Hey Everybody!
So, I'm betting most of you are wondering why I haven't updated this story in about a month. Well, fear not! For I have a good reason:
I've recently gotten a new job at a warehouse, doing a lot of manual labor, and have been coming home fucking EXHAUSTED every day. Too tired to write. And even on the weekends, when I technically COULD write, I'm too busy catching up on sleeping.
I do expect things to eventually even out when my muscles finally acclimate to the daily strain, but writing is that last thing on my mind for now, to the point where I'm posting a chapter here without updating a new one on my Patreon. Hope you all understand!
Anyway…
Not really feeling it right now, so just...on with the story, I guess.
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~~~
{One Hour Later}
Throughout the history of the three continents, the mental states of the Four Spirits had always been the highest priority for the monsters around them. After all, while a bad day for an average monster may result in a few damaged buildings and some traumatized humans, a bad day for a Spirit almost always became a historical event with a high body count. Just observing what Ilias had been doing over the thousands of years that she has been insane would be enough incentive to keep the Spirits happy.
Dealing with two crying and mentally disturbed Spirits at the same time, especially the two who were least known for their self control, was a nightmare most wouldn't wish upon their worst enemies.
When simple cuddling and reassurance didn't seem to be doing anything for them, Kevin decided to use the limited Psychic power he had in his Eevee form to reach out to Alice and request for him to bring his backpack to his waiting room. It said a lot about how serious the situation was that the Monster Lord didn't even make a single snarky remark about it.
It took about half an hour of snuggling within the isolated confines of the Bag of Bedding for Sylph to stop crying, and another fifteen minutes for Gnome to loosen her ironclad grip on Kevin's fur. In an ideal world, they would have remained there until both of the girls were mentally sound enough to let go of him. Unfortunately for them, they didn't lve in an ideal world, and their husband had a match in ten minutes.
"Please…just a little bit longer," the fairy-sized Spirit whimpered, looking on the verge of bursting into tears again. It didn't help that her sister was burying her face deeper into Kevin's fur and transmitting feelings of reluctance and sadness through their bond.
'If I don't go, I'll lose the chance to unlock my Fighting Type form,' the boy reasoned, nudging them with his nose. 'If it will make you feel better, you can both just retreat into my soul instead of sitting in the audience.'
It was obvious to anyone with eyes that they wanted to argue with him, but they both knew him well enough to know that he wouldn't back down. More evolutions meant a greater arsenal for him, after all, which would not only be useful against the various monsters of their world, but also any other Chaos Gods who would be stopping by in the future. After how he'd been manhandled in the arena, they knew he needed all the power ups he could get.
"..." Gnome reluctantly nodded, slowly fading away until she had disappeared into his soul.
Sylph followed shortly after, giving Kevin a kiss for good luck. With both of them gone, he turned his attention inward and felt the metaphysical presence of their essences wrapping tightly around his soul, giving him the sensation of being hugged from all directions at once. It was nice, but he couldn't focus too much on it.
He had a tournament to win, after all.
Shifting back to his humanoid form after leaving the bag, he was about to head for the door when Alice blocked his way. "Before you go, I need to warn you about the Champion," she stated.
"...why?" he hummed questioningly. He seriously doubted there was anyone on the entire Sentora continent at the moment – other than Draco, apparently – who could make a single scratch on him, let alone warrant a warning from the Monster Lord.
"Although she goes by the name Kyuba when fighting here, that's nothing but an alias to keep opponents from surrendering too soon," she explained. "You've actually fought her, and beat her, once already. You're in a better headspace now than you were back then, but…if it comes down to it, I will use one of my favors to keep you from killing her."
He stared at her as his mind went into overdrive. At this point, there had been plenty of monsters who'd pissed him off enough to receive a beatdown. The only two of them who'd both received his wrath and were likely to be strong enough to be the Champion of the Colosseum were the two Heavenly Knights he'd handed their own asses. If he remembered correctly, Granberia was a Dragon/Steel Type because she was a dragonkin swordswoman. That only left…
"...fuck," he groaned. "Please tell me I'm wrong, and it's not HER."
Alice's expression became sympathetic. "We both know that if I did, I'd be a liar. But, there is a bright side."
"What bright side can possibly exist when I have to face that idiotic succubus?"
"..."
"...?"
"To be honest, I hoped I would come up with one in the moment. There really isn't one, when I think about it," she shrugged.
Kevin sighed in exasperation. "Sometimes I wonder why I put up with you.."
"It's probably because I'm the only person NOT bound to your soul who puts up with you in return," she smirked, slithering out of the room.
"...I hate how that makes sense," the boy grumbled, leaving shortly after her.
{In the Arena}
While Kevin knew exactly who he was going to face when stepping out into the sunlight once again, his opponent didn't. As should be obvious by now, the tournament was structured and executed in such a way that the contestants weren't aware of their next adversary until they entered the arena. It both gave a sense of anticipation for the participants, and made sure they couldn't formulate a specialized battle strategy before the match could even start.
This lack of knowledge meant that Alma Elma, going by the alias of Kyuba, was not prepared in the slightest for the all-out brawl she was about to face.
