Chapter 33
Chapter 33
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: His Night is Long and Abyssal
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Monsters lurking in dreams, preying on their victims.
The most commonly known to humans were succubi and incubi.
They were said to drain humans' vital essence through dreams, but throughout history, humans hadn't always been plentiful.
There were dire times when plagues and frequent wars drastically reduced their numbers.
In such cases, they resorted to cannibalism among their own kind, just like other monsters.
A succubus taking an incubus, or vice versa.
But now that everything had stabilized, those who pursued such cannibalism had vanished.
There was no reason to struggle against each other when weak humans were so readily available.
"This should be interesting."
Yet one who sought to revive that long-forgotten practice existed.
An incubus named Lukaros.
Lukaros was the master of an incubus dungeon.
It wasn't a grand dungeon, but neither was it a small one.
He owned a dungeon of just the right size, with a fittingly moderate force under his command.
Moments ago, a representative from the Demon Realm Merchant Guild had contacted him with a request.
Simply to deal with one succubus.
Lukaros accepted without a second thought.
Juwell, his handler at the guild, held a respectable position there.
Building up a favor now could prove advantageous in future dealings.
That debt would give him the upper hand in trades with the guild later on.
And smoother trades would accelerate his dungeon's growth.
Above all, a stronger dungeon meant greater power for its master—himself.
In a structure where the master's strength elevated the minions' levels, no dungeon lord would refuse growth.
And dungeon growth required the Demon Realm Merchant Guild.
It all circled back to the same point.
Thus, Lukaros gladly accepted Juwell's request and set out.
It wasn't just about incurring a debt.
Lukaros had been bored lately and craved a change.
"It's been ages since I last took a succubus."
His expression was cold and arrogant.
According to Juwell, the succubus ruled a small, newly formed dungeon.
That meant he could easily overpower her and claim her essence.
"This the place?"
Lukaros soon entered the mountains.
Even disguised as a human, he was fundamentally a monster, so stamina was no issue.
If anything, he was sprinting at full speed toward the location Juwell had provided, eager to claim his prey quickly.
"......"
Suddenly, a breeze made him halt.
The pleasant wind set flowers and leaves dancing vibrantly.
Birds' chirps delighted the ears and lifted the spirits.
It even felt like it was infusing him with passion and vigor.
"Ha... Maybe I should claim a dungeon in a place like this."
Stealing the succubus's dungeon was one option if needed.
The area was truly beautiful and alluring enough to inspire such thoughts.
As Lukaros pondered...
"Oh? Are you an adventurer by any chance?"
Someone called out to him.
He turned to look.
'An adventurer?'
She was dressed like one.
And most importantly, she was a woman.
A very pretty one at that.
'Low rank, probably.'
Despite her looks, she seemed like an adventurer without much ability.
She hadn't detected him in his human disguise, so she was likely nothing special.
But Lukaros was an incubus.
He wouldn't politely let fresh prey walk right into his lap.
Smiling, he addressed the adventurer.
"Haha, I was just heading to clear a nearby dungeon. Care to join me, if it's not too much trouble?"
His words dripped with stickiness.
It felt comfortable yet forced, stirring an inexplicable emotion.
"Sure, sounds good!"
The adventurer woman smiled and agreed.
'Perfect.'
He could use her as dessert after the succubus.
Lukaros grinned lewdly, leading the adventurer—who was already as good as his—along.
Soon, they reached the target dungeon.
"This it?"
A cave was hidden among the trees.
At first glance, it looked really unimpressive.
It almost didn't seem right to call this a dungeon.
"Isn't it too small?"
At this rate, even if it wasn't him, it looked like it would be easily conquered.
It might be better to face a succubus instead.
Captured by him, she'd only lose her essence and dignity.
If caught by him, at most, he would be drained of his vitality and insulted, but if caught by a human, it wouldn't end there.
If lucky, one could die cleanly.
"Lucky girl."
That's why Lukaros thought of himself as nothing less than a savior..
"Is this the place?"
The female adventurer spoke up.
Come to think of it, he still didn't know her name, but that didn't matter anyway.
After taking a succubus, the next target was this woman.
It was just a fleeting pleasure for a night, nothing more, so he didn't want to know.
"Well, let's go inside."
At his words, the woman stepped ahead into the dungeon.
Foolish to enter first, even in a small dungeon, so Lukaros followed slowly behind.
"Hm."
Unlike the shabby exterior, the interior was well-maintained and clean.
More surprisingly, the dungeon was larger than expected.
'Is this really a new dungeon?'
