The Art of Breaking
Lycius's golden eyes lingered on the mission screen, his fingers tapping lightly against its glowing surface.
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[Mission: The Art of Breaking]
Briefing: Power alone does not ensure control. There exist methods—both subtle and brutal—to bend even the most defiant to your will. Learn them. Experiment. There is a book hidden in this palace, a tome of mind-breaking techniques practiced by the Desire Kind—succubi and incubi alike. Find it, study it, and wield its knowledge.
Hint: "Beneath the throne of the fallen queen, where whispers of the broken echo still."
Reward:
Basic Skill: Psychological Warfare (Grants deep insight into mental fortitude, allowing you to dismantle an opponent's confidence with precision.)
Passive Skill: Subjugation Mastery (Your mere presence creates an oppressive aura, making resistance feel futile.)
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Lycius exhaled slowly, his smirk deepening. The art of breaking, huh?
Unlike the other missions, this one called to him. The rewards were useful, but that wasn't what intrigued him the most—it was the knowledge. A method used by the Desire Kind to break the minds of even the most stubborn prey. If he mastered this, then winning over Xylara would be inevitable.
His gaze flickered toward the succubus beneath him. She sat frozen, her silver hair cascading over her shoulders, her soft chest still pressed against his back. Embarrassment radiated off her like a heatwave, and Lycius found himself amused by how little resistance she was actually putting up.
His voice dropped into a smooth murmur. "Brace yourself, Xylara. My dominion over you is right around the corner."
Xylara tensed, her lips parting as if to say something, but no words came. She was far too flustered, the humiliation of having him rest against her proving far too much to handle.
With a lazy stretch, Lycius finally stood, leaving behind the warmth he had selfishly stolen.
As he turned toward the entrance, his sharp eyes met the amused gazes of Lana and Elizabeth. They stood there, arms crossed, watching everything with a knowing smirk.
But their eyes…
Their eyes betrayed something else entirely.
Envy.
A dark, creeping hunger veiled beneath their usual grace.
Lycius cocked his head, intrigued. What exactly are their hidden desires?
A question worth answering.
His smirk widened as he strode toward them. "Well, that's a mystery I'll soon unravel," he mused aloud, his voice carrying a low, confident lilt.
He stepped past them but not before greeting them properly, his tone both arrogant and teasing. "Morning, Mother. Morning, Aunt."
Then, in a deliberately slow drawl, "Hopefully your nights were better than mine."
That caught their attention.
Lana was the first to respond, tilting her head as she gazed at him with motherly concern. "Oh, my sweet boy, did you have a bad night? What could have caused such an unfortunate occurrence?"
Lycius gave an exasperated sigh, shaking his head. "I'm not sure myself. These past few nights, my bed has felt cold… lonely."
The weight of his words hung in the air.
It was a simple statement, an innocent complaint—but its meaning sent a ripple through the room.
A flicker of something dangerous passed through Lana's ruby-red eyes. Elizabeth's smirk deepened ever so slightly.
Lycius, oblivious to the full implications of his words, turned away, already focused on his next goal.
That tome… if it could break Xylara, could it break Mother and Aunt as well?
The thought sent a thrill through him, one that he would eagerly explore soon enough.
Real Soon.
As Lycius exited the chamber, his mind fixated on deciphering the hint given by his mission.
"Beneath the throne of the fallen queen, where whispers of the broken echo still."
He re-read the words carefully, dissecting their meaning.
"Beneath the throne" — This was an obvious indication of something hidden, an overlooked location beneath a place of authority.
"Of the fallen queen" — The phrase made him smirk. It referenced Xylara, the so-called queen who had already bowed before his might, her throne nothing more than a remnant of lost power.
"Where whispers of the broken echo still" — This likely meant a place that still carried the presence of a recent defeat—his victory.
A quiet chuckle left his lips. "Mmh… There's clearly a hidden chamber or tomb beneath the throne room of my defeated, beloved queen." His voice dripped with amusement.
Though he had already unraveled the hint and knew where to start, his feet carried him in a different direction—away from the throne room. Instead, he made his way to the next chamber over from his own.
Vynessa's bedroom.
Without hesitation, he entered unannounced. There was no need for knocking—Vynessa was undoubtedly still sleeping. She was the laziest in the household, so it was only natural.
But the sight that greeted him was unexpected.
Her bed was already fixed, the sheets neatly arranged, yet she simply sat there, motionless in an empty room.
A rare sight.
Lycius narrowed his eyes, instantly understanding the cause.
"She's still so down..." he mused.
