On the Way to S-Rank (3)

Stark white hair, a sharp jawline, and a decadent beauty.

His eyes, half-open beneath equally sharp eyelids, showed only the whites, giving him a ghastly appearance.

Foam trickled from the corner of his slightly parted mouth, and from the tongue within came the same foul stench of drugs as before.

Ptooey—

The spit I’d let fly landed squarely in his mouth.

Hehe.

Ptooey— one more time.

This time, it splattered right between his eyes.

But still, not a single twitch.

Serves him right.

All that bullshit about not underestimating Elemental, about how I couldn’t possibly reach S-rank in just two months, about my C-rank origins…

And yet, you’re the one who got taken out in ten seconds by that same two-month-old Awakener, aren’t you?

The so-called natural-born A-rank got his ass handed to him by a natural-born C-rank.

I glanced behind me to see the fire spirit, in the form of Seo A-gyeol, hopping and skipping around the area.

It was nice that she was excited, but for her to be running around naked like that…

‘Ah.’

Seo A-gyeol(Fire) snapped her fingers.

Flames cascaded from her shoulders like a waterfall, forming a gown of fire that billowed with voluminous frills.

That seems a bit excessive, but… no.

If that’s what you want, you wear it. It’s flashy and pretty, so what’s not to like?

Leaving the prancing spirit behind, I turned my head back to Jeong Ji-hoon.

Still no movement.

This area is a little too exposed. Let’s move him to that tent over there.

*

It was a facility for resting during a gate raid.

I gently placed Jeong Ji-hoon on one of the beds.

I unbuttoned his shirt, unzipped his pants, and pulled them off. After stripping off his underwear as well, he was left naked except for his socks and shoes.

The sight of his upturned eyes showing only the whites, his slack-jawed mouth, and his naked body created a remarkably lewd picture.

Hmm, if I took a picture of him like this, he probably wouldn’t try any funny business, would he?

Of course, my current goal was to make sure he couldn’t try any funny business anyway.

Fwoosh—!

My horns, wings, and tail materialized.

The crimson horns glowed with a faint, bewitching light; the wings revealed their obscene, leathery membranes; and the tail looked like a slick, sticky tentacle.

When I lifted Jeong Ji-hoon’s legs, a single hole peeked out from between them.

The most private part of Jeong Ji-hoon—the man who, even as an adult, childishly led a campaign of ostracism, the asshole who was arrogant and condescending to everyone.

His expression, which could be described as ahegao, combined with his limp, naked body and the pose that exposed his rear, created an incredibly shameful scene.

So, so shameful…

Wow, if this happened to me, I’d… I’d literally die of shame.

But it’s not me, is it?

As the image of his current humiliation overlapped with the memory of him speaking down to me, a sadistic desire began to stir somewhere deep in my heart.

Fortunately for me—and unfortunately for this man—I was in a state where I had no need to suppress that desire.

Like an insidious viper raising its head, my tail shot upward.

Then, like a kingfisher diving for its prey, it plunged.

Thrust—

Jeong Ji-hoon, who hadn’t moved an inch, gave his first twitch.

What to do? It’s already too late.

My tail squirmed, writhing around inside him until it finally found what it was looking for.

The soft interior of Jeong Ji-hoon, and within it, the only firm part.

As I pressed down firmly on his prostate, Jeong Ji-hoon’s limp cock slowly began to rise.

With no stimulation to the front, only from the back.

The tip of my tail, which could change its shape at will, split into four tendrils that wrapped around the top, bottom, left, and right of his prostate. Then, it applied pressure from all directions while sending a faint electric current through him.

“Kngh, hngh…”

Even in his unconscious state, he let out a moan, his legs trembling violently.

His cock was now fully erect, the foreskin pulled back to reveal a crimson head.

Just as a glistening, transparent droplet formed at the tip of his urethra, Jeong Ji-hoon’s eyelids fluttered, and his pupils returned to their normal position.

His unfocused eyes met mine.

“Oh, you’re awake?”

Lee Han-gyeol used formal speech, so Seo A-gyeol had to use informal speech.

“You, what—hnnngh…!”

Now that he was conscious, I increased the intensity of the current. The trembling in his legs grew in proportion.

