“It’s been… such a long while…” The blacksmith, Odessa Mu, gasped and panted.

Kiryuu and Shino just stared at her as she was rubbing her cheek on the ingot. She was holding it with both hands and, whether it was intentional or not, this caused her destructive chest to be pushed up and emphasize her cleavage. The strange series of events certainly left the two stunned. Shino turned towards Kiryuu and narrowed her eyes.

“Stop judging me,” he responded and coughed as he looked away from her.

Just a short while ago, Odessa Mu had greeted them. Rather, she was fixated on Kiryuu almost immediately. She approached him and placed her hands on his shoulders. She pressed her body against him and buried her face in his neck. She then started to sniff him before she caught sight of what he was holding. It was the ingot, wrapped in cloth, that was given to him. She took it almost immediately, which led to the current state of affairs.

“Erm, excuse me. Miss Odessa?” Kiryuu tried to get her attention.

“Call me, Dessa, love,” she said in a rather alluring tone as she slowly put the ingot down. “You must be the otherworlder.”

Word travels fast among merchants and artisans. As Karlann said before, it was also a business opportunity.

“If you have this, then that means the Queen has given her approval. So… what do you want to do with it? I would love to forge a weapon out of it. If you’re looking to sell it though, I might not have enough money right now. Perhaps we could arrange something else,” she winked, leaning forward as she tugged down on her shirt.

“A weapon, please,” Kiryuu groaned a bit as he placed a hand to his face and closed his eyes. He tried to push her away with his other hand but…

“Ahn~” Dessa moaned as his hand groped her chest. It would be his fault entirely if not for the fact that she had taken his wrist and intentionally guided his hand.

“Extra service for letting me to work with such a rare material~” She teased and leaned closer to whisper in his ear, “want to go further?”

At that point, Shino yanked his arm away. She held onto his arm, pressing her own chest against it.

“My, my~” Dessa said, amused despite Shino glaring at her. “Well, please come back some time tomorrow. I’ll be sure to forge an amazing weapon out of this.”

She picked up the ingot and winked at Kiryuu, who was frozen in spot. “See you soon, love~”

“Let’s go, Master,” Shino said as she dragged him out of the shop.

“Ah, huh? Oh, yeah,” Kiryuu was still a bit out of it so he just let himself be dragged away.

Dessa set down the ingot as the pair left her shop. She leaned against the counter with her elbows. She placed her hands together and rested her chin on them.

“What an interesting otherworlder,” she muttered to herself in a stupor as she licked her lips. Her hips slowly swayed side to side, almost as if she were preparing to pounce.

“Ah!” She snapped out of it and blinked a couple of times before she smiling gently. “Old habits sure die hard. I should get to work~”

She picked up the ingot and heading back, already excited to forge the weapon.

“You have snapped out of your daze already a while ago, have you not, Master?” Shino asked. She was still dragging Kiryuu by the arm.

“Yeah, pretty much,” he replied almost instantly.

“May I ask why you are letting yourself be dragged by me?”

“So I can enjoy the sensation even more.”

Shino stopped in her tracks. She did not pull away though but she did get a bit flustered. She then looked up at him and started to laugh.

“Let me enjoy this, at least. I’ve been holding back for a while now so meeting that woman certainly made things hard.”

“Hard. Yes. Definitely,” she teased before she heaving a sigh as she pulled away. “It just seemed that you have changed a bit since the time we have met. You seem more at ease. As if—”

“As if a weight has been lifted off my shoulders, huh? I guess so,” he scratched the back of his head. “I’ve been worrying about my past, my identity, and my memories for a while now. But now… I figured that I should just make the most out of things.”

Even if the time comes that he would regain his memories, it doesn’t mean he would lose what he has at the moment. At least, that was how he saw it. His plan to make the most out of what he had in order to have something to hold on to. So that even if his real self was a different person, there was solid part of Kiryuu within him.

“Call me greedy but I think that’s the kind of person I am. I don’t want to lose anything, or anyone, including you.”

