Ch 16 Sakyubasu ni Tensei Shita no de Miruku o Shiborimasu (Because I Reincarnated as a Succubus, I’ll Squeeze Out Milk)

Ch 16 -- Sakyubasu ni Tensei Shita no de Miruku o Shiborimasu (Because I Reincarnated as a Succubus, I’ll Squeeze Out Milk)

New series! Yay! More work for me! Yay! (Ego: Hey Id, What do you mean Yay!)

Previous chapters translated by others can be found on Novel Updates here:
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/because-i-reincarnated-as-a-succubus-ill-squeeze-out-milk/

Synopsis -- After being killed in a family restaurant in a very improbable accident involving Truck-kun, a 17-year-old shut-in (hikikomori) named Riichi Hourai is reincarnated as a succubus due to a misunderstanding by the Reincarnation Support Department. A succubus must extract a man’s life essence and consume it to live but Riichi as a former man firmly refuses to do so.

Does a substitute for a life essence kind of food exist? There is! And surprisingly it’s milk!! However, there’s no creature called a cow in the world he is to be reincarnated into, indeed no-one in that world drinks milk of any kind at all. The Reincarnation Support Department gave him a dairy cow as a special favour but it's up to him to take care of the creature who will become his life line in this other world if he is not to have to rely on his succubus powers to survive. However, it seems the cow isn’t just an ordinary cow…

Contrary to his desire for a peaceful life, Riichi was dragged into conflicts that influenced the fate of the world without him noticing it. Though he and his best friend both died in that improbable accident his best friend reincarnated later and elsewhere in this world so they haven't encountered each other yet.

Can Riichi meet his best friend ever again?! Will their friendship be the same as it was in their past life?! A romantic comedy with their new cheat forms starts here.

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Ch 16 -- Write as "lover" and read as "rival"

~ What has gone before ~
My hair is dressed in dangos covering my horns and the lad's boots are on Minoko's horns concealing them perfectly too. We can get into the town like this!

* * * * *

"We're finally here." Erim said. "This town, Meiroku, is on the road between two major cities so it's a regular stopping place for travellers of all races."

This felt very RPG-ish as if Erim was an NPC standing near the entrance of the game-start town telling the newbie player all about it. Erim got off Minoko's back and led the way. I tried to apologise for making him give up his boots to hide Mikoko's horns and walk barefoot but he refused, saying "I walk barefoot all the time. It feels good, doesn't it?" I was deeply moved, he's a good kid.

The town of Meiroku was surrounded by a brown stone wall about 3 metres high with a gateway at one point. Intrigued, I leaned over on Minoko's back and touched the wall with my hand, discovering it was rough. It wasn't concrete but some natural stone from a quarry instead. Instead of an electric light there was a fire beacon in an swaying iron basket above the gateway entrance to the town, casting flickering shadows as we approached.

"...Minoko, stop." I said as I saw someone approach us from the entrance, and Minoko obediently stopped.

"-- who will they be at this time, Erim?" I asked nervously but Erim advanced confidently, calling out a greeting to the man who was dressed like a foot-soldier from a Western historical epic and carrying a spear. He was obviously some kind of town gatekeeper from his appearance.

Because of my ingrained hikikomori reflexes or perhaps because of my recent bitter experiences since I had been reincarnated as a succubus, when I realized that the gatekeeper was a man about 30 years old I nervously looked for a place to hide. No, no, I had to act normal (well, as normal as a boy just reincarnated as a succubus riding a cow could act) and not arouse the guard's suspicion.

"Good evening, Rodrick-san. It's rare to see you on night watchman duty." Erim said.

"It's just for tonight, some of the regular night watch are sick at the moment." The guard scratched his head. "I heard you were going to Lububu Forest but that you weren't leaving until tomorrow?"

"That was what we intended but we decided to go a day early." Erim explained.

"Okay, anyway you're not hurt so that's good." The guard waved at the entrance. "Hurry off home and let Sumirena-san see you're safe and well. Will she re-open the tavern now that you're back?"

"No, it's staying closed as scheduled." Erim said. The guard seemed disappointed by that news. Sumirena-san, is that the name of Erim's older sister?

"By the way, what is that big animal behind you, a horse...?" the guard had finally caught sight of Minoko and myself in the flickering light of the beacon, and pointed his spear at me. "No, not a horse but there's someone riding it, who..."

Minoko walked to the side of Erim without waiting for my instructions. I considered getting down beside him while wondering what to say to the guard but Erim went on to introduce me before I could do so.

"I met up with someone who was headed in this direction and accompanied her here. Her name is Richy Holline. She's travelling around various places and she wants to stay in our town for a while."

