The loss of its city lord did not plunge Rossi City into chaos; the municipal office continued to run in an orderly fashion.
However, beneath this calm, undercurrents were swirling, and many changes were occurring silently.
The Succubi.
They were a mysterious race that both despised the “Demon King” and relied upon him.
After Demon King Lia’s death, the rules he had originally established were gradually tested and overstepped by the succubi.
Eventually, they became a mere scrap of paper, relegated to new material for criticizing the “Demon King joke.”
The succubi grew increasingly bold, their behavior gradually returning to the same wanton recklessness they displayed before Demon King Lia unified the Demon Realm—yet they had lost the sharpness and humility they once showed when facing the strong.
For Ayla, the manager of the succubi in Rossi City, this feeling was particularly intense.
The first sign was the surge in complaints.
Fifty percent of the customers complained about “excessive solicitation,” stating that the succubi they summoned had recently become extremely disobedient.
Even when the customers shouted “Stop, stop, stop!”, the succubi would remain on top of them, relentlessly using charms.
In the end, the customers had no choice but to kick them away, yet the succubi would just sit there giggling foolishly.
If scolded, they would blush with secret pleasure; if hit, they would only cry out in a strained, flirtatious voice.
They were like pieces of gristle—tough and unyielding—leaving everyone completely helpless.
Of the remaining 50% of complaints, 20% were about being charged exorbitant service fees.
Agreed-upon prices were torn up on a whim, and the succubi would demand more money the moment they finished.
If the money wasn’t given, they would make a scene, forcing decent people to pay extra.
Another 20% complained about “poor service attitude.”
Not only were they less cooperative than in the past, but they were also incredibly talkative.
Previously, when they only complained about the demons and Demon King Lia, humans found the succubi humorous and witty.
Now, lacking restraint, they began to mock humans.
The humans finally felt the sting of the succubi’s verbal aggression firsthand.
The last 10% were the most bizarre—they actually got into physical altercations with customers.
The reasons for these fights were varied: sometimes they felt a customer was being disrespectful, sometimes they were caught trying to seduce the customer’s underage children and were beaten, and other times they attempted private blackmail that ended in a brawl once the negotiations collapsed.
Moreover, what gave Ayla an even greater headache was that the “Roleplay Mini-Theater,” originally the succubi shop’s greatest feature and core competitive edge, was also starting to have problems.
The old, vulgar scripts written by Demon King Lia had been completely abandoned, replaced by new scripts created by great succubus writers.
However… these new scripts, which were supposedly artistic, groundbreaking, and full of demonic humanitarian care, had been trialed for a few days only to receive a lukewarm response.
Repeat customers were almost nonexistent.
Ayla had originally been full of confidence in the new scripts, not only because some of them were written by her but also because the rest were considered masterpieces by the succubi community.
In these new scripts, succubi were no longer objects or subordinates, but flesh-and-blood protagonists full of soul.
The plots revolved around the succubus lead, vividly displaying their complex inner worlds and delicate emotional struggles.
‘Isn’t this much better than those vulgar stories left by Demon King Lia?’
Ayla couldn’t understand why customers were unwilling to play her better, deeper scripts.
Why did they all prefer those old scripts of Demon King Lia’s that were nothing but erotica?
Clearly, all the sisters said the new scripts were better.
‘It must be that this generation of male audiences has poor quality.’
Therefore, faced with today’s wave of customers strongly demanding the return of the old scripts, Ayla stood her ground.
As succubi with higher aesthetic standards, they had a responsibility to guide and educate the audience.
Even if there was a serious loss of foot traffic for now, once the market was matured by their education, everything they lost would surely be earned back.
“Lady Ayla, the Hero has come to see you.”
As she was calculating how many more years the remaining money would last to rent this grand manor, a succubus suddenly knocked and reported.
The Hero?
Ayla’s eyes lit up.
She hurriedly put on a mink coat and applied a touch of vermilion to her lips.
She walked out with grace and poise to welcome this important guest.
Inside the manor’s drawing room, Jon looked around at the furnishings with curiosity.