He may not realize it but he had a very determined look on his face. Shino could see it clearly and it was at this point that her feelings for him were starting to grow even more.

Having no purpose after her last mission, she was prepared to die. Being deprived of death, she was sentenced to slavery. She was fine with that. After all, she had always been a tool. A tool for killing. She would not bow her head to just anyone, however. She always believed that it is only natural for the strong to lead the weak. After her battle with the queen, she realized that there were those leagues above her and the people that raised and trained her. She would not acknowledge just anyone.

Then she met him. Rather, he was looking for a slave and chanced upon where she was being held. Most that go for slaves have the money to spare. After all, slaves are not free and there are expenses to cover. Not to mention, female slaves are also used for sexual purposes. She did not mind that. However, she vowed only to follow a person she would acknowledge. He seemed just like any other. Weak with money to spare. He looked at her with excitement, which she simply disregarded as nothing but lust. After all, she knew fully well of her allure. She had often used her body as a means to get to an assassination target.

He first surprised her when he was able to withstand her murderous intent. Even with that, he still wanted to fight her. She figured it was male pride or the need to assert dominance. She was well versed in taking down these kinds of people off their high horse. Even then, he was still able to pull off yet another surprise. Not only was he able to defend himself, but he was able to predict her movements. She thought it was a fluke, nothing but a lucky guess. He displayed strength and movements that did not make sense with what she saw with her eyes. He caught her with a last surprise, using her own ability and breaking her guard. When she was pinned down, she felt her chest heat up. She thought that she finally found a strong person to follow. A person that was just like the queen.

It was the first time that her eyes deceived her. At the time, she thought, that maybe it was because she simply could not gauge him. Her eyes was not all powerful. It simply meant he was that much stronger than her eyes, or so she believed. Even if she were to be used by him for any means, she would comply. She would not mind being a meat shield… or be treated as a piece of meat. As long as she is able to fulfill her purpose until her death, she would be satisfied.

When she conveyed this, however, he was that one that was dissatisfied. After all she has done and all the blood in her hands, she found it only fitting for her to be a tool. A tool does not need to be happy, only to do what it is supposed to do. A useless tool is discarded. He was, however…

“...unfair,” she muttered. “You are unfair, Master.”

“I… well, maybe that’s just the kind of person I am.”

“Perhaps, so. Still, regardless of how things are, you will always be my Master.”

“Then allow me to rely on you for a bit more.”

“Definitely,” she sounded very determined. “Master, may I request for you to wait at the inn? I have something I need to do.”

“I… well, I can’t say no to that,” he could clearly see that she was someone on a mission. Whatever it was she needed to do seemed to be of utmost importance. “Then, I’ll meet you back at the inn later.”

She bowed her head and quickly headed towards her destination. He was going to head to the inn but he recalled that he was supposed to have a gift crafted. It was why Karlann recommended him to Dessa’s shop in the first place. He started to walk back towards her shop. Though, it did worry him slightly that he was going in there alone.

“Y-you want my permission for what?!” In front of Vena was Shino who was prostrating in front of her.

Just a while ago, Shino requested to discuss something private with Vena. It seemed strange to Vena that Kiryuu was not with her but Shino said it is something of extreme importance regarding her master. Since Hilde was accompanying Rionna and no one was using the room, Raful allowed them to use the office. Though, he was shooed out immediately so it was just the two women left in the room.

Raful didn’t mind. In terms of combat ability, he knew that Vena far outclasses Shino if it came to it. They were not as legendary as the queen but the guild staff are required to be able to protect themselves in cases of emergencies. Vena, along with Hilde, Raful, and a couple of other high position staff members, are considered as some of the strongest members.

Once they were alone, Shino immediately went down on her knees and placed her head on the floor.

“Please allow me to help ease Master’s sexual frustration!” Shino immediately requested.

“W-what are… what are you talking about?” Of course that question immediately threw her off. Vena had no idea how to respond to that at all.

“Worry not, Mistress. We know fully well that you have feelings for Master.” It was pretty obvious, really. “You know as well that Master also feels the same way about you.”

