Reborn as a Succubus: Time To Live My Best Life!

The mage cast another Blood Magic spell.

This one was rather straightforward, a projectile that resembled a flying glob of blood, boosted in damage and potency by the other Shadow Mage's sacrifice just a moment ago.

She could hear Isabella yelling out her name and could see the kitsune trying desperately to cast a spell out of the corner of her eye.

Even as fast as she was, it didn't seem like she'd be able to do so in time.

Raven closed her eyes, bracing herself for the agony of the blade piercing her flesh.

But the pain never came.

Instead, a gust of wind slammed into the mage, sending him flying up. He hit the wall above him with a sickening crunch, his blade clattering to the ground.

Raven's eyes snapped open, her heart pounding in her chest.

She looked up to see a familiar figure standing over her, her hand outstretched and her eyes blazing with calm fury.

"Kimiko?" Isabella gasped, her voice laced with equal parts surprise and relief. "What are you doing here?"

Kimiko glanced at her daughter, a wry smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

"I saw you rushing away from Melisa's situation," she said, her tone dry. "I figured you wouldn't do that unless you had a damn good reason. Looks like I was right."

Raven was both relieved and annoyed.

[But you didn't do anything!? How long have you been standing there???]

Isabella grinned, her tail swishing behind her.

"Aw, you know me so well, Mommy. But hey, I'm not complaining. Your timing couldn't have been better."

Raven pushed herself to her feet, her legs shaky beneath her. She nodded to Kimiko, a grudging respect in her eyes.

"Thanks for the save, I guess," she said gruffly. "I owe you one."

Kimiko waved her hand dismissively.

"Don't mention it. We're all in this together, after all."

But their moment of relief was short-lived. The Blood Mage was already struggling to his feet, his eyes wild with desperation and rage.

"You think you've won?" he snarled, holding his head, his voice thick with pain. "You think you can stop us? The king's dead. You-"

"Oh, shut up," Isabella snapped, aiming her wand at him.

The mage's face twisted with fury, and he lunged forward, his hands weaving a complex spellsign in the air.

But he never got the chance to cast it. Raven proceeded to watch as Kimiko and Isabella cast the same spell simultaneously if the black-haired human was reading their movements correctly. They moved as one, their magic combining in a dazzling display of wind aimed at the man.

The mage was lifted off his feet, his head slamming into the ceiling once more, this time with bone-crushing force.

Literally.

CRACK

Raven blinked.

Just like that, he fell to the ground, limp, and did not move again.

The fight was over.

For a while, Raven stared at the fallen mage, her heart still racing in her chest. Slowly, her heart rate began to get slower and Raven got her nerves under control.

"Remind me never to piss you two off," she said quietly, sighing. "Okay, now..."

Raven got up and dusted herself off, before she turned to face Isabella and Kimiko, ready to discuss their next move.

Only to be greeted by the sight of the two kitsune locked in a passionate embrace.

They were making out.

Right there, right in front of Raven, just a short distance away from the Shadow Mage whose head was leaking out onto the floor.

Raven blinked.

"Mmm, that's my girl," Kimiko purred, her erection touching Isabella's own. "You were so brave out there, fighting those nasty Shadow Mages."

Isabella grinned, nipping at her mother's lower lip.

"Well, I learned from the best, didn't I?"

Raven rolled her eyes, turning away from the display with a shake of her head.

[Unbelievable.]

Setting that aside, Raven walked over to where the server was still cowering against the wall, his eyes wide with terror.

As soon as he saw her coming, he scrambled to his feet, making a desperate break for the exit.

But Raven was, of course, quite a bit faster. With a burst of speed, she caught up to him, slamming her foot into his back and sending him sprawling to the ground.

"P-please," he whimpered, his voice cracking with fear. "I didn't... I wasn't... I was just following orders, I swear!"@@novelbin@@

[Aren't we always?]

Raven crouched down beside him, her voice low and dangerous.

