The Hero Became a Succubus, and the Only Way to Level is to… What?!

Early on the second day back in Radevic, Kanae made her way to the Basilica of Saint Rue to meet with the leaders of Radevic. As she walked through the bustling lower halls of Aidenhall, it was as if the students hadn’t slept. Many escorted family and friends, showing them around the city-state’s monument left behind by the high elves from centuries past. A proud day for those with something to show.

Although the tournament for the student body of Knights’ Academy begins in six days, exhibitions were held at the stadium behind the palace until then. It was the same place where the aptitude test had been held. Kanae thought back fondly. She, Joap, Reen, and Runald were teamed up. Those three had come a long way. Now, Runald would be there again to participate as a contestant. So would Nelly and Teana.

Broodmother was telling Kanae that her eldest daughter seemed to be in that direction. She might have to pay a visit after the meeting.

The large ornate doors of the Basilica of Saint Rue were open when Kanae arrived. Palace guards saluted her as she entered. Inside at the very front, there were more than the usual three she expected to meet. Seated around a ring of seats, Grand Eye Analise, King Turren, and Archbishop Patrice were accompanied by a few people she was familiar with.

Necro Lord Thored, the horseman from Necro Lord Tomb #3, rose to bow to Kanae. One of Demon Lord Charron’s lieutenants, he left his post to rejoin Artaggon following their encounter. Gone were the gray specks upon his brilliant brown coat of fur. He still wore his comically tiny glasses, but his attire had gone through an upgrade. A blue and black robe wrapped a shirt of chainmail underneath, and clenched in his hand was a smooth white staff with two small black spheres orbiting a crystal on one end.

The other surprise guests were the pint-sized fennec beastman Vizier Duran and hellhound Sultan Cerberus. If Exalted Mystic Jahree was here, he must be hidden because Kanae didn’t see him.

”Good to see you again, Amethyst. Or perhaps I should call you Empress Kanae among your subjects?” Grand Eye Analise smiled.

”So, I’m guessing this isn’t a meeting over matters concerning just Radevic?” Kanae asked.

”Oh, not to worry.” King Turren waved a dismissive hand. ”It’s merely about the Knights Tournament. We have invited our allies to join, and they were happy to send representatives.”

She turned to Thored and said, ”But you’re not a fighter.”

”No, I am not. Lord Charron sent me to serve as a diplomat. Minestra Val’doun will be fighting. Archbishop Patrice here has also been a most pleasant chaperon. Her thirst for academia trumps my passion for arcane experiments!” Thored complimented.

”You’re too kind. We will have to discuss more on the theory of mana sustenance later.” Archbishop Patrice bowed her head.

If Thored was here with Minestra, then…

Kanae looked to her other side, where Vizier Duran and Sultan Cerberus were seated.

”Does that mean you two brought someone to fight, too?” Kanae asked.

”Yes! My wife Rasheena will be taking part. Not against the likes of your fellows, but against your junior knights,” Cerberus explained.

”I thought she was pregnant though?”

”You’re correct. I’m a father to a litter of four now! Fighting is Rasheena’s idea. She wants to. We’re planning to have more after the tournament,” he explained, kicking his feet.

And for Vizier Duran, this could only mean—

”Archmage Donnu is here with me, but unlike Lady Rasheena, he will be representing Bravost and Sultana Dudula against your colleagues. Do not underestimate that man. He is very potent!” Vizier Duran guffawed.

This tournament was shaping up to be quite the event. However, no matter how Kanae sliced it, the biggest pieces were Petyr and Edina. Her own daughters were going to be watching her fight, so she didn’t plan on going down easily. However, those two were undoubtedly the favorites to win.

The rest of the meeting was discussing logistics of the tournament. Radevic’s leadership played an active hand in managing and ensuring that everything went smoothly. Archbishop Patrice tasked Kanae to check in with participants of the lower tournament, making sure they arrived at their designated battle on time, and were in top shape.

As a bonus, that gave Kanae access to the timetable and match-ups. She recognized a lot of names. Teana, Nelly, Runald, Joap, Rasheena, Pan, Revah, and more. Even two from her own Amethyst Hall were participating— Tess and Thume. They were a surprise. Some of these seemed like an extremely unfair fight for junior and initiate knights…

”Amethyst, a word before you leave?” Archbishop Patrice asked as the others were getting ready to leave.

Kanae followed the archbishop into her office. A lot more books and shelves had taken up the space compared to before. It looked nothing like when Gretchen or Grand Eye Analise were occupying the place. Patrice even had a mound of unsorted books lying in one corner, all with bookmarks sticking out of them.

”Oh, shit—” Kanae tripped over a book and landed in a pile of more.

