LIGHTNOVELONLINE Benny took a deep breath and, with a clear pronunciation, teared up.
“You infiltrated to break up my party! You vile succubus!”
“?”
Good grief. What nonsense is this.
There are succubi in this world, but most succumb to the curse of madness and become monsters.
The few who resist the curse are either lucky to be in places beyond its reach or possess extraordinary power.
The tiny number of succubi who survive… end up mostly as prostitutes.
However, it’s obvious that I’m not an incubus based on the shape of my wings, tail, and ears.
In other words, Benny doesn’t genuinely suspect me of being an incubus.
She’s calling me a ‘bitch’ who flirts with people around her.
“Well, I’ll be damned.”
I was so dumbfounded that I pounded my chest and yelled out.
“I let it slide because you’re Lydia’s colleague, but isn’t that too harsh?!”
“You must be the harsh one! Not only did you enchant the noble Lydia, but now even our mentor Ellie…!”
Benny, with tears like chicken droppings, points a finger at me. With her movement, a materialized shadow presents a ghastly figure to me.
“I-I have heard of it! A party breaker… infiltrates existing adventurer parties, bewitches the members, and extracts all kinds of help and material support… then eventually causes a love quarrel to dissolve the party, pretending to be a pitiful man caught in the fight, and sneaks into another party…!”
“No. What’s that supposed to be?”
I’ve never heard of it.
Is that it? Like the queen bee of an otaku club? Since it’s a gender-reversed world, a king bee? No, that’s not right since the ecology is different. If I had to compare, it would be a male lion.
As I nodded my head, thinking that to myself, Benny spat out a more primitive expression.
“You rattlesnake! You might have fooled women by shaking your hips all this time, but it won’t work on me…”
“Benny! There are things you should and shouldn’t say. What are you talking about to a kid!”
It was too vulgar, and Ellie smacked her in the head mid-sentence.
Thwack!
“Ouch!”
The sound was too loud to be just a light smack. Worried it might have been too much, I nervously checked, but luckily, Benny’s crown wasn’t dented.
Instead, the shadow monster that had covered her head was just a shadow monster once again.
Black liquid spilled on the floor. Rolling eyeballs. Broken horn. Shark teeth scattered everywhere….
It was a grotesque scene that could haunt dreams, but as Benny shook her head, it vanished in an instant as if it had never been there.
Then, the monstrous figure rose from Benny’s shadow again. Seeing this, Ellie raised her remaining fist.
“Damn it. Aren’t you going to clean this up?”
“Ugh… Ellie, you’re being deceived right now!”
“It’s not what you think, so put that shadow away! You bitch.”
“No, Ellie. Just listen to me for a moment.”
“You listen to me. Jonah is actually…….”
Ellie, who had spoken up to that point, suddenly turned this way and quietly asked with just her lips moving.
‘Can I talk about the saint stuff?’
I walked up to Ellie with small steps and waved my hand at her. Ellie bent down for me, tilting her head slightly.
I took a big bite of her beautiful wolf ear with my lips, not my teeth, so it wouldn’t hurt.
“Mwang.”
“Huh?!”
Ellie flinched and straightened her tail, then soon relaxed and wrapped her tail around my arm.
I whispered softly into her ear.
“It’s a secret, but since she’s Ellie’s junior and Miss Lydia’s colleague, I’ll give you special permission. Just make sure she doesn’t tell anyone.”
“Ah, alright. I got it, so just let go of my ear…!”
The cool and cynical ex-adventurer bartender was gone, and Ellie became an ordinary female.
Finding it amusing, I licked the inside of her ear before letting go.
“Haah….”
Ellie, whose face was flushed, glared at me, then sighed deeply and placed her arm on Benny’s shoulder.
“Come here for a moment.”
“Is that important right now, Ellie? What was that just now! You succubus! Did you use hypnosis or something?!”
“It’s really not like that, so just come here, you idiot.”
Since I had slept all day, it was now evening. In other words, it was the busiest time for the tavern.
Ellie couldn’t use a holy barrier for soundproofing like Karen, nor could she use a magical tool infused with aura for noise cancellation like Lydia.
Holy power, aura, magic… because her body wasn’t imbued with any of them.
