~~~九~~~

~~~欲望花粉~~~

Upon arriving at the town that sent in the request for help, Dàoyì immediately noticed that it was quite large and rich. It could have been comparable to the capital city if not for the dry air and hard ground that wasn't suitable for growing most kinds of plants. The group noticed multiple succulents being grown on the sides of the roads instead of bushes or trees, but it was still beautiful despite being unfamiliar to them.

When the carriages stopped in front of the inn that the princess had booked ahead of time she brought the fox mask up to her face. As soon as she finished tying it into place she said, "According to our reports, most of the attacks and disappearances happen in the red light district so we should go there after getting settled in." The carriage door opened. "Don't forget to stay low-key about this. I had you change out of your school uniforms for a reason."

The inn they were staying at was quite large even though it wasn't the most luxurious in the town. The ravenette had chosen carefully so that the group would still have some comfort while still remaining somewhat incognito. She would have gotten an inn closer to where they would be investigating, but it made her feel uneasy to stay near potential danger while having to watch over such a team of students. If she were going on a mission with other mages around her level, then she would have no problem with it.

There were two rooms that the mages were staying in. The first was the room for the three women and the room right across from them was for the men. Once everyone had settled in, they all met up downstairs and gathered around one of the tables in the back corner to eat their dinner.

In between the whispered planning of how they would go about their mission, Mizuki complained about how loud his roommates were. This earned him a smack on the back of his head from the wielder of the Hell Hound Astral Spirit, almost causing a fight to break out if not for the House Leader and Soul Maiden restricting them.

"Aish, none of you have changed a single bit since first year," huffed Ageha as she brought a bite of her meal up to her mouth. She then washed it down with some water before shaking her head. "A lot of your petty fights in public have almost gotten us into deep trouble, you know?"

"Hmph, you say that as if you haven't taken part in any of those said fights before," scoffed the male wearing a loose blouse and high-waisted pants. He then picked up his chopsticks and began picking at his plate. "Or have you forgotten that five month punishment you were put on in second year?"

"Exactly, in second year. That was so long ago," the pink-haired female retorted as she shook her head. She then stuck her tongue out at her classmate before continuing, "I've grown as a person since then, but you boys remain the same."

Xuělián let out a sigh as she continued to eat with her mask partially lifted up. She shook her head as the shouting across the table started again, already used to the noise when it came to her diverse population of students. She could practically feel the amusement coming from the exchange student sitting to her right and let out a silent chuckle.

'I'm glad no one else is sitting in this area because I really don't feel like telling them to act like normal people right now,' the woman thought as she swallowed a spoonful of soup. It was similar to the hot and sour soup she would order from Chinese restaurants in her previous world and remained one of her favorite foods. 'They are so much worse than all of the brass and drumline combined.'

The moment she tuned back into the conversation, the ravenette noticed that almost all of them were yelling now. Shaking her head she then tapped on her sworn brother's shoulder. "Dàoyì, they're too preoccupied," she whispered while placing her mask back on properly. "If you're finished with your food we can go out and take a walk now."

"I think that would be for the best," he replied before the both of them slipped away from the table unnoticed. He had learned through keen observation that it was best to stay out of the way when his seniors began to argue.

Once they had made their way out of the inn, the pair began walking around the town and taking in the sights. Even though she had lived in the empire for almost a decade, the Seventh Princess had not been to Wǔyè yet. It reminded her of the Asian district of San Diego with bright, multi-colored lights made by magic instead of neons and LEDs.

"So, you wanted to know what Captain Johnathan and I were talking about that night, right?" she remembered as they passed by a seafood restaurant. The decorations outside of the building had faintly reminded her of what she saw on the ship.

"Yes, you were talking down there for quite some time," her companion replied as his eyes flicked down to her. He stood to her right as they wandered the streets. "I doubt it would take as long as it did to talk out negotiations as simple as what you explained to us."

"Do you remember at my birthday banquet how I told you that I was from another world?" the female started after a few moments of silence. Her head turned so that the full fox mask was in complete view of the male, earning a small nod and hum in return. "Well, the captain is a transmigrator as well. He's from a country in my world called France."

She let out a small chuckle before continuing, "It's one of the safest places in the world, but he still managed to die in such a ridiculous way." The woman then reached out for the male's hand. "I actually was thinking about going to college there since it was cheaper than my home country, but that plan went out the window once I graduated high school."

"Why is that?" the man questioned as they approached a large fountain. He didn't hesitate to hold her hand as firmly as she held his. "If it would have been more beneficial for you, you should have done it."

