ALL NOVEL Chapter 23 – A Busy Week
Back in the capital...
Time flows incredibly fast when you are busy, having something to do, one thing after another. After finishing the whole check-up operation and our little talk with Sirgia, we begin brainstorming ideas about the interior design of the establishment. Fortunately, the place has been decorated by someone with a great artistic sense along with the utility one, so there’s not much we want to change about the mahogany and white marble decorations everywhere.
As for the furniture, it also fits the image I had in mind when thinking about a high-quality establishment. All the wardrobes, beds, cupboards and other stuff are masterfully crafted, yet without over-the-top details that would make them an eyesore or pain in the ass to operate. While I love medieval or fantasy designs, I hate when they are overdone and get in the way of the thing’s utility.
We all agree on changing the sheets and other materials. They are currently in a royal crimson or scarlet colour and we all think something else would go better with the dark mahogany style. We decide on purple. It both feels great and at the same time, it’s kinda the symbolic colour for this field of work. I’d have never expected one of my favourite colours to actually be used with this particular meaning in mind, but I’m lucky it did, no one has anything against using it here due to that so that’s like killing two birds with one stone for me.
The windows could be a problem when considering the things that will happen in these rooms. This mansion is still in the city, on the border of Noble and Mercantile districts, and even if it has some space around, thanks to the low stone fence it’s still easy to take a peek inside from the adjacent buildings. Sirgia suggests that we order a bit more of the purple material and create bigger curtains which will also be able to act as blinds on the windows. Thanks to that, we will be able to cover them for most of the time and in a case when it’s necessary, move them to the sides. We naturally all jump onto that idea.
We are going to introduce these changes to all rooms in the wings, but since there are lots of them, like really an insane number, I propose to make the upper areas function both as living spaces for our future residents and also waiting rooms for the girls when the brothel will operate. Each wing has its pair of stairs leading to the other level, so after someone picks a girl at the counter, she can then easily walk down to a room that the guest will be given, without unnecessarily having to parade through the whole main hall. Convenient if we introduce different outfits or something, in the future.
Naturally, it all depends on the situation, because I definitely plan on asking some of our employees to spend their time waiting in the main lobby, but only those who would be fine with that. Having the girls sit around and possibly get in touch with the people who come inside would be a nice way of showing them their good sides. And of course, it will function as presenting part of our assortment. Seeing your possible choices in front of you has a much bigger emotional impact than just reading the list, even if that list includes pictures or sketches. You gotta work for that first impression, it’s really important.
And well, some people may just want to enjoy a nice talk with a beautiful girl by their side first, hostess' bars are a thing, and for that reason, we should also offer something similar. There’s that recreational area above with an alcohol corner. Getting to know a girl a little bit better can increase the chances of pleased customers and might end in them taking the next step too. Will have to be careful though, don’t want someone utterly drunk into oblivion trying anything funny, but well, we will introduce a decent set of rules and instructions. The bartender will keep an eye over the situation.
That reminds me, besides maids, I’ll have to look for some bouncers or security guards. As much as I would want to believe nothing will ever happen, wishful thinking like that can only lead to a disaster. I better solve this issue before we open for the first time. Safety of the girls is my utmost priority here and will always stay that way. Sirgia is strong and has a decent Class, but she’s not only our chef but also will start being an artificer too. I shouldn’t push so many roles on her little shoulders, even though she would try to convince me that she’d be fine with whatever I need from her.
A day passes as we walk around and discuss various things. Everyone gets to their rooms to rest and regain energy for another day of heavy thinking and other work. Well, almost everyone. Somehow, Safi and Emi end up in my room quite often recently. I have nothing against that fact. I enjoy their company and falling asleep while cuddled up by two charming and chilly Slimes is a win. It’s not like any of the other girls is going to spend the night here, so for now, I’m going to pamper them a bit each night. For a moment, I was worried that from how quickly the things between us escalated, I might have flipped some ero-switch inside them and made them addicted to sex or pleasure, but so far they just seem to be closely attached to me. There’s no doubt that they would be up for it any time I asked though.
Next day marks the first delivery from Barren. He doesn’t employ that many helpers in his small store so he comes here by himself with a cart. Sirgia is still a little bit wary of him, but she does not let that uncertainty be in the way of her duties, and she does her best checking the quality of the goods he provides and raising accurate questions regarding any concerns she might have.
