Chapter 117 : Chapter 117
Chapter 117: Queen of the Night (1)
Saying that she was still bothered by what Luce had said, Lily carefully began to speak.
“That man… he seemed to know something, about my birth.”
He did.
Back when he was exposed while posing as the merchant Jude, he had provoked Lily by bringing up the story of ‘some wretched succubus’.
“He spoke as if I could find a clue, here in Tiaria….”
Under the circumstances, anyone would have taken that to mean Lily’s ‘birth mother’.
“…I am a child of Sista Village, of the Church of Sistina. That is a fact that will never change, and I myself feel great pride in that fact.”
However… Lily’s words trailed off, as if she found it somewhat difficult to continue.
“You can't help but be curious, can you?”
When I voiced her feelings for her, Lily quietly nodded.
“If I can learn more, in detail, about this… succubus blood flowing through me…”
Lily, who had been fidgeting with her demurely clasped hands, continued after a slight pause.
“Th-Then I might not have to always rely on you like this, Lord Yubin… I might be able to figure out a way to control my urges myself….”
But she had no idea where to even begin looking, Lily added.
“Lord Yubin is so knowledgeable, and you are sensitive to rumors and such… so I was wondering if I could perhaps receive your help…”
“Of course. I’ll help you.”
I answered Lily, who had been hesitating and watching my reaction, without delay.
As if to say I had been waiting for her to ask.
“Then tomorrow… no, it’s today now, isn’t it. Is today fine? Let’s go investigate right away.”
“Ah, yes…! Thank you!”
Lily, who seemed pleased by my unhesitating reply, showed a faint smile.
“But, um, do you have something in mind?”
“Yes, I do.”
I once again replied immediately.
Because I already knew where we had to go.
“Let's go meet the succubi.”
It was time to meet her ‘kin’.
***
It was no exaggeration to say that Tiaria was the city with the largest population of succubi on the continent, second only to the lands beyond the Wall.
It was only natural, as it was the city with the most people.
In other words, it meant it was the hunting ground where their ‘main food source’ roamed most freely.
And there were a few places in the city where one could most easily find such succubi, one of which was──
“A temple…?”
A temple that served a god.
Perhaps because she couldn't see the connection between the two at all, Lily tilted her head with a look that suggested she thought she had misheard.
“There are succubi gathered, in a temple…?”
In this city, most gods other than Tia were worshiped together in the pantheon that Lily had visited yesterday.
However, not all of them were.
How should I put it… there was also a god who had to create a separate space of worship because the nature of their order forced them to act independently.
The God of Beauty, ‘Arhat’, was that protagonist.
Arhat was a god who encouraged his followers to actively share love.
So the followers, especially the priests and priestesses, were rather uninhibited in sharing love.
Because to them, that was an act of faith.
Whether for the purpose of proselytizing to increase the number of new followers, or for followers to build faith among themselves, for such various reasons, the priests and priestesses of Arhat often shared a bed with those who visited the temple, by mutual consent.
Therefore, for the succubi who needed to absorb vitality to survive, it was a mutually beneficial role.
Furthermore, Arhat was a deity who originally had little interest in anything other than beauty and love, and was a god who insisted on fending off even the threat of the demon race with the power of love.
He believed that by sharing love, they could understand each other… to be blunt, it is said that he often slept with demons as well.
Although Arhat's domain is beauty, this is the reason why he is sometimes treated as the patron deity of half-demons born between humans and demons.
Therefore, the followers who served such an Arhat were, should I say, the most favorable towards the demon race, and it would be safe to say they had practically no prejudice.
That's why the succubi who lived among humans── especially, half-succubi like Lily, tended to gather in the Temple of Arhat.
Because being a priestess of Arhat was almost the only way for half-demons, especially half-succubi who were usually persecuted, to live with a certain degree of respect.
Of course, they might be secretly looked down upon and despised, but at the very least, they couldn't show it on the outside, could they?
Who knows what kind of divine punishment they would receive for insulting a priestess serving a god, and in a temple at that.
“S-So that’s how it was… the Church of Arhat, served such a role…”
Although she had some basic knowledge of what kind of god Arhat was, she had no idea about that aspect, Lily muttered, seemingly quite surprised.
It was understandable, as the ‘teachings’ of Sistina and Arhat were at such opposite ends of the spectrum.
Therefore, to most of Sistina’s followers, Arhat and his followers were perceived as nothing more than a debauched god and clergy who lived in pleasure every day.
So for Lily, who had grown up in Sista Village, she probably hadn't heard many good things about them.
Moreover, a short while later, the sight she witnessed inside the Temple of Arhat, where I had brought her…
“……?!”
From Lily’s perspective, it must have been a scene that completely reinforced that ‘prejudice’ of the villagers.
She was so shocked that she froze on the spot and started trembling.
Honestly, this place was less like a temple… and more like a grand bathhouse, if I had to be specific.
