Chapter 16: 4.2 Adapt and Overcome
Ezraphel was left brooding on her husband's bed, yes his not theirs because this bed was clearly not meant to accommodate her let alone both of them. This was but a minor inconvenience to the overarching problem Ezraphel found herself facing at the moment. It is a problem that was always there but had suppressed for nearly all her life. The problem of course is that Ezraphel is horny…like really horny and this fact is not helped at all by Stanley.
Sometimes Ezraphel really wished that her Stanley was like every other man and simply gave in to her advances and take her. You would think being a reclusive virgin would have made him more pliable to the advances of a succubus but you would be wrong. Every time she felt progress he somehow steps back from the edge with a scowl on his face and a sarcastic retort on his tongue.
And oh, that tongue of his.
For once she did not mean that in a purely sexual way. His words can be surprisingly effective at shutting down her advances, killing the mood and even hurting her feelings. Sometimes she wondered if the price of a negligible chance at sex was worth the verbal abuse that is almost guaranteed after every failed attempt. Then she lay back on the bed and started to roll around in the sheets in an attempt to soak up remnants of his spirit energy.
'Oh yeah, that's the good stuff'
…what was she ruminating about again?
Right, Stanley and how she would tempt him into her embrace.
This was more than just wanting his spirit energy to perform her magic, this was a matter of pride. She could recover mana, as negligible as that is due to lack of magic in this dimension but what she could not recover was her dignity as a daughter of Lilith. How could she call herself a Lilim, nay a succubus, when she has spent a week under the same roof as a man she intends to be her husband and seemingly not make any progress towards consecrating their marriage?
You could always rape him.
'No, that would be too easy. What am I, a savage?'
But oh wasn't that thought so tempting. There was a certain appeal in taking a man against his will, Ezraphel has thought about doing this once or twice…or a couple dozen times in the weeks since she had started living here. The problem with that method, aside from her personal distaste, is the repercussion.
It hasn't all been about trying to get into Stanley's pants for the relatively young Lilim. Ezraphel has been dealing with culture shock among other things. Magic does not exist in this world and it has had a profound effect on the Lilim. Without magic or monsters you would think that the there would be an abundance of spirit energy in the air given that the world was populated by several billion humans. Unfortunately that is not the case, something was restricting the flow of spirit energy in the atmosphere.
The good news is that this restriction does not extend to the humans as far as she is concerned. Though there might be issues with the quality, not that she has any problems with Stanley's spirit energy.
'We are so compatible the quality of his spirit energy is almost on par with a Hero's'
Ezraphel couldn't help but swoon at the thought. Her spell had worked and even exceeded her expectations. Sure his attitude left a lot to be desired but truly Stanley was the perfect husband for her.
'I just need to break through that hard shell of his'
Using spells was out of the question however, the restriction of mana in this dimension is affecting her ability to cultivate demonic energy. Since Stanley refuses to share she has had to work on building up her reserves the old fashion way, absorbing spirit energy through eating and basic recovery. This method was never as efficient in restoring Mamono energy as consuming spirit energy through semen but it, along with basic recovery methods, should have brought her reserves to a reasonable level with time.
Nearly a week later and she wasn't even at 10% of her original power and she was only able to get so far because she had been absorbing Stanley's spirit energy through close skin contact. Not only is there little to no spirit energy in the air but it is absent from everything except humans apparently. The thought that she was literally at the mercy of whatever dangers this dimension has with nothing but the protection of Stanley left Ezraphel with an overwhelming sense of vulnerability.
Lilim were powerful by nature and Ezraphel was no different and to suddenly be stripped of that power and all the defenses that came with it was an insecurity that reared its ugly head constantly. Each and every day she would be reminded of her powerlessness through even the most mundane of activities, she could not even fly properly without the assistance of magic. It would have kept her up for most nights, if she had not found a solution to this on that very first day.
Ezraphel doubted Stanley would be able to grasp just how much she was dependent on him at the moment. This went beyond mere pleasures of the flesh, this was something more. For Ezraphel embracing him made her feel safe, made her feel secure, it made her feel like her worries were worlds away and that everything would be right with the cosmos.
It was a profound sentiment for a Lilim who had not even gone beyond the perimeter of Stanley's home. Yes Ezraphel has not been outside the entire time she had been in this dimension and yet she has seen so much of this new world. Through Stanley's explanations as well as several 'documentaries' the Lilim had learned that in the absence of magic the humans of this dimension had to advance their technology over the course of thousands of years.
Their technology is now so advanced that in most aspects it is comparable to her dimension's magic and Magitech. But more than the technology itself was the famed 'human creativity' to which they applied said technology. This dimension's humans has had centuries of trial and error in applying technology and even today they are still building, still advancing and with no sign of stopping.
The latest innovative technology today would become obsolete as quickly as a year into the future. Everything is fast paced, big things come in small packages and you no longer need to have the backing of nobility, fighting prowess or even scholarly intellect to make something of yourself. As wonderful as Ezraphel thought of Stanley even she could see that a man of his stature would not make it in her world. Here however he has amassed a fortune, bought himself a home which he has fortified and according to him is also the place where he works to earn a living.
Perhaps she was wrong, Stanley could make it in her world because by all accounts the man was the definition of a wizard. He certainly acts very much like a certain Dark Mage she knew of when he gets into talking about the things he likes. Not that she could blame him as even though some of the things said flew over her head there was much flashy things to show that got her attention.
Compared to Eos (her home dimension) Earth has perfected communication, long distance travel and entertainment to a degree that will not be realized on Eos for at least a thousand years. Ezraphel has seen so much on the 'television' and 'internet', things that had horrified and humbled her in equal measure. This world, much like hers, was a cruel one that did not care for its inhabitants and she could understand why Stanley was the way he was. Cynical, mistrustful, pessimistic and abrasive and until he disclosed such information she could only guess as to the specifics behind his attitude.
And yet Ezraphel saw how beautiful the world also is, the fact that they have been able to capture this beauty in so many different ways and store it to be viewed and shared with the rest of the world told her that despite everything there is hope for the world yet. Even Stanley has hope, he was putting up with her despite the obvious aprehension he held for her behind his attitude.
'Yes, there is hope for us'
With this thought in mind Ezraphel finally got off the bed and after fixing the covers nodded to herself. Stanley had yet to leave the bathroom and while she was tempted to join him and damn the consequences, Ezraphel denied herself what would be a satisfying yet short lived tryst to instead delegate herself to a more difficult task that could yield much greater rewards and satisfaction in the long run.
Ezraphel spent a week studying her quarry, learning of his habits and predilections. She listened with rapt attention as he explained how the various important devices in the house worked. She had also taken liberty of the spare laptop which he had given to her for personal use as a tool of research, YouTube had been her friend in this most trying time. Today her theory had been proven correct and Stanley has adapted to her efforts in physical seduction to the point where he outright gave her an ultimatum.
This was a sign for her to stop playing around.
"Yes," she nodded to herself with eyes flashing "it is time to get serious."
When Stanley came down to the kitchen he will be in for a shock, for he will not be dealing with the average Lilim Ezraphel anymore!
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