“Did you just start your job?”
“Yes! I finally managed to land a stable job. Even though I can’t see Master Great Demon King, I’m already satisfied.”
“Can’t see?”
Hearing this, Ai Yue, who had already felt something was off, immediately understood.
This girl probably didn’t know what the Great Demon King—meaning her—actually looked like. It was even possible she didn’t know Ai Yue had woken up yesterday.
This was normal. In the settings, Great Demon King Ai Yue rarely appeared unless absolutely necessary. No one among the common folk dared to circulate her portrait or photos. Therefore, a significant portion of the Demon Race didn’t know what she looked like.
This was also why she didn’t dare wander around randomly; it would be disastrous to encounter a thug who didn’t know who she was.
However, the fact that she didn’t even know about her awakening suggested that Fania’s airheaded trait was truly powerful.
“That is no excuse for your mistake,” Bululu, who had been standing beside Ai Yue, suddenly spoke up. “Furthermore, to not even know who this is, you —”
Mid-sentence, Ai Yue reached out her hand to interrupt her.
“There’s no need for that. Everyone makes mistakes, and I am no exception. Didn’t I say that before?”
“That… indeed…”
Recalling what Ai Yue had said to her when she had failed to do her job well yesterday, Bululu came to her senses.
Perhaps it was because Ai Yue had treated her so kindly that Bululu had become a bit oversensitive.
But even if she had forgotten those words, she still didn’t blame herself. ‘As expected, Master Ai Yue is truly merciful…’
“More importantly, Fania, I have something I want to ask you.”
Ai Yue ignored Bululu, who was descending into a state of infatuation again, and turned to Fania. “Are you… from the Succubus Race?”
This was one of the reasons she had stopped Bululu.
Ever since they first met, she had noticed Fania possessed a pair of small wings and a heart-shaped tail, both of which matched the characteristics of a Succubus.
The reason Ai Yue didn’t show these traits was that, according to her settings, Great Demon King Ai Yue generally hid her demonic features. This Polymorph even persisted after she had been weakened. Unless she actively deactivated it, no one could see any Succubus traits other than the markings on her stomach.
“That… indeed, I am a Succubus…”
The features of the Succubus Race were no secret, so Fania wasn’t surprised Ai Yue could tell. She just didn’t understand why she was asking.
“It’s nothing. I just want to understand how you Succubi usually handle your food requirements.”
As the saying goes, it was better to ask the person involved than to guess. Ai Yue believed that not all Succubi necessarily acted in lewd ways. At least, the disappointing girl in front of her didn’t seem like the type to solve her Vitality Essence issues that way.
‘Even if she has the charm, she’s just not seductive!’
“About that question…”
Fania glanced at the pile of documents on the table. First, she was surprised that Ai Yue was consulting so many books at once, and then she thought about why Ai Yue would ask such a question.
‘She’s probably a high-ranking official from some department, right? She wants to get first-hand information directly from me.’
“Well… as for our Succubus Race, others often think of us as an open race that only knows how to do ‘that’ sort of thing. They hold prejudices against us, but that is merely one of the fastest and most efficient methods for us to obtain Vitality Essence. In reality, we aren’t the type who will just go with anyone.”
“Tell me more.”
“Yes. Vitality Essence is a form of energy for us, or rather, Life Energy. It’s similar to Magic Power. Everyone unconsciously emits Vitality Essence. Although it’s much slower than absorbing it directly through ‘that’ sort of thing, it’s enough for our daily needs. Furthermore, there are currently some Essence Exchanges. By using Magic Circles or simple physical contact, one can pay with Vitality Essence, and we Succubi provide assistance in areas like magic in return.”
“I see…”
‘That’s quite advanced…’ Ai Yue wanted to remark, but the method of obtaining Vitality Essence caught her attention more.
Being able to directly absorb the Vitality Essence naturally emitted by living beings into the environment? Did that mean she could avoid physical contact?
And Fania mentioned that it could be obtained through Magic Circles at the exchanges. This meant it was possible to store Vitality Essence individually. She wouldn’t even have to do it herself!
Excellent. This information truly pleased her.
As expected, the Automatic Element Generation System did good things sometimes, solving the difficulties of the Succubus Race in another way.
However, at that moment, Fania changed her tone.
“However, the Vitality Essence obtained through this indirect method is not only small in quantity but also lacking in quality. Specifically, it’s only enough for daily needs. There’s no problem using some simple magic, but if one were to fight, it wouldn’t even last a few minutes. And there is one most crucial point: only Vitality Essence obtained directly by oneself can break the limit of our strength.”
“…Which means…”
“Yes. If we want to become stronger, we must do ‘that’ sort of thing. However, nowadays, we Succubi don’t think much of men—their techniques are poor, and they aren’t good-looking—so we basically handle it internally among ourselves. After all, a Succubus is also a living being.”
“…”
Ai Yue knew that many Succubi were lesbians, but that wasn’t the point.
The point was that in order to ensure she could use her power normally, she would eventually have to do “that.”
‘Forget it, forget it. On the bright side, at least daily needs are covered. I can manage the combat part by being a bit frugal. As for getting stronger, I don’t need that.’
Level 120 was a level cap that only top Players could reach through a series of extremely difficult and complex breakthrough missions that varied from person to person and couldn’t be looked up in guides. As she was now, as long as she could use her full power, there were basically no rivals in this world. She couldn’t get any stronger.
…But here was the problem: whose Vitality Essence should she absorb?
Ai Yue calmly looked around and saw Bululu beside her.
‘Speaking of which, when I petted Bululu before, my hunger temporarily vanished. Thinking about it now, it was probably because I subconsciously absorbed her Vitality Essence?’
Now that she knew the method, she should be able to absorb Vitality Essence more efficiently.
“All right. Thank you for your answer. We’ll be leaving now.”
With that, Ai Yue stood up and left the Library with Bululu.
Watching their retreating backs, a blush rose to Fania’s face. She murmured to herself, “Who exactly was that…”
“You don’t know?”
A female demon, who had been watching from the side and had even become jealous, came to her side and looked at her with disbelief.
“Do you know?”
“Of course. In fact, it’s stranger that you don’t know. After all, that was Master Great Demon King.”
“…Huh?”
Hearing that title, Fania froze in place, completely losing her ability to respond.