Thanks, Erim. I didn't want everyone to know I was a demon or reincarnated as that would be a bother. I'd have to think up some better kind of story for Erim's older sister though if I was going to stay at her place. As Erim had said everything I simply lifted my face I had previously been trying to hide and gave the guard a brief nod in greeting. For some reason though, he couldn't meet my eyes and kept staring at my upper body instead, mouth agape as if stunned. I know, guard-san, I know. I'm sorry my face is incredibly ugly.

"Well then, shall we go?" Erim said to me. "Roderick-san, if you'll excuse us?" Erim didn't give the guard-san time to react and just walked through the open gate with Minoko following. I felt the guard-san's gaze follow me but I remained silent.

There were no children running around town because it was late, indeed there were few adults about but they didn't seem unwelcoming, although I did attract some stares. All the houses were made of the same stone as the wall surrounding the town - it might be limestone or some kind of sandstone, I wasn't sure. The lamps in the street dyed the stone a warm orange colour. Because of the uniformity of tone the place had a calm atmosphere.

"It's a beautiful town," I muttered under my breath as I looked around. Erim must have heard me.

"Thank you." he said with a smile. "Because it's not a big city the people here all know each other. You'll get to know a lot of them soon too, I'm sure."

"Well, you seemed to know that guy at the gate just now."

"He's Roderick-san, a regular visitor to my older sister's place. I noticed him staring at you, Richy-san." Erim said with a smile.

"Well, I was hoping he was staring at Minoko, not me actually." I protested. I mean, being struck speechless by my horrific features?

"But I understand what he was thinking." Erim continued, still smiling.

Do you really understand? Do you think I look dreadful too? I really want to hide away again...

"Anyway, Richy-san, you were remarkably quiet back there." Erim said.

"Ah, it's a sad story, I'm almost always like that when I first meet strangers, I'm scared to speak to them. It's like a phobia."

"Now you mention it you were a bit shy when we first met but now you're talking to me quite freely."

"Erim is an exception - you're special." I explained.

"I'm special?..." His face turned red as he looked away.

I explained that as a lowly hikikomori I naturally regarded myself as beneath everyone else such as my parents and seniors at school and I took care not to come to their attention more than I absolutely had to. I was incapable of speaking to anyone out of turn or initiating a conversation. The one exception was Takuto, a close friend who was almost like a big brother to me. Even in this world Minoko had made it instantly clear she was my superior.

Saying that, Erim is younger than me but I still feel obliged to him for his assistance, so why can I speak to him so freely? Am I no longer bottom of the heap somehow?

"Richy-san, can I talk to you seriously for a moment?" Erim asked earnestly.

"Well yes, but do you have to speak to me so formally?"

"I feel I would die for you, Richy-san." Erim stated.

"You idiot, what are you saying?" I blurted out. "Yes you should value your companions but don't disregard your own worth. It's to late to have regrets if you die, and besides think about the ones you leave behind."

"The ones left behind, would Richy-san also be included?"

"Naturally if you were to die Erim, I would..." I stopped. If he died I'd probably retreat back into my shell again. Being honest with myself, I couldn't say anything else. I didn't want to lose him the way I had lost Takuto. I'd have to care for him in the future, I decided.

Erim's eyes were moist. He was obviously the sensitive type of guy which I found rather charming. Change the subject, quick.

"Oh, yeah, I remember guard-san said your sister's tavern wasn't open today. Do you help her in the tavern, Erim? "

"Yes, since my older sister is totally useless at cooking I make all the food for customers at the tavern."

"You're someone who can cook!?" Doesn't that make up for not being strong and tough? Erim's status suddenly soared past my own worthless self again. I slumped. Never mind.

"...Erim, it seems to me that you must be popular with girls. You're a true gentleman." The words caught in my mouth for some reason.

"I've never been popular with the opposite sex, sorry to say. I've never even confessed to a girl before." He glanced at me for some reason then turned his head away quickly.

"I'm sure there are many girls around who like boys like Erim." I declared firmly. Ganbatte, Erim-san.

"Well, ummm, Richy-san's image of what a perfect man looks like, is that anything like me?" he asked hesitantly.

"No, absolutely not." I replied.

"Ah, I see..."

"The image of my ideal man? You're way too thin, Erim. My ideal man is not someone who looks like an Orc but they've got to have some muscle at least. Macho but not hard is what I'd be looking for." Now I had become a woman I couldn't meet that ideal any more, no matter how hard I trained my body. Not that I had ever trained my body when I was a lowly male hikikomori...

