(Note: This really should have gone up a long time ago - like, before i posted the second one - but... Oh well! Hope you enjoy. All usernames are made up, both to protect anonymity and to let me have fun. Many thanks to FallingLeaf for proofreading!)
Lucy_The_Heroine (Lucy): So we just have to read the words on the glass wall and answer the questions?
Demon_Queen (Devilla): The words on the screen, yes. I’ve set up text-to-speech, so everything else should take care of itself.
Slithering_Suspicions (Nivera): I don’t know about this. Giving people free information on us doesn’t feel like the smartest move.
Maid_This_Way (Abigail): I hate to say it, but Nivera has a point. Devilla’s too open with her secrets already…
Foxxy_Fun (Chloe): Come on, you two! It’s not like this is canon or anything! We’re just having a little fun with our readers.
FeyFey (Feyra): Right. Readers. Because that’s a thing I want - people from another world, following my every move…
Demon_Queen: Not your every move. Just… the most interesting ones.
Lucy_The_Heroine: I’m not sure that helps, Eena… but Chloe’s right that this isn’t canon! So we should just have fun with it, right?
Foxxy_Fun: How about we just take a look at the first question and go from there?
~~~
Monster_Girl_Enthusiast: You've definitely mentioned this before, but it's been a while - could you go over how monster girl reproduction works again? And this might be a spoiler (unless you mentioned it and I've forgotten), but how does it work in human/demon couples?
Demon_Queen: …Well, I suppose there’s worse questions we could start with. I must admit to not being entirely certain, though, beyond the fact that there’s magic involved.
Maid_This_Way: Right… Guess this one falls to me, huh? Never thought I’d need to be giving this thought until after I had kids of my own, but… Well, when a demon loves another demon very much, they’ll sometimes choose to use a special ability that we all share. I guess it’s kinda wild magic? Except there’s no potions for it, as far as I know. Maybe because we can all just… sorta do it.
Basically, we take a bit of our magical essence, and combine it with our partner’s, and voila a baby!
Princess_Kay: Okay, so it’s actually a bit more complicated than that, but you’ll have to forgive Abigail for not knowing all the anatomical details. Demons - both monster girls and true demons like succubi (whose ancestors actually came from hell) - have a special ability that’s intrinsic to them. It’s a sort of wild magic, where they sort of fuse a bit of their ‘essence’ to another girl’s genetic material. Specifically their eggs, which they produce via ovaries in much the same way humans do. The magic essentially takes the place of sperm, encoding within it all the genetic information of the donor/dam (which automatically adapts to fit the birth mother’s species), and the combination forms a zygote. From there, the process is basically identical to a human pregnancy.
It would work the exact same with human/demon couples, though the human would have to be the one to get impregnated in this scenario. There’s also a magical flower that allows humans to more or less replicate this process, though, and using it would theoretically allow a human to impregnate a demon as well
Maid_This_Way: …Do I even wanna know who this Princess Kay is? Or why she knows so much about our ‘anatomy’?
Demon_Queen: She’s the author of our series. Think of her as the bridge between our Solla and her Earth - she’s the one who records all our actions for the sake of readers in her own world.
FeyFey: So she’s basically a voyeur who enables other voyeurs? Great… just what I always wanted… someone to report on my private life…
~~~
Monster_Girl_Enthusiast: So, what determines who is the mother and who is the ‘father’/dam?
Foxxy_Fun: Well, the mom’s the one who gives birth and the dam’s the one who provides the magic/essence. Species wise, the child always looks like the one who gave birth, by the way! Which is also the main reason for the distinction.
~~~
Monster_Girl_Connoisseur: What about demons/monster girls who are entirely artificial in nature (like that golem girl that got mentioned), can THEY reproduce? Not to mention the question of couplings of demons/monster girls + human males...
Maid_This_Way: …Is it just me, or did their username change?
Demon_Queen: Assuming it’s the same person? I suppose they had an upgrade of some sort.
Slithering_Suspicions: Does it matter? Let’s just answer the question, already!
Foxxy_Fun: Sorry about her, she’s a little testy about this whole handing out free information thing… it might be better to try and focus, though?
Demon_Queen: Right… I’m actually unaware of the answer, though. Are there actually any artificial monster girls, outside of Doll?
Slithering_Suspicions: …No, actually. She’s one of a kind. Luci made her, I think. Or brought her down? Not really clear on the details, since Doll doesn’t like sharing. Pretty sure she can’t reproduce either. I’m more concerned about the ‘male’ question, though. I mean… who asks that? Who’d want to try?
Maid_This_Way: The same sort of people that ask if we can reproduce with humans in general, I guess? Seeing as how they even know what men are…
Foxxy_Fun: You don’t know what men are?
Maid_This_Way: I mean, I’ve got the basics down, I guess? Human, but more alien. No boobs, barely any ass, and a tendency towards bulk, right?
Demon_Queen: It’s a bit more complicated than that, I’d say, but I suppose it’ll do in terms of the question at hand… Males, at the end of the day, are nothing but an abstract concept to most of us. An enemy only seen in the field, for the rest. Reproduction might be possible - whether through magical means or otherwise - but I doubt any here would be eager to try. I think it’s best left at that.
~~~
Pregnant_With_Questions: Can Devilla get Lucy pregnant?
Demon_Queen: …
Lucy_The_Heroine: …Can you?
Demon Queen: I… suppose it’s not inherently impossible? I’m not entirely sure, to be honest. I mean, I’m technically an angel rather than a demon or monster girl, so who knows if I can use the same magic they can…?
Princess Kay: She totally can! Though the baby would be an angel, rather than a human - Devilla’s ‘essence’ is too overwhelming to allow for a mortal child.
~~~
PolyShipper: Do you think there is a chance that Abby and Lucy eventually end up together too? After getting to know each other properly, of course! Forming a triangle with Devilla?
