Ethereal Star

Under the brightly shining sun was the city of Ontrith, where thousands of races lived together happily and prospered. The city's atmosphere looked no different from a fantasy; however, that wasn't fully the case; it was just that many were ignorant of that fact.

In the run-down edge of the city, surrounded by two-story, old buildings, was a dark, damp, and eerie alley, completely void of life and unkempt, as if not a single soul had passed through the area in years. But... suddenly, the space warped in a swirling manner before taking its form—it was tantamount to a black hole.

A pleasant-sounding voice permeated the black hole. "That was a bumpy ride. Where am I?"

Emerging from the dark gate, she surveyed her surroundings and quickly made her way out of the alley. Determined, she first set out to gather additional information on her six targets before her hunt began; however, to do that, she'd need to find a well-informed individual of current world affairs, an informant.

More specifically, an informant affiliated with an exclusive organization consisting of informants who secretly gathered information from behind the scenes, yet finding such an organization wasn't easy—she wasn't from this world nor did she know any individuals associated with them.

She'd first have to locate said individual before moving forward with her quest.

~~~

A few minutes later, after Ayla left the alley, a luxuriously dressed young man came to the alley with several others who were dressed as much as him or even more luxuriously than him. Naturally, they didn't fit in, and evidently, they'd have a reason for coming down to a run-down place such as this—they were here to investigate the source of demonic spatial energy.

As they reached the spot, the deep blue-haired man in front squatted where Ayla had previously stepped out from—he'd sensed the lingering traces of the demonic spatial gate.

'What overwhelming demonic energy!' He grew surprised—the energy was at a level even he couldn't fathom. He wondered, 'This is only the lingering traces of demonic energy! Wouldn't that mean the demon was on an even higher level?'

"Princess!" Kai turned and faced the young, wavy-haired, fiery red-haired woman, who was surrounded by guards. Her innocent yellow eyes never left him as a red tint covered her cheeks. She averted her eyes in embarrassment. Obviously, this was a ploy forced on her by her father, the king—her motives were simple: to seduce him.

Expectedly, he'd lost himself to her seduction, and a bulge emerged in his pants below, but his willpower wasn't weak, and he broke out of it instantly.

"Have the security of the capital increase tenfold! This demon isn't something we can easily mess with; we'll have to make prior preparations to ensure our victory!"

Seeing the seriousness on Kai's face, she had no choice but to believe him—he was the hero they summoned from another world to do their bidding, Kai Burgess, the hero of light. Also, her father had earlier said, "Sweetie... I ask you, as my daughter, to obey all his words. It's for our own future."

She was a "Daddy's Girl," who would obey her father and scheme for his benefit, which would equally benefit her.

"Hudson…! You heard him... We need to inform the knights to employ; we need to locate and eliminate this threat to our kingdom."

Hudson, a caramel-brown-haired man with hazel eyes, donning a lightweight but strong set of armor and carrying a single-handed sword on his waist. Bowing his head, he said, "Yes, Princess!"

He, along with a few guards, left to carry out her orders, leaving solely the hero's party, the princess, and the leftover guards who remained to ensure the princess's safety.

Rising to his feet, he dusted his hands off and faced them. "There aren't any clues as to who the demon is! Nor would we find anything from idling here... Let's head back."

Princess, who feigned a bright smile, nodded. In actuality, she despised this place; it was filthy and sickening, and she ought to see any revolting peasants in torn and dirty rags. Her ego truly didn't fit a princess's, but a scheming bitch.

Incapable of finding any more clues and not wasting any more time, when a demon was wandering this "peaceful city," they left the alley and walked back, heading in the direction of the central palace's direction, completely oblivious of the fact that the source of the spatial gate wasn't just any powerful demon...

But a demon goddess, one that has a knack for women, specifically Ayla, who'd stepped out from the gate.

~~~

Walking through the streets, Ayla slowly moved in the direction of the central palace—she was looking for an individual who'd know of or be associated with the organization.

"Move aside, you ungrateful peasants!" A loud male voice came from behind, attracting her attention.