"Then I will do my best! I- I will train myself!" Erim declared.

"What, you're going to train up?" Why did he tell me that all of a sudden? Was he angry because I accused him of being weedy and weak?

"I will totally, absolutely, make myself into Richy-san's ideal man!"

Stop it. You're making me jealous, doing something I can never manage myself now I'm a girl. I remembered Takuto, we were totally the same size and build when we were in elementary school but as we grew up he became big and strong and I stayed feeble and weak. Why did we become so different? Heredity, upbringing, what caused the difference?

"Richy-san?" Erim prompted. "You seem distant, are you thinking about something?"

"Sort of, I was remembering someone I knew in the other world."

"Oh, I see..." Erim seemed downcast. "Were they... someone special to you, Richy-san?"

"Well, I suppose so... someone irreplaceable." Actually, I didn't have any other friends apart from Takuto.

"Was it a... boy?" Erim pressed.

"That's right, but..." If I had gotten a girlfriend what would have happened to us?

"Did that guy look your ideal man, Richy-san!?" Erim seemed to be obsessed with asking me the weirdest questions but I humoured him. He was a nice boy.

"That guy looked really sharp when he took off his clothes, he had a fit and muscular body."

"When he took off his-, aaaaah!" Erim suddenly exclaimed, looking like he had been hit hard and lost a lot of HP.

"Wh- what is it!?" I looked around to see what had startled him but there was nothing. When I turned back he had dropped to one knee, breathing hard. Was he going crazy? Was he having a stroke?

"Richy-san, I..." he swallowed. "Someday I wish to fill the space in your heart that person occupied. I'll work hard to succeed. So then, so then..." he stopped.

"So then... what?" I asked, perplexed. I gestured for him to stand up, we were attracting attention from a few people nearby. As he stood I could see the determination burning in his eyes as he visibly summoned up a once-in-a-lifetime level of courage and announced:

"Please let us be friends from this day on!" Erim presented me with his hands, bowing deeply.

"……friends?" Us? Friends?

Friends. I stared at Elim's proffered hands as the idea reverberated over and over in my head. Until now, speaking of friends, Takuto was the only one I had ever had. If I could never meet with him again then from now on I would have no friends at all, was my single thought. I wasn't exaggerating, it had been ten years since we first met and in all that time no-one else had been my friend. For me friends are rare, valuable and hard to get.

"Really... you would really be my friend?" I couldn't believe it.

"Well, you see, I think the order of such things is important so we should start as friends." Erim said.

I couldn't stop smiling. I fell off Minoko's back, grasping Elim's hands with both hands.

"I'm happy! I'm so unbelievably happy!" I had gained a second friend in my otherwise-worthless hikikomori life. The horrible events of the day, what had happened to me at the hands of the the Orc and the Adventurers, were swept away as if they had never happened in the excitement.

"I'm, I'm, I'm so grateful!" Erim clutched my hands. "I will endeavour to make an utmost effort to progress our relationship, to be more than just a good friend of Richy-san in the future!"

The future of our friendship? Oh, I see, he wishes to become best friends with me later.

"Wow, I'm so impressed. There is actually someone who wishes to be in that sort of relationship with me besides Takuto."

"Takuto-san, you say? The man who is my rival." declared Erim, his eyes hardening.

"Rival, eh?" Oh, friends who compete with each other, creating an even greater friendship. It happened all the time in sports manga. Wouldn't that be great?

"If we get a chance to meet him I will introduce him to you, so until then please treat him as your rival." I said.

"Isn't that impossible?" Erim asked, his brow furrowed.

"I don't know, perhaps Takuto may be reincarnated in this world." I explained.

"Could that really happen!?"

"Yeah, he was in the same accident with me and I was killed instantly." My face sobered. "I was informed that Takuto was badly injured and may still die. If so he will be reincarnated, I think and he might turn up here."

"Oh, I see..." Erims' face fell.

"If that happens, will you consider meeting with him?"

"...I understand." Erim nodded. "As much as I would be unwilling to impose on the grief of a woman who has been separated from a former boyfriend due to an accident, I look forward to it."

"I don't quite get what you just said there, Erim but thank you - if you ever meet with Takuto I'm sure you will end up becoming best friends."

"Well, ummm, that is ... how would you feel in that case?"

"I'd be okay with it, I promise you."

Heh heh, this is so great. Will my circle of friends continue to increase like this? While I was dreaming how splendid this world I had been reincarnated into was Minoko made a "Mohuu" noise.

We're here? What do you mean, here?

* * * * *

Author's note: A perfect example of maximum misunderstanding by a foolish child...