Ch.285Side Story: Maid Beatrice

“Master, Master.”

Nika, who had been standing perfectly fine until just a moment ago, suddenly started acting coquettish with a voice full of nasal tones.

Her soft, voluptuous breasts wrapped in a maid uniform pressed gently against my back, and both her hands tenderly embraced my neck. Her lips, which had approached right next to my ear, whispered sweetly.

“I’ve been thinking… I’ve had to manage the demon realm a lot more recently, haven’t I?”

“That’s right.”

She was spending more time as the Succubus Queen than as a maid, which said it all. Compared to before when she wouldn’t return to the demon realm for weeks at a time, it was a dramatic change.

After Beatrice suggested she give up serving me and just live as the Succubus Queen, she seemed upset and tried to make time somehow, but in most cases, even that wasn’t possible.

“I think I need to raise the caliber of my subordinates and delegate work. But, Master, for that, Nika needs an enormous, truly enormous amount of life force…”

Nika gently bit my earlobe. The sound of her lips, tsk tsk, echoed directly in my eardrum. Her tongue licked my ear, letting out sticky moans and breaths. Her intentions were obvious.

I turned my head slightly and kissed her.

“Mmph… chu.”

Nika, who seemed startled at first, calmly accepted my tongue. The weight of a woman pressed against my back, and our saliva, mixed with two different flavors, traveled back and forth over each other’s tongues.

The succubus’s uniquely fluid tongue movements tasted every corner of my palate, gums, and inner cheek membrane while absorbing life force. Only after a long while did our lips part.

With a regretful expression, Nika licked her lips and carefully cleaned around my mouth. After finishing, her tongue came out with a “beh” sound. The submission mark engraved on her tongue emitted a bright pink light.

Gulp. Nika swallowed the saliva pooled in her mouth only after showing me her empty mouth. Though there was nothing there to begin with.

“Satisfied now?”

“…That’s mean, Master. You know that’s not what I was hoping for.”

Her breathing gradually became more rapid. Judging by how her eyes were slowly losing focus, she seemed to be in heat.

I know. If this were before, I wouldn’t have known, but after already having done real energy absorption, she wouldn’t be satisfied with just a kiss. But there was a reason I acted so brazenly despite knowing this.

“What do you think you’re doing right now?”

“Ow ow ow ow! It hurts! It hurts! Head Maid!”

It was because Beatrice was right beside us.

Beatrice pulled on Nika’s soft cheek. Nika was dragged in the direction of the pull. Her face crumpled into a pitiful expression, and screams escaped from her mouth. Not that it would actually hurt her that much anyway.

“If you’re a maid, act like one. I will not forgive you if you try to climb all over the young master like that.”

“Yes, Head Maid…”

A dejected Nika straightened her clothes. Even though she had become a demon lord, she apparently didn’t want to defy Beatrice. I suppose it’s fortunate that even as a demon lord, Nika is still Nika.

“If you have nothing to do, go clean something, Yustera.”

“Hiiing, yes…”

With a tearful face, Nika trudged toward the hallway. Beatrice watched her retreating figure with a look of exasperation.

“Are you alright, Young Master?”

“Of course I’m fine. What about you, Beatrice…?”

I trailed off while answering. I wondered if Beatrice had any resistance to this kind of thing. Considering her age, she probably should, but…

‘Wait. Age?’

Come to think of it, how old was Beatrice? It’s not that I’d never asked her age before, but each time she skillfully avoided answering, so I never actually found out how old she was.

I did some quick calculations. First, since she was assigned as my exclusive maid right after I was born, I needed to add at least my age. And in the Crate family, maids had to be at least 16 years old at minimum.

That means she’s at least 34 years old at the very minimum, but what needs to be considered here is that Beatrice was already in the position of head maid when she was assigned to me.

A mere 16-year-old apprentice maid as head maid? That’s nonsense.

‘It’s also impossible to tell by appearance.’

Even at the highest estimate, she looks like she’s in her mid-twenties; normally, she appears to be in her early twenties, and if you’re generous, she could even pass for late teens. That’s how young Beatrice looks. Which makes it all the more confusing.

“Young Master?”

Concerned by my sudden silence, Beatrice cautiously approached. I stared at her for a moment before asking.

“Can you tell me how old you are?”

