Micaela's senses were running wild during the examination. She could feel the growing Holy Energy present in the body in front of her pulsing. It was beating strongly like an oversized second heart, which was worrying as most organisms would be dead with such an important quantity of energy in their body.

However, the organism only showed minimal signs of corrosion, and the energy was slowly receding. Maybe if its user didn't call on it for a month…

Except it wouldn't happen. The wielder of this energy had a mission, and Micaela had no doubt that he would need every single bit of this power in the following weeks. The information she got from the fight against Kanon confirmed that Luka was their most powerful warrior and their best chance against the Ancestors.

As if the victory against Ilias hadn't confirmed it already…

She calmed herself and felt her senses return to her body. When she opened her eyes again, she was surrounded by the stone walls from her small but comfortable room, sitting on a chair in front of a worried Luka.

"It looks like you're fine. You're not at risk for now, but you should avoid using your angelic skills for the moment. I don't know if it will be possible to heal you again if your body gets too corroded."

Luka nodded, although he didn't feel confident at all.

"I know, but if the Ancestors attack again..."

"Of course you'll have to use those powers to find them. But in the meantime…" She smiled gently. "Don't use them. Doctor's orders."

Luka chuckled. "I'll be reasonable."

"I don't doubt it. But before you leave, I wanted to congratulate you. You managed to seal Kanon, something that even I didn't succeed to do in my prime. I managed to assist to the fight from afar and… That was impressive. You've grown into a real hero, a far cry from the shy boy I first saw wandering near Enrika almost a year ago."

"Thank you. It's also thanks to you and Tamamo. I mean, you gave me information, helped me train… That definitively made a difference."

"Aww, thank you." Micaela returned the hero's smile. "Now… Go rest. I think there's someone getting impatient for you."

Luka blushed slightly. "Thank you auntie… By the way are you doing fine here? I mean, you're surrounded by monsters in an unfamiliar place."

"Tamamo passed a clear message that I was under her protection, as a whole they're pretty friendly, and should it come to the worst, I can still defend myself and take on a few of them at the same time. Also, I have some work to do." She pointed to a few closed letters. "Everyone's favorite little kitsune managed to keep track of my mails, and it turns out there's someone quite shy looking for advices."

Luka raised an eyebrow. "What? Who?"

"I don't know, all the letters are anonymous and follow an old code -quite clumsily I must add-. I may have a few ideas of who it is, and if they decide to ask for a little bit of support… I won't disappoint them. I'll see you later!"

Luka waved at Micaela as he left her room. He felt relieved at the idea that his body was still doing fine… But there was still a lingering fear in his heart about this issue, and Micaela all but confirmed him that he was right to be concerned.

And besides, there were still four other Ancestors like Kanon out there. As soon as they came out of their seal, the alraune started attacking a human city while the others remained on the low. The hero felt guilty at the fact that he was resting while populations at large were at risk. Some people might even be dying by their hand right now, but… He couldn't do anything about it for the moment, and, most of all, he needed to rest.

He had now officially beaten one of the Six Ancestors. The others would follow suit.

There was no unusual activity in the castle itself. Powerful monsters and weaker servants were milling around, fulfilling their usual duties to the Monster Lord, whether they were guarding the castle, going on scouting mission, training in magic, or even doing more mundane activities like cooking, cleaning the place or filling administrative reports. The place seemed undisturbed, as if it hadn't just been attacked a few days earlier -granted, walls were covered with more wards than before, but that was a mere detail in the grand scheme of things-. Luka passed by a patrolling elder succubus who winked and blew a kiss at him before continuing. The hero didn't notice, too engrossed into his own troubles.

He also thought about the Four Spirits. Overall, they were doing fine, but Salamander was unusually cranky. While the Fire Spirit was always passionate in her dealings, Luka noticed an aggressiveness that he didn't quite remember on his original adventures. Maybe she was unhappy to get back into a pact when she was helping the young Papi grooming her skills? Well, she had the time to help her now…

Eventually, he reached his own bedroom. As soon as he opened the door, he was instantly assailed by an overenthusiastic Alice who coiled around him and disrobed him in a frenzy, even surprising him.

"Gah! Alice! Calm down!"

The Monster Lord had an unusually feline look in her eyes and was breathing heavily, clearly excited.