I must say, it feels really extraordinary to see a little girl, almost half the size of the muscular man which is walking by her side, carrying two more large crates of goods in her hands than him. That’s a Dwarf for you. If I were to use numbers to convey their strength, then a Human would need around 20 Strength for his stats to have enough influence over his body to rival the common Dwarf. And Sirgia is a Crusher, which additionally raises her Strength stat. 10 Strength stat Human doesn’t equal 10 Strength stat Dwarf, it’s more like 20 to 10, and she is 30 already by herself.
When everything gets properly unloaded and placed in storages or the fridge, we move out to do some material shopping with me, Cornelia and Sirgia. I think it’s still a bit too risky to bring Slimes out into the open. We either need to get some recognition first or I have to get stronger to be able to protect them. I have no doubts that they can take care of themselves better than I would, but still. We visit a few businesses and order tens of curtains and other stuff, with designs we came up earlier together. It will take some time to get all of it done.
While in the city, we also check on the artisan who is working on the collars, but they haven’t been finished yet. There’s no rush, so that’s fine. Since we are already there, Cornelia starts asking about a custom order for clothes. Without me noticing, she smuggled out one of the sexy maid outfits which Safi and Emi wear, most likely depriving one of them of the joy of using it for some time. She presents the uniform to the clerk and they begin discussing the details of replicating it, but with more violet and purple details here and there. This might end up as our brand outfit. I don’t mind. It’s the opposite. Just imagining all the girls wearing such cute clothes around me is a thing that evokes whole oceans of fantasies. Ahhhhh…
The day after, we begin taking down the old curtains and bedsheets. Safi ends up with the previous white shirt and black panties combo since as I expected, she was the one who Cornelia has robbed out of her costume. I make sure to give her lots of pats and snuggles from time to time so she doesn’t feel sad. But as for me, she could stay in that getup forever. Who does not find an oversized shirt and sexy panties a sight to behold?
We almost end up on top of each other instead of working. That sly slime is getting too knowledgeable about the art of seduction. It’s getting increasingly dangerous just being around her. You will not convince me that she came up herself with her breasts 'accidentally spilling out of the shirt’ when reaching up for something, her panties ‘accidentally catching against a cupboard’s knob’ to flash the sapphire lips of her alluring pussy as she leans over something or ‘accidentally tripping over her own legs’ and falling face-first into my crotch.
I have some suspicions on whose fault this might be. We’ll need to have a loooooooooooong talk about what she is teaching my lovely and innocent slime girls.
「Oooooohhh, she does not want to go to war with me. She is not ready for the amount of knowledge I have amassed from various sources back at home.」
Fortunately, we manage to do our share in time, not like when I was working with Sirgia, with just a few breaks for some kisses and pats. And perhaps a little bit of touching.
We finish moving around the furniture and taking down the decorations in two days. There’s not a lot of manpower at our disposition currently, but there’s no rush towards anything. Then, I decide to have a shopping trip with just Sirgia so that she can pick up the necessary tools to start giving life to the ideas I have in mind. We grab some utensils for woodworking, metalworking, leatherworking, order some small devices she deems worthy of having and a few other things. Nothing much yet, it’s just for several smaller projects. I also get some more professional paper and drawing tools to be able to make decent schematics for her.
Huge materials supply is not yet required so we postpone searching for a proper supplier for later. Sirgia tries to hide it behind her neutral mask, but she’s brimming with happiness and passion too much for me to not notice. It feels good seeing her like that. When I pat her head and brush her hair a bit, she even smiles faintly from time to time. I help her arrange all the things in the room she has chosen for herself, spending the rest of the day at it. We slightly move a few pieces of furniture and rework the desk so it can function as a makeshift workshop. I tell her that I’ll drop her the first design soon and she bumps her small chest with her fist, saying “Leave it to me! I will not disappoint Master!” with her eyes sparkling with anticipation.
Then, almost a week after we started taking everything into our own hands, a message comes. Cornelia brings a letter from the castle. It’s from the King. He’s inviting me for a meeting. Supposedly, there’s something important and that could ‘definitely be of huge help to me’. Since the letter states that I can either come today or have Cornelia deliver a reply with suggestions of possible dates, I choose to check this out immediately. Besides, since when does ‘The King’ work his schedule around some plebeian’s free time? He does not act like this towards everyone, right? I’m starting to get worried about the way he conducts himself.
I decide to test the secret tunnel. I walk down into the cellars and then to the passage with the two trolleys. They have a lever mechanism like the ones you often see in western movies. I sit on a bench at one of its sides and begin fanning the mechanism up and down. We'll have to figure out with Sirgia some other way to operate it. Perhaps she will be able to create a simple bike gearbox and some pedals, or we can just test some mana-operated ways with her Mana Artisan.
