Lilith raised the green mineral to eye level, calling upon the power of her Analysis. The surface of the stone rippled, and raw, system text bloomed before her eyes:
[ITEM: SKILL STONE]
[CONTENTS: HEALING (Rank D)]
When Lilith informed the other Succubi, Lysandra's expression immediately hardened, a flash of genuine appreciation appearing in her eyes. "We are remarkably lucky, Mistress," she murmured, staring at the jewel. "That goblin woman possessed two key abilities. The fact that the stone preserved the regeneration magic specifically is a gift from fate."
Lilith nodded, rolling the smooth object between her fingers. "How do I use this?" she asked, seeing no button or interface.
"You simply crush it," Lysandra explained. "Its essence will be released and absorbed by your body, and the System will automatically integrate that knowledge into your soul. You will learn it in the blink of an eye."
Lilith furrowed her brow slightly. The thought that, as a Demon King, she already had access to a massive tree of her own skills - and on top of that, could "devour" the abilities of others - seemed almost absurd. She looked seriously at her commander. "What is the limit? How many skills can I possess this way?"
The Succubi exchanged surprised glances, as if the question were strange at the very least. It was Mina, still slightly shaken after the earlier aura demonstration, who spoke first. "Limit? There is no limit, Mistress."
"What?" Lilith froze. "You mean to say I can have hundreds of them? Isn't that... a bit too powerful?"
Lysandra watched her with growing fascination. "Only beings of the Demon King rank have so many skills available to acquire. Normal humans in this world consider themselves blessed by fate if they manage to gain a handful of skills by level fifty." She paused for a moment to add emphatically: "Besides, these stones are extremely rare. They drop exclusively from Heroes. Ordinary monsters or humans do not leave such essence behind."
Lilith slowly processed this information when a thought suddenly hit her with the force of a battering ram. She looked at Lysandra with concern in her eyes. "If these stones are so valuable... doesn't that mean the Heroes themselves are prey for normal humans? Since such power can be 'dropped' from them?"
Lysandra smiled bloodthirstily, a shadow of dark satisfaction lingering at the corner of her mouth. "Nothing in this world can be too easy, can it?" she murmured, suggesting that the human world was just as ruthless as the demon domain.
Lilith let out a breath, feeling a strange sense of relief. At least she wasn't the only target - this world apparently forced everyone to be a predator. She shifted her gaze back to the stone, thinking of her wing, which still throbbed with a dull pain from the fight with the mage a week ago.
"In that case, there's no time to waste. We could use a medic," she said with determination.
She tightened her talons around the green mineral, ready to crush it, when suddenly Kala's sharp voice tore through the silence. "That skill would be more useful for Mina!"
Kala's voice cut through the air, causing Lilith to freeze with her claw clamped on the stone. Kala grabbed a surprised Mina by the shoulder and pushed her forward, directly before the Monarch. "Healing is nature magic," Kala continued, gesturing vividly. "Mina has an innate talent for manipulating the essence of plants and earth. In her hands, any spell of this kind will be twice as strong as it would be for someone who feels no bond with nature."
Lilith raised her eyebrows, loosening her grip. She looked at Lysandra, seeking confirmation. The elder succubus nodded slowly, observing her younger companion.
"Kala is right, Mistress," Lysandra took up the point. "Look at it from a future perspective as well. One day, you will possess dozens, maybe hundreds of powerful abilities. Some of them, like Rank D nature magic, will simply become redundant; you'll forget them. As a Primordial Succubus, you will surely unlock regeneration based on desire energy over time, which will be far more effective for your body."
Lilith narrowed her eyes for a moment, deliberately ignoring the mention of "regeneration through desire" - the vision of how that would look in practice still caused her slight unease. She focused on Mina. The girl stood with her head down, nervously twining her fingers and shifting from foot to foot.
"Do you want this, Mina?" Lilith asked in a soft but curious tone.
Mina glanced shyly at Lilith, then slowly, with growing excitement, nodded. The Monarch did not hesitate; she tossed the green stone toward the girl. Mina caught it instinctively, pressing the treasure to her chest.
"Next time, tell me immediately if you need something," Lilith said, turning slowly toward the altar. "Don't hide behind others. If you suppress your desires just because you're shy or don't want to be pushy, you might bitterly regret it in the future."
At that moment, a brief, painful image from Lilith's old life flashed through her mind. She saw herself - that former, human girl at university, standing in the shadow of a hallway, watching as others snatched up internships and awards simply because they had the courage to ask for them, while she remained silent, afraid to stand out. The taste of that regret was as bitter as wormwood.
She shook her head, dispelling the memory.
Mina, moved by her Lady's words, nodded vigorously. She looked at Lysandra and Kala, then crushed the stone in her hand with all her might. A green, luminous essence erupted from between her fingers, swirling around her like a swarm of fireflies before violently sinking into her pores. In Mina's green eyes, strange, plant-like runes flared for a split second, pulsing with life before fading and merging into her aura.
"I have it!" Mina shouted, jumping joyfully. "I can really feel it! I have a new skill!"
Lysandra smiled with a rare gentleness. "At least there's that," she commented, glancing at Mina. "This way, you gained something from that fight as well."
Mina, wanting to try her newly acquired power immediately, suddenly thrust her hand toward Lilith. Her fingers glowed with an emerald brilliance.
"[HEAL]!" she cried with childish excitement.
A stream of warm, green light shot from her hand, wrapping around the Monarch's wings like a life-giving mist. Lilith, who had been about to browse the chat menu for interesting trade offers, flinched as she felt a sudden wave of soothing heat. She instinctively looked at her left wing. Before her eyes, the ragged tissue and old scars from the mage began to knit together; the skin became smooth, shimmering, and flawless, regaining its original, marbled luster.
Lilith touched the spot where she had felt stiffness and pain only moments ago. The skin was soft and new. She looked at Mina with a wide smile.
"Thank you, Mina. Good job," she said sincerely.
Mina, bursting with pride, stepped closer, tilting her head and staring at Lilith with an expectant gaze, like a puppy waiting for a reward. Lilith laughed quietly to herself. She focused her will, and in a split second, her powerful, demonic silhouette shrunk, returning to her petite, human form. She reached out and gently stroked the succubus's head.
"Good girl," she murmured.
Mina let out a quiet sound of contentment and, with a blissful expression, nuzzled into Lilith's hand, closing her eyes. The moment of idyll did not last long, however. Lysandra, remaining vigilant, cleared her throat significantly, calling them to order.
"We must take what happened extremely seriously," she announced sternly.
Lilith grew serious and withdrew her hand, to which Mina reacted with a quiet hum of disappointment. "You're right," Lilith admitted. "Our valley lies in a complete wasteland, far from civilization, and yet in just a few hours, five Heroes found us..."
Suddenly, a warning bell went off in the Monarch's head. She thought of other Demon Kings who might have had less luck and worse protection than she did. She quickly summoned the global status window. When she looked at the number of living Demon Kings, her eyes opened so wide they began to sting.
From the initial 10 million, the number had dropped to 9 million 500 thousand.
"Dammit..." she choked out, feeling her stomach turn. "Not even half the night has passed since the protection was lifted, and already half a million of us are dead?! How is that even possible?"