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

The golden buckler Kanae had commissioned from Rog and Lina was finally finished. Its design was simple. Two wings and a tail sprouted from the central dome, more for ornamental purposes than anything else. Although lightweight at only a modest two pounds, Kanade probably wouldn't be able to wield the buckler properly until a few more years. In the meantime, she should be able to play around with it.

In addition to being incredibly tough having been made out of an ancient dragon scale, Kanae spent a pretty penny getting it enchanted. The buckler granted the wielder a boost in physical defense. Channeling magic into it also activated an effect that reflected projectile spells.

"I really can't thank you two enough. Kanade's going to love this!" Kanae exclaimed.

"Hehe. We hope she does. Now, dear. Perhaps it's about time we start thinking about having a child of our own?" Lina panted and grabbed Rog's arm.

"Uh… I'll leave you two to it then." She hurried out before the couple started trying for a baby.

Kanae flew to the manor with the buckler in hand, eager to bring a gift to her daughter. Upon arriving, all she found was Arenade in the living room. The high elf was lounging on the couch, drinking a glass of wine, and still wearing the golden crown. Servants gently fanned her from each end of the couch. Another one entered from the kitchen with a platter of bite-sized snacks.

Across from Arenade, a painter was in the middle of painting her likeness on a large canvas. Large. Like the height of an ogre large and needed a step ladder to reach the top.

"You're getting a painting done of yourself while looking like a slob?" Kanae folded her arms.

"Slob? Excuse you. Royalty will look no more regal than when they are able to enjoy a nice, relaxing day. You should get a painting done, too! Oh, of ourselves together! Then one with the kids! Where's your crown?" Arenade asked.

"I put it away, because I'm not trying to flaunt my status like you. Have you had that on since I got it for you?"

"N-No…"

When Kanae checked the progress of the painting, it was maybe a third of the way to being done. The details so far were very good. Arenade must have paid a fortune to hire this painter.

"I think I already know the answer, but I should still ask: did you want to come with me and my hall to Savir? We're on a mission to find the Knight of Red," Kanae explained.

"Count me out. This guy charges by the hour, and I'm in the best shape of my life to have my painting done. Bring me back something nice from Savir though! I hear Bravost has the best jewelers in the world thanks to an abundance of gemstone mines," Arenade said.

"I'll consider… Where's Kanade? Her shield is done, and I want to give it to her before I leave." She showed Arenade the buckler.

It turned out that neither Suvee nor Kanade were home to begin with. Arenade told her that Gretchen had taken them out to a park in Brighton. The three of them were easy to spot from above. They played in the grassy knoll with other children in a game of tag.

Suvee had the untransformed Shifting Steel affixed to her belt. That was progress, compared to when she had it out all the time as a weapon. Gretchen supervised them from a distance like the watchful caretaker she was.

"Haven't gone back to Ehmvier yet?" Kanae asked as she landed next to her former enemy.

"I actually intend to leave tomorrow. As inquisitor, there are still many small Ortesian cells for me to hunt down. I'm only here to spend one more day with the children before leaving. Oh, and is that in your hands what I think it is?" Gretchen glanced at the buckler she was hiding behind her back.

It was then that Kanae realized she was beginning to feel anxious. Would Kanade like it? What if her daughter hated it and wanted something else? Suvee, too. Would her other daughter feel jealous? Or maybe it might cause a rift between both girls.

Before Kanae had a chance to chicken out, Gretchen hollered for Kanade and Suvee. They came flying over with big smiles on their faces.

"Mom! Gretchen says you're going soon. Good luck in Savir!" Suvee slammed into her with a hug.

"Thanks, Suvee." Kanae smiled.

Gretchen cleared her throat.

"Oh, uh…" Kanae put Suvee down and sucked in a deep breath. "I have a gift for you, Kanade."

"Me?" Kanade gasped.

