The moon gradually climbed into the sky.
After accepting the golden strands of hair, Bell did not return to the mansion. Instead, he took a detour to the Pleasure District.
He had once made an agreement with Aisha to go to war with the Ishtar Familia before the second full moon.
Now that the first full moon had just passed, he needed to visit Haruhime and ask her for some of her hair while he was there.
Bell could have walked into the Pleasure District openly. There had been no need to wait until Ryuu left before going alone, but he truly did not want to ruin the atmosphere between them.
Bell was not worried Ryuu would misunderstand him. However, once the Pleasure District was involved, even if Ryuu understood that he had his reasons, she would become a flustered, helplessly innocent girl.
That was why Bell had gone out of his way to act as though he were sneaking off for an affair.
The scent of musk drifted outside the brothels.
Amid laughter and playful moans, the Pleasure District was as lively as ever.
Bell avoided the brightly dressed women and headed straight for the brothel where Haruhime was.
Blue cherry blossom petals scattered in the wind, seeming a little sadder than before.
"You're looking for Haruhime? Little Rookie, you really are devoted."
The one who greeted Bell was a familiar Amazoness.
She had once accepted the Hyakinthos's gem Bell had stolen, so the boy had left a strong impression on her.
With a pipe between her lips, the woman gently exhaled a puff of smoke. "Unfortunately, Haruhime isn't taking clients right now."
"..."
Bell furrowed his brow but said nothing.
The woman smiled and smoothly returned to business. "Haruhime may not be available, but the girls here are all beautiful. You like demi-human girls, right? How about a Cat Girl?"
Bell's thoughts raced, but none of his worry showed on his face.
The night of the full moon was a special date, which was why Haruhime's situation had changed.
What exactly had happened?
Was Haruhime safe right now?
And where was Aisha?
Questions surged through his mind like a tide.
Although Bell was desperate to dig up information, he knew he absolutely could not let anything slip and make her suspicious.
Right now, the young man was nothing more than a brothel customer who favored Haruhime's beauty and skills in bed, which was why he had come here again and again. That was all.
"Sounds good. Bring her over and let me have a look. Consider this a little greeting gift."
Bell played the part of a customer.
He casually handed over a tip, making the Amazoness's eyes light up.
"Little Rookie, you really know how things work. I'll have someone bring her right over."
The woman accepted the money and called out to one of the combat prostitutes outside.
Adventurers might have money, but she rarely got much out of them. People like Raul from Loki Familia, who would even use expedition funds on prostitutes, were ultimately few and far between.
Bell had given her a valuable gem on his very first visit, and now he was offering a tip before even seeing anyone. With him spending so generously, the Amazoness naturally treated him like a VIP and lowered her guard.
"Little Rookie, you became lovers with Goddess Artemis, yet you still came to a place like this. It must be because she won't let you touch her."
As they waited, the Amazoness chatted about gossip. "In my opinion, the Moon Goddess has stayed a virgin for at least hundreds of millions of years. How could she possibly know what's good about men?"
"..."
Bell gave her a cold glance without saying a word.
But that icy stare, sharp enough to pierce bone, made his attitude perfectly clear.
"Sorry, I spoke out of turn."
The Amazoness apologized repeatedly, trying to shake off the sudden chill that had run through her.
He was only a newly promoted Level 3 adventurer. In a brothel with several combat prostitutes, he should not be able to cause much trouble.
Yet the Amazoness still instinctively felt afraid.
"I'm only here to enjoy myself. If you still want to get money out of me, then about this matter..."
Bell's words came to an abrupt stop.
The Amazoness nodded and immediately picked up on his meaning. "I understand. I won't tell anyone."
The scent of musk grew thicker. After only a short conversation, a combat prostitute led a Cat girl into the room.
"Finally here. Little Rookie, this girl has entertained plenty of clients, and she's quite pretty too. What do you think?"
The Amazoness had recovered from her earlier slip of the tongue.
"Another one."
Bell pretended to be dissatisfied and waved his hand casually.
That was the start. One demi-human girl after another was brought into the room.
And Bell's answer was always the same.
"Another one."
"Little Rookie... we don't have any other demi-human girls left."
The Amazoness replied awkwardly.
Although she had received a generous greeting fee, she would only be able to earn more if a prostitute accompanied Bell for the night.
"Is there no one else like Haruhime-san, a Renard?"
Realizing that the woman had completely relaxed her guard, Bell began probing for information.
"No. Fox-people come from the Far East, and they're rare to begin with."
The Amazoness answered honestly.
"Then was Haruhime-san bought out by someone?"
Bell knew the answer to that question, but he still asked from the standpoint of a customer.
"Her status is rather special. She can't be bought out."
The Amazoness answered softly.
She lifted her pipe and exhaled a curling cloud of smoke. "Little Rookie, I can't reveal too much about this to you either, or I'll definitely end up like Aisha."
Bell caught the implication in her words.
He took out a pouch of money and placed it generously on the table.
Bell did not feel bad about spending the money. On one hand, Haruhime's situation was far more important. On the other, if this Amazoness had not been so greedy for money, the information she revealed would have been far less credible.
The current situation was exactly what Bell had hoped for.
"..."
A golden gleam flashed in the Amazoness's eyes.
She had not expected Bell to be willing to offer so much money.
"I'm only concerned about Haruhime-san, but Aisha-san is her friend too. Tell me the details."
Bell placed his right hand over the money pouch, his tone rather casual.
"Aisha angered Ishtar-sama, and she still can't get out of bed."
The Amazoness shared the portion of information she could reveal.
"What about Haruhime-san? How is she now? Is she still taking clients?"
Bell pretended to be anxious and asked several questions in quick succession.
When he made his agreement with Aisha, he had already seen her resolve. Worrying about her now would not change anything.
To avoid raising suspicion, Bell did not press further about Aisha and instead brought the topic back to Haruhime.
"I don't know the exact details either. All I can tell you is that Haruhime is still in the brothel. Every day, all she does is eat and sleep, so there's no need to worry."
The Amazoness paused for a moment, then added:
"But lately, she won't be taking clients. If you want to sleep with her, you'd better come back next month."
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