Succubi Chapter 173. The Responsible One
"Oh okay," I said despite I didn't understand the concept completely.
That earned me six different expressions across the table.
Rivy looked like she wanted to throw bread at me.
Sera looked like... herself. A lazy cat. With tentacles.
Val looked entertained.
Gladia looked confused but supportive.
Evelyn looked… worried.
And Lilith looked satisfied.
I leaned back in my chair and crossed my arms slowly, staring at the numbers still faintly glowing in the corner of my vision. Five levels. Two skills. All because I had a night of emotional chaos and ego validation.
Which meant…
Technically…
If something made me genuinely happy, validated, acknowledged…
I could get stronger.
That was ridiculous.
That was unfair.
That was extremely on brand.
"Nice Pride demon aesthetics," I muttered under my breath.
Lilith's lips curved slightly.
She had that villainess aura right now. Calm. Elegant. Watching me process like she'd just handed me a cursed inheritance and was waiting to see if I'd use it or break under it.
I glanced at her.
"Do you want to tell me something?" I asked slowly.
She didn't even blink.
"Yes," she said. "Five levels for doing that still feels huge."
Great.
That tone meant emotional damage was incoming.
I rubbed my temples. "Maybe because I'm still weak?" I admitted.
It came out more honest than I meant.
Rivy snorted.
"Or maybe," she said, leaning forward with that unapologetic grin, "because that Pride demon in you was starving."
I blinked.
"Starving?"
The word didn't sit right.
I wasn't starving.
I ate well.
I trained.
I fought.
I survived.
Sera set her fork down gently and leaned her chin on her hand, eyes calm but sharp. "Your human parents favored your sister more than you, right?" she said casually.
The room shifted.
Subtle.
Not dramatic.
But the air got heavier.
I stiffened slightly.
"That's—" I started.
She didn't interrupt. Just waited.
"…It's complicated," I finished.
Sera shrugged lightly.
"Maybe it's subtle," she continued. "Maybe they didn't say it outright. But it still happened."
My jaw tightened.
She wasn't accusing.
She wasn't mocking.
She was stating a hypothesis.
"Your sister could do something and it was cute," Sera went on softly. "You did the same thing and it was expected."
I swallowed.
"That's not—" I started again.
Rivy cut in gently this time.
"You were the big brother."
Val added, voice quiet, "The responsible one."
Gladia nodded slowly. "The one who needed to understand."
The table felt smaller.
The sounds of cutlery faded into background noise.
My chest felt tight, but not in an angry way.
More like something long buried had been nudged awake.
My mom and dad were not bad people.
They weren't cruel.
They just… Expected more from me.
Queenie cried? It was fine. She was just a girl.
Queenie messed up? She was still a child.
I messed up?
I should know better.
I was older.
Stronger.
Smarter.
More responsible.
Subtle.
But constant.
Sera's voice softened. "You craved validation," she said. "But you didn't really get it."
I stared down at my plate.
The honey had pooled slightly on the bread.
I hadn't touched it in a while.
"You worked hard," she continued. "Studied hard. Proved you were more than others."
I exhaled slowly.
That part was true.
I chased excellence like it was oxygen.
Top scores.
Perfect control.
No weakness.
Because if I did well enough…
Maybe someone would say it.
'Nice job, Evan.'
'We're proud of you.'
But it rarely came like that.
It came in practical nods.
Expected.
Standard.
"You wanted to be seen," Val added quietly.
My throat tightened slightly.
Damn them.
Damn their observational skills.
"Your Pride demon instinct was confused," Sera said. "Starved, even."
I laughed weakly. "I'm not that dramatic."
Rivy raised an eyebrow.
"You leveled up five times from being praised and connected to someone," she said. "You are that dramatic."
Evelyn shifted in her chair beside me.
Her fingers were curled lightly around her cup.
She hadn't said anything.
But I could feel her attention on me.
Soft.
Careful.
Sera leaned back. "So when you stayed with us," she continued, "you started getting what you were missing."
Gladia smiled faintly. "We hype you up a lot."
Val nodded. "You lead. We respond."
Rivy smirked. "You show off. We admire."
My lips twitched despite the heaviness in my chest.
That was true.
In this dorm, when I did something impressive, they noticed.
And last night…
Last night wasn't just physical.
It was connection.
Validation.
Like someone looking at me and saying…
'You're enough.'
And meaning it.
Sera's voice dropped slightly.
"Last night was different," she said. "You felt it."
I didn't answer immediately.
But she was right.
I had felt it.
Not just heat.
Not just ego.
Something else.
Recognition.
I looked up slowly.
Evelyn was watching me.
Her expression wasn't embarrassed now.
It was steady.
Concerned.
And a little hopeful.
I smiled faintly. "Yeah," I admitted quietly. "I guess I understand the concept."
Lilith leaned back in her chair, satisfied. "There it is," she murmured.
I rolled my shoulders slightly, trying to shake off the heaviness. "So basically," I said, forcing a lighter tone, "if something makes me genuinely happy, or if someone says 'Nice Evan, good job,' I might just level up?"
Rivy grinned. "Imagine leveling up from compliments."
Val tapped her chin thoughtfully. "That makes you dangerously easy to buff."
Gladia perked up. "So if I say 'Wow Evan you're amazing' right now—"
"Don't you dare," I warned.
Sera smirked lazily. "Careful. We could farm you."
The word farm should not have sounded that ominous.
I leaned back again, exhaling slowly.
Emotionally unstable power battery.
That phrase lingered.
But it didn't feel insulting anymore.
It felt… accurate.
I had been starving.
Not for food.
Not for violence.
For recognition.
For someone to look at me and not just expect strength… but acknowledge it.
And that was terrifying.
Because it meant my power was tied to something soft.
I wasn't as starved as I thought.
Maybe I just hadn't known where to eat.
And that realization…
That quiet, dangerous clarity…
Felt more powerful than any skill notification.
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