Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

Vahn's blood immediately filtered out the drug and he learned from Sis that it was intended to make him more 'receptive'. It wasn't a poison or anything dangerous but would give Shauntac a big edge in any negotiations they would have. With a small smile on his face, Vahn explained, "Every now and then there would be ships that traveled in from the Far East. I once saw the appearance of a beautiful girl with curved, fox-like, ears and a large bushy tail. No matter what I did, I was never able to spend any time with the girl and later learned that she was what the Far East referred to as a Renard. I recently heard that there was a Renard in the red light district and wanted to try my luck meeting the girl."Shauntac showed a contemplative expression and squinted his eyes for a few seconds until he responded, "I do recall there is a Renard within one of the brothels. Since she is rather rare merchandise, I once tried to purchase her from the current owner but was denied...So, you intend to purchase this information?" Shauntac had a somewhat amused smile on his face that Vahn couldn't understand well.Nodding his head, Vahn said, "Indeed, it has been one of my long-held dreams to meet and associate with a Renard girl. However, it's not as if I'm only interested in Renard's, there are several girls that I'm quite fond of." Vahn knew that if he only focused on the information pertaining to Haruhime, it would actually make it harder to obtain. The broker would try to up the price more and more depending on the interest he showed in obtaining it. What would normally only cost a few tens-of-thousands of Valis would likely cost several-hundred-thousand or more.Shauntac's eyes squinted a bit as the amused expression on his face turned more serious and his business-like smile reappeared as he said, "I'm sure we can work something out, but the price may be outside of your expectations. As far as I know, there is only a handful of Renards within the entire City and only one of them is a prostitute. However, her backer isn't someone that I'm willing to offend easily...if you want the information we'll have to arrange something special before I'm willing to trust you with the information."Hearing Shauntac call the girl he suspected to be Haruhime a 'prostitute' made Vahn's eye twitch a bit. Fortunately, Shauntac just thought he was frustrated about not being able to easily obtain the information as he continued, "You see, Mr. Yashima, I'm much more inclined to give information to customers that I've closed deals with. As you've likely noticed, my brokerage isn't a simple institution that disseminates information alone. Perhaps purchasing some of our 'stock' would help ease my tensions..."Vahn averted his eyes to the ceiling as if he was thinking about Shauntac's offer. He knew that the drug he took earlier was likely meant to prime him for Shauntac's offer. Since there were various illegal channels supporting the slave-trading ring, even though slavery wasn't illegal, it meant becoming an accomplice of sorts if Vahn purchased a slave that wasn't procured through legal channels. However, it also meant that Vahn would be liberating a girl from her fate and he could just as easily free her after the purchase. Since he planned to crush this facility in the future, Vahn couldn't see any harm in playing Shauntac's game for now. Worst case scenario, he could force the information out of the broker once he identified a few of the collaborators.Nodding his head complacently, Vahn had an 'excited' smile on his face as he said, "Sure, that sounds like a good idea. I've never really thought about purchasing 'stock' before, but it might be an interesting experience." Vahn noticed that Shauntac went out of his way to avoid referring to the girls as slaves, so he considered it a red flag to mention it himself. Since all slave markets were strictly regulated, they were also required to post proper signage to indicate the nature of their business. Since the outside of this brokerage was unmarked, it implied they were an illegal trafficking ring that used a 'referral' system to attract customers.Though he had already expected Vahn to agree, Shauntac still had a somewhat surprised and elated expression on his face as he stood from the sofa and grasped Vahn's hand. After patting him on the shoulder in an amicable manner, Shauntac led Vahn through several corridors before arriving at a large room that had several doors and a few chairs set to the side. After motioning to the chairs, Vahn sat down while Shauntac informed one of his goons before sitting next to Vahn.With an evil glimmer in his eye, Shauntac proudly claimed, "I'm sure you'll find something to your liking Mr. Yashima. My stock is one of the most unique amongst the entire circle of brokers in the City. Even if you can't find something you like, we also accept requests and will do our utmost to guarantee the satisfaction of our clientele." As Shauntac spoke, Vahn sat in a somewhat dazed manner as he listened passively to the information. The smile on Shauntac's face between somewhat larger as he motioned toward the side where a man was standing next to a door.Vahn looked over