The Hero Became a Succubus, and the Only Way to Level is to… What?!
Chapter 418 – The Future of Avanesse

The union between Rasheena and Cerberus succeeded in stifling most of the unrest in Avanesse. Boiling tensions had reduced to a lukewarm simmer. Dissidents and troublemakers without the shield of crowds to embed themselves in retreated into hiding or gave up altogether. The city and its people could finally focus on rebuilding, making amends, and moving forward.

In the early morning, Kanae had been summoned by the royal pair to meet in the throne chamber. Petyr, Kris, Claudia, Alicia, and Renya accompanied her. Each of them had their own business with the crown. Edina had gone elsewhere, sulking about missing her chance to take the Necronomicon from Riben Crow.

Palace guards escorted them in. This time, it wasn't just Sultan Cerberus on the throne. Rashena sat upon the seat, too, but with him on her lap and in her arms. The two looked madly in love, cuddling like that. Petyr growled enviously.

"Easy… We're not trying to cause an interpolitical incident because you want to fuck the sultan," Kanae whispered.

"Rasheena tried to kill him not too long ago. It should be me holding him up there. Not that bitch hound!" Petyr cursed under her breath.

The four of them stood before the elevated platform and were about to kneel until Sultan Cerberus lifted a hand.

"I'll not have the heroes of Avanesse kneel. You have done us a service greater than anyone can imagine. For that, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Unfortunately, we can't afford to idle. But before we move to pressing matters, my servants have found what I believe you are looking for." Cerberus gestured to someone from down the east corridor.

Two servants pushed a cart into the throne chamber up to Kanae and her companions. It contained a bulging burlap satchel. When she opened the bag, the sight of the cylindrical stone keys sent Kris jumping for joy. These were the keys that Jhene and Elaine had taken from Sultana Dudula, the same ones that opened underground succubi and dwarven temples.

"Oh, thank The Many! I just hope one of these opens the dungeon." Kris heaved out the stress built over from years of searching. She came a long way from Artaggon just to find them. Still, the fact that such keys opened ancient succubi dungeons so far north was troubling. Kanae would have to ask her more about that later. Until then…

"What will happen to Avanesse now?" Kanae asked.

"Reparations," Rasheena started, furrowing her brows. "The Cult of Lust and Depravity kidnapped thousands for their temple. The loved ones who remained will want answers and demand accountability from the crown. There is a lot of work ahead of us in order to regain the people's trust."

Cerberus continued after her, "For example, punishing the edirashoks who sided with them. Of the ten edirashoks, I've exonerated Odika, Misiah, and Zayn for their part in liberating Avanesse. We have imprisoned four for colluding with the cultists and Ortesians. Levain and the other two have gone missing. We suspect they fled with the flying temple."

"Yikes. You're going to have seven less edirashems running around the country? How's that gonna work out for your economy?" Renya butted in with ulterior motives of her own.

"The edirashems will be passed down to the edirashoks' next of kin. The curse of the sun still remains. We'll be relying on edirashoks more than ever now, but not in the way the Cult of Lust and Depravity intended. Our only problem is that our caravans and workshops have been severely damaged… The destruction has set them years behind," the sultan explained.

"If I may?" The shrewd businesswoman strutted closer, making some of the guards tense. "My name is Renya Rown. Chairwoman of Rown Company. Entrepreneur, transport magnate, and eager investor! I have in my arsenal a fleet of skilled laborers ready to work. Reclusion may have worked for you for a while, but not anymore. We 'outsiders' you distrusted for so long have exactly the salve that Avanesse desperately needs."

Rasheena and Cerberus exchanged glances. Even the palace guards were disarmed by how forward she was. It was obvious to Kanae what Renya Rown wanted. The schematics to one of Avanesse's most closely-guarded secrets— edirashems. And there was no better way to get that than to work on them.

"We will have to decline. The Avanessi are just as skilled, and the last thing we need are outsiders taking their place," Rasheena said.

"Folks are starving. Many are without homes, their breadwinners taken from them, and out of the job. I can mend that by staffing your own people, bringing prosperity into the country. Making sure the edirashems are up and running in months," Renya explained.

Just like that, the pirate lord disarmed two leaders of Avanesse. Anyone could see Avanesse had fallen into dire straits after what happened. They needed to demonstrate their strength before people started rioting again. With seven edirashems out of commission for a time, the country was on a crash course towards a recession and famine they couldn't afford to deal with.

"I vouch for Renya." Kanae stepped forward, drawing all eyes on her. "Thanks to Rown Company, the Commonwealth of Sin is flourishing. Radevic and Lograin recovered in record time following Ortesia's last invasion, too. If you accept Renya's help, as Queen of the Commonwealth, I'll send crops down to supplement any food shortages."

