The Incubus System Chapter 1409. Life is Wild
The Incubus System Chapter 1409. Life is Wild
“You don’t have to choose today,” she said gently. “But you cannot keep pretending you are only one thing.”
My pulse slowed slightly.
I wasn’t spiraling.
I was processing.
“Do you trust me?” she asked softly.
That question.
Direct.
Honest.
Dangerous.
I didn’t answer immediately.
Because trust isn’t something I hand out easily.
But I didn’t feel threatened either.
And that scared me more.
“You’re standing in my classroom,” I said finally. “Teaching corporate management.”
She nodded.
“You fixed my sword without trying to kill me.”
She nodded again.
“You negotiated to keep Puriel alive.”
A pause.
I exhaled slowly.
“I don’t trust easily,” I admitted. “But I don’t feel like you’re lying.”
Her gaze softened.
“That is enough for now.”
The bell for the next class period echoed faintly in the hallway.
Reality creeping back in.
I looked at the sword.
Whole.
Bright.
Unbroken.
“Great,” I muttered. “Now I have to deal with this too.”
She almost laughed.
“You are more than you think.”
“Yeah,” I said dryly. “That’s the problem.”
She stepped back slightly, regaining her professor composure.
“For now,” she said calmly, “attend your classes.”
“You’re serious.”
“Yes.”
I snorted.
“Fine.”
The sword dissolved slowly into light and vanished.
She turned toward the board again like nothing happened.
“Class resumes in five minutes,” she said, voice returning to polished professionalism.
Like we didn’t just have a divine sword-repair session in the middle of a business lecture.
I stood there for a second longer than necessary. “Okay,” I said simply.
No dramatic exit. No tension-filled stare. Just… okay.
She nodded once.
And that was it.
I walked out.
The hallway felt loud after that silence. Students chatting. Doors opening and closing. Someone laughing too hard at something stupid. The world kept moving.
I exhaled slowly and shoved my hands into my pockets.
Five minutes.
Yeah, okay.
Not useful for existential recalibration.
But useful for a drink.
I walked toward the vending machine near the stairwell. The hum of it felt stupidly grounding. Metal box. Plastic buttons. Artificial sugar options.
I pressed one at random.
A canned iced coffee dropped with a loud clank.
I picked it up and stared at it for a second.
I just had a conversation with the Queen of Light about my identity crisis.
And now I’m holding a vending machine coffee.
Life is wild.
I cracked it open and took a long sip.
Cold. Bitter. Cheap.
Perfect.
I headed toward the restroom, pushing the door open with my shoulder.
Empty.
I splashed some water on my face first.
The mirror stared back at me again.
“You good?” I muttered to myself.
My reflection didn’t answer.
I leaned both hands against the sink and lowered my head slightly.
What do I feel?
Not fear.
Not anger.
Not temptation.
Just… awareness.
Like someone just turned on another light in a room I’ve been living in for years without realizing it was dark.
‘You’ve been too long living as a human. You thought yourself as a demon. You need to learn how to live as angel too.’
I scoffed softly under my breath.
“Yeah, sure,” I muttered.
I finished my business quickly and stepped out of the restroom.
And almost bumped into Larry.
He was leaning against the wall like he’d been waiting.
He straightened when he saw me.
“You good?” he asked immediately.
I nodded once.
“Yeah.”
He squinted at me.
“Like… actually good?”
I took another sip of my coffee.
“Yeah.”
He leaned closer. “Did she say something?”
“Yes.”
“Did she try to kill you?”
“No.”
“Did she threaten you?”
“Also, no.”
He lowered his voice dramatically. “Did she flirt?”
I deadpanned. “Larry.”
“What? It’s a valid angle.”
I sighed and leaned against the wall beside him. “Actually… it was a good start.”
His eyebrows shot up. “Good start?”
“She wanted to understand me.”
“That sounds… surprisingly mature.”
“She gave me a chance.”
Larry blinked. “…That’s good!”
“Yeah.”
I took another sip. “But her husband doesn’t really agree.”
He paused mid-breath. “…Oh.”
“Yeah.”
“That doesn’t sound like good.”
“It’s complicated.”
He folded his arms. “So let me get this straight. You have the support of the queen of angels.”
“More like cautious curiosity.”
“And the king?”
“Kinda dislikes me.”
“Kinda?”
“Okay, heavily.”
He whistled low. “That’s rough.”
I shrugged lightly. “Kinda bad. But not that bad.”
He stared at me like I was insane.
“At least one of them doesn’t want to kill me.”
“That is… an impressively low bar.”
I smirked faintly. “Progress is progress.”
He shook his head. “You’re weirdly calm about this.”
“I told you. Calm Ethan plans.”
He narrowed his eyes. “That’s what worries me.”
I laughed quietly.
He wasn’t wrong.
Because under this casual tone, under the cheap coffee and hallway banter, my brain was moving.
If the queen is willing to negotiate.
If the king is not.
That means there’s internal divide.
Divide means opportunity.
Opportunity means leverage.
And leverage means…
I don’t have to fight alone.
“Did she say anything about the border?” Larry asked. I guess the demon hunter association also realized about this.
“Indirectly.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning it’s not officially invasion. Yet.”
“Yet?”
“Energy redistribution. Pressure.”
He blinked. “Speak human.”
“Something like uneven cheese on your Macaroni Schotel. The cheese is the energy in the border.”
He nodded slowly. “Oh.”
“Yeah.” I took another slow breath.
We were still standing just outside the classroom door, the murmur of students already settling back into their seats leaking through the thin wood.
I glanced at Larry.
“Anyway,” I said quietly, “you also need to be careful.”
He blinked. “Why?”
I hesitated just a fraction.
Because this part wasn’t funny.
“She still thinks you’re Erebus.”
He stared at me.
“…So she’s going to kidnap me?”
I shrugged slightly. “I don’t know.”
And that was the truth.
Yesterday, the angels called me Erebus.
Not him.
Me.
But the way they looked at him…
The way they paused.
The way their energy flickered.
They weren’t certain.
They were guessing.
And guessing in cosmic politics is dangerous.
“I remember yesterday,” I continued, lowering my voice. “The angels called me Erebus. Not you. So it seems like they’re confused. One of us is Erebus.”