Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Scott Fellman.
"Excuse me, what?" I asked stupidly as I looked at the succubi in front of me.
"We want to live in your territory, my Lady." Fengxian said, repeating herself while still bowing. I narrowed my eyes.
"Stop this, my Lady nonsense, it's annoying." I snorted with a grimace. "Stop bowing too, there's no need. Now, back to my territory? I don't have any territory. I'm barely a baroness. My island is the only territory I have. I'm sorry to tell you, but it's fully occupied." I said straightforwardly. Fengxian and the others straightened up. Fengxian nodded.
"We know. We follow the blog closely to know that the island is completely a nature reserve that you use for the ingredients for your potions; we would never dare to get in the way of that." Fengxian said, and I narrowed my eyes. How did they know about my plants?
"Blog? What blog?" I asked quickly, frowning.
"Ah," the voice came from behind me. I looked over my shoulder and saw Enid looking at me shyly.
"Something to say, Enid?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. Enid smiled shakily at me.
"Well… maybe I started a new blog," Enid said shyly. I blinked a couple of times and frowned.
"You started a blog? And you didn't tell me?" I asked, almost indignant. Enid grimaced.
"I... thought you wouldn't want to read it?" Enid looked away. My frown deepened.
"Why wouldn't I want to read it? It's yours. You said they were your thoughts, your voice. I'll always want to hear them," I said seriously. Enid looked at me in surprise before blushing deeply, her expression changing to a soft smile.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hide it from you, really," Enid said honestly. I nodded.
"So, what's this blog about? I guess it has to do with something Fengxian was talking about." I said, looking at the succubi, who were all silent, none of them seeming to want to interfere with our conversation. I glanced at Enid once more, who seemed completely excited, practically bouncing in place before pulling out her phone. She walks around the couch before sitting next to me, so close she almost seemed to be on my lap.
"Like you said! My blog is my voice! People want to know about me! Or, well, us! So I took it upon myself to document, upload, and make stories about us! A little bit of everything, really! About the mansion, the island, and the many plants, flowers, and potions! I've been very busy!" Enid said proudly as she scrolled through her blog.
I took the phone Enid offered and began looking through the blog and the posts Enid had made. Just as Enid had said, there wasn't really anything compromising or secret. Just a lot of photos of the mansion and many more of the island's flora along with little stories or facts about them, nothing that hadn't been discovered over time. There were even photos of the animals inside the Vivarium. Most of them were selfies or images taken from a distance of her and her subject.
Oddly enough, there were also a fair number of the rest of us. Especially me—not that they bothered me, but I could do without the image of me sleeping on a pile of books. For the love of Salazar, I had the skills to avoid having to sleep for months at a time, but sometimes, I just forget.
"Who took the pictures?" I asked curiously.
"I made most of them, obviously, but Devola and Popola helped me!" Enid said happily before wincing. "And, well, Lucy also helped correct my grammar mistakes." Enid complained as she glared at Lucius. Lucius looks at her amusedly while raising an eyebrow in her direction.
"You can continue to express your voice correctly without any grammatical errors, my dear." Lucius said amusedly. Enid stuck her tongue out at him, making me chuckle. I handed the phone back to Enid.
"I'll want to finish watching it completely later," I said simply. Enid smiled and nodded, putting her phone away but staying seated next to me, almost curled up in my arm. I looked at Fengxian once more. "If you already know my island is uninhabitable, what territory are you referring to?" I asked directly.
"The area around the lake," Fengxian said simply. I frowned. My territory only belonged to the island; I'm sure that not even the lake around it belonged to me in any way, much less the land beyond that.
"That's not my territory," I said directly. Fengxian nodded.
"It isn't… for now." Fengxian said, staring at me. Ah… I get it now.
"I guess an investment then?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. She nodded. "Do you really have faith that I can reach the ultimate class so I can gain more territory?" I asked amusedly. Fengxian fell silent.
"…yes," Fengxian finally said. I could see the tension behind her eyes. I hummed softly. In truth, the commoner Devils, the low-class Devils, didn't have it bad. After all, they made up a large portion of the Devil population. But there were always the high-class Devils and the Pillars who took advantage of them.
And the succubi were the ones who had it the worst.
"You know other devils can buy the territory around my island, right?" I asked playfully. I could see everyone tense up at the same time, and Fengxian gritted her teeth.
"Are… are you sure?" Fengxian asked tensely. I nodded.
"There is a limit to how much territory the Pillar Devils can possess, but none have ever passed that limit. We're close to Sitri's territory, but where we are, and everything around us, doesn't belong to anyone, so anyone can buy that territory." I said simply. Fengxian narrowed her eyes.
"Everyone…including you?" Fengxian asked carefully, I frowned slightly.
"I told you, I need to be an ultimate class to be eligible for a bigger territory," I repeated.
