Edward's Ending

The succubi's brothel flourished just as when I left. The succubi appeared to me as nothing more than walking bodies of flesh; there was no allure to speak of. Even the engineering miracle that their breasts were, weren't able to illicit any feelings of arousal in me.

"Why are humans so infatuated with this sort of stuff? What are you all thinking about all day? Can't you work and study earnestly?" I fumed to myself.

The succubi stepped back a little when they saw me.

I never knew why the succubi feared Leah. If I had to hazard a guess, I suppose it had to do with her lineage. She wasn't even a pure succubus, though, as far as I knew. Her father, the Demon King, wasn't a succubus. I didn't know what species the Demon King was, but succubi were low-ranking demons among the demon race. How could a succubus become a Demon King? I'd never seen male succubi, either.

Sophia approached me and intimately looped her arm around mine.

"Stop, stop, stop… I no longer like women. Don't come so close… All women are nether-region-eating monsters! Stay back!" I inwardly cried.

With a smile, Sophia conveyed, "Hmm, Lord Lin, I am glad to see you. I heard Her Majesty assassinated you. Some said that they saw your corpse at the rubbish dump. Miss Leah didn't come, so I thought you were still alive, nonetheless."

"That's all rumours. With that said, what those merchants is about to face is no rumour. The elves have captured them, so who knows if they'll come back alive."

"I would be eager for them to come back. They are my generous customers. Without them, we wouldn't be too happy, which isn't just due to money."

No kidding. There was something more important than money that the succubi needed to absorb.

Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw someone with a very revealing set of clothes, revealing breasts and a short skirt…

"Erm… That's… not a succubi, is it…? That's the body of man, isn't it?!!" I almost blurted.

"You succubi have added this to your business now?!"

Sophia smiled helplessly: "He's not part of our services. He's Edward, isn't he? Wasn't it your intention to turn him into this state?"

"I don't have such a creepy hobby! I'm not, I don't, don't make things up!"

I paid particular attention to Edward's body. To my astonishment, he had some missing things on his body…

"Did the succubi do this?! Are they this twisted?! I never gave this sort of command!" I thought.

"He tried to get physical with our sisters all the time when he first came here. While we are succubi, we do pick and choose. He tried to approach Miss Leah before, and he also upset her. For those reasons, we decided to give him a lesson. It is not an issue, nevertheless. He forgot that he is a human after we tortured and brainwashed him over and over. He now believes himself to be a succubus."

"Yeah? You decided to be that vicious…?"

I watched Edward attend to customers and fell silent… Although he did lots of thinks that irked me, he didn't do anything to hurt me in reality. He just wanted Leah but didn't even get her. He didn't actually do anything harmful to her. He merely proposed. I strongly disliked him as a father, but turning a man into that state just because he proposed to my daughter… It wasn't what I asked for, was it…? I guess the succubi had a grudge to settle for heckling Leah?

I felt a tad sympathetic toward Edward given his current state if I was to be honest, not that it'd mean I'd help him. If he was convinced he was a succubus, then the succubi's place suited him more.

As I pondered to myself, I saw Achilles wearing a perverted smile as he walked in with succubi left, right and centre. He had his arms around the succubi's slender waists and occasionally teased their voluptuous breasts with his hands. He was totally different to his usual prim self. His face cramped upon seeing me, and he awkwardly released the succubus.

"It's fine. It's fine. I get it Achilles. Let's not discuss work here. Have fun. I only came here to take a look. I'll be returning to the North tomorrow."

"Yeah? I never expected you'd be back so soon. I thought you'd be best hiding in the North for a while. Queen Sisi doesn't want just you, after all, not to mention that the elves have captured the merchants. Everyone in the imperial capital is in panic after the elves captured them. Everybody is gathering money to attempt to redeem their family. Unfortunately, the elves never sent any demands after capturing them. I'd venture a guess that they've been killed."

"Did Queen Sisi not send an envoy?"

"She has. I imagine they have just arrived. Queen Sisi intends to take the opportunity to end the war with elves. Hence, she plans to pay extra to convince the elves," explained Achilles, popping himself down next to me.

I kindly declined Achilles' offer for a drink. If there was anything I learnt this trip, it was to not thoughtlessly accept drinks from strangers. I used to think I didn't need to worry about it as I was a male… Someone will always have designs for me despite me being a man… With a single glass from Sisi, my lower back was still sore. Luckily, my wound had healed because it'd have ripped open, and I'd have bled to death, otherwise…

A succubus came over and looped her arm around Achilles' arm. In a gentle voice, she flirted with the man. He must've been a regular by the looks of it. Despite knowing that she was a succubus, not human, he still gazed at her tenderly. I knew he hadn't married yet.

"He doesn't plan to marry a succubus, does he…? Humans and succubi are two different races at the end of the day. Plus, can succubi understand human love? Are their feelings for humans love? Even if Achilles wanted to be together with her forever, would the succubus choose to live with him? He's just food to them. Would someone be loyal to their own food?" I contemplated as I watched.

"Sorry," remarked Achilles, getting up.

"Have fun?"

Achilles smiled: "There is a businessman in the south from my hometown who wants to meet you to discuss business. If you agree, I will pass your address in the North to him, and he will go visit you."

"What sort of business?" I asked, narrowing my eyes. "Whatever it is, I don't plan to do anything in the coming days for sure. Veirya has just healed. I plan to spend some quality time with her. There's also my daughter. I need to take care of them, so I won't be going anywhere anytime soon."

"I understand. Therefore, I will tell him to visit you at a later date."

"Don't you try to dig me another hole. I no longer have any interest in pulling a big stunt."

"Rest assured. It is not a very big deal. He is not after an investment. He just wants your suggestion. I would say that he is a hubristic businessman. I have not been home in a long time, so I am not sure what businessmen do there. In saying that, they are into business on the waters, apparently. I think they found a large piece of inhabited land. They want to develop it; however, they do not know if they can get a positive return on investment."

"Is he the type of businessman to do that sort of stuff?"

"No. He is in the food industry. Now, however, everyone is thinking about how to invest. As such, he is unsure if he should invest."

Queen Sisi would be the happiest person to hear that. It was the equivalent of humanity's fleets making a huge discovery. An inhabited continent might have gold scattered throughout and development opportunities. Moreover, there's no such thing as too much land for humans. Meanwhile, businessmen could very well find rare things that humankind lacked or didn't have on this side. Either way, it was a money-making continent.

I guess that was humanity's nation's fate. Steam power brought about the first industrial revolution. Now a new continent had been discovered. As long as humanity could use it reasonably, mankind's empire would be the empire on which the sun never sets.

"How will Sisi choose? What do I need to do in this situation? I've arrived at an era's fork in the road. What can I do now that I've caught up with humanity's most momentous era? I'll go back and marry Veirya first; then, worry about what comes after afterwards," I decided.

Glossary

*Achilles switches between informal and formal speech in the chapter. That is not inconsistency in translation.