Baator Hell Promotion

They flew upward for a long time, the castle growing from a toy-like little house into a massive structure hanging high above their heads. Only when they flew into the mist surrounding the castle did the leading hag slow down. The tip of her long staff glowed red, piercing through the increasingly thick mist to guide the new students behind her.

Hopper felt cold and hungry, and her robe and cloak were filled with fog and stuck to her body. At this time, she couldn't help but feel a little jealous of Vera. Although she was not dressed appropriately, at least she could get rid of the burden of wet clothes.

"Speed ​​up!" Hopper heard the witch scream. She gritted her teeth and flapped her wings hard to rush away.

Unexpectedly, she burst through the clouds, the bright sunlight nearly blinding her. She heard Danya on her left groan in discomfort.

The entirety of Torch Keep was revealed before them.

The dark grey castle wasn't built on a cliff face; it floated perfectly atop the mountaintop. Countless slender spires and graceful, slender corridors formed a vast ring, slowly circling the peak. The thick fog that had so afflicted Hopper just now enveloped the castle like a noblewoman's veil, gracefully embracing it.

Professor Millennium Intestine did not give them much time to recover. When she saw that the wounded who had fallen behind had caught up, she asked all the freshmen to land on a small platform extending from the bottom of the castle.

The platform was made of granite and even had a circular flower bed filled with green plants. Someone was already waiting for them there.

"That's enough, Professor Millennium Intestine. I'll take them on the rest of the way."

The man was a powerful green dragonborn, with a crown of thorns extending to his back. Hopper turned slightly to the side. In theory, dragonborns should not have the strong oppressive power of their parents, but the man gave Hopper a very dangerous feeling.

"Of course, Professor Bi Guan, I'm just happy and relaxed," the witch said before jumping onto the broom and flying away without even looking at the freshmen.

"Follow me, you're already late." The Green Dragonborn turned around and walked towards the corridor on the side. Vera, who was next to Hopper, made a face and hurried to catch up.

They walked along the outer marble corridor for a while, then turned into the inner corridor, then turned right, then turned inward again, and repeated this so many times that Hopper simply gave up trying to remember the route.

Perhaps intimidated by Professor Bi Guan's presence and size, the freshmen remained silent throughout the journey, simply following him until they reached a massive, silver-gray door that reached all the way to the ceiling. Professor Bi Guan pushed it open, revealing a room so high it was impossible to see the ceiling. There was no other light except for the sunlight filtering through dozens of carved windows high above. A staircase led straight down to the room below, where dozens of freshmen were already present, and the room was filled with the hum of whispers.

"Go down and stay with them," the green dragonborn ordered, then spread his wings and flew high.

Hopper looked in the direction he was pointing. He saw several people, whom he thought were teachers, standing on a delicate protruding balcony high up.

They had just stood there when a succubus wearing an iron mask walked out from the balcony.

"Very well, welcome to Emberhold, freshmen who have made it here alive." The succubus's voice was calm and powerful. Even from a distance of at least five floors, it was as clear as if it were right next to him. "I am the principal of Emberhold. You may call me Madam Strict."

"So she's the Lady Strict," Hopper whispered to Lati. "Her full-covering metal mask really lives up to the name."

"I know that many of you come from prominent families." She paused for a second or two, and Hopper felt her glance at Vera in front of him. "Many of the new students also have Grand Dukes behind them. They come here for various purposes, not just to study."

"Don't think you're special. Countless demons, including some at the level of Grand Dukes, have sought to take control of Ember Keep. And Ember Keep has witnessed the fall and rise of many Grand Dukes. I don't recommend you consider yourself a special case who can challenge laws and authority."

"Perhaps you have heard of the Torchhold, but I suggest you listen carefully to everything I say next." Lady Harsh raised her voice slightly. "In the early days, the Torchhold was only open to succubi. Now, the Torchhold is willing to teach all qualified devils. But this does not mean that you will all receive exactly the same teachings. The courses will be customized one by one, respecting your own opinions, especially those of your guardians."

"Torchhold's time is aligned with the Prime Material Plane. You'll need to get used to it quickly." Lady Harsh gestured toward the window. "Your lessons will begin at sunrise tomorrow."

"Everything you need will be delivered to your room tonight. Torchhold is absolutely secure, so all foreign magical items must be handed in. I also advise you not to challenge the eyes of our guardians of order."

Hopper heard Vera quietly complaining about the rules. She was of noble birth and probably brought a lot of expensive magical items.

"Now, you can all go and rest, or get familiar with the castle before the sun sets." Lady Harsh finally waved her hand, and dozens of crows flew out from under her black robe, and she disappeared.