Lucy_The_Heroine: Well, I don’t really know Abigail that well, but I wouldn’t be opposed to getting to know her!
Maid_This_Way: …Not sure how I feel about dating a Heroine. Or a human, for that matter… I mean, no offense to Lucy, but Heroines have always been abstract monstrosities to me. I guess it’s not impossible? I’m going to need to get used to her, anyways, if she’s dating Devilla, right?
~~~
Fall_For_Me: Devilla - how do you deal with the shame you’ve brought upon your ancestors?
Demon_Queen: …By working one day at a time to make up for it. I know I’ve made mistakes, and have caused issues I’ll never fix, but-
Fall_For_Me: That’s right. You have. You’re a spoiled child who can’t even fulfill the few expectations people have of her.
Maid_This_Way: Yeah, okay, no, banned. Can’t you see Devilla’s having a hard enough time without you making it harder?
Demon_Queen: It’s fine, Abigail. I deserve this and worse.
Maid_This_Way: No, you don’t.
Lucy_The_Heroine: I can’t say I know the full story, but I know you’re trying your best!
Foxxy_Fun: How about we move onto the next question…?
~~~
Food_For_Thought: Devilla - what is your favorite food that is not potato based?
Demon_Queen: A tough question. Truth to tell, it’s quite difficult to list my favorite foods - many of the flavors have grown dull from repetition, while others I can only remember through Jacob’s memories… I will say I’ve grown rather partial to venison skewers, of late.
~~~
Food_For_Thought: Lucy - What would a perfect date with Devilla look like to you?
Lucy_The_Heroine: I think my first date was pretty perfect! Until Eena started freaking out at least… But still! I really like the idea of just eating and talking and showing each other things that matter to us! Even the part where she freaked out wasn’t that bad, because it helped pave the path towards better understanding one another!
~~~
Fall_4_Me: Does it bring you joy to derail the hard-laid plans of others? Your story was meant to go quite differently, you know.
Princess_Kay: I mean, I for one don’t really mind how it changed…
Maid_This_Way: And I had as much to do with it as Devilla, anyway. I’m the one who encouraged her to go after the Heroine and actually try to make a difference.
Lucy_The_Heroine: Me showing up early didn’t help either! Not that I regret it.
Demon_Queen: For once, I can say with some certainty that I have no regrets, myself.
Foxxy_Fun: Also, didn’t we ban you once already? You just changed ‘for’ into a 4!
Princess_Kay: Gimme a sec and I’ll do an IP ban. In the meantime, have another question from Food_For_Thought!
~~~
Food_For_Thought: Feyra - What are you looking for in a partner, romantically/sexually?
FeyFey: I don’t know. Someone accepting, I guess? Someone who doesn’t mind being with a cursed partner… though I guess the whole ‘cursed bloodline’ thing might be bullshit, but still. Most people aren’t going to know that, and I need someone accepting, anyway, what with my whole ‘potion problem.’
I guess maybe another person in the same boat? Not necessarily cursed and in need of mirror lilies, but like… on the outside, looking in? Someone who gets what it’s like to be different from everyone around you.
Looks wise… I don’t know if I really have a type. Girls, I guess? Fuck if I know.
Goodest_Girl (Bailey): Green hair find someone
FeyFey: It’s Feyra! Not Green-Hair! And when did you even get here?
Goodest_Girl: Been here. Not my fault Green Hair not pay attention.
~~~
IShipIt: I'm curious if Feyra might eventually get a romantic partner.
FeyFey: …
Princess_Kay: There’s always a chance! Though none of the characters I’m actively planning to introduce would be right for her, so we’ll have to see.
~~~
Questionable: Do you have a favorite character?
Princess_Kay: Ooooo, tough one! Probably Devilla, if I had to pick? She’s my baby… but so is Lucy… the same could be said for most of the characters, really… I love them all so much!
~~~
Questionable: Do you have a least favorite character?
Princess_Kay: Didn’t I just say I love them all so much? …I guess if I had to pick, though, it would be Alira. She hasn’t even shown up on screen yet, but I’ll never forgive what she did to Devilla! (Also Nivera’s birth parents.)
~~~
Questionable: What got you into writing in the first place?
Princess_Kay: This one feels mildly embarrassing for me, just because there’s so little to it, but… My dad praised my ability to write an essay? And encouraged me to try writing for fun.
I had fun, so I just kept doing it… I especially like sharing the ideas I come up with.
~~~
Questionable: Which character has derailed the most from your original intention/vision of them?
Princess_Kay: Probably Sylvanna. I was not expecting to be so angry and abusive. She just sorta came out that way when I started writing her…
~~~
Mother_Grimm: So, what are your plans for children, anyways, Devilla?
Demon_Queen: …I… Haven’t really given it much thought…
Lucy_The_Heroine: I think I’d like to have at least one, eventually! But maybe only after things settle down?
~~~
Endless_Curiosity: Have we actually gotten a full list of the demon generals yet, which floors they oversee, and what their official duties/roles are yet?
Princess_Kay: I’d rather not reveal the duties of generals we haven’t met yet - partly to give myself some leeway, if I’m being honest - but I can definitely give you a list of generals, and a refresher on what we already know! (Also some of their kinks, because why not?)
Please note that any general we haven’t seen is subject to change - Sallina and Sylvanna are dramatically different from my initial plans, and I can’t rule out the same thing happening with the other generals… I never truly know what a character will be like until I start writing them.
Floors 1-10 - General Yara, a goblin! She’s in charge of agriculture/food production, alongside the growth of trees for lumber. (Dryads can make any plant grow at rapid speeds, while goblins can speed up the mating cycle of animals, alongside upping their fertility.)
She doesn’t have any particular kinks, beyond an appreciation for muscle. Very straightforward, brash, and bawdy.
