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

It didn't look like Sadul would be waking up anytime soon. He was thoroughly plastered from all the champagne. Fortunately, he was safe while up here where the association elites believed themselves untouchable.

As Kanae emerged from the booth with Gosiir Ramaswain, it seemed other members were beginning to ascend onto this floor. There were more than before, lounging around the balconies and tables offered to them. Extravagant outfits were evidenced that each and every one of them were higher in the association than someone like Sadul.

"The rest of my associates should be waiting upstairs on the fifth floor," Gosiir said, recomposing himself and smoothing out his robe. "Shall we be on our way?"

"Just a moment." Kanae returned to the booth where Sadul was lying unconscious. She tried to shake him awake and tell him where she was going. The beastman rolled his head to the side, scratching his belly. He mumbled something incoherently.

"Heh… Hehe… I shouldn't have another drink… but if you insist…" Sadul murmured.

"I'll be on the fifth floor. The fifth floor! You better not go wandering off and drinking potentially poisoned beverages while I'm away!" She smacked him a couple of times on the face, but that didn't wake the man either.

Hopefully, Sadul heard. If Kanae returned later, and he was dead by poison, she would be down a contact who willingly sided with her. Oh, well. She went back to the waiting Gosiir and linked arms before heading up. The corridors upstairs were quiet since the party was several floors downstairs.

Occasionally, they walked past a room that erupted with laughter or boisterous conversation. In another, several giggling women ran around the room, playfully being chased by a man. Some people opted for a more private party for themselves.

Gosiir eventually stopped in front of a door, behind which people exchanged hushed whispers. He rapped his knuckles on the door.

"There's a hound howling outside! Does anyone else hear it?" Gosiir asked in what sounded like a secret phrase.

"I do. I can see the beast below from my window," someone responded.

The door swung open to an irritable-looking lupine beastman in a blue and gold tunic. He stepped aside to let them in. The first thing Kanae noticed right through the door, however, were two high elves standing to either side of the entrance. Their frightened gazes went wide.

"It's the demon queen!" one gasped.

"Shit!" The other drew his sword, but Gosiir grabbed his wrist and lifted him up by his throat.

Kanae casted Sleep on the first high elf who recognized her, and he collapsed to the ground. She pushed the door closed with her tail and strolled into the large suite. It wasn't just some bedchamber, but an entire house with a kitchen, several rooms, and a balcony— currently open to allow a breeze in— offering a view of the starry Savir night.

Ignoring the two Ortesian knights, a little under a dozen people occupied the room. They were seated around a table, petrified by the violence of Kanae's sudden entrance.

Someone jumped from the table and made a run for the balcony. Kanae conjured two Magic Hands to close the balcony doors shut, and the man slammed into them. He fell backwards, hand to his nose and groaning in pain.

"W-What is the meaning of this, Gosiir? Who is this woman?" a charcoal-skinned human exclaimed angrily.

"Sorry, but Gosiir is “Sorry, but Gosiir is under my control right now.” Kanae flew past the table for the man who tried to flee. He was also an Ortesian. Once again, her Charm spell couldn’t connect with him. She put him to sleep like the other elf just in case.

Now, to deal with the others in the room…

They were all understandably pissed and scared. But Kanae hadn’t forgotten that they conspired to poison their fellow members. The same lupine gentleman who had let her in rose to his feet with a snarl.

“Do you know who you’re dealing with? I am Jasper Mahsoud! Each and every person seated at this table has enough wealth to buy your life thousands of times over! It matters not if you’re a succubus. You—“

“Be quiet and sit,” Kanae ordered and placed a charm on him.

The beastman named Jasper obeyed. At the very least, it didn’t appear as though the association members drank any anti-succubus magic potions.

Kanae approached the table when she felt a rush of wind behind her. She whirled around and infused her fist with Titanic Blow. Her punch connected with someone and sent them crashing into a couch. The attacker’s visibility wore off, revealing the same dark garbs as those who attacked her and Sadul in the desert. Romira’s Stalkers!

Every shadow in the room shifted at once. Hidden assassins moved on Kanae in unison, and the association traitors made a break for the door.

"I think you're all underestimating me a little too much." Kanae cast Turn Horny through Doom & Gloom, and the spell transformed into an area of effect.

Both assassins and the association members hit the ground twitching. Their stealths faded, and around ten Romira's Stalkers lay incapacitated. They shielded their groins as though it would help. Some of them outright climaxed and wet themselves.

"W-What do you want? Money? I have plenty! I'll pay you whatever you ask if you will just let me go!" A panicked dark elven dame, who was previously at the table, clung to Kanae's ankle with a pleading look.

"Just to confirm." Kanae kneeled down, placed the woman under a charm, and pinched her chin. "Are you conspiring to poison members of the East Saviran Trade Association and curry favor with Ortesia?"

"Yes, I am one of the conspirators. All of us are," she answered honestly.

"Lousanne, you bitch! Keep your mouth shut!" the angry human shouted.

So, these were the conspirators. Kanae counted nine of them in total. For some reason, she expected more. The association was a large organization after all. She let the woman go and exerted a charm on the irate human.

"Who else? There has to be more of you," Kanae said.

"Just us… I… don't… know anyone… else… " he answered through clenched teeth.

The high elf Gosiir restrained hadn't stopped struggling. He started shaking when Kanae ordered her thrall to bring him over.

"Who's your leader? And where are they hiding?" Kanae asked.