It became silent as the princess turned to face forward again. With the mask on, it was impossible to tell what she was thinking, but her companion didn't need to figure it out on his own because of her next words.

"Because I was a weak-willed hypocrite," the ravenette spat as her free hand clenched into a fist. She didn't miss the way her grip tightened on her friend's hand and quickly relaxed before he could question it. "Mina Von Astra was a being who was too afraid of change so she refused to take her chances while encouraging others to do what she couldn't."

They stopped at the base of the fountain with the adopted royal leaning forward to stick her hand into the cool water. She then let out a sigh before saying, "My cowardice was one of the main things I hated about myself, but I was given another chance here and I refuse to remain useless." She squeezed the male's hand once before turning to take both of his hands in her own. "This time, as Dōng Xuělián, I will live as I want with no one holding me back."

By the time the two returned to the inn, the others in their group had already retreated back to their rooms so they decided to do the same. As soon as they reached the hall of the rooms they bid each other a good night before entering.

"Ah, Shidì, how was your little stroll with Her Highness?" mused a higher pitched voice as soon as the student closed the door behind him. Laying on his stomach, kicking his feet back and forth in the air while his chin was supported on his palm was Mizuki who wore a knowing smirk on his face.

The other two males were sitting on their beds with similar looks on their faces, though it was harder to see on the wind mage. This earned a small scoff from the male with the lowest level of spiritual energy as he moved to his own bed to get ready for sleep.

"You're actually quite lucky, you know?" Kaze commented once his junior sat at the edge of their bed. His own was right next to it so he didn't have to raise his voice in order to be heard. "Out of all of the men that are vying for her attention, she personally dotes on the one that came from an empire we were once at war with."

"There's no need to get hissy because of a past crush, Kaze," Ryota commented as he plopped down on his own bed. He was looking straight up with his hands supporting the back of his neck. "None of us stood a chance of being with her anyway."

Dàoyì choked on his breath before his head snapped over to his roommates who nodded along. Blue eyes were open wide as they flicked from person to person. "Are you meaning to say that all of you harbor feelings for Lián-mei?"

"We all did at some point; I mean, who wouldn't feel something for the one person who decided to accept us amongst all those who cast us to the side or wanted to erase us from existence?" Mizuki replied without looking up. His eyes were focused on his hands as he shaped his nails with a glass file. "But... that was a long time ago."

"Yeah, we came to understand that she wouldn't see us as more than friends and that's fine," the wind mage shrugged. "It's her life and her decision, but I still won't hesitate to cut someone if they mess with her."

"Agreed," chimed the two other seniors without missing a beat. They've long accepted their place in the princess' life as just friends after hearing her talk about a close companion she had in the past. Her whole energy would shift and her expression would soften as she would go on about how great he was.

When morning came, the group of seven split up to explore the city and gather information on the demon attacks. Due to the city's large size, each of them decided to go off on their own and meet back up for lunch to discuss their findings.

As Xuělián began to explore her designated area, she turned her nose up when she caught a certain scent drifting by on a dry breeze. It was sweet with a hint of lavender and hibiscus, but it reeked of demonic essence. It was a bit dulled down by the mask covering her face, but it was still there.

The woman ended up following the scent all the way to the Red Light District, much to her own displeasure. Most of the establishments were still closed at the time, but the scent was definitely getting stronger. It continued to grow to an almost unbearable point until she found herself standing in front of a certain building.

'Fúróng Pavilion,' she thought while looking up at the flourished lettering on the sign. From the name and decorations, she could easily determine that the building was a brothel. 'God dammit. We're dealing with sex demons, aren't we?'

Just as the woman turned back to leave and meet up with the rest of her group she heard a small creak but paid no attention to it. She was well aware of the eyes that watched from the second floor window as she walked away.

Their meeting place ended up being one of the larger restaurants with a covered, open-air eating area on the top floor. As the first one to arrive, Tsukiyo took the initiative and rented out the whole top floor for a few hours so they could speak in private.

Once everyone else arrived, they chose to sit at a table that was right next to a window and ordered their food. While their choice in location allowed them a vantage point, it would be easy for others to listen in if they tried so they had to keep their voices down.

"So from what we gathered, it would be pretty easy to say that what we're dealing with are incubus and succubus," the noiret stated with a nod. In his right hand was a pair of chopsticks as everyone went around saying what they had found.

"That checks out with all of the victims being last seen in the red light district and having gone through puberty," the ice mage agreed after taking a sip of her tea. She then let out a sigh before shaking her head. "But that also makes things more complicated since we don't know how old they are."