"Oh, I know you were. And trust me, we're going to have a long, long talk about those orders. About who gave them to you, and why they wanted the king dead."

The man's face paled, his eyes darting around the room as if searching for an escape.

"I... I can't. They'll kill me. Please, you have to understand, I didn't have a choice..."

Raven's eyes narrowed, and she leaned in closer, her breath hot against his ear.

"Be that as it may, you have a choice right now. Right now, your choices are pretty simple. You can either come with me back to the dining hall and tell everyone what you know, or..."

She let her voice trail off, the implication clear.

The man swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing in his throat.

"O-okay," he whispered, his voice trembling. "Okay, okay, okay, okay... I'll... I'll come with you. I'll tell you everything, I promise. Just...

just don't hurt me, please."

Raven stood up, hauling the man to his feet with a rough grip on his arm. Continue your adventure at My Virtual Library Empire

"Don't worry, I won't do anything to you."

[But I can't make any promises about what the royal guards might do when they find out you tried to assassinate their king.]

The man looked like he might just faint on the spot, but picked himself up and followed behind Raven.

Raven turned to look at Isabella and Kimiko, who were still wrapped around each other like vines. It was a miracle they still had their clothes on.

"Hey, if you're quite finished, we've got a prisoner to escort."

Isabella pulled back from her mother with a sigh, her lips swollen and her hair mussed.

"Yeah, yeah, we're coming. Spoilsport."

As they made their way back to the dining hall, the server stumbling along between them, Raven just hoped that Melisa was holding up okay.

[Hang on, Melisa. We're almost there. Just hold on a little longer.]

---

{Melisa}

Melisa knelt beside the king's prone form, her heart pounding so hard she could feel it in her throat.

[Holy fuck, holy fuck, holy fuck...]

The weight of every eye in the room bore down on her, expectant and judgmental. She could practically taste the tension in the air, thick and suffocating.

"Come on, nim. Heal him."

"You don't want to get executed, right nim?"

Her hands were shaking with anxiety, her sweat was sweating with perspiration, her nipples were vibrating with anticipation.

[Okay, Mel, you've got this,] she thought, trying to steady her trembling hands. [Just like you practiced. No pressure. Just the fate of the entire kingdom resting on your shoulders. No biggie.]

She tried to ignore the fact that this "practice" was so brief. It had to work, the situation was as simple as that.

Taking a deep breath, Melisa began to weave the intricate spellsign for the experimental magic she'd crafted just yesterday.

Her fingers began to move through the air, tracing glowing patterns, left, right, up, down, and the crowd's eyes collectively followed every movement.

She actually made it pretty deep into the spellsign on the first try; a testament to her talent.

But as she neared the final gesture, her nerves got the better of her.

Her fingers twitched, the pattern faltering, and the spell fizzled out with a pathetic spark.

Misfire.

"Fuck," Melisa muttered under her breath, her cheeks burning with embarrassment.

[That took a huge chunk of my Essence too, even though I've spent most of this night going down on random noblewoman. Shit.]

The room erupted in a chorus of gasps and angry mutters.

One overzealous knight, his face twisted with rage, began to draw his sword.

"You lying little-"

But before he could finish, Javir stepped forward.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," she said, her voice deceptively calm. "Unless you'd like to explain to the king, when he wakes up-" [if he wakes up] "-why you murdered the one person trying to save his life."

The knight hesitated, his hand still on the hilt of his sword. For a moment, the tension in the room ratcheted up even further, balanced on a knife's edge.

Then, slowly, grudgingly, he stepped back.

Melisa swallowed hard, shooting Javir a grateful look.

Her thoughts trailed off as she realized everyone was still staring at her, waiting. Queen Melara's eyes bored into her, cold and calculating.

"Well?" the queen snapped. "Are you going to try again, or shall we just skip to the execution?"

It was very clear the queen was hoping for the latter.