The Incubus System Chapter 1413. King-tier Manipulation
The Incubus System Chapter 1413. King-tier Manipulation
She blinked once. “Of course not,” she said calmly.
“Good,” Larry muttered.
I covered my face briefly with my hand.
She looked back at me.
“Do you resent my presence here?”
Direct.
Of course she’d go direct.
I met her gaze evenly. “No.”
Not entirely.
Not exactly.
“I prefer knowing where the pressure comes from.”
She nodded slightly. “Transparency reduces escalation.”
“Usually.”
Silence settled again.
I finished the last of my chicken bowl slowly.
Hungry satisfied.
Mind not.
Because this was not just lunch.
This was positioning.
The plastic fork clicked lightly against the empty container. I didn’t rush to throw it away. Didn’t break eye contact either.
“Anyway,” I said casually, reaching for my fries now, “feel free to assess me.”
I dipped one in sauce like this was just a normal student conversation and not a political negotiation between realms.
She watched the gesture. Calm. Studying.
“I will,” she said simply.
Of course she would.
I chewed.
“But other than that,” I added, swallowing before continuing, “since we’re going for transparency… I’ll say this.”
Larry shifted slightly beside me. He knew that tone.
“I never want a war,” I continued. “But if the light dimension keeps pushing my hands, I’ll do it.”
No drama in my voice. No flare of aura. Just fact.
“And you’re right,” I added, glancing at her. “I don’t know how to live as an angel.”
That part tasted strange coming out of my mouth.
“I learned how to be human first,” I said quietly. “Then I learned how to survive as a demon.”
That word still felt more familiar than angel.
“But if you want me to learn about angels,” I went on, “how about starting with not painting me as a target?”
The cafeteria noise faded in the background.
“I’m a simple creature,” I shrugged lightly. “You don’t bug me, I won’t bug you. I love my life.”
And I meant that.
My chaotic house. My pets. Celia stealing tea. Emma hugging me. Foxy calling me Master. Even Ruby stealing my underwear.
I loved that stupid life.
She didn’t answer immediately.
Her milk tea cup rested untouched between her fingers.
“That’s what I am trying to do,” she said finally.
Her voice wasn’t defensive. Just tired.
“But it won’t be easy.”
I tilted my head slightly. “Why?”
She inhaled slowly.
“You think we live inside a bubble,” she said. “And perhaps we do.”
I didn’t deny it.
“You shut yourselves for thousands of years,” I replied. “Don’t care about the human world. Then one demon lord weakens the border energy and suddenly—”
I gestured vaguely with a fry.
“You show up. Judge everything.”
A few students nearby pretended very hard not to eavesdrop.
She exhaled.
“Because,” she said quietly, “my husband always loved Gabrielle.”
I blinked.
“…Huh?”
Larry froze mid-sip.
“I wish I ordered popcorn instead of soup,” he muttered under his breath.
She ignored him.
“My husband held a long grudge after Gabrielle died,” she continued. “He even killed the angels who brought her body back.”
The fry slipped from my fingers.
“…He killed them?”
“Yes.”
“Just because Gabrielle died?”
“Not just,” she said softly.
The word not just carried weight.
“It was bad enough when he found Gabrielle refused to return,” she went on, “because she had a husband in the human world.”
My brain started connecting dots.
“And when he learned that husband was Xenos,” she added.
My chest tightened.
“The late demon king.”
The cafeteria suddenly felt smaller.
“And then,” she said carefully, “he learned they had a child. Erebus.”
Larry immediately straightened in his seat.
“Not me,” he said firmly. “I’m Larry Grandroar. Human. Very human.”
He sipped his soup loudly.
“Just making sure we’re clear.”
I deadpanned at him so hard I nearly pulled a muscle.
She continued like she was reciting history carved into stone.
“That was the reason he refused Puriel’s return,” she said. “Puriel was closest to Gabrielle.”
My stomach twisted.
“He discovered Gabrielle had asked Puriel to protect her child,” she added,
Silence.
So heavy.
“So he didn’t let her return,” she finished.
Larry stopped joking.
I didn’t even realize I was gripping the edge of the table until my knuckles turned white.
“He shut the dark dimension and the light dimension,” she said softly, “sacrificing the cores of the returning angels.”
The words sounded clinical.
But what they described wasn’t.
“The ones who brought Gabrielle’s body back,” she clarified. A pause. “He wanted Xenos, Erebus, and Puriel to suffer.”
The cafeteria noise came back in distorted waves.
“Xenos couldn’t reach his son in the human world,” she continued. “Erebus suffered in the human world because he was different.”
Her eyes flickered to me.
“And Puriel…” she paused slightly. “My husband believed her useless.”
I swallowed.
“He knew how cruel humans could be,” she added. “So he let them corrupt her.”
Larry and I both felt it.
That chill.
That realization.
This wasn’t a holy king protecting order.
This was obsession.
Grudge.
Punishment.
I leaned back slowly.
My brain struggled to process it.
This king…
Why did he sound more like a demon king than a light king?
That was king-tier manipulation.
Letting borders shift.
Letting worlds suffer.
All because of heartbreak.
I rubbed my forehead.
“So let me get this straight,” I said quietly. “Your husband destroyed inter-realm balance… because he was jealous?”
“Jealous,” she corrected softly. “And grieving.”
“Grieving people don’t sacrifice entire dimensions,” I muttered.
“Kings do,” she replied.
The way she said it… wasn’t proud.
It was resigned.
“And now?” I asked.
“Now he sees echoes,” she said.
“In me?” I asked flatly.
“Yes. Maybe you too,” she replied, glancing at Larry.
Larry froze again.
“Hey,” he whispered, “I am soup guy. Leave me out of this.”
I ignored him.
“So what,” I said. “I’m the continuation of his unresolved trauma?”
Her silence was answer enough.
My chest felt heavy.
All this chaos.
Because a king couldn’t let go?
“And you?” I asked her quietly. “Where were you in all this?”
She held my gaze steadily.
“I’m a queen,” she said.
“And?”
“And I chose stability.”
There it was.
The ugly truth.
She didn’t deny it.
She didn’t defend it either.