"Yeah, if I had known exactly what kind of demons we were dealing with, then I would have chosen different people for this," the princess sighed before taking a sip of her soup. She was sitting closest to the window so she only lifted the mask up enough so that her mouth was visible. "The only ones here who have a natural resistance to charm magic are Ageha and me."

Before anyone else could say anything, Mizuki let out a hum and held out his hand. He then swallowed what food he had in his mouth before saying, "Don't send us back yet, Your Highness." The man then picked up his cup and swirled it before taking a sip. "Let's just see how the first sweep goes tonight and if you deem it unsafe for us after that, we'll do as you say."

"Yeah, that seems fair," added the brunet as he turned to the younger female with a large smile. He hadn't even given her a chance to open his mouth before he spoke. "It isn't like we haven't fought demons like them before."

The others displayed their agreements before turning to their senior by ranking before she locked eyes with the male sitting across from him and let out a sigh. The look in his eyes was pleading. It wasn't something she could say no to.

"Fine!" the woman huffed before stealing a piece of meat from the blue haired male's plate and stuffing it into her mouth. She quickly chewed and swallowed before slipping her mask back into place. "But if anything happens, I will personally beat you up before sending you back!"

With her decision out in the open, the rest of the meal passed without much more talk of what would happen. They had all known the female long enough to know how she went about these kinds of missions. The first night was generally just a first sweep of enemy territory with the following day being spent on making plans of attack. They would follow through on the day after that or whenever they determined most suitable for the situation.

When the sun finally set, they all gathered at the entrance of the inn and began heading over to the red light district together. Now that they had spent the whole day in the town, the Seventh Princess noticed that the demonic scent was everywhere, even if it was faint. By the time they stood in front of the Fúróng Pavilion, she was cringing from behind her mask at how strong it was.

"Lián-mei, are you sure you want to go in?" whispered a familiar voice from her right. Dàoyì looked down at the still masked female in concern as he knew how these kinds of places were. He did not want her near this place at all. "This place is..."

"As much as it embarrasses me to admit, this isn't the first time I've been to a brothel, Dào-gē," she replied silently, pulling a cough from him as they entered. Her eyes flicked from side to side from underneath her mask. Almost all of the workers were drenched in a demonic stench, both male and female. "Age doesn't matter for things like this in an adventurer's guild. You'll do whatever it takes to get the job done and get paid."

From how quiet the others were as they were all led to an indoor balcony that looked over the stage, it was safe to say that they had made the same observation. Their eyes flicked up once the hostess had left before the Spirit House representative spoke up.

"This entire establishment is full of them," she muttered under her breath, but everyone at the table heard her clearly. There was music that flooded the rest of the main area as dancers started coming up on stage. "This is bad. Can anyone tell how old they are?"

It was a round of negative answers before all heads were turned to the adopted royal once more. She merely shook her head before saying, "It's almost impossible to tell this kind of demon's age from their physical forms since they can change it." She was sitting up straight in her seat as her fingers drummed on the wooden table. "We can only wait until one of them starts using their magic to find out, so stay diligent and focus your spiritual energy on protecting yourself right now."

"But won't they notice if there's a sudden surge of power from one area?" Kaze questioned without looking at her. His eyes were locked onto the stage as not to look too suspicious. "This place looks like it's filled with nothing but average people."

"They won't notice if you keep the veil around yourself thin," the ravenette responded almost immediately. Purple eyes flicked over to where the stairs were upon hearing something come closer. "It's normal for energy to naturally flare up in a place like this, so we'll be fine as long as you don't overdo it."

As soon as she finished speaking a group of professional lovers came up the stairs and greeted them. There were six of them in total, three men and three women who were all dressed in bright, silky soft robes. Each one was undeniably attractive as one might expect from a sex demon and the princess couldn't help but internally compare them to figures from her previous life.

'God fucking dammit, I know they have to be attractive, but why do they have to look like the actors from the Asian dramas I always watched?!' she thought, tensing as one of the male demons sat next to her. He had soft features and long, dark hair that fell freely around his face, aka, the exact kind of person she would have been attracted to. 'Nope! Fuck this! Dào-gē, save me!'

"Ah, it seems we have quite a mysterious visitor joining us tonight," he mused with a smooth voice. Dark brown, almost black, eyes didn't miss the way she tensed as he leaned in closer. "Isn't the mask uncomfortable, Miss? Why don't you take it off?"

The blue haired male bit his lip as he watched the interaction, completely ignoring the woman who was trying to get his attention before she eventually huffed and moved on to one of the others. He knew that he shouldn't do anything before it was deemed necessary, but the sight made his blood boil.

