I am Succubus!

Chapter 302

Professor Bernard, his five assistants, Erma, and I gathered in the royal laboratory, where he filled us in on the news. The two illuminating quartz ingots were gone. They left them in a specially-enchanted lockbox before retiring for the night. However, the professor had supposedly forgotten to close the box and came back to do so, which was when he discovered the ingots missing.

"Okay, give it to me straight: if they really are gone, what now?" I asked.

"Then we will have no other choice but to travel to Emerald Dardaria to mine more," Professor Bernard explained, his voice exhausted at the very thought of going back. "But the illuminating quartz were stolen with the enchanted box. That tells us two things. Whoever took them had no intention of destroying the ingots, otherwise we would see their powder on the ground. And they appear to be aware that keeping them in the lockbox ensures the ingots are safe. Someone in the castle stole them, most assuredly."

Accusing eyes turned to the assistants, who all started shouting that they didn't do it. They were scared out of their wits, especially after Erma reminded them that the enchanted lockbox is property of the crown, and stealing from the crown is punishable by death.

"Saeko, I hate to ask this of you, but can you charm them to answer honestly just in case?" Erma suggested.

For once, light elves were eager to have me charm them. Probably because they were actually innocent and really weren't involved. I seized them with my aura, placing all five under my control.

"Did any of you steal the illuminating quartz or know what happened to it?" I asked.

"No," everyone answered.

"They're telling the truth. None of them can lie to me unless I order it…"

"I do not have the authority to command the palace guards, but I am close with their captain. I'll see what can be done about asking them to keep an eye out," Erma said.

The rest of us went to bed since there was nothing we could really do. I went to bed anxious, thinking I might never return home to Earth. Well, not necessarily. We would just have to go back to Emerald Dardaria, and the beastkins… most likely weren't going to like that.

I woke up the next morning with Mio's legs across my chest. This sloppy succubus seemed to be able to sleep sloppier every other day. I righted her properly in bed and threw the bedsheets back on. She continued to snooze even after I got up, so I went over to the windows and opened the curtains.

Sunlight poured in. Warm rays stretched to the other end of the room, right over Mio. She grumbled a bit, turned her back to the light, and pulled the sheets over her head.

"Miooo~ It's morning," I whispered.

"Five more minutes…" Mio muttered groggily.

A thought came to mind that maybe she could have been the thief. Hmm.

"Hey, Mio. You know we might end up staying a little longer," I said.

"What… why…" Mio whined in a barely conscious state.

It couldn't have been Mio. She might have wanted to stay longer when we were sailing, but that sentiment changed a bit after arriving in the City of Everlight. Our cats were probably taking precedence for her now.

"Someone stole the illuminating quartz ingots, so we can't repair Shayle's mirror artifact," I explained.

No response this time except for a snore. I glanced over, and Mio had fallen right back to sleep.

My ears twitched to the sound of someone marching down the corridor. They weren't heavy, so it must not belong to a guard. The footsteps were light, elegant, and rhythmic. Oh, crap. Princess Amira was headed this way, and she knew nothing about privacy. The last thing I wanted was for her to give Mio a rude awakening so early in the morning. I hurriedly got dressed, then ran out the door and almost slammed into the princess.

"Oh, Saeko. I was just about to wake you," Amira said, her fist up moments away from banging on the door.

"Uh, yeah… I get up early. Mio's still asleep though, and I don't want to wake her." I quietly shut the door behind me. "What's up?"

"Well, I recently became aware of your predicament and wanted to offer you my condolences. A robbery in my palace is unthinkable, and to my personal guest! I'm sure the legate and guards will find the illuminating quartz soon. The thief will be thoroughly punished, I assure you. Until then, perhaps you would like to accompany me out for the day? To take your mind off things?" she asked.

With little to do, I decided to join Amira. I was stuck here anyway. We grouped with Vanessa and Leandra in the courtyard. The guards were more tense than usual, not because I was with the princess, but because an alert had gone out for everyone to be vigilant of the missing illuminating quartz. As we boarded a carriage, I could tell the guards exchanging glances wanted to stop us but didn't want to be the ones to contest the princess.

We were all supposed to be under lockdown. It came as no surprise to me when Erma rushed down with the palace's captain of the guard.

"Your highness! Princess Amira!" Erma intercepted the carriage at the gate threshold into the city.

"Step aside, Legate. We won't be gone long. There is no reason to suspect us anyway," Amira said.

"That's not the point…" Hands on her knees, panting. "It isn't that… we suspect you or your cousins. A thief managed to infiltrate the palace; your safety is also at risk."