As the Succubus Queen and the Heavenly Knight of the Wind, she was a monster with a lot of responsibility on her shoulders; although one wouldn't be able to tell with the whimsical sexuality she usually displayed. When paired with her predisposition for physical violence that she ruthlessly suppressed every almost every waking moment of her life since she was a child, you get a recipe for a really stressed out woman.
Her only form of relief, besides indulging in the top-quality men kept around the Monster Lord's castle, was the Colosseum. There, she wasn't the Queen Succubus who had an image to uphold and duties. No, she was Kyuba: the Champion of the Colosseum who was free to fight other monsters, or particularly-brave heroes, without worrying about being shunned for her true nature. The admonishing words of her mother, who verbally disqualified her from being a succubus, faded away in favor of the crowds of adoring fans who came to see her stand triumphant over all of her foes.
On this particular day, she had one more reason than usual to lose herself in the thrill of the tournament. After two months of emotional turmoil, brought about by her needless assault on a boy who had more reasons to hate sex than she'd ever wanted to know, she needed something to make her forget, even if it was only temporary. She had hoped that knocking around some overconfident monsters and feasting on the semen of under-confident men would distract her from the ache that the teen's memories brought to her heart.
So far, it had been working. She'd toyed with every man and monster pitted against her so far, putting on a show that drove the audience wild. Not only that, but she'd heard similar reactions all the way from her waiting room for whoever would be her last opponent in the finals. The thought of facing someone who may be able to match her in strength, no matter how unlikely it may be, sent shivers down her spine as she opened the large doors and confidently strutted into the arena–
–only to freeze when she saw who was approaching from the other side.
"Sup, bitch," greeted the one boy she didn't want to see at all today, his hazel eyes giving her a look of disgust that she felt down to her soul. "Ready for round two?"
A whirlwind of emotions erupted in her heart, but she didn't allow a single one to show on the surface. Even the momentary pause was easy to play off as a part of her dramatic entrance when she unscrambled her mind enough to take control of her own body again. Years of training to hide her true thoughts and feelings allowed her to approach the center of the arena, though her mouth refused to move.
'Why is he here!?' she internally screamed. 'I came here to get away from his memories, not experience more of them!'
That was the true crux of her panic. After the nightmares she'd been forced to relive over and over again last time, her own view of raping men had been warped. She was worried that, should he force her to go through that seemingly-endless torment again, she may end up hating sex altogether. There was no telling what would happen to a succubus who completely abstained from all forms of sex, and she didn't want to become the first.
Finally finding her voice, she mustered up the ability to reply to him. "Ara, if it isn't Kevin. Meeting in a place like this...how unexpected!"
"This is just my luck. To be honest, I was hoping to never see you again," the boy blandly griped.
'I honestly can't blame you,' she thought. Her actual response, though, was more blatant flirting. "Don't be like that! We had a lot of fun last time!"
"Are…you an idiot?" the said, looking honestly bewildered by her response. "You attacked me without provocation, and I manhandled you until I got bored and trapped you in a deep sleep where you experienced your worst nightmares on a loop. If that's your idea of fun, you have even more mental issues than most of the rape-happy idiots I've encountered so far."
If the succubus didn't need to keep up her carefree persona, she would have agreed with him there. "Awe, don't be like that! I really loved playing with that handsome pink-haired form you transformed into."
"Well, unfortunately for both you and me, I've already used my Espeon evolution today," he grumbled.
A flicker of hope appeared in her chest upon hearing that. "Really? Then are you going to fight me as your small, adorable self?" she asked, internally praying that the answer was 'yes.'
"No," he replied, shaking his head. "But, I do have one other form that will be perfect for handing you your own ass on a silver platter."
Not waiting for her to process his words, he was enveloped in the usual flash of light and replaced by…his Spookeon form, in all her mutilated glory.
It took a few seconds for the Succubus Queen's eyes to clear up enough to see the new form standing before her. It was definitely creepy, with the bleeding wounds, the pale skin, and the semi-transparent body; but, she'd seen more horrifying monsters roaming around Hellgondo. On the other hand, though, she knew from both her own experience, as well as those of her fellow Heavenly Knights, that NONE of the boy's evolutions were weak in any sense. Even if she couldn't feel the waves of Elemental Energy rolling off of the short girl, she'd still be on her guard.
"You look absolutely adorable!" she commented, trying to throw the little girl off.
Instead of appearing frustrated, Kevin's mouth widened into an unsettling grin. "And you look like the perfect Victim."
With no further warning, she raised her right hand and snapped her fingers. As if triggered by the snap, a whirling vortex appeared behind her, emitting a foreboding aura that could even be felt by the humans in the audience. They didn't have to wait long to see it's purpose, as a stream of shadowy ethereal bodies suddenly came flying out, each and every one of them flying toward Alma Elma. If they hadn't been moving so fast, the onlookers would be able to see that they looked like the souls of the dead.
[Astral Barrage – Ghost Type Move]
[Description: The user attacks by sending a frightful amount of small ghosts at the target.]