”Watch your feet. I haven’t had the time to put anything away, so I’ve left them where they are,” Patrice explained.

”You turned this place into a library!”

”I know. Isn’t it wonderful?” She pushed a stack of books from the middle of the sofa to the corner and offered a seat.

When they sat down, the archbishop donned a no-nonsense expression on her face.

”We’re thinking of a prisoner exchange with Ortesia. Darren von Cleisseldor, Arnault Pyrelle, and both DeSalles for a hundred Radevic soldiers captured during the war. I tell you this personally, because I know the invasion hurt the Commonwealth the most. And the elder DeSalle is in Gretchen’s possession,” Archbishop Patrice explained.

”The exchange feels a little lopsided, doesn’t it?” Kanae growled.

”I understand your apprehension. You have every reason to be angry. By now, however, we’ve wrung every little information out of our prisoners. We have no use for them anymore. Some of our soldiers haven’t seen the outside of a dungeon in forever.”

”They’re your prisoners. Do what you want with them. Errenard though, you’re not getting him from Gretchen.”

”I was hoping you could be the one to convince her. Supreme One knows she won’t listen to a word I say, especially not while wearing her mantle,” the archbishop said.

”No promises. Is that all?” she asked.

Patrice nodded, but not without seemingly resigned that this might not go her way. Kanae bowed and left the office. She didn’t look back. Those prisoners were the very same ones that hindered them at every turn. They were likely also servants of the Cult of Lust and Depravity. No good would come of returning them back to Ortesia.

Kanae sighed. At the same time, the prisoners of war in Ortesian captivity had fought to repel the empire. They deserved to be free.

”Master!”

When Kanae looked up after stepping out of the basilica, the Knight of Silver Estaline von Cleisseldor and their daughter Feraline were coming down the corridor. The drakeling girl flashed a toothy smile, then took flight and slammed into Kanae’s chest.

”Mom!” Feraline exclaimed.

”How’s my vicious little girl doing?” Kanae cooed, ruffling her fiery red hair.

”Fun, fun. Lots of fighting!” she cheered.

Kanae glared at Estaline.

”Feraline is a battle-born little drake. You can’t keep her from bearing her fangs and claws.” Estaline shrugged.

The warmth from their reunion subsided when Kanae recalled what she had just talked about with Archbishop Patrice. Did Estaline and Feraline know?

”I presume the archbishop has already told you?” Estaline asked.

”So, you did know.” Kanae sighed.

”Darren is the least problematic of the prisoners up for exchange. I also hold no ill-will towards my brother. If anything, Feraline will be sad to see her uncle leave. Won’t you?” She smiled at the girl.

”Uncle doesn’t hold back. Uncle fights hard!” Feraline whooped.

They walked to a more deserted section of the palace and found a small balcony terrace overlooking the stadium below. Students dotted the field. Magical explosions rang through the air as they demonstrated their prowess. Kanae and Estaline caught up while Feraline leaned precariously on the ledge, watching like a falcon scouting for prey.

”I see. So the former Knight of Gold is training Runald. I would have liked that he came to me with his worries. Maybe he didn’t want to show weakness in front of his Knight-Commander,” Estaline said.

”Jealous?” Kanae teased.

”Not at all, Master. Petyr Stormcloud is quite possibly the strongest among us. There is no one better to train under. I just fear for his health, that’s all. And speaking of the tournament, I’m a contestant as well. I can’t very well turn down the chance to fight for Feraline to see,” she explained with pride in her voice.

”That means we might end up fighting each other! You better not hold back on account of your Loyalty Fixation, Esta. I won’t forgive you otherwise.”

”Oh.” The drakeling shifted uncomfortably, as if that was actually her plan. ”Well… if you insist. Many of our contemporaries are very strong. Who knows, I might not even make it very far. Still, I won’t hold back. Feraline will be watching and learning.”

They glanced back at Feraline just as she was tipping over the guardrail. Kanae wound her tail around the girl’s waist and pulled. She deflated, cheeks blowing up into a pout.

”What’s the matter?” Kanae asked.

”Want to go see down there! There!” Feraline pointed to the stadium.

”Our daughter has caught the scent of battles and strong combatants! Master, why don’t you look after Feraline for the rest of the day? Show her around the arena. I would, but I’ve been tasked with aiding Ivory in exterminating monsters too close to the city,” Estaline explained.

”I was about to go down and check on some of the contestants, but sure. Couldn’t hurt to bring Feraline along. You want to go with me, don’t you?” She pinched her cheek, and the thick draconic tail swished back and forth.

