The Succubus's Breeding Den
"...What the hell, there are so many of them?"
About thirty minutes after we entered the cave, a pile of at least twenty rock beetle carapaces lay stacked in front of Laila and me. Compared to the three or four hours we'd spent wandering outside just to bag eight, this was night and day. And that was just from the immediate hunt—deeper in, even more rock beetles were swarming.
"What is this...? Is this their breeding ground or something?"
It really might be a breeding ground. While hunting the rock beetles, we'd noticed quite a few in the act of mating. Seeing bugs the size of a person's upper body going at it had left both Laila and me with sour expressions... but it actually made it easier to pick off the ones that were distracted.
"Hold up. Something's coming."
As we easily dispatched the mating rock beetles, Laila—who'd been constantly casting detection magic—raised her staff, sensing an approaching presence from deeper in the cave. I felt it too and drew my black iron sword, eyes fixed on the darkness ahead.
Thud.
Heavy footsteps, nothing like a human's. Not the skittering of rock beetles either. The booming steps echoed through the cave until a massive silhouette emerged from the shadows.
It was...
"...A real orc?"
A monster we were all too familiar with: an orc. Green skin, a body a full head taller than an average man's. Fat... wait, fat?
'Nah, this guy's skinny as hell.'
The one odd thing was that all the orcs Laila and I had hunted before were pot-bellied pig-like brutes, but this one was weirdly gaunt.
"Kreeee..."
Its voice lacked any strength, legs trembling like it'd been completely drained of vitality...
"You fucking disgusting piece of shit!!"
"Eek...!!"
We'd been cautiously observing the suddenly appeared orc, pondering its presence, when I glanced at its lower half and couldn't hold back a curse. Laila, staff raised behind me, flinched in shock, her face flushing as she averted her eyes with a grimace.
Flop.
"You goddamn...!!"
My eyes felt like they were rotting. The green abomination dangling between its legs, white globs dripping from it—pure revulsion surged from the depths of my gut. Unable to take it anymore, I charged with sword in hand and cleaved the orc without hesitation.
"Kreeee..."
It died pathetically easily, without even the energy to resist until the end. An orc's strength is its tough hide, but this one's was so lifeless and fragile that my blade sliced through it like butter.
"Why's there an orc here...?"
"...It looked smaller and weaker than the others, so maybe it got kicked out of its pack."
Once I'd hastily covered its lower half with a rock pile, Laila approached, composing herself as she theorized why it had appeared. Fair point. It had seemed scrawny and listless compared to the ones we'd seen before. Really exiled from its group?
'...Wait a sec. Then why's it pantsless with semen leaking from its dick...? No fucking way, did this bastard...?'
No way it hooked up with a rock beetle here... Fuck no, that's too gross. Don't even imagine it.
Leaving the orc corpse as is, we pressed deeper into the cave. And the further in we went, the more rock beetles we saw locked in frenzied mating.
"...What the hell is with these things."
It was a scene of utter debauchery, blatant enough to call it a mad orgy. At this point, it was less disgusting and more bizarre. No matter what, with intruders slaughtering their kin, how were they still going at it?
I'm no veteran adventurer compared to the pros, but even I knew what to do in a situation like this after my short time on the job.
"...Laila. Let's call the hunt here and head back."
"Yeah... I think so too."
Sharing the same doubts, Laila agreed without raising her staff for more rock beetles. With our minds made up, we turned to leave for the entrance—when both our faces hardened simultaneously.
...Thud.
For me, it was my sharpened hearing picking up footsteps. For Laila...
"...This presence...!"
Her detection magic had caught something. As we froze, the presence we'd sensed barreled straight toward us from the depths without pause.
"Sigh. Gotta chow down on more orc bastards. So gross... Hm?"
A voice laced with a slight nasal twang. Sweet enough to fit the word 'melodic,' charming any listener's ears—a captivating woman's voice. Then, a female figure appeared before us. More precisely, one woman followed by two green shapes.
Cascading pink hair. Massive breasts that drew the eye. Sparkling eyes. Elements that would make any man's heart race. But even with my high libido, I couldn't entertain such thoughts about her right now.
Flutter. Flutter.
A pair of wings no human could have. Horns sprouting from her head, a tail swaying behind her hips.
"...Demonkin."
Laila named the race beside me. Followers of one of the six evil gods: the 'Lord of Ten Thousand Demons,' also called the 'Demon God.' True to their name, a race steeped in demonic corruption.
