A hundred metres down the road, I stopped in front of one of the rare painted buildings. The buildings near the entrances were often neglected as various fights took place in this area. The only exception was the Healing Temple, my next destination.
Aside from the small medical centres and private healers, the Healing Temple was the only place the residents of the tower could go to for healing. It was a powerful institution, backed by the divinity of the Healing element; at least one temple was built in each city.
There was already a long line of patients waiting to be treated by the healers. Some came because of injuries, others just for a basic check-up. I lined up quietly under the curious eyes of the patients. My unusual physical appearance raised many questions but the residents of the tower usually kept to themselves. I was prepared to use the same excuse of being a Lycan to explain my presence.
Fortunately, no questions were asked. People generally avoided confrontations, especially in the vicinity of the Healing Temple. There were about twenty creatures lining up and at the rate the queue was moving, it would take about twenty minutes for my turn.
My eyes fell on the small silhouette of the child-like creature in front of me. It was an Everyoung; a human-like creature with the appearance of a eight year old child. It was this race’s mature form and the purer the bloodline, the younger they looked. The leaders of this race even had the appearance of babies with oversized heads and were unable to perform many day-to-day tasks with their tiny body. However, to compensate for their lack of physical mobility and strength, Everyoungs were given exceptional psychic abilities. They were espers and had naturally high affinity with the Psychic element. The presence of the Everyoung forced me to keep a clear mind as I was currently defenceless against Mind Reading.
Further ahead, I saw a Tauren, snorting loudly and impatiently tapping his hoofs on the ground, producing small clouds of dust. Taurens were large and muscular bipedal creatures with a bovine appearance. They were rather well-known for their short temper and occasional flare-up.
As I was sizing up the patients in front of me, I heard someone joining the line behind me. I did not mind it at first but soon felt something poking against my legs. I ignored it, thinking that it was just a coincidence but the poking continued and even intensified.
“Who?” I looked down and noticed a slim long tail with a pointy end wrapping around my legs. I glanced behind me and saw a beautiful woman smiling seductively. She stood merely a few centimetres behind me and purposedly breathed close to my neck. She had the appearance of a human except for her dark shiny pair of horns and her abnormal dark grey skin.
‘A Succubus?’ I was taken by surprise and instinctively took a step back.
“Hello, handsome. What brings you to the Healing Temple?” Her voice was sweet and entrancing. She seemed to be sizing me up and showed no shame as her long tail wrapped around my right leg playfully.
My heart started racing as my breath became more erratic. I instinctively knew that I was under the effect of the succubus’ inherent ability, Charm. The Succubi were an all female race that relied on consuming other races’ essence to reproduce and develop. As a result, they were gifted in the art of seduction and to top it off, could release a large variety of pheromones that could distract someone’s attention or increase their own appeal.
I cursed internally. Why did I have to encounter a succubus so early? And why could she not just line up quietly like all the other patients?
She ticked all the boxes of an objectively attractive woman. She had a slim hourglass body, a long and slender pair of legs and a beautiful face. She did not wear any accessories or make-up; the succubi prided themselves in their natural beauty and their ability to modify their appearance to suit the taste of their partners.
My mouth felt dry as my heart sank. Contrary to one’s expectations, mating with a succubus was not a life-threatening situation unless the succubus explicitly tried to take her mate’s life. The succubi built up a massive business centred around their ability to pleasure males and were able to develop as a powerful race thanks to it. At the end of the day, the true intentions of the succubus were unknown and if she aimed for my life, she could easy kill me without me ever noticing.
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I entered Tussock for less than ten minutes and have already been acoasted by a succubus. The whole situation was rather unusual. However, how could I fight back against the succubus? I was only a first circle creature; if she wanted to kill me, she could do so with the flick of a finger and no one would bat an eye.
I forced out a polite smile. “I am here to join the Healing Temple.”
“Oh? And I thought you were here to have a good time. How about coming with me inside the Healing Temple? I know a few people who can help you pass the interview process fairly quickly.” The Succubus said while leaning forward ever so slightly.
