Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 028
Chapter Title: Succubus Incident (3)
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What happens to someone attacked by a succubus?
Symptoms range from anemia and hypoglycemia to hypotension and lethargy, but the most standout one is undoubtedly "sage time."
"Yi Yeong-han-ssi?"
"……."
"Yi Yeong-han-ssi? Could we have a quick word?"
"……Heh."
After hearing about the incident from Min Chae-ryeong, the three of us headed straight to the infirmary.
And now. Lee Tae-ho let out a deep sigh as he gazed at the victim of this case, Yi Yeong-han, who was half-reclined on the infirmary bed, blankly staring off into space.
Yi Yeong-han was conscious. But that was all—there wasn't even a shred of rationality on his face. If there were a substance that made up human reason, it looked like every last bit had been sucked out of him.
"Yi Yeong-han-ssi. I'm Lee Tae-ho from the Academy Security Force's Special Countermeasures Division. Could we talk for a moment?"
"Se...curity...?"
After several attempts at conversation, Yi Yeong-han finally turned to look at us. His eyes were still vacant, making it questionable if he even understood, but Lee Tae-ho persisted steadfastly.
"We're here about the assault that happened early this morning. Yi Yeong-han-ssi, could you tell us what happened at the time—"
"……Ah."
At his unchanging reaction, Lee Tae-ho finally shook his head. He then glanced subtly at Jo Yu-ri, who was standing a bit away.
"Yu-ri. I think we need your ability."
"……Do we have to?"
"Yeah. We won't get any statement like this."
"…………Really?"
"Jo Yu-ri."
At Lee Tae-ho's firm call, Jo Yu-ri shuffled hesitantly toward the bed.
"Ex- ex- ex- excuse me, I- I'll be excusing myself...?"
Jo Yu-ri grabbed Yi Yeong-han's right hand, which was dangling limply. A squeak of a whimper escaped her lips.
I asked as I watched Jo Yu-ri tremble like a child getting her first shot, head turned away.
"What is Senior Jo Yu-ri's ability?"
"……M- m- mine or oth- other's ho- ho- hormones...!"
"……It's the ability to control the amount of hormones secreted by herself or the person she touches. Right now, she's using it to awaken the patient's consciousness."
"Aha."
I nodded roughly at Lee Tae-ho's explanation in Jo Yu-ri's place. As a liberal arts major, I knew nothing about hormones, but I figured it was something like adjusting levels of dopamine or adrenaline.
"Hic... sniff."
Jo Yu-ri, clutching Yi Yeong-han's hand, looked on the verge of tears. At that point, it went beyond mere discomfort with men—it was full-blown androphobia.
"D- done."
She yanked her hand away from Yi Yeong-han and bolted back like a shot.
"Uh... huh?"
At the same time, rationality began to flicker back into Yi Yeong-han's previously dazed expression.
"Yi Yeong-han-ssi?"
"Huh, who are you...?"
"I'm Lee Tae-ho from the Academy Security Force's Special Countermeasures Division. We've come to get your statement on the assault from early this morning. Do you have a moment?"
"Pardon? Oh, sure...?"
Yi Yeong-han acted like he'd just woken up. But unlike before, he was responding and answering properly, so Jo Yu-ri's ability seemed to have worked.
"First, could you walk us through your movements before the incident up to when it happened, in chronological order?"
"Uh... yes, got it. So...?"
Yi Yeong-han rubbed his chin, lost in thought for a moment, then began his statement.
"Y- you might know this already, but I'm not aiming to be a hunter—I'm aspiring to be a researcher. I plan to go to grad school after graduating next year. So yesterday, I was working on a paper in the lab late into the night and headed back to the dorm late."
"It was probably just before 1 a.m. Curfew was cutting it close. So before going in, I headed to the smoking area for a quick cigarette."
"That's when I saw a woman approaching from afar while I was smoking."
