Even though he was disheartened, Sero managed to push aside his pride and help the Ascendants fight against the succubus queen.

The queen had summoned more minions to combat the army as she flew around, lashing out with sharp claws. Sero tried his best not to actually kill any of the succubi as he surveyed the battle, looking for more skills to copy.

He managed to copy Recovery and Inspiration, two Healer class skills before he found himself fending off two succubi.

Cursing as one of them slashed his left arm, Sero used Recovery to heal himself then Iron Skin to fortify his body.

"Sero! Are you actually killing them?" Nala blew up one of the succubi Sero was fighting and stared at him with a slight annoyance.

"Uh, yeah, I am!" Sero lied as he locked onto the remaining succubus heading towards them and fired a mana nuke in her direction. The succubus's scream was cut short from the explosion as Sero made his first kill.

Nala shot him a suspicious glance before jumping back into the fray. Sero sighed and turned his attention towards the boss.

Amaya and a blonde male Warrior were locked in combat against the succubus boss, with another dark-haired male Healer supporting them from a safe distance.

The succubus queen was quick and agile, easily dodging their attacks. She hissed in annoyance as she slashed at Amaya, who parried each blow with her sword. The Warrior was doing his best to keep her attention, but he was quickly tiring.

"I think they could really use your help!" Aphiel urged Sero, who grimaced at the thought.

He cycled his energy and mana, making sure he had enough in his reserves before making a beeline towards the succubus boss.

As Sero caught up, the Healer looked relieved and gestured for him to join the fight. The succubus queen growled, sensing another threat. Amaya nodded gratefully at Sero, her expression serious as she focused on the queen.

"I'll create an opening for you and Jackson to attack!" Amaya shouted to him and the Warrior next to him as she engulfed her sword in blue mana. She fired off blue fireballs at the succubus as she flashed around, swinging her blade in between the blazing shots.

"I've got your back." The Warrior named Jackson glanced at Sero with a handsome face and nodded reassuringly. Sero had to stop himself from recoiling in annoyance and smiled back awkwardly.

As Amaya's barrage continued, Sero took this opportunity to cast Recovery on both of them. He then used Inspiration to buff their attack and defense stats. Once they were both ready, he cast Shadow Sneak on himself and dashed forward, appearing behind the succubus queen. With a swift motion, he sliced at her tail, causing her to cry out in pain.

"Pathetic pest!" The queen spat, slamming her lightly wounded tail into Sero. He could feel the air wheeze out of his lungs as he was knocked away. After he stopped tumbling, Sero took a moment to get his bearings, swear again, and scrambled to his feet with a wince. He was thankful he had activated Iron Skin before fighting, or he might've suffered more than just a bruise to his side.

"Are you ok?" Nala suddenly materialized next to him, looking concerned. Though the moonlight was bright alongside the street lamps, it wasn't enough to see clearly, but Sero swore there was an amused smile on her face.

"I'm fantastic." Sero growled back. Nala shrugged and dashed forward to help Amaya continue her assault by throwing exploding knives at the succubus queen.

His body buzzed with power as Sero activated Perfect Analysis, searching for any weaknesses or a pattern he could exploit to kill the succubus queen.

Nala's throwing knives struck the succubus, causing her to stagger. The Warrior, Jackson, dashed forward and delivered a powerful downward slash that sent the queen flying back with a flash of orange light. Amaya followed up with a flurry of mana bolts and slashes, her blue-tinged sword glowing brighter and brighter with each impact. Sero saw his opening and dashed forward, using Shadow Sneak once more to appear behind the succubus. He swung his sword with all his might, cutting deeply into her flesh.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

The succubus queen shrieked in agony, but Sero didn't let up, placing his palm directly on her rather smooth and soft back. He took a moment to indulge in the feeling of her back before strengthening his resolve. Green mana swirled around his hand as he charged up a mana nuke and let loose, firing it directly into the succubus queen's vulnerable back.

