{Jinma}

With our discussion done for the time being, I spoiled myself in fondling Ren’s body more while Ume massaged me. Sue at one point pulled up a teapot and some cups from her [Storage] and offered tea for a refreshment. I checked the teapot’s contents with my [Street Smarts] skill and confirmed there wasn’t anything suspicious inside. On the contrary, the tea blend was said to recover stamina, give a boost of energy, and prevent anything that will make the drinker tired or sleepy, its effects would last for 6 hours. I can apparently cross reference the drink with my [Cookbook] skill to find the tea blend was made of valuable herbs and flowers in its recipe, as well as the process to have it prepared.

… Just at the right temperature, with a soothing aroma and a touch of sweetness. Could it be the remaining nectar from the flowers? I thought as I savored the drink, and it was good with the remainder of the butter cookies we got from that Imp earlier. Ume and Ren also seem to be enjoying it, and Sue, even though she’s drunk it before, couldn’t get enough of the stuff. Having such a high quality drink freshly brewed and ready, she couldn’t have prepared this on her own. When I asked Sue where she got it, of course, she answered “That’s classified,” but it was less serious and more teasing-like this time around. I wasn’t in the mood to refute that statement, so I just continued enjoying my drink. She did say she can have some more ready for me at any time as we returned the finished cups and pot, though.

Sometime later, the remainder of our party returned with all the supplies I asked for stuffed in the Magic Item Bag—we dressed up when they were approaching, of course. Erizora immediately noticed Ren’s new collar and praised it with both excitement and jealousy.

“Master! Please forgive my selfish request, but could I maybe get a collar like Ren’s, too?!” Erizora asked with hope gleaming in her eyes. I had a slight feeling she wasn’t wanting one just as a fashion statement.

“I don’t know about one exactly like Ren’s, but we can look for one that suits your taste after the quest, okay?” I asked, and the Ogre/Human hybrid got ecstatic at hearing her wish granted, I mean, unless you pull another collar like Ren’s when you see Obina, that would be great, but I don’t see the odds of that happening again anytime soon.

While my party talked amongst themselves about what happened in their errands—with Ren, Ume, and Sue minding some content being kept secret—I pulled Mametama and Kenaka aside to a private area in the inn and filled them in on the oath I had to sign earlier. Obina said it was okay for me to use Nyra’s memory-sharing powers to fill both of them in on everything Nyra and I learned quicker when I asked her, so I did just that.

Mametama said through [Telepathy] so we can keep our talk discreet.

Kenaka added,

I asked.

Mametama explained,

I thought briefly,

Mametama’s eyes widened,

Nyra trailed off.

I nodded in agreement ,

Mametama explained,

I said after counting the number of people seen and mentioned today.

Kenaka trailed off.

Mametama asked.

I said before taking out the enchanted ribbons,

Kenaka groaned as I started tying his bright purple ribbon into a bow.

Mametama teased.

I commented as I tied Mametama’s bright yellow ribbon next,

Kenaka sighed,

I nodded,

Kenaka explained,

I asked.

Mametama said while nodding,

At Mametama’s suggestion, we returned to my room where everyone was gathered. Just as I opened the door—

“Krigeran is here?! Blaine, too?!” Tyvera yelled in shock.

“It seems we came back at a good time,” I said as me and my Familiars came inside. I chanted [Soundproof] in the room so no other outburst could be heard from the outside, “Since you were part of the Duke of Demon’s Disciples until yesterday, we need you to tell us everything you know about them. Our quest with Noire may have just become more serious than we’ve anticipated.”

“Ugh … yeah, I probably should have mentioned it sooner since it seemed like we’d encounter them at some point, but I didn’t think it would be like this,” Tyvera said while scratching her head before nodding, “I didn’t think they’d go this far, but I get the gravity of the situation now, Chief. Everyone get comfy and listen up. I have a lot to say about the Duke of Demon’s Disciples.”

