Chapter 159 - Chapter 156: Episode 154 - The Succubus Lord Who Crossed Over
Magic-fueled explosions erupted across the gathering of demons, sending flames soaring into the sky.
The scale of the rebel surprise attack was staggering.
In terms of sheer numbers, they seemed to outmatch my own forces two to one.
However, because my soldiers and daughters were a cut above, I was able to keep the pressure on them despite the ambush.
In the heart of the city they occupied, a Gate leading to Earth stood wide open.
Seeing that Gate, only one thought crossed my mind.
I had to go through it myself and deal with the scavengers trafficking human males.
I'd wiped out the rebels here, but you can never be too careful.
Even if I took out some of the buyers, as long as the suppliers remained, they'd just find new ones. I had to cut the rot out at the root.
"Eldest daughter, stay behind and secure the scene. I've already contacted the Royal Knights, so hold this position until they arrive."
The Gate looked small, so I couldn't bring many troops with me.
I gathered a few elites from my inner circle and stepped through.
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Seon-ah was fighting, surrounded by a sea of demons.
Lee Ji-ah tried to intercept the monsters ignoring her to swarm him, but there were simply too many to handle.
As the horde closed in, Seon-ah began to struggle; his punches grew sluggish, and he shifted entirely to dodging and blocking.
"You look so lively! I bet if I laid you down, you'd be shaking your hips on your own, you lecherous bastard!"
The Gargoyle spat out lewd insults and swiped with its claws.
"Ugh!"
Four bloody gashes tore across Seon-ah's forearm, and he let out a pained groan.
Lee Ji-ah drew her sword and charged back into the fray.
"Seo... Seon-ah oppa! Just hold on a little longer. I'll clear them out!"
Ji-ah had been so confident at the start.
She'd even intended to test the tactics she'd proposed to her mother herself.
But the monsters' obsession with males was far beyond anything she'd imagined.
She was horrified by their gleaming, mindless eyes and the way they drooled.
Finally, she understood why they didn't bring males through the Gate.
If her cousin Seon-ah were caught now, it wouldn't just be a matter of being violated.
It was clear that if he were dragged away, the shame would be the least of his worries.
He'd be gang-raped by dozens of monsters until his body was literally torn to pieces.
'I was a fool... To think they'd lose their minds just at the sight of a man... This is nothing like I expected.'
Setting aside the weaker Orcs and Kobolds, the Gargoyle commander was a B-rank monster.
Normally, she could have handled it easily, but because it was so fixated on Seon-ah, she couldn't strike without risking hitting him.
The only silver lining was that Seon-ah was holding out far better than she'd expected.
Seon-ah, meanwhile, was gritting his teeth through the assault.
'I've got my healing ability, so as long as I don't take a fatal hit, I'll be fine... Let's try it.'
He'd noticed the Gargoyle kept aiming for his limbs rather than his vitals.
The claws were swinging toward his thigh again.
The monster, expecting him to dodge or block as usual, left itself wide open.
'Now.'
Seon-ah drove his fist straight into the Gargoyle's chin.
Caught off guard, the monster couldn't adjust its trajectory, and its claws raked across his thigh.
Thwack! Sshwak!
Their strikes landed simultaneously—a dull impact followed by the sound of tearing flesh.
"Ugh..."
Seon-ah felt a searing, numbing pain in his leg.
But the Gargoyle had fared worse; its stone-like skin shattered, and its jaw was twisted at a sickening angle.
"Kyaaaaaak!"
As it shrieked in agony, Lee Ji-ah lunged, driving her sword into its back.
Puk!
The Gargoyle stared at the blade protruding from its chest in disbelief, its pupils trembling before it finally went limp.
As Ji-ah yanked her sword free, the monster collapsed into a heap.
She turned to help Seon-ah, only to find he'd already finished off most of the remaining monsters.
As she moved to deal with the final five, her leg suddenly gave out.
Feeling a sharp, stabbing sensation, she realized something was wrong and scrambled backward, away from Seon-ah.
A voice drifted out from the empty air where she'd been standing.
"I came here for business, but what's this? Why are all my clients dead?"
Ji-ah's blood ran cold. The scavenger had arrived.
She quickly ran through the possibilities: telekinesis, poltergeist, stealth... Stealth was the most likely.
To confirm, she kicked a spray of mud toward the voice.
The mud vanished the moment it touched the invisible figure.
'At least A-rank stealth,' she thought, her heart hammering.
She had to be extremely careful.
She strained her ears, listening for footsteps, bracing for a thrown dagger.
Just as she steeled herself, four men slowly materialized before her.
They were bound and gagged, their eyes wide with terror.
It was a distraction, and Ji-ah refused to fall for it.
Then, a scream tore through the air.
"Aaaack!"
It was Seon-ah. Ji-ah whipped her head around.
"If you were going to split up, you should've watched your back, don't you think?"
Seon-ah was there, blood staining his shoulders, a knife pressed against his throat.
The scavenger was still invisible, but she'd clearly used the hostages to draw Ji-ah's focus away.
'Cunning bitch...'
Terrified of what her mother and aunt would do if anything happened to him, Ji-ah tried to keep her voice steady.
"Let's trade. The hostages for him. No more fighting."
"Wow! A 'hunter' trying to negotiate lives? Wait... you look familiar. Ah, Lee Seon-ah!"
The scavenger mocked her, then dropped her stealth to reveal her face to Seon-ah.
Seon-ah's eyes widened. "Seo... Seo Ju-ha!"
"It's been a long time, Lee Seon-ah. I've been so horny I could die. I haven't had a decent fuck in ages."
She licked her lips, then flicked her tongue against his cheek.
"I'm taking you with me this time. Goddammit, you little shit, you've made it impossible for me to get any work done."
Ji-ah was horrified. Seo Ju-ha was one of the most dangerous criminals on the Han-il Guild's wanted list.
Seon-ah, remembering the hell he'd endured at her hands, decided he'd rather die than go back.
He channeled mana into his elbow and slammed it into her solar plexus.
"Keuheuk!"
Seo Ju-ha hadn't expected any resistance; last time, he'd been completely broken.
Her grip on the dagger loosened, but it still sliced deep into his neck as she recoiled and vanished back into stealth.
'Shame, but my life comes first. He's a physical type, he won't die immediately... maybe I can still drag him off?'
Ji-ah rushed to his side, stunned by his sudden defiance.
"Seon-ah oppa! What are you doing!"
"I'm fine! Watch out for her!"
Seon-ah immediately began using his healing ability, his senses locked on the empty air.
"He... has a healing ability?"
Ji-ah was floored. She'd thought he was just a physical-type ability user.
Even the invisible Seo Ju-ha seemed stunned.
But then, all three of them froze as something emerged from the Gate.
A succubus with golden hair, brown skin, and sheep-like horns stepped out, flanked by armored soldiers.
Seon-ah recognized her instantly.
"The Succubus Lord of Arandel..."
As her gaze locked onto Lee Seon-ah, her pupils dilated in shock.