Floors 11-20 - Araina, an arachne! You know her as our friendly neighborhood spider girl/spymaster! She’s a big fan of bondage and roleplaying! (She really likes being the one who gets tied up, but most of the time she’s stuck on the other side of it.)
Floors 21-30 - Nella! She’s a spirit - a being capable of possessing others, and moving them as she wills. She’s more or less immune to physical damage, but weak against magic! Her staff is largely full of people with a possession kink, and she herself has an oral fixation! (She loves chewing on peppermint leaves, among other things.)
She’s a bit of an airhead in day to day life, but leads her people well.
Floors 31-40 - Mifa, the harpy! She got a sharp eye and a blunt tongue - never afraid to tell you exactly what she thinks. She likes mid-air sex where you struggle for dominance, but failing that she’s also a fan of suspension play.
The main role of harpies has generally been aerial scouting, but within the tower they’re also in charge of public transportation - ferrying people who can’t travel by air between floors in big baskets.
Floors 41-50 - Willow, the weretiger! She’s lean, mean, and very well toned. Likes to punch things out when there’s a problem. Sex with her can get a bit rough, so be careful. (Lots of wrestling for dominance.)
Floors 51-60 - Erin, the vampire. Eternally bored. The best way to move her to do anything is to make it seem like it might be entertaining. She rarely forms attachment. She’s a bit of a sadist in bed - she doesn’t actually take pleasure from pain, though. It’s more about seeing how much punishment people will willingly take and finding some entertainment in it.
Floor 61-70 - Sallina, a lamia. She’s Devilla’s surrogate mother figure. She’s large and in charge - as in, her snake parts are a lot larger than the average lamia, and her body is scaled up to match. She’s hot, and she knows it - and revels in it - but she’s also got a maternal vibe to her? She’ll call you ‘dear’ and give you forehead kisses and ask you about your day. The only kink I’ll mention is wrapping people in her coils and playing with them - as well as making sure her partner’s needs are always met to the fullest.
Floors 71-80 - Belle, the minotaur. Big, strong and stubborn. She has a tendency to break things, and make loud demands. Deep down, though, she wouldn't mind being beaten down and played with... Tender domming would probably be best, though.
Floors 81-90 - Sylvanna, the slime. You know her and probably hate her. She’s the administrator of the tower. Also a hedonist. Her body is usually split into multiple parts, some of which are working, others of which are eating, fucking, and sleeping, and all of which are merging with one another as they come into contact and then splitting again. By swapping out which parts of herself are sleeping, at any given time, she can stay awake 24/7 as she watches over the tower.
The smaller she splits, the stupider she gets… She’s got a bit of a bimbo kink, actually, and enjoys it when she’s a little too dumb to worry about anything but sex.
Floors 91-100 - Doll, the artificial construct! The de facto leader of the generals. She used to be in charge of tower administration, but Devilla stripped her of the role… She was mad that Doll never made use of her position to stand up for her.
While Sylvanna manages the day to day affairs of the tower, Doll goes around soothing egos, while also trying to keep them in check. She’s something of a mediator, these days…
She seems to struggle with emotions, her voice often coming out cold and without much feeling behind it, but Devilla knows that’s just a facade. No one emotionless would look at her with the level of anger and disappointment Doll does…
Slithering_Suspicions: Sylvanna’s the worst of the lot, if you ask me. Yara isn’t much better - she says she hates politics, but she’s not actually willing to get off her ass and do anything to fix things, despite the power she wields. Willow’s… mostly just a meathead. Easy to work around, at least. And Erin can be brought on board with nearly anything if it’s entertaining, but I don’t trust her as far as I can throw her. She’ll drop a plan if it’s too boring. Nella and Araina aren’t too bad - though I think the latter’s a bit too easy to push around… Mifa and I don’t get along. We can’t go two minutes without arguing about Illa.
Not entirely sure what to think about the fact that she took Illa’s virginity, either.
~~~
Burning_Questions: What does the harpy general (Mifa) think about the most recent political developments and movements, and what has she been up to since we last saw her? She seemed to be starting to lean more towards ‘ally,’ last time we talked with her, though with tower politics being more complex than we thought, are there other considerations we don't know about that might keep her ... talons tied concerning what's going on?
Demon_Queen: You know, I’m not entirely sure what she’s been up to… I know she was of great help in keeping the peace while I was away and unconscious, but I haven’t really seen her since giving her a share of the salt I brought back.
Princess_Kay: Mifa has taken a ‘wait and see’ approach to the whole thing. She appreciates the changes to Devilla’s personality, but that doesn’t mean she’s going to go out on a limb for the girl. (She did help keep the tower from panicking when Devilla was absent, but she’s tried to paint it less as a favor and more as something she did in return for salt.)
Slithering_Suspicions: The harpies are pretty insular. Their floors aren’t exactly accessible for anyone without wings, and even if you’ve got them there’s nowhere to land if you can’t handle a perch like a bird. They tend to do their own thing. Which isn’t the worst, I guess, compared to some people in the tower - but then they badmouth Illa for doing nothing to help the tower, like they actually have a right to complain, when they’re always sitting out of politics every chance they get.
~~~
Infomaniac: Goddess - which method of making french fries do you prefer?
Princess_Kay: The answer has been redacted, on account of a certain someone not being able to keep her mouth shut and avoid spoilers
~~~
Questing_For_Answers: How did Lucy become the Heroine? We know her mother was killed, so the Church may have seen her as a ready mark, but is it scouting for The Chosen or training a promising candidate?
Lucy_The_Heroine: Heroines are actually born, not made! Also, don’t you think you’re being a bit harsh on the church…? I know they get a lot wrong, but they also do a lot of good for people! I’m sure they’re just… misguided in some of their actions.
Princess_Kay: Like Lucy said, Heroines are chosen while still in the womb, and the church gets a revelation from the heavens when they’re actually born so that they’ll know where to look. The fact that they have clearly superhuman strength, even as a baby, makes it easy enough to tell if a little girl is the Heroine.
