Chapter 21: I'll Let Tomorrow's Me Worry About the Subtitle (1)
While I was clutching my head in agony from Lilith's well-deserved punishment, it seemed Lilith and Hoaran had been chatting about this and that.
Just as Hoaran said, the two were apparently old friends. They looked so chummy now, it made their recent fight seem like a joke.
But my skull felt like it was splitting open, so I couldn't make out what they were saying.
Lilith had just lightly karate-chopped the top of my head, but there was this crack sound, and it hurt like hell. I was in too much pain to pay attention to anything else.
All I could tell was that Lilith started getting pissed off again pretty soon.
Finally, she shot to her feet and grabbed my hand.
"You're fucking hopeless. Hey, we're going back, so you better remember that."
I rubbed my throbbing crown and looked up at her fuming face.
"What now?"
"That crazy bitch... Ah, forget it, you don't need to know, you panty-thief fucker."
"I just picked up what was lying on the floor, Mom. That's too harsh."
"Picked up? You stole it, you shitty bastard."
Damn, hitting me with straight facts. I had nothing to say to that.
"Anyway, we're outta here. If you're gonna spout more bullshit, just stay away next time."
Something in their conversation must've really pissed her off, because she laid it out bluntly to Hoaran.
I wondered what the hell had happened.
Hoaran looked at her and said,
"Bullshit? That's too harsh, Lilith. And besides, this isn't something you can decide on your own, is it?"
As she spoke, Hoaran wagged her tails gently. Knowing the bewitching softness of those tails, I found myself staring, mesmerized. She noticed and giggled softly.
"From what I hear, you haven't even formally added this child to your family registry yet, have you? And he's more like a successor than a son anyway, so it's not like this lady said anything improper, right?"
"I wanna crack open that head of yours that thinks that's fucking reasonable, so shut the hell up?"
What the fuck were they even talking about? I just stared blankly at them, and Hoaran met my eyes.
"Most importantly, it's the child's own will that matters. Child, what do you say? If you wish it, I'd like to take you as this lady's disciple, just as I mentioned before."
Of course, she added with a smile,
"This lady's earlier offer to let you see her as your mother still stands."
"Huh?"
What the hell?
I had no idea what about me appealed to Hoaran so much. Why was she going this far?
Was there some secret about my origins?
Was I actually the heir to some cosmic overlord from another dimension or some shit, who got dumped here for mysterious reasons?
If that was true, my favorability toward my unknown parents might go up a notch.
As I indulged in what was basically pure delusion, Hoaran bowed her head slightly toward me.
Her cheeks flushed a bit, and I caught it.
"A-and... if you become this lady's child... whenever you wish, you may touch this lady's tails."
"Huh? You mean for real...?"
Before I could finish, I saw Lilith snap her fingers.
In an instant, Hoaran—who'd been blushing while stroking her own tail right in front of me—vanished, and we were back in Lilith's office on the top floor of the building where we'd first met her.
"Hoo..."
Lilith flopped onto the sofa with a heavy sigh.
I cautiously sat on the opposite sofa, gauging her mood.
She looked seriously pissed, no doubt about it.
And especially because of how I'd seemed tempted by Hoaran's words at the end.
The Lilith I knew would've been pretty fucking offended by that.
Now what...?
Then a thought hit me.
"By the way..."
"You like tails that much?"
She cut me off and blurted it out.
"Wha...?"
"You like tails that much, you shitty bastard?"
Lilith stared at me as she said it.
I had no clue how to respond, so I just rolled my eyes around. She bit her lip.
"I-I've got a tail too, you know...?"
A slender tail peeked out from behind her ass.
The tip was slightly arrow-shaped—no, heart-shaped.
"I-if you like tails so much... you can touch mine."
She averted her gaze after saying it, her tail wiggling right in front of me like she meant it. Without thinking, I blurted out what was on my mind.
"Nah, that's kinda..."
It was a tail, sure.
But it was sleek and smooth-looking, nothing like Hoaran's fluffy, plush ones.
Hoaran's were just on another level; I wasn't some tail fetishist dying to grope Lilith's.
