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“So… you somehow became one of the Four Heavenly Kings without knowing anything at all?”

The holy sword I had drawn to strike Lilith was quickly sheathed back at my waist. Instead, I kept a whip in one hand, ready to swing it at any moment if she showed any signs of lying or hesitating.

Lilith knelt before me, vigorously nodding her head to the point of making me dizzy.

Although she seemed to be acting quite composed, when she started swinging the whip aimlessly in the air, I couldn’t help but remark,

“Hey?!”

The sound of the whip slicing through the air echoed in the enclosed space, causing Lilith to recoil in surprise, her head still shaking.

I mean, I’ve only hit her a few times—why is she so scared? I had already softened my heart and lowered my strength to the level of an ordinary person since she looked so pitiful, and to lessen the pain, I aimed for her meaty rear. Thanks to her body being optimized for seduction, it wasn’t hard to target just her rear, and eventually, she even realized that getting hit on her backside hurt less, so she started to offer it up willingly.

After hitting her several times, I could see red marks from the whip on Lilith’s bottom, but really, it was all just for show. No matter how weak she might be, she was still a high-ranking succubus queen. Would a mere whip swung with the force of a regular person leave a mark? It was all a ruse to elicit my sympathy. In fact, seeing her put on that act made me want to hit her a little harder, and her reaction was so adorable that I couldn’t help but smile.

No, wait, that’s not it.

“Do you expect me to believe that?”

“But, but it’s the truth! Can’t you see my pure eyes? Do I look like I’m lying?”

In a world where I can’t trust anyone, why would I believe in the purity of a succubus?

“And enough with that ‘big sister’ nonsense. Who do you think you are calling your sister? You look older than me, obviously.”

Sure, I’m now a grown 19-year-old, but I still have a bit of youthful innocence left on my face. On the other hand, the Lilith kneeling before me has the face and figure of a fully matured adult woman. Being called ‘big sister’ by her, regardless of how little I care about age, was just off-putting.

Ah, is it because she’s stronger than me that she treats me as her elder? It’s not uncommon to call stronger or wealthier people ‘brother’ or ‘sister.’ Just look at my own days in the academy, where I revered our boss who was wealthy.

“But… I’m telling you, really, she looks young for her age…”

In that enclosed room, just the two of us, she looked around nervously, as if checking for eavesdroppers, then stood up without my permission and leaned in to whisper.

“…What? You expect me to believe that?”

“I really do! It’s just that succubi tend to look older, but it’s true!”

“Aren’t you the Succubus Queen? To reach that level, you must’ve absorbed countless essences. There’s no way you could be that young!”

While I might not know much about the demon race’s ecosystem, I do know that succubi gain strength by absorbing the life force of others. Achieving the peak among countless succubi cannot possibly be something a mere child could attain.

“This is all due to bloodline! Just like humans inherit looks from their parents, we succubi inherit traits from our mothers. Since my mother was the Succubus Queen, it’s only natural that I, her child, am the Succubus Queen too!!”

“By that logic, shouldn’t your mother, who absorbed plenty of essences, also be the Succubus Queen?”

Succubi don’t exactly age or grow old in a traditional sense. So, it makes no sense that a little girl like Lilith could become a queen. Yet here she was, a verified Succubus Queen.

“My mother told me that if you trace our lineage back through grandmothers and great-grandmothers, I possess the most exceptional qualities among all the past queens… My very existence is the pinnacle of all succubi… and I’ve never absorbed a single essence! Please stop making assumptions!”

“Then what’s with all those followers in the Demon King’s Army?”

Regardless of anything else, it’s a clear fact that she’s one of the Four Heavenly Kings. How could someone so weak attain that title? It’s all thanks to the seductive power of a succubus, making her numerous followers fall for her charms.

“…It just sort of happens when I walk around on the streets. Over time, stalkers started calling me one of the Four Heavenly Kings, and I ran away and hid here.”

