Chapter 183 Whorehouse

Everything was all right.

❮ You have obtained the new Title "Master of Fabrications"! ❯

And I had to start from the very beginning.

After the door opened up, I found the girl and his boy behind it. No wall was in between us anymore. I could already see her, but she saw me only then. Our appearances might have been similar: Though I looked a bit older than her, we might have been around the same age. She stood in the entrance hallway, and I stood at the step of her door. She was a pretty sight, and, from her perspective, I might have been, too—her eyes were lost on me for a moment.

When I gave her back her long stare, the maiden looked instantly flustered and averted her eyes.

"Thank you," I smiled. I took a step in, inviting myself inside, then I politely asked about her aunt. I made it sound as though I knew the master of the house, so I had to ask. The young lady made way for me, and I noticed she was still noticeably flustered, so I asked about her and her brother's well-being, too.

The lady was as nervous as she was lovely. With short jerky movements, she had an amusing nervous helpless habit. She kept sliding some lost strands of her chestnut hair behind her ear, then let it fall from it again, before repeating the movement all over again. Her eyes kept darting from me to the floor, and the young lady managed an answer. Her aunt, her kid brother, and herself were all quite healthy, for the most part.

"Is that so? Well, that's quite good to hear."

That's how the old man would have done it, I thought. Politely, normally, being non-freaky. In her turn, the young lady would treat me similarly, and I could get done what I had to do here. In a non-freakish manner. Right, I thought, silently nodding at myself.

Then, I just had to let myself be guided to some sort of guest room or something, where I could—

"Y-Young mister!"

Well, I thought, she doesn't have to hurry, but the lady will have to calm down, at some point. Why so flustered?

The kid brother's big curious eyes had been observing me for some time, in the entrance hallway. He blinked repeatedly at me. When his sister spoke up, he wrapped it up, grew bored, and ran back off to his soldier toys. His little quick steps rumbled a rough symphony on the floor, and that left me and the sister still in the hallway.

I thought of following the kid brother, but then, she repeated it. "Y-Young mister…!" And she was more flustered than before. Noticeably so. Her nervous helpless habit became more intense, and robotically turned to me.

I didn't frown, I politely smiled.

Her hands clutched her ragged robe. Her maturing chest rose as she took a deep breath. Her eyes were glued to the ground, but then, she would take them up and face me head-on.

"A-And you… h-how are you…?"

Ah? It was that. I still didn't understand why someone had to act so shy like this.

"D-D-Did you e-enjoy yourself at th-the… w-w-whorehouse…?"

Ah, no, I did understand, actually. I was confused. She asked that question. I thought she just wanted to be polite and ask about my well-being, too, but oh well.

Frozen by a palpable feeling of shame, the young lady stood in front of me, and eyed me intently again. At first, I was just confused. After a second, I was still confused, but I understood it was as if the young lady was searching for something inside of me. She searched for something she wanted to see. And I would understand the meaning of her question later. From what she understood I told her, I had to stop by her aunt's workplace before I came back to her aunt's place.

Behind her back, I went to a stop. There was enough room for me to pass her by, but I gave her some of my time. It wouldn't be polite not to. So, it was a little weird response, but I turned my back on her without a word, then thought up an answer to her question. I was quick: I picked a copper coin in my pocket, then flipped it. Heads for yes, tails for no. Turning back to her, I put back on my polite smile on my face, nodded, and enthusiastically said "Yes."

"O-Oh… I-I see."

​ I did enjoy myself at the whorehouse. Like a man with a woman. That was something people might or might not do. It just so happened that I did.

Well. I flipped a coin because I didn't know what was the right answer to give her. What about the truth? Well, I was someone who constantly lied. Yes or no, then? I couldn't say, so the coin said it for me. In the end, I didn't know whether the coin had done me right or not. After my yes, the young lady might have initially looked a bit disappointed. She winced with a little stony expression. But after her bitter smile, she might have felt a little relieved by my answer. All of that for reasons I ignored.

"W-W-Would you…"

Wasn't she done yet? I tilted my head at her.

"A-And would you do it again, young mister…?"

A laugh escaped me—I didn't think it could be so normal to ask other people about such questions—and I nonchalantly flipped a coin again. I got a lucky draw. The coin said Yes again.

That was right. The maiden's bitter smile was wiped off her face, and then, she nodded to herself. "Is that so," she kept repeating, "I see," she said. "Mmm… Sorry to have asked you such weird questions, young mister."

"Ah." So those questions were a bit freakish, after all. Unsure, I asked the young lady as much, and she politely laughed in her hand.

"Of course they are… but I— I had to ask! Come, then, young mister. I couldn't make my aunt's guest… well, yes, you are a guest. The times are hard, but my aunt says it's in hard times that being the better versions of ourselves really matters. I couldn't let our guest be neglected."

Her dodgy question might have been the reason why she was acting so flustered, in the end. After it was asked, she grew noticeably calmer, and I was settled inside one room.

Not neglecting the guest of the house was the goal here. They could barely not neglect themselves, in their abode, however, so what was the plan here?

I had already been here before. Though it was upstairs, I already saw a sample of the house. While most houses of the lawless area could be called racks, this one could be called a bigger rack. There was room inside, but most of it wasn't touched. The "living room" I was led into was the place where the young lady and her kid brother stayed the first time I swung by. Outside, the silver moon essentially lit up the nightly streets of the lawless grounds. Inside the bigger rack, it was mostly dark: Aside from the light of an old oil lamp that was held by the lady, there was only one other oil lamp and a few candles, dimly lighting up the living room. Added to the smell of dust and old wood that ruled over the atmosphere, the air unexpectedly scented books and old documents.