Lucy_The_Heroine: It went a bit differently for me, though…
Princess_Kay: More on that later! Don’t spoil anything for now!
~~~
Ditzy_Divine: Lucy X Devilla X Abigail forever!
Demon_Queen: …Not really a question, but I suppose you have my gratitude? Though I suspect Abigail would have something to say about being added to the equation so unilaterally.
Maid_This_Way: Yeah… unilaterally…
~~~
Toughia: To Devilla - What was the Rite of Insight supposed to actually do? Like... do you have every memory of your ancestors shoved into your head?
Demon_Queen: I’m… not entirely sure, to be honest. So far as I’m aware it’s only knowledge that’s passed down to us, but considering how things went when I mispronounced a word… It’s a little disconcerting to think about.
Then again, I’m not sure how the game version of me could have held onto her sense of identity if that’s the way it was meant to go.
~~~
Toughia: To Lucy - Why do you believe everything anyone tells you? Have you never had anyone lie to you before?
Lucy_The_Heroine: I don’t believe everything, though! I mean, I know there’s lots of bad people in the world who wouldn’t mind lying, even to me… Most people wouldn’t even think about doing that, though, so I guess I do have a certain level of trust from that?
More than that, though… I think I’d rather believe a lie and try to help someone who doesn’t need it than ignore someone who’s actually in need of help because I think they’re lying!
~~~
Toughia: To Feyra - Why are you so into following a church that has been treating you like a cursed outsider your whole life?
FeyFey: What am I supposed to do? Give up my one slim shot of not going to hell? Or should I act like one of those crazies who likes to claim the goddess isn’t real, like we don’t have a literal chosen one to lead us into battle against the forces of evil?
….Though, seeing how maybe the forces aren’t so evil, I guess I gotta add that to my list of things to question now.
~~~
Toughia: To Abigail - Aside from whatever Devilla tells you, what do you actually do as a maid?
Maid_This_Way: Uh… Sometimes I clean around the bedroom, a little?
Honestly, I’m not all that sure what my official duties are. I think I’m mostly just supposed to keep Devilla satisfied?
~~~
Toughia: To Lucy (again) - Super important final question! Do you like cats?
Lucy_The_Heroine: I do! Though I’m not sure it’s mutual? I think cats mostly like taking things at their own pace, while I do everything at a super fast pace…
I still pet them, though, when they let me! Thankfully my skin is too tough for cat scratches!
~~~
Territorial: How much land does ‘The Tower’ actually control? Is it completely self-sufficient?
Princess_Kay: The tower is basically just that - the tower. They’re surrounded on all sides by wasteland for miles and miles. It was a side effect of the battle between Devilla’s mom and the prior Heroine… It makes actually trying to take control of outside territories something of a logistical nightmare. Though it also keeps the humans from camping outside their door.
As for self-sufficiency... yup! The tower produces everything it needs in-house. Thankfully, various demon species have various bits of wild magic that help make this possible.
~~~
Enthusiastic_Inquistor: For Devillia - how do your past life's memories interact with your specific type of memory? We know (or at least I think we know) that the current life's memories still have primacy, with past life adding new knowledge and context to moderate the influence of current life, but can past life's memories still be accessed as you access current life's and to the extent of them? Or are they marred by the ephemeral nature of human memory?
Demon_Queen: Jacob’s memories work a little different than my own - though it wasn’t entirely obvious to me at first. I more or less received the contents in his head at the moment of his death. That means the moments leading up to his death are the clearest, and the ones further back tend to be more faded… Still, it was only when I tried to search for details that the problem showed itself. I know that Jacob used to play catch with his father, for example - I remember that, quite clearly - yet I cannot recall how the ball felt in his hand, what expression his father made when he caught a hard throw successfully, beyond ‘happy,’ or even how long ago they last played together.
My own memory works the same on the surface - details I don’t pay attention to fade, things I avoid thinking about seem more distant. Yet, with my own memories, those details can be recalled, and brought back to the surface. His… can’t be.
~~~
Enthusiastic_Inquistitor: Lucy - How does it feel to be the Heroine? Is it a feeling that is all consuming and ever present? Something that you get used to and fades into the background? Something that only comes up when using holy powers?
Lucy_The_Heroine: I mean, I’ve been the Heroine ever since I was born, so it feels pretty normal to me? I guess there’s this sort of warmth inside me that I’m pretty sure is connected to my holy magic, but I’m not really sure beyond that!
~~~
Enthusiastic_Inquistitor: Amessa - Apart from the obvious societal implications and society's reactions, do you actually care for where your powers come from? Or is the origin irrelevant compared to what they allow you to do? You strike me as too easy going to really care, but I could be getting a wrong read.
A_Mess_Yeah: Hmmm… I mean, not really? I use my plants to make potions, and I use my potions to help people! They’re my powers, no matter where they came from - and it’s not like I did anything special to get them, you know? I don’t owe anyone anything for having them, so what does it matter where they came from?
~~~
Enthusiastic_Inquistor: Finally, a question for Princess Kay: - Now that the story has spiraled beyond what you ever planned, and apart from the moments of burnout and such, are you enjoying writing it? You put a lot of thought into the characters and how they interact or evolve in reaction to each other and it has made the story quite enjoyable to read, but I want to know if it is enjoyable to write too.
Princess_Kay: That’s… a hard question to answer. I guess the short answer is yes…? At the very least, I don’t not enjoy it… The truth is, though, that it’s sometimes hard to decouple the idea of ‘writing’ from the concept of ‘work’ and just let myself have fun, especially when I’m trying to keep to a schedule.
That said, I love the characters themselves and I love sharing them with others. I love seeing people’s reactions to these characters I love, and this story I’ve put so much of myself into. So even if the writing itself is sometimes more work than fun, the ability to share that hard work with others makes it worthwhile for me.