Juwell had said as much.
Yet it was too big.
And deeper in, paths split three ways.
This was no small fry.
Unease began to stir in Lukaros's mind.
'It's just a succubus anyway.'
Dungeon size aside, the master was a succubus.
She couldn't possibly threaten him.
Or so he believed.
Lukaros changed plans.
It was regrettable to have come this far, but he decided to give up on Jewell's request.
Instead, there should be some reward for coming this far.
Lukaros considered taking the adventurer who was walking in front of him.
Perhaps the owner of the dungeon was expecting that too.
If he quietly took a human and left, showing that he would not interfere, then surely he wouldn't be disturbed.
The adventurer in front of him continued to walk, but suddenly stopped in place.
"Lord Lucas. Shall we do it here?"
The other person made the request first.
Like Lucas, her words were sticky with desire.
"Ha..."
Lukaros's lips curled up.
It happened sometimes.
A woman with an incubus going into heat and begging first.
'Did I tell her my name?'
He could not remember.
BBut since he planned to quickly seduce the human in front of him and leave the dungeon, he decided not to dwell on it.
Lukaros seized the adventurer's hand.
The sensation of the adventurer's hand reached Lucas.
Warm.
And rough.
"Rough...?"
Yes, this wasn't a soft feeling..
It was like a prickly sensation?
It felt like touching skin covered in fur.
Lukaros tilted his head slightly.
Certainly, human women have hair, but the sensation he felt was completely different.
He released her hand and touched the figure's body directly.
"Weird?"
It was not sleek or soft.
It truly felt like it was covered in fur.
"How is it?"
The sticky female adventurer's voice echoed in his puzzled ears.
"Do you like it? It's a monster Death Knight brought from a dungeon he cleared himself."
Monster? Death Knight?
What did that mean?
The tone of the adventurer changed..
And above all....
The adventurer's voice didn't come from in front of him, but from behind.
"Wha...?"
Strange. She was definitely in front of him.
Then, what is the presence in front of him right now?
Lukaros closed his eyes tightly and slowly opened them..
The thing he had been sensually touching was not the female adventurer.
"...A spider?"
It was a massive spider.
Transparent fluid dripped from its maw onto his hand.
"Eek!"
He yanked back in horror, but his body wouldn't obey.
"Who are you? Who dared send you to target my master's dungeon?"
The adventurer—no, whatever had posed as one.
Never an adventurer to begin with.
Lukaros's mind went blank.
Thoughts and words jumbled incoherently.
But one thing was clear.
He was the one trapped.
And the foe wasn't some mere succubus.
"Please..."
Lukaros begged.
"I was a fool. Spare my life, at least, Your Majesty!"
Her presence alone surpassed a succubus queen.
So he wailed and pleaded all the more.
Begging for his worthless life.
While cursing Juwell, who lured him here.
"What can you offer if I spare you?"
A sweet offer flowed.
Lukaros spoke instantly.
"The mastermind! I'll tell you who’s behind this!"
He bashed his head on the ground, pleading.
"Just let me live, and I'll never leave my incubus dungeon again! I beg you!"
Impossible, but desperation breeds any promise.
He was that pathetic.
"An incubus dungeon... Fine, I'll accept. But I need the master's permission."
Hope lit Lukaros's face.
A separate master puzzled him briefly, but it didn't matter.
Hope to survive.
Hope to keep breathing.
"Phone."
The skeleton soldier cleaning nearby swiftly brought the smartphone and handed it over.
"What alarm is it this time?"
Request?
If it was Celia making the request, I'd grant it without question.
"Let's see what she wants."
I checked the request from Celia.
The gist was this:
How to handle a lost incubus.
"Ah!"
That was easy.
Poor thing, truly lost.
"Come to think of it, don't I have some followers?"
I immediately checked the dungeon support list.
The incubus dungeon that pledged loyalty after I dispatched Celia there before.
One of its residents was still available.
Since they swore fealty, I could support that dungeon anytime.
"Better to make more friends, right?"
I dispatched Celia to that incubus dungeon, ordering her to guide the lost incubus there.
"Ahh, to think the master cares about even this..."
In the incubus dungeon on Earth.
Its master, Azmo, marveled as he gazed at Lukaros, whom Celia had brought.
Everyone here was always starving.
No room to be picky.
"The master is always merciful, Azmo."
Celia smiled and handed Lukaros over to Azmo.
Thus, Lukaros could keep his word.
The promise to never leave the incubus dungeon.
Tonight's night would be deep, and tomorrow would bring tomorrow's night.