Succubi Chapter 223. I Want You for Tonight
Succubi Chapter 223. I Want You for Tonight
Her brows lifted. Then she laughed softly. “No. I’m not that petty.”
I stared at her. “You sure?”
Her smile sharpened. “Mostly.”
Great.
She placed one elbow on the armrest, chin resting lightly on her knuckles. She looked too comfortable. Too in control. Like this was her stage and I had entered exactly when the script required.
“I want to give you a real mission.”
My eyes narrowed. “What mission?”
“Take a seat.”
I glanced at the chair across from her desk.
Normal chair. Good wood. No visible runes. No restraints.
I walked to it slowly and sat down.
The chair was comfortable. Damn it, even the chair was richer than me.
She stood.
I immediately regretted sitting.
Because the moment she moved, the balance of the room shifted. Her black silk dress flowed around her body like smoke, elegant and quiet, catching moonlight in subtle flashes. She stepped around the desk, slow and deliberate, and began circling me.
I hated that.
Not because I was scared.
Because it was clearly intentional.
Predator behavior.
I kept my eyes forward.
Calm face.
Straight back.
My survival instincts opened a meeting.
Topic “Why is she circling us?”
Conclusion “Nothing good”.
“What if,” she murmured from behind me, “I told you I want you for tonight?”
My fingers twitched once on the chair arm.
“All night long~”
She dragged the last words out with just enough heat to be dangerous, then stopped in front of me. Slowly, she turned, leaned down, and brought her face closer to mine.
Her eyes locked with mine. “I want you, Rogue Mask E,” she whispered. “I want your body to belong to me tonight.”
I stilled.
Not because I was tempted.
Okay, I was slightly tempted. I’m honest enough to admit that. The woman was beautiful, rich, dangerous, and clearly knew how to weaponize proximity. My body noticed. My brain noticed. My dignity filed another warning report.
But no.
If Lilith said something like that, I understood the shape of it. The intention. The warmth under the hunger. With Lilith, danger had a heartbeat I trusted.
This woman?
She could make seductive noises while trying to kick my head off in the tournament.
That meant nothing she said could be taken at face value.
Trap.
I looked at her calmly. “Get straight with your request, ma’am.”
For a second, silence.
Then her smirk deepened.
Not offended.
Satisfied.
“Oh,” she murmured. “You look like a gentleman, but you know how to play rough. I like it.”
I deadpanned. “Please don’t turn my professionalism into flirting.”
“No blushing like a boy either.”
“I fought horny ghosts last night. My blush capacity is damaged.”
That earned a genuine laugh.
She straightened and folded her arms under her chest, which was unfair because the motion did things to the fabric and I had to keep my eyes aggressively trained on her face like a disciplined soldier resisting enemy propaganda.
“Fine,” she said. “I’ll tell you.”
Finally. Mission details.
She walked back toward the desk, but didn’t sit. Instead, she leaned against the edge, facing me. “I have an invitation tonight.”
“To what?”
“A banquet.”
Right… Rich people. Always banquets.
Couldn’t they solve problems by eating soup in normal rooms like everyone else?
“From my ex,” she added.
Ah. Drama.
“I don’t like him. He will bring his mistress.”
I blinked. “That’s bold.”
“He is bold in the stupid way.” Her lips twitched. “And he will try to make me a laughingstock.”
I leaned back slowly.
Okay. Now I saw the shape of it.
“You want revenge.”
“I want correction.” At least she was honest. She pointed at me lightly. “I will make you my boyfriend for tonight.”
I frowned. “A date?”
“A role.”
“A fake date?”
“A convincing one.”
I stared at her. Then looked around the office. The mansion. The butler. The money. The influence.
“Why don’t you take a guy from a dating site?”
Her expression went blank for one offended second.
I continued, “Or hire an actor. Or a noble escort. Or literally anyone who knows how to survive a banquet without insulting the wrong fork.”
She smiled faintly. “Because this banquet will be filled with nobles with power.”
“Still sounds like an actor problem.”
“In certain circumstances,” she continued smoothly, “duels may happen.”
Okay, that was the real reason.
I stared at her. “You need a fake boyfriend who can fight.”
“I need someone who can stand beside me, insult them politely, not tremble before rank, and if challenged, win.”
My mouth opened slightly.
Closed.
Okay.
That was more specific.
And dangerously flattering.
My Pride liked it immediately.
My common sense slapped my Pride across the face. “Why me?” I asked.
“Because I saw you fight.”
“That was in a mask.”
“And yet I found you. You beat me,” she said simply.
The room quieted a little.
She looked at me without teasing now.
There was still amusement in her eyes, but underneath it sat something sharper.
“You were not the strongest person in that tournament,” she continued. “But you adapted quickly. You read rhythm. You survived pressure. You did not panic when I changed tempo or tried to seduce you.”
I remembered the fight.
Her speed.
Her voice.
The disorienting mana pulses.
The boobslap.
My soul flinched.
“And last night,” she added, “you cleared the Spectral Crawlers without hesitation.”
“I hesitated.”
“Not enough to fail.”
“That’s not the same.”
“It is in noble gatherings.”
I hated that she made sense.
Nobles loved hesitation. They fed on it. Like social vampires. Give them one crack, and they’d slide knives through it with smiles.
She needed someone who could take mockery, pressure, and possibly an actual duel without collapsing.
I folded my arms. “What’s the reward?”
Her smile returned.
Of course she expected that question.
“Direct. Payment will be generous,” she said.
“Numbers.”
Her brow lifted.
She liked that.
I didn’t lower my gaze. Didn’t fidget. Didn’t act grateful before hearing the amount. Lilith’s warning sat firmly in my chest.
Never lower your dignity.
Money could be good.
But I wasn’t going to wag my tail for mystery coins.
The woman studied me for a second.
Then said, “Three thousand Creds.”
My soul made a sound.
A beautiful sound.
A holy sound.
-Kaching!
My face stayed calm through sheer divine effort.