Chapter 14

There was no sound.

No sound of a throwing knife hitting flesh, no sound of it hitting armor, no sound of it being deflected by a weapon. There was also no sound of it missing and hitting a tree trunk, a stone, or the ground. The succubus protagonist felt as if her throwing knife had vanished into thin air.

Then, the man appeared.

He made no sound as he crossed through the bushes, no sound as he pushed aside the branches, and no sound as he walked.

The man was wearing a black tuxedo without a single wrinkle, with gold-threaded edges, and beautiful, spotless black leather boots. His collar was a white, turned-down shirt. He had a goatee, wore a monocle, and had a gold ring on his left index finger and right middle finger. He also held a cane.

His face was somewhat narrow, his eyes and eyebrows somewhat long. Ignoring these features that made him appear somewhat sharp and critical, this pale-skinned, well-featured, and long-fingered man could be considered a gentleman, a decent person.

And this gentleman, this decent person, whose name and rank were unknown, and who might not even be a demon, was now holding the throwing knife that the succubus protagonist had thrown.

The throwing knife in his hand almost turned into a flower. He casually and easily manipulated the throwing knife, making it dance on his fingertips, or slightly drop and then catch it steadily, or thrust and slash with only a slight movement of his wrist.

The succubus protagonist swore that in this life and the previous one, she had never seen a person, or a demon, or any other kind of being whose hands were as dexterous as this.

If explained using character templates, he definitely had the Dextrous Hands or even the Perfect Dextrous Hands skill. It was just unknown whether his other hand was as dexterous as his right.

"Quite a nice knife," he said to the succubus protagonist. "How about you give it to me? I think I can use it to peel an apple."

And just like that, this man put on a natural and composed act in front of the succubus protagonist, causing her great psychological pressure. To let this gentleman, this decent person, know who was in charge, the succubus protagonist spoke:

"Do you know, the throwing knife you're playing with so beautifully just burst a coward demon's balls a moment ago."

Upon hearing this, the man's hand trembled, and the throwing knife cut a small wound. Before it hit the ground, the succubus protagonist silently recited a magic incantation and retracted the knife into her knife pouch.

"Of course, because the throwing knife has a small, constant restoration magic, you don't need to worry about that, sir," the succubus protagonist added.

The gentleman's calm and composed smile disappeared for a moment and then reappeared.

He reached into his sleeve and pulled out a handkerchief, then carefully wiped his hand. After that, he threw the handkerchief, which looked quite nice, away. The silk handkerchief, once it left his hand, "poofed" and was burned to ashes by a dark blue flame.

Then, he continued to speak to the succubus protagonist: "Just now, I happened to witness your battle with that group... um, strong people. It was very impressive, very impressive. I couldn't help but applaud."

Hearing this, the succubus protagonist said lightly:

"Just a few scum. I took care of them easily." As she said this, she thought to herself, "This guy changes his expression pretty fast. After such an awkward moment, he can still put on an act, impressive!"

Of course, she only thought this to herself. This guy didn't seem like an easy opponent.

In the Abyss, there were only two possibilities for someone who looked human: one was a very powerful human—only a human with enough strength would dare to act so arrogantly in the Abyss.

The other possibility was that he was a high-ranking demon who knew the transformation spell, and was at least a secondary demon lord. Of course, there were exceptions—like the succubi, who all knew the transformation spell. The succubus protagonist could easily transform into a human form. However, this gentleman definitely didn't look like a succubus.

It could only be one of the two possibilities. And no matter which one it was, the succubus protagonist felt she shouldn't be his enemy. Just from the way he handled the throwing knife, it was clear that she, a mid-level demon with only a second-level profession, was no match for him.

However, the succubus protagonist didn't need to be too afraid of him. If she couldn't fight, she could still run. She had two teleportation scrolls in her dimensional bag. So she could slightly challenge him without being too afraid of him turning on her.

Because she had the confidence, the succubus protagonist wasn't in a hurry to run. She stood quietly in place, waiting to see what he would say.

Hearing the succubus protagonist's light remark about dealing with a few scum, the gentleman chuckled and clapped his hands again:

"Very interesting, really. I haven't seen such an interesting young person in a long time. How about it? Is this your first time here? Are you interested in working for me?"

"Indeed, it is my first time," the succubus protagonist nodded and admitted, "I really am here for the first time. In fact, for a long time after I became a succubus, I wandered in the wilderness. It's been a long time... This time, I didn't expect to come out unintentionally. And before I could be happy, I encountered this situation."

The mysterious gentleman raised an eyebrow, not knowing whether he really believed her or was just pretending to believe her. Then he said to the succubus protagonist, "Oh? That's quite lucky... or unlucky?"

"Luck is on my side, and misfortune... should be on my enemies' side," the succubus protagonist replied.

The mysterious gentleman chuckled again, "So, being your enemy is indeed unfortunate. So, what's your answer?"

"I don't even know who you are, how can I answer?" the succubus protagonist countered.

"Oh, that's my mistake. Allow me to introduce myself," the gentleman said, straightening his back and then placing his hands on his chest, adjusting his collar:

"My name is Syd, a merchant. I run a small business in Narathel."

"Small business?" the succubus protagonist repeated.

"Yes, a small business," the mysterious man, who called himself Syd, said, "I think, from the perspective of the multiverse, any individual is small and weak, isn't that so?"

"You don't seem like a merchant, but more like a philosopher," the succubus protagonist said.

"Yes, my friends say the same," Syd nodded, "So, what's your answer?" He seemed a bit impatient. At the same time, the succubus protagonist noticed that his eyes had a hint of desire.

"Having a skilled male succubus who can help with fights when needed and be used for pleasure when not needed is very convenient, isn't it?" the succubus protagonist said very quickly.

"Right—eh?" Thus, the mysterious gentleman, before he could react, was hooked. The succubus protagonist vaguely heard:

"You successfully used the skill 'Bluff.' Bluff skill +1."

"..." Thus, the gentleman—indeed, he was a gentleman—narrowed his eyes, making them look even smaller.

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