Dungeon Overlord: Monster Girl Harem!-Chapter 119: Understanding and Compromise

The night was quiet again.

A deceptive, suffocating quiet.

Only the soft creak of wood and canvas as the carriage settled. The whisper of wind rolling over the forest canopy. The faint wet sound of Leonhardt's breath leaving his lungs—still fast, still shallow.

He lay there, shirtless, his pants half-undone and stained, his body marked with her heat.

His cock twitched, even now after climaxing, but he hadn't told her to "stop." Neither did he want her to. And yet… the way she'd fled, the sound in her throat. That small, broken gasp before she vanished—it twisted something inside him that lust couldn't smother.

Leonhardt exhaled again and sat up slowly, pulling his trousers back together and ignoring the swollen mark on his face, or the weak feeling in his legs. His hands moved with a deliberate calm, but the tingle of his skin remained. He couldn't forget the feeling of her lips, the taste of her tongue, and he ached for more.

But what stuck with him most was the way she looked right before leaving; it was a look of fear and horror as if she was afraid of herself.

Above him, he could hear it.

Not clearly; it was just the softest sound, like a bird with broken wings.

A sniffle, a gasp and finally, silence.

Only to repeat after a few moments.

Yet he didn't move or call out.

He didn't want to chase her and cause more damage. What if she lost control again and ended up even more upset when she lost control of her body? Instead, he closed his eyes and reached inward—not to his mana, not to his memories. But to Ifrit.

'What happened, please tell me.'

[Leonhardt... do you know the fable of the succubus race?]

(No? Then, listen closely because the story that most people tell is a lie.)

[The period Zafira is enduring is called a curse, but its true name in the succubi native language is "The Blooming Bride."]

Leonhardt leaned back, slowly recovering as the story of the succubi flowed into his mind in the soft voice of Ifrit. She sounded different from her jovial self, more mature and almost like a mother teaching a child.

Long ago, the Succubi were never meant to form bonds.

They were made to feed, not love.To consume, not belong.

But something changed. A mutation. A curse. Or maybe a miracle.

When a succubus reaches the peak of her maturity—not just in body, but in her desire—she awakens a trait buried deep within her corrupted bloodline.

This is the Crimson Bloom.

It begins not with lust, but with longing—the moment she chooses a man. Not just any man. Not a passing fuck. Not a feed.A mate. A seed-giver. A soul she craves more than food.

Maybe not as romantic to other races, but for a succubus it is both a blessing and a curse because the stronger their blood, the more intense their blooming phase.

Only then does the bloom begin.

But there is a downside... only a pure and untainted succubus can enjoy this pure bond.

The ones who cannot find this person are cursed to a miserable life as they will NEVER get a second chance to bloom as a bride.

[Do you understand so far?]

Leonhardt's eyes closed, and now he forgot his aching body, the screaming pain of his muscles, and he focused on the sound from above, the crying and hurt succubus. He wanted to know more, to understand her suffering, even though he was angry.

(I'll tell you the rest, haha!)

Once awakened, the succubus enters a short but violently potent period for one or two days a month where her instincts override every conscious restraint.

Her body burns for that man, and that man alone.

His scent becomes narcotic.

His seed becomes sacred.

His ejaculation—if absorbed or tasted—amplifies the madness to feverish levels before relieving the succubus once she reaches a sated state.

This chapter is updat𝙚d by freeweɓnovel.cøm.

She may not even remember her actions.

Her mannerisms may shift, and she might speak with a strange, slurred voice with seduction and instinct. The succubus becomes a creature made only to take him and to stop any other females from stealing him. Jealousy, affection and most emotions become extreme in their shifts during this time.

Even powerful succubi, trained for decades in resistance, break during this phase.

And those with stronger, more concentrated demonic blood.

The more noble or ancient the bloodline, the more violently the curse manifests.

"I see..."

Her soft whimpers became calm, no longer sniffling, but her tail seemed to tap the roof from above. What Leon learned shocked him because this meant her feelings for him weren't just his misunderstanding... but from here, it would continue to grow more intense each month until she either became his or was overwhelmed by madness.

(That's the cruel twist, although she becomes faithful and obsessed with that one man... that very obsession during her blooming normally claims the main's life, after draining him dry. Most succubi cannot bear this and choose death or become insane to keep the man alive.)

'I see, it's cruel because the man usually dies.'

Because she probably didn't want to see him... he closed his eyes and became quiet. The communication buzzed as the girl above shifted, the roof clanging as she seemed shocked he called her.

'Zafira.'

[◊ ... ◊]

She didn't respond, but he knew she was there.

Because he could also hear her heartbeat through the link, an erratic and chaotic beat, spiking and dipping, as she remained quiet.

'Don't blame yourself.'

'If I truly didn't want to do it, I could've escaped. I could've pushed you off. I didn't. I chose to stay and even if you were to do that to me a thousand times I won't die.'

This was a white lie.

He learned from this that he needed more mana to grow faster. Otherwise, he would die, but Leonhardt didn't want to make her cry, so he forced himself, convinced himself.

There was a long pause.

Then—

Her reply came, barely a whisper in his mind.

[◊ You didn't choose... Neither did I... but I forced it. Leonhardt, do you think I am stupid? My touch could have killed you. I shouldn't feel this way about my Master, and I cannot explain what to do or why it happened.

◊]

[◊ I'm confused... but now that I've tasted you and acted like some feral beast, your scent and flavour lingers in my mouth. It's driving me mad because I want more. ◊]

He stayed quiet, aware she needed to speak more, to tell him everything as he leaned back and gazed up at the moon, listening to her sniffled words and tears spilling once again with a lovely whimper.

[◊ I told myself I wouldn't. I would wait until I understood the feelings that filled me each day we spent together. But at that moment... I smelled and tasted you, and my body just broke. I didn't want my first time with you to be like that. ◊]

Leonhardt closed his eyes and felt the sorrow and sadness weighing on him like pressure in the air, hovering above him like a thick storm cloud with no lightning left.

'Zafira...'

'I don't care that you're a succubus.'

'You woke up in the end, and I'm strong... no matter how much you drain me I will fight back.'

Her answer was a choked laugh, half-bitter.

[◊ You say that now… but what if I told you my body's still burning? That I can still smell your seed, and it's making me ravenous and wet? That every breath I take is a fight not to jump back down there and swallow the rest of you whole? ◊]

'Then swallow me whole, I will accept you as you are, so don't deny yourself!'

There was silence again.

But it was different.

Her sobs became different, filled with a slight hint of laughter, like a bell mocking him for being stupid, a stupid man with no brains.

Leonhardt's lips curled into a smile... he'd rather her mock him or mistreat him when they first met than cry.

Zafira's tears were scarier than any enemy.

Minutes passed without a word.

The two were separate in body but together in mind while facing the same sky.

[◊ Do you mean that...? ◊]

'Of course, I will wait until you are ready to face everything, but don't hide or feel shame for being a succubus, just like I take pride in being a chimera.'

A bell-like giggle sounded from above.

"Such a fool... making me feel so silly."

A soft voice, barely a whisper from inside the carriage, but it brought calm to Leonhardt's face and allowed him to relax.

Finally, he reached his limit and slipped into a deep sleep.

A fool was better than letting her suffer.

[◊ Thank you...

For not hating me...

For accepting me as I am. ◊]