"Wait, shit–" Sero's words were cut off as his nuke exploded with such force that he was launched backwards, his ears deafened from the shockwave. As he flew through the air, he realized that he should've probably fired the nuke from a safer distance. Sero finally hit the asphalt, hard, and tumbled to a stop on his back. Painfully, he turned his head towards the boss monster.

The succubus queen collapsed to the ground, a gaping hole where her chest used to be, her body steaming as it dissipated into a cloud of purple mist. There was a moment of silence before Amaya, Nala, and Jackson turned to face Sero, their expressions ranging from shock to annoyance. Sero groaned and rubbed his ears, trying to hear again.

He was dimly aware of the other Ascendants shouting as they hunted down the stray succubi who were now in disarray. Sero released his energy and mana efficiency as well as his Iron Skin.

"Champion, are you ok?" Aphiel sounded worried. Sero was surprised at how clear she was, though it made sense due to her telepathically communicating with him.

"Ask me again when I can hear properly." Sero winced as he sat up and casted Recovery on himself.

"What? But I’m speaking directly into your–"

"Ugh, Sero, you could've warned us you were going to do that! We almost got caught in the explosion!" Amaya shouted from across the street, glaring at him.

"What'd you say?" Sero squinted his eyes at her. His Recovery was still working on him.

"You could've- oh, never mind." Amaya frowned as she came up to him. "You ok?"

"Yeah," Sero made a face as he got up and stretched, his hearing normal again. Though it was a shame his bomber jacket had a large tear, his cut on his arm was completely healed. The rest of his outfit was splattered with sweet-smelling green blood. "Just caught off guard."

"Amazing," Jackson marveled at Sero as he joined the two. "You wield a sword really well, and your magic is powerful. What class are you?"

"I'm a Healer." Sero replied and pushed past him, leaving Jackson confused without any further explanations.

He ignored the other Ascendants who were either harvesting items from the slain succubi or checking on the regular civilians, opting to walk directly to the Italian restaurant. The portal had begun to shrink and he could see Nala standing before it, making sure it closed.

When he arrived at the restaurant, Sero immediately checked the seat he previously sat in.

"No. No fucking way."

He stared at his mangled seat, a mixture of anger, depression, and disbelief washing over him. There was only one bag of gold intact. The other two bags had been ripped to shreds by what seemed like claw marks, and a few gold coins were strewn around his seat. To Sero, it looked like a succubus had stolen the gold from two of his bags.

"Oh. Well, at least you still have one bag left." Nala materialized beside him with a consoling look.

"I'm gonna... I'm gonna hunt the succubus that stole my shit." Sero growled as he conjured his mana blade. His anger began to boil over, but then he paused, turning to look at Nala.

"Wait, what happened to your gold?"

Nala smiled softly, and with a flick of her hand, a small shadowy mass of purple appeared next to her. As Sero's body buzzed with power, she reached inside the purple mass and pulled out a bag of gold.

"I have a skill called Shadow Shift. It allows me to store anything within my shadow. It's pretty neat, because it's like a portable safe and basically weightless. I put them in there before we got to this restaurant."

"I really could've used it earlier," Sero scowled as his sword dissipated. "Why didn't you show me that skill?"

"Sorry. Didn't think you needed it." Nala bowed her head apologetically, but Sero caught the mischievous gleam in her eyes.

"I think she just wanted to watch you lug around those bags of gold. Well, I guess just one bag, now."

"Yeah, no shit." Sero was about to snap at Nala too, but then Amaya approached them.

"Before we talk about earlier, I'll cut you a deal," Amaya slipped by Sero and Nala towards the mangled chair. She knelt down and picked up the intact bag of gold and looked back at Sero with a grin. "I'll forgive half your debt, and take this bag of gold. How's that sound?"

Sero opened his mouth and hesitated.

"That's... that's fine." It took all of his strength not to cry.

"Thanks." Amaya's smile faded. "Now, about what happened earlier..."