I took another step back and at the same time, noticed how the crowd’s attention was focused on us. I clicked my tongue in annoyance as I was forced to keep a clear mind. “Thank you but I will have to refuse this offer. I would like to give it a honest try first.” I could feel my cheeks heating up but did my best to suppress the effect of her Charm. I interacted with many succubi in my past life and could more or less resist their temptation.
“Very admirable. You raise my interest even more.” The Succubus said with a glint in her eyes. “Since you are confident in your skills, I am sure you will pass the interview process. How about we meet up afterward to celebrate it then? Or even if you are unlucky, I can be your consolation prize.”
“Ehhh” I awkwardly averted my gaze and looked for an excuse to get out of this situation. The succubus was as straight forward as I expected her to be. I somehow piqued her interest despite my unkept dishevelled appearance. “Oh, the line has moved up, I should quickly go and not stand in the middle of the road like this.”
The succubus shifted her gaze and after a few uncomfortable seconds, retracted her tail. I left hurriedly but could only walk a few metres before once again facing the Everyoung’s back. The line was moving relatively quickly but there were still seven people in front of me. I could only run so far from the succubus and it only took a moment for her to once again invade my private space.
“Are you scared of me? I feel like you are trying to avoid me?” The succubus did not give up. I felt a chill run down my spine but in the end, could only bitterly turn toward her once again.
“I am just not used to being approached by such a beautiful woman. I am a bit uncomfortable, especially in public like this…” It was the only excuse I could come up with on the spot. I could not risk offending her. At the same time, her Charm was slowly starting to affect me.
She chuckled in response. “You are just a bit shy. Don’t worry, we can talk it out in a private room. I also don’t usually approach people like that but there is a strange but attractive smell around you.” She licked her lips, like a predator hungrily looking at its prey. “You are not a virgin but you kept to yourself for at least a month. Just the type I prefer.”
“Ehhh…” She completely ignored my discomfort and continued to push forward. The next few minutes were the longest and most uncomfortable ones of my life. One would think that being approached by an attractive woman was a desirable position but not in this situation; I was getting a lot of unnecessary attention. Even my encounter with the Seraph was not as distressing as this one. I was starting to question whether I made the right choice in coming here.
The Succubus constantly inquired about my situation; where I came from and why I decided to become a healer. I carefully worded my answers, giving her just enough information to keep her at bay. She did not fall for any of my attempts at diverting the conversation toward her; the only things I learned about her was that she was not affiliated with the Healing Temple but had many acquaintances inside that she came to visit.
Eventually, my turn came and I hurriedly stepped into the Healing Temple as soon as the attendant at the entrance allowed me inside. I heaved a sigh of relief as I finally put some distance between the succubus and me. I did not even look back, afraid that she would cling onto me.
“Good afternoon. What brings you to the Healing Temple?” The attendant asked politely with a calm and stoic attitude. Even though he had long noticed my distress with the succubus, he never intervened and let me suffer in silence. The attendant wore a plain white robe with the crest of the Healing Temple as its only decoration. He stood at the very bottom of the ladder and chances were that he would remain as an attendant for the rest of his life.
“I am here to join the Healing Temple. I have the Healing element and have already advanced to the first circle.” As I spoke, I activated Heal to demonstrate my ability. I aimed the spell at my swollen and bleeding lips. The best solution to counter the effects of Charm and keep a clear mind was pain. I bit down on my lips as discreetly as possible, forcing my body to overload my nerves with pain signals.
Under the eyes of the attendant, the bleeding stopped and the pain disappeared. “Impressive. You want to join us? That’s great, the number of healers have been steadily decreasing over the years. Please follow me. I will let you speak with the person in charge of recruitment.”
I followed behind the attendant in silence under the curious eyes of the patients. Many eyebrows were raised as in the eyes of the patients, I was skipping the line and getting to speak with the healers directly.
Another attendant soon came to replace the first one after we left the entrance. This attendant bitterly smiled as he recognised the guest he needed to attend to. “Good afternoon, Miss Keera. Are you here to look for your sister?”
The succubus swung her tail excitedly, her eyes lingered in the direction the first attendant and I took. “Yes. I initially came to have a chat with her but I may have found something very interesting.”