"I was waiting for so long, I was wondering if I had to get started alone… And I can tell that you were also anticipating that moment, so…"

She continued disrobing him again while showering him in kisses. Luka uncomfortably shifted.

"Wait, wait!"

"No. No more waiting. Besides, you're too cute when you're so flustered. So I'll continue."

Luka reflexively struggled, but eventually gave in to his demanding wife. With a small smile, he let her carry him to their bed and constrict around him for the night.

In the meantime, Tamamo was walking through the prison of the castle with the intent to meet her dear sister. She took a quick look at the content of the cell Kanon had been given, and could already feel hostility pouring out from the large bulb inside. With a frown on her face, she opened the metallic door, entered inside the cell, and slammed it shut before leaning on the wall with a heavy sigh. The plant slowly opened as if it reacted, and Tamamo decided to interrupt her.

"Before you say anything, yes, I saw your trial. Your punishment was Alice's decision, and I only suggested a few ideas to give you an opportunity to make yourself a place in this new world. With a real role. Not one where you spend your days gorging yourself on innocents while laughing maniacally."

"Whatever you say. It is our legitimate place and you know it. You just grew too soft to grab it. Weakling."

"Or I just realized that we could help the other grow as well with a mutually beneficial arrangement and reap even more than what we could by dominating them. Also, were you too busy grumbling your grudge to realize that I was busy protecting the Monster Lord under the Dark Goddess order?"

"Whatever."

The kitsune pulled out her fan and started cooling herself as she could already feel anger rising through her body. Two minutes in, and Kanon was already hitting her nerves.

"Well, Luka beat you for the sake of the Monster Lord, and the Monster Lord has decided that your place is into this jail until you get better."

"And beating up people is the only thing he knows about, doesn't he? What a strength. Oooh, look at me, I'm beating up a goddess!"

Tamamo accidentally dropped her fan when Kanon finished her sentence.

"Wait… You saw him kill Ilias yourself?"

"I do remember mother telling you that she knew that this sorry excuse of a goddess died. Did you forget? Or did the small devious kitsune think that she was the only one to keep track of what was happening?"

The kitsune castigated herself for this basic mistake. Of course, she should have guessed that the reason Alipheese knew it was that she saw that happen by herself. And if she did, the Ancestors and the Lilith Sisters likely did watch the show unfold as well. The sealed alraune emitted a strange, whistling repeated noise that Tamamo took as laughter.

"I actually managed to surprise you! How soft did you go if I could do that so easily?"

Tamamo stumbled on her words for a few seconds before slowly breathing in and out. She focused herself, turning her surprise into curiosity and determination.

"I have only one question then. Why do you keep treating Luka as a hero following Ilias when you saw him slay her?"

"Because he's still one? I mean, he killed Ilias, good for him-"

"Good for him? He won us the war against that genocidal goddess when she was about to destroy the world! He won where all of us failed and is supporting us! I at least expected that you would respect him for that, and instead, you decide he's just food?! Not even an interesting potential mate, just food?!"

Kanon started hesitating as she answered. "What's wrong with that?"

"EVERYTHING!"

Tamamo felt a small stone in her pocket activate. This interview had taken longer than expected, and she now had to take care of the Lilith Sisters. She opened the door again and started making her way out of the cell when she turned back one final time toward Kanon, with a tone as cold as ice.

"I'm leaving, I have other people to take care off. However, I'll be back in an hour, with enough gardening tools to take away every single bit of you that is not essential to your continued existence. And yes, while I do it to help repair the damages you inflicted over Grangold, I'm also doing this out of pure spite for the sheer stubborn stupidity you displayed those last days. But before I come back to get started in my handiwork, I want to make it clear that I initially really, really wished that we would all be standing side by side to assist humans and monsters in tapping in their unexploited potential. When I entered the cavern and saw that you didn't change, I was disappointed, but I thought that there was still a chance for you. However, at this precise moment, I am fine with the idea of you spending an eternity sealed in that form and harvested for whatever you grow. Now, I apologize, but I have to take care of the idiot that tried to crush my throat a few days ago."

