CHAPTER 465: PLAYFUL TENTACLES

Cassius’s voice lingered in the air like a promise.

The women stood before him, naked and trembling—not from cold, but from the electric anticipation crackling through the warehouse.

What now?

What does he mean by ’true pleasure’?

What is this ’technique’?

And then—

"Kyaa!"

A shriek.

It tore through the air sharp and sudden.

Every head snapped toward the source, a woman near the front, her finger trembling as she pointed at the ground in front of her.

"L-Look! Look!" She stammered, her voice cracking. "There’s—there’s something coming out of the ground! Right there, right in front of me!"

The crowd erupted.

Gasps. Cries of shock. A few women stumbled back, their bare feet slipping on the cold floor. Others leaned forward, eyes wide, their breath catching in their throats.

And then they saw it.

A thing, translucent, pale white like moonlight through ice, smooth and glistening was emerging from the floor.

It was thick as a wrist, long and tender, moving with a slow grace. It rose higher, higher, until it hovered just above the ground, swaying slightly, as if testing the air.

"What in the gods’ names—?" Someone breathed.

"Is that a—is that a snake?!"

"No, it’s not a snake! Snakes don’t just appear out of the floor!"

"It’s a tentacle!"

"A what?!"

"Like a squid! Or an octopus!"

"But we’re not near any water! How—?"

The woman who had screamed first couldn’t tear her eyes away.

Her fingers twitched at her sides, her body frozen between fear and fascination.

The tentacle, if that’s what it was, drifted closer to her—not attacking, not striking, just...exploring.

It moved with an eerie elegance, its surface shifting subtly almost like it was breathing.

And then—

Another scream.

This time from the left.

"There’s another one!" Another woman cried out, pointing at the space beside her.

Sure enough, another pale tendril was rising from the cracks in the concrete, its tip curling slightly, as if sniffing the air.

And another.

And another.

And another.

All across the warehouse, the floor ripped open, not with violence, but with a strange, almost organic ease, like the earth itself was exhaling.

Translucent tentacles emerged, one after another—some thin and delicate, others thick and veined—all of them pulsing with that same eerie, inner light.

They rose slowly, gracefully, like dancers taking the stage.

The women froze.

Some clutched at each other, their naked bodies pressing together. Others stood alone, their eyes darting between the tentacles, their breath coming in short, sharp gasps.

"W-What is this?!" One woman demanded, her voice trembling.

"Is this the technique?!" Another called out, her fingers digging into her thighs.

"I was scared at first, but now that I take a proper look at it...It’s—it’s beautiful." A third whispered, her voice barely audible over the rising murmur of the crowd.

And it was.

The tentacles were unlike anything they’d ever seen.

They weren’t monstrous, not like the dark, slithering things of nightmares.

These were ethereal, pale, almost luminous, their surfaces shifting with a soft, inner glow. They moved with a hypnotic rhythm, swaying, curling, as if dancing to music only they could hear.

And they were everywhere.

Dozens of them. Hundreds.

Emerging from the floor, from the walls, even from the ceiling, though those were thinner, more like vines than limbs, drifting downward like the tendrils of some great, unseen beast.

The women couldn’t look away.

Their shock was melting into something else, awe.

Fear was still there—yes, but beneath it, something darker, something hotter, was stirring.

"They’re not attacking." A woman with a pierce through her eyebrow realized, her voice hushed. "They’re just...there."

"They’re looking at us." Another murmured, her fingers tracing the air in front of her as a tentacle drifted closer, its tip brushing against her skin.

It was warm and she gasped in response, her breath hitching.

But the tentacle didn’t flinch.

It didn’t strike. It just...touched her.

A gentle, almost curious pressure, like a lover’s fingertip tracing her collarbone.

"Oh—!" She breathed, her nipples tightening.

And the first woman’s gasp seemed to break the dam.

Then—

"O-oh!" Another woman exclaimed, stepping forward. She reached out, hesitant at first, before pressing her palm against the side of a nearby tentacle. Her eyes widened. "It’s...firm, but soft? Like...like a really thick rope, but alive!"