Tyvera then went on with what she knew of the disciples, starting with those who seemed the least involved. Herself and Gabriella were a few of those mostly uninvolved members, but we knew enough of them already, and the former’s in our party as my slave as part of a punishment. Another uninvolved adventurer we’ve yet to meet was a Lich who went by Shankha. She’s actually the one who brought Gabriella back to life and made her into a Dullahan, and that itself already spoke of how powerful she is. It seemed Vask, the Duke of Demon’s himself, scouted her out for special missions while the disciples were still in their budding stages. Other than those times, she’s never seen with anyone else from the group. With that said, nobody really knows what her past is, and whether ‘Shankha’ is even her real name. Her face was said to be covered most of the time, too, so it’s hard to say what she looked like, as well as whether she supports the disciples’ ideals that seem to match Chaos Barrage’s. Those three are really it in terms of those most ‘uninvolved’ while working solo the majority of the time.

Then we went over the leader of the disciples who we all knew well enough, Perseus Shalloreed Rowling. Like Noire, he's a Vampire, and like any Vampire, his fangs are said to pierce through any defenses. It's been said he's skilled in fencing, magic, and has a variety of tools available to use at a moment's notice. Sue chimed in and explained how this was because the Rowling Family worked under the Krauss Family as part of the weaponry division where they manage production and armor maintenance for the kingdom's guards. It was through this connection that he was introduced as Noire's fiance. Basically, I should expect him to be a walking armory and be ready for anything he throws at me should we ever meet. Thankfully, I can make something of an 'armory', myself, thanks to some creativity while using [Darkness Manipulation] and have my tanto as the base. Whatever he has in store, I just need to come up with something to counter it.

Now getting into those more dedicated to the disciples under Rowling's command, we started off with the Lizardman I saw today, Krigeran. He's one of the stronger members of the disciples thanks to the high defenses from his scales. This guy carries the Heavy Berserker class, an Advanced Class of the Barbarian with more focus on defenses than offenses, but his strength was still quite strong. He has a high standing among other Lizardmen in his tribe through strength as well as social standing being one of the chief's sons, the strongest, at that. With that combo, he has at least twenty Lizardmen under his command as a party leader and about half a dozen mates in his lifetime, with a few of them expecting. The three female Lizardmen that Mametama mentioned were probably the stronger ones in his harem.

It sounded like he was well received in his home, loved by many, but that won't sway my decision of killing him for making the moves on my wife. Should there be any admirers who want to seek me out for vengeance, if they don't accept why I killed him and attack me, then I'll kill them, too. I felt they deserved to hear my reason since they weren't directly involved. His mates are in the same boat. Ume felt the same after hearing my reasoning, but she asked if she could be the one to kill him instead of me, should both of us see him again together.

"I'm the one he was aiming for and he refused to accept my rejection," Ume explained, "I'd rather you don't get caught in the crossfire since I'm in the center of this. If they have a problem, they can take it up to me. As your wife, I feel I should resolve the problems that were directed at me from the start."

I understood Ume's intentions, so I agreed to her request, but only in the case she runs into him first. If Krigeran runs into me first and tries to take me out, I won't hold back. I'll also help her quell any revenge-seekers that would come for her when convenient. Ume agreed to those terms.

Moving onto the next disciple, there's the Arch Imp, Cyec. She’s a Whisper, a promotion directly from the Thief Class, and she specializes in traps both in and outside dungeons. It seems she has experience in blacksmithing to be able to craft her own tools for making traps, which she either uses in dungeons or sells them off to adventurers. There have been some bad rumors of her possibly involved with the deaths of adventurers in dungeons, but she’s hid her tracks well enough to not have it lead the trail back to her. If this Arch Imp is nearby, it was best to avoid her, according to Tyvera.

"Leave that Arch Imp and her traps to me," Ren said with a thump on her chest, "As Master's slave, I won't allow anyone disrupting our quest with their traps."

With Ren's power up from the collar, I'm confident she'll pull it off, so I'll leave Cyec to her.