He knew that after the original succubus shop in Rossi City was destroyed by the princess, Ayla had rented a new location as their base.
He just hadn’t expected Ayla to rent a luxury manor belonging to some old-money noble.
Even if that noble had fallen on hard times, renting such a place certainly wouldn’t be cheap.
Perhaps because the manor was too spacious, or because the customer traffic today was truly sparse, Jon felt the place was cold and deserted.
The occasional person he caught sight of was usually a sexy succubus girl swaying her tail, a far cry from the bustling scene of a few days ago.
“Lord Hero~”
“Brother Jon! Waaaah~”
While he was wondering, the voices of the succubi arrived before they did.
Two flirtatious calls, dripping with sweetness, drifted over.
Jon quickly raised his hand, blocking the succubus princess, Amelie, who was flapping her wings and trying to dive into his arms.
Amelie looked up in confusion, just about to start acting spoiled, when Pupu—on top of Jon’s head—spat a mouthful of water into her face with a look of disdain.
“Lord Hero, what wind blows you here today? You didn’t even give us a heads-up so we could prepare the highest etiquette of the succubus race for you~”
Ayla appeared much more reserved and proper.
She stood to the side, covering her mouth as she chuckled.
Her dark eyebrows arched slightly, and her bright eyes were soul-stirring.
Jon got straight to the point.
“Military business. I’ve come to ask for some important information regarding Demon King Lia. Just tell me what you know. By the way, do you have any portraits of him?”
“We do, we do!”
Ayla quickly ordered her subordinates to bring out a painting whose ink had not yet completely dried.
“Lord Hero, this painting is titled ‘The Despicable and Shameless Demon King Lia’. I painted it myself. Its artistic value is as much as 6 stories high! It’s fully qualified to be placed in the Imperial History Museum!”
Jon glanced at it and almost couldn’t keep a straight face.
The demon in the painting had dark skin, a hideous and distorted face, and a posture and physique no different from a wild beast.
He looked like a completely different person from Demon King Lia—this was pure, intentional vilification.
“Don’t mix in too much personal emotion. Be a bit more realistic. Realistic,” Jon warned.
“You must depict Demon King Lia’s true appearance.”
“Oh.”
Ayla ordered someone to bring out another new painting.
The ink on this one was dry, though it was clearly a recent work as well.
The title was Demon King Lia Begging the Hero for Mercy.
The painting depicted Demon King Lia crawling miserably on the ground, humbly licking the Hero’s armored boots.
That handsome, beautiful face was filled with fawning sycophancy, much like a succubus.
The character’s appearance was quite realistic.
However, Jon’s brow remained tightly furrowed.
He actually quite disliked this kind of “kicking a man while he’s down” humiliation toward a fallen powerhouse.
Besides, in his memory, Demon King Lia had been quite formidable, bringing him unprecedented pressure.
Moreover, the man had possessed great character; he had endured so many sword strikes without uttering a single groan.
“Are there any paintings of him from before he was defeated? Same requirement: be realistic, and don’t mix in too much ‘personal emotion.'”
Ayla looked troubled.
After a long time, several more paintings were brought out.
These works were covered in dust, and some parts were even torn or damaged.
They had clearly been discarded in a heap of junk and were only rediscovered today.
These paintings were finally much more normal, consisting of multi-angled character portraits of a handsome, ethereal male.
Jon took the portraits and browsed through them for a long time.
Suddenly, he felt a subtle curiosity toward this enemy who had already been dealt with.
This curiosity didn’t stem from a fear of the man’s strength, nor was it for any specific purpose; he was simply curious why “he” wore human clothes in the paintings, and curious about the private life of this former monarch of the demons.
“In your eyes, what kind of person was Demon King Lia?”
Jon weighed his tone as he asked this question.
It was partly to satisfy his own curiosity and partly so that Lily could have a basic understanding of Demon King Lia, so her disguise wouldn’t be too out of character later.
Ayla and Amelie looked at each other.
They hesitated for a long time.
“A madman,” Ayla said.
“An idiot,” Amelie said.