abcnovels
Chapter 245
Chapter 245
Chapter 245
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Kawaii]
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Chapter 245: The Succubus (1)
***
Penelope groaned as she opened her eyes. Despite a long night’s sleep, she still felt a lingering weariness in her body.
“Ugh, I must have overdone it yesterday.”
She muttered and yawned softly.
The previous night, she had joined her classmates from Class 13 for a boisterous feast and revelry at a restaurant sponsored by Damien, their eccentric homeroom tinstructor.
The lingering fatigue refused to dissipate despite her long slumber, a testament to their excessive partying.
As she tried to shake off the grogginess, Penelope realized something startling.
“Wait… where am I?”
She asked aloud, finally noticing that she wasn’t in her dorm room.
The floor was covered in pristine white tiles, and the walls were bare of any decoration.
Unfamiliar tools and objects were scattered about, some draped in white cloths. As Penelope scanned her surroundings, she spotted Oliver was slumbering on the floor.
“Oliver! Oliver!”
She called out and tried to wake him. Oliver stirred groggily, his eyes fluttering open.
“Penelope? What are you doing in my room?”
He mumbled.
“Wake up! This isn’t the dorm!”
“What are you talking about…?”
Oliver was still disoriented.
He looked around the room, his confusion evident on his face.
“Oh, wait. This isn’t my room. Where are we?”
“I don’t know either. But we need to find out.”
Penelope replied, her voice laced with seriousness. Oliver, however, didn’t seem too concerned.
“I see. This must be another one of Sir Damien’s tricks. He must have kidnapped us in the middle of the night.”
Oliver said nonchalantly, getting up from the floor. He wandered around the white room, inspecting the unfamiliar objects.
“Oliver, don’t be so reckless, Why are these things covered in cloth? What’s he hiding?”
Oliver tugged at one of the white cloths, pulling it off abruptly. A bloodcurdling scream pierced the air as he recoiled in horror.
“Ugh, eek! Aaaack!”
Beneath the cloth lay a dissected human body, its organs, brain, and limbs splayed open in a gruesome display.
“W-what is this…?”
Penelope gasped, her eyes wide with shock.
What further horrified them was the fact that the body appeared to be that of a young person, not much older than themselves.
“…”
“…”
They stood there, frozen in silence, the gravity of their situation finally sinking in. They were no longer in a playful prank; they were in real danger.
“P-Penelope… W-we have to escape… We can’t stay here…!.”
Oliver stammered and his voice trembling with fear.
“I know, calm down. But first, we need to find something to defend ourselves with.”
Penelope replied. She was trying to maintain a semblance of composure.
Just then, the door creaked open, the sound of a metal lock was released.
Both Penelope and Oliver turned towards the entrance, their faces grim and determined.
Someone walked through the door and entered. Upon seeing the two people, she spoke with a surprised look.
“Oh my? You’re already awake. I was worried because I used a strong anesthetic, but it looks like you both woke up quickly because you’re healthy.”
As soon as they saw the woman who entered, deep confusion appeared on their faces.
Both of them knew who she was.
“…Miss Miriam?”
The person who came in was Miriam, one of the academy’s staff.
Although they didn’t get along well with most of the staff, they knew about Miriam.
Miriam was the person who was voted the most popular at the academy every year.
“Did you kidnap us, Miss Miriam?”
“I didn’t do it myself, but I gave the order, so I guess you could say that.”
Penelope was bewildered by Miriam’s response.
“Why… Was it on Damien Haksen’s orders?”
“What? Did Damien Haksen ordered?”
Miriam burst out laughing. After laughing in a charming voice for a while, she spoke.
“Of course not. Ah, but he is related to this.”
“What do you mean…?”
“I brought you here to draw in Damien Haksen.”
Penelope and Oliver couldn’t understand Miriam’s words at all.
“You see, I’ve been coveting Damien for a long time. But that man has an exceptionally nasty personality, doesn’t he? I knew he wouldn’t just let himself be captured, so I had to think it over. Then, you two showed up.”
Even as Miriam continued to explain, they couldn’t grasp the situation.
“Among the students in Class 13, Damien has taken a special interest in you two, hasn’t he? I thought you’d make suitable hostages. That’s why I brought you here.”
“Why do you covet Damien Haksen”
“Hmm? Because he’s handsome.”
Miriam said this as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“And he’s strong, too. How could I not desire someone like that?”
It was the first time they experienced such incomprehension in a conversation.
“So, you’re in love with Damien Haksen?”
“In love? Not quite.”
Miriam’s lips curved into a smile. Her eyes narrowed into crescent moons.
