“Uwah!”
Ever since entering the court, the little succubus Ciercier had been making noises from time to time that sounded like a squawking duck. The little succubus’s eyes darted everywhere, her limbs trembled incessantly, and her tail swayed uneasily from side to side like a car’s windshield wipers.
“I actually entered the Witch Queen’s stronghold…”
Ciercier seemed to feel extreme terror toward Evelyn’s true identity, but wasn’t it a bit much?
“Save me! I’m so scared! Let me go, let me leave this place! You—you want to skin me, don’t you! You want to use my tail, my tail to make a wand!”
Evelyn, walking ahead and strolling through the court, responded coldly, “You have no need to fear your Queen. On the contrary, you should respect and love her. Besides, I have no need for a wand made of a tail.”
Whew—
Erica had originally been worried that Evelyn would lose her temper over the little creature’s rude attitude and just stuff that tail right into her mouth.
Fortunately, the little succubus Ciercier and Evelyn seemed to have no intention of continuing their conversation, likely because Evelyn had simply lost interest.
“Well then, Erica, I am going to rest. You should rest in the palace as well. There are scorpions roaming around the house, so don’t go back there.”
“I understand. In that case, I will take it upon myself to educate this fellow afterward.”
“Yes, she does seem a bit foolish.”
It seemed the sight of the terrified succubus was indeed quite comical.
“See you later.”
Evelyn waved her hand, turned to say goodbye, and returned to her own quarters. Now, the only ones left were Erica and the shivering succubus Ciercier, who had just experienced being captured in the wild, nearly burned to death, rescued, and then discovering that the rescue was a lie.
What should she have this little thing do? One must realize that twelve gold coins was no small sum for her. According to the kingdom’s market rates, a single gold coin was enough to buy a clean slave. Therefore, this creature had to be squeezed for a workload equivalent to at least twelve people to break even!
Judging by the logic of her speech, her intelligence and knowledge seemed quite impressive, but her physical strength appeared weak. It looked like it would be difficult to have her work as an office secretary by day and haul bricks at a construction site by night.
Could she handle clerical work?
The Great Capitalist Erica asked Ciercier, who was glancing around to confirm if Evelyn had truly disappeared, “Is there anything you’re good at?”
“Succubi are good at everything! Because we are beings personally created by Lord Noel! Anyway… that… the Queen is gone, right?”
“Yes. Now come with me, I will introduce you to the work you need to do.”
Erica led the little succubus toward her office. It was piled high with her backlog of documents, with various scrolls and seals scattered in a disorganized mess. “First of all, try to sort and organize these documents by the color of their covers.”
“Listen! Although I’ll do as you say for now, you must understand that I have by no means become your slave!”
Shouting with full confidence, the succubus Ciercier began to organize the documents scattered on the desk and floor. Her work efficiency was unexpectedly high, which even surprised Erica as she watched from the side.
However, it seemed Ciercier was equally shocked: “Slave Rights Improvement Act, Defeated Magical Creature Distribution and Employment Law… why are documents like these here? Could it be that you are that Erica Angelina?”
“Yes, didn’t I tell you?”
Ciercier flipped through the initial drafts of the laws Erica had penned. Her petite body trembled so much from surprise that one couldn’t help but worry if she was someone who would fail to make it to the toilet and soon lose control of her bladder.
In the succubus instruction manual she had just received from the Torch Village Militia, was it written that Ciercier actually needed reminders and accompaniment for the bathroom, otherwise she couldn’t release her true self normally?
Erica, suddenly very concerned about this, rummaged through her pockets, while the little succubus suddenly raised both hands and began shouting. “Oh my god! It is such an honor to meet you, Erica Angelina!”
Ciercier’s eyes sparkled: “You are the creator of these exquisite bills and regulations! From a succubus’s perspective, they are incomparably righteous laws!”
Erica tilted her small head and looked at her. Regarding this erratic emotional change, the image of the elf Dinoie, whom she had met not long ago, surfaced in the girl’s mind.
“The Prevention of Slave Abuse Act is truly a magnificent law!”