"All Enryes, come this way!" a brown-skinned tiefling called out from the exit. Hopper squeezed through. Enryes was an ancient name for a succubus; it seemed Torchhold was still quite traditional.

"Good day, ladies of the dark wings." The female tiefling was so skinny that Hopper felt she resembled a pair of pokers standing upright or a staff with its base split. "I'm your housekeeper. You can call me Silver Eyes. You can come to me for anything you need in your daily life."

Hopper looked around. The number of Enryes was less than a quarter of the total number of people. They were all women, and there was no sign of the legendary male demon. Lati and Lil were at the other end of the room. Hopper helplessly spread his hands at them.

"I will lead you to put away the items that should not be brought with you." Silver Eyes pointed outside. "Your rooms have been arranged. Four people to a room. We will try to arrange for acquaintances who are in the same carriage to stay together."

"I have a question," a short succubus suddenly said, "No one in my carriage is Enriyes, so who will I be assigned to?"

"Torchhold allocates accommodations based on race, so as to fully accommodate everyone's physiological differences." The tiefling nodded and beckoned the succubus to move forward. "We will arrange for other Enryes roommates for you."

"I must keep the two rings my mother left me. Does she dare to put her hands on..." Vera was whispering to Lacy behind Hopper, and it was unknown whether the housekeeper heard it or not.

The housekeeper led all the succubi up a flight of stairs and stopped in front of a brass statue of a human body with a lion's head and a tray in both hands.

As they approached, two beams of green light shot out from the statue's eyes, sweeping across everyone. Then, various lights of varying strengths erupted from almost everyone, with Vera and another plump succubus emitting the most and brightest light.

"Please place all magical items on the tray," said the housekeeper.

Hopper heard Vera swear.

Chapter 38 Morning Class

The next day, Hopper was woken up by Vera's complaints.

“I would never wear such ugly clothes.”

Hopper opened his eyes. It was still dark outside the tall pointed window, and there was a candle that was almost burned out on the bedside table of each succubus.

The dormitory that Ember Keep arranged for them was at the top of the tower. The room was not big, and there was nothing except hard beds and bedside tables scattered in the four corners.

Vera was now standing on the ground barefoot, holding a black long skirt in her hands and shouting.

"Ms. Vera, you have to hurry up," the housekeeper said, standing straight at the door. "Morning classes are about to begin."

Hopper sat up and found a folded uniform on her bedside table. After putting it on, she found that it was actually similar to her own robe, except that from the dressing gown inside to the short cape and robe outside, they were all the same black.

The four dressed people lined up and followed the housekeeper holding a candle, walking through the silent corridor. When Vera started to complain, the housekeeper led them into a prayer hall.

They weren't late.

There were more than a dozen cushions placed in the prayer hall. After the housekeeper led the group to kneel in an orderly manner, four or five more succubi came in. Hopper noticed that only succubi came to perform the morning prayers.

The room was lit with incense, and the Stern Lady sat on a raised platform with a pulpit and chairs. The steps surrounding the platform were lit with candles. Her mask reflected the candlelight, making her look even more solemn and majestic.

"Very good, no one's late," said the Stern Lady, seeing all the tieflings leave. She put down her book and said, "Today is the first day, and I will lead you in morning prayers. From now on, you will do it on your own."

"Morning classes are a tradition of Torchhold. I'm sure you've noticed that only Enriyes is allowed to attend," Lady Stern observed all the succubi. "I hope you remember that you are different from other descendants of Baatezu. You are the noble and irreplaceable Enriyes."

"Now, join me in praising the defenders of order, the enemies of the endless abyss, who prevent the multiverse from falling into the nine layers of hell with endless entropy reduction."

Hopper was keenly aware of the Harsh Lady's choice of words. She was praising the Nine Hells themselves, not Asmodeus, the King of the Nine Hells. Was she doing this on purpose, or was she simply reciting poetry?

For a considerable time afterwards, all the succubi chanted a long poem in the tone of the harsh lady.

Hopper had never heard of this poem, but that wasn't surprising. After all, most devils were too busy dealing with their superiors and missions to cultivate a literary taste.

The epic poem begins with the nameless King of Hell. It sings of the King of Hell, shining like the morning star, betrayed by his father, brother, and friends, descending from the sky, blazing, to pierce the nine planes. Even with his wings singed and his glory shattered, he triumphs over all his enemies and forges his throne at the lowest level of the Nine Hells.

The long poem then began to praise the loyal and brave people who surrounded the nameless king and voluntarily followed him. Familiar names began to appear, such as Dis, Lilith, Mephistos and the glorious and beautiful Baalzebul.

However, the jealousy of the gods brought disaster upon themselves. They bewitched the Nameless King, causing him to become violent and emotional, deviating from perfect order and reason. The Grand Dukes were forced to unite and overthrow the incompetent King of Hell.