Tamamo slammed the door back as she left, ignoring the alraune who was still trying to address her. As she was in the hallway far away from Kanon's cell, she took a second to calm herself again. She half-expected to start sniffling, but not a single tear came to her. Instead, she could only feel cold rage for her sister. Maybe the others would do better and be more reasonable…

Well, not Minagi that was for sure, but maybe at least one of them…

If only…

First things first. Being perfectly calm was paramount for her next plan.

Astaroth was lying face down on her bed in hope that the frontal contact would at least calm her physical cravings, if ever a little. Even if she was fed with specifically-tailored potions, it didn't replace the raw, savage pleasure of the moment she pinned a struggling prey and started draining him of his energy as he moaned in a mix of fear and ecstasy. She looked up and glared at the orb that Tamamo had given her to take a look on the outside world, likely in hope that she would see the good in it. Instead, seeing all those people get physical made her hungrier, and extremely envious of the monsters participating in the colosseum or enjoying the company available in Succubus Village. She could even hear them moan from here…

She raised her head when she realized she was not imagining noises, but that she could indeed hear some moaning from people getting it on. After a second, she recognized the voices of the Monster Lord and that of her little hero Luka. At first, she attempted to make abstraction of the noise, but her body reacted against her will, and the succubus felt shame at the loss of her control. She had no doubt that SOMEONE wanted her to hear that.

Astaroth rushed the door in a metallic clang. "TAMAMO! I KNOW YOU'RE HERE! STOP THAT AT ONCE!"

"Oh hey Astaroth, how are you doing?" The kitsune was talking with her mouth full, and the succubus could tell that she was eating something as well.

"What. Are you. DOING?!"

"Mmmh? Oh, the sound... I thought you both might be feeling a little lonely with just an image, so I decided to bring you the sound as well to give you company. Do you like it?"

The succubus ground her teeth in frustration as the tip of her tail was opening and closing in anticipation, spraying some of the large quantity of mucus she unwillingly generated. She prepared a burning repartee before an incredibly sweet smell reached her nostril. Her keen senses could identify honey and sweet berries, but her nose couldn't quite identify the remainder. The aroma made her salivate, and had the effect of an icy waterfall on the flames of her rage.

"…What are you eating?"

"Cream fruit cake from Grand Noah. One layer of biscuit, one of cream, and Happiness Honey at the top mixed with berries." Tamamo took another bite, slowly taking her time to chew to make sure the succubus heard every sound as she savored her meal. "Food culture has progressed a lot over time, it changes from those barely roasted meals we took in the wild."

Astaroth's eyes narrowed. "I know what you're doing. You're showing us the bounties of food outside while we are half-starving to bend us to your will, aren't you? Maybe even to get us to snitch on Lilith?"

"I can't hide anything from you."

The succubus sighed. "Well… This could be working. But here is the thing though: I. Have. No. Idea. What. Lilith. Is. Doing. She's hiding herself. And so is mother now. And we both know that they're biding their time, gathering forces to free us, and-"

Morrigan's jaded voice echoed across the hallway. "They won't."

"What?"

Tamamo herself turned her head as she heard Morrigan get up from her bed and press herself against the door. "They know about us. And yet neither came here when the hero was away. Tamamo and the Monster Lord have reinforced the place, and should Lilith and mother come here… They know they'll have to face everyone. Oh, sure, they might win. But if they hurt the Monster Lord or the one who take care of her… They don't want to take the risk of facing the wrath of the Dark Goddess, so whoever ends up here is as well as dead. Attacking this place is suicide. We already showed it, and we even had the element of surprise back then."

The hallway fell completely silent. Tamamo took another bite from her cake, thoroughly savored the piece of food in her mouth before swallowing it.

"You know… I never expected Morrigan to be the most reasonable of you three. And yet, here we are."

Astaroth shook her head. She only had one last card now…

"Does the Monster Lord knows that you still drain men of their energy?"

Tamamo raised an eyebrow. "I stopped doing that a long time ago."

"Really? Then you actually have someone else craft energy salvos for you to keep your hands clean..."

"Sort of. I experimented with a spell to have an alternative energy source for those so I don't have to kill men."

"…You're lying."

"Don't believe it if you want to, but it's the truth. I was tired of succubi leaving a mess of dead bodies in the castle, so we worked on solutions with a few queen monsters back then, and that was the result. If you examined it, you'd realize I'm saying the truth and only the truth."

