I wasn’t sure what to expect when Lily led me into the back of her building, but this wasn’t it. There were rooms and rooms leading off a web of hallways in her large complex, but I suppose this was what life looked like when you had to house a whole harem of full-time and part-time lovers. I balked at that again. Fifty lovers?

If I had to do for them what I’d had to do for James, I’d be picking up old soda cans and candy wrappers until the end of time.

But the rooms she led me to at the end of the hall were large and clean, with a view over the courtyard and bustling market.

“These are my rooms. No one will bother us here unless I call for them,” she said. “There are certain matters that succubi need privacy for, and one of them is the production of what is known in apothecaries as succubus slime.”

“Don’t tell me we’re going to just spit in a jar or something,” I said dubiously.

Lily laughed. “No, it’s a little more effort than that. Although you are correct to assume that there is power in our bodily fluids. Every part of our bodies are imbued with magic, much like many other species that roam the world. There are few species which are totally useless.”

“Such as?” I prompted.

“Humans serve little purpose, other than being a useful base for necromancy magic, but that is a particularly distasteful art. Gnomes and dwarves also don’t have strong magical properties, instead favouring technology. Many creatures lend themselves toward elemental magic. Wood elves are sympathetic to earth magic, selkies are sympathetic towards water magic. When you use parts of a creature in a potion, the magic they are sympathetic to will be imbued in your potion.”

“And what are succubi sympathetic to?” I searched my brain for anything I could remember about the word, but I was pretty sure all I could come up with was “sex demon”.

Lily chuckled, and I realised I’d spoken out loud.

“We are very sexual creatures with strong libidos, so that is a common misconception. But no, our magic is life magic. The very essence of life. It makes us suit artistic classes like mine, and healing classes like yours, as well as performing arts.”

“And the body parts?” I asked, my tail twitching behind me. As irritated as I was at having it, I didn’t fancy chopping it off and having it regrow like a lizard. Or shedding skin like a snake. Or any other manner of odd things that might happen in a fantasy universe.

“There’s magic in our pheromones,” Lily began. “It attracts and can even hypnotize the weak willed, especially when a succubi reaches a high enough level. There is, in fact, magic in our saliva. It can heal mild wounds, as can our breath and particularly our song. A song from a succubi can weave flesh back together and break down poison. Mermaids, selkies and sirens also have that ability, although they generally prefer to use it for destructive purposes.”

“I did that,” I said, thinking back to Bastion’s injury. “My song sucked, but it still worked.”

“You’ll get better with experience. You should practice singing when you’re alone and you’ll level that ability up with time.”

I nodded. I’d never been much of a singer, but I could practice when no one was watching.

“Our blood is a powerful necromantic ingredient, which is one reason we are so rare in the world today. My advice would be to stay far away from necromancers,” Lily shot me a warning look, showing she was serious. “And our ‘slime’ as it’s called, is a trade secret. It’s one of the highest price items we can sell, and how I got my deposit down for this place. The value is in its rarity though, so although you’ve got an unlimited supply, I warn you against flooding the market or the price will drop. And never ever let anyone see you harvest it unless they’re both in your permanent harem and bound to secrecy with a magical oath. If knowledge of how it is made got out, it would cause problems for all of us.”

Her warning about necromancers rung in my ears.

“Okay.”

“Well, I hope you’re comfortable with your new body,” she said and arranged the pillows on her bed before beginning to disrobe in front of me.

“What?” I blinked in shock, but she shushed me and began my anatomy lesson. I felt my brain totally melting as I tried to absorb everything she was telling me from proper horn care to pheromone pores to erogenous zones. There seemed to be far too many, especially compared to the ones I was familiar with as a human. She ended her lesson by fetching a vial and holding it between her legs as she stimulated her slime glands and let it dribble into the vial.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

No fricken way.

I wouldn’t be surprised if this was James’ weird little world after all. This was totally the kind of thing he would be into. I’d seen something similar in one of the anime shows he’d been into for a while.

At least I had a way to cash in on it, even if it was super kinky.

But James was definitely getting dumped. Although after this, I didn’t know if I could look him in the eyes. Maybe I could tie him to a chair and throw feminist textbooks at him while blindfolded.

Lily’s vial reached its limit, and she removed it and shoved a cork in the top.

I swallowed, beginning to feel as speechless as Bastion had been in the shop.

“Your turn,” she said, and handed me an empty vial. “A very small amount of slime will heal all but the most fatal injuries. You can apply it topically or orally, and if there’s internal damage or a lot of bleeding, I’d recommend giving a good oral dose. If you plan to be the adventuring type, I suggest getting a private room when you’re in town and spending some time restocking. It’s not fun to try harvest it in the middle of a dungeon because you let your supplies run low.”