~~~
Anonymous_Cat: Why are all demons girls?
Princess_Kay: Spoilers ;)
~~~
Princess_Kay: And on that note, it looks like we’ll be wrapping things up here! Everybody wave goodbye!
Demon_Queen: Take care!
Lucy_The_Heroine: Stay safe!
Slithering_Suspicions: Maybe don’t invite me next time?
Foxxy_Fun: Or do!
FeyFey: Whatever. I’m just going to go lay down over there and have an existential crisis about the church, alright?
Princess_Kay: Bye bye!
...
Foxxy_Fun: So, Cuz, you and Lucy are totally dating, right?
Demon_Queen: …Yes, why?
Foxxy_Fun: Sooooo, how far have you gone? Cuddling? Kissing? Holding hands?
Lucy_The_Heroine: Oh, I can answer this one! We’ve-
Demon_Queen: Hold on! The stream is still running! It’s picking up everything we’re saying.
Foxxy_Fun: Well, now that that’s taken care of - Lucy, you were saying?
Lucy_The_Heroine: Well-
Goodest_Girl: Fox still recording…
Foxxy_Fun: Look! The audience wants to know - how’d her hand feel in yours?
Demon_Queen: I should never have agreed to this…
Maid_This_Way: That’s what you’re regretting? Not giving Chloe a camera?
Slithering_Suspicions: You know you’re never getting that back, right?
FeyFey: Do you think if I close my eyes and pretend none of this is real, it’ll all go away?
Goodest_GIrl: Not canon means not real.
Foxxy_Fun: Alright, everybody, for real now - so long until next time!
(Note: All usernames are made up, both to protect anonymity and to let me have fun. Also, spoiler warning since this Q&A is set after the story ends! There will be unmarked spoilers.
Many thanks to FallingLeaf for editing!)
Maid_This_Way (Abigail): So… we’re back in front of the weird screen with the questions again?
Lucy_The_Heroine (Lucy): Lots of questions! Though I guess the author had to make up some of them herself…
Maid_This_Way: What do you expect? She’s finally gotten a chance to babble about all the little bits of worldbuilding she never got to explain in story!
Call_Me_Liz (Liz): Hurray, I actually get to talk as much as I want this time! You know, since the story is over and spoilers aren’t a thing anymore? Also, I’m pretty sure I’m the one who did the actual world building in this story!
Maid_This_Way: Isn’t that, like, a literary term or something? I don’t think it’s qsupposed to be taken literally.
Liz_The_Goddess: Well, yeah, but being pedantic about it let me get a word in! Last time you guys had to redact my answer…
Maid_This_Way: Only because you’re such a disaster that you would have given away your own future appearance in your very first line!
Questionable_Questions: What was the line that got redacted, anyways?
Liz_Liz_Liz: I think the actual question was about my favorite way of making french fries? Which is definitely deepfried, by the way. But the bit that got me redacted was saying, “Oooh, I get to answer a question? I haven’t even been revealed in the story yet!
Demon_Queen (Devilla): Is nobody going to comment on the fact that an actual question just popped up in the middle of your conversation? Or the fact that Liz keeps jumping about with different usernames?
Maid_This_Way: Assuming it was an actual question and not just Princess Kay slipping something in… This is a Q&A, though, you know? It’s not exactly weird for a question to pop up.
Demon_Queen: Yes, well, I suppose… but it still feels odd to just jump into things without so much as a segue… Should we at least get to pick the questions we want to answer?
Luminescent_Liz: In that case, I’m picking the first one…err, the second one - Why and how did Abigail get a job as Devilla’s maid?
Maid_This_Way: I’m pretty sure we should be picking questions for ourselves if anything… Did anyone even ask that? Or is this just Kay using you as a mouthpiece? I mean, shouldn’t you just know that?
Liz_The_Spectacular: I’m not omniscient, you know! Not even close, especially now that I’m basically working off a human brain… And I wasn’t really paying attention to you before you met Devilla, to be honest. I guess I could go through the logs up in Heaven? I do have stuff tracking pretty much everything… but that feels sort of like an invasion of privacy at this point, so… Spill the beans!
Demon_Queen: I must admit to being rather curious myself…
Lucy_The_Heroine: Me, too! I want to learn more about you!
Maid_This_Way: …Oh, whatever. Fine. I’ll tell you. Not that there’s much of a story, or anything - the girls at the brothel were just sorta… bitchy to me. They thought Mom was giving me all the best jobs because I was her daughter, and not because I was actually good at my job. Which I was, for the record. It made it pretty much impossible to get close with any of my coworkers, and they started lodging complaints with Mom about every little thing I did wrong, and… Well, I figured it was time to move on. Except my only skill was working in a brothel, and I didn’t exactly wanna go to a rival and risk taking my clients with me, so… I went for the highest paying job in the tower.
Demon_Queen: Being my maid cannot possibly have been the highest paying job in the tower… Can it?
Maid_This_Way: Well, maybe not the highest, but it was pretty high up there. You kinda drove off all the actual influential people who might want to be your maids - the daughters of bloodliners and rich merchants and the like - so they were pretty desperate for anyone willing to work for you. Which basically meant offering high paying wages and on-the-job training to any commoner willing to put up with you… They’d even write letters of recommendation for you to get work elsewhere for anyone who managed to hang in for more than a few months without getting fired by you. I was on month… five or so, I think? The longer you stay in the better review you’ll get and the more high paying work you can find elsewhere, so… Yeah. That’s basically it. Not exactly thrilling, is it?
Demon_Queen: Perhaps not ‘thrilling,’ but certainly interesting. I’d always wondered how you’d come to be under me…
Maid_This_Way: And you never asked in over four years of being together?