As the cart moves through the tunnel, small crystals on the walls, imbued with some kind of proximity trigger spell, start glowing in yellow. They fade out when I pass them, leaving only the area I’m currently moving through brightened. After ten minutes they start changing into orange and then red so I start slowing down, guessing that it’s just a way of telling the driver that the end of the tracks is close. And I’m not mistaken.
Soon, I reach the stop and get out of the trolley. There are two paths now, but one of them is completely buried in rubble and debris. I guess it led under the treasury. I take some stairs up and am met with a wooden plank at the end of the pathway. I examine it closely and notice that it’s possible to slide it to the side. I remove the obstruction and get swatted into the face with fur coats. This is definitely the inside of some wardrobe. I push open its doors and reveal a typical castle room. Confirming that there’s no one in here, I walk out of the wardrobe and look around.
Nothing much to be said about it. Decently sized chamber with a bed, desk, wardrobes and other furniture. From the amount of dust, it doesn’t seem to be in use. I move the backside to its original position and close the wardrobe before leaving. I enter a usual corridor with many more doors like the one I’ve just used. I think this is the area where most of the royal guards live.
I manage to navigate to the room we usually used for meetings during our time in the castle. No one had any problems with me going around. I’m still a Hero in their eyes, even if I’m not really helping with their case, but well, at least I look adventurey enough in this brownish attire and the coat. I pick an apple from a tray and wait by the balcony.
「This brings back memories...」
I marvel over the view from up here as I did a little over a year ago. Who would have thought on that day that I’d end up starting a brothel? But well, I’m not mad, at least not anymore. I have things I can focus on now and that Class seems better and better with each passing day. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll be able to help the others with their mission. I wonder how they are doing.
Not that long later, the King arrives. He wears his more casual, but still royal, robes without the extravagant cape. A smaller crown decorates his blond hair.
“Al, my dear friend! How are things going?”He smiles at my sight and extends an arm towards me.
“Pretty good. We are slowly making progress. No catgirls yet though.” I take up his hand and we enter a lively handshake. I wink at him while saying the last part.
Ross chuckles. “I’m glad to hear that!” He gestures towards the table and we both sit down. He starts pouring some wine into the glasses. “Well… That thing at the end might actually change soon,” he says looking up at me.
“Oh? Could that be the subject of this sudden meeting?” I ask and ponder over how much he must want to meet one, to personally arrange a situation where I can possibly gain a Catkin employee.
“To some extent, yes.” He finishes pouring the wine and serves me one of the glasses. “But before that, do tell me more! I’m really curious about what you achieved! There certainly has to be something, right?”
“Hahaha, yes, there certainly is.” I laugh while recalling the events of the passing week. “Literally the day after we parted I stumbled on two Queen Slimes, which are now naturally part of my ‘family’.”
“What?! There were no notices of you leaving the city… How?” he replies, shocked.
「Oooooh, so I am being monitored. I guess it’s only under certain orders if he didn’t get informed about my purchase or situation in that dinner.」
“I found them in some random barrels.” I give him the same answer I did to Cornelia, also making his jaw almost drop from surprise. “Some idiot has been using them as waste disposal tools for like 7 years. I stumbled on him the day he almost killed them. That was lucky.”
He shakes his head as he laughs. “What are the chances.”
“I know, right? Besides that, I just got myself a chef. Someone has to help with all the food.”
“And you’ve stolen a quite the great magician from me, don’t forget that.” He points at me threateningly and chuckles.
“I was most likely more surprised than you when I saw her at my doorstep. But well, I can’t deny that Cornelia’s help is much appreciated.”
“Our main Court Magician will have to deal with a bit more work for some time, but that’s fine. Having a little mole in your rising fortress is worth it.”
「Oh, I really do wonder which one of us will benefit from this more...」
I smile mischievously, making him raise an eyebrow.
“Well then, let’s move onto the main topic.” He assumes a much more serious expression. “As much as I’d want for this to be easy and simple, it, unfortunately, won’t be.”
“Oh? Is it that problematic?” I ask.
“Not only problematic but also risky and dangerous.”
I furrow my brows at him. “Okay?”
“You know how most of the slavery is controlled by the kingdom or the authorities of the capital itself. If it’s more than just getting rid of a few ‘pieces’ of merchandise, you need either a temporary or a permanent permit.”
“Yes, I know how it works, so you can spare me the details.”