"Since Petyr gave Suvee a magical weapon, I thought it was only right that you got one for yourself. So, I had some good friends of mine make this for you." She revealed the golden, dragon scale buckler to her daughter.

Kanade hesitated to take it at first. Her eyes glistened with the same shimmer as the round shield. She finally slipped it onto her left wrist. Suvee was jumping for joy, showing excitement in Kanade's stead.

"It's so cool! It's so cool! I have a weapon, and you have a shield. Watch out, world!" Suvee drew Shifting Steel and transformed it into a short sword. Just as quickly, Gretchen scolded her into putting the weapon away before she accidentally hurt someone.

Normally, Kanade was always hard to read. Even as her mother. Kanae and Arenade could never tell what Kanade was thinking or how she was feeling unless explicitly told. Today, however, there was joy written all over her face. Those deep blue eyes were slightly wet.

"Thanks, Mom." Kanade flew up and threw her arms around Kanae. "I'll take good care of it."

"I know you will." Kanae squeezed her daughter back, then wrangled in Suvee who had been fidgeting to join.

The four of them stayed out to play in the park together until the sun began to set. Kanae gave Suvee and Kanade a kiss on the head, then sent them off to head home with Gretchen.

On the morning of the following day, Kanae and four members of the Amethyst Hall were ready to leave. Rown carriages awaited them at the bottom of Aidenhall. Renya was among them, since it would be her ship they intended to sail to Kandis on.

"I don't get it. Why can't we just fly there instead? My dragon can get us to Savir in a jiffy," Edina said.

"Sure, but we wouldn't know where to start when we get there. While Arenade and I were in Kandis, we met Vizier Duran. He's the cousin of Sultana Dudula, who rules Bravost and can get us a lead on Red's whereabouts," Kanae explained.

As the party of five approached the Rown carriages, Renya bowed graciously to greet them.

"Friends!" Renya grinned. "I shall be accompanying you into Savir!"

"Fuck you." Petyr walked past her and entered the carriage.

"We're off to a great start," Edina whispered.

"What the heck did you do to piss her off?" Kanae asked the pirate lord.

"Ah, about that. My corsairs may or may not have raided and harassed the Ortesian fleet during the war. Their multi-deck galleons couldn't catch up to my sloops and frigates even if they tried!" She erupted into a purposefully loud laughter so Petyr could hear.

Hopefully both of them kept it civil during the journey…

"Amethyst, wait!" Saint Priest Camilla Rudeux came running over, waving a hand to get their attention.

"Camilla? You're the last person I expected to come see us off," Kanae said.

"I learned from the Grand Eye that you're going to Savir! Do me a solid, will you? Give this rapier to my little sister Kara if you see her. Feel free to use it in the meantime! It grants you a special martial skill called Flurry of Thrusts!" Camilla handed Kanae her beautiful and thin blade.

The last time Kanae saw Camilla do battle with this was during Gretchen's rebellion. She cut through people with butter.

[Flurry of Thrusts: Take a stance and level the point of the blade at your foes. A single thrust will create echoing thrusts that strike several more times in quick succession.]

"I'll make sure Kara gets this!" Kanae promised.

They climbed onto the carriages, but since Petyr hogged one for herself, the rest of them had no choice but to take the other. The journey was a relatively peaceful one. Attacks from monsters and bandits were quickly repelled by Edina's undead.

The caravan made a day-long stop in Lograin. Edina somehow convinced Petyr to join her at Dead Man's Gamble. Meanwhile, Kanae, Claudia, and Alicia availed themselves of the many brothels in the Carnal District. Prostitutes, who had grown accustomed to serving succubi due to the large Sisters of Sin presence in Lograin, welcomed them with open arms. Open legs, too.

Some of them finally got to spread their wings when they reached Port Kandis and boarded the Songstress. Kanae flew alongside the ship as it sailed through the coast for Kandis, the Sapphire Jewel. Vizier Duran probably wasn't going to be happy about seeing her again so soon.