Vena knew that, of course. She saw it with her own eyes, after all. As she recalled that moment, she imagined herself in a passionate scenario with Kiryuu and blushed.

“I know you have your own circumstances to worry about so allow me to ease his needs for now. After all, it is also my fault for teasing and seducing him on various occasions.”

She believed those were fairly harmless. It was something that Kiryuu should be able to handle.

“However, I believe that crossing paths with that blacksmith may have caused him to reach his limits.”

“Wait, blacksmith? You mean—”

“Yes, Odessa Mu. He was awfully charmed when we brought the ingot to her.”

Odessa Mu. A fairly well-known blacksmith. It was mostly due to her appearance but she was also quite skilled in her craft. It was no surprise that Karlann would recommend her. She should have guessed. Unknown to many is the fact that Dessa is actually on probation. She was passionate with her craft and was generally a harmless tease. Vena had met her on several occasions and her eyes told her that she can trust Dessa to a certain extent. The only problem with Dessa is if she were to relapse. Vena had a foreboding feeling this time. It wasn’t anything regarding jealousy but an ominous feeling.

“No, wait. Where is he now?” Vena went to Shino and placed her hands on her shoulders. Her expression changed. Her face expressed stern urgency. “Take me to him.”

If it were those words alone, Shino would have thought that the two would finally get together and consummate their relationship. However, Vena’s expression made her feel the gravity of the situation. “Right away!”

Shino led the way to the inn. Vena had informed Raful that she was going out and that they need to get in touch with Rionna and Hilde just in case. When he asked why, she simply said ‘the blacksmith’ and Raful caught the gist of it.

Upon reaching the inn, the proprietress informed them that Kiryuu had not yet returned. Shino suggested they go to Karlann’s shop, which was a short walk away, but Vena told her that they need to head to Dessa’s shop immediately.

When they got there, it seemed normal to most people. Vena, however, could see a thin veil of black over it.

The two entered the shop and found Kiryuu pinned against the wall by an invisible force.

““!””

Almost immediately, they felt a wave of energy rushed past them. The two fell limp onto the ground, like puppets having their strings cut. They lost all sensation of their body. They could not see, hear, smell, taste, or feel anything. The two collapsed onto the floor like rag dolls.

“Eh… I really did end up going back here,” Kiryuu found himself in front of Dessa’s shop again. He was only contemplating whether or not he should but his feet were already ahead of him and brought him here.

“Dessa?” He called out as he entered her shop.

“Welcome back, love~” She was by the counter. She still wore similar clothing like before plus a towel on her head. It seemed she just got out of the shower. Her hair was down too and it was a refreshing look to see. “Did you forget something?”

“Yeah, I initially wanted to have some accessories made. I ended up forgetting it a while ago because… well…”

“Heh~ Aren’t you quite the cute one,” she tossed the towel at him. “Kiryuu, was it?”

“Y-yeah,” he choked a bit as the towel obscured his vision for a bit. The towel had her scent all over and he started to feel a bit light headed. “I wanted to give this cute elf a gift, you see.”

He shook his head and focused his thoughts on Vena as he grabbed the towel and pulled it off his head.

“Mmph!”

In that moment, Dessa had grabbed hold of his wrists and pressed her lips against his. He immediately jerked his head back but she pinned him against the wall and kissed him again. This time, her tongue invaded his mouth before she pulled away.

“Dessa… you…” He felt his strength leaving his body as if it were slowly leaking.

“Ahn~ Delicious~ Very delicious~!” She had an ecstatic expression. Her eyes started to change. Her irises turning gold and her sclera filling with black. A pair of forward curved horns appeared from the sides of her head.

“I have never had anything taste as good as you!” She grabbed his head with both hands and pulled him close. Her grip was strong and he felt some pain as if his head was slowly being crushed. “But why?! Why is there so little flow?!”