But as soon as the words left my mouth, I realized my fuck-up.
It was her way of showing goodwill, and I'd shot it down flat.
"You fucking...!"
She jumped up and glared at me. After a long stare, she bit her lip hard and spoke.
"Fine, whatever, you fucking asshole. If you like Hoaran that fox bitch so much, go marry her! Go suck and fuck each other all you want!"
"I didn't even say I was going."
She froze mid-stride toward the door.
"Just calm down and talk to me..."
As I said it and she turned, I hesitated.
"You're not going...?"
"......"
I couldn't say a word as she turned fully to face me.
Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes.
What the hell was this?
This Lilith, shedding tears over something like this, felt worlds away from the TV hero of the Twenty-Two.
She was always so confident, spewing harsh words without a care—the Lilith I knew.
Right now, she just seemed like any ordinary girl.
But I wasn't dumb enough to say that out loud.
Besides, I already knew.
She was way more fragile than she let on. The people we called heroes were just ordinary folks like us, riddled with doubts, groaning over their regrets, getting drunk and apologizing to strangers for past mistakes.
Frustrated, regretful, hurting.
Just like us.
It just felt weird seeing Lilith look so delicate.
Weirder still that I was the cause.
"...Mom."
Whatever the reason, it was my fault. I knelt slightly to meet her eyes and gently wiped the tear from her cheek with my finger.
Her tear slid down my finger.
I brushed away the falling drop and looked into her tear-filled, crimson eyes.
"I'm not going anywhere."
She bit her lip at my words.
Then, looking down to avoid my gaze, she spoke.
"...Hoaran's just as rich as me. And unlike me, she can offer you way more. My magic's too advanced to teach you anyway."
"Still not going."
"...If you went to her, you wouldn't have to struggle like this. Live like a king, no need to be my successor or whatever. She might seem airheaded, but she's got tons of followers."
"Still."
"...And you liked her tail. More than mine..."
"That's true, but still."
Setting aside the tail—though Lilith had offered hers too—the things Hoaran promised were exactly what Lilith had already vowed to me.
Money and power.
Having grown up broke and as an abused orphan, I couldn't resist those two.
Hoaran's offer was damn tempting.
But even so.
I wiped her sniffled tear and said,
"Still, I'm not going."
Because you're my first mom.
I swallowed the words that almost followed.
They were a bit embarrassing.
Instead, I scratched my cheek awkwardly and continued, looking up at her.
"I'm not some bastard with three dads. I wouldn't switch moms that easily. I've got loyalty, you know."
"...Loyalty my ass, you panty-thief bastard."
"Ah, about that."
There were panties right there—what was I supposed to do?
And they belonged to Lilith. Any guy would've grabbed them on impulse.
Maybe she was the one at fault for tossing them there in the first place?
"...Whatever."
She brushed my hand away with a hmph and snorted. She sniffled cutely as she inhaled, but if I pointed it out, she'd blow up, so I kept my face neutral.
Anyway, she looked at me and said,
"What can ya do? It's my fault for raising a flaming filial son who steals his mom's panties to jerk off to."
"I wasn't planning to jerk off to them?"
"Shut up, you pervert bastard."
She punched my chest.
It didn't hurt at all.
"Ow."
"I hit you to make it hurt, you damn bastard."
But that's what I said.
I wanted to see her smirk at my fake whining.
Thank god.
As I inwardly sighed in relief at her seeming back to normal, she spoke.
"...You promised."
"Huh?"
"You promised! You said you're not going to that fox bitch...!"
"Ah, yeah. Sure..."
As long as she didn't betray me first, I wouldn't either. And the Lilith I knew would never do that.
Not after rushing here in a panic thinking I'd been kidnapped.
"And... don't go telling anyone I cried."
"No one would believe me anyway."
"Anyway...!"
I nodded—it wasn't hard—and she flopped back onto the sofa. After a long pause, she spoke.
"What're you doing? Sit."
"Huh? Why?"
"Why? You had something to say to me, right?"
Oh...
