I am Succubus!

"Oh, shit. Oh, shit" I raced over to Selene, who was intently watching the other teams prepare themselves, and explained what I had done.

"That's it?" she remarked with disinterest.

"I accidentally charmed him! Isn't that bad?" I asked.

Selene shrugged and turned her attention to Yuuto stepping into the arena across from his opponent. A smirk flashed across her face, seemingly amused at the turn of events.

"For anyone that has ever been charmed, we leave a mark. I'm sure Mio must have mentioned this to you at some point. Doing so creates a connection between the cattle— I mean victim and the succubus, making them more loyal and eager to fight to preserve that bond," she explained calmly.

If Yuuto was to fight this way, he might cast aside all he had trained and attack like a barbarian. The judges would instantly remove him from the match. 

"What do we do? I can't release it without getting closer, but the organizers might disqualify the entire team," I said.

"Nothing. We merely watch your faithful servant slaughter the competition." Selene folded her arms and sat back in her seat.

As soon as the match began, Yuuto instantly scored several hits to his opponent's head. So fast were his strikes, that the other contender backed away in surprise.

"Nice, Yuuyan!"

"Where the hell's that speed during club practice!"

Gouda and Hayato were hysterical. They had never seen Yuuto like that before. Neither had I. The connection between charmed and charmer was incredible. He went onto winning all five rounds without letting a single point over to his opponent.

"The fruits of our training are really paying off." Gouda nodded to himself.

"Forgive me… it's just because I'm a succubus…" I apologized quietly.

Yuuto returned to our team's corner, pulled off his mask, and planted a tongue-deep kiss on me.

"Mmmrpphh?!" 

The other two and our teammates in the stands went wild. 

I was so surprised that I didn't push him away and let him kiss me as he pleased. My heart went aflutter even after letting me go and walking back to the others.

The charm finally wore off, and Yuuto shook off the daze.

"Whoa… What happened? I felt like I was in a trance," he said.

"You just went and french kissed Saeko. Don't chalk it up to a trance!" Gouda slapped his back.

"Oooh. Maybe it's one of those, yeah? Ya know, a battletrance. Good on ya, Yuuyan!" Hayato nudged his friend in the ribs.

I covered my face out of embarrassment.

"Uu… This is not how I wanted the tournament to go down…"

The two of them ran up to me with eagerness and hope in their eyes.

"Can we get the same treatment if we win our matches?" Gouda asked.

"Arrgh! It's not something to give out casually!" I complained.

After carefully choosing my words to wish the three competitors good luck in their next matches, I excused myself to find the bathroom. The hallways had few people passing through them, mainly event organizers, building staff, or visitors like myself taking a break from the crowds. 

When I finally reached the bathroom located at the end of the hall, a small group of people had gathered outside and were peering into the women's side with concerned looks.

"What's going on? Is it closed?" I asked, walking up to them.

Ah, well… Maybe you should hear for yourself," a bashful woman said.

I honed my hearing and quickly realized what was going on.

The wet sounds of sex and undeniable voices in heat were clearer than glass.

"Is that all ya got? This cunt ain't cheap, buddy! Keep that dick up and keep fucking me if you know what's good for you!"

"Wait… one round is enough! I can't… feel my legs… Please… I'm going to miss my match…!"

I rushed into the bathroom, located the stall where it was happening, and threw the door open to Mio riding some guy to an orgasm on top of the toilet. His kendo hakama was around his ankles, some parts of it stained white with cum.

"Whew. Good timing. You want in on this?" Mio asked, wiping the sweat from her forehead.

"No! Let him go so he can get to his match! These guys train for a year to get here," I scolded her.

"Oh, fine. He was getting boring anyway."

Once Mio hopped off his dick, he hastily dashed out of the bathroom while haphazardly dressing himself.

"What's wrong with that guy?" Mio asked, pulling her jeans back up. "He into dicks instead or something? Not that it's a bad thing. I like dicks, too. But he was crying the whole time and really killed the vibe."

"I can't believe you were missing to have a snack. But that guy didn't look like Makoto. Weren't you aiming for him?"

She shrugged. "Couldn't find the bugger. Guess he's stuck in the arena, so I picked up a straggler."

Part of me was glad she didn't eat him already. A guy that obnoxiously serious about kendo would probably go nuts if something got in the way of his passion. I'd feel terrible for him, even if he was being a weirdo earlier.