"Actually, not really." Lucius chimed in from behind me. I looked over my shoulder at him. "Being promoted to High-Class Devil comes with a noble promotion, which comes with a huge territory bonus. To buy territory, at least large swathes of land, you only need a noble title; being a Baroness meets the requirements." Lucius explained. I frowned.
"So… I can buy more land?" I asked Lucius. He simply nodded. I wrinkled my nose. "That's good to know, but it's not like we have enough money to buy it anyway." I shrugged.
"We have some," Fengxian said immediately. I looked at her again. "How much do you need? Most of our earnings go unused, so we've built up a large reserve over the years. And if you're willing to talk to the other two succubi brothels in Lucifaad, they'd be eager to help as well," Fengxian added without hesitation. I looked at her closely for a few seconds.
"You seem very... determined to move into my territory. Why?" I asked bluntly, my eyes narrowed. Fengxian's lip twitched slightly.
"A pillar devil took Meimei," Fengxian muttered. My eyes widened slightly, and I immediately looked at Meimei, scrutinizing her for the first time since she'd entered the room. I'd been so focused on Fengxian that I didn't bother looking at her. Outwardly, she seemed completely healthy, but looking past that and the makeup she was wearing, she seemed haggard and pale. I couldn't recall her ever looking me directly in the eyes during our short conversation.
"What happened?" I asked immediately without taking my gaze off Meimei. That one of the 'Three Princesses' of the Verdigris House succubi was taken away was unheard of. The 'Three Princesses' had their own status, their own fame, they were completely known throughout Lucifaad, and they had a reputation. If someone decided to take Meimei, the second of the three, despite that, it wasn't good news.
"There was a pillar devil who wanted to buy her, but Meimei refused. It's well known that she's in Verdigris House because she likes and is attached to everyone in Verdigris," Fengxian began, lowering her gaze. "The pillar devil didn't like that she refused… he immediately took her away without her consent… she…" Fengxian seemed to hesitate.
"What happened?" I asked again, this time more solemnly.
"The pillar devil grew bored of her after two weeks," Maomao said, to my surprise, with a coldness that bordered on fury. "He removed Meimei's womb, partially healed her, and during that time, the devil used her as he pleased despite the pain Meimei was in or that she repeatedly refused. The pillar devil brutalized her, assaulted her, used her as a plaything, and even lent her out to other devils, no matter how violent they got with her. At the end of the second week, we found her lying in a pool of her own blood in the middle of our reception room. She-"
"Maomao!" Fengxian exclaimed forcefully, causing Maomao to clamp her mouth shut. I could hear her teeth grinding together. Maomao's gaze was cold, but there was an easily palpable anger, at least until she turned to her side and saw Meimei. She was completely pale, trembling slightly with labored breathing, the other two succubi trying to comfort her. Maomao's expression sobered, and a look of regret crossed her face.
Sadly, it was common for a succubus trapped by a pillar devil to have her womb ripped out. Most devils valued power. Having a weak child like a succubus? Unacceptable. It almost reminded me of purebloods and squibs; most blood purists disposed of them one way or another.
Here? The same thing happened, even with the devils of the new Satan faction. Example: Sairaorg. Even being the firstborn, having no demonic power and no clan trait, he was strongly rejected, despised, and bullied by both the Bael clan and even other low and middle-class devils of the Bael territory.
So, a pillar devil having a child with a succubus? Unacceptable. Added to that, the devils didn't use any form of birth control because, obviously, the birth rate was so low that it was almost impossible for a child to be born. Except for succubi.
A succubus's fertility was almost on par with that of humans, even if they mated with a devil with low fertility. Therefore, since they obviously weren't going to use any form of protection, and they wouldn't give any to a succubus either because it would, of course, be a waste of resources, even though the expense was almost minimal, they had only one option.
Removing the succubus's uterus. So simple, so ruthless.
I took out a jar without hesitation and threw it towards Maomao, she immediately grabbed it almost clumsily.
"Make her drink it," I ordered without hesitation. Maomao looked at the jar in her hands with a slight gleam in her eyes, but she moved immediately. She opened the jar and carefully brought it to Meimei's mouth; the succubus's mouth was firmly closed.
" Drink it Meimei, it will make you better." Maomao said gently. The voice seemed to prompt Meimei to take action and she immediately drank the potion while Maomao helped her. Once she finished the bottle, Maomao broke away. All the succubi were staring at Meimei. Meimei began to relax and calm down considerably. She no longer seemed to be on the verge of a panic attack. I sighed.
" Calming Draught. It's used to calm a person after suffering from shock, trauma, or an emotional outburst." I immediately recited. Maomao stared at the bottle in her hand in wonder. I took out a cigarette, looked at it for a few moments before sighing and taking out another 8. The cigarettes swiftly flew to every person in the room. The 4 remaining succubi, Bella, who had a cold look, Enid, who was clinging to my arm almost horrified, Lucius, and Narcissa, who had solemn looks on their faces.