His eyelids were half-closed, so the slightest upward roll of his eyes would put him in an ahegao state.

“Wait, just—hngh—”

His glans was already slick with precum. It wasn’t just slick; it was dripping onto his groin.

“Fuck, please, just stop, hngh—”

I stopped the electrical stimulation. His trembling legs went limp.

The only thing that remained hard was his cock.

“Who… who are you?”

“Hnng?”

Bzzzzzt—

“Hyaaaah—! Why? Wait, why?”

“Who knows? I’ll keep going until you figure it out.”

“Wh-who are you, ma’am?”

“Oh, that was fast. Manners injection: success! So our little Ji-hoon is the type who needs his manners injected through his ass, is he?”

“…The hell are you talk—hnnnngh…!”

I gave him another moderate jolt before stopping. Now that Ji-hoon was conscious, it was time to get down to business.

“Who am I? This isn’t the first time we’ve met, is it?”

“Hah, you… were you that succubus? Ma’am?”

“That succubus?”

“The one who wrecked Yua Dokjon, hnnngh…! Why! Why! I was right, wasn’t I? No, hyeck, I was right, ma’am? The Succubus Queen who made a mess of, haah, Yua Dokjon.”

Seeing a beautiful woman with horns, wings, and a tail, it was impossible not to think of a succubus.

“Mm, correct.”

“Hah, so that infamous Succubus Queen is that bastard Lee Han-gye—hyaaah…! Uwaaah…! I get it, I get it…. She’s Lee Han… Lee Han-gyeol’s spirit….”

It seemed he had misunderstood something.

But if my fire spirit appeared with that level of detail, it was an understandable mistake. She was basically Seo A-gyeol, just made of fire.

In any case, if he wanted to misunderstand, that was great for me.

…Or was it?

Was the idea of a man transforming into a succubus so far outside the realm of common sense that he couldn’t even conceive of it? I guess if it were me, I’d probably… yeah, I’d probably think the same thing.

Anyway, the important thing was that no one could know about the connection between Lee Han-gyeol and Seo A-gyeol.

Thanks to the fire spirit carelessly popping out (‘Sorry about that!’), he’d discovered a link between me and Seo A-gyeol.

But this seemed like a good opportunity to re-establish some discipline.

My original plan was just to show him the difference in our skills to quiet any complaints about my S-rank promotion. But now that I had to start preparing for the vice guild master’s ouster, taking his son hostage beforehand seemed like a pretty good move.

Too evil?

Too bad. Shouldn’t have been making drugs, then.

Too bad. Shouldn’t have been bullying people, then.

“Here’s a quiz for you. Do you think I want my relationship with Lee Han-gyeol—that is, my contractor—to be revealed, or to be kept secret?”

Gulp.

The sound of him swallowing seemed to echo in the tent.

“Y-you’re not going to kill me, are you? I’m the son of Elemental’s vice guild master. I am, ma’am. If you kill me, the fallout will be—”

Shhh.

I leaned down and pressed my index finger to his lips.

“Why would I kill you? Who did I say I was?”

“…”

“The Succubus Queen. Melting the mind of one little man like you is—”

“Hngh—!”

I lightly wrapped my hand around his precum-drenched glans.

“—nothing at all.”

“…What do you want? No, what do you want… ma’am?”

“Me?”

I placed a finger on my chin and tilted my head, pretending to think for a moment before speaking.

“Silence. And obedience.”

“…I will be silent, ma’am. As for obedience, to a certain extent, I can—hyaaaahk…!”

I sent a strong current through my tail, and Jeong Ji-hoon’s pelvis shot up, flopping like a fish out of water.

“Silence and obedience are not things you get to choose.”

I tightened my grip on his cock. I could feel the throbbing of his heartbeat inside the stiffly erect shaft.

“They are things that will happen to you.”

Ah, the sight of eyes instantly filling with despair… ♥

*

“So you’re the famous Lee Han-gyeol I’ve only heard rumors about.”

“Yes.”

“A pleasure to meet you. I am Jeong Ju-ho, the vice guild master of Elemental.”

“Yes. It’s a pleasure to meet you, too.”

“Here, please have a seat.”

