Life Isn’t So Simple Anymore.

“Welcome to our humble abode.” Lector leisurely led them inside a gigantic luxurious mansion in Dhara.

It had chandeliers, a grand staircase, several rooms, and multiple fairie servants going about and cleaning. This was more of what Zoey expected when flying to another state. It might be a little vain of her, but she’s gotten used to a life of luxury and comfort. Zoey didn't feel ashamed of it, but she certainly noticed more often when she wasn't properly accommodated.

“Go pick out your rooms and enjoy yourselves until it’s time for our first group activity. Feel free to ask the servants any questions if you have any. If they can’t answer them, ask us at our next meeting in a few days.” Lector explained.

“You guys really know how to treat a guest, huh?” Zoey was pretty satisfied with these arrangements. 

Who knew the bad guys had such a great welcoming service? She would’ve been tricked like the dumbass she was if these were the people to introduce her to Dhara. At least until she realized they were a sort of racist group, who had plans of world domination. Zoey said, sort of because they were fine with magji creatures joining them but wanted to enslave non-magji people.

“Our room looks pretty awesome. I haven’t slept in a big bed like this ever!” Tiffany exclaimed.

“We’re not sleeping together.” Zoey set her boundaries immediately.

“Come on, Panda. It’ll be just like a sleepover! Haven’t you ever had sleepovers with your besties before?! It’s so much fun!” Tiffany swung their arms back and forth.

“They don’t sleep in the same bed.” Zoey pointed out an issue in her logic.

“But we’re both so tiny! We could definitely fit on it without any problems!” Tiffany playfully argued.

“More room for me,” Zoey told her as she shook her arm free of the girl’s grip and plopped down on the bed.

“More room for us!” Tiffany landed butt-first on top of Zoey’s rock-hard abs with a smile.

“We’re going to have to have a serious talk about personal boundaries,” Zoey informed her.

“Are we moving to the next level already?” Tiffany unbuttoned the top of her shirt, revealing some cleavage.

“I told you I’m not into chicks!” Zoey retorted, feeling nothing at the sight.

“How would you know if you never even gave it a chance?” Tiffany teasingly shook her sizable chest.

“These are things you either know or don’t know. I feel nothing looking at you.” Zoey revealed.

“Liar liar pants on fire. I saw the way you were looking at me back then. You wanted nothing more than to ravage my innocent little body until you’ve had your fill.” Tiffany giggled.

Zoey wasn’t surprised that Tiffany noticed that. She did have a hard time controlling herself, after all. If Adrian didn’t get in the way, she would’ve had at least some clue as to how strong Tiffany was right now. But now, she was mostly in the dark. All she knew was that Tiffany was probably some sort of assassin. The girl was too good at concealing herself.

“Don’t say it like that. I wanted to fight you, yes. That’s all.” Zoey corrected her immediately.

“You wanted to mess me up until I was all slick with sweat and exhausted, right?” Tiffany continued to joke around.

“I’m done talking.” Zoey pulled out her phone and started playing on it.

“You have to give me your number!!!” Tiffany screamed as she pulled out her phone, too.

A qPhone 14 Pro… It's one of the most expensive phones out right now. Something that a regular person couldn’t hope to buy without plunging themselves into debt. Seeing that phone only made Zoey even more sure that Tiffany wasn’t some regular magjistar. She didn’t know what her background could be besides possibly being an assassin. But it did help her realize that she was up-to-date on the latest tech in the non-magji world.

“I’ll think about it.” Zoey scrolled down on her phone.

“Please!” Tiffany pleaded.

“Hmm, give me a couple more seconds to think about it.” Zoey kept scrolling.

“Please, Panda!!!” Tiffany begged.

This back and forth went on for some time, with Tiffany asking for Zoey’s number and Zoey rejecting her. After all, they only met like a few hours ago. Plus, Zoey was undercover right now, infiltrating into the base of the bad guys. Sharing her personal information with one of the bad guys didn’t sound like the smartest thing to do. Even she knew that.

Eventually, there was a compromise. Zoey gained Tiffany’s number and said she may or may not text her one day. It depended on Tiffany’s luck and how bored Zoey was. As upset as Tiffany seemed about this, she was willing to accept this only because Zoey refused to share her socials, period.