"Kanae!" Alicia leaped off the deck and soared beside her. "It seems my poor sister is sea sick. Too bad for her. Flying in open waters feels great."

"It really does— Wait. Did you just call me by my name? You're usually so good about referring to me by Amethyst or Knight-Commander," Kanae remarked thoughtfully.

"A slip of the tongue, I assure you." She snapped a hand to her lips and blushed a little.

Kanae felt a little mischievous. She bumped Alicia a little, only for her to grin and do the same. The two ended up in a wrestling match that sent them plummeting into the ocean. When they resurfaced, the ship was speeding away from them. They clamored to catch back up, and both of them were out of breath by the time they did.

A few of the sailors on deck sighed. They probably didn't want to be the ones to inform Captain Renya that two people went overboard.

Kanae and Alicia made themselves comfortable on the cross beams of the ship's main sails. The bright sun quickly dried them, so Kanae didn't really need to cast Prestidigitation. Alicia was gently kicking her feet and gazing into the distance.

"Have you ever wanted to just spread your wings and fly as far as you can? I do. Always. Sometimes, I wonder why Labelle and Ambrosia even stay with Mother. She's always been so suffocating." Alicia sighed.

"I went to live alone as soon as I was old enough. It just felt natural. I hope my kids do the same, but I mean, I also wouldn't mind if they wanted to stay with me," Kanae said.

"The difference is, you're a good mother. At least from what I've seen." She gathered her hair and wrung what little moisture was left in it.

"Kandis, ho!" a crewman from the crow's nest yelled.

The Songstress let loose a bellowing horn to signal its arrival. A squadron of harpies flew up to the ship. One of them locked eyes with Kanae and gasped.

"Tell Vizier Duran that Kanae Toyomi is back!" Kanae shouted.

They veered off to do just that.

When Kanae and Alicia landed onto the deck, the others had already emerged from below. Claudia stumbled out with a hand pressed to her mouth, looking extremely nauseous. The ship hit a few bad waves, and that broke the camel's back for her. She raced over to the edge hurled. Worried, Alicia went to rub Claudia's back.

The ship moored at the docks, and Renya immediately started directing the crew to lift the carriages from the cargo bay. Claudia threw up again as Kanae and Edina passed by her, descending from the gangway.

"Sheesh. I thought I was bad with water. So, this is where you and Arenade had your honeymoon?" Edina asked, staring up at the tall Cerulean Palace in the distance.

"Yep. And the tiny beastman storming up to us in panic right now is Vizier Duran." Kanae pointed ahead of them.

The fennec beastman was joined by a large number of palace and Kandis city guards. He did not look happy in the slightest.

"You! Haven't you caused enough trouble the last time you came? First you take the precious relic. Now you… you… W-What manner of monster did you bring to my city?" Vizier Duran faltered when Petyr descended from the ship.

"Monster?!" Petyr lifted Duran up and threatened to throw him off the docks. "That's quite the difference in reaction compared to when my family and I came for vacation years ago!"

"Well, you ain't beating the allegations with that attitude!" Edina cackled.

"Vizier Duran, I'm going to take you up on your offer. I need you to give us an introduction to your Sultana Dudula. Do that, and we might consider helping her," Kanae explained.

His demeanor brightened up. "Truly? Yes! Yes, of course! But you will not go alone. My cousin has grown paranoid, and she won't accept visitors unless it is through her trusted inner circle. I will accompany you, but I have a few matters to take care of in the city before leaving."

Kanae motioned for Petyr to set the vizier down, and he rushed back to the Cerulean Palace with his entourage. For the time being, they paid for a room at an inn. Petyr, of course, got a room for herself to avoid sleeping next to succubi.

"Whew! It feels good being on solid land again!" Claudia let herself fall backwards into bed after vomiting out her entire stomach earlier.

"What's the matter? I thought you liked being in pain?" Kanae teased.

"That is the wrong kind of pain. The kind that I don't wish on my worst enemy!" she retorted.