…This girl should probably be done away with for the peace of humanity. If what she’s saying is true, that means she hasn’t absorbed a single essence as a succubus, yet her mere presence is enough to enchant even demons. If she grows stronger by absorbing even more essences over time, she could become a greater threat than the current Demon King.

“No, more importantly, who is the sister you keep talking about who’s stronger than you…?”

“Sorry! Wait! I’ll be good! Just put that scary sword away!”

As I half-drew the holy sword, Lilith immediately turned into a pitiful figure, begging earnestly.

If she behaved cowardly like other demons, I would’ve struck without hesitation, but with her acting so pathetic, it felt as if the demon was the victim and I, the hero, was the villain.

“Ugh. Let’s just stop here.”

In the end, after much deliberation, I gave up on striking her and sheathed my holy sword back.

However, perhaps misunderstanding my sigh of relief, she clung to me with an even more pitiful tone.

“I-I misspoke! Please punish this useless succubus! Feel free to whip my body, which has no merits apart from being lewd!”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

When I tried to clear up her misunderstanding, Lilith cut me off and started pleading.

“If you’re uncomfortable with ‘sister,’ I can call you something else! How about ‘Master’? Yes! Lilith is your slave!”

“Hey, hey! If you pull down my pants, let’s not go there!”

“So please punish your slave with that whip!”

“I’m saying I’m not going to kill you! I’m not going to kill you!”

“Don’t lie! If I let go of this hand, you’ll just cut me down with that sword!”

This girl. She was ignoring everything I said. Of course, I understood the urgency of the situation since life and death were at stake, but she wasn’t even trusting my sincere promise to spare her.

“I’ll never trust you until you whip me properly!”

By that logic, I could whip her thoroughly before deciding to kill her. How does that even work?

It made no logical sense, but if that’s what she says, what can I do? At this rate, she might just strip my pants off.

“Fine! Fine!”

In the end, I picked up the whip as she begged and lightly struck her back and rear. I kept it relaxed, just like before.

But for some reason, she complained again, gripping my pant leg and shouting.

“Y-You’re not serious, are you?! Please hit me harder! Hit me more!”

Okay, she was just whining about the previous hits, but now she’s complaining I’m going too easy?

“Ugh… Since you put it that way, I’ll take it that complaining is off the table, okay? I did say I wouldn’t kill you, and you were the one who asked for a hard hit!”

“Yes! Master!”

That incessant call of ‘master’ again.

Maybe she thought she was safe from death, but her eyes shone with anticipation as they looked up at me while tearfully holding on to my pants. I can’t deny that seeing her like that made me believe her claim of being younger wasn’t a lie.

I swung the whip downwards, intending to strike her with a bit more strength than before. Or at least, that’s what I tried to do.

Bang!

“…Huh?”

I hadn’t even swung the whip yet, and a sound that didn’t match the whip echoed through the room. I turned my head towards the source of the noise, which was accompanied by a dust cloud enveloping me.

As the dust cloud partially obscured my vision, I looked towards where the loud noise had originated.

One of the walls of the previously sealed room had collapsed, and through the dust, I could make out the silhouettes of three figures.

Though their faces were obscured by the dust, I could easily tell Luna, Lindy, and Frecia were among them, even from a distance. It seemed they’d come all the way to the depths of the stronghold, worried that I might have fallen into a trap.

Soon, when the dust settled completely, their faces became clear.

But moments later, Frecia raised a small sphere of magical energy above her. That was when I realized the situation I was in.

I was trapped in a situation where I was about to be saved, but I had a succubus, who was clearly an enemy, right in front of me. Not to mention, this was the lair of the Four Heavenly Kings.

It was the kind of situation that Frecia could easily misinterpret as me being in danger and needing immediate rescue. But hadn’t I already promised Lilith I would spare her life? I wasn’t sure if my companions would understand my choice, but it was necessary to at least try to explain.

“Boss, wait a second…!”

But before I could even make my case, the magical sphere had already left Frecia’s hand.

The quickly advancing magical sphere was aimed at… not Lilith, but me, and more specifically, my rear.

“…Huh? Wait a second! You missed your aim!”

Bang!