"Oh my? Oh dear oh dear oh dear. What brings you two humans to this wasteland?"
The woman, embodying every demonic trait, grumbled as she entered the cave but lit up at the sight of us. I felt a dizzy spell hit me as I closed my eyes and inwardly vented to someone.
'Master...!!'
This is such a cliché...!! King of All Sins, Twisted Life, and now a minion of the Lord of Ten Thousand Demons? Why not just have a follower of the 'Beast of the End' pop up next?
...Nah. It's too plausible, and that scares me.
"Adventurers? Adventurers, right? That girl looks like a mage... Oh my. The guy's pretty sturdy too... No way. Did the Demon God grant my wish from yesterday?"
'...Yuseong.'
As the demonkin muttered happily, Laila quietly nudged my hand and began counting on her fingers. Catching her intent, I slowly reached for my sword hilt.
"Hm. Not a trap, I hope...?"
The demonkin, still muttering gleefully, glanced back as if wary of other allies—Now!!
Laila signaled, raising her staff to unleash two spells at once. A swirling water jet and blazing fireball shot toward the demonkin, and I kicked off the ground in sync, lunging at her.
"Oh."
She noticed the attack late, squinting and raising a hand to defend—but
Boom!!
"Huh?"
The spells collided not on her, but right in front of her face, exploding outward.
Whoosh!!
The water instantly vaporized into thick white steam. Searing heat slammed down, vision obscured. Enduring the scalding mist, I plunged in and swung my sword from low to high, aiming to bisect her in one stroke.
'First strike wins!!'
Lessons from two prior encounters: talking to evil god cultists is pointless. And preemptive attacks are always the truth.
My arm muscles bulged to bursting as I poured every ounce of power into the slash. A perfect blind-side strike in the fog. No way she could react.
...If she were just any 'demonkin.'
"Kreeee!!!"
"What the— an orc?!"
But an unexpected interloper crashed the party. The green figures that had trailed her blankly lunged right into my sword's path, taking the hit with their bodies. My full-power swing tore them apart, but the weakened blade glanced harmlessly off the demonkin.
"Oh my, that was close. Humans are all the same—flip out and charge the second they see us?"
Her startled expression cooled to chill menace as a mix of black and pink energy bloomed from her hand.
'Damn it.'
Blowing my golden chance, I clicked my tongue, kicked the orc corpse I'd just carved to block her energy blast, and retreated to Laila's side.
"Kreeee...!"
The other orc, like me guarding Laila, positioned itself in front of her as if protecting the demonkin. Not the mindless 'attack anything alive' orc behavior. It even resembled the undead necromancers used to shield their casters.
"Succubus?"
Laila narrowed her eyes at the orcs' actions, naming a demonkin breed. The succubus didn't deny it, just nodded.
"Oh? Looks like the mage sis knows our kind."
"...Who wouldn't. Vile creatures who crave flesh and feed on lust's essence. Insidious pests who corrupt minds."
"Vile? Don't lump us with those All-Sins cult freaks—they treat sex like some sin, just like you lot. It's a natural thing."
Irked by Laila's words, the succubus—no, succubus—swept her gaze over the cave, spotting our beetle kills, and grinned.
"Anyway... looks like you two aren't here for me. Just hunting these bugs?"
Her wariness eased into a broad smile at the evidence of our hunt.
"Phew, thought you might be after me for a sec. If you're just adventurers farming bugs... well..."
She slowly spread that pink energy through the cave.
'...What the?'
The moment it wafted out, a sweetly cloying scent teased my nose. I raised an arm to block my airways, fearing poison, but the aroma seeped through my clothes.
'Not poison...? Ugh?'
No pain, no ill effects—odd. Then blood rushed southward fiercely.
Bulge.
My pants tented, and the leather armor I'd worn for protection drummed painfully against it, forcing me into an awkward hunch.
"...Ngh?!"
Behind me, Laila—who'd been quietly chanting a spell—flushed crimson, rubbing her thighs like something itched unbearably.
"Oh? Sis over there must be a virgin—such a fresh reaction."
Giggling as if teasing Laila over the intel I'd wondered about, the succubus licked her lips with relish.
"Haa...♥ Been so long since I had a proper meal. Stuck eating gross orcs till now."
Gazing at us like we were a hearty dinner, the succubus murmured in ecstasy.
"I'll dig in.♥"