So, she dragged the grumbling Benny to the storeroom by force. And a moment later.
For a different reason than before, Benny, with tears welling up, patted my shoulder.
“It’s okay.”
“Huh?”
“I may not know about others, but I understand you.”
“Pardon?”
“You said your name was Jonah, right? I’m the same as you. I didn’t get this shadow by choice. Just like how I don’t age anymore.”
“Oh, um. Yes!”
Though I didn’t quite understand, I energetically pretended to, and only then did Benny’s furrowed brow relax.
“Sorry about earlier. I didn’t know it was a power granted by the Goddess of Love.”
“Oh, it’s alright. You couldn’t have known.”
I shrugged my shoulders and quickly tried to think about what might have happened in the storage room.
No matter how I looked at it, it didn’t seem like Ellie would beat up Benny and tell her to get along with me…
She must have said something about how I am favored by the Goddess of Love, just like she mouthed earlier.
Of course, it’s obvious, but the Goddess of Love is literally the Goddess of Love, not the Goddess of Wisdom or the Goddess of Adventure.
Her favorite person is not someone smart or strong. It’s someone charming.
Being cherished by the Goddess of Love means being that charming. Not a succubus that deceives people, as Benny misunderstands.
There was something else said, and thanks to that, Benny seems to feel a sense of camaraderie with me…
I don’t know about that part. The important thing is that Benny’s wariness has subsided again.
Let’s take this opportunity to get closer. Since I’m already deeply involved with Ellie and Lydia, it seems I should also get along with Benny.
“By the way, Benny. There’s something I’d like to ask, is that okay?”
“Huh? What is it? Go ahead and ask.”
“Benny’s shadow. Is that why you’re called the Creepy Witch?”
“…Well. Yes. Isn’t it kind of gross?”
Benny pursed her lips. Unlike the usually cool Elina and the expressionless Lydia, her reaction was honest and straightforward.
A rare sight among the women of the Pan Continent.
Thinking it was refreshing, I smiled and pointed at the quiet shadow.
“Can you show it to me again, just once?”
“It’s not impossible… but are you sure? It’s a kind of curse, so no matter how tough you are, it’ll feel unpleasant.”
“That makes me even more curious.”
As I pressed on without retreating, Benny, who was momentarily troubled, nodded cautiously.
“Alright. I’ll show you, but don’t look too deeply, okay?”
Benny, who had asked so, snapped her fingers. Simultaneously, the shadow stretched long, then began to blend with parts of various creatures.
Eyes too large to be human. Bloodshot eyes glared this way, and the irregularly grown shark teeth were extremely menacing.
A form that seemed to melt all kinds of beasts into a single lump. Without taking his eyes off it, he continued speaking.
“Benny. Is it okay if I touch it for a moment?”
“What? No. That’s too dangerous. It’s true that the shadow follows my commands, but that doesn’t mean I can control it perfectly. If you touch it recklessly…”
“Yap!”
I reached out and touched the shadow monster.
The oddly sticky body, eyes rolling around to inspect the surroundings, small tentacles hidden like little bumps, and a shark tooth mouth that smacks its lips even though it can’t be hungry.
Those parts that look so fierce become docile as a lamb the moment my fingers touch them, making it easy to handle.
“Kyaaa!”
Benny, seemingly startled, screamed half a beat late.
“Are you crazy?! I told you it’s dangerous! If you’re not careful, it might think your hand is food and just swallow… swallow it… huh?”
All the parts on the surface of the shadow quivered, as if regretting the loss of my touch.
Benny turned to look at me blankly, as if the shadow was begging to be touched again.
“You. What are you? …No, it doesn’t matter. You said you’re Jonah, right? Let’s do a job together.”
“…Lewd jobs go to Ellie first. Draw a number and get some breast enhancement surgery.”
“That’s not it, okay? Besides, what’s important about breasts right now!”
Benny was panting. She smiled broadly, revealing her sharp shark teeth.
“I’ll pay you about 10 per day. Since you’re already a porter, help me with my research too.”
“10 copper per day…? Who would that be enough for!”
“It’s not copper, it’s silver.”
“Huh.”
A 10-draw event every day….
She smiled brightly.
“What should I do first?”
It was the smile of capitalism.