'd grown aggressively devoted.
Maybe that parting had hit her harder than I thought.
"I wanted to return to you proudly—strong enough to protect you without being a burden."
Of course, it was great news for me.
Where else would you find a slave this loyal and devoted?
"...You did well."
Pat pat.
"Heh..."
I stroked her head in approval, and she beamed goofily, hugging me tight.
Grind.
Teeth-gnashing echoed from afar.
I turned to see Ellie stretching her long elf ears to the limit, eavesdropping on our conversation.
"......"
Grip—
Ellie clutched the coat I'd given her with trembling hands, burying her face in it.
"Hoo..."
I forced my eyes back to Kakchi and returned to the main topic.
"So, what group are you with now?"
That 'voice' had hooked her up with a mentor and singled her out for growth.
No doubt it had high expectations for Kakchi.
"I'm always in Master's heart."
"Cut the crap."
"Hehe..."
Grinning slyly, Kakchi turned serious.
"Master."
Then she turned the question on me.
"By any chance... do you know of a curse called the 'Puppet'?"