Alma Elma wasn't stupid enough to just stand there and see what kind of effect the attack would have on her. Using both her wings and her mastery over Wind Magic, she leaped into the air. Fortunately for her, [Astral Barrage] wasn't a move that could actually home in on an enemy, so the ghosts ended up breaking themselves against the far wall of the arena.
Instead of hovering there and waiting for her opponent's next attack, the Succubus Queen went on the offensive. Adrenaline pumped through her veins as the desire to fight that she kept buried deep in her heart rose to the surface. Once again, the Eeveelution System's emphasis of her Fighting Type nature brought out her inner battle maniac; the only difference being that this time, instead of only happening at the end of the battle, it was evoked at the beginning.
With a wave over her hand, multiple tornados appeared across the battlefield, each one powerful enough to rip an average person apart. None of them moved, but their purpose wasn't to directly attack Kevin. They existed to limit the teenager's movement throughout the arena. With those in place, Alma Elma was ready to fight back.
Diving with the full force of the wind at her back, she rocketed toward Kevin. Magic coated her fist as she cocked it back, preparing to deliver a punch that would shatter most castle walls. The teenager wasn't dodging out of the way, but the succubus was already in too deep to pull back. Besides, she was ninety-percent certain that Kevin had some plan.
Time seemed to stand still as the Succubus Queen's knuckles came into contact with the teenager's face…then passed through it as if the Spookeon wasn't even there. That didn't stop her, though, as she immediately rotated in mid-air and made a swipe with her leg. Her foot, just like her fist before it, phased through the short girl's torso, not even ruffling her hoodie.
Over and over again, Alma Elma executed every single physical attack she could think of. Punches, kicks, and even tail swipes had no effect on the teenager whatsoever. It was as if Kevin was just an illusion, but she also knew that couldn't be the case. She could clearly feel the girl's presence, and even Alice couldn't create an illusion that could give off this kind of aura.
"This is getting boring," Kevin stated, going so far as to give a fake yawn. "My last Victim put up a much better fight."
Without waiting for a verbal response, the Spookeon went on the offense again. Raising her hand, a large cartoonish bone radiating ghostly flames appeared in her hand. A single downard strike was all she needed to slam it into Alma Elma's head, resulting in the Succubus Queen crashing face-first into the arena floor with enough force to send cracks in all directions.
As the succubus was regaining her wits from having her skull so thoroughly rattled, the small girl was already preparing her next move. Instead of directly attacking, however, she performed a stunt that chilled the audience to their bones. A large nail manifested out of thin air above the girl's head…and almost immediately started forcing itself into her skull in short bursts as if it was being hit with a hammer. The blood and bone shards that were scattered as a result made some of the audience with weaker stomachs vomit, but the Spookeon didn't seem to acknowledge the amount of pain she should've been in.
[Curse – Ghost Type Moves]
[Description: By sacrificing half of their overall health, the user places a curse on a targe. The target's health will drain by ¼ every thirty seconds until they are rendered unconscious, or the battle is ended.]
"And so the [Curse] has been applied," Kevin nodded in satisfaction.
Standing back up, Alma Elma was surrounded by a dark purple aura. "What…do you mean by that?"
"Oh, it's simple, my dear Victim: I placed a curse on you that will render you completely incapable of fighting within the next two minutes. Maybe less, if I decide to subject you to even more torment."
As if to confirm the teenager's statement, the pain suddenly lanced through the succubus' entire body. She had enough mental fortitude to not cry out, but still grit her teeth as tears appeared in the corners of her eyes. There was no visible damage to be seen on her body, but she could feel the magic of the curse enveloping her and digging into her soul like barbed wire.
It was at that moment, as the haze of adrenaline was starting to take over her mind, that she made a choice. It was a decision that she'd come to many times before, but only this time was it out of necessity rather than whimsy.
"Well, I guess that means I can't win!" she cheerfully stated, holding her hands up in surrender. "I forfeit this match!"
The surprise from this statement was enough to make the Spookeon freeze. In all of her experience, she'd never heard of a single Fighting Type that was willing to throw in the towel so easily. They would normally fight until they were completely knocked out, no matter how much the scales were tilted in their enemy's favor. It was so ridiculous that she had to ask. "What?"
"I give up," Alma Elma repeated. "I've had all the fun I wanted to today, so there's no point in continuing. You're the new Champion of the Colosseum."
From the fact that the aura of the curse had completely left her body, Kevin knew that she wasn't kidding. As much as the Spookeon wanted to continuing knocking around the succubus, the rules of the Colosseum stated that the moment an opponent surrendered, the match was over. Kevin had won, and thus changed back into his Eevee form.
"Until next time," Alma Elma said with a sultry wink as she flapped her wings, taking off into the sky and quickly disappearing.
"That…was disappointing," the teenager grumbled. But, as if to brighten his mood, the Eeveelution System spoke up.
[Congratulations!]
[Due to defeating a Boss Type monster in possession of an Element you have not absorbed yet; you have unlocked the full power of Fighting Type Energy!]
[New Evolution Added: Champeon!]
Well, he might not have gotten to beat that annoy succubus' face to a bloody pulp, but at least he finally added a Fighting Type form to his arsenal.