The tentacle twitched under her hand, its tip curling playfully around her wrist before retreating, as if inviting her to chase it.

A giggle bubbled up from the crowd.

"It’s playing with us!" Someone else realized, her voice bright with disbelief.

She lunged forward, grabbing a thinner tendril and giving it an experimental tug. The tentacle resisted for a second before yielding, stretching like taffy before snapping back into place with a wet snap.

The woman yelped, then burst into laughter. "It’s like a toy!"

That was all it took.

The warehouse erupted into chaos—not of fear, but of play.

Women who had been clutching each other in nervous clusters now surged forward, their earlier hesitation replaced by childlike curiosity.

Fingers prodded. Palms pressed. Someone wrapped both hands around a thicker tentacle and tried to swing from it—only for the appendage to dip low, sending her stumbling into a fit of giggles as her friends caught her.

"Hey, don’t hog it!" A redhead scolded, swatting at a tentacle that had wrapped around another woman’s arm like a living bracelet.

The tentacle uncoiled with a wet schlick, then darted toward the redhead, booping her lightly on the nose.

She shrieked, more surprised than scared, before grabbing it and attempting to tie it in a knot. The tentacle obligingly looped around itself once, twice—then slipped free with a playful flick, sending her toppling onto her backside.

The crowd roared with laughter.

Someone else had discovered that the tentacles reacted to sound.

A sharp clap made them recoil slightly, while a soft hum sent them weaving closer, their tips brushing against bare skin like inquisitive pets.

A group of women quickly turned it into a game, singing in high, trilling notes to see which tentacle would "dance" the fastest. Soon, the warehouse was filled with off-key melodies and breathless giggles as the pale tendrils twisted and swayed in time with the music.

A few of the bolder women had even started braiding the thinner tentacles together, weaving them into living ropes.

One particularly creative soul had even managed to fashion a makeshift jump rope, her friends taking turns leaping over the undulating strand while the tentacle itself seemed to enjoy the game, bouncing in perfect rhythm.

"Look at this one!" A woman with a gap-toothed grin called out, holding up a tentacle that had split at the tip into three smaller, finger-like projections.

She wiggled her own fingers at it, and the tentacle mimicked her movements, its new ’fingers’ curling and uncurling.

"It’s learning!"

Nearby, a shy brunette who had been hovering at the edges finally gave in, pressing her cheek against a broad, flat tentacle. It immediately molded to the shape of her face, cool and soothing.

She let out a sigh, her earlier fear melting away. "It’s...nice. It’s like putting a cool jelly on your face." She murmured, as if afraid to break the spell.

Even the women who had initially retreated to the back with their tea and cookies had abandoned their seats, drawn in by the infectious energy.

One of them, an older woman with silver streaks in her hair, was now balancing a tentacle on her palm like a circus performer, her laughter lines deepening as it wobbled precariously before righting itself.

Meanwhile, on the stage, Julie watched the spectacle with a smirk, arms crossed.

"Well. This took a turn."

Aisha, still flushed but no longer tense, huffed.

"I still don’t get how this is supposed to be some kind of ’pleasure technique,’ but..." She trailed off as a tentacle gently tapped her shoulder. She jumped, then glared at it. "Hey. Personal space!"

The tentacle retreated, only to sneak up behind her a second later and boop her ear. She yelped, spinning around, but the tentacle was already darting away, as if laughing at her.

Skadi, meanwhile, had fully embraced the tentacles.

She had three tentacles wrapped around her arms like living bangles and was currently attempting to teach one how to high-five.

"Come on, you can do it!" She encouraged, slapping her palm against its tip. The tentacle wavered, then smacked against her hand with a wet thwack.

"Yes! Good job!" Skadi whooped.

While Skadi played joyfully, Aisha was using the blunt end of her wand to carefully push the pale tentacles away from her feet.

At the same time, her eyes were intensely observant, analyzing the subtle, non-mana-based magic that controlled the appendages, a power she had never encountered.

Meanwhile, Julie had had enough of the spectacle.