The second most majestic Baalzebul briefly took over the chaos, but when he discovered that the unmatched Alsmodeus was far more suitable to lead Baator to victory, he voluntarily abdicated to the most beautiful Alsmodeus.

The demons chanted again and again to the rhythm of the Harsh Lady. It was not until Hopper felt dizzy that he heard the Harsh Lady shout "Stop".

"That concludes our morning classes," she announced, and Hopper noticed that most of the candles on the stairs had gone out. "Next comes one of your most important lessons at Emberhold."

She paused for a second or two, making sure all the succubi were listening to her before continuing.

"The Enreyes are a special group. The Grand Dukes have authorized me to carefully confirm your backgrounds, strengths, and some of your wishes. I will plan your future advancement path. You can rest for a while now. I will have individual talks with you later."

After saying that, the female headmistress left all the freshmen behind, turned around and walked into a small door behind the podium and disappeared.

At the same moment, the door opened, and the Lady with Silver Eyes entered with a procession of silent tiefling maids carrying copper trays laden with food and drink.

Just like they didn't need sleep, demons didn't actually feel hungry or thirsty. But after a morning of chanting and reciting, Hopper decided to give himself a little relief.

She stood up, stretched her stiff legs, took off her hood, and took a bun and filtered blood river water from the tray.

Two lust demons walked over, they were Danya and Leixi.

"Hello, Vera, don't you want to eat something?" Hopper didn't like Vera's small group very much, but they were semi-acquaintances after all, so it was necessary to maintain some polite interactions.

"Vera thought the food provided was too crude and she would rather not eat it." Lexi shrugged and took a sip of river water from the tray.

"Besides, she was chatting animatedly with Nora, so she probably didn't have time to eat." Danya tucked her hanging black hair. Hopper looked in the direction of her hand and saw Vera laughing heartily with the plump succubus who had brought the same number of magic items as her last night.

"They became close friends so quickly?" Hopper was a little surprised. Vera didn't look like an easy person to approach.

"Who knows? They were just talking about the recent divine advent incident during their morning prayers."

"A god descending?" Hopper was even more surprised. Although many gods lived in Baator, they all maintained a tacit understanding with the King of the Nine Hells and rarely interfered directly in the affairs of Hell. "Who is it? Where is it?"

"I heard someone broke into Abrimok's shallow cells and took away several souls awaiting trial." Lexi was clearly very interested in this interesting story. "It is said that a believer of a deity related to love came to hell to save his lover."

"Huh..." Hopper and Danya both showed contemptuous expressions. The mainstream idea of ​​hell is that emotions will cause mortals to be irrational, and irrationality is an important factor leading to chaos.

"Love-related deities? That's a pretty wide range of choices," Hopper said. Deities related to love alone include the Serpent of Pleasure, the Lady of the Harvest, the patron saint of civilization, Lady Fireborn, and her three subordinate deities. Expanding the scope a bit, there's also the God of Literature and Poetry, the Patron Saint of Adventurers, and even the Crone of Silvermoon.

Almost all of these gods will protect lovers in some way. Another thing they have in common is that they all oppose Hell, so it can be said that any of them has a reason to take action.

"Who knows? Besides, the invaders retreated successfully. The Grand Duke of the first four floors held a hearing a while ago to hold Guard Captain Gezarui accountable," Lexi added. "Gezarui insisted that the invaders arrived at the fourth floor legally, holding a pass from the Demon Tribunal. It was the Demon Tribunal's lax review that led to such a serious incident."

The Tribunal of Demons. Hopper thought of the red-robed wizard he had met as a guide a while ago, who was also going to the Tribunal of Demons. However, he was eventually taken away by Sinoyi, and he must have been drained dry by now.

"If he has the help of a god behind him, it won't be difficult for him to escape unless Asmodeus is present," Hopper said rationally.

Danya and Leixi looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"The Grand Dukes only care about the results, not the reasons. The other three Grand Dukes will definitely force Grand Duke Firna to completely reshuffle the positions in Abrimok."

Hopper nodded approvingly.

Chapter 39 History

The Harsh Lady didn't let them rest for long.

Hopper had just finished his little bread when a large raven flew out of the small door. It landed on the pulpit and first cackled twice to alert everyone of its arrival. Then it shouted in a hoarse voice:

"Vera of Malborge, please come forward."

Upon hearing this, the silver-haired sensual demon quickly jumped up, checked his appearance, and walked in gracefully.

She stayed for less than a quarter of an hour before coming out with Raven.

"Nara of Phlegethos, please come forward."

Nora stretched out her round and plump thighs as she passed by Vera, who gave her a bright smile and then started whispering to Danya and the others.