"You've already helped us so much… Very well. As Sultan, I accept. Guard, bring Renya to Chief Engineer Azir in the workshop. Tell him to provide her anything she needs to help Avanesse," Cerberus ordered.

"Y-Yes, my sultan!" Even the guard couldn't believe it.

Renya flashed a peace sign to Kanae as she left the throne chamber.

"Kanae. I believe you have questions about why the succubi cultists came to Avanesse. Come with me, everyone." Sultan Cerberus hopped off of Rasheena's lap and took her hand.

As one large group, they traveled deeper into the palace. Under, to be specific. Part of Isha Palace extended underground, but it was no place that a common guard or servant could access normally.

The beautiful sandstone architecture ended abruptly, replaced by a cave tunnel lit by burning braziers. Moisture saturated the ground since they were below an oasis. Water splashed with every step. At the very end, they entered a room that Kanae was glad Edina and Renya weren't here for.

Gold coins and crystals piled into large mounds. Bullion bars stacked like crates in a warehouse. Beasts like an eagle and lion chiseled out of what used to be giant gemstones. The combined wealth of it all must be worth more than the Commonwealth and Radevic combined.

Sultan Cerberus turned to everyone with his back to the treasures. "Behold, the dir Khalid fortune, amassed over thousands of years. Any pillaging country or thieves would sink their fangs into these faster than a starved man and bread. However, when the Ortesians and succubi cultists came to Avanesse, it wasn't gold they were after." With Rasheena's help, he shuffled to the back of the room and pulled a lever. A hidden door shifted open, revealing a modest and empty room with a small stone lectern inside. "They came for something my ancestors had stored here back when Avanesse was a slave state to succubi… The blueprints for building their flying temples."

"It's true then? Savir used to be ruled by succubi?" Kanae asked.

"That's our unfortunate history." Rasheena nodded.

"Even after Savir split into three kingdoms, succubi continued to hold some influence here. I've only heard stories, but they used to breed our people like cattle…" The sultan shuddered. "You all captured Arnault Pyrelle, right? Did he have anything to say?"

"A lot of begging for mercy. Maybe you two had better luck?" Petyr shot Claudia and Alicia a look.

"Arnault knew little, but he did say Ambrosia was desperately searching for something underneath Isha Palace. And when she found it, her mood livened up. That aligns with what Sultan Cerberus' said about what they were looking for," Alicia explained.

Suddenly, Kanae really wanted to go back home. Temptation was right in the Commonwealth's backyard. Highgreen was even closer. Ambrosia couldn't have made it more clear that she wanted nothing less than total domination. But she had made a promise to Grand Eye Analise about bringing the Knight of Red back. Sivvy Brenhallow was still in Elusis, ruled by a warlord bent on conquering all of Savir.

"Fucking Deification. Of all the people, it had to be Amby. Makes me sick." Claudia gagged.

Alicia rested a sympathetic hand on her sister's shoulder.

"I have to tell the others… I don't suppose Avanesse has mages that can help me contact people at long distances?" Kanae asked.

Sultan Cerberus sent for the best mages within the royal army. Six in total came prepared with chalk to draw a magic circle in the ground. Edirashok Misiah offered a hand, too, since her ritualist powers were second to none.

Back at the throne chamber where the ritual was to be conducted, Avanesse's two monarchs recomposed themselves to look their best. Misiah incanted a spell that fed mana from her into the magic circle, igniting the runes to a bright glow.

Kanae organized her thoughts. A long time had passed since she faced Grand Eye Analise. Or anyone back home, for that matter. The last time she contacted anyone was Archbishop Patrice while in Dry Gulch.

A fuzzy image of someone appeared within the circle. Crackling energies drowned out their voice.

"Th-The distance is far too great. I need something to help channel the spell," Misiah said.

"What about this?" Kanae offered the Blade of the First Temptress

Using the sword as a conduit, Grand Eye Analise became clearer to the point that she looked real to the touch.

"Amethyst!" Analise gasped.

"Long time no talk, huh? I'm, uh… in Avanesse right now. Think you can call Archbishop Patrice over, too?" Kanae asked.

It took some time to explain everything to Analise and Patrice. There was a ton of information for them to digest, and they had no shortage of questions to ask. Kanae also learned from them that the Commonwealth also faced its own flying temple problem, but that Arenade, Gretchen, and Wendy had successfully dealt with that there.

Sultan Cerberus and Rasheena finally introduced themselves, the first of such a meeting with any leader outside of Savir in a long time.

