I Took A Succubus's First Time

Kozue went silent after saying those words, and for several seconds, she simply stood there without saying anything else. The silence around her felt strangely heavy, especially after everything she had just admitted, and even Kouhei could tell that she was struggling to find the courage to continue speaking. It was as though she had finally opened a door that she had kept locked for years, only to realize that she could no longer close it again now that everything buried behind it had started coming out.

She bit down on her already chapped lips, pressing hard enough that the damaged skin split and began to bleed slightly. The pain should have been enough to make her stop, but Kozue barely seemed to notice it, as though the physical pain was insignificant compared with everything she had been carrying inside her for so long.

"I have always hated my life," she finally said. "The reason for my existence was the curse placed upon my mother. I never chose to become like this, but this was the fate that was given to me. It is the reason my mother died, and no matter how many years pass, I still cannot separate myself from that fact."

Kozue slowly looked toward Kouhei and Yuuna, her eyes carrying a tiredness that seemed much deeper than simple physical exhaustion. She looked like someone who had already spent too many nights thinking about the same painful memories, going over the same questions, and reaching the same conclusion every single time.

"I’m sorry that I didn’t manage to fulfill your expectations," she said, lowering her gaze slightly. "I know both of you expected more from me, and I am sorry that I couldn’t give you what you wanted."

"You don’t say something like that, Kozue," Yuuna replied, her voice firm enough to immediately stop the direction of the conversation. "You fulfilled your duty, not only as a great member of the Yuuna Faction, but also as a member of the Kouhei Faction. You have done more than enough for both sides."

Yuuna was not simply saying those words to make Kozue feel better, either.

The truth was that Kozue had performed her duties exceptionally well in both factions. Even after the leadership changed, she continued doing what was expected of her without complaining about the circumstances or making a big issue out of the transition. She adapted to the changes and continued working just as hard as she had before.

Regardless of who stood at the top, whether it was Yuuna or Kouhei, Kozue had done everything she could to support them.

She had never demanded special treatment for herself, and she certainly had not walked around reminding everyone about how much work she had done. In that regard, she was almost annoyingly reliable. If someone gave Kozue a responsibility, she handled it, and if something needed to be done, she would usually be one of the first people to step forward.

"It’s good to hear something like that," Kozue said after a short pause, giving them a wry and resigned smile. "Even though I still feel like I don’t deserve it."

Her smile was faint, and it disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared.

She then took a long breath, slowly letting it out as though she were trying to release some of the tension that had settled inside her chest.

"Well, I’m glad I was helpful to both of you," she added. "At least I can say that I managed to be useful before everything ended."

"Touyama-san," Kouhei said, his expression becoming noticeably more serious. "I don’t think I want to hear you say something like that."

Kozue looked at him.

"You sound like you’re giving up," Kouhei continued, his voice firm and unusually direct. "Why are you talking as though everything is already over?"

Kozue seemed genuinely surprised by the tone in his voice.

She had heard Kouhei speak countless times before, but there was something different about him now. His voice was not simply serious, because there was also a clear trace of anger behind it. It was controlled anger rather than the kind that made someone lash out without thinking, which somehow made it even more obvious that her words had genuinely affected him.

For Kozue, this was most definitely the first time she had ever heard Kouhei sound genuinely angry at her.

"Because there’s no hope for me," Kozue answered.

"There is," Kouhei said firmly.

His answer came so quickly that Kozue barely had time to react.

"I will make sure to find it," he continued. "Even if you don’t have any hope left in yourself, then I’ll find it for you. You don’t have to believe in it right now if you can’t. I’ll believe in it for you until you can believe in it yourself."

Kozue stared at him in disbelief.

For someone who had just spent so much time explaining why her situation was hopeless, Kouhei’s stubborn confidence almost seemed unreasonable. She had expected him to understand eventually, perhaps to accept that there was nothing he could do, but instead he was doing the exact opposite.

"I told you already..." Kozue suddenly said.

Her voice began trembling.

"There is no hope for me..."

Fat tears started falling from her eyes, sliding down her cheeks before she could wipe them away.

Kozue was crying.

It was the first time Kouhei had ever seen her cry, and the sight immediately struck him harder than he expected.