He did not understand what she was talking about. Desperate, he wrapped his arms around her waist and mustered all the strength he could. He tried to lift her up and slam her down on the floor but…

“Oopsie~” The moment he lifted her up, she slipped from his hold and went behind him. He didn’t see it but he heard some sort of flapping sound. She slammed him face down on the floor and straddled his back. He could feel her finger tracing his spine.

“You have such high quality mana, love~” She said and giggled. “But I’m more curious about those sealed memories~”

She pressed her chest on his back and licked his ear. His hand blindly reached out and grabbed hold of her horn. That only elicited a moan out of her.

“Naughty, naughty~” She grabbed his wrist as she got up and threw him against the wall. Kiryuu then felt something wrapping around his body. It pinned him up against the wall without her even touching him. It was at this point that Vena and Shino entered the shop. He wanted to warn them but it was too late and they collapsed on the floor.

With his thoughts muddled and the way the two had collapsed, Kiryuu immediately thought of the worst. It didn’t help at all that they were not moving with their eyes open either.

“Aaah!” Slowly he was starting to pry himself from the wall. He was able to free one arm, then another.

Then another wave of that force hit him with even more pressure. It was almost as if he was being crushed. Dessa walked up to him and cupped his chin. He tried to turn his head away in his attempts at defiance.

“Come now, love~ What are you hiding in that head of yours?” She forced him to gaze into her eyes as she tried to lull him into a daze. “I’ll make you feel good. Don’t resist and leave it all to me.”

He then jerked his head forward and headbutted her but it barely fazed her. It only made her pout and sigh. “You’re making a succubus like me feel bad, you know~ Is my body not good enough?”

“A… succubus…?” He was struggling to stay awake at this point.

“Yes, love, a succubus,” she pressed her chest against him and licked his cheek. He was an otherworlder so he may not know. Succubi are normally known to be demons that entrance men in order to take their life essence. It was not that far off in this world. Succubi in this world are more known as mana eaters. They are able to take the mana or life force. It is most voluminous in blood, which is considered a strong life source, but also present in body fluids.

They are also able to read and influence the mental state of their targets. In doing so, they are able to determine a target’s taste and preferences. It makes it easier to seduce a target. Succubi also generally have very attractive bodies.

The reason why they are most known for their sexual nature is because the height of arousal quickens the blood flow. Since an erect penis is pulsing with blood, it is also pulsing with mana. Through intercourse, they are able to connect their mana flow with their victim and drain their life force. Most of the time, their victims die upon climax and are fully drained. It is said that the victim will feel extreme pleasure as they pass away. The richness of the mana is also affected by the height of pleasure of the victim. There are those that allowed to survive but only end up serving as mana sources and pets of succubi. They are no longer in the right state of mind.

“I took a look in your head for a bit,” she did so during their first encounter. Normally, a succubus would require an intimate contact, such as kissing, in order to peer into their target’s mind. Dessa is skilled enough to be able to catch a glimpse of a person’s tastes, memories, and mana quality at a touch.

During that time, curiosity got the better of her. After all, he was an otherworlder. She caught a glimpse but in itself found herself relapsing with what she saw and tasted. She wanted more. The ingot he brought certainly got her very excited. However, her body was burning for him. She took a shower to cool herself off and to forget the whole thing. But then opportunity knocked at the door. He came back to her shop. Alone. She leapt at that chance.

“I wanted more,” she hushed in his ear as she started to grind her body against him. His body started to get hot as he was getting aroused. The force that pinned him to the wall was gone. Instead of trying to break free, he found himself holding onto her tightly.

“How cruel… I don’t even… remember anything…” He was slowly losing his control. At this point, he doesn’t have any strength to even struggle. He refused to give up but it was futile at this point. He had already lost.

She nibbled on his ear a bit before pulling back slightly. He fell on his knees and looked up at her in a daze. He was barely able to speak at this point and was even drooling a bit. Dessa found it adorable and just wanted to gobble him up right here and now. However, she resisted the urge. She first needed to see more of those intoxicating memories.

“Leave it all to me, love~ Asmodeus with take good care of you~” She placed a finger on his forehead and activated a magic circle. With that, she was finally able to dive inside his head.