and saw a line of twenty girls enter through the door in an order based on height. The shortest girl was only around 118cm, and Vahn could tell she a half-pallum that still seemed to be maturing. The tallest girl was around 180cm tall and had an incredibly curvaceous body with seductive green eyes. Every girl was wearing a simple cloth covering their bodies and Vahn noticed that none of them had on any undergarments at all. Some of the girls had even started to appeal to him already by flashing glimpses of the contents behind the cloth.However, the thing that stood out the most to Vahn was their auras. Other than some of the more 'seductive' girls, every single one of them had a mellow and sad aura tinged with blues and purples. Vahn understood that the majority, if not all of the girls, were forced into slavery. The only reasons he could think of for the actions of some of the more mature girls was that they had been slaves for a longer period of time and had 'adapted' to the lifestyle.Vahn slowly passed his eyes over every girl and focused primarily on their expressions as he had a silent and contemplative look on his face. He was very tempted to just kill Shauntac there and then so that he could liberate these unfortunate people. Though he didn't know all of their ages, Vahn was very aware that a number of the girls were under the legal age even for normal slaves. The only explanation was that, like criminal Familia, they had either been born into slavery or kidnapped from villages outside of Orario.The fact that anyone could be 'born' a slave was something Vahn fundamentally disagreed with and intended to change in the future if he could. For now, he just inspected the girls as Shauntac explained the fabricated origins and training each girl had undergone. When he called them forward from the line, the girl would stand in front of Vahn before removing the simple cloth that covered their bodies. Vahn felt his mind grow progressively numb over time as the cold sensation continued to increase in intensity.After every girl had stepped forward, Shauntac turned to Vahn with a smile and asked in a somewhat amused manner, "Well then, do any of these girls suit your tastes Mr. Yashima? Know that we can provide a discount if you'd like to make a bulk purchase." For several reasons, Vahn released a sigh and shook his head and explained, "Though they're all beautiful girls, none of them are quite what I'm looking for..."As Vahn spoke, he noticed that the auras of the girls turned slightly chaotic as they began to droop. Since Vahn hadn't taken an interest in them, they were destined to continue their life as slaves for the time being. Several of them had thought Vahn was very attractive and had a gentle disposition so they had been trying their best to appeal to him. Having a kind and young Master was always preferable to some of the despots that typically visited the facility.Expecting Vahn's answer, the smile on Shauntac's face remained unchanged as he motioned for the girls to exit while a smaller batch came in through the earlier door. Vahn turned his attention to the new arrivals and his brows raised slightly as Shauntac explained, "Sorry for the earlier display, we simply wanted to keep you entertained while the real merchandise had been prepared. I'm positive you'll be pleased with at least one of these girls."Including the Cow Person, Vahn had seen earlier, each of the six girls that arrived was of a race Vahn had never seen previously. Even though he hated almost everything about this situation, Vahn couldn't help but feel somewhat interested as he gave each girl a cursory glance. Noticing his gaze, four of the girls made slight appeals while two of them seemed completely disinterested in Vahn's presence. They had dreary auras and eyes that contained nearly no light at all.The first girl to step forward and remove her cloth was the same Cow Person he had met earlier. She had azure blue hair and pale green eyes with the largest breasts Vahn had ever seen. Since she had a youthful face and was only around 154cm tall, Vahn wasn't able to determine her age. To accompany her large breasts, she also had somewhat large nipples that came to a point with a slight indentation. Her figure was somewhat plump and she even had neatly trimmed pubic hair that matched her hair color. From the explanation given by Shauntac, Vahn learned she was called Mona and was actually twenty years old and, as she demonstrated, was constantly capable of producing milk. After he was asked, Vahn somewhat flusteredly refused to sample it himself.The second girl looked decidedly more exotic than everyone else and Vahn even thought she might be a Renard based on appearances. She had large bushy ears on her head that were dark brown with tufts of white fur on the inside. On her backside, she had a bushy tail of the same color and was also tipped with white fur. Her breasts were relatively modest, but her figure was somewhat tantalizing with how wide her hips were. Her eyes were a deep purple and she had red makeup that enhanced their appeal quite a bit. Shauntac explained that she was seventeen years old and was actually from a derivative species of Renards known as Kitsune in the Far