“Is that so? Thank you for the compliment.”
“Of course, there are still some places that need modification and adjustment. For example, the term ‘slave’ itself is a bit behind the times. Ethically speaking, this designation is inappropriate.” Ciercier then went on and on, expounding her own views on various slave laws.
For instance, the term ‘labor assistant’ should be used to replace ‘slave,’ or a pension system should be introduced where a certain amount is paid upon leaving after long-term employment, and so on.
It was hard to say whether she was “version-leading” smart or just meddlesome and detached from the era.
“Alright, the documents are organized!”
It seemed she was quite efficient at her work. With this helper around, the messy tasks were completed quickly. It appeared she truly lived up to the title ‘labor assistant.’
Once things had settled down, Erica decided to take the opportunity to ask about some things she was curious about. She sat at the table with Ciercier and began questioning her on various topics. “I’m a bit curious about the succubus race. Are all succubi as interested in things like law or human rights as you are?”
“Most of them are! We are not like those elves who live off government subsidies and relief fund grants, knowing only how to play instead of work. Although the interests of us succubus sisters vary, we generally value labor.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Some conspiracy theorists say that we succubi evolved from elves. That is simply nonsensical, inflammatory talk! We succubi are unique beings specially created by Lord Noel!”
“Mm-hmm.”
Um, oh, ah, yes, right, right, right… Erica responded perfunctorily while flipping through the dictionary at her side. This was an encyclopedia compiled by a sage named Pakuritus, recording the knowledge and common sense the girl needed to survive in this world—a veritible treasure trove of wisdom.
Her red eyes shifted as she searched the entries for the word “Succubus.” Once locked on, she began to read word by word—[Succubus: Noisy succubi, they use various flowery words to flatter and deceive humans… These succubi originally evolved from one of the natural elf tribes, products of the Demon King Noel’s modification of the elves under his command.]
Oh, so that’s how it is.
[As indicated by their traits originating from elves, succubi themselves do not possess strong aggressiveness or hostility. Under normal circumstances, they do not cause much harm to humans. On the contrary, like elves, their hair, nails, and bodily fluids are precious magical materials, and wands made from succubus tails are tools of immense value…]
[While elves are protected by law, the succubi who have fallen into the category of magical creatures do not enjoy the same legal protection…]
Perhaps because of this, by the time the author wrote this entry, the species had already been classified as endangered due to over-hunting.
Aha.
So this creature was essentially a dark modification of an elf. Unfortunately, her human rights had been brutally trampled upon.
“Speaking of which, you have a peculiar aura about you! It’s very similar to my sisters.”
“Is that so? It might be because I’m a Half-Elf.”
“A Half-Elf!?”
Ciercier cried out in surprise, her large pink eyes blinking as she stared at the girl. “What a peculiar race!”
Coming from you, that sounds a bit strange, doesn’t it? Erica suppressed the urge to retort.
“Anyway, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Comrade Erica Angelina! In this evil court where legitimate human rights have been stripped away, it is truly fortunate to have someone like you who truly aligns with succubus values!”
“Comrade… fine, whatever you say. So, what exactly did you mean by ‘aligns with succubus values’ just now?”
“Literally! It means appearing as beautiful, wise, brave, and politically minded as a succubus!”
“Are you trying to say I have a good head for politics?”
“Exactly. You could put it that way. After all, politics is the specialty of us succubi.”
I see.
Erica quickly supplemented the entry regarding succubi in her mind—Succubi, as a sister race to elves, are actually not as smart as one might imagine… or something like that.
In any case, the unintentionally acquired new slave… no, labor assistant, didn’t seem to hate or reject her, which made the girl feel a bit relieved and gratified.
On the contrary, this fellow seemed to have quite a good impression of her. To think someone actually held goodwill toward her soul, rather than because of her beauty, money, power, or status?
Even if it was just a little bit, hearing someone recognize and praise everything she had done up to now still gave Erica a slight sense of accomplishment. It meant that what she had done since coming to this world was not entirely meaningless.