"What-" I interrupted Fengxian's question by snapping my fingers, lighting all the cigarettes immediately. The four of us who were used to them immediately took a drag, Enid following a few seconds later. She knew what they were made of, but she wasn't used to using them. In fact, this was her second time smoking one; the first time was just a test.
"Smoke it. They're made with ingredients to calm anxiety and agitation; they're neither addictive nor harmful," I said simply. Maomao was the first to take the cigarette, almost eagerly, and smoked it without hesitation. I could see the nervousness and anxiety leaving her body. Seeing this, the other succubi carefully took the cigarettes and began to smoke them more cautiously.
"This… is really amazing. Thank you for taking care of Meimei. That potion was incredible." Fengxian said after a few seconds of silence. I shook my head.
"It's temporary and not something you'll use very often," I said honestly. Fengxian nodded.
"Still, even though we're succubi and our sexual nature helps in the… most extreme ways, what they did to Meimei left her completely devastated. We don't have many details since it's hard for Meimei to communicate about what happened there, but…she's had few peaceful days since then." Fengxian said regretfully. I gritted my teeth.
"Who was it?" I asked simply. Fengxian seemed to hesitate.
"Iokal, Honest's relative." Maomao spat out once more, and Fengxian glared at her. I blinked a few times. Did I… hear that right?
"Excuse me, did you say Iokal? Fat, idiot face, glasses, and a tuft of purple hair in front?" I asked stupidly.
"The same," Fengxian said demurely. I wanted to groan out loud. What the hell? I'd immediately recognized the people in front of me; after all, The Apothecary Diaries was a fairly famous and interesting series. But in the grand scheme of things? It wasn't important, or they weren't relevant, or at least they wouldn't have any impact on canon or anything like that. They had no powers, much less as succubi.
But now, Iokal and Honest! Two characters from Akame ga Kill? I couldn't help but notice how fitting it was that those two were here as devils. But Honest? Really? First, who would name a devil 'Honest,' and second, I wanted to make a terrible face. Honest was Akame ga Kill's main antagonist. He was a son of a bitch who had controlled the young Emperor to do whatever he wanted. And for years he could do anything.
But him being here, in Draconis Deus? It set off so many alarm bells in my head it wasn't funny. I pulled out my phone and started searching for Akame ga Kill and Honest information. on The Company's internet, before passing it on to Lucius without looking back. The more information Lucius has, the better. I could feel Lucius take out his glasses and start reading quickly.
"Will… will there be a problem?" Fengxian asked, biting her lip. I looked at her and sighed.
"Not really. Honest and his family are complete trash. I really couldn't care less about facing them, I have faith that Bella and I can take care of them if the worst happens." I said honestly. I could see all the succubi in front of me breathe a sigh of relief, except for Meimei, who was still quite high on the Calming Draught. Fengxian looked at me hopefully.
"So, can we come to your territory? Succubi don't feel safe in Lucifaad anymore. Even less so than before. We reported what happened to the authorities, but the word of a succubus against the word of a pillar? They did nothing for the two weeks Meimei was missing, and once she reappeared, they basically shut down any ongoing' investigations.'" Fengxian spat hatefully before biting her lip. "And… the bastard came back. His attention is now on Maomao." Fengxian said pitifully.
I looked at Maomao, who had her teeth and hands clenched in helplessness.
It was truly sad to see. There were many pillars who cared little or nothing about commoners or low-class devils and were capable of exploiting them as much as they wanted. The authorities? They were always part of the pillar devils or those affiliated with pillar devils. Especially Lucifaad.
Lucifaad was the original capital of the Underworld, a territory ruled by the original Lucifer. Now? It's ruled by the Old Satan faction, though they didn't call themselves that, but it was obvious to everyone. so it's not surprising that the pillar devils here are all in the form of Honest, or Diodora if you wanted to measure yourself against someone from this world.
And moving to another territory? It wasn't easy, even more so when they were succubi, and at least a group of 100 of them. For better or worse, the devils of Lucifaad were used to them, so the brothels were profitable, and the succubi got all the sustenance they could get. Something they couldn't guarantee in the new territories. Even if they were pleasant enough, like Lilith or the Gremory territory.
I sighed wearily. This was a terrible problem, and I certainly couldn't look away from it. First, I was now a succubus; most devils only cared about themselves and their families at best. I might lose some credibility if I let the succubi continue to be abused and the others found out. at least with a large portion of the devils from the new Satan faction.
And secondly, I didn't want to push them away. I could feel Narcissa's gaze waiting for me to do something, as well as Enid's pleading look for help. Even Bella was waiting for my decision. The only one who didn't seem to care what I said was Lucius, but it was probably because that bastard knew that I knew what he was going to say. I sighed once more.
Now, let's see how I'll solve this without getting into even more trouble.