Keke left, leaving just the two of them walking side by side.
Ye Lu had no idea how to act, but Xiya, true to her personality, seemed much more at ease, casually bringing up typical girl talk along the way.
Still, Ye Lu had other things on her mind.
She gave vague answers the whole time, distracted.
Every so often, she’d sneak glances around, her attention fixed on the guys passing by in front and behind. Sometimes she even deliberately slowed down.
…
She was too embarrassed to say what she was looking for…
‘I’m being crazy,’ she admitted to herself. Maybe seeing Keke’s behavior earlier had triggered some instinctive jealousy.
So…
Emm…
Basically, she was actually searching for that man.
And she wanted him desperately.
The result was predictable, and disappointing—or should she be disappointed?
Even when they reached the Demon Academy cafeteria, a building as ornate as a villa, she hadn’t caught a single glimpse of the Prince.
Ye Lu thought it shouldn’t be possible. Sure, the male dorms were spread out, and there were many paths.
But logically, as one of the few Celestial Demons in the school—
Standing nearly 1.9 meters tall, with a supermodel’s build, flawless features, an unconscious noble aura, and unique looks—
He should have been very conspicuous in the crowd.
Even with Ye Lu’s rudimentary perception, she could spot him from 500 meters away.
If not, the only explanation, as she suspected, was that he had special permission to live in a single room apart from the dorms.
…
Fine. She gave up. Her tail drooped low.
Defeated…
Helpless…
‘What would I even do if I found him?’
she thought.
‘It’s pointless anyway.’
‘All I want is to see him, just once, out of instinct.’
‘I wouldn’t be able to do anything.’
‘No way I could pretend I didn’t see the road and accidentally bump into him like yesterday, then smoothly… do it again.’
‘And even if I could, would that Celestial Demon assistant, who looked at me with disgust yesterday, really allow it?’
It wasn’t that Ye Lu was putting herself down. She figured that even the Prince himself, who had been intimate with her yesterday, probably didn’t see her as a normal girl.
After all, he’d said those words himself.
Meaning… she was just a toy he’d impulsively decided to try on a whim.
She hadn’t thought that way at the time. She’d just wanted to enjoy it…
And get this humiliation over with as fast as possible. So why did she feel so empty now?
Could it be… this body actually wanted to pursue him?
No, no, absolutely not.
That would be too exhausting.
She’d never even pursued a woman before.
And could she really justify such a degrading act to herself?
Wouldn’t that make her the exact type of succubus she used to hate the most?
…
Xiya accompanied her to the cafeteria entrance, said she had things to do, and left.
Seeing the little notebook Xiya had been holding since morning, Ye Lu understood—she was a diligent discipline committee member, the model student type.
Ye Lu nodded, listened to Xiya’s reminders, and watched her leave, just like when she’d sent off Bell.
Now she stood alone in the flow of people.
So insecure.
Fine, she’d lost even the courage to think by herself.
Lately, whenever she was alone, she felt…
Every step sent a chill through her, yet she couldn’t stay still.
Because that would draw even more attention. So she quickly walked into the cafeteria.
As she entered, a mix of miscellaneous aromas hit her.
Though called a cafeteria, inside it felt more like a grand hall—obsidian pillars, a glass dome, various patterns.
It was as quiet as ever. Students ate peacefully, rarely raising their voices.
Surprisingly, it soothed Ye Lu a lot.
Plus, everything was free.
Feeling her stomach growling with hunger, she followed the flow and moved forward.
If she counted properly, she admitted she’d done well—she hadn’t eaten much in almost two days.
The day before yesterday, focused on the duel, she’d only had breakfast. Yesterday, she didn’t buy the ice cream Keke was holding, stayed in the dorm all day without daring to go out, and only had some of that man’s saliva in the morning…
Thinking about food always made her forget life’s troubles.
As she lined up at her usual window, her steps unconsciously lightened.
But!
Only for a moment…
As she stood in line, a goblin happened to line up behind her, and the man in front was an orc as thick as a wall.
She was sandwiched between them like meat in a bun, unable to move forward or backward.
… This scene felt so familiar.
Back then, Ye Lu could occasionally chat with classmates who approached her, regardless of their identity.
Now…
Even though this goblin was the same one she’d once chatted with about fantasies with women…
For some reason, she instinctively felt repulsed by goblins. She just wanted to get her food quickly and leave.
Then sit in the farthest corner of the cafeteria, hiding from everyone.
Predictably, that plan didn’t work.
“Good morning, Miss Succubus. You look very cute today~ Can we be friends?”
A hoarse, eunuch-like voice came from behind. It sounded polite, elegant, and composed.
But that was all he knew.
These were the exact words Ye Lu, when she was a man pretending to be experienced, had personally taught him.
Ye Lu couldn’t bear to look back. When she did, she saw the goblin’s unabashed stare.
