Chapter 154 – The Heads of the Ito Household

Chapter 154 – The Heads of the Ito Household

Just one bad thing to deal with after another. I didn't get a chance to rest, not even a full day's worth before the next bomb dropped on me. Why? Just why? I had a feeling my parents were coming, but why couldn't the world just side with me for once and prove me wrong like it always did.

As Mio and I flew home, the wind against my skin and ruffling my hair felt like needles pricking into me. I had the strongest urge to vomit from the nausea building in my stomach.

"You okay?" Mio asked with a worried look.

"Definitely not... Half of me wants to ditch the whole region and move to Okinawa," I said.

"If we're going back to the sea, then you can count me in." She smirked.

As great as that sounded, the other half of me couldn't leave Hatsumi alone. Mio knew that, too. I just needed to face forward as I've always done.

We landed at the front door of my house, and I was already getting cold feet. I sensed three souls within who were undoubtedly my parents and Hatsumi. A thousand different scenarios began playing out in my head.

How should I confront them? In my human or succubus form? Should I go in on the offensive or hear them out? I had no idea. My heart was pounding harder than drums, and the blood in my veins were turning into cold slush.

It wasn't until Mio grabbed my hand that I snapped out of it.

"You aren't going in alone. Hatsumi's also in there, so that makes it a three on two. Good odds if you ask me," Mio said.

I nodded and squeezed her hand, then we pushed open the door together.

The first thing I noticed coming through the door was the extra two pairs of shoes. Both black Armani dress shoes, pristine and without a smudge or tarnish on them. They were completely out of place next to Hatsumi's casual loafers.

When we entered the living room, Hatsumi was sitting on the couch with her hands on her lap and head down. She threw me a concerned glance, which then flicked over to the kitchen. There I saw my parents at last, dressed in the same dark navy blue work suits as the day they left to go overseas years ago.

My father, Masato Ito, was sitting at the kitchen table. He sipped quietly on a cup of tea, but in this silent atmosphere, his gulps rang loudly and painfully in my ears. A man who was clean-shaven to show a powerful jawline as pronounced as his piercing glare behind a light pair of glasses.

Standing with her back to the stove was my mother, Chisato Ito. Her dark brown hair was pulled to a tight ponytail that came down no further than her shoulders. A beauty mark sat just an inch beneath her right eye. Currently, her gaze was fixed at the phone in her hand as she deftly texted away at the speed of a high school girl.

Neither of them, despite being in their 50s, had any wrinkles. Which was a surprise since they both worked high in the accounting ladder for an international medical firm. Metric billions pass through their eyes and fingers via computers. Hatsumi and I only ever suspected we were a wealthy family, but only our parents knew the true number to how much we had.

Yet in spite of how much they earned, it was all a means to achieve something else.

Even though I stood in the middle of the living room as not just a girl but also a succubus, they had little reaction to give.

"Mom, dad... Welcome home," I cautiously greeted them.

My father put his teacup down, the harsh kink from porcelain hitting the plate made me flinch.

"We checked in with your school first before coming home. Your grades started slipping at the beginning of the year, but you pulled it back up in the past few months. According to the principal, it was just enough to snatch a spot at Tsukiji University," he said.

They checked? Students didn't get to know until another two more weeks.

"Th-That's good—"

"No, it's not. You barely scraped by. How is that acceptable?"

A lump lodged in my throat as he narrowed his eyes, expecting an answer.

"Hey, where do you get off? Saeko got into college, didn't she?" Mio chimed in, but her grip tightened from my father shifting his gaze to her.

If I didn't know better, she was afraid.

The lights in the kitchen and living room started flickering. A familiar aura was approaching fast, and I was too slow to warn her not to come with my own.

Selene bursted through the door in a fury, hands bristling with magic and eyes glowing like the moon.

"I will not deign to have Queen Saeko accept your abuse. Parents or not, you will—"

"We will what?" my father asked, slow and calculating. "You're Selene, I take it? Hatsumi told us you are currently occupying our bedroom. Thank you for looking after our children, but from today onwards, you aren't welcome in our home anymore."

My mother turned around to face Selene, too.

"Would you be so kind as to pack your things and find somewhere else to live?" she asked.

Selene balled her trembling hands into fists. "No one orders me around except for the queen. You two need a lesson in manners."

"Selene, don't!" I shouted too late, feeling her aura wrap around my parents.

To our surprise, however, nothing happened.

Even Mio and I were baffled, including Hatsumi who had briefly become a succubus and knew how our magic worked. My parents should not have been able to resist that charm. Yet they did. Very easily, in fact.

Was it just that inconceivable for them?

"We're having a family discussion. Leave," my mother demanded.

The atmosphere had grown so thick, I wasn't even sure Selene could leave.

"It's okay," I told Selene.

"I will be with Yumi if you need me," Selene said, seemingly perturbed.

My parents waited until the door slammed shut before continuing.

"Let's not mince words. Tell us the truth, Saeko. Are you able to transform back into a boy?" my father asked.

"I... can," I answered.

"Then do so," my mother promptly demanded, the strength in her tone offering no room for discussion.

Hatsumi and Mio immediately snapped their gaze at me.

It sounded like a request, but I knew better than to know it was anything but. She always spoke calmly and expected us to obey like good children. When I think about it, I'd never heard her raise her voice. Had no idea what it sounded like. Somehow, that terrified me the most.

Judging by my father's look, he wanted the same thing from me. They wanted me to return to being the obedient son. I could. But...