"I wouldn't dare... My mask isn't uncomfortable at all," the woman eventually replied in an even tone. Her voice ended up coming out softer than she would have liked, but she was just happy she didn't stutter. "My face is scarred so how can I show it when I'm surrounded by all these beauties."

"Who says you aren't beautiful just because of a scar?" the male questioned as he wrapped an arm around her and used his free hand to turn her face towards him. The mask still stayed in place, but the transmigrator's heart pounded anyway. It felt like he could see straight through her even without using any magic. "They're an idiot."

'Fucking shit! I can literally kill shit with a straight face but being this close to a stranger still makes my anxiety skyrocket?!' Xuělián internally screamed before playfully pushing the male away with a giggle. The nails of her left hand that were hidden underneath the table in front of them dug into her palm as she looked back up. 'I hate this so much! Just reveal yourselves already!'

There were about five more minutes of conversation before their attention was drawn back to the stage with a cymbal roll. Fog flooded the stage as the sound of a zither filled the hall. Some more notes were played before the fog began to dissipate and a woman was revealed to be sitting at the seven-stringed instrument.

All of her dark hair was done up and a purple hibiscus was painted onto her forehead to mark her as a member of the Fúróng Pavilion. She wore a pink and green hanfu with light pink chiffon draped over her arms as her hands danced over the strings. When she finally opened her mouth to begin singing, her head craned up to reveal glowing pink eyes.

Dàoyì let out a silent huff as he was hit with a sudden pressure that momentarily knocked the breath out of him. He felt dizzy and as he continued to look down at the woman, her features changed to be a little softer and slightly taller until it was no longer a stranger. It was Xuělián sitting down on the stage with her delicate fingers plucking and strumming the hairs of the zither.

Her eyes scanned over all of the customers in the building before stopping on the foreign male on the balcony. Upon meeting his gaze, her smile grew larger as she blinked slower and her voice seemed to echo in his head.

'Oh fuck,' the ravenette thought as an immediate wave of demonic energy washed over them. It felt similar to a small pressure building in her chest and head, but to one who had a natural resistance to this kind of magic, she shouldn't have felt it at all. 'If I'm even feeling it, then the students are probably struggling.'

Purple eyes flicked over to the side to see they were trying not to make a scene, but their owner could see that it was hard for them to resist the energy with how tense they were. Just as she was about to give her instructions, she had to do a double-take as she noticed a slight hint of pink swirling around in her sworn brother's eyes.

'Oh hell no!' the seventh princess thought as she began gathering spiritual energy in her hands. Her eyes narrowed behind her mask as she gazed down at the woman on stage. 'How dare you touch my Dào-gē?!'

The user of the Azure Dragon Vine was completely zoned out until the unconscious body of one of the women who had come up landed on the table in front of him. He blinked before his eyes focused on the rest of his group who had just begun to relax from their active stances.

"Shidì, are you alright?" Mizuki questioned as he knelt down next to the younger male. His grey eyes searching the other for any residual demonic energy. "We need to leave now, it's too dangerous with our current team set."

"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, shaking his head before his senior took his hand and led him over to the window. It was then thrown open by the ravenette before they began jumping out, one by one, running until they were far enough away from the red light district.

Upon returning to the inn, the group gathered in the females' room first to discuss what happened. Tsukiyo and the boys would definitely be sent back as soon as possible while others would come to fill their places.

"Well, it's a good thing the advisors were so adamant on giving this mission to someone like Er-jie," Xuělián sighed as she slipped her mask off and tossed it onto her bed. There was a frown painted onto her features as she looked at her students. "If this mission was sent out to schools then there would have been a lot of casualties since there was little information given."

"Honestly, I can only imagine what kind of disaster that would lead to," the ice mage sighed as she shook her head. As much as she wanted to participate in this mission, she knew that it would be dangerous for her to do so and she could end up being a liability. "But first thing's first, none of you were charmed. Right?"

Everyone shook their heads, signaling that they were fine but purple eyes lingered on the lowest level member of the group. She knew that he had been affected by the charm spell, but it seemed like he was able to break out of it so she wouldn't bother him too much about it.

The men went back to their room soon after they were finished talking as it was quite late and they were heading back in the morning. They would have at least liked to stay until the replacements arrived, but their senior insisted they leave earlier in case the demons decided to try and track them down. She always had her spiritual energy hidden so she didn't have to worry about being recognized, but the same could not be said for her students.