“Good. If something is controlled, it doesn’t exactly mean that it’s fully contained. There’s an underground group of slave traders who operate on the Black Market. They import a lot of products and then hold private auctions at various cities in the kingdom.”
I begin thinking that I might have an idea of where this is going to lead. Rossberg continues.
“I’ve got information that in a few days they’ll supposedly hold one in the capital. And naturally, from both a legal and personal standpoint, I’m quite eager to get rid of this issue if I can. We’ve started planning on crashing their little party and possibly capturing as many criminals alive, but dead is fine too if they were to try escaping.”
“I see. What’s my role in that plan then?” I ask.
“They are quite well-informed about governmental agents and it could alert them if we tried sending someone from here inside. That’s why I wanted to ask you to work as my agent and infiltrate the auction. They are not some foolish amateurs. There will definitely be false rumours being spread about the location or date or any other crucial information. But you, as someone new and fresh, have a chance to gain their trust as a new customer,” Ross explains.
I think for a moment. “Even so, how would I get in contact with them?”
“Leave that part to my men, it will be arranged. You just need to act your part and I believe that with the procurement of quite the luxurious mansion, your classy attire, noble manners and the way of being, you won’t have any problems getting in.” He brings a rolled piece of paper from his own storage ring. “This is the deed to that place. It’s now rightfully yours and can also confirm your credibility in their eyes. I’ll naturally throw you some more money so you can flaunt your wealth a bit.”
I pick up the document, unroll it and check the insides. The mansion’s worth is calculated to be over 350 platinum coins. That’s over 35 000 gold coins. Quite a fortune. Just with this, they should consider me their new VIP customer. And also…
“I believe this might come in handy too, right?” I pull out the Ruby Card from a pocket in my vest. Rossberg’s eyes widen in surprise.
“You got yourself in the highest VIP category at Madam Selina’s? There’s no way they will be even a little bit suspicious of you with that. I did not expect this, but that’s insanely fortunate.”
“So yeah, let’s say we have the identity part covered. What’s my task?” I sit cross-legged and rest my chin over my joined hands.
“After making contact with their team, you have to arrive at the meeting place and confirm its authenticity. Attend the ball, the auction and other parts, but mostly the auction, it will be the best sign to judge. They will certainly have some slaves at the fake locations, but the main one will have much more and better products to show. And higher bidders.”
He takes a sip of his wine to moisten his throat.
“Our team will be waiting for your signal. Since they will be partially split between the places we’ll be able to gather rumours about, it will take some time to move most of the forces to the one you will deem as the true one. They will block all possible routes of escape before launching the assault. The remaining soldiers will also storm the fake locations, who knows what they will find. After the operation begins, I guess you can hide or join the knights, that’s your call.”
I play the whole plan in my head.
「Yes, it is very risky, especially for someone like me who doesn’t have that much offensive or defensive abilities. And I can’t bring Sirgia or Cornelia with me. First one would look weird from their perspective, and the other one is definitely on their watchlist. But the chances of success seem quite high and I’m not completely defenceless.」
I sit straight and get lost in thoughts a bit. Mostly about what could go wrong and how I could assure my safety in those scenarios. One more thing pops into my mind during my contemplation.
“And how is that supposed to be ‘of huge help to me’ or even linked to the Catkin in the end?” I ask the King.
He smiles knowingly. “You see, operations on this scale tend to get a little… chaotic. Our priority is to capture or kill the criminals at any cost. During the fight in enclosed spaces, many unpredictable things can happen. I can’t fully guarantee to my advisors that one or more slaves won’t accidentally end up dead alongside their owners or use the chance to sneak out and run away amidst all the turmoil. Stray arrows and spells are a thing. If you catch my drift.” He waggles his eyebrows at me.
“Ohhhhhhhhhh, that’s certainly true. Fire-based spells are especially lethal. I wonder how many victims could a badly placed Fireball claim,” I say while giving him a side glance.
“I’m not an expert in fire magic, but I guess up to like ten? It would be such a futile task to take a proper count of bodies afterwards though, ” Ross answers with a similar, angled gaze.
“Yeah, definitely. Hard to judge which pile of ash consists of one or more people.”
We both laugh. Then he stands up and I follow. “Can I count on you then?” Ross asks with an extended hand.
“Oh yes, let’s begin the operation ‘Pimp My Auction’!” I grab his hand and shake it while giggling at my own joke. He smiles wryly with a tinge of confusion in his eyes. “Don’t mind me, it would have been a killer back at my place.”