"Supreme One save us." Analise sighed. "I sent you to Savir to rescue Sivvy. Instead, you've meddled in the affairs of Bravost and Avanesse, and thwarted the Cult of Lust and Depravity. What's next? The Empire of Ortesia turns over a new leaf?"

Petyr scoffed.

"Don't celebrate too soon yet! We also found out that… Ambrosia is vying for Deification," Kanae explained nervously.

"That is… certainly troubling." The Grand Eye agreed.

"But," Archbishop Patrice interjected and said, "you discovered their true aim. Most likely, the Mistress of Desire will begin making her moves once Guillaume Pyrelle inherits the imperial crown. Knowing what we know about those flying cultist temples, I can only imagine they plan to use it on the empire's people."

Everyone gulped hard.

"What do you want us to do? Continue to Elusis and find Red?" Kanae asked.

"No." Anaise shook her head, much to their surprise. "Not yet anyway. Thanks to your efforts, Savir is coming out of its shell. That changes things. Archbishop Patrice will travel down and serve as ambassador. In the meantime, set up an audience between her, Sultana Dudula, and Sultan Cerberus."

"Wait. Me?!" Patrice cried.

Both the Grand Eye and Archbishop disappeared from the magic circle. They could still be heard bickering out of sight. Eventually, Analise returned but the other didn't.

"Patrice is throwing a fit right now, but she will be going and accompanied by two Saint Priests. The Cult of Lust and Depravity to be addressed eventually, but for now, we cannot allow a warmonger ravage Savir from the south. Work together with Bravost and Elusis, bring the Harpy King to heel, and rescue Sivvy. If possible, I'd like Alicia to return to Radevic to reassume the role of Vice-Captain. Hilde… does her best, but is struggling to run things here. That is my new order to Amethyst Hall," the Grand Eye said.

Kanae, Claudia, and Alicia saluted. Petyr, however, turned the other cheek.

"As for Your Majesties, Rasheena and Sultan Cerberus, I pray this marks the beginning of a long friendship between our states." She bowed in their direction.

"Kanae and her fellows have been nothing but kind. Thanks to them, I've found my way again. I am eternally grateful to them." Rasheena returned the gesture.

Sultan Cerberus arranged to have Edirashok Misiah escort them to the border between Avanesse's and Bravost's domains. Hers was the least damaged of the edirashems. He and Rasheena planned to join Kanae. It was the only way to prove to Sultana Dudula, by being there in person, that they wanted to sue for peace and not war. 

The night before their departure, while Misiah was getting her edirashem ready, Kanae and Alicia sat together on an outcrop near the top of Isha Palace. The stars were out, enough to light up the dark sky. And below, the life from a bustling city twinkled back.

"Do you think Hilde is really having a hard time? Or does she just miss us?" Alicia asked.

"Considering how reliable you are, I'm going to miss you, too." Kanae frowned and sighed.

"Oh, I know. When we reach Bravost, Claudia and I will leave posthaste. I do not wish to leave you, but it is for the best. At least while I'm back in Radevic, I can monitor any suspicious happenings from Ambrosia. Also, I very much intend to occupy your room in the meantime." She snuggled up close.

Kanae leaned in to kiss Alicia. The light peck escalated to a more handsy and steamy embrace. Before long, their bodies pressed against each other, tails and fingers entwined, and lips locked tightly.

The former Mistress of Pain could have been known for her sensuality instead. Despite all that went on, she had somehow found time to manicure her nails. They glided tantalizingly across Kanae's skin. Alicia left no part untouched.

They scissored in the sitting position, legs wrapped around the other. Kanae savored the sensation of Alicia's stiff nipples pressed against her own.

"Kanae…" Alicia panted, her hot breath growing more and more shallow.

"Come here~" Kanae grabbed the back of Alicia's head and pulled her in for another deep kiss.

Their clits rubbed together until a powerful orgasm rocked them both. Breathless and exhausted, the two laid down together and stared up at the moon, coming into view behind the craggy canyons.

"Who will keep Petyr in check while I'm away? I can't exactly stab her from afar," Alicia joked.

"Well, if we're going to Elusis, I think the best course of action is to just let her run rampant. But she isn't so bad anymore! I might be finally getting through to Petyr," Kanae explained in defense of the moody high elf.

"For all our sake, I sure hope so. Anyway…" She rubbed Kanae's inner thigh. "We still have time. Quite the journey to Bravost at that. Another round?"

"Or five? This time…" Activating Futanari granted Kanae with a gloriously erect cock. 

Alicia licked her lips. She turned around and spread the lips of her pussy apart.

"Come and get it then," Alicia said, challenging.

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.