As time passed, Hopper vaguely felt that the strict lady seemed to sort the freshmen according to their backgrounds. The higher their parents' positions, the earlier they would be admitted.

One after another, the succubus walked through the door. Vera and her two companions and Nora's friends had already left.

All the candles had burned out, and the number of demons left in the prayer hall was dwindling. Hopper began to feel nervous—she wasn't sure what her status was. Surely the Strict Lady wouldn't just tell her to go back and wait for news?

"Hopper, please come forward." After the last blood-red-haired succubus came out, she finally heard the cry of ravens, and at this time there was no one else in the prayer hall.

Hopper took a deep breath and stepped through the door.

The flickering candlelight cast a subtle, mysterious atmosphere in the confessional. Three gray stone sculptures, reaching the ceiling, looked down upon every being who entered. In the center was the Daughter of Vengeance, Nemesis, wielding a torch and a whip, lashing out against all who betrayed their faith. To the left, Marion, the Thunder of Punishment, stood majestic and imposing, wielding a lightning spear. To the right, shrouded in flowing robes, wearing a mask and holding scales, was Ossus the Condemner.

At the feet of the three gods stood an ancient stone table, where the Stern Lady was waiting.

"Please sit down." After writing the last line, the female principal rolled up the paper with her slender fingers, put it into the box on the table, and pointed to the high-backed chair in front of her.

"I already know about your special situation." The harsh lady opened a half-written book on the table and ran her fingers over the records. "It's rare, but it's not uncommon. You are not the first Enryes to be transformed by a demon."

Hopper breathed a sigh of relief. It was normal to think about it. Sassino had been corrupted for thousands of years. It was impossible for Lilith to transform herself into a succubus in such a long time.

"As I said in morning class, every Enryes is a valuable asset to Hell. I will tailor your lessons to suit your circumstances. Do you know what advanced forms of Enryes exist?"

"I've vaguely heard that Enriyes has different channels for advancement, but I don't know much about them," Hopper thought for a moment and said honestly.

"It's more of a division of labor than an advancement," Ms. Stern said, opening another booklet. "The one you've probably heard of the most is probably the Barakina—the Delight Demons. They possess unparalleled beauty among all the Devil Demons. They serve as infiltrators and seducers, spending years on the Prime Material Plane, responsible for luring high-ranking clergy."

"You should be most familiar with the three high-level lust demons under Lilith's command: the charming demon Xinoyi, who controls others as a lover; the nurturing demon Sashinoyi, who controls others as a nurturer; and the moon demon Simankirov, who controls others through malicious competition. In addition, there's also Bilel's beloved radiant demon Rahe, who only needs to stay behind to heal the wounded. If you're willing to learn the arts, the choir of Aishes can promote you to a delight demon."

"You can also remain a succubus and improve your status by learning other knowledge. The dean of the Political Science Academy, Meisdam, is just an ordinary succubus."

"You can even choose to be promoted to a bone demon, thus leaving the ranks of lust demons."

"There are other, rarer options, which can only be promoted after you join the corresponding Grand Duke's faction. You don't need to know about them now."

Hopper had never imagined there were so many different types of succubi, and for a moment she hesitated. At the moment, ascending to the rank of pleasure demon seemed the safest path forward. She didn't think she had the time or financial resources to become a high-ranking warlock. Transforming into a bone demon would mean giving up a rare advantage, and ascending to other specialized succubi would practically mean joining a specific noble faction.

The right to choose in hell is a power that is hard to buy even with one's soul. If possible, Hopper is not willing to be too deeply bound to the high-level devils above.

She took the booklet from the strict lady and read it word by word, but her mind was thinking about other things.

Lady Harsh looked like an ordinary succubus. As she said, ordinary succubus were already quite special in Hell, and quite a few of them rose to high positions.

But Hopper didn't believe it. If she was really just an ordinary succubus, why would she cover her face? She was not a helpless poor thing like him who didn't need to hide herself.

"Respected Professor, some succubi have grown up in the palace for many years and have sufficient information and channels to determine their future path," Hopper said respectfully. "As you just said, my situation is rather special. I don't have a mother to pave the way for me. I can only hope that Torchhold will provide me with sufficient information. Can you give me some advice?"

"You don't want to join Lilith's army? Then what do you want?" the principal asked perceptively. She had clearly sensed that if Hopper was willing, he would simply choose from among Lilith's high-ranking succubi.

"I'm grateful for the Lady of the Night's help," Hopper shook his head. "But I like to be alone. I want to be more active in hunting on the Prime Material Plane instead of singing in a choir."

"Hmph, you're more ignorant than all the other freshmen." Although the headmistress was scolding, Hopper thought he heard a faint smile.