CH 227.1

The high-class brothel, Jayanne, stood along the main street in the red-light district of the capital.

「Has she decided what she wants to do after graduation?」

After being told about Explosive onee-sama, I put the coffee I was holding on the table. Then slightly tilted my head and replied.

「And how about her work here at the store? Is she going to quit?」

Sitting on the sideline and holding the number one rank in this store, Explosive onee-san. However, her main job is as a student at the royal magic academy.

The reason why she works here is in order to earn money for her research.

(Even though she is blessed with both intelligence and beauty, there’s a limit to what she can do)

In this world, the social status of women who work in brothels is extremely high. As a woman who sits at the top of one of the three families in the royal capital, she can be said to be a national figure.

In fact, when the truce was signed with the empire, she was entrusted with entertaining the delegation.

(And as if that wasn’t good enough, she’s also the one who succeeded in making an elixir)

Last year, the royal magic academy succeeded in creating an elixir. It is said that this is the first greatest achievement a human race has ever achieved.

There were two names on the paper. They were Professor Termano, a skinny middle-aged man with a crooked mouth, and Explosive onee-san.

It must have been a remarkable feat to be named together with a professor.

「No, fortunately, she will still continue working here」

The nice silver concierge smiles gently.

「I want to have my own workshop eventually, but I need funds to do so. That’s what she said」

After graduating from the royal magic academy, she will work at the workshop of her mentor, Professor Termano.

「It seems that Termano-sama will also support her. Maybe the time she will be independent might come surprisingly soon」

When that time comes, then she might actually leave the store. He concludes in a sorrowful tone.

(The old man with a crooked mouth, it seems he’s more tolerant despite his appearance)

Rude thoughts slipped into my mind, but I was impressed.

If a talented student becomes independent, that means they will become a strong competitor. Despite knowing that, he still offered to help her.

It’s not an easy thing to do.

(I guess that means he’s more of an academic than a merchant. As expected of a professor)

I want to keep making progress together with my excellent research colleagues. Is what he probably wishes for.

「But still, graduating, finding a job, while working at the store, that’s sure a lot of work for her」

I thought so from the bottom of my heart. I hope she takes good care of herself so she doesn’t get sick.

But then the concierge told me something unexpected. The reservations, which had been so packed, have decreased significantly now.

If this goes on, the day when she has to wait for customers on the sidelines will soon come.

「I wonder what happened」

I’m happy, but I’m also worried. I asked the concierge with a somewhat complicated expression on my face.

The old gentleman shook his head in disagreement and opened his mouth.

「One year has passed since she defeated the Grim Reaper in the Divine tournament. I guess it’s probably the end of her trend」

“Moreover…” he continued.

「In the Divine tournament the other day, the Grim Reaper lost without putting up a good fight. That’s probably one of the reasons」

The Grim Reaper received all of the whips of the Plain Queen without any resistance. I heard that in the end he ascended to heaven with candle service.

It must have been a very satisfying play for that man. However, the audience must have wanted to shout something like, “What the hell is this?”.

「Her premiere, which was her victory against the Grim Reaper, has lost its value, is what it means huh」

The concierge nodded at my reply.

He then narrowed his eyes happily and offered me a proposal.

「So Tauro-sama, why don’t you make a reservation with her? I’m sure you won’t have to wait too long to play」

「…Is that really okay?」

I pinch my cheeks in delight. It seems this isn’t a dream.

However, I wondered how the person herself feels about it. If she wants to refuse, I can’t force her to do it.

「She once told me that she was willing to play with you if it’s not a competition」

The concierge smiles at me as I stare at him intently.

「I will keep it a secret from her for Tauro-sama’s reservation this time. And if she finds out about it at the last minute and gets upset about it…」

Then, as if he couldn’t take it anymore, he let out a small laugh. He looks like a mischievous kid.

「…As the one who is responsible, I will try to convince her by bringing up what she said earlier. She probably won’t refuse it right away」

I was somewhat taken aback by that statement.

Selfish onee-sama with a proportionally selfish body. She has that kind of atmosphere, but she’s surprisingly upright inside.

「That’s great, please do so!」

Thus, I had one more thing to look forward to.

***

The stage shifted northeast to the headquarters of the kingdom’s knight order.

There, after returning from the Holy City, Lightning was surrounded by his usual friends. There were two old men, both former adventurers, and a girl with braided hair and huge breasts.

Incidentally, Ponytail had not yet returned from the training grounds.

「If you’d like, please enjoy it together with everyone」

A nice young man with a short mustache puts down a wooden confectionery box. When they saw the warning written on the lid, the former adventurers broke into a smile.

「Confectionery that has received blessing, huh. As I thought, this is the stuff if we talk about the Holy City」

The unmarried old man nodded and opened the lid.

The Holy City is a place where the temples of many gods are gathered. And the god of business is just one of them.

However, the sweets blessed by the god of business have always been the most popular souvenirs of the Holy City.

「Oh, cookies with nuts, huh? They look good, I’ll have one right away」

The married old man sees what’s inside and reaches for a piece. But the unmarried old man closes the lid before he can reach it.

「Are you kidding? It’s a blessed item you know?」

Its effect is that it causes you to crave for the opposite sex. That is exactly why it is so popular.

Even though he was warned, the married old man didn’t seem to care. He retorts with a plain expression.

「It’s alright it’s alright, unlike you, I have my wife waiting for me at home」

The one who got retorted just shrugged his shoulders while raising his eyebrows.

「You really can’t be helped huh. Fine, but make a coffee first, for all of us」

The married old man stands up, chuckling. There, Busty-chan raised one hand.

「Ah, I will make it」

As she said this, she got up from her seat, shaking her cannonball-shaped breasts. The old man decided to leave it to her.

Soon she brought them four cups of hot coffees. While occasionally sipping it, they listened to Lightning’s story.

「So the legendary muscular hag from the eastern country participated huh. No wonder you can’t win」

The story progresses to the point where he loses in the semifinals, and the old unmarried old man groans.

On the other hand, Busty-chan is staring at Lightning with her hands clasped in front of her chest. No one can tell if she’s really listening to the story or not.

「Oi, what’s wrong?」

And the other old man is looking down without saying a word. He wondered what’s up with him, so the unmarried old man called out to him.

「….Oh boy」

What came back was a faint murmur. He found out one thing when he questioned him.

Instead of the frozen old man, the unmarried old man started to explain to everyone.

「The effect of the blessing seems to have kicked in, but he’s surprised because it’s much stronger than he expected. He says it wasn’t like this the last time he had it」

He shrugged his shoulders in exasperation and closed his mouth. Incidentally, the only one among them who ate it was the married man who’s currently facing down.

Busty-chan who flipped up the lid noticed something and opened her mouth.