2023.09.18.
Succubus.
A lowest-rank Demonic Species is said to appear in people's dreams to steal their vitality and bewitch them.
Depending on their gender, abilities, or lineage, they seemed to call themselves various names like Incubus, Succubus, or Nightmare.
But on the battlefield, the most common name we used was Succubus.
When we needed to specify gender, we'd just add female or male to it.
Anyway, to get to the point, this Succubus had also appeared in the Gateway Zone of the 131st batch before my Regression.
Because of that, the 131st batch of Hero Candidates was quite famous at the time.
This was because the series of events that occurred when this Succubus infiltrated the 131st Gateway Zone caused the number of survivors from that batch to drop drastically.
Even in meetings between Heroes, when I revealed I was from the 131st batch, I would get reactions like, "Oh, really?"
‘This is different from my past life. To think… she would use Kim Sia as a host.’
To briefly explain how the Succubus entered the Gateway Zone, it was as follows.
The Demon King's Army's strategist, searching for a way to inflict a major blow on the Allied Forces of The Order in the long War against Demons, took note of the phenomenon where low-rank Magical Beasts were forcibly transferred to the Lower-Dimensional Plane whenever a dimensional Rift occurred.
Normally, it would be impossible for a single entity to interfere with a macro-dimensional phenomenon, but the strategist of the Demon King's Army came up with a brilliant move and succeeded in sending a single Succubus down to the Lower-Dimensional Plane through some method.
The Succubus that descended to the Lower-Dimensional Plane then parasitized a human body to ascend back to the Gateway Zone.
The ultimate scheme of the Demon King's Army was to use that Succubus to destroy the Order's magical device that maintained the Gateway Zone, creating a giant Sinkhole between dimensions.
Well, in the end, thanks to The Order's swift response, the catastrophe of the Gateway Zone turning into a dimensional Sinkhole didn't happen.
But in the process, the majority of the 131st batch of Plane Transcendents were caught up in it, causing the survival rate to fall below 10%.
That was the full story of the ‘131st Batch Succubus Infiltration Incident’ that happened before my Regression.
-A Succubus?
-What's a Succubus? Hey, isn't that guy crazy? She looks perfectly fine…….
-No… why would he do that to a perfectly normal person…….
-See! I told you, that bastard definitely has something up his…….
My sudden action threw the crowd into an uproar, but I didn't pay it any mind.
No, to be precise, it would be more accurate to say I couldn't afford to.
No matter how low-rank it was, a lowly species that lived by parasitizing a human body.
A Succubus was undeniably a Demonic Species with the blood of demons flowing through it.
Letting my guard down in front of such a Magical Beast was no different from madness.
It was then.
【Ah…….】
A low sigh escaping from Kim Sia’s throat froze the entire hall.
Whoosh—
It was just a simple sigh, but its impact was immense.
Everyone in the once-raucous hall clamped their mouths shut, their vision blurring.
Even I, who had been anticipating it to some extent, almost lost my focus for a moment.
If I hadn't been circulating the mana in my body beforehand, I might have ended up like those people staring blankly into space.
【Fucking… annoying.】
An alluring voice followed.
The words that came out of her mouth were incredibly vulgar, but the voice itself was so captivating that, for a moment, such thoughts didn't even cross one's mind.
[Warning! You are being affected by <Trait: Devil's Whisper (★)>.]
[Warning! Your mind is being disoriented by powerful demonic energy.]
*Grit—*
I deliberately bit my lip to hold onto my senses.
Kim Sia's eyes, which had turned purple by now, looked up at me and asked.
【What are you?】
“…What about me.”
【I thought something strange had rolled in, so I even made a mental note of you… but I really didn't expect to be caught by a lowly commoner, not even by those disgusting dogs of the Cross.】
“…I’m just quick on the uptake.”
【Ha.】
Kim Sia… no, it would be more accurate to call her a female Succubus, let out a hollow laugh as if she was dumbfounded.
I didn't know exactly when it started, but for her to have this much control meant there was a high possibility that Kim Sia's personality had been consumed and had disappeared.
【Cut the crap and talk. I’m keeping you alive right now because I’m curious.】
“……”
【The moment my interest fades, you die. Surely you don't think you have me under control just because you're holding my hair, right?】
“……”
【Because that’s so pathetically funny I think I might burst out laughing.】
The sight of Kim Sia grinning with her head still grabbed was both enchanting and dangerous.
Femme fatale.
The descriptor ‘fatal woman’ suited her face perfectly.
[A large number of Constellations express their disappointment at The Order's inadequate defenses.]
