They were all Succubi but they weren't uniform. Some had paler skin like Vespera but others were crimson, azure, or mottled grey. They hovered in the room. They were all looking at Li Yu with a mix of curiosity and resentment.

  "Line up," Li Yu ordered.

  He didn't waste time. He cast the same soul binding spell he had used on Vespera but it wasn’t mutual at all. This was what was agreed to by Vespera ahead of time. She would make them obey and accept it. It was either this or death. Li Yu did promise them a fair life though, they just wouldn’t be able to harm humans again.

  The runes flared. The forty succubi wailed as the brands seared into their foreheads. They were weaker than Vespera, ranging from early Core Formation to early Soul Formation.

  "Enter," Li Yu commanded while tapping his chest.

  The forty demons dissolved into light and shot into Li Yu’s Spirit Sea. Li Yu looked inward.

  On the isolated island, Vespera’s villa was undergoing a rapid renovation. The demonic Qi of the forty new arrivals expanded the landmass. New wings sprouted from the main house. A barracks was formed.

  The forty succubi materialized in the garden. They looked around, confused.

  "Where are we?" a red skinned Charm Demon asked.

  "Home," Vespera said as she was leaning on her balcony railing. She pointed a finger toward the nearby water. "Don't touch the water."

  She pointed to a small island floating not far away where a figure in a straw hat sat fishing.

  "And don't disturb the old man," Vespera warned. "He gets grumpy."

  The succubi looked at the fisherman. They felt the faint, terrifying pressure radiating from him. They nodded quickly, scurrying into the barracks.

  Back in the office, the room was filled with groaning people. Li Yu dropped the barrier

  "It is done. You can wake them up now," Li Yu told Signe.

  Signe nodded eagerly. She went to her Captain, shaking her shoulder. "Kara! Kara, wake up!"

  The Captain groaned with her eyes fluttering open. She looked at Signe.

  "Marshall?" She whispered. "I... I had a nightmare."

  Then she looked at Li Yu. Her eyes dilated. Her breath hitched. A flush rose to her cheeks.

  "Young Master," Captain Kara breathed as she was scrambling to her knees. She bowed her head deeply. "You saved us."

  Behind her, the other thirty-nine Valkyries were waking up. And one by one, as they laid eyes on Li Yu, the reaction was the same.

  "Lord Li Yu."

  "We await your command."

  They looked at him with the cold, hard respect of soldiers looking at a supreme commander. It was an absolute acknowledgment of authority. It seemed like the effect they had was even more extreme than Signe.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  ‘Could it be because they are a rank lower than their queen?’ Li Yu thought with a massive headache coming.

  Li Yu stood there with forty-one of the strongest and deadliest women in the Frostbound Dominion, all waiting for his order.

  He looked at Vespera. She was currently invisible to everyone else but standing next to him.

  "You said it fades right?" Li Yu asked again

  "Eventually," Vespera giggled in his mind. "But look on the bright side. You have an army now. A very... disciplined army."

  Li Yu sighed once again. "This is going to be a long campaign if it's like this."

  “Please come here and listen. I will explain what happened to you all." Li Yu said.

  The forty Valkyries snapped to attention instantly. Even Signe straightened up.

  "You were possessed," Li Yu said. "A parasitic entity controlled your minds. I have removed it. The feelings you are experiencing right now... the loyalty to me... they are side effects. Residue. They will fade away in time. Treat me as just another soldier in this war.."

  "It does not feel like residue, Lord," Captain Kara said with her voice steady. "We know our duty. You are the one who freed us. We follow strength."

  "We follow the Young Master," the Valkyries chorused softly but firmly.

  Signe stepped forward. "He is right," she said. She looked at her guards. "He is... our savior. But I am still your Commander. And my command is: Obey Lord Li Yu as if he were me. No. Obey him above me."

  Li Yu sighed. "That is not helping, Grand Marshal Signe."

  "I am only clarifying the chain of command," Signe said innocently.

  Li Yu realized he wasn't going to win this argument today. The charm was too fresh, too potent. He had to work with what he had.

  "Fine," Li Yu said. "If you want to serve me, then listen closely. The fortress is still infected. We have cleared this room but hundreds of soldiers outside are still compromised."

  "Vespera," Li Yu said aloud.

  The Charm Demon Queen manifested again, causing the Valkyries to stand on alert. When they saw her their guard dropped once again since their feelings towards her were similar to Li Yu.

  "She is under my command," Li Yu told them.

  "Vespera," Li Yu said. "Where are the others? The ones you don't control."

  Vespera walked to the map. She pointed a long, pale finger at the barracks, the armory and the outer perimeter walls.

  "My sisters were the elite," Vespera explained. "We took the command staff because we prefer... quality. But the grunt work? That was left to the filth."

  She tapped the perimeter wall.

  "Rage Demons," she said. "Possessing the shock troops. They feed on anger. They are easy to spot. They fight too hard and too recklessly. They are currently mostly in the vanguard. The only way to separate a rage demon is to kill it with a soul attack. Then the host will slowly recover."

  She tapped the scouts' quarters.

  "Shadow Walkers," she continued. "Infecting the recon units. They are spies. They are the reason your patrols keep getting ambushed. Same as the rage demons, they need to be killed via soul attack."

  She tapped the mess hall.

  "Gluttony Fiends," she sneered. "In the supply chain. They eat everything. Food, morale, hope."

  "And the Rift itself?" Li Yu asked.

  "The Rift is the source," Vespera said seriously. "There is a Gatekeeper there. A High Demon. He isn't possessing anyone. He is physically on this side. He is hiding in the chaotic energies of the tear. He anchors the connection. As long as he lives the rifts will be stable. The demons will keep pouring in."

  Li Yu studied the map.

  He had a loyal strike force of forty elite warriors and he had an insider who knew the enemy's playbook.

  "We start with the Rage Demons," Li Yu decided. "They are the most volatile. If we start purifying the others, the Rage Demons will sense it and start a riot. We need to neutralize the heavy weapons first."

  The plan would be relatively straightforward. They would summon the entire army, stating that there were big developments in the war. Get everyone together for the briefing and then Li Yu and the succubi demons will attack the souls of all those affected.

  This gets rid of them all at once and prevents riots and more casualties.