"Queen Saeko is by my side. My safety is certain. She protected me while in Emerald Dardaria, didn't she? Now, move. You're in our way. Or shall I dismiss you and strip you of your rank for disobedience?" She glared daggers at the anxious legate.

Erma casted pleading eyes in my direction. The kind that showed greater fear for the princess' life than her own despite being threatened.

"We'll be back soon," I promised her.

The two light elves standing in front of the carriage finally stepped aside. Our carriage rolled into the city, unguarded this time and with me as Amira's only protection. I could only guess where she wanted to take us. She looked deep in thought, resting her cheek against the glass window. Even the usually chatty Vanessa and Leandra were too nervous to say a thing.

Actually, both of them kept throwing uneasy glances in her direction. Something was definitely up.

"Don't lie to me, Saeko. Erma had followed us into the hunt that day, didn't she?" Amira asked suddenly, taking me by surprise.

"Eh? I, er… Yes…" I confessed. "H-How did you find out?"

"I'm not stupid. Erma may very well be the only one willing to disobey me without regard for herself." The princess sighed, her breath catching on the window. "You don't know this because she puts on a very convincing veneer of professionalism, but we are rather close."

"Close, like family?"

"Hmph. We might as well be, I suppose. When I was a child, my parents assigned me a group of bodyguards in their teenage years from a list of loyal families. It is a tradition. Doing so encourages them to form a bond with me as we grow together. Many times, I thought of them as my brothers and sisters. Unfortunately, they have all moved to different posts in the kingdom. Outside of Erma, I don't… I don't really have any friends."

We stopped in front of a bakery, causing the citizens to take a wide berth and form a gallery around us. As soon as our entourage stepped out, no one could believe their eyes that Princess Amira was in town. Only, their faces dropped after seeing me.

Some of them whispered derisively amongst each other. If it wasn't for my stronger than normal human senses, I wouldn't have caught on. Many were wondering if Amira was under my control. Or if I was her succubus prisoner. Amira pulled me away before I had the chance to shoot them a dirty look.

The four of us entered a cozy little bakery. There weren't any tables or seats to dine in. It was rustic and simple. Just a counter, glass display cabinet full of fresh and stale baked goodies, and a kitchen in the back. Paintings of meadows and landscapes hung on the walls. The floor itself contained several counters with all kinds of bread and sweet pastries.

An older light elven woman behind the counter stared with her mouth agape, stunned. She had a slight hunch to her posture. Crows' feet on the corners of her eyes were evidenced to a lifetime of joy.

"Amira?" The woman gasped, then snapped to me. "Is that a succubus?"

"Hello, Nanna. This is the succubus queen, Queen Saeko. You have nothing to fear of her. Saeko, this is Rochelle Borque. She used to work in the palace as a chef before retiring to open a bakery of her own. I call her Nanna," Amira introduced.

"Uhm… Hi. Amira kind of brought me along." I waved from behind.

"Well, then! I suppose I can open a little later." Rochelle came around to flip the sign to closed.

Rochelle brought us fresh baked morsels to eat in the privacy of her bakery. A few people came to visit, only to be met with the closed sign. It wasn't an exaggeration to say the honey and walnut bread I ate might have been the most delicious thing I ever had. Crunchy on the outside, soft and cloudy on the inside. The hardened honey crust melted on my tongue, and the walnuts were a pleasant crunch of explosive sugary goodness.

Watching the cousins eat reminded me of high school girls. They squealed and sighed in delight after every bite, but I didn't blame them. Everything I tried left an impression on me.

Behind the counter, Rochelle and Amira conversed like no one I'd ever seen her talk to before. They laughed, joked, and made fun of each other. I couldn't imagine any of the guards or even Erma, whom Amira considered like a sister, to do the same. Honestly, it was weird to see, but I liked this Amira better than her sadistic side.

"I've never seen Amira so happy unless it was to torment prisoners. How close are they?" I asked the cousins.

"Hmph." Vanessa turned the other cheek.

"Come now, Vanessa. Miss Borque has always doted on the princess. Her parents, the king and queen, weren't… around as much as parents should. So, Miss Borque sort of took on that role somewhat. We accompany Princess Amira here once a week without fail. Not that any of us minds. This is soooo delicious!" Leandra sighed blissfully.

Absent parents… Amira and I really were a lot alike.

"We'll be back next week, Nanna. Oh, but before we go, do you still have those small, frozen bite-sized puffs? Please, tell me you do!" Amira pleaded like a child.

"You know I do! I have them in the basement freezer. Let me go grab them for you," Rochelle insisted.

"No need. I know it is difficult for you to climb the stairs, so I can do it. Vanessa, Leandra! Come. Saeko, we will be right back," she said before disappearing into the kitchen with the cousins.