[A large number of Constellations are suspicious of the current situation.]
Certainly, just as she said, although I was restraining Kim Sia's body, it couldn't be said that I had captured this Succubus.
A Succubus was a parasite that lived in a host; simply put, it was a Magical Beast without a main body.
‘Subduing the host’ and ‘subduing the Succubus.’
There was a vast distance between the two.
“…Is that so? No matter how I look at it, I seem stronger.”
As I muttered, feigning ignorance, a mocking reply came back.
【Of course you'd win. Against this pathetic body. But…….】
“……”
【So what? Surely you don't think I'll die just because this woman dies, do you?】
…Demonic Species are special.
Among the numerous Magical Beast species that made up the Allied Army of the Demon King, they were by far the most special.
The reason could be explained very simply.
‘The same bloodline as the Demon King.’
That one sentence explained everything.
Of course, as a lowest-rank Demonic Species at the very edge of a collateral bloodline, the Succubus was still undeniably a Demonic Species.
It wasn't a species that could be easily killed just by making it bleed a lot and cutting off its head like a Cyclops.
The trickiness of a Succubus as a Demonic Species was most prominent in the ambiguity of its very existence.
【I don't know where you picked up the word Succubus… but you should have studied a bit more. If you act up with half-baked knowledge like yours, you're bound to end up a fool.】
“…You won’t die?”
【Ha. I’m speechless. Humans really are a stupid and foolish species. Do you think I'd die? Of course not. You—.】
“……”
【You fucking idiot.】
A welcome contempt flowed into my ears.
[Warning! You are being affected by <Trait: Devil's Whisper (★)>.]
[Warning! Your mind is being disoriented by powerful magic.]
The magic intensified in an instant.
The strength in my right hand, which was grabbing Kim Sia's hair, drained away without me realizing it.
Slip—
【If you really don't believe me, then go ahead and kill me.】
The Succubus turned her body and looked up at me.
Then, she raised her right index finger and poked the very center of her own chest, taunting me.
Grin—
【Here. Try stabbing it, Mr. Seo U-jin.】
As if Kim Sia herself were speaking.
Mimicking her voice.
“……”
With those words, the surroundings fell silent.
Everyone in the inner fortress had long been bewitched by the Succubus, their minds vacant.
The Succubus and I.
The feeling that we were the only two beings in the world continued for a few seconds.
And at the end of that silence.
【Of course. There’s no way a mere human could do such a thing…….】
“I will.”
I answered her demand.
[An overwhelmingly powerful mental strength of unknown origin resists the demonic energy.]
[<Trait: Devil's Whisper (★)> is neutralized.]
【……?】
Her brow furrowed, as if in disbelief.
【…What did you say?】
“I said I’d kill you.”
Grin—
I, too, pulled up the corners of my mouth in the same way she had and drew a dagger from my waist.
Shing—
As I drew the blade with a clear metallic sound, the Succubus urgently tried to persuade me.
【Didn't you hear me? I told you, doing this won't kill me—.】
Of course.
Stab—
I didn't listen to all of it.
“Keoheok—!”
The sharp blade of the hunting dagger dug into Kim Sia's chest, and blood spurted from her mouth with a cough.
Kim Sia's purple-stained eyes returned to their light brown color, and the commotion that had been silenced could be felt from the surroundings once more.
-Wha-wha-what was that just now…….
-Hey, over there!!!
-Crazy…….
-Kyaaah!
The people who were probably screaming and pointing at me.
“Cough…….”
And Kim Sia, who was coughing up blood and looking up at me with distant eyes.
As if time that had stopped was flowing again, the world began to regain its colors.
And, separate from that.
My world was gradually being dyed purple.
My once-clear senses grew distant, and my body felt heavy, as if I had lost a lot of blood.
And the voice of the Succubus echoed in my ears.
【…I’m surprised. I really am.】
‘…….’
【To think you’d stab without a moment's hesitation. I take back what I said about you being a fucking idiot. Not that it changes the fact you’re a lowly commoner.】
‘…….’
【…Was feeding everyone Holy Water also part of your plan? With this level of information, either the Constellations or The Order must have interfered… What are you, really?】
‘…….’
【Ah, no. Never mind. I can just find out for myself now.】
Dark spots began to appear in my blurry vision, and soon, it turned completely black.
[Warning! You have met the activation condition for <Skill: Nightmare (★)>.]
[You are falling into the eternal nightmare created by the Succubus.]
.
.
.
【…Let's see if you can endure this time, too.】