He hated seeing her like this.

Kouhei and Kozue had certainly not started out as close friends. Their relationship had been complicated from the beginning. Their first impressions had hardly been the sort that would make anyone predict a close friendship later on.

Yet things had gradually changed.

Somewhere along the way, the two of them had developed a bond as comrades. They had fought alongside one another, experienced difficult situations together, and slowly learned that they could trust one another when things became serious.

That trust had eventually become something more meaningful.

Kouhei had begun to care about Kozue as a person rather than simply seeing her as another member of his faction.

She was his comrade.

She was someone he trusted.

More importantly, she was his friend.

Kouhei did not want to lose a comrade.

He especially did not want to lose a friend.

"Give up on me..." Kozue said, her voice breaking as she struggled to speak through her tears. "Please, just give up on me."

"I won’t," Kouhei replied.

His answer was immediate.

"I’m going to look for a way to save you," he continued. "You all did something similar for me when I died. You could have accepted that I was gone, but you didn’t. You refused to give up and did everything you could to revive me, so I’m going to do something similar for you."

"I said give up on me!" Kozue suddenly shouted.

Kouhei actually stopped thinking for a moment.

The shout itself was not particularly loud, but it still felt as though the words had rung directly through his ears. It was the kind of shout that came from someone who had been suppressing too much emotion for far too long, and the desperation behind it made the words hit much harder than their volume ever could have.

"There’s no reason for you to try and save me!" Kozue shouted again, tears continuing to stream down her face. "You have no obligation to do this! I am just a member of your faction and nothing more!"

Her voice cracked toward the end.

Kouhei could not immediately think of anything to say.

For a moment, he simply stared at her.

However, Kozue was wrong about one thing.

She was wrong when she said that Kouhei had no obligation to save her.

As far as Kouhei was concerned, she was not merely some random member of his faction whose name happened to appear on a roster. She was someone who had stood beside him when things were difficult, someone who had fulfilled her responsibilities without demanding recognition, and someone who had earned his trust through her actions.

She was a valuable comrade.

More importantly, she was a valuable friend.

As far as Kouhei was concerned, that was enough.

He did not need some official rule telling him that he had an obligation to save her. He did not need a grand speech from someone else explaining why her life mattered. He certainly did not need permission to care about someone who had become important to him.

If someone was his friend, then he was going to help them.

It was really that simple.

"I’ll save you," Kouhei finally said. "Even if it’s the last thing I do."

Kozue’s eyes widened.

She looked genuinely shocked by his answer, especially because she had already tried so hard to push him away. She had told him repeatedly that there was no hope, insisted that he had no reason to interfere, and even shouted at him when he refused to listen.

Yet Kouhei still would not back down.

"W-Why?" Kozue asked, her voice trembling.

She seemed unable to understand him.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked again. "Why are you still trying after everything I have told you?"

Kouhei looked directly at her.

"You are my friend, Touyama-san," he said.

Kozue’s expression crumbled.

She started crying again, although this time the tears were different from the ones she had shed moments earlier. These were not simply tears caused by hopelessness or despair.

For some reason, hearing Kouhei call her his friend made something inside her change.

It felt as though she had suddenly been given a reason to keep moving forward.

For years, Kozue had believed that her existence was nothing more than the result of a curse. She had blamed herself for what happened to her mother and had spent so long believing that her fate had already been decided that she had eventually stopped imagining any future for herself.

Yet Kouhei was standing there and telling her that he considered her a friend.

He was not talking about her as a faction member.

He was not talking about her responsibilities.

He was not talking about what she could do for him.

He was talking about her.

Kozue, as a person, mattered to him.

She had spent so much time believing that she had to endure everything alone that she had forgotten what it felt like to have someone genuinely refuse to abandon her.

Kozue lowered her head as more tears slipped from her eyes, and after a few seconds, she slowly reached forward and grabbed Kouhei’s hand.

Her fingers trembled slightly around his.

"I still have... something to do," Kozue said, struggling to steady her voice. "I have to make that bastard pay for killing my mother."

She paused, taking another shaky breath as she tried to gather herself.

"So please..." she continued. "Help me."