"Her appearance? Black hair, long straight down to her waist. Height around 160 to 165 cm, I think. Face... well, a standard beauty. The kind where anyone would go, 'Oh, she's pretty.' Not a face that sticks deeply in your memory. More like the impression of 'pretty face' over any specific features. Honestly, I don't remember details. Maybe because I lost consciousness—my memory's all fuzzy overall."
"Anyway, she came up to the smoking area, so I thought she was like me, out for a pre-bed smoke. But something felt off. Why? 'Cause it's the men's dorm smoking area. The women's is on the opposite side, and they have their own. Why come here? The moment I thought that, she was suddenly right next to me."
"I was just thinking it was odd while smoking, and suddenly she starts talking to me. Stuff like, 'Do you live in this dorm?' 'What year?' 'What's your major?' Like she was taking a census."
"Did I answer? Yeah, I answered everything. O- of course, it felt suspicious! But, uh, it's kinda embarrassing, her beauty and soft voice made my guard drop. I was flustered too. Stuck in the lab all vacation, no time to meet anyone, let alone women. Ahahaha..."
"After answering a few questions, she suddenly closed right in. My head went, 'Huh? What's this?' Before I knew it, she was close enough our skin touched. Yeah. Then she did this."
Yi Yeong-han pulled open the collar of his patient gown. Two small tooth marks stood out clearly on the line from his neck to his collarbone.
"She bit me. Just like that, chomp!"
"……Bit you? With her teeth, you mean?"
"Yes. Suddenly my body went limp, like I was floating away, and I blacked out. No memory after that. When I came to, I was in this room."
Lee Tae-ho's expression darkened at Yi Yeong-han's statement. Mine did too.
"Senior. Do succubi bite people too?"
"……No. Not that I know of—no such cases reported. That's strange."
"Succubus? Wait, was that thing I met a succubus?"
At Yi Yeong-han's startled question, I looked to Lee Tae-ho. He met my eyes and nodded slightly.
"Not certain, but that's our working theory. The state you were found in looked just like a succubus feeding site."
"……Pardon? What do you mean?"
Lee Tae-ho silently pulled out a stack of photos from his pocket. A trace of tension crossed his expressionless face.
"Photos from when you were found. It's odd saying this to you in the picture, but it might be shocking."
"……Pardon?"
"Want to see?"
"……Yes. Show me."
Yi Yeong-han took the photos with a dubious look. His eyes widened as he checked them.
"It must be shocking, but don't worry. It was early morning when you were found, and we controlled the scene quickly—no witnesses."
"Indeed! This is definitely suspicious for a succubus!"
"……Pardon?"
Lee Tae-ho's flustered reply. But Yi Yeong-han didn't even glance at him.
"Look at the amount of semen scattered here! Way beyond average ejaculation volume! No superhuman could output that much at once. Means an external factor was at play!"
"……Yi Yeong-han-ssi?"
"Did you take tissue samples? Her saliva or oral mucosa on my nape or genitals! Succubus DNA is in the database—analyze the samples against it, and you'll know if it's a succubus pronto!"
"Yi Yeong-han-ssi."
"Wow, this is amazing! Succubi on Earth are mostly confirmed in the Americas or a few European countries like the UK, right? A succubus in South Korea!"
"Yi Yeong-han-ssi. Please calm down a bit."
Lee Tae-ho broke into a cold sweat at Yi Yeong-han's impassioned outburst.
'Come to think of it, he said he majored in monster ecology.'
Learning his attacker was a succubus had apparently ignited Yi Yeong-han's research passion. Jo Yu-ri fled to the opposite side of the room in horror as he waved the photos of his own explicit state around.
"Yi Yeong-han-ssi. I get your enthusiasm for succubi, but could we get back to the statement first?"
"Ah, sorry about that. I got excited. Succubi are so rare here. Haha."
We both sighed in relief as Yi Yeong-han finally calmed.
"You mentioned earlier the woman asked you various questions. Could you detail them?"