Next was the 'Male Devourer', Silvia. She's a Succubus, the strongest amongst her clan, at that. Succubi are known for their powerful magic, some of which only they could do as one of the Demon races. One example is the ability to enter people's dreams and freely manipulate what goes on inside them, especially the males'. It's been said they could get the main sustenance they need, a male's life force, through that, which is the safer method for them to get food. The other method is sucking the male's life force directly through sex. Semen has the highest concentration of a male's life force, among other bodily fluids, and the Succubi can consume it through multiple entrances. While this method is faster and more efficient, that usually spells the end of the man's life in most encounters. Silvia is notorious for seeking out Human males and taking their life force through sex.

The previous Demon King, 'F', forbade Silvia from leaving the Demon-Kin's Territory when her actions were causing problems in his efforts of bringing peace to the other two territories. When his daughter, Demon King 'D', took up the throne, she reinstated Silvia's house arrest as an assurance, but those rulings only kept her from leaving the Demons' kingdom. There was almost no stopping her when she saw Human males—her 'favorite meal', as she called us—traversing in the Demon-Kin's Territory.

Employing a Succubus like that at this timing, Rowling must really want me out of the picture, and Mametama just so happened to see such a person in town today. She may not try to gun for me right away if she's heard of what I could do, though. If possible, she could try to suck my life force from me while I sleep later tonight, get me weak enough for tomorrow to jump at me then and get the rest. In which case, I'm in great danger if I sleep tonight. Fortunately, Nyra's able to get into my dreams. Should Silvia try to interfere with me there, with Nyra helping me get my senses in while in a lucid state, we could take her on and prevent that from happening.

Nyra exclaimed as I confirmed her powers in my dreams. I have a feeling she has her own motives for gatekeeping my dreams during this time, but I won't question it. It would be a different story if the dream invader was a dude.

"Wait, but if a guy's life force is most concentrated in their semen, how have I not died giving that to my girls here, especially in such large quantities?" I asked. Except for Ume and Sue, all the other girls in the room fidgeted and blushed.

"From what a Succubus acquaintance told me, the Succubi have an innate power that connects their souls to the males'," Sue explained, "Once they're connected, the males' semen and other bodily fluids will be enriched with their life force through the power from that bond. Those fluids carry the life force that the Succubus 'eats' with one of their holes. Think of it like pouring vinegar on rice to be molded and shaped to be eaten as onigiri or sushi. This is a power only the Succubi are capable of wielding." {AN: onigiri = rice balls}

"I see, I think I get it," I said, though I wondered how much Japanese cuisine the locals of this country know about if onigiri and sushi were a thing here, "And is there any way for a guy to escape if he gets caught as Silvia's next meal, let alone any Succubus who may resort to do the same?" I asked.

"My Succubus acquaintance told me something once," Sue said, "Human males are most Succubi’s favorite targets for how different their life force ‘tastes’ in quality from a Demon’s, it seems, but they can live off of males from other races when the need arises. Most Succubi these days rely on the 'dream way' of getting a male's life force because they believe they can make a symbiotic relationship with the Human males to live for quite some time. The previous Demon King was the one who influenced that idea years ago, and only a small number of Succubi like Silvia are still stubborn enough to stick to their old-fashioned ways. The rest have learned to blend into Human societies and make a living with their powers. Alluga, a Human-Kin's Territory city closest to our borders, is famously known for being the ‘red-light city’ that provides a variety of adult services. Most of the Succubi have migrated there and serve male customers by using their dream manipulation powers to help their customers experience the wildest of fantasies in a safe environment.”

“So, I shouldn’t expect all Succubi to be a dangerous threat to me,” I summarized.

Sue nodded, “Correct, and for those who you do need to watch out for, like Silvia, should you get dragged into sex with what we call a 'radical Succubus', there's only one way to survive aside from killing her."

Sue then hovered over to my side with her wings and cupped her hands over my ear. "You have to beat them at their own game. Force feed them as much man goo as you could muster until they get knocked out cold from it."

Though I question the logic behind this strategy, a part of me was liking where it was going. Whether in my dreams or the real world, I have a feeling I could take Silvia on.