"Lord Arnault Pyrelle. But you won't find him here. He commands us from Avanesse," the elf explained.

Another Pyrelle, from the same family as Guillaume Pyrelle. The Ortesian house with ties to the Cult of Lust and Depravity. Kanae had it up to her horns with Ortesians already. They just didn't know when to call it quits. If a Pyrelle was already in Avanesse, did they succeed in forming an alliance?

Sultana Dudula might be in greater danger than Kanae expected. But what did the Harpy King think of this? Surely, he was repulsed by the idea of foreign power dipping its toes into Savir. Maybe the elemental powers he had been dabbling in reassured him of victory.

Pacing around the room in thought, Kanae couldn't figure out a single reason what Ortesia wanted with Savir. A new ally after losing Radevic? Its untapped wealth?

"Succubus… I will have… words with you. In private, if you will…" a woman on the ground implored.

A hellhound. Kanae hadn't seen a female one other than Lady Dahlia. Wait. Wasn't Cerberus also a hellhound? Could these two be related in any way?

"Gosiir, make sure no one leaves the room." Kanae picked up the hellhound and entered the privacy of a bedroom.

The woman, like Lady, was of pitch black fur and ashy gray complexion. Her piercing eyes were as red as rubies. She wore a beautiful necklace with numerous gemstones over her neck. Although a veil shrouded the bottom half of her face, Kanae could tell her lips were peeled back in a show of aggression. Beastman instincts, probably.

"I'll give you a chance to speak of your own volition. But if I sense you're lying, I'm not going to hesitate to take control of you," Kanae said.

"You're too kind," the hellhound replied sarcastically. "I am Niss Ulred, servant of Cerberus, Sultan of Avanesse. Merciful succubus, are you not a devotee of Satine the Lustful? Why hinder our mission?"

"Because I'm not." She shook her head.

"But you wear her regalia?"

Kanae glanced down at Thistle, the Matron's Regalia, which was still very much visible underneath the red and orange dress Sadul had her wear. To anyone who was familiar with it, they would have recognized it right away. This woman named Niss being one of them.

"Wait a minute… You know about the devil, Satine?" Kanae gasped as realization hit.

"Yes, I know of her carnal embrace. Cerberus and Avanesse are ready to serve. And when all of Savir is united under my sultan's banner, we shall at last usher in an age of wanton lust and debauchery! There is no greater sign than the resurfacing of you and your in the north. You said there is no need to control me. On the contrary, I insist! Please, seize control of my mind and body! Use me to do your bidding! USE ME!" She grew more delirious and zealous by the second, grabbing Kanae by the shoulders.

Holy crap. The cult was just full of unhinged horny idiots!

"Snap out of it!" Kanae slapped the hellhound across the cheek.

"Ahhh~ This stinging pain… so raw and glorious. More, I beg of you! I've been a bad dog in need of punishment. Arf! Arf!" Niss dropped to her knees and barked while drooling from the corners of her mouth.

"This is getting too out of hand for me. You want me to charm you? Fine. Return to Cerberus and tell him to end his alliance with the Ortesians, or face the wrath of the Commonwealth," she ordered.

Niss tensed up as Charm seized hold of her. Kanae walked the hellhound out and motioned for Gosiir to let her pass. The others were still moaning in pleasure from Turn Horny's effects. They watched in shock as Niss left, while they were still trapped in the room with a succubus.

"What to do with the rest of you?" Kanae wondered aloud.

Every traitor member started shouting all at once, hoping to make a deal for their life. Kanae couldn't exactly walk them up to a guard. They wouldn't believe her over elite association members, especially when a succubus could make them say anything. Leaving them here wasn't an option either.

"Oh, I have an idea! Since you're all so readily willing to betray your own, which one of you wants to sell out the rest? You'll report to a guard that your fellows tried to recruit you into conspiring with Romira's Stalkers and sell out to Avanesse. Out of a sheer sense of duty and loyalty, you rejected the offer and escaped assassins to warn of what happened. Do this and you can quietly return as if none of this ever happened. So, which of you will it be?" Kanae asked.

"I will!"

"Me!"

"I'll do it!"

As expected, they jumped at the chance to save their own skin. None of them were even surprised that the others would turn.

"Hmm. Normally, I have a soft spot for men. But for the purposes of my plan, a lady in distress is a lot more believable. Your name is Lousanne, right? I want you to do it. Oh, and don't think about running. I will find you," Kanae said.

"Of course! I'll not waste your mercy!" Lousanne shakily got up and stumbled out of the room.

"Lastly…" She placed everyone under her charm, ushering Gosiir to join them on the floor. "I can't risk any of you outing Lousanne when the guards come. You're going to cuss her out and make it look like she led to your downfall. Does everyone understand? If you do, say so~"

"Yes, we understand," they answered obediently.

Satisfied, Kanae made herself scarce by leaving the room. The guards didn't need to know she was involved in any way. As soon as she opened the door, a suited centaur man almost knocked on her face. Several men behind him were looking just as worried.

"Oh! Uh, pardon me. My companions and I heard a commotion going on. Is everything alright?" the centaur asked, peering past her to get an eyeful of the people moaning inside.

"Y-Yeah! Don't worry about them. I'm just a succubus courtesan Gosiir Ramaswain hired. I can provide all manner of entertainment for just the right price." Kanae closed the door behind her and winked.

Every single one of them gulped and pulled out their coin pouches.

"How much?" they asked at the same time.

Kanae flashed a ravenous smile. Maybe the party didn't have to end so soon just yet.