Chapter 125: The scent of men

As Karin flew toward western Silver Moon, Velyss did not immediately enter the city center. She stopped outside the forest for nearly half an hour to change out of the battle suit that had been scorched in several places by lightning, treat her minor injuries, and put on a long black cloak. Her pink hair was tied neatly to either side as usual, her black horns hidden beneath the hood, and the bat wings on her back fully drawn in.

Her target was different from Karin’s. Corvina had a photograph, a place of activity, and even a group of Succubi who often accompanied her. The person Velyss wanted to find had left behind almost nothing except scattered records.

No precise name, no image or public file, only several materials from a very long time ago stating that a Succubus so powerful that even the older generations rarely wished to mention her name had once existed in Silver Moon. That woman later vanished, but several sources all pointed to the same place.

The Men’s Council.

Velyss looked at the city lights in the distance, pulled her hood lower, and began walking. If the rumors were wrong, she would only lose a little more time tonight. But if they were true, an existence like that was worth the risk.

The Men’s Council headquarters lay within a massive complex near the central district of Silver Moon. Velyss had observed this place beforehand, so she did not enter through the main gate. She went around a northern auxiliary building, waited until the two Succubi in charge of transporting supplies changed shifts, then quietly followed a cargo cart inside.

They hardly inspected Succubi too closely. In the eyes of the men here, women already belonged to this place, to its corridors, supply rooms, reception halls, and the brightly lit rooms behind closed doors.

Most Succubi working in the complex kept their heads lowered and moved quickly. They did not take the initiative to look at men, and they dared not ask questions beyond their assigned duties. Velyss only needed to dress enough like an attendant, keep her head slightly lowered, and blend into the flow of people to pass through the outer area.

But after going deeper inside, she realized that the most terrifying thing here was not the barrier formations or the guards.

It was the silence.

A Succubus pushing a cart passed beside her. The cart held expensive bottles of wine, clean towels, and a tray of steaming meat. A purple bruise around the woman’s wrist had not yet faded, and her fingertips trembled slightly as she tried to keep the glasses from knocking together. She did not look at her injury, nor did she show any sign of pain. It seemed as though the only thing she feared was dropping something.

At the end of the hallway, a door had just opened. Another Succubus stepped out, her face pale, her lips pressed so tightly together that they were nearly bloodless.

A streak of gray ash still clung to the corner of her mouth, while her collar had been pulled crooked, exposing several old and fresh red marks layered over one another. She quickly fixed her hair, accepted a tray of tea from someone else, then left with her head bowed as though nothing had happened.

No one asked whether she was all right.

No one looked at her for longer than a second.

A man in a long robe walked past Velyss. Three Succubi followed behind him carrying things. One held a towel, one carried a bottle of wine, and the last embraced a large box of jewelry. Half a step away, another woman held up a mirror so he could fix his hair. He walked while looking at the mirror, paying no attention to the road and not even bothering to glance at the four people serving him.

The mirror tilted slightly because the woman’s arm had grown tired. The man did not say anything. He merely frowned. The woman immediately went pale, hurriedly raising her arm higher until her fingertips turned white.

Velyss instinctively moved another half step away.

The heavy scent of perfume, cigarette smoke, alcohol, cold food, and the body odor of far too many men living in an enclosed space wound together. It clung to the walls, the carpets, and the hair of the Succubi walking past with their heads lowered, blending into a smell that was sickeningly sweet and rotten enough to upset her stomach.

She pulled her collar higher to cover her nose.

The disgust rose so clearly that Velyss wanted to turn around and leave this place. Not because she had never seen blood, nor because of the wounds on those Succubi. On the battlefield, she had seen people torn apart by monsters, had seen injuries far more horrifying than these.

But here, those women were still alive, still able to walk, still breathing, and yet their eyes looked as though something had been completely drained from them.

They no longer resembled people capable of making their own choices.

They were merely hands meant to carry things, mouths meant to receive orders, bodies placed wherever men needed them.

Disgusting.

The instant Velyss thought that, another image unexpectedly surfaced in her mind.

Erik.

She paused in the middle of the hallway.

The night before, she and Karin had stood outside the villa window for a long time. At that time, she had been even closer to Erik than she was now. She had seen him, heard his voice, sensed his aura, and even smelled the scent of a man that had lingered on Meira’s body when that woman flew out to block their path.

She should have felt disgusted.

The scent of a man on a Succubus should have made her feel just as filthy as what she was smelling here.

But she had not felt that way at all.

Velyss recalled the scene inside the villa. Erik had been surrounded by Succubi powerful enough that any one of them could make many men wary, yet Meira, Elowen, and Laviana did not look at him with empty eyes. No one lowered her head out of fear. No one tried to hide pain in exchange for a cold word of praise.

They approached him willingly.

They smiled.

They called to him in voices so joyful that even Velyss, standing outside the window, could not believe it was fake.

Erik did not smell of suffocatingly strong perfume, stale alcohol, or that arrogant, filthy odor clinging to the men of the Council. In Velyss’s memory, his scent was distinct but clean, carrying a warmth that made one unconsciously want to draw closer rather than move away.

That was why the image of Erik in her mind became beautiful in a way that irritated her.

Not only because of his face or his body.

But because in a world where men viewed Succubi as property, Erik made the women beside him smile as though they had truly been chosen.

The moment that thought appeared, Velyss immediately frowned.

It was only an act.