A luxurious carriage could be seen racing in her direction. The voice had come from the carriage driver, shouting at those walking in the middle of the streets. He wasn't anything special, but as the carriage driver of a special individual, it gave him some authority over others.

They kept jumping out of the carriage's way in an effort to avoid being hit, thus clearing a path for the carriage to move forward.

At the moment that the carriage passed Ayla, a sudden thought came to her mind. 'The man in the carriage should have a noble status, which means he should be associated with several families and secret organizations. If not, he should at least have valuable information on such organizations.'

Determined, she blended into the crowd, faded into the shadows, and appeared before a round, middle-aged man with blonde hair and blue eyes. He couldn't stop stuffing his bloated stomach with food.

His eyes widened in surprise, and he dropped the bag of chips in his chubby hand. He was quickly infatuated by her beauty, and as he was about to shout, "Intruder! Capture her," but was quickly shushed by the beautiful, otherworldly woman's slender finger.

"I can't have you doing that! Now tell me all that you know..." A pink glint flashed in her eyes; his eyes resonated with hers, and his body grew stiff as his mind went somewhere else, where his dreams came true, one filled to the brim with lust.

Evidently, the lust was for her, as his mind was stuck in a loop of playing with her lewd body. Naturally, she felt disgusted and pulled back as he started humping the air with bulging pants.

'Seriously? Can't I have a normal Succubus skill, where it doesn't disgust or involve me in doing this?'

The skill in question was the influence skill. Its effects were simple—it allowed the employer to influence the mind and actions of the one it was used on; however, it put them in this state, where their minds entered a lustful dream.

Sighing, she decided to end this quickly. "Tell me everything you know about the secret organizations you're affiliated with."

Like an endless stream of information, the man spilled, "I'm affiliated with four organizations: The Ambition, Ethereal Star, and Nocturnal Wrath!"

"What do they specialize in?"

"The Ambition runs an underground trade of weapons, slaves, drugs, and various other items. Ethereal Star is an information-trading organization where they gather and trade information behind the scenes. Nocturnal Wrath-"

"Stop! Tell me more about Ethereal Star. Where is it located and how do I enter?"

"The branch of Ethereal Star, not far from the Magic Academy, is north of the central palace. Look for the Murky Oak Tavern and convey these words…" He disclosed the secret code for her to enter, and Ayla left—she'd already obtained the answers she needed, leaving the man in his dream.

'He'll break out of it in thirty minutes... confused and especially wet in that area between his crotch. For his disgusting fantasy, he at least deserves some form of humiliation.'

…

Arriving before an inn with the name "Murkey Oak Tavern" carved onto a wooden sign in clear white ink, she entered, finding the place lively with several drinking and enjoying themselves, but that was stopped by her as, as if attracted by a magnet, their eyes were drawn to her.

Oddly enough, they could feel a strong urging and pulling feeling to keep their eyes on her—it was her natural charm, a succubus's charm she'd received after her night with Cynthia.

Ignoring their devious glares, she walked up to the counter and whispered to the receptionist, "A ghost doesn't crawl in sight; it floats in the shadows!"

Surprised, she nearly gasped but was stopped by Ayla, who covered her mouth. "Just lead the way!"

Nodding the receptionist with flushed cheeks led her away after informing Bella to cover for her. Passing a corner, she ran her hand along the dimly lit corner, and with a click, a hidden underground passage was revealed.

"Be careful; it's dark."

In the distance, there lay a white door guarded by two lightly armored men.

"It's a client."

Stepping to the side, the guards let them in, and they found themselves inside a small waiting room with several smaller rooms lining the sides. There were six rooms, labeled "1, 2,... 5," with the last one hidden behind a dark curtain. Ayla's guide led her to the third room and gestured to the seat across from her.

"Please, sit!"

Ayla took her seat and looked around the room. It was modest, just like the waiting room: one table in the center with chairs surrounding it; also, behind where the receptionist sat, in the back wall, there was a fist-sized hole.

'I presume the information is delivered through that hole?'

Ready, the receptionist calmly faced her, almost falling into her entrance, but as a professional in business, she knew how to hide her emotions.

"Now… What information do you desire?"