It was completely silent as the mages laid in their beds. Each one was fast asleep, trying to regain energy for their designated roles the next day; however, one was a bit more restless than the others.

On the far right of the four twin-sized beds in the room, was Dàoyì. His eyelids were twitching as he tossed and turned in his bed. His consciousness was not in the waking world, but ran rampant with his eyes remaining closed.

The male was seated in a large throne of gold that could have easily fit three people at once, cushioned with a pillow of crushed velvet. In front of him was a large, marble hall decorated with deep red drapes to match the seat of the throne.

Before he could question where he was or what was happening, music began to fill the hall, and multiple dancers wearing bright red costumes filed in. The silky tube tops ended just below the bust with straps that rested on their upper arms instead of their shoulders. Hanging low but securely on their hips were poofy harem pants that were made of a red chiffon and lined with matching silk. Almost all of the dancers wore chiffon veils to cover their faces. All but one.

Dancing in the center of the formation was an extremely familiar face. She had long black hair that fell down to the middle of her thighs, skin that resembled the finest porcelain, and expressive eyes that sparkles like amethysts. All of her movements were smooth and full with no tension seen in her body.

The orphaned individual couldn't keep his eyes off of the woman in the center as she never broke eye contact with him, even when she turned. He paid no attention to the others as her form came closer with the music slowly dying off in the background.

"Dào-gē, did you enjoy my dance?" she questioned while leaning forward to gently cup his cheek with a soft hand. Her voice was soft and had a bit of echo to it but the male wasn't focused on that; instead, he was caught in her eyes that seemed to constantly shift from one shade of purple to another.

The faint scent of hibiscus and lavender barely registered in his head as the female moved to rest her legs on either side of his own to sit in his lap. Her arms then shifted to lock around his neck, reaching up to play with his hair before she leaned closer to whisper in his ear. "I made it just for you... You know?"

"Lián-mei?" the blue haired male gasped, tensing as she nuzzled into his neck with her warm breath sending shivers down his spine. He could feel the ghostly touch of her fingers as they trailed down his chest before wrapping around his waist to press herself closer to him.

"Yes?" she hummed in a sultry tone of voice he had never heard from her before. Like her dance, her movements were smooth and graceful as she pulled back for her face to end up right in front of his with their noses barely touching. "Is something wrong, Dào-gē?"

He swallowed before taking a shaky breath and asking, "Lián-mei, what are you doing?" He could feel his heart pounding in his chest as blue eyes flicked down for a moment only to catch himself before shaking his head.

The ravenette shifted back to let out a soft chuckle before leaning forward once more, effectively pressing Dàoyì into the back of the throne. He could feel her breath on his lips as she said, "I'm just showing you how I feel about you." Her eyes began to glow pink and it felt like his mind began to slip. "You'll let me do that for you... Right?"

When morning came, all of the young adults in the female room woke up at around dawn and began getting ready for the day. Soft conversation about various topics flitted about each one of the three as they took turns in the bathroom or helped each other do their hair.

“Man, Mizuki is right!” huffed Ageha as she ran a comb through the Seventh Princess’ hair. The texture was like the finest silk and there were no tangles in it as it shined in the morning light from the window. “Your hair is so nice and you don’t even do anything special to it!”

“Well, both of my birth parents had really nice hair so I guess I have to thank them for that,” she chuckled in reply. They were both stationed in front of a mirror but the younger one wasn’t focused on her reflection. “Both were quite beautiful as well.”

“Hmph, I can only imagine what heavenly beings your parents were to make you,” the pink-haired student muttered before she moved to the female’s left. She then picked out a lock of hair to start her usual braids. “It’s not fair.”

The statement pulled a bright laugh from Xuělián as she tried to refrain from moving too much. Her eyes then flicked over to her companion in the mirror before saying, “Actually, you might find this surprising but I don’t really resemble either of my parents.” Upon seeing the older female’s wide eyes, she continued, “My father had silver hair and grey eyes with lilac undertones while my mother had brown hair and eyes. I’m also quite pale compared to the both of them.”

“Eh? How does that work?” Ageha questioned as she held the finished braid out to the twenty-year-old to hold. She then moved to the other side to start on the second braid. “I’m not sure that’s how genetics are supposed to work. How do you have such different features from your parents?”

The ravenette could only give a shrug in return as she let out a hum. She then cracked all the knuckles on her free hand while saying, “My only guess as to why that happened is magic.”

Before anyone else could say anything, the door to the room burst open to reveal a very panicked Mizuki who only exclaimed, “Something’s wrong with Dàoyì!”

~~~Fin. Chapter 9~~~