Esta returned to work, and Kanae flew down to the stadium together with Feraline. They landed outside of the arena proper. Things were more hectic down here. It looked like an amusement park. Game booths were set up with enchanted wands that fired weak magic at balloons against a backboard, tests of strength on how hard someone could hit a slime monster, a guess-the-illusion set up by the master illusionist Dreizel, and more.

Over by the food courts, a drakeling man breathed fire to cook skewers. A group of Sisters of Sin had also set up an ice cream booth, too. They waved upon seeing each other, and a kind Sister offered Feraline a cone for free, which she fully stuffed into her mouth.

”Let’s go find your big sister. Teana should be around here somewhere,” Kanae said.

Feraline’s nose wrinkled as she sniffed the air.

”Are you hungry? We can buy some food before looking,” Kanae suggested instead.

”Big sis, this way!” Feraline tugged on her arm.

”Wait, how do you know? My Broodmother has a hard time singling people out in crowds,” she said, letting her daughter pull.

They pushed through the crowds until it thinned out. Feraline led Kanae to the outer western ring of the stadium’s exterior. Here, adventurers, ballsy citizens, and students of Knights’ Academy faced off against each other in mock battles. But no one was sparring. The combatants fought with the intent to win and didn’t hold back.

”Teana, Teana!” Feraline directed Kanae’s attention to a young hobgoblin woman locked in a duel with a minotaur man.

Their hands were locked together in a battle of raw strength, pushing against one another. Skid marks at their heels suggested they had been going back and forth. However, Teana offered a smirk. She reared back and headbutted the minotaur right in the snout. He staggered back, rubbing his nose. Infuriated, he lowered his head and went into a stampede.

Teana stood her ground. She grabbed a shrunken skull that was larger than the rest around her belt. Empowered, the hobgoblin succubus let the minotaur slam into her. But she was a fortified stone wall. She grabbed him, hoisted him into the air, and flung him out of the ring drawn around them.

”Haha! Yeah! Who’s next?” Teana flexed.

”If you don’t control yourself, Feraline will want next,” Kanae said.

Teana spun around faster than the speed of light.

”Mama!” Her daughter ran up and threw both arms around them. ”Feraline, you came to see me, too? Awww.”

”Feraline will be strong one day, too!” Feraline exclaimed.

”You’re looking like the favorite to win the lower tournament, aren’t you?” Kanae complimented.

”Ahhh. If only it was that easy. Thume is a contestant, too! I’ve never fought an ogre before. I hear he has sex with his opponents, too. That’s wild! I’m not letting anyone touch me unless it’s Nelly!” Teana vowed.

”Nelly needs a break from how much you’ve been draining him. You grew up so fast. You’re as tall as me now!” She measured their height between the two of them, same at the head and at the horns.

”Ehehe~” The not-so-little-girl-anymore blushed.

Teana decided to take a break from fighting. A number of people who were in line to face her next groaned in disappointment. The three of them went around to enjoy what the amenities outside the stadium had to offer. Apparently, the inside was closed off as Marwin, Elizabeth, and other high level mages magically reinforced the stadium for the upcoming tournament.

Kanae bought both girls as much food as they wanted to eat. Feraline got an entire roasted cockatrice thigh that was larger than her own body. Teana gorged on sweets, especially baked pastries.

”You should have said you were back yesterday! The fact that you didn’t come see me first? I’m hurt, Mama. I might never speak to you again. I won’t even introduce your grandkids to you when I have them!” Teana turned the other cheek, but nothing could hide the twitching smile of joy.

”No, you’re right. There was just a lot to check up on. But I want to hear about you joining the tournament. Are you prepared to fight Nelly if it comes to it?” Kanae asked.

”Of course! We made a promise to each other to give it our all,” she explained.

”You can be damn sure I’ll be rooting for you to win. Even if Arenade exiles me to the couch as a consequence.”

”I’ll beat him up and make you proud!”

”Beat ’em up!” Feraline agreed.

They sat together and watched the world pass by. Many friends came and greeted Teana. It put Kanae’s heart at ease, knowing how loved she was in Knights’ Academy. The other girls, however…

”Teana, what’s going on with your sisters? Pan and Revah?” Kanae asked.

”I figured you were going to bring them up eventually…” Teana twiddled her thumbs and frowned. ”It’s not a big deal, at least I don’t think so. They’re always telling me how school sucks. Revah was doing better than me, then her grades started slipping a few months ago. Pan’s always struggled. They talk a lot about how nice it’d be to go on so many adventures like you did with Auntie Arenade and Edina. Don’t be too hard on them, alright? You might be my mom, but those two are my little sisters.”

”I’m not going to yell at them. Just focus on doing your best during the tournament. I’ll have a chat when Minestra finds them. Hopefully,” she said.