“You’re definitely my type. So commanding, direct, and mysterious…” Tiffany played with Zoey’s panda mask.

“You’re not mine.” Zoey made sure she knew.

“Ugh! How can you say such heartbreaking things so easily?!” Tiffany clutched her chest as she fell backward toward the edge of the bed. “Don’t you know how sensitive a girl’s heart is?” She dramatically sighed.

“It’s better to be direct. That way, people can’t misunderstand you.” Zoey felt this way normally.

“But look at me! I’m cute, pretty, adorable, and can be a good girlfriend! I mean, compared to the other options here, I’m the best one, right?” Tiffany sat up and looked at Zoey.

“...” Zoey thought back to the people in their group.

“Oh my god! Stop thinking! I don’t want to hear it! If you’re not going to say me, don’t say anything at all!” Tiffany stood up from the bed.

“That one-” Before Zoey could finish, Tiffany interrupted. “LA LA LA LA! NO WAY! NO WAY AM I HEARING THIS!” Tiffany bolted out of the room as Zoey burst out laughing.

Outside the door, a figure was knocked down by Tiffany. Zoey and Tiffany locked eyes on the outsider. Strangely enough, it was the person that Zoey was just thinking of. “What do you want, Succubi?” Zoey questioned. Why would he be outside her door and not one of the servants?

“I had a question for the panda girl…” He timidly responded.

“Come in.” Zoey gestured.

Tiffany narrowed her eyes at the Succubi. Her plan to run away crying was immediately forgotten as she crossed her arms and watched the Succubi like a hawk. Said Succubi, shivered at the gaze, slowly making his way in. Zoey noticed this change of action and stared at her. “Weren’t you heading somewhere?” She questioned. 

“I changed my mind,” Tiffany answered promptly.

“Uhm…” The Succubi pressed his fingers together.

“Spit it out already,” Zoey told him.

At least, she thinks it's a boy… They had no breasts, but everything else about them screamed girl. Soft, supple skin, the type of gentle appearance that made one want to protect them instinctively, slender curves, a cute butt, plump lips… Oh god, this guy was reminding Zoey of Ethan, her first crush.

“Sorry!” They squeaked. “I just wanted to know… how did you defend against my magji?”

“You really wanna know?” Zoey teasingly bit her lip underneath her mask as she turned to him. She felt it would be fun to troll this person.

“Y-Yes…” They responded.

“Tonight, meet me in front of the fountain in the backyard. I’ll show you all sorts of things.” Inner Zoey laughed.

“T-T-That’s not! Don’t play with me!” He blushed.

“It’s your choice to come or not. I'm not forcing you.” Zoey shrugged before turning away.

After all, he was the one who wanted something out of her. What the fuck did she get by answering his questions? It also seemed like Tiffany did not like him for some reason. She seemed like the type of person to like everyone. What was her deal?

“Fine… But if I do show up, you must answer my question.” He tried being assertive and demanding.

“We’ll see, Succubi,” But it was too adorable in Zoey’s eyes.

“My name is Emi.” He authoritatively stated.

“Call me Panda.” Zoey gave him some common courtesy, at the very least.

When he left, Tiffany stood at the edge of the bed with her hands on her hips. “Flirting with another person right in front of me?! How could you?!” She had actual tears pooling around her eyes.

“One, I don’t think that was flirting. Two, we’re not dating. And three, I told you I wasn’t interested in women, and never will I ever experiment to find out.” Zoey laid it out straight for her.

“I HATE YOU PANDA!” Tiffany left the room crying.

Zoey wasn’t sure if it was real or fake, but she wasn’t really concerned about it. She definitely wasn’t going to go chasing after her in an attempt to clear up some misunderstanding or whatever. What did she look like chasing after another girl? Not that Zoey had a problem with her because of that. It was just that she wasn’t gay. Katlyn was a lesbian and one of her best friends. It would be messed up if Zoey was homophobic while being friends with Katlyn. Plus, she was only acting as a bad guy. She probably wasn’t really going to make any friends here.

Zoey doubted she had that god-like protagonist's ability to turn enemies into friends. The last time she tried that, the person went crazy, promising to kill her and her family. 

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