With just that, Miriam’s atmosphere changed. Her innocent face now seemed as seductive as a seasoned courtesan’s.
“I want to own everything about him. His body, his mind, and his abilities.”
For some reason, Penelope felt deeply uneasy about Miriam. An instinctive revulsion crawled up her limbs like ants.
“…What do you intend to do with us?”
“Who knows? Honestly, as long as I can have Damien, I don’t need you.”
Penelope felt a slight sense of relief. Perhaps they could return safely.
“I spent a lot of money bringing Damien here. I don’t think I’ll be able to return to the academy anymore.”
Miriam said with a regretful expression.
“It’s very difficult to get high-quality experimental materials like the students of the academy. So it’s a shame to just let you go.”
Miriam added with a sly smile.
“So you’ll have to help me with my experiments.”
Penelope felt a chill run down her spine. She immediately turned to Oliver and shouted,
“Oliver! Find a weapon!”
“…….”
But there was no answer. Penelope looked at Oliver in confusion.
Oliver was staring at Miriam, lost in thought. He was so engrossed that he didn’t even realize that saliva was dripping from his mouth.
“Oliver!”
Penelope grabbed Oliver’s shoulder and shook him vigorously. But Oliver still couldn’t come to his senses.
“Don’t say anything too harsh. It’s a normal reaction for a man.”
“W-what are you doing…”
“I haven’t done anything dangerous. I just sprayed this fragrance.”
Miriam swept her long hair back. Then, a fragrance like flowers wafted through the air.
The moment they smelled the fragrance, Penelope’s heart started racing.
She couldn’t take her eyes off Miriam. No, she didn’t want to take her eyes off her. She wanted to run up to her and hug her right now. She wanted to give Miriam everything she had.
“Ah… ah… ugh…”
Resistance? She didn’t even think about it. At this moment, they only craved Miriam’s attention.
“Your names were Penelope and Oliver, right?”
Just being called by her name made her heart beat even faster.
“There’s an empty lab bench over there. Can you go up there?”
Even though she knew she shouldn’t, Penelope and Oliver followed Miriam’s instructions and headed towards the lab bench.
“Yes, that’s good. There’s a scalpel next to you. Use it to cut the tendons in your arms and legs. A lot of people wriggle around in pain during the experiment. If it’s too hard, help each other out, okay?”
Penelope and Oliver grabbed the scalpel. And they brought it to their wrists.
As they applied pressure, the scalpel cut through their skin. They felt a sharp pain, but neither of them cared.
All that mattered now was to follow Miriam’s orders…
Just then.
The ceiling collapsed with a loud crash. Penelope and Oliver were startled by the sound.
“Uh, uh? Why am I doing this?”
“Eek! What is this!”
Thanks to that, the two of them were able to escape Miriam’s orders. They threw down the scalpel. And they looked at the collapsed ceiling with surprised faces.
Someone jumped down from the hole in the ceiling. And landed on the debris piled up on the floor.
The moment they saw the man’s face, tears welled up in Penelope and Oliver’s eyes.
“Sir Damien…!”
A huge sense of relief filled their bodies. Penelope and Oliver ran to Damien and started crying.
But the moment they saw Damien’s face, the two of them couldn’t help but stop in their tracks.
Damien wasn’t looking at them. He was only staring at Miriam.
“I found you.”
A smile spread across Damien’s lips.
It was a ferocious smile, like a predator who had found its prey. His wide-ripped lips and dilated pupils gave him an air of madness.
In that moment, the two of them realized the truth.
Damien hadn’t come to save them. He had come to kill Miriam.
“Penelope, Oliver.”
Damien spoke softly. His voice was thick with barely concealed excitement.
“Escape through the hole I made. Tell everyone at the academy to run away. They’re in danger.”
They needed to say something, anything. But their lips were frozen, and they couldn’t utter a word.
In the end, they couldn’t respond. They just jumped up the hole Damien had made and fled.
“Damien, you’ve finally come!”
As the two students disappeared, Miriam called out to Damien.
“Didn’t the others come with you? It seems they’ve all met their end at your hands.”
Miriam said with a regretful expression.
“It’s unfortunate, but it can’t be helped. At least you’re here. After all, to get what you want, you have to make some sacrifices…”
“Enough.”
Damien cut off Miriam, or rather, Sla’s words.
“You have no idea how happy I am right now.”
Damien drew Dawn. In that moment, an infinite amount of killing intent burst forth from him.
It filled the basement like a flood breaking through a dam.
“I’m going to tear your flesh into a thousand pieces and trample on it all right now.”
***
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Kawaii]