Reading Between the Lines

Chapter 33: Method

"INCUBUS!"

"I'm sorry, what?" I look at him weirdly. Prashanth can really be so out-of-pocket sometimes. And also, a new creature? How many creatures exist in this world?

"That dumbass proves himself useful for once," he murmurs as he suddenly grabs his Soulstone and rubs it.

"Prashanth, what exactly are you doing?" Tusharika asks in concern when a portal suddenly appears in front of us. On the other side, a beautiful fully white brick house emerges. A large magnolia tree stands on the side, covering the lit windows upstairs.

"I'm doing a couple of errands on the other side," he hints while stepping inside.

"Wait. Is this London? Do you know how dangerous that is? You could get sick with that! And it's literally 2 am over there. Come on, you know how early he sleeps," Tushi tries convincing him. But we know Prashanth. The dude doesn't listen. I wonder who they're talking about.

"Trust me, I know what I'm doing," he finishes before he puts his other foot in, gives a quick bye, and just as quickly as he enters, the gold entrance poofs just as fast.

"Do you know what he's doing?" I look at her in concern, but she just shakes her head in acceptance. "I've known Prashanth for 8 years, and even then, I can still never figure him out."

"What did he say? An incubator?" I'm sorry, that's seriously what I heard. She bursts into laughter as her snorts go haywire, making the sound ring in the entire room as she puts her hands on her knees.

"Is it not an incubator?" she laughs even more. 

"No! No, not an incubator."

"OH! Oh, thank god. What is it then?"

She calms down by taking some large breaths. After wiping some tears away, she starts talking again. "He said, incubus. It's the male version of a succubus, a type of demon."

D-d-d-demon?! How the hell does Prashanth know a demon?

... of course, Prashanth knows demons. After all, he can really be the devil reincarnated.

"Don't worry, not all of them are bad. They're like vampires! Basically, a succubus is a female demon that basically..." I see her face tinging a little pink and she smiles innocently before she continues, "seduces and has sex with people to suck out their life force. Succubi, for a long time, have primarily targeted men. Incubi, their male counterparts, primarily targeted women. But we're in the 21st century, so now it's not that specific anymore. They've changed with the times. But the one thing that's never changed about them is their charm."

"Their charm?"

"Succubi and incubi are known to be extremely attractive. More than average, which says something. When you look at them? Instant "game over". That's how they carry out their job. They're so mysteriously beautiful, it's alluring. And with how rare they are, chances are you'll never see one in your life."

Seriously, how does this guy know these types of people?

"But are they still really bad?"

She shakes her head with a reassuring grin. "Sure, there are some bad ones out there, but there are bad people everywhere. Succubi are no exception. A lot of them don't kill, and a lot of them do. Don't worry. Like I said, they're really rare. You'll probably never meet one in your lifetime," she finishes as I breathe out in relief. Honestly, with how horrible my flirting and overall... experience is, those demons won't even look in my direction. I'm good!

"Well, be prepared to meet your first one."

The gold portal suddenly comes back, and Prashanth steps out casually. But something's different. His arm is still stuck in there as he looks back in annoyance.