I stood awkwardly in the middle of the bakery. Rochelle caught my eyes and smiled. She moved out from behind the counter.

"Saeko, is it?" Rochelle asked, referring less about me than the way Amira regarded me. "Never in my lifetime, or in a million years, did I expect Amira to befriend a succubus. You seem a gentle one, thank goodness. She speaks of you fondly, too."

"Really? I've been accompanying her a lot, but I sometimes get the feeling we aren't friends." I twiddled my thumbs.

"Oh, child… I did not realize the succubi race had more tits than brains."

"Hey…"

Amira and the cousins returned, and Rochelle saw us off at the door. We spent a few more hours out and ate some of the puffs they picked up from the bakery freezer. They tasted just as incredible as everything else. The princess kept badgering me about how delicious Rochelle's baking was. I got the feeling she was tempting me to stay longer in Elza with sweets.

We eventually returned to the palace, but the sparkle in Amira waned by the time we got back. It wasn't as if her energy had run out, but… something did seem to catch up to her.

One of the guards outside the palace saw our carriage arriving and rushed over.

"Princess Amira, Queen Saeko! Professor Bernard and Legate Erma asked that I urge you to the royal laboratory upon your return," the man implored.

"Did they find the illuminating quartz?" I asked.

"I'm unsure, Your Majesty. They did not tell me that much," he said.

"Saeko, I feel the sudden urge to visit the dungeons again. Could you show me more of your compulsion magic as a succubus?" Amira grew strangely anxious.

"It could be important. We can go after, if that's alright? Come on!" Spurred by Rochelle's words about our friendship, I took the initiative and grabbed Amira's hand to pull her along.

There was no resistance. Vanessa and Leandra did gasp at my brazen act.

We ran all the way up the palace. When we burst through the doors, however, there was no excitement or illuminating quartz box present. Only the group of assistants, Professor Bernard, Erma, Shayle, and Mio. There were two extra guards present, both of whom looked guilty.

"Er… I'm guessing there isn't any good news?" I asked nervously.

"That depends on how this concludes." Erma sighed. "After checking the guard duty list, we've found that these two were charged with patrolling the hall up here. However, it appears a dereliction of duty occurred last night. They abandoned their post for a brief half hour. They also confessed…" She turned to the cousins. "That it was they who led them away to search for a lost trinket in the library a few doors down the hall."

Professor Bernard continued, "But if the four of them were in the library at the time, who could have taken the illuminating quartz? Not necessarily a sneaky thief. It could only have been someone with access to these upper palace floors. So, Erma thought to ask a certain group of palace guards whose paramount duty is to protect a single person. And guess who they said had left their bedchamber for a little over half an hour, to then suspiciously return with a strange trunk?"

All of us turned to the princess at the same time.

Amira didn't deny it. She met our conclusive gazes tall and proud, without an ounce of regret or shame. However, her shoulders did slacken a little. Guilt slipped through the cracks of her arrogant front.

"Was it really you?" I asked.

"Yes," Amira confessed and let go of my hand to clasp her own tightly together. "I took them, because… I didn't want you to leave yet. You were returning to Earth far too soon for my liking. When I heard through the grapevine that Erma would be accompanying you back, I stopped thinking straight. Jealousy burned in my veins. So, I hatched a plan. As royalty, there is nowhere I cannot access. It was a simple matter to simply lure the guards away and enter the laboratory after Professor Bernard and his assistants retired for the night. I forced Vanessa and Leandra to do it."

The cousins gasped in surprise, a strange way for accomplices to react.

Shayle rolled her eyes and groaned. "Oh, real mature. And, what was the end goal? You would hide the illuminating quartz forever and bring us back to Emerald Dardaria? It was dangerous enough going there!"

"I would have returned the ingots! Eventually… I just… I…" She pursed her lips, unable to utter anything else in her own defense.

"Amira, I know you want us to stay. I've had fun, too! Kind of… The prison stuff was a little weird. I did enjoy just talking to you though! But I have to go home. We

, Mio and Shayle," I explained to her.The princess squeezed the side of her arm. Our stares and the pressure became too much for her to bear, and she took off running down the corridor.

"Princess!" Vanessa and Leandra gave chase.

An awkward silence fell over the rest of us who remained. I exchanged glances with Mio, Shayle, Erma, and Professor Bernard. The latter put his hands in the air to excuse himself. It was probably beyond his ability to talk the princess into giving the ingots back.

"Well, what now? I wouldn't mind staying. But I kinda wanna go home, too. I miss Elly's titties, cum hydrant's cock, and the kitties," Mio said.