“…Are you asking about my age?”

“Yes. I realized I’ve never heard it before. I’ve asked before, but you always avoided the question. And your appearance hasn’t changed from when I was young until now.”

After pondering for a moment, Beatrice put on a resolute expression.

“I think it’s time to reveal the truth to you, Young Master.”

“The truth? What truth?”

“I am actually a great mage. So it’s only natural that I don’t age.”

“…Huh?”

“I’m joking. You’ve only ever seen me embarrassed, so please consider this a small revenge.”

Beatrice smiled expressionlessly at my shocked face. It was a contradictory description, but a smile where only the corners of the mouth rise while the eyes remain still couldn’t be described any other way.

She said it was a joke, but perhaps it wasn’t. Or maybe she was wearing an artifact that prevents her appearance from changing, like Io.

“Would you like more tea, Young Master?”

Only Beatrice knows the truth.

“Aren’t maid uniforms really sexy outfits?”

“…?”

I looked at Priscilla, wondering what that sudden question was about. Priscilla continued nonchalantly.

“Don’t you think maid uniforms are really sexy?”

“I heard you the first time, no need to repeat. What’s with that all of a sudden? Sexy? Why?”

“Looking at Nika made me think about it.”

All eyes turned to her.

It’s true that such things had been happening more frequently lately. It felt like she had no self-control whatsoever after crossing the line once. I had to reject most of her seductions because if I gave her everything she wanted, my body truly wouldn’t be able to handle it.

“Aha. I am sexy, aren’t I? Thank you for the compliment.”

Perhaps because she was a succubus, Nika smiled brightly at being called sexy and struck a pose that slightly emphasized her chest.

“But isn’t it a bit ambiguous to call it sexy when it’s neither tight-fitting nor particularly revealing? Though I suppose it might be accurate in terms of stimulating a fetish.”

“Isn’t stimulating a fetish the same as being sexy?”

Priscilla tilted her head.

“They’re completely different. I heard there are fetishes where people get aroused by the smell of wet soil. Does that make wet soil sexy too?”

“Hmm… then what about this? Maid uniforms can send signals without saying anything. If you attach butterfly ribbons to the back of both shoes, it means you’re asking your master to do whatever they want with you.”

“Really?”

Nika’s eyes lit up dangerously. She immediately created butterfly-shaped ribbons and attached them to her heels, then turned around. Her heels were clearly visible. Beatrice wore an expression that suggested she didn’t know what to do with this.

“You understand, right, Master? I’ll be waiting anytime.”

She turned back to face me. Her arms were still pressing against her chest. Despite clearly having increased only her bust size, the fabric, which still looked a size too small, was stretched to its limit.

The ominous premonition soon became reality. With a ripping sound, the chest area tore and buttons popped off.

“Oh my?”

Bare skin and cleavage were revealed through the torn clothes.

The hot air that had been trapped inside escaped slightly, and the soft-looking mass of fat was firmly pressed inside the clothes. Through the hole where the button had popped off, compressed breast flesh bulged out.

Nika, who was looking for the button to repair her clothes, saw me and suddenly put on a meaningful smile, then awkwardly collapsed to the floor while lifting her skirt.

With a crash, an empty plate next to her scattered. Her skirt, now lifted, revealed her buttocks and thighs. Nika pressed her breasts together, looked up at me with teary eyes, and said:

“Master… I broke the plate… I’m sorry. I’ll do anything, just please don’t throw me away…”

It was an impressive acting performance that could make anyone believe she was genuinely desperate. Or perhaps it was instinct ingrained in succubi.

“See? It is sexy, right?”

Priscilla puffed out her chest proudly. Setting aside the question of what there was to be proud about, I knew what I had to do.

I quietly stepped aside. Beatrice, who had been glaring at Nika with blazing eyes from behind me, stepped forward. Nika hurriedly stood up, but it was already too late.

“Yustera.”

“H-Head Maid?!”

“What do you think you’re doing in front of everyone! Even for a succubus, can’t you separate work and personal matters!”

Nika began to be scolded by Beatrice, squirming uncomfortably. As Beatrice bent slightly, her skirt lifted a little, revealing the back of her shoes. There was a ribbon tied in the shape of a butterfly.

“…?”

It must have been there all along, but after hearing what was just said, I couldn’t help but notice it now.