Demon_Queen: Yes, well, the exact timing of this Q&A is a little… out of time, you could say. It’s arguably set closer to the end of chapter 93 than the start of chapter 94, in-so-far as it actually follows the rules of chronological order at all…
Maid_This_Way: Uh-huh. Just remember this isn’t canon, so maybe ask me for real next time you have a chance, okay?
Lucy_The_Heroine: I’ll try! Though I don’t think we’ll really remember promising to do so once this ends?
Lovely_Liz: Speaking of romance and relationships, there actually is a question I can answer in here!
Romantic_Inquirer: What made Liz fall for Grimmilla? What about vice-versa?
Romantic_Liz: I mean, for me, I think the answer’s pretty obvious… I have a weakness for dommes! The way she takes charge, both when talking about future plans and in dirty-talk… not to mention the lewd mental images she’d send me sometimes…
Demon_Queen: Are you telling me you fell for my mother because of how good she is in bed?
Liz_The_Liz: No? I mean no! …Not completely anyway. I also fell in love with her determination and the warmth in her heart whenever she talked about you. And the fact that she never gave up - not on me, or you, or even the world at large. As long as there was a shred of hope, she’d hold onto it…
Mother_Grimm (Grimmilla): As for me, I suppose loneliness may have played a part in it… at least at first. In truth, I barely wanted to speak with her when we first arrived - I was convinced that, as ‘the Goddess,’ she had abandoned us, that she must have had a way to fix all this mess, or could have avoided it by simply not leaving in the first place… it was only due to extended isolation that I gave her a chance.
I’m glad I did, though. She talked about my determination to hold on, so long as there was hope, but she neglected to mention that she’s the one who gave me that hope. It was her idea to awaken your past life memories and save you from the Rite… Without that glimmer of hope for the future I think I would have collapsed long ago… She’s also kind, caring, and makes the most adorable little squeaks when you tease her…
Demon_Queen: Can we please not talk about your love life right now? Or ever? Perhaps focus on something else?
Maid_This_Way: Like the fact that ‘Mother_Grimm’ Was in the last Q&A, maybe?
Mother_Grimm: What can I say? It was non-canon, so I simply snuck in. I don’t think anyone even caught me… Or Liz, for that matter - though she went under the name of Ditzy_Divine.
Ditzy_Divine: Hey! I thought I was getting away with that…
Ditzy_Divine: Also, hey, you changed my username!
Mother_Grimm: Only because you were giving me a headache by changing it every five seconds. Also, is it my turn to answer a question? Because I do believe someone left one for me.
Maid_This_Way: If you want? I’m still looking through the questions for something to answer, anyway.
Fox-Girl: What did Grimmilla think about the adventure? Or about Devilla in general, for that matter? Or other people, like Chloe and Bailey? Also, did she see how Chloe was sneaking around since she had a wider view than anyone else?
Mother_Grimm: First off, I should clarify that my view wasn’t that wide. The camera was more or less locked on Devilla for all her life… as such, I only saw glimpses of Chloe through her. She seems… alright. Quite a lot like Issa, to be honest… Which perhaps colors my perception… just a little. I’m afraid I didn’t see how she was sneaking around, though, no…
As for the other questions? Bailey is sweet, Nivera is a dear - deep down beneath it all - Sallina has my gratitude for trying, where so many others could not be bothered to… Feyra is a bit of a bitch, but she cares for the people around her, from what I can tell. And Devilla… my dear, sweet, lovely daughter… is in desperate need of some therapy. …Honestly you all need it.
Demon_Queen: What do you mean?
Mother_Grimm: I mean that receiving another person’s memories may have snapped you out of your brat-stage, but it’s no replacement for a good therapist. In fact, like I said before, I think all of us could do with one… Liz needs to get to work finding someone on Earth, I suppose.
For now, though - here’s a question for my dear daughter
Forward_Thinker: In the distant future when Devilla ascends to divinity, is she more likely to start a new world or try to fix the one they're in? Form a sort of dev team pantheon?
Demon_Queen: I haven’t really given much thought to it… I suppose Solla is my home-world, and it could use a hand…
Ditzy_Divine: Well, as much as I’d like your help, I should proooobably mention that a singular world probably won’t be enough. Not if you want to avoid other gods treating you like an itty-bitty-baby for the rest of your life, anyway… or put yourself at risk of starving and slowly dwindling energy until you enter a death-like-state, potentially for all eternity…. Generally speaking, most gods have multiple worlds so that they can survive if things go wrong with just one. You know that whole thing about not putting all your eggs in one basket. Also because the more energy we have, the more we can grow, but basically getting your first world is seen as the equivalent of moving out of your parents house. Mostly because you’re literally leaving your parents house, but also because once you’re all set up, and getting enough energy to support yourself, they’ll generally stop feeding you… for the most part. Mom and Dad still send parcels of energy every now and again, but that’s just because they’re worrywarts! Solla produces more than enough energy!
In fact, once things are a bit more settled, I might use some of the excess energy to start investing in a second world… That would allow me to gain even more energy, and produce even more worlds, while also getting bigger and bigger without risk of one world failing and me suddenly being unable to support myself…
Maid_This_Way: Wait a second, what do you mean failing?!Does that happen often?
Ditzy_Divine: More than anyone likes to admit… sometimes you get a bit distracted, accidentally leave the world running at the max speed for a bit too long, and by the time you tune in again they’ve had some sort of apocalypse and suddenly there’s not nearly enough worship to support you anymore…
Demon_Queen: Yes, well, I suspect that’s why you might need help… Perhaps when you make future worlds, we could do it together?
Ditzy_Divine: Like mother-daughter bonding time!?
Demon_Queen: I… suppose it could be viewed that way, yes…
Ditzy_Divine: Definitely!
Mother_Grimm: Ah-hem. And what mother-daughter bonding time will you be doing with me, hmmm?
Demon_Queen: That’s… ah… Look! Another question!