As we were heading back, Mio and I detected a foreign aura from a succubus neither of us had met before. It was coming directly from a lady in a navy business suit, who was walking ahead of us and going in the same direction towards the arena.

I knew there were succubi in the area, but I'd gotten acquainted with them. They were also ones who had obsessed over me. This one didn't seem to be one of my fans. Something about her felt different than the others, and I wasn't normally one to trouble myself over one unless they were acting out.

When I prompted Mio, she wasn't sure who it was either.

"I mean… she looks familiar, but I don't remember ever seeing her back at the nest. Lady's got a bomb ass though," Mio said, licking her lips.

"Everything's got to be the ass with you." I rolled my eyes.

"Do I have to tell you why asses are better than tits? Because bitch, I will go into a twenty-page essay if that's what it takes to convince you."

"Of all the things you could be passionate about… Okay, I'm a little curious…" I relented.

Mio closed her eyes and groped the space in front of us like she was feeling up someone's butt.

"A good ass tells you everything you need to know about someone. Thicker around the sides? They sit like a guy with both legs spread, probably a tomboy. More fat shaped around the back with slender thighs? Gotta be a fitness junkie. Best thing about it during sex is no matter the position, you can grab a handful of ass. No can-do with tits. Looks awkward as hell during sixty-nine. You know right away someone's a big M— like you— when they want their ass spanked. Oh, yeah! Can't forget about the feeling of clapping cheeks with a dick in doggystyle. Watching them bouncy bubbles sway as they slam into your hips? Mmmph! I can keep going if you want—"

"No, I regret asking!" I fired back. "Okay, what does that succubus' butt tell you about her?"

Mio gazed upon it from a distance like a curator appraising an art piece.

"That succ's a big S. Probably acts all haughty like a queen but knows her place when it matters.  I get the feeling she's a sore loser when dommed in bed though," she explained.

"There's no way any of that's true…"

The succubus in question glanced over her shoulder and did an about face. "Your Majesty! I thought I sensed a familiar presence. Hello, good afternoon, and my, it is a pleasure to meet the queen herself and the younger sister of the former one!"

"Uhm, hi?" I responded awkwardly.

"Where are my manners? My name is Sarena, a meager succubus in comparison to your calibre. I see by the two of your puzzled demeanors that answers nothing. I happen to be managing this event— among others in this city," Sarena explained, her smile almost too professional that made speaking to her a little difficult.

Mio and I glanced at each other. Sarena's mannerisms were on par with a businessperson hopped up on their maximum limit of espressos. Her glare, although not exactly piercing, looked into me as though trying to analyze all there was to know. This succubus was studying me.

While Sarena was getting a read of me, her appearance was all that registered in my head.

"No sense waiting here while a show is going on, yes?" Sarena brushed her long, platinum hair and gestured down the hall. "If you will allow it, I shall escort the two royalties back to the arena floor."

We went back together with Sarena leading the way. It seemed Gouda, Yuuto, and Hayato had finished their matches for the day and successfully advanced to tomorrow's next rounds.

However, an intense aura from Selene fired up as we approached.

"Oh, Sarena. It's you," Selene said, face scrunching up as if she tasted something sour. "If it were up to me, I would break your neck right now. But I have to behave."

"Ahahaha! Behave, she says. What a chilly reception coming from you! It's a shame you cannot attack me outright anymore. I have Her Majesty to thank for that." The businesswoman of a succubus smirked.

"Hold on. You two know each other? I feel like I'm missing out on an important piece of information here," I said curiously.

"Yeah, what gives? This Sarena chick wasn't part of that little civil war we had half a year ago," Mio added, bringing up a good point.

Someone as socially intense as her would have registered in my radar right from the get-go. She also looked like the type of person to butt into things if it suited her— Wait, oh god. Mio's way of determining a person's character was rubbing off on me as I found myself staring at her ass.

"Ah, I was going about my merry day, smuggling weapons out of the nest again when suddenly— poof! I ended up in this world full of delicious opportunities," Sarena explained.

"You were what now?" Selene rolled up her sleeves and gritted her teeth, but fought successfully  against her more violent nature. "No… That world doesn't matter anymore. We've left that behind…"

"Smuggled?" Mio repeated, thoughtfully rubbing her chin. "You did all that under my sister's nose? Damn, girl. She would have flayed and kept you alive as a lesson to the others if she found out. Bet you got balls on you, too?"