She sounded like she was speaking from experience. I stared at the vial in my hand, feeling incredibly awkward. I could see what she meant about being lucky or unfortunate, depending on disposition.

“Go on,” Lily gestured for me to proceed.

I removed my underwear but wasn’t comfortable removing my skirt, so left it on as I got to work, trying to ignore the fact she was watching me.

I closed my eyes and thought of Brick’s large muscles, of the cute way his skin turned deep green when he blushed, and the way he’d felt when I straddled him in the chair.

“Hey now, don’t overflow your bottle,” Lily said, and my eyes snapped open. She handed me a second vial, and I scooped up what was running down my leg.

Lily grinned, stoppering the vial I’d given her.

“Each one of these is worth about a hundred gold, but they’re the line between life and death out on the field,” Lily said. “I’ll give you some spare vials to get you started, but I’ll take this one as payment for your clothing and the life lessons. Remember, only sell one at a time and don’t flood the market.”

She handed me a towel, and I cleaned myself up and watched her get dressed out of the corner of my eye. She really was gorgeous. I wondered if I would have her kind of grace and elegance when I was more confident in myself.

“Lily, how do you know what level you’re at?” I asked. “Everyone seems to know I’m Level One. Am I missing something?”

“Oh, I suppose you wouldn’t know that, would you?” She answered. “Sorry, it’s one of the most basic things. Close your eyes.”

I closed my eyes and waited.

“Alright, can you see anything yet?”

I shook my head.

“Give it a minute. And try to look up while you’re at it.”

I rolled my eyes up into my head as far as they could go, and it felt like my vision was swimming. Then I saw what looked like an experience bar and some words like you’d get in a settings screen on a computer.

Mitsy

Race: Succubus

Class: Healer

Level One

Health: 100

Mana: 100

“I think I see it,” I said. “What does it mean?”

“What do you see?”

“I’m a Level One Healer. Although I’ve been told that already.”

“That’s great. You’ll get to Level Two soon enough. You’ll make it there sooner if you keep practicing your skills.”

I wished I could change my name from Mitsy, but that seemed to be beyond me. I could just not tell anyone and find a way to cover up the nametag that outed me on my satchel.

“You should also have health and mana; those are the core types of energy. Your health will increase as your level goes up and so will your mana, so long as you use it. You should get a book on basic healing spells, but your songs will often be more effective when your level is low, especially if you can learn any healing tunes.”

“Can you teach me any?”

“Not my class, honey,” Lily shrugged. “Now, Aiden should be waiting for us with tea. Let’s go get refreshed.”

I followed her out of her room and back down the hall. We turned into one of the rooms closer to the shop end of the complex, which held a large office. Aiden was indeed standing next to not only a pot of fresh tea, but a platter of freshly cooked scones and jam.

I helped myself, feeling hungry again as well as the beginning of a headache. I wondered if I could get to that level viewing place in my head if there would be an exit button or something somewhere, but part of me didn’t want to try it until I’d seen Brick again. Even if he was a fictional character in my boyfriend’s fantasy world, it would be rude not to say goodbye.

I chatted a little more with Lily, and she showed me some of the books she had in her library, instructing me on how to find books in the shops that would teach me new spells.

“The university library in the Citadel is the best place of course, because you can read all the books for free - as long as you’re a student. You’ll still be limited by your memory, so don’t try to take on too much at once.”

I flicked through one of the books on magical creatures and paused when it came to the page on orcs. The one pictured looked nothing like Brick. Its brow was set lower in an angry scowl and its fingernails were overgrown and yellow. Brick looked metropolitan by comparison.

“Found something that interests you?” Lily asked.

“What kind of magic do orcs have?” I asked, trying to keep my tone light, like it was a purely academic question. For some reason, I felt like I wanted to keep Brick a secret from her. I wanted him to just be mine.

“Curious creatures, and not that magical, although their toenails are used in strong adhesives and strengthening potions,” Lily shrugged. “Orcs have never really interested me that much. They’re thuggish creatures, and often very stupid. Common brawn in adventurer guilds for their ability to smash through monsters with brute strength, but they rarely amount to more than that.”

“I see,” I said, and closed the book. “Thank you for everything. I should probably head back now.”

“You could stay if you like. I’ve got plenty of room,” Lily offered, but I shook my head. While I appreciated the hospitality, I didn’t feel like this was a place I wanted to linger in.

Aiden helped me pick out a pair of boots and tail-friendly stockings to match my new outfit, and also gave me a warm cloak, which I was fonder of than anything else I had picked up today, and I headed back down the street towards The Sleepy Dragon.