Her skin crawled. She quickly turned around and hugged her chest.
She shot him a disgusted look, silently telling him to stop bothering her; she wasn’t interested in making friends.
‘I really forgot how I even talked to him back then…’
She hated to admit it, but she did discriminate against this race.
Green-skinned goblins.
In recent centuries, a few of them had migrated into the cities, gradually becoming more human-like in appearance.
They learned some manners and basic social skills, completely different from those pointy-nosed dwarf goblins in the wild.
But she still couldn’t see them normally.
Especially since Ye Lu knew how she appeared to others now.
Yeah, she was a succubus. A brainless, big-chested succubus who’d sleep with you if you gave her a little benefit.
A lowly succubus in the eyes of higher races, one you could do whatever you wanted with.
A shameless succubus living a completely casual life.
“That’s so mean… Miss Succubus, why do you give me that look? I’m really hurt. I told you… you’re cute, really. How about we be friends? Let’s go out this weekend.”
“Hey, I’ll let you in on a secret—I’m pretty impressive…”
“Don’t get fooled by my size, I’m not small…”
The annoying voice kept ringing in her ears. Ye Lu couldn’t take it anymore.
The more he talked, the more he assumed she was just a casual succubus.
Using cheap tricks to harass everyone.
Ye Lu really regretted teaching him to be bold in pursuing women. Wasn’t this just causing harm?
And who would’ve thought… it would backfire on her?
So annoying.
Ye Lu resolved to ignore him, but every second in line was torture.
The wicked goblin, however, didn’t think that way. He intensified his efforts, almost touching her a few times, only to be glared back sharply by Ye Lu.
Undeniably…
She felt a primal fear.
For the first time, Ye Lu experienced this kind of helplessness as a woman.
And it was completely different from the feeling with the Prince…
Both were men, both were beings she’d never imagined contacting.
But the feeling was entirely different. She genuinely hated goblins from the bottom of her heart.
Maybe… it was a model issue?
Or behavior…
After all, the Prince’s every move exuded untouchable authority. His looks were handsome—sturdy with a touch of femininity, even admirable to other men.
Even when touching him, it didn’t instantly make her feel disgusted.
Instead, seeing his face, which seemed indifferent to bumping into her, felt warm.
Goblins were completely different. Most of the harassment incidents in school were caused by goblins.
She’d seen helpless girls being bullied many times.
The root cause was the personality differences between mixed races.
These goblins—even if the school tried to manage them, they couldn’t control everyone.
Expel one, another comes.
Some even ambushed female students on their way back to the dorms after late-night self-study.
Then… tied them up, gagged them, dragged them into the small woods.
The next day, they’d be drugged, and no one knew what happened—even the girls couldn’t remember clearly.
…
Finally, it was her turn to get food.
Fortunately, she knew a bit about the goblin behind her.
He was just a cowardly shut-in trying to get his first experience, completely lacking self-awareness, so he didn’t dare go further.
Ye Lu leaned on the counter and looked.
Today, there were again hundreds of fancy dishes.
Normally, she’d deliberate carefully. Now, she had no time.
She ordered a random mushroom and shiitake rice bowl, added a small drink, and grabbed her tray hastily.
Looking back, she saw the goblin busy getting his food, not looking her way.
She sped up and finally sat in the most secluded corner.
She gently placed the mushroom rice bowl on the table and was about to sit casually.
Ssss~
So cold!
Blushing with shame, she clutched her skirt, which spread out like a flower.
She stood up, watched how other girls sat, then clumsily smoothed her skirt.
She carefully tucked it under her before sitting down. Sure enough, she didn’t feel the cold seat on her butt.
In this regard… women’s clothing was still so insecure…
Not as good as pants.
Huh?
Wait!
She hadn’t even settled in her seat when she saw the wicked goblin, wearing a gentlemanly facade, carrying his tray and walking toward her with a smile.
For some reason, she pinched her spoon. She wanted to run, but didn’t know if she should. She was at a loss.
“Ye Lu? You’re Ye Lu, right? The man I defeated.”
A sudden voice appeared beside her from nowhere.
Ye Lu looked up.
A sharply defined, dark-skinned face came into view.
He had horns like hers, and his impatient expression suggested he’d been looking for her for a while.
She turned back nervously to look at the wicked goblin, who had already vanished upon seeing this man.
As she breathed a sigh of relief, she suddenly felt something off.
What…
This face was so familiar.
Oh… it was that Young Master Succubus, even more despicable than the goblin.
I see…
Ye Lu squinted, instantly shifting her attitude.
Though this man had indirectly saved her, he was also an accomplice in turning her into a woman. Naturally, she felt no goodwill.
“Oh, I’m Ye Lu. What do you want? Another duel? Or… do you regret it and want to become a woman?”