Lilith: Origin of Succubi

Chapter 343

<~> Chapter 343I couldn't help but snicker at Torien, who looked a bit like a drowned cat. The last of the four forts had a demon that sprayed water magic at us, and we didn't manage to kill it without both getting soaked. The trek through the dirt and ash from earlier in the day meant that we were also both covered in thick mud and grime. Since it was getting dark, the two of us decided to return to the city before it got too late, which meant we had to put drying off and warming up on hold. It wasn't too cold yet just before sundown, so it shouldn't be an issue, but it still left Torien's hair soaked and her ears back.

She glared at me as her eyes traveled up and down my body. "How come you aren't soaked? You aren't wearing as much cloth and leather, but you're covered in fur."

I lifted my wrist to get a look at my fur. "I think my fur is hydrophobic. A lot of water just slides right off."

Torien tilted her head. "Why would your fur be afraid of water?"

I laughed. "Sorry, maybe that didn't translate well. I meant that the oil in my fur creates a barrier that doesn't actually let water through. So it slides right off. Or maybe it's the texture or something, I'm not entirely sure. Either way, my fur rejects water rather than soaks it up."

She huffed in reply. "That's not fair." Slowly, her frown turned into a grin before a laugh.

The two of us laughed together as we got closer to the gate. I pulled her against me so she could at least share my warmth. She probably wasn't in danger of catching a cold or anything, but my heat and cold resistance trait seems to have passed as a weaker version to the others, so I knew she could probably feel the cold more than I could.

"Hey Torien, do you want to go to a public bath, just the two of us?"

Torien paused to look up at me. "Really? We haven't gone to a public bath in a while, since we have a bath at our house."

I smiled. "I think it would be a fun end to our day after the hassle we just went through. What do you think?"

"Yeah, let's do it." She smiled back.

As we reentered the town, we could see Dominik, Kaligan, and Corrine talking to each other about the paladins and priests. They seemed to be in the thick of a discussion, but it didn't look hostile, so I decided I didn't want to insert myself into it. They were probably just figuring out how best to allocate everyone. It was a good sign though. Nothing bad happened while I was gone, and none of them flagged me down when they acknowledged me passing by. So far so good on that front. I'd probably get a briefing on everything in a few days when the next council meeting happens.

"What are you going to do about the report?" Torien asked.

I grumbled. "We're both soaked and tired from our mission today. I'll take care of it after the bath and turn it in tomorrow morning."

"Works for me. I'd rather not wait around like this anyway," she said as she gestured to her wet gear.

"That last demon was more of an annoyance than a challenge. It almost feels like it was there just to mess with us," I joked.

Torien laughed. "A weaker party might have had more trouble with it, but yeah, I agree. It wasn't nearly as bad as the one in the first tower."

"Let's go to a smaller bathhouse," I said as I turned a corner.

"Sounds fine. Do they allow beastfolk in where we're going?" Torien asked.

I nodded. "Yep, and they don't have an issue with succubi either. Provided we don't make a mess."

When I turned back to Torien, she was blushing and having trouble meeting my gaze. She was well aware of what I was implying by saying that. Now that we were officially lovers as well, it had become a lot of fun teasing her. I pulled her against myself again and squeezed her ass through her pants.

I frowned as I looked down at my soaked hand. Her pants were still soaking wet from that demon... Torien burst out laughing and I quickly joined her.

She punched me in the arm. "That's what you get for copping a feel in public."

"It's not like anyone doesn't know that we're together," I said with a grin.

Torien looked away with a blush. "It's still embarrassing."

"I'll stop teasing you in public if you ask me to," I said. There was a long pause and the silence spoke more to her desires than her words did.

After a moment, Torien cleared her throat. "How far away is this place? My legs are starting to chafe. I'm going to have to peel off my clothes at this rate."

"Just down there," I said while pointing to the nondescript building. It was a bit larger than those around it, but it didn't look particularly fancy. "I haven't been here before, but I heard this place was really accommodating from Eira."

Torien gave me a sideways glance. "Accommodating? You heard this from Eira?" I grinned at her, and she turned away with a huff. God she was so fun to tease.

When the two of us entered, the clerk at the desk perked up and smiled at us. "Ah! Two new faces! Welcome to my bathhouse. How may we be of service?" She was a slightly older dogkin woman. She was a canid in general, but she didn't look like any particular breed that I recognized. More of a mutt, though it would definitely be rude to refer to her that way. It was no wonder they allowed beastfolk though, since one seemed to run the place.

"Hello, the two of us would like a private bath, and my friend Eira told me to ask for the uh, blue special," I said.

The canid woman blushed a bit, but she didn't let her embarrassment break her professional demeanor. "Of course, one of our private baths near the back has soundproof enchantments from before system's end, and would be better suited to your stay. If you wish to spend the night, there's an extra charge for that. There are robes inside the room are yours to keep if you wish. You look like you could use a change. They're already factored into the cost, so don't hesitate to keep them if you like. There will be an extra cleaning and purification fee attached for the blue special, but we'll provide you with some additional supplies to enjoy yourselves with."

Torien raised an eyebrow as she looked at me, but I ignored it. "That would be great, thank you," I told the nice lady.

The slightly added cost didn't faze me in the slightest. Spending time at a bathhouse was a bit of a luxury for us, since we didn't lack a bath in our home, but it felt appropriate to treat Torien a little after the day we've had. Especially since she had been feeling a bit neglected lately. It wasn't like we were hurting for money anyway. The guild jobs paid better than ever since there were fewer people taking them on, and one of the benefits of living with so many lovers was the larger pool of income that we shared. Being high-level adventurers in our own specialized fields gave us ample funds to work with. Money wasn't a problem for us at all after we pooled it and divided it evenly between us.