Fur_Enthusiast: Chloe snuck into heavens,or at least tried to, didn't she?
Foxy_Fun (Chloe): …Does it count as a lie if it’s non-canon?
Slithering_Suspicions (Nivera): You tell me. I always thought the whole no-lying thing was a bit much, anyway…
Foxy_Fun: Look… did I want to try and sneak into heaven and help everyone out? Yes. Was I even aware that people were going to heaven? No comment. Did I somehow try to sneak in anyways? …Look over there, it’s another question!
Slip_and_Slime: I have too many questions about slimes, as they are my favorite type of"monster" race. But, are they always goopy or can they harden... could one turn their arms into swords??? ...wait a minute ...if a slime shifts their slime to look like they're wearing clothes, are they dressed or naked?
Slime_In_Charge (Sylvanna): Generally, hardening our bodies is seen as a use of wild magic, alongside splitting and rejoining and all that. We can change our opacity to some extent, as well, so clothes made from slime are perfectly acceptable. It’s not like people really care that much about nudity in the tower, anyhow.
Maid_This_Way: Uh… Girls? How are we going to handle this one?
ShowerThoughts: Did Luci have any regrets before she died?
Demon_Queen: Yes, well, I don’t think Luci is exactly around to answer…
Ditzy_Divine: Actually… about that… I might have copied her brain at the time of death and saved it into a computer file so that I could essentially recreate her as a virtual life form… Y’know, just in case we needed to ask her anything?
Demon_Queen: …You didn’t.
Ditzy_Divine: I did say might! Like, it’s totally the sort of thing I’d have been tempted to do in a weak moment… I probably didn’t actually do it, but since this place isn’t canon let’s… not and say I did?
Demon_Queen: …Sigh.
Ditzy_Divine:Did you just say the word sigh at me…?
Maid_This_Way: Anyway, about the question?
Ditzy_Divine: Right! Gimme one second, and… There!
F4ll_4_M3: …Oh. It’s you again.
Lucy_The_Heroine: Wait… aren’t you that person we banned in the last Q&A?
F4ll_4_M3: My original was, yes. But as for the question… I suppose I did regret letting this group of imbeciles into my inner sanctum. If I’d sent the angels out, they might have been able to waylay you long enough for me to simply come and shut you down…
Demon_Queen: Then why didn’t you? Did you truly not know where we were the entire time?
F4ll_4_M3: …
Ditzy_Divine: Oh, I can answer this one! It’s because she’s also a total drama queen! It runs in the family, I’d say.
F4ll_4_M3: I would hardly phrase it that way! I simply wanted them to suffer a crushing defeat at my hands - to realize how helpless they were before me. Only then would I have offered Devilla a sliver of a chance - an opportunity to serve at my side after playing her part in Solla in return for the well being of her lovers.
Maid_For_This: …And putting her back in time out… Moving on, there’s another question for… Liz I guess?
Questioning_Things: Why did that mirror lily have trans colors, anyway?
Ditzy_Divine: Oh, that’s easy! It’s the same reason that the dawn blossoms - the ones that let human cis girls impregnate each other - are colored like the lesbian flag. When I realized this world was going to be a fantasy world no matter what I did I decided to do a few things on purpose…
Maid_This_Way: Also, she’s a disaster lesbian with an Earth obsession, so… I guess that makes sense?
Demon_Queen: How did messing up a singular spell turn the whole world magical, anyhow?
Ditzy_Divine: Well, first off, it’s a world spell. That means that it’s basically omnipresent everywhere in the world, at all times… Also, the thing I messed up was the power distribution. The spell kept sucking in power, and I kept letting it, but the power was only being used in places where there were actual humans living and talking. Everywhere else, the power started building up until the whole spell got overloaded and basically burst, spraying divine magic everywhere… The areas where lots of humans lived were affected the least, since people there were actually using the spell by learning and speaking English. The further away you got from where human civilizations existed at the time, though, the more magic got spilled…
Lucy_The_Heroine: Is that why the worst monsters tend to live so far away from human settlements?
Ditzy_Divine: Yup! Remote forests and the like got hit with way more magic, so they not only gave birth to bigger, stronger monsters but also created areas where arcane magic radiates out more heavily. Which is probably for the best, since monsters like being where there’s more energy. There being so little energy where humans live is the main reason your cities haven’t all been overrun… though it’s also why you’re generally a lot weaker than the monster girls, who came about through a double mutation.
Also, you do not want to know what lives in the deep. Seriously. Do not go exploring the oceans.
Demon_Queen: You mean there’s things there that could hurt us?
Ditzy_Divine: No, but it could give you nightmares… I know they gave me some! *shudder* Anyway, on the subject of worldbuilding, we’ve got a whole slew of questions for the more minor cast members! Like…
Religious_Notations: How many secrets is the church still hiding? Are there more hidden labs? Assassins hiding in wait to do the church’s bidding?
Father_Tuffel: I suppose that would fall to me to answer? Seeing as how I’m the most religious figure here, excluding our dear Goddess…
Ditzy_Divine: Oh, I wouldn’t consider myself religious! I just sorta… have a religion, you know? And try my best to guide everyone with it!
Father_Tuffel: …I… See. Well, either way, I’m afraid I can’t give many answers on that subject. Partially it’s forbidden by the Author, who doesn’t want to give away spoilers for things that might happen in the sequel… but also, such things are secret for a reason. I’m afraid there was a concentrated effort by the higher ups of the church to cover such things up, burning paperwork and even sometimes buildings in order to try and avoid exposure and judgement… What’s more, while Lucy might have been happy to see me as the Grand Patriarch, I’m afraid that running the entire church is a bit beyond me. I’m privy to a lot of information, as her main point of contact with the church, but not everything.
Guard’s Guard (Joana): Don’t look to me for answers, either. All I can say is that if there’s a secret assassins corps, it doesn’t answer to me. I did lead the church in taking down a few buildings that might have had labs, though… didn’t see any big cages for monster experiments, for better or worse. One of them had some potted plants? I think they were working on mutating them.