Right, I'd forgotten amid all the chaos—her tail offer, her storming out. But I did have something to ask.
"So, what is it? What you were gonna say earlier."
She crossed her legs and eyed me. It was kinda funny seeing the sniffling Lilith do that, but per her words, I sat back down and spoke.
"It's nothing big. Mammo—"
"Fuck, I told you not to call me that."
"Anyway, I've got a question."
"...What?"
She scowled as she asked, and I said,
"What'd you do with that fucking bitch?"
"Oh, the one who flipped out on you?"
Her expression turned ice-cold in an instant.
"What else? Locked her up for now. Didn't have time to deal with her then."
"Locked up?"
"We've got places for trash like that here."
She tapped the desk, pointing downward. I nodded.
Made sense.
"So, what now?"
Any trace of the childish vulnerability from moments ago was gone.
She wore a ruthless expression, like you couldn't draw blood from her even if you stabbed her.
"Didn't I tell you before? Bitches who cause trouble get their cunts ripped out. Even if she didn't know, daring to pull that shit in my turf? Nah, that's even worse. If that's how she always acted back home, she'd do the same here."
Unlike when she'd clashed with Hoaran, Lilith's aura reeked of blood now.
I swallowed hard watching her.
"Saw 'Mammathong' blowing up because of you too? Perfect timing—tons of clueless bitches come here and flip out. Gotta make an example. If I tear that bitch's cunt to shreds, the rest'll behave for a while."
Fucking brutal.
I'd thought half of it was a joke when she first said it, but she was dead serious.
That satyros bitch had royally fucked me over, so no pity—just pure satisfaction.
She was tough; she wouldn't die. Non-humans had insane recovery that ignored human limits.
A couple months' rest, and she'd be fine. Not really tragic.
But...
Something felt off.
"But why her?"
I asked Lilith,
"Can I punish that fucking bitch instead?"
"Huh?"
She gave me a weird look at my sudden request.
"You wanna do it? Why?"
"Eventually, I'll have to handle shit like that too, right?"
"...Well, yeah, once you take over. But even then, you might not have the strength. You'd probably delegate. Fine, say that's for later. But now, you wanna punish her for me? That make sense?"
She eyed me suspiciously, half-lidded.
Then, in a low voice,
"You're not feeling sorry for her, are you? Didn't peg you for a massive pushover."
As if.
Thinking about what that satyros did still made my teeth grind. No way in hell.
Seeing her doubt, I hurried to explain.
"Nah, I'm the victim. I just wanna get revenge myself."
"...Hmm. But rules are rules. Can't let that slide, or it makes us look weak. Get it?"
Fair enough.
Yeah, that made sense.
My face must've soured, because she looked a bit sorry.
"Don't worry, I'll make that fucking bitch regret it big time."
With Lilith saying that, the satyros was surely fucked.
But it still felt wrong.
"How about this? I say I wanna settle it with a compromise."
She scowled.
"Compromise? After that shit, you wanna compromise?"
"Just say that's what I want."
"Just say?"
She mulled it over, then went, "Aah."
"Say it's a compromise, but you get your revenge. Victim and perp agree, so no need for us to butt in."
"Yeah, basically."
"Hmmm..."
Tap, tap. She drummed her fingers on the desk.
Tap...
She stopped abruptly and spoke.
"Alright, let's hear it. How do you wanna get revenge on her?"
"Well..."
Just do what bitches like her hate most.
I roughly explained how I'd handle that damn satyros.
After hearing me out fully, she stared seriously and said,
"Whoa, fuck. You're a real pervert bastard."
"Gotta go at least that far, right? After what she did to me."
"Yeah, that much at least. But no."
Figured...
Oh well, time to let it go. But then she said,
"That's not enough. Revenge isn't just paying back what you got."
Her tail poked my cheek.
"Real revenge is tenfold, a hundredfold. Remember: blood must be repaid with blood. But since this hard-won peace is too precious to shatter with more blood, we've got no choice."
Repay with something else instead.
She grinned wickedly and continued.
"So spill it. Whatever you need, I'll get it for you."