Arthur follows Oliver inside his home, the place surrounded by a tall wall with a vast garden around it. They pass through a part of the house that forms an arch, leading to a large inner courtyard.
"Bathrooms over there, kitchen on the other side, dining room..." Oliver points in various directions, excitedly introducing the house to Arthur. "If you need anything, just ask one of our servants."
'Servants...' Arthur notices there are dozens of servants around, all wearing nice uniforms and working with a smile on their faces. 'They don't look like those commoners we've seen so far.' He mentally comments to Nyx.
'Yeah, they seem happy... probably because this noble family treats them well?' Nyx has the same level of knowledge about that as Arthur, so conversing with her is like pondering with his own conscience.
Oliver notices how Arthur curiously looks at the servants, making him wonder about it. "You're not used to having servants around? But your family is noble, too, right?"
"Something like that," Arthur doesn't think that talking about his lineage being royal will bring anything good, but he still wants to be honest with Oliver. "But we don't have servants at home."
"Oh," Oliver is extremely curious about Arthur and his family, but he doesn't want to press too much. "Well, we need a lot of servants to maintain such a big house, but we take good care of everyone. They're not forced into anything and have good wages; Mother also always gives them clothes so elegant that make noble ladies jealous."
"I see," Arthur has no doubt about that. He continues following Oliver, but then a servant, a girl dressed as a maid, appears in front of them and bows respectfully.
The girl seems to be about twenty-five years old, with a nice light brow hair, and her face is at most average, but some features catch Arthur's attention significantly: she has fluffy and pointed furry ears like a cat's, as well as a bit of feline fur on the sides of her face, and various other parts of her body, and a cute tail wagging behind her maid dress.
"Master Oliver~!" The cat-girl bows and greets Oliver with bright eyes and a lovely tone.
"Hey, dear," He pats her ears and lovingly kisses her forehead, then stands by her side, looking at Arthur. "This is our guest of honor, a friend, actually."
"Hello, dear guest," The girl bows respectfully, and her tone is gentle. She can't help but be shocked when she notices Arthur's appearance, but her expression when looking at him is just impressed, unlike the loving way she gazes at Oliver.
"Hi," Arthur can't stop looking at the girl's ears, causing Oliver to laugh. "Don't tell me you've never seen a cat-girl?"
"I've read about them, but I've never seen a demi-human in person," Arthur responds honestly.
"Oh," The girl averts her gaze with a shy and even scared expression, but a curious spark lights up in Oliver's eyes. "Do you think her ears are cute? Maybe you want to touch?"
Everyone looks at Oliver, but their attention is redirected to Arthur, especially the girl's eyes, which glow brightly. "This is the kid that got us into this mess? He doesn't look like a kid at all..." Jovie's expression is wild; she breathes heavily due to the fight, her face sweaty, and her sharp teeth on display.
Arthur can tell she's a noble based on her aura and appearance, which is superior to any servant's, yet she can only be considered average compared to Margaret.
Before Oliver can say anything, Arthur steps forward and smiles confidently. "Arthur, the name, and yes, I'm the one who agreed to enter this game to save your ass."
"Ohoho..." Jovie laughs, the sparkle in her eyes becoming more intense. "You've got the balls, I see. But how about showing if you have the strength to keep this posture?" She extends her hand to him. "Come on, get up here so I can give that pretty confident face of yours a good treat."
Arthur feels something he hadn't felt in months since his father left: the desire to fight someone without the intention of killing, just for fun.. "Alright!" He doesn't hesitate to approach the ring and grabs Jovie's hand.
She pulls him into the ring with great force, and before his feet touch the arena, she already raises her leg, initiating a kick toward his stomach, *whoosh*
'She's fast!' Arthur feels that Jovie's power is on the level of the last Bloody Golems he faced at home, fourth grade of the Elite Rank; and even a Mythic Fighter of grade fourth couldn't match her speed.
However, Arthur's body is superior not just because of his royal lineage, but especially because it has been improved for weeks due to sex with his girls; so he can clearly see Jovie's movements and grabs her shoulder to regain control in mid-air.
*Swoosh* His movements are a bit faster than Jovie's, shocking her, 'WHAT!?!' She tries to react, but she's in the middle of her strike, and Arthur uses the opportunity to change the direction of his fall to land behind her.
'No way!!!' Jovie tries to use her elbow to punch Arthur, but he holds it while wrapping his other arm around her neck, capturing her in a sleeper hold before she can escape.
"So you like low blows?" He asks in a teasing tone, but quickly begins to ease the pressure on her neck, after all, she's his ally and is just trying to measure his reflexes and strength.
"No!" But surprising Arthur, Jovie holds his arm around her neck. "I can get out of this; just give me a chance!"
"Oh?" Arthur maintains medium pressure around her neck and prepares for Jovie's reaction, but she surprises him again by pushing her body back against his without trying to remove his arms or even hit his ribs as he expected. "How is this going to help you?"
"I know what I'm doing; just watch!" Jovie maintains a wild attitude, but as Arthur feels her rubbing her ass against his groin, he realizes he's been tricked.
Nyx can't help but exclaim in his mind. 'She's taking advantage of you!'