"Too slippery, you see. Selene was tasked by the now late Queen Beatrice to track me down. Could never catch me though. Must have struck a nerve to be outmaneuvered by a lesser succubus," she explained, bursting into subdued laughter.

Selene was about to burst a nerve. She shamefully dragged herself to the corner of the arena and stuffed a cigarette in her mouth, only for Sarena to come by to stuff it out.

"I'm managing the event, and the policies state no smoking indoors! Sheesh. I have to put signs everywhere when it comes to her," the patronizing succubus said, causing Selene to crush the entire carton in her hand instead of Sarena's head.

"What… inconvenient rules…"

Mio cackled at their interactions. Selene was soundly beaten by Sarena who didn't even need to lift a finger. In this world, where I ruled as the queen succubus, those below me had to adjust accordingly. Someone like Selene couldn't exactly pummel her way through resolving things anymore for fear of invoking my wrath.

"Ms. Sarena! The event is ending, so we need you to deliver the closing statement!" a winded employee shouted.

"I'll be there shortly!" Sarena said, then turned to us and handed me her business card. "Let us have a ladies' dinner and catch up in the evening, yes? I shall make the reservations at Kyoto Kitcho."

She left us in the dust to attend to her duties.

"That woman comes and goes like the storm." The professionally-done business card was almost too precious to put in my pocket. In a society where these little things had a ton of power and influence, I could only imagine what sort of person Sarena really was in the professional world. As I watched her leave, the last thing she said tickled the back of my mind. "Wait… did Sarena just mention—"

I had a quick celebration with the kendo team before leaving them to meet with Sarena. Something about her stuck out to me as a succubus to keep an eye on. Since I was both succubus and human in this world, it was my duty to make sure she wasn't acting out of line in any way. 

However, once we went to rendezvous with Sarena, it was hard to think she could be a troublemaker.

Sitting in a private room of Kyoto Kitcho, a three michelin-star restaurant and easily one of the most expensive places in Japan, had me stiff as a board because of how out of place I was. My family was well-off, but we weren't so wealthy as to indulge and make our wallets cry. With the view of the verdant mountain forests of Arashiyama just outside, foods that were tens of thousands of yen per plate, and a personal waitress to see to our needs, I couldn't help but feel lacking in proper etiquette to eat here while wearing a hoodie.

Yet one of us didn't care for proper table manners. Mio stuffed herself like there was no tomorrow, scarfing down everything as if she was in a buffet. Since each plate was the size of a sauce plate, she had empty plates stacked higher than the Tokyo Tower.

"Holy, crap. This food is the shit! It's even got Hatsumi's cooking beat! But why the hell are the portions so small?" Mio asked as a piece of food slipped out of her mouth. "Oh— oops."

"God, eating next to you is so embarrassing…" I put a hand  to my face.

Selene hadn't touched a single thing other than tea, opting to smoke instead as her only method of retaliation against Sarena.

When the succubus herself finally decided to join us, she had changed into a blue kimono and sat down with her back to Arashiyama.

"I'm glad you were all able to make it! I hope the food is to your liking? Not exactly to my tastes, but I enjoy coming here to feel important— because I am," Sarena said with an air of superiority, then glanced at Selene's untouched plates. "What's the matter? Too used to the wage-slave rabble fast food?"

"Doesn't seem like I have much of an appetite," she replied with her jaws clenched.

"They might not be showing it on their faces, but at least I'm not too proud to show gratitude— Thank you for treating us, Sarena. You're doing really well for yourself in the human world. More behaved, too, unlike some succubus." I rolled my eyes, thinking of a few certain succubi.

"I'm glad you think so! I've always been good at what I do." Sarena smiled.

"And what exactly is it that you do?" Selene asked.

I thought Sarena's smile couldn't curve even further. Anymore and she would be the spitting image of the Cheshire cat.

"I acquire for certain individuals that which are normally unobtainable. Among us, there happens to be a one-of-a-kind, artifact-level weapon that I would like to make replicas of," she explained."

That could only be one thing.

Selene and Mio straightened up and stared hard at Sarena. The atmosphere had grown thick and suffocating.

Even I, at that moment, suddenly felt threatened by this mere lesser succubus.

"You can't possibly mean what I think you're thinking," I said.

Sarena nodded, raising a cup of tea to her lips. "I do. I would like to come to a deal with you, Queen Saeko. A business deal of sorts. A transaction that will be to the benefit of us both, but won't be immediately obvious until much later. If you would be so kind, please tell me what it would take for you to give me the Blade of the First Temptress?"