"My reason for returning is a lot less exciting. I'm uneasy about leaving Queen Elendir to herself for too long. You know how inept she is with life on Earth. And as a monarch at that," Shayle reminded me.

"I can speak to the princess," Erma offered.

"No." I shook my head. "I'll do it. I feel like Amira will turn anyone else away. She's probably feeling a lot of emotions that she doesn't want people to see. I think me being a fellow royalty will get me through the door."

I headed up to Amira's bedchamber and found not just the cousins, but also the elite palace guards and their captain. He was a large, burly man in decorated regalia with many ribbons and sashes on his breastplate. His men were banging on the door.

Since Amira didn't answer, the captain ordered them to break the lock. They had a sledgehammer ready. One guard hoisted the weapon high until I charmed him to stop.

"What are you guys doing? You can't just break into her room!" I cried.

"Stay back, succubus. This is our business, not yours. At the end of the day, we act under the king and queen's directives. Their orders are to ensure the princess' safety. From others, and from herself. Princess Amira isn't answering the door, and we have a duty to check on her," the captain said.

Both cousins shot worried glances at me. It was clear just by their expressions they didn't approve of this, which meant Amira liked what was going on even less so. I was beginning to understand what she meant by her parents having the real power.

Political etiquette be damned. Amira was my friend now, and I wasn't about to let people harass her even if they did act under royal authority. Using my aura, I took control of the remaining light elven guards and the captain.

"What… What are you doing? Unhand us this instant! Your act of aggression will not be tolerated!" the captain shouted angrily.

"This isn't an act of aggression, believe me. You would know if it was. You all go take a slow, leisurely walk around the palace. Three times, actually! If someone talks to you, say you're patrolling the grounds. Now go," I ordered them.

Their eyes flashed as my will overwhelmed theirs, and they obediently marched down the corridor to fulfill my demands. Vanessa pressed a hand to her chest and sighed. Leandra, however, tried to move the sledgehammer those guards had left behind against the door.

"Thank you, Queen Saeko. We tried to tell them off, but they wouldn't listen. Unfortunately, the princess refuses to even see us," Vanessa started with both hands pressed together. "Maybe she will speak with you. Please, don't be too harsh on her. We…"

Leandra continued in her place and said, "Amira was initially hesitant about going through with stealing the illuminating quartz. She couldn't have pulled it off alone, so… we helped her in luring the guards away. I'm still in shock that she shouldered all the blame. She could have easily pinned it on us and demanded we stay quiet."

"Probably because Amira cares about you two. You're always there for her as the friends and family she needed. I'll handle it from here and bring her back to you two in no time," I assured them.

They flashed the possibly first and last only genuine smiles at me, then left down the way I had come. Now, time for the hard part. No guards, no cousins. Just us.

I walked up to the door and knocked gently. No answer. I knocked again and said, "Amira, it's me! I told the guards to take a walk. They won't be back for a while, so can we talk?"

The door creaked open. Princess Amira stood in front of me, eyes red and cheeks stained dry streaks of tears likely wiped a second earlier. She held the lockbox containing the illuminating quartz in both hands, extending it to me.

"You must be here for this. Take it. Go," Amira said.

"Thanks, but I did say that I wanted to talk." I unburdened the box from her, and we still stood there awkwardly.

"I suppose you're angry at me and wish to level your rage. Very well. It is my fault after all. I deceived you and endangered us all for my selfish—"

"Amira!" I interjected before she rambled any more. "I'm not angry at you. You could have destroyed the illuminating quartz, and I probably wouldn't even be mad. Maybe a little peeved, but that's it. I know why you did it, but I'm going to be going home whether you like it or not." The princess frowned at this and squeezed her arm. "I was hoping… We could hang out again the next time I visit?"

Amira drew a sharp breath, and her eyes lit up like a candle in a dark room.

I continued, "I mean, when we repair the mirror artifact with the illuminating quartz, I can come and go as I please. It'd be nice to see you again!"

"B-But… Why?" Amira stammered.

"Are you really going to make me say it? Feels a little cliche and embarassing…" I scratched the side of my cheek and blushed a little. "Because we're friends, aren't we?"

Amira's lips trembled so much. Bright eyes welled with tears of happiness this time. She quickly recomposed herself and cleared her throat.

"Put the box down. Now," Amira said firmly.

"Eh? Okay…" I sat the box down by the door, and as soon as I stood upright again, the princess threw her arms around me in a bear hug.

"Thank you… Thank you for being my friend! Will you promise to visit again? Will you bring some snacks and interesting things from your world for me to try?" she asked.

"Hehe. Of course! That's what friends are for." I smiled and hugged back.