Astaroth fell silent. Tamamo continued. "Now it's my turn to ask you a question. Why do you treat Luka as a hero of Ilias if you knew- no you SAW him slay her?"

Both succubi fell silent. After a minute, Tamamo considered that they were unable to provide an explanation and decided to leave.

"It looks like you still have some issues to sort in your mind. I guess I'll come back later. Just so you know… You can still be happy even if you have to play by this world's rules. And I'm sure everyone would gladly welcome you, even if you get a little carried away in your games. The world has changed that much in case you didn't notice or cared. See you."

Astaroth laid back on her bed as Tamamo's sandals clacked on the stairs leading out of the prison.

This time, all of her scorn was directed at herself.

In the castle of San Ilia, the ambiance was radically different. The king was enjoying a cup of tea with Chrome and Mariel. The young-looking monster and the angel had both become quite important members of society, with the former being recognized as a great craftsman and doctor, and the other doing her best to lead angels as the responsibilities of representing the race had been heaped upon her without her consent. Still, she had accepted them and was doing her best to limit conflicts between humans, monsters and angels in the city.

At the center of their table was an arm-sized mechanical doll that looked like the hero Luka. This one almost looked perfectly like the hero, and a small key on its back allowed to rewind it to animate its legs and its arms. It was the result of a small collaboration between the King of San Ilia and Chrome herself. The duo was proud of the result, but Mariel was passably unnerved by the result.

"It's impressive, but… It looks quite close to the real deal, and it only makes imperfections appear stronger."

"I know what you mean." Chrome removed the key in the back, and the doll stopped moving. "It's extremely uncanny. It doesn't look like a toy, but is a little short of perfection to pass as the real one."

"Still. It is an impressive piece! Between the clothing and the material used for the skin, we can't see the mechanisms thanks to your work!" The king grabbed the doll. "What material is it exactly? I can't identify the texture."

Chrome took a sip from her cup of tea and answered. "It's an oil product that has been heated up to extreme temperature, then glued together through alchemy and assembled to make this material."

"Remarkable. Well, I understand better why you wanted cogs small enough for this. Those were quite…Challenging to craft." The king coughed twice. "…Sorry about that. I'm afraid I'm getting a little old."

"Do you want me to examine you?"

The king made a dismissive gesture. "It's just a cold I recently caught, nothing more. You will see when you will be as old as me…" The old man chuckled in front of the two young-looking girls. "…Well, you're already both older than me, but you're actually young for your species. You still have a life and your health to enjoy."

Mariel's expression darkened, and she silently sipped her tea. Chrome ended up butting in as she realized the king's small gaffe. "Still those problems with holy energy?"

The small archangel nodded. "As a biologist, you don't happen to have a solution?"

"If I had one, I would already have told you, sorry." Chrome grimaced. "I looked through books because I remembered my sister looking for an old, effective solution to energy leaks, but that was once more than decades ago, and I didn't find anything yet."

"Mmh. Thank you for your support." Mariel sighed and took her head between her hands. "Dealing with those angels is a nightmare. They keep pestering me with requests because they want particular things, but can't help themselves." She shook her head as she continued sarcastically. "Mariel, will we have our own city as a shrine to protect ourselves? Mariel, we have another problem with a valkyrie and a monster! Mariel, Cupi has tried to violate someone and attempted to turn it into a foursome when guards arrived!" She groaned. "And that's not considering the… traditionalists who go on their own because they still try to fight for Ilias. I wonder if I shouldn't find someone else to manage all those... Misfits."

"I know that." The king chuckled. "With the peace and our relations that keep improving, we now have to deal with a movement that calls itself the True Faith."

Both girls groaned. "I think you unfortunately met them?"

"They tried to vandalize my shop twice. And both times, they got turned away by customers before I even could do anything. The worst part is that instead of taking it as is, they say it's a proof that I have brainwashed them… I can't even use my eyes to create a headache into someone!"

"I have no idea what to do about them either. They keep praising Ilias and want the extermination of monsters. Most of the angels initially considered their desire to remain pure praiseworthy, but when they wanted to talk with them, they were also turned away because they were accused of being holy abominations." Mariel sighed. "Those angels didn't react well. Some of them fell into depression and a few even struck back. I have to keep explaining them what to do and help them out instead of helping them integrate into this society better!"