"That isn't up for discussion!" Hatsumi stood up to confront them. "It's Saeko's choice. Not yours."

"How's that cut from the dagger?" I asked, recalling that he had mentioned it being cursed.

Kana raised the left hand which he cut into the palm. The lateral cut across was almost healed now.

"Doesn't hurt, but... Sometimes I hear things I feel like I shouldn't," he said.

Strange things? Like yokai?

Kana's phone buzzed with a notification.

"I'm sure it's just my imagination. I better get going since I got tutoring in two hours. When I get some time, I'll drop by again and do some housekeeping for you. Not that it looks like you need much," he said, casting a glance across the mostly empty room.

As Kana stood up, I grabbed his hand tightly.

"You're not leaving that easily. Two hours means an hour and half to have sex." I charmed him to lay down.

After having my way with Kana, I sent him on his merry way with a slight limp and sore hips. Returning to my empty apartment suddenly filled me with an inexplicable loneliness.

"I know Mio's coming back, and Kana's open to visit whenever but..." I let my train of thought go unfinished and sigh.

My footsteps echoed loudly in the unfurnished room. We only had a single futon in the corner of the room, not a television, chair, or couch in sight. Aside from our school bags and phones, the dishes on the counter were all the possessions we had. If I wanted to use a computer, I needed to head to school or a library.

I walked into the bathroom and already felt claustrophobic. The shower, toilet, and sink were packed tightly together, and a single large step could cross the length of the bathroom. On the counter, Mio's toothbrush was left outside of our shared cup.

"Come on, Mio." I placed her toothbrush back into the cup to join mine and wiped the counter down.

Heading back into the living room, the rancid and bitter smell of tobacco triggered my gag reflexes. I thought I'd gotten better about it from perfecting my blowjobs. When I glanced out the window, my eyes started to water. A biker gang had taken residence in the parking lot in front of the convenience store below the apartment. They were smoking enough to rival a barbecue.

"Hey, get lost!" I shouted.

"Hahh? You talking to us, bitch?" the gang leader with a giant pompadour yelled back.

"I am, and I said: get lost."

This time, I charmed the group to pick up their things and leave, then shut the window so the room wouldn't smell of tobacco.

Not wanting the place to reek when Mio got back, I turned on the ventilator above the stove—

Only for it to squeak and immediately fail on me.

"Uu... This place is getting worse by the day." I groaned.

My eyes fell to the fridge, then at the box of yakitori on the wall counter that separated the kitchen and living room. Better put that away before it spoils.

When I opened the fridge to put the leftovers away, I was greeted by nothing. Absolutely nothing. Only a couple of pudding and ice cream Mio had bought yesterday.

Living alone was harder than I thought.

Hatsumi normally did all the full-blown grocery shopping, and I supplemented by buying a few things here and there each weekend. Although I didn't need to eat as a succubus, it felt like I already failed living on my own with an empty fridge.

"Get ahold of yourself, Saeko!" I slapped my cheeks with both hands. "I can be independent. Hatsumi raised me after all."

For now, it might do me some good to go to the grocery store and buy some stuff.

I flew into the city and ran into other succubi soaring about. It was a common sight now. Well, relatively speaking. Our numbers were a drop in the ocean compared to the human population, but without the need to hide anymore, they were being more open about their identities. After all, it made having sex with people a lot easier when propositioned by a sex demon.

An unintended problem did exist though...

A spirit was flying by my side. An old, ghostly man dressed in a white robe. The lower half of his body was a misty trail as he followed me.

"Have you seen my daughter?" he asked in a quivering voice.

"Man... I'm a succubus, not an exorcist." I sighed.

At least this sort of thing didn't really scare me anymore.

Spirits and yokai popped out every once in a while. Down below in the streets, they wandered about, pranking the unsuspecting, causing mischief, and stalking people without their knowledge. So far, harmless. Hopefully it stayed that way.

I landed at a big chain grocery store that Hatsumi and I frequented. It had everything. Even a wide selection of foods from foreign countries. Going up and down the aisles, I mostly grabbed ingredients of meals that were easy to make. No need to go big with just Mio—

"That's right. I should surprise her with spicy food. Maybe some mapo tofu tonight," I said to myself.

As I turned the corner, I saw my mother in the checkout line and nearly swallowed my own tongue. I quickly dove back into the aisle, then casted invisibility on myself before peeking out again.

What was going on? Was I dreaming? That was definitely my mother. She didn't go shopping, and she sure as hell didn't cook. It had to be a glitch in the matrix.

"Whatcha hiding around for?"

I spun around to Hana right up in my personal space.

"Shhh!" I put a hand to my lips.

"Oh, okie-dokie!" Hana made herself invisible, and then asked again in a whisper. "What we sneaker-deekers for?"

"My mom is right there." I pointed to the checkout line.

When Hana peeked out with me, she threw her arms in the air to wave.

"Saeko Mama— uwaah!"

I dragged Hana back into the aisle and slapped a hand over her mouth, then forced her into multiple orgasms by constricting my aura around her. The pink-haired trickster's eyes rolled to the back of her head as she came. A trickle of sweat dripped down her thighs, and she plopped to the ground out of breath.

"Uu... Uu... Y-You coulda warned me, chief..." Hana mumbled. "What's up though? I thought you didn't care about 'em, but here you are tailing your mama."

"I... I don't know. I'm just curious, alright?" I sighed out my nose.

"Heh. Curious, huh? It just so happens Sherlock is my middle name. What say we do some investigating?" She grinned.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?"