"You shouldn’t have gotten violent with Naima," Syndra only built up the courage to say after a couple of silent minutes. "She was just trying to help."
"Who was she trying to help?" Asmodeus scoffed. "I certainly do not need her help."
"She can help us understand you better. She can help you understand yourself better."
Asmodeus stopped.
"I don’t need to understand myself better, whatever that means." He started walking again a moment later. "Nyl isn’t interested in whatever Naima was trying to figure out either. Why should the rest of you be?"
"Nyl might not think about it now but..." Syndra’s words trailed off. "Sigh... It can never be a bad thing to figure some things out."
Syndra remained silent for several seconds before suddenly snapping her fingers.
"What about that thing you did to Saphyra?"
"What thing?"
"When she attacked you outside the castle. You touched her and blew her away."
"So?"
"It was the exact same magic that Incubus used on me."
"And?"
"What do you mean and? You copied it! How? Do you even know how your own abilities work? What are the conditions? How many abilities can you copy? Was it even a copy? Your version looked stronger. You need to know what you’re capable of, and that starts with what Naima wanted to figure out!"
Asmodeus frowned. "I watched him use it and got the hang of it. I don’t get what the big deal is."
"So you mean that you learned how his magic worked?"
"Something like that," Asmodeus grumbled.
"What was that?"
"I said something like that! I don’t know exactly, alright?"
"Well, there you go." Syndra gestured. "You’ve proven my point."
"I don’t need to know! I just did it, okay? I don’t need to know how breathing works, but I’m breathing just fine." Asmodeus explained with a sigh. "Additionally, it’s simple repulsive force. Nothing complex like your magic or Malika’s."
Before Syndra could retort, someone walked up the staircase and exclaimed, "Ha! Asmodeus, right?!"
Syndra and Asmodeus stopped at once and turned in her direction.
"Hahaha! It is you! My little brother!" She shouted and ran to them.
Asmodeus flinched. "Who is this?" He asked Syndra while pointing at the approaching Succubus.
"I’m your older sister!" She answered before Syndra could. "Malika!"
Asmodeus looked her up and down for a moment.
Malika’s skin was deeply tanned, which made her white hair stand out sharply. Its uneven layers spilled over her cheeks and neck in a messy wolf cut.
Malika wasn’t as clothed as the other Succubi Asmodeus had met.
Black fabric covered her chest and upper back, and white shorts covered her lower body, a tiny portion of it.
"Hi!" Malika said energetically, raising her hands, around which long, dirty bandages were wrapped. Similar bandages were around her feet.
Asmodeus stared at her palms with a raised eyebrow.
"She’s asking for a high five," Syndra explained. "Well, two of them."
Once again, he turned towards her, demanding an explanation without saying anything.
"Hit your palms against hers." She added.
"Hit...?" Asmodeus turned back towards those bandaged hands. "Is this a test of some kind? Is she trying to test my strength?"
"Hahaha!" Malika laughed. "I like you, little bro."
The laughter didn’t foretell anything good for this encounter. The last person to have laughed in his face was Naima, and Asmodeus thought this encounter with a sister would turn out just like others.
Asmodeus stared at his sister, and she repeatedly raised her eyebrows while wiggling her hands.
He gave in and slapped his palms against hers.
"I never thought I would have a younger brother," Malika said cheerfully. "I really wanted to meet you."
’Well, you are a Succubus,’ Syndra thought to herself. ’Succubi don’t have brothers.’
"I wanted to meet you as we..."
Asmodeus’s words trailed off as Malika swiftly circled around him and crouched.
"What are you doing?" He asked, perplexed, suddenly finding himself seated on her shoulders.
"Let’s go out!" Malika declared as she turned towards a window. "We’re going to play outside!"
"Huh..." Asmodeus’s hands rested on Malika’s head, while her hands grasped his thighs to keep him balanced.
Syndra’s mouth fell open as he nodded.
"Alright." Asmodeus agreed. "Let’s go outside."
"W-Wait!"
But Malika did not wait. Before Syndra could say another word, Malika jumped out of the window with Asmodeus on her shoulders.
"Tsk. Seriously? Argh!" She followed right after them.
The ground cracked as Malika landed.
’Finally, someone I don’t have to force to take me outside,’ Asmodeus thought to himself. ’Maybe there might be an okay sibling in this family after all.’
"Down you go!" Malika grabbed Asmodeus by the waist and lifted him off her shoulders, placing him on the ground in front of her. "Alright!" She slapped her hands together.
Asmodeus looked around. They were on the back side of the castle, opposite its entrance. A side Asmodeus had never seen before.
"Now," Malika clapped her hands again. "Let’s wrestle!"
"Wrestle?" Asmodeus repeated the unfamiliar word as he turned towards her.
"Yeah." Malika started stretching one arm across her chest. "It’s kind of like fighting, but as a game, you know?"
Asmodeus raised an eyebrow. "I don’t understand."
"Hmmm, basically we’re fighting, but we’re not trying to hurt one another. We don’t use all of our strength, get it?" She explained.
"No?" Asmodeus looked at her like she was stupid. "Why would anyone fight and not use all of their strength?"
"Because we don’t want to hurt each other, do we?" Malika said, tilting her head to the side.
"Mmmh..." He thought for a moment. "I don’t understand."
A wide smile appeared on Malika’s face. "Do you... Want to hurt me?"
"Not particularly," Asmodeus shrugged. "Since you are important to Nyl."
"Hahaha! As I thought!" Malika clapped again. "It’s all about Nyl for you, isn’t it?"
From a distance, Syndra watched silently.
"Yes," Asmodeus answered after pondering it over. "It is about Nyl, yes."
"So you don’t care about us, about any one of us, other than Nyl," Malika said as she nodded.
Asmodeus scratched his head. "I’m not sure what you are getting at."
"Something very important," She answered.
Asmodeus doubted that it would be, but he was proven wrong.