She strode toward Cassius, her hips swaying with her usual confidence, though her expression was a blend of amusement and skepticism.

"This is your magic, right?" She asked, her voice low but laced with a wry smile. "Your ’technique’? Because it’d be real awkward if this was actually some demonic ambush and we’re all just...playing with the enemy."

Cassius chuckled, his gaze still sweeping over the crowd of laughing, naked women.

"Of course it is." He said. "Did you really think I’d let some random abomination loose in here?" He finally turned to face her, his smirk deepening. "This is the technique I was talking about. Though I suppose it’s not quite what you expected."

"Honestly?" Julie exhaled, shaking her head. "I had no idea what to expect. You said you were going to show us pleasure, not..."

She gestured vaguely at the sea of women now fully engrossed in their impromptu games with the tentacles.

"Whatever this is."

Her fingers then brushed against one of the thinner tendrils that had drifted too close, and her expression darkened for a moment.

"I don’t exactly have fond memories of tentacle-like creatures." She admitted, her voice dropping. "Dryads and their damn vines—wild, unpredictable things. Fight with one of the stronger ones, and you’re lucky if you walk away with your legs still attached. I’ve seen what happens to people who aren’t strong enough to fight back."

Her hand curled into a fist, as if remembering the weight of her sword.

"And because of that, when that first tentacle came at me, I was half a second away from cutting it in half."

But then, almost against her will, her fingers uncurled, brushing against the tentacle again. It pulsed under her touch, its surface smooth and oddly warm.

"But these..." She frowned. "They’re not like that. They’re almost...cute. Like overgrown pets."

But even though she was saying something rather wholesome, Cassius’s smile didn’t waver.

Instead his eyes gleamed with something darker, something knowing.

"You better not get too attached." He murmured, his voice dropping to a purr. "Right now, they’re all friendly. Playful. Nice."

His gaze flicked back to the crowd, his grin widening.

"But in a few moments..." He let the words hang in the air, heavy with implication. "Let’s just say a succubus would have a field day with what’s about to happen....as every single one of these women is going to be trembling, squirting, their bodies wrung out so thoroughly they won’t remember their own names."

Hearing this out of nowhere, Julie’s blood ran cold.

Her hand jerked back from the tentacle as if burned, and she shot Cassius a look that was equal parts horror and disbelief.

"Y-You’re joking." She said, but her voice lacked conviction.

She knew that tone. Knew that look.

And Cassius didn’t answer. He just gave her one of his infuriatingly mysterious smiles before turning his attention back to the crowd.

Julie swallowed hard.

She didn’t know what was coming, but she knew Cassius well enough to recognize when he was serious.

And he was dead serious.

Without another word, she spun around and marched back toward Aisha and Skadi, who were still tangled up in their own tentacle-induced chaos.

Julie first grabbed Aisha first by the shoulder and yanked her back—

"Hey, what’s the big deal, Captain! I was checking that out!"

—then stepped between them and the nearest cluster of tendrils, her arms outstretched like a shield.

"Alright, fun’s over." She announced, her voice sharp. "Back up. Now."

Aisha blinked, torn between confusion and irritation. "What? Why? We’re just—"

"Just playing with magic sex monsters." Julie hissed, shoving a particularly persistent tentacle away from Skadi’s tail. "And if Cassius is right, we’re about to find out exactly what he meant by bringing about true pleasure."

"But they’re nice, Captain! I’ve even been teaching them tricks!" Skadi pouted.

"Now..." Julie repeated, her voice leaving no room for argument.

Aisha, sensing the shift in Julie’s demeanor, finally relented, stepping back with a grumble. Skadi, still grinning, allowed herself to be herded backward—though not without sending one last fond pat in the direction of her ’pet’ tentacles.

The three of them stood there, backs pressed together, watching as the warehouse full of women continued to laugh and play, completely unaware of the storm about to break.

Julie’s grip tightened on the hilt of her dagger, just in case.

She had no idea what was coming.

But if Cassius’s smirk was anything to go by?

It was going to be messy.