"Do you plan to stay the night with us as well, or just stay at the private bath?" The woman asked.

"I'm not sure yet," I answered honestly. "Can I just pay it up front and get a refund for that part if we choose to leave?"

She smiled and gave me a happy nod. "That would be perfectly fine."

Once we settled the payment, she led us through the halls toward a door and unlocked it before handing me the key. "Please return this before you leave, and enjoy your stay." She was about to walk away before faltering a moment and turning back to me. "Eira... she's one of the succubi, right?"

I nodded, unsure where this was going. "Yes, she is. And so are the two of us. Will that be a problem?"

"Oh! No, of course not. The blue special was created specifically to cater to you and your sisters... I was just wondering... I uh, heard that other people can become succubi too. Do you know if that's true?"

I smiled. "That is true. I know that for a fact. Why? Are you interested in becoming one of our sisters?"

The woman shyly looked away. "I'm... interested in what it would be like... But I'm not sure who to ask about it."

"Have you met Eira personally?"

The woman nodded. "Eira comes by every once in a while. I've met her a few times, yes."

"She would be the best person to ask about this. If you don't want to wait, you could go to the succubus brothel and ask for her. Do you need directions there?" I asked with a smirk. I studied her Karma. It was less numerical since system's end, but it was easy to get a sense for it, and hers was plenty positive. It was actually fairly impressive for someone who didn't fight monsters, now that I thought about it.

The woman's blush deepened and she shook her head. "I... I know where it is."

"Good, then go there and ask to meet with Eira. Tell her that Lilith sent you. You don't have to commit to anything if you aren't interested in everything that becoming a succubus entails, but I can promise that we'd love to have you as one of our sisters."

"Thank you, Miss Lilith. I'll... I'll think about it. Please enjoy your stay." She gave a short bow before hurriedly leaving with a blush on her face.

Torien spoke up once we were on the other side of the door. "Our reputation seems to be spreading a bit. It looks like people are generally positive toward us."

I nodded. "Yeah. It's not universally positive, but our overall reputation is good. Most of the people who don't approve of us are the same people who objected to legalizing brothels in the city. Some people are worried about the problems that come with prostitution."

"Still, creating a special just for us seems a bit intriguing. I wonder what kind of things they brought for us. I'm a bit concerned if I'm honest," Torien said with a laugh.

I stepped over to her and began to unbuckle the straps on her gear. "Let's get you out of these wet clothes before you catch a cold."

She looked up at me with a blush as she let me undo the straps on her equipment. "I... can do it myself..."

"Do you want me to stop?" I asked as I continued to loosen the straps of her armor.

"No..." she admitted.

I smiled and continued to help her out of her light armor. Once we reached her clothes, she actually did need the help, because they were soaked and basically glued to her. She wasn't entirely joking when she mentioned having to peel them off. Once she was nude, she helped me with my armor. Her blush still hadn't gone away, but she was acting professional while helping me remove the thicker metal pieces of armor I wore.

She unconsciously bit her lip once she had helped me with the last of my clothes and we both stood naked near the benches by the door. She quickly turned away and began clipping her clothes to one of the drying racks in the corner of the room. I gathered up my wet clothes and began to clip my things on the one next to hers.

"Why do they have drying racks in here?" I asked.

"Some people like to come here when it's raining, and let their clothes dry while they wait for it to pass," Torien answered.

I nodded as we finished up and moved to the small waterfall shower along one of the walls. There was a tray of soaps and labeled bottles nearby and I began to go through them to see what was available. "Soap, fur shampoo, conditioning oil... oil-based lubricant. I think this is what they may have meant by giving us additional supplies."

"I... see. Do they expect us to have sex in the bath?" Torien asked hesitantly.

"Seems that way. Not that surprising for a place that caters to succubi," I said with a chuckle.

I grabbed a bar of scented soap and pulled Torien over to the waterfall. Her back tensed when I began to gently rub her back with the lather from the soap. "Are you okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, I just... I guess it still feels a little weird for my 'mistress' to be bathing me," she admitted.

"Does it bother you, or just feel weird?" I asked.

"It feels good. But... It feels kind of... wrong? Like I'm doing something I'm not supposed to? I know it's kind of silly after everything, after being freed, but I can't help it."

I began to massage the knots in her back a little as I cleaned her up. The soap smelled like pine needles and a flowery scent that I didn't recognize. "It's not silly. You were trained from a young age to think like that. I can't imagine how that must feel."

"It makes me feel a bit guilty still, but it also makes me happy. Like I'm getting away with something. I'm glad that you're the kind of person who likes to treat me like this. To make me feel good, wash me before even washing yourself... Give me things without expecting anything in return. I feel safe with you. I... I love you."

"I love you too, Torien." I pulled her into a hug from behind. She tensed again at my touch, but soon relaxed and leaned into me.

"Thank you for buying us that day. I know... I know you didn't want to have to do that, but I'm glad that you did it anyway. I know that us being freed in Torilmal hadn't been planned, but thank you for sticking by us when we needed you." Torien started to sniffle and cry. "Thank you for everything, Lilith."

I hugged her tighter from behind as she cried. I tilted my head into the crook of her neck and kissed her cheek as she continued.

"I love you, Torien. I'm so thankful that I was able to take you two from there. You two mean the world to me. I love both of you dearly. I can't imagine what things would be like without you by my side."

She pulled away before turning around and pulling me into a kiss. I pulled her against me and deepened it, teasing her tongue with my own. She tasted slightly salty from her tears, but that quickly faded. When she pulled away, she had a smile on her face, though her eyes were still a bit red.

"Come on, let's finish washing up and then we can relax in the bath," I told her.

"Okay," she said with a nod.