"Mistress Maaarieeeeeel! I have a report to doooo!"

"Speaking of which…"

The archangel sighed as the voice of a cupid interrupting them while ignoring protocol reached her ears. The king and Chrome both respectively smiled gently and a bit awkwardly as a small angel clad in pink with a long braid intruded in the room. They continued to sip tea, pretending that the intrusion was nothing.

"Can't it wait, Venua?"

"It will just take a shooort moment." The cupid continued in a sing-song voice. "I was following one of those nasty men that kept whining that monsters were evil because he had been pestering Vela with that story that monsters were evil after one attacked Grangold, and after she turned him away I saw him playing with…" The cupid snapper her fingers a few times as she looked up, trying to recall a word. "One of those barrel filled with black powder…"

The king and Chrome both had knee-jerk reactions, accidentally spilling tea in the process.

"A bomb."

"Yes! A bomb! So I stepped in and tried to stop him when he lit the ropey-thing at the top and threw it, but it bounced and landed in the river. So I remembered what you told us about the laws, and I think that since that man attacked angels twice, he must be punished!"

Everyone at the table was silent. The king was using a napkin to clean himself, his expression turned into a frown.

"…I think we will have to make an effort to take care of that True Faith issue."

"Agreed."

Alma Elma was wandering the hallways of the Monster Lord's Castle exhausted, but elated. That battle against that Ancestor had put her in a good mood: She didn't get to show off as much as she usually wanted, but it had been a real test of her skills against a strong opponent, something that had been thoroughly lacking since the end of the war against Ilias. The only real challengers were her fellow Heavenly Knights, the Monster Lord Alice and the hero Luka, and all had their own troubles to deal with.

Speaking of which, she reached the arena to see Granberia training again. While the sight of the dragonkin training wasn't an unusual one, the succubus could tell that her friend had been quite disturbed by their latest fight.

She got the confirmation when she examined her style closer. Granberia's attacks were wide and open, and even if she was usually offensive, it was clear that she was just letting her rage flow through her. Alma Elma waited for a few more minutes until the dragonkin exhausted herself to show up. Even when it was clear that she was dead tired, Granberia kept training, swinging her word again and again in the air.

"You shouldn't push yourself that hard Granberry. We just beat one of the Ancestors, you should rest at least a little."

Granberia glared at the interruption, but calmed down when she realized that projecting her hatred at Alma Elma would only make her day even worse.

"Sorry… But I won't… Give up!"

She kept swinging her sword twice more, and almost collapsed during her last strike, carried by the weight of her blade.

Alma Elma sighed as Granberia got up with much difficulty.

"You're only hurting yourself."

"I'm hurting myself now to be able to stand later!" Granberia snapped at Alma Elma. She sat herself on a bench and took a sip from a waterskin.

"…I've grown soft."

"What?" Alma raised an eyebrow.

"I've grown soft! I had no real fights since the end of the war against Ilias, which was now several months ago. Since then I only sparred once or twice against Luka and got beaten each time, and now… I couldn't help the Monster Lord against those damn succubi when they attacked the castle, I had to be saved repeatedly against that damn overgrown flower…" Granberia groaned.

"I feel that I've lost my touch. I need to practice more and grow stronger."

Alma Elma shook her head. "I don't think that will solve your real problem. Sorry Granberia, but all the training you kept doing won't help in the slightest against it."

"Are you saying that I can't grow as a warrior?" Even the Succubus Queen couldn't tell if her friend was more concerned or angry.

"No, I only say that you still suffer a huge, debilitating weakness that I'm not sure aaaaaall the training in the world could help you overcome." She licked her lips as she started moving toward Granberia while exceedingly swaying her hips. "Do you want me to show you for the fiftieth time?"

"No." Granberia slightly recoiled. She sighed again when she realized Alma Elma had brought her exactly where the Succubus Queen wanted.

"What do you suggest then? I can't simply increase my resistance to pleasure like that!"

"Mmmh… I know a few spells for that that I should teach you… Except I have no idea how to do it. Maybe I should ask…"

Alma Elma's eyes widened. "Sorry Granberry I just remembered I have to see little Tamamo for something. You can come with me if you want!"

"Hey! Wait!" Granberia was half-running, half-limping behind the Succubus Queen, unaware of the dissatisfied gaze following her.