She forced herself to remember her initial conclusion. A man who treated Succubi too well was not innocent because of it. On the contrary, it made him more dangerous. If he truly used gentleness to make others willingly put on collars, then Erik was more worthy of caution than those who only knew how to wield whips.

But even after reminding herself of that, Velyss could not deny one thing.

When she thought of Erik, she did not feel disgusted.

A Succubus walking ahead turned back after noticing that Velyss had stopped. The woman asked quietly, "Are you unwell?"

Velyss immediately gathered her thoughts and replied calmly, "I am fine."

The other woman did not ask further. In this place, excessive curiosity had never been a good habit. Velyss continued walking, forcing herself to push Erik out of her mind. This was not the time to think about a man she did not yet know well.

After nearly twenty minutes, she had passed through three outer levels. The farther she went, the fewer serving Succubi there were, while the barrier magic grew denser. Velyss did not forcefully break through the barriers.

Whenever she encountered one, she stopped to observe its operating pattern before finding a way around it. When she was forced to deal with guards, she only knocked them unconscious and pulled them into hidden corners, never killing a single Succubus.

At last, Velyss stopped before a narrow corridor behind the main reception area. The path ahead had no signs, but the stone floor was much older than the outer sections, and the magical symbols carved along both walls were unlike those used to protect ordinary property. She reached out and touched the wall very lightly, feeling a chill travel through her fingertips.

It was a seal, and it had many layers.

At the end of the corridor was a black metal door. It was not very large, but the quantity of mana gathered around it told Velyss at once that she had come in the right direction.

Below.

She had only advanced several more meters when the soft sound of wheels rolling came from behind her. Velyss stopped. She did not turn around immediately, instead waiting for a slow voice to reach her.

"I do not remember allowing a Succubus like you to walk around this area."

Velyss let out a quiet breath before turning. A magic chair floated nearly half a meter above the ground as it slowly entered the corridor. The man seated on it was so thin that he was nearly skin and bones. His long white hair hung all the way to the floor of the chair, and his hands rested on the armrests, the curved nails on them unbelievably long. Six Succubi walked around him. Two supported his arms, two held water and towels, while the remaining two merely followed with their heads lowered.

Velyss had read the file, so she recognized him at once.

Zeka, the man who managed the Men’s Council in Silver Moon, the man who called himself God.

Zeka looked her up and down. He did not hurry to summon anyone, nor did he appear overly surprised. His gaze lingered longest on Velyss’s face before he slowly commanded, "Take off your hood."

Velyss did not move.

Zeka narrowed his eyes slightly, and a Succubus standing beside him immediately reminded her anxiously, "The sir has given you an order."

Velyss continued looking directly at Zeka, then unexpectedly lifted a hand to cover her nose.

Zeka fell silent.

The six Succubi around him froze as well.

Velyss said calmly, "Can you stand a little farther away from me?"

The corridor sank into silence. Zeka did not seem to understand her meaning right away, and he asked, "What did you say?"

"Your smell is very unpleasant." Velyss tilted her head slightly, her voice still even as though she were stating an obvious fact.

A Succubus beside him immediately went pale. Two others even unconsciously stepped back, seemingly wanting to prove that they had nothing to do with what Velyss had just said. Zeka did not get angry at once, at least not visibly, but the long nails resting on the armrests slowly curled in.

"Do you know who you are standing before?"

"I do."

"And you still dare speak like that?"

Velyss looked at him and replied naturally, "Knowing who you are does not make the smell disappear."

One of the serving Succubi closed her eyes, clearly not daring to listen any further. Zeka looked at Velyss for a long time, then unexpectedly smiled.

"Interesting."

Velyss did not respond. Her gaze swept past the black metal door at the end of the hallway. It only lasted an instant, but Zeka still saw it. He turned toward it and asked slowly, "Did you come looking for what is below?"

Velyss immediately looked back at him. The slight change in her gaze was enough for Zeka to realize that he had guessed correctly, making the smile on his lips clearer.

"It seems I was right."

Velyss did not deny it. She only asked, "What is below?"

"You came all the way here and you are still asking?"

"I want to hear it from you."

Zeka leaned lightly into his chair, and the two Succubi beside him immediately adjusted the cushion behind his back. He looked at her, his tone indifferent. "You are not qualified."

Velyss shrugged. "Then forget it."

She turned around, not toward the exit but continuing toward the black door. Zeka watched her back, his voice growing deeper. "Stop."

Velyss continued walking.

"I said stop."

A quiet click sounded behind her. Velyss stopped, not because of Zeka’s order but because she recognized that sound. When she turned, she saw a black pen in his hand, shaped very much like the one she had taken at Garrison No. 17.

But the pen in Zeka’s hand was clearly older. Its body was densely carved with tiny symbols, some lines worn down until they had nearly vanished, while a weak red point of light glowed at its tip. The six Succubi around the chair immediately lowered their heads further. One woman even began to tremble.

Zeka observed Velyss, then said, "Kneel."

She remained where she was.

He frowned slightly. "I do not like repeating orders."

"Then do not repeat them," Velyss replied.

For the first time, the displeasure on Zeka’s face was no longer completely hidden. He stared at her, his voice turning colder. "Succubi should know their place."

Velyss smiled faintly. "I do."

"Then kneel."

"My place is not beneath your feet."

The entire corridor immediately fell into a terrifying silence. One of the six Succubi beside Zeka had gone deathly pale, while he slowly raised the pen.

"Women like you always need to be taught a lesson."