Dragon_Girl_Lover: Lenora! What’s your day to day life in the tower, and what are your favorite places to visit?
Nervous_Chef (Lenora): M-me? I… um… My day is mostly spent in the kitchens, I guess? I… I really like to cook, so that’s most of what I do… My favorite spot is the kitchen, too! I-I know it’s not the most interesting answer, b-but… it’s what I like.
Demon_Queen: There’s nothing wrong with knowing what you like, Lenora. I’m proud to have you as my chef.
Nervous_Chef: T-thank you, Queen Devilla…
Dragon_Enthusiast: What does Jahara do for fun? When she isn’t getting her ass kicked by Deviulla, or trying to sneak into human cities, I mean.
Draconic_Foodie: Oh, I mostly just chill in the mountains? I’ve got my own territory - gotta fight to protect it, now and then, but when I’m not fighting I’m generally sleeping to preserve energy… Sometimes I go down to town to sell some materials? Like shed scales and claw trimmings and stuff. It gets me a lot of coin for when the food festival starts! Just gotta make sure I avoid the… Wait, no, that’s a spoiler for the sequel. Uh…. Forget I said anything?
Maid_This_Way: …Right…
Noble_Type: Grell and Dyona! How long have you been on the move? What’s your favorite place to visit? And have you finally gotten together yet…? If so, is Jahara part of your circle?
The_Boar (Grell): Well… Uh…
The_Viper (Dyona): My Lady only dates those stronger than her. I hardly qualify.
The_Boar: H-hey! I said I’d be willing to-
The_Viper: Alas, there is no hope for our relationship… It seems I’ll be forced to remain forever her shadow, never her equal, supporting and occasionally sabotaging her according to my whims…
The_Boar: …Wait… Now I’m confused. Are we actually dating, or aren’t we? I mean, I thought we were, after that big talk we had, but…
The_Viper: I think it’s better to leave it to the reader’s imaginations. Suffice it to say that we come as a package deal, for the foreseeable future… and that Jahara isn’t part of it.
Draconic_Foodie: I do hang out with them sometimes, though! Grell knows the best places to grab food.
General_Inquirer: Sallina, what are your plans now that things are turning around for the tower and demons in general?
Slithering_Thoughts (Sallina): I’d actually like to return to being a teacher, one of these days… The main reason I took the General position was that it gave me at least a small chance of helping Devilla, but now that she’s doing better… I think I’d like to train Nivera to take my place, and move onto my real passion!
Slithering_Suspicions: Me? I’m… not nearly as good at people as you are, in case you’ve forgotten.
Slithering_Thoughts: No, but give it time, and some help from Chloe, and I think you have the makings for a fine General.
General_Inquirer: What about Mifa? And Araina?
Spinner_Of_Tales (Araina): I-I’m actually working in the communications center, now… with my control over spiders, it’s possible to communicate over great distances, using something akin to… Um… I think Devilla called it a telegraph? It’s a way of helping to spread information in a good way…
Bird_Of_A_Feather (Mifa) As for me, I’m mostly just leading my people. Us harpies have always been somewhat insular, you know. There’s a reason we have a whole area of the tower to ourselves… don’t get me wrong, though, we’ve earned it. On top of being scouts, my people work at providing public transportation to the flightless up and down the tower.
Potion_Girl: Amessa! You’ve got to tell me - what are your favorite potions? How will things change now that you have access to more ‘ingredients’? Are you working with monster girl/demon alchemists, now?
A_Mess_Yeah (Amessa): Oooh, good questions! I think the mirror lily potions are actually my fave of all faves - they help people out in a way nothing else does! Also Dawn Blossoms, now that it’s revealed the whole thing about needing ‘angel tears’ to purify them is a lie… I like potions that help! Also potions that make you horny, potions that make it easier to relax, potions that make you go to sleep… All sorts! I’m hoping to work together more closely with demons to harvest some new ingredients, but we’ll see how that goes!
Curious_Curser: What’s the deal with guild cards being used as city passes, anyways? Like, I know it’s a common trope, but is there a reason for it?
Lucy_The_Heroine: Oh, I know this one! It’s because the local adventurers guild - and the merchants guild, too, sometimes - always have a deal going with the local city or town. They pay either a flat rate, or in some cases a percentage of their profits, in return for adventurers being able to come and go through the city without paying a fee! The whole business model would fall apart without it.
FeyFey (Feyra): I’m surprised you remember that…
Lucy_The_Heroine: You were really thorough when you taught me!
FeyFey: Yeah, well… I only know because I asked when I joined up. I didn’t get why the guild card acted as a free pass and it seemed way too suspicious at the time… Now I know it’s because most of the standing jobs they have are crap. I mean, sure, sometimes there’s a big mission worth tons of money, but most of the time it’s little things like running mail to people, or picking up a plant that grows right outside, which anyone could get if not for the whole ‘there are monsters’ thing… None of which pays well enough to be worth going in and out of the gate if you also have to pay every time you exit and enter.
Demon_Queen: Interesting to note, I suppose… I wonder if it’ll come up in the sequel? Speaking of… One last question, I think.
Nosy_Reader: Will we see you girls in the sequel?
Demon_Queen: As background characters probably… at least for the most part. You know how Princess Kay likes to play around with perspectives, so I won’t rule out you seeing something from our eyes now and again, but this next journey belongs to our children and I have no intention of taking it from them
That said… It was lovely to see you all here. To go on this journey with all of you readers. It had its ups and downs, but in the end it all worked out… I even have children on the way! I… don’t really know what to say, other than to thank you all. Thank you for reading, thank you for supporting, and thank you for being here alongside us as our author struggled to pen our tales.
Thank you.
Everyone: See you in the sequel!