In that the scent of incense tickling the tip of the nose rose like steam, and people in clothes that were not quite… naked, but at a similar level, were walking around.
“May the beauty of Lord Arhat dwell in your eyes.”
Just then, a priestess came out to greet us.
“Welcome to the Garden of Beauty. For what reason have you come──”
Then, as soon as she saw my face, revealed as I pushed back the hood I was wearing, she flinched and gasped.
“──Ah, Lord Arhat?”
To be precise, she saw my god-level beauty, which wouldn't be strange to be called a manifestation of the God of Beauty.
“U-Um, by any chance… are you… Lord Arhat’s, ‘Chosen One’…?”
The priestess, who had come to her senses belatedly, asked again carefully, in a very polite tone.
Perhaps because of the location and my overwhelming beauty, she thought I might be someone deeply connected to Arhat.
At that cute misunderstanding, I let out a small laugh and replied.
“I am merely a passing bard.”
Nevertheless, the priestess's eyes, still filled with disbelief, could not tear themselves away from my face.
“If you are a bard… then perhaps, have you come to receive a blessing…?”
The priestess asked this because Arhat was sometimes treated as the patron deity of bards.
Especially for those with promiscuous private lives.
In the meantime, news that someone unusual had arrived must have already spread throughout the temple, as priestesses began to come out to watch, one after another.
Looking at the composition of those priestesses, there were men, but women were slightly more numerous.
And more than half of those women were half-succubi who seemed to have no intention of hiding their horns and tails.
Including the priestess who had first come out to greet us.
And with each one that appeared, the frequency of Lily’s trembling increased even more.
In fact, even though they were priestesses, the robes they wore were less like the attire of a typical cleric… and more like they were following an ancient style, closer to pieces of cloth draped over them than actual clothes.
“H-How can, priestesses, wear such…!”
For Lily, who had spent her entire life in Sista Village serving Sistina, it must have been a culture shock in itself.
Lily, who was darting her eyes around as if she had no idea where to look, eventually covered her beet-red face with both hands as if to hide it.
“I-It’s unholy…!”
Though the gap between her fingers seemed a little wide to serve its original purpose.
In any case, she did cover them.
The point was that their attire was in complete contrast to Lily's ascetic habit, just as the teachings of the two gods were, and.
“That’s…”
“Isn’t that a Church of Sistina habit…?”
Therefore, Lily was also, just as much as I was, if not more, an existence that couldn't help but stand out in this temple.
“Why is a nun of that uptight god, here…?”
A bard with a beauty that made one wonder if he was the incarnation of Arhat, and a nun of Sistina who was tightly covered up except for her face.
For them, it must have been a combination they couldn't help but come out to see.
So, before we knew it, almost everyone in the temple had gathered and was staring at the two of us.
A mixture of pure curiosity and wariness towards unfamiliar beings, it almost looked like a standoff.
Suddenly.
“……Hmm?”
The priestess who had come to greet us broke the parallel lines of that standoff and took a bold step closer to Lily.
“Wait a moment…”
“…?!”
The priestess who had approached like that, sniffed near the nape of Lily's neck.
Then her tail, which had risen as she bent down, began to sway.
“Wh-What on earth…?!”
As Lily, startled by the sudden approach, immediately took a step back, the priestess, as if that brief moment was enough, stepped back as well and licked her lips.
“This scent… could it be, you're a succubus?”
“──!?”
At the priestess's question, Lily was startled and placed her hand on her veil.
She seemed to be checking if it had come off and her horns were revealed, but it was properly in place.
Though she didn't say it, it was an answer that was a clear admission to anyone watching.
“A succubus…?”
At that, I could hear the nearby priestesses murmuring.
“A nun of the Church of Sistina…?”
“Ah, no wonder…”
They were reactions of whispering among themselves, then coming to their own understanding.
As Lily, who had heard all the murmuring, shrank back as if looking for a place to hide, the priestess chuckled as if to say what's the big deal.
“Even as a follower of Sistina, it seems you don’t go hungry. What on earth do you usually eat to exude such a sweet scent? Is it the bard next to you… brother…? Sister…?”
As I quietly gave a slight smile towards the priestess, who looked momentarily confused upon seeing me, as if telling her to guess, the priestess flinched once more.
Meanwhile, Lily, perhaps thinking it was meaningless to hide it any longer, slowly nodded her head.
“Th-That is… blood…”
“Blood? Oh, come on, you're lying. How can you have this much of a scent with just blood…”
“I-I really only… drink blood….”
“…? Are you serious?”
The priestess, with her mouth agape in astonishment, asked back as if she couldn't understand.
“No, why… why such an inefficient method…?”
“I-Inefficient method…?”
“More importantly, we came because we have something we’d like to consult you about.”
Before a topic that was still too premature for the current Lily could come up, I immediately changed the subject of the conversation.
It was then.
“Th-That person is…”
Among the murmuring priestesses, someone muttered as if they couldn't believe it.
“Your Highness…?”
Clearly, while staring at Lily.