As I sat down across from him, someone who appeared to be his secretary brought us tea.

Despite being a facility inside a gate, it was fully furnished. No, it was the finest facility I had ever seen.

The furniture had an antique elegance, as if he had set up his office in some quiet, rural corner of Earth—

“What are your current thoughts on Elemental?”

“Pardon?”

“How long has it been since you joined Elemental?”

“…It’s been almost two months now.”

“I’m sure you’ve heard this many times, but that’s truly fast. Excessively so. How can you possibly lead Elemental at this rate?”

“…Pardon?”

“Ah, I don’t mean to say I’ll block your promotion to S-rank. Nor will I stop you from joining the leadership. I’m sure you’ll be able to lead just fine once you’ve steadily built up your career at Elemental.”

“…”

“What I’m trying to say is that if you take the reins without a proper understanding of Elemental’s current problems, you could end up leading the guild down a strange path.”

“I won’t be the only one in the leadership, will I?”

“Yes, that’s true…. But, well. By any chance, did the Guild Master say anything to you about Elemental?”

“The Guild Master? …I believe she said it was a guild that manages the Spirit World.”

“Correct. The Spirit World. Let me ask you one more thing. Do you know how many Awakeners are currently managing the Spirit World?”

“…I’m not sure about that.”

“The only one who regularly goes to the Spirit World… is the Guild Master. There’s a reason she’s in there all the time. The other Awakeners of Elemental, myself included, do not enter the Spirit World.”

“What?”

“They’re lazy. Incredibly lazy. Of course, it’s also true that they lack the skill to go there. But if that’s the case, shouldn’t they be honing those skills? The Spirit World is a more dangerous place than you think. You were probably with the Guild Master or under her watch when you entered.”

“…Yes.”

“But the Awakeners—and I hate to say this—they don’t try. Why? Because they already have so much. Don’t you agree?”

“…”

“What would you do? Would you use the wealth and fame you already possess to go on patrols—no, strolls—in gates and enjoy your life on Earth, or would you enter the Spirit World, where you could die at any moment?”

What the hell? Why is he making sense?

How did a man like this get involved with drugs…?

“Yes, I can see from your expression that you’ve realized something. Here, give me the paper. I’ll sign it.”

Scratch, scratch—

The nib of the pen glided across the paper. And then—

S-Rank Yoo Hyeon-shik (Yoo Hyeon-shik)

S-Rank Choi Yoon (Choi Yoon)

S-Rank Patricia D. Nott (Patricia D. Nott)

S-Rank Shin Min-ha (Shin Min-ha)

S-Rank Jeong Ju-ho (Jeong Ju-ho)

SS-Rank Jin Harin (—–)

“Congratulations in advance. The Guild Master is currently in the Spirit World, so her secretary will sign on her behalf. From now on—though you won’t be officially recognized externally just yet—internally, you are an S-rank hunter.”

Five signatures, one blank space.

But now, that blank space would soon be—

“Do you feel in your heart that your skills aren’t at an S-rank level? Then cultivate them! You may still be lacking, but we wouldn’t have promoted someone who wasn’t capable of reaching S-rank.”

*

“You’ve received the vice guild master’s signature as well. I have been granted prior authorization for the Guild Master’s signature, so I will sign as her proxy.”

Seeing my expression, she smiled faintly.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be using a seal imbued with the Guild Master’s magic, so her name will appear on the document, not mine.”

“Oh, that’s not what I was worried about…”

“Just a little joke. You can’t be so tense already. I look forward to working with you in the future—”

Thump—

S-Rank Yoo Hyeon-shik (Yoo Hyeon-shik)

S-Rank Choi Yoon (Choi Yoon)

S-Rank Patricia D. Nott (Patricia D. Nott)

S-Rank Shin Min-ha (Shin Min-ha)

S-Rank Jeong Ju-ho (Jeong Ju-ho)

SS-Rank Jin Harin (Jin Harin)

[Notice

This is to inform you that Elemental guild member Lee Han-gyeol has received the approval of 5 high-ranking Awakeners and 1 supreme-ranking Awakener of Elemental, and as of today, has been promoted to an internal high-ranking Awakener. Congratulations.]

“S-Rank Awakener Lee Han-gyeol.”