"Like I said, really ordinary ones. Starting with name, year, major, do you live in the dorm, where were you coming from, etc."
"Any that stood out or were unusual?"
"Unusual? Hmm, nothing really... Ah!"
"Something?"
"Come to think of it, she asked this. What was it...?"
He furrowed his brow, straining to recall the vague memory.
"'Do you know a student named Ji Ye-won?' Yeah, that was it."
……What?
"Ji Ye-won, you say?"
"Yes. That was the name. Probably."
My train of thought halted abruptly.
Yi Yeong-han and Lee Tae-ho's conversation felt distant. Pulling myself together from the shock, I replayed Yi Yeong-han's words.
'Do you know a student named Ji Ye-won? Yeah, that was it.'
At first, I thought I'd misheard. But no way at this range. Yi Yeong-han had clearly said those three syllables.
Ji Ye-won. The student I saved in the last quest, currently holed up in the safehouse with Chae So-yeon.
'Why does that name come up here?'
Succubi, humanoid monsters, have near-human intelligence. Questioning the victim about personal details was odd for a succubus, but possible in theory.
But the odds of her mentioning Ji Ye-won? Virtually zero.
Yet the succubus had said Ji Ye-won's name. Asked Yi Yeong-han if he knew her. How did the succubus know Ji Ye-won? And why ask about her?
'No, is the succubus even the culprit?'
We suspected succubus based on circumstantial evidence—no confirmed facts yet. Plenty of room for it not being one.
Like, say, a Dawn Corps pursuer with similar abilities.
A chill ran down my spine at the thought.
"Do you know that Ji Ye-won student, Yi Yeong-han-ssi?"
"Just heard the name. Same year as me. Hunter aspirant, I think."
"Any special connection to her?"
"None. Hunter and researcher tracks barely overlap classes, and even same year, nearly a thousand students. We don't cross paths much."
"Fair enough. That makes sense—"
-Vrrr.
Then Lee Tae-ho's smartphone vibrated softly.
"Excuse me a sec."
His expression turned visibly grave as he checked the screen.
"……What is it?"
"Second victim just found. Location: 3rd floor men's bathroom, Building 2 shooting range."
"Before sundown, and the perp struck?"
"No. Probably delayed discovery. Vacation till yesterday—fewer students using the range."
"So it could be the first victim, attacked before Yi Yeong-han but found later."
Possible he'd been hit first but undiscovered till now. As Lee Tae-ho said, range traffic drops sharply during break—not impossible.
Wait. Found in the range bathroom?
Meaning...
"Senior. If it's inside the range building, not outside—"
"Yeah. CCTV everywhere."
Lee Tae-ho stood. I rose reflexively, and he said,
"Ahn Su-ho. Finish up the statement with Yi Yeong-han-ssi and report to the team leader. I'll head to the second victim with Jo Yu-ri now. Let's go, Yu-ri."
"Uh, y- yeah!"
Jo Yu-ri trailed hesitantly after Lee Tae-ho as he strode out without pause.
Turning, I saw Yi Yeong-han looking bewildered by the sudden turn.
"……Yi Yeong-han-ssi."
"Y- yes."
"We'll wrap up the statement here for today. Thanks for your help."
"Huh? A- already done?"
I nodded at his question. We'd heard the full rundown—no more needed.
'Besides, statements aren't the priority now.'
After bidding Yi Yeong-han farewell and leaving the room, I called Min Chae-ryeong right away.
"Team leader. Ahn Su-ho here."
-What's up? Got Tae-ho's text. You're finishing the statement solo and reporting to me?
"Yes. Something urgent related to that."
-What?
Checking no one around, I spoke softly.
"Looks like Dawn Corps is involved. Victim said the perp asked if he knew a student named Ji Ye-won."
-What?
Min Chae-ryeong's shocked voice. Then her grave tone echoed through the phone.
-……Come explain. Now.
"On my way."
I hung up and headed straight for the team leader's office.