There was no need to delve into their bond for answers—he already knew the source of her mood.
Her mother.
Xylara's cold rejection had left an impact, though not in the way one might expect.
Vynessa hadn't even noticed him enter. She was so lost in thought that she didn't react to the door opening, her absentminded gaze staring at nothing in particular.
Lycius took a single step forward—
And in the blink of an eye, he was before her.
From Vynessa's perspective, it was as though he had teleported, the sudden closeness startling her slightly.
She blinked up at him, her face still impassive.
"How long are you planning to sulk?" he asked, his tone dry.
Vynessa sighed dramatically. "Until Mother feels bad for me and talks to me."
Her voice was anything but sad.
There was no pain, no grief—only boredom.
Lycius scoffed. So that's her grand strategy?
She wasn't actually heartbroken over Xylara's rejection. She simply didn't want to put in the effort to fix their relationship herself. Instead, she expected her mother to pity her and eventually come crawling back.
A lazy plan from an equally lazy girl.
"Such a dumb plan," Lycius remarked, his tone dripping with judgment.
Vynessa smirked slightly. "Yeah? As if you have anything better? You still haven't even made her submit to you."
Lycius's eyes narrowed at her sharp retort. This girl was as sly as ever.
Their usual habit of bickering picked up effortlessly, insults exchanged back and forth in a casual rhythm, neither truly offended.
But ultimately, their paths diverged.
Vynessa remained seated, clinging to her plan of playing the pitiful daughter until her mother relented.
Meanwhile, Lycius had other methods in mind.
He would not wait for Xylara's emotions to shift.
He would not rely on sentiment or sympathy.
No—he would simply break her.
And for that, he needed to find the tome of the Mind-Breaking Arts.
His next destination the throne room.
As Lycius stepped into the throne room, his mind was already set on his objective. He had no need to waste time searching blindly—his aetherius would do that for him.
The moment he released it, an unseen force spread outward like a wave, crawling over the chamber and seeping into every hidden corner. To Lycius, it was as if his eyes existed in every space his aetherius touched.
And there it was.
A well-hidden tomb—concealed beneath the throne itself, buried deep underground.
A smirk tugged at his lips. "Not well-hidden enough."
With a mere thought, Void Manipulation bent to his will.
Dark energy coiled around him like a living shadow, and in the blink of an eye, he vanished—teleporting directly into the hidden chamber.
The sight that greeted him was far beyond his expectations.
Rows upon rows of ancient bookshelves stretched into the darkness, untouched by time. Faint, eerie light pulsed from the books themselves, each tome exuding a presence—an aura so unique that Lycius could feel their power even without touching them.
This wasn't just some forgotten collection.
This was a library of forbidden knowledge.
For a fleeting moment, Lycius felt the thrill of discovery take hold. These books could contain lost magics, ancient techniques, forbidden arts—all just waiting to be claimed.
But then he reminded himself.
"Focus, Lycius. Submission comes first. Then you can revel in this power."
With a sigh, he forced his gaze away from the alluring tomes, focusing instead on his objective.
The book he sought had to be among them.
The Mind-Breaking Arts of the Desire Kind.
He scanned the shelves, searching. Minutes passed.
And then—there.
A book stood out from the rest, its spine bound in dark crimson leather. Its title read:
"Incubus Way - Beloved Submission"
Lycius plucked it from the shelf, examining it.
The title was the closest thing to what he was looking for.
Mind-breaking… obedience… submission.
This had to be it.
If only he knew…
If only he realized the true nature of what he had taken.
For while this tome did ensure obedience and did teach the arts of breaking one's will—
The techniques it described… were anything but torture.
It was a book that embodied the way of lust.
[Ding! System has registered tome: Incubus Way - Beloved Submission.]
[Memory Transition in process: 0%... 10%... 50%... 78%... 100%]
The moment the system finished its integration, the contents of the tome surged into Lycius's mind.
A flood of techniques, knowledge, and sensations overwhelmed his consciousness—
The art of seduction.
The mastery of pleasure.
The science of desire.
The method to dominate… through sex.
And his body… reacted.
A sharp heat pooled within him. His breath grew heavier.
And then—
A hardening sensation.
Lycius froze.
Something… stirred beneath his robes.
His gaze flickered downward.
His dick—thickening, lengthening—throbbing in sync with the knowledge filling his mind.
By the time he realized what was happening, his length had already swelled to an impressive six inches.
For someone his age, it was… unnatural.
And then, as if on instinct—
A wicked, perverse smile crept onto his face.
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