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

The palace gardens were quiet in the morning. Almost too quiet for Melisa's taste. She sat across from Queen Aria (she was finally getting more used to calling her that) at a small stone table, both of them nursing cups of steaming tea.

[This is weird,] Melisa thought, studying Aria's perfect posture and serene expression. [I just took down a tiny insurrection, and now we're having a fucking tea party.]

"So," Aria said, setting her cup down. "Tell me everything."

Melisa sighed, leaning back in her chair.

"Well, Your Majesty, turns out..."

Melisa proceeded to spill her guts. All the way from that charming little group of nim who want to burn the kingdom to the ground, to the family attack, and even what happened with the warehouse (though Melisa left out the part about how she'd been the one to actually kill those poor workers).

Aria's eyebrow raised slightly, the only sign that any of this information surprised her.

"And where is this... Koros now?"

"Probably still at that bar," Melisa said with a shrug. "My dad thought it would be better to let you handle him rather than, you know, me turning him into a nim puddle."

The queen's lips quirked in what might have been a smile.

"How thoughtful of your father."

"Yeah, well, don't get too excited about daddy Blackflame's restraint. He was all set to let me ice the fucker until Vira stepped in."

"Vira?" Aria asked.

"His sister," Melisa replied, trying to keep her voice neutral. "She's... she wasn't part of it. Not really."

[Not the murdering and pillaging part, anyway.]

"I see." Aria's eyes narrowed slightly. "And did you have any further trouble with your... assignment?"

Melisa thought about the knife wound on her arm, still fresh enough to sting. About the bruises forming on her ribs. About the look on Vira's face when she realized who "Melanie" really was.

She doubted any of that mattered to Aria, though.

"Nope," she lied easily. "Smooth sailing."

"Hmm." The queen didn't look convinced, but she didn't press the issue. "You mentioned other targets?"

Melisa nodded, reaching into her pocket to pull out a folded piece of paper.

"I saw a map in their hideout marking all the places they were planning to hit. Noblemen's houses, shops owned by humans, that kind of thing." She slid it across the table. "This isn't that map, to be clear. I tried but wasn't able to find it. So, instead, I found a random map and scribbled what I remembered onto it. Koros and some of his goons might be out of commission, but his little murder squad is still out there."

Aria took the map, unfolding it carefully.

"This is... concerning," she admitted after studying it for a moment. "But valuable intelligence. You've done well, Melisa."

"Thanks," Melisa replied, draining the last of her tea. "So, what happens now?"

"Now," Aria said, rising smoothly from her seat, "I send guards to collect Koros and begin rounding up his accomplices. As for you..." She paused, looking Melisa over with an assessing gaze. "I believe you've earned some rest."

[Rest. Right. Because I'm sure my brain will just shut right off after all this.]

"Sure thing, Your Majesty. I'll just go home and take a nap. Forget all about the revolution brewing in your kingdom."

Aria's lips twitched again.

"Your sarcasm is noted, Melisa. But truly, you've done more than enough. Leave the rest to me."

---

The streets of Syux were alive and energetic as Melisa made her way... somewhere. She hadn't actually decided where she was going yet. Back to the academy? To Isabella's house? To Javir's manor where her family was staying?

[Anywhere but that bar, I guess,] she thought, kicking a stone out of her path.

She tried not to think about Vira, about the look of betrayal in her eyes when she realized who "Melanie" really was. But the harder Melisa tried to push the image away, the more stubbornly it clung to her mind.

[Fuuuck. This is why mixing business and pleasure is a bad idea. And by "pleasure" I mean multiple orgasms in a bedroom upstairs.]

She turned down another street, purposely avoiding the route that would take her past the bar where everything had gone down. That's when she saw it – a guard, uniform and all, dragging a nim man into an alley. A well-dressed human followed, his face contorted with anger.

"I told you to have those packages delivered by noon!" the human was shouting. "Noon!"

Melisa stopped, watching as the guard slammed the nim against the wall.

"The master's been very patient with you," the guard growled. "But patience has its limits."

The nim, a scrawny man with a shaved head, cowered.

"I-I'm sorry, sir. The streets were crowded, and—"

A fist connected with his stomach, cutting off his excuses. The nim doubled over, gasping for breath.

Melisa felt her fingers twitch, the beginnings of a spell tingling at her fingertips.

[... I could stop this. Right now. One spell and they'd back the fuck off.]

But then what? Start another fight? Get thrown in a cell next to Koros?

She cringed, turning away as the guard landed another blow.

[Am I actually a traitor?] The thought slipped in before she could stop it. [Turning in my own kind while they're being treated like this?]

She shook her head forcefully, biting down on the insides of her cheeks.

[Well, Koros shouldn't have gone after my family.]

That was the line, wasn't it? She could sympathize with the nim cause – hell, she was a nim – but the moment they targeted people she loved, all bets were off.

Still, the sound of the nim's pained gasps followed her down the street.

Somehow, her wandering feet brought her to Javir's manor. Melisa stood at the door, realizing she'd left her key behind when she'd gone undercover as Melanie.

[Great planning, genius.]

She knocked, expecting her mother to answer. Instead, the door swung open to reveal Javir herself, her sunlight-colored hair gleaming in the afternoon light.

"Melisa?" Javir's eyes widened slightly. "I thought you were still... out."

"Yeah, well, mission accomplished," Melisa replied with a half-hearted smile. "Can I come in?"

Javir stepped aside, gesturing for her to enter.

"Of course. It's your home too."

The manor was quiet. A bit too quiet.

"Where is everyone?" Melisa asked, glancing around.

"Your mother took Hazel to the market. Your father is still working, I believe," Javir raised an eyebrow. "So, he went and found you mid-fight, eh?"

"Yeah, he found me. Right in the middle of kicking some revolutionary ass."

Javir led her to the sitting room, where they both took seats on the plush couch. Melisa sank into the cushions with a grateful sigh. Every muscle in her body was starting to ache from yesterday's fight.

"Want to tell me about it?" Javir asked, her voice gentle.

And so Melisa did.

"... And now the queen's sending guards to round them all up," she finished, staring at her hands. "So, like I said... Mission accomplished."

Javir was quiet for a moment, studying Melisa's face.

"You did a good job," she said finally.

Melisa looked up, surprised by the simple praise.

"I did?"

"Yes," Javir nodded. "You protected your family. You gathered valuable intelligence. You stopped a dangerous plot before it could hurt more people." She reached out, placing a warm hand over Melisa's. "That's more than good, I'd say. That's exceptional."

Something in Melisa's chest loosened a little at the words. The doubts that had been gnawing at her since she'd left the palace seemed to recede, if only for a moment.

[She's right, isn't she? I did what I had to do. What anyone would do to protect the people they care about.]

"Thanks," Melisa said softly. "I kinda needed to hear that."

Javir's smile was warm, her eyes crinkling at the corners in a way that made Melisa's heart do a little flip.

"Anytime. That's what I'm here for."