East. Her name was Shizune and she appealed to Vahn by trying to get him to touch her fluffy tail.After Shizune stood back in the line, the third girl walked forward and Vahn frowned slightly when she removed her cloth. She was only around 150cm tall and had shaggy, platinum-blond hair with light grey eyes that had lost their light. Drooping from the side of her head, she had similar ears like a cow but the horns on her head were much larger and arched backward before curving around to a point. She also had a short shaggy tail and a slim figure with very modest breasts. The thing that disturbed Vahn was the various small scars and burn marks that covered her body..Shauntac saw his expression and explained with mock distaste, "This is Preasia, she is eighteen years old and comes from the Sheep Person from the western plains. Her last owner had slightly deviant tendencies and liked to torment her a bit, but you can rest assured that she is still a virgin. If you choose to buy her, we'll offer a healthy discount as well as a bit of insurance for if she fails to keep you satisfied."After bowing slightly, Preasia picked up her cloth before walking away with mechanical steps and rejoining the line. The entire time she stood in front of Vahn, her expression hadn't changed even once and he understood she had developed a serious trauma and sealed her own mind away. Replacing Preasia was the second girl with lightless eyes, except she seemed to have an incredible animosity emanating from her body.She had dark, somewhat ashen-brown, skin with red hair and burgundy eyes that had a hint of madness contained within. Like an elf, she had long pointed ears, while her body was almost flawless. Even though her skin tone was somewhat peculiar, she had a very beautiful and fit body with relatively large breasts. Shauntac spoke up from the side, "This one is a dark elf named Shiva, and she was a...return product. We had to place a curse mark on her tongue because she injured her previous owner. Fortunately, she is also still a virgin even though she is 31 years old. Don't worry though, as her species can live for several hundred years, she will retain her beauty for the rest of your life."As if to reinforce Shauntac's words, Shiva opened her mouth and showed a strange seal on her tongue before she snapped with her teeth. Though he wasn't truly intimidated, Vahn swallowed a bit of saliva for reasons he couldn't explain. She didn't even bother to pick up her cloth as she rejoined the other girls and acted like she was continually trying to intimidate him.The fifth and sixth girl were actually identical twins and they each had silvery hair with hazelnut eyes. Though they looked like Cat Persons, their ears were slightly rounded and had speckled black spots on them. Their tails were also twice as thick as normal and had speckled-black rings covering the length. They had a matching height of 158 cm and slender bodies like most of the Cat People Vahn had seen. Their breasts were modest and they had lithe figures with hopeful expressions on their faces as they held each other's hands and appealed to Vahn by hugging each other and staring at him with pleading eyes. Since he could see their aura, even if they were trying to 'pretend', Vahn could tell that the two girls were actually very unstable and there was some truth behind the act.Shauntac explained, "As you've noticed, these girls are twins named Emiru and Maemi. They are both sixteen years old, virgins, and from a very rare tribe native to the Northern Tundra called Snow Panthers. Since they became stock willingly after their village was in a famine, they have a clause where they will both go to the same home when purchased. I'm afraid I'll have to charge a premium as well since they are not only a rare breed but also twins. They're actually recent arrivals and haven't received any training, so you're in luck since they will likely be purchased soon just based on their rarity."Hearing Shantac's words, the twins made a harmonious verbal appeal to Vahn, "Please buy us, Master. We don't want to end up in a strange place..." Shauntac cut them off and they had sad expressions as they picked up their clothes and returned to their place in line. Looking over, Shauntac could see Vahn rubbing his temples and knew that he had been impacted by the two girls. Before negotiations even began, he increased the price of the girls by twenty percent.Vahn had realized by now that, even though he had prepared himself, he wasn't actually able to resist the plea of others so easily. Because he had the power to 'liberate' all the girls present, Vahn was very tempted to do so and then just release them later. Especially after hearing the twins plea, Van felt like he had made a mistake by coming to this place. Now that they were literally asking to be saved, he couldn't overlook them even if he wanted to.With a short sigh through his nose, Vahn gave the girls another look before asking, "How much?" Shauntac's smile widened as he asked, "Did you find something that suits your tastes Mr. Yashima?" Hearing the discussion, every girl except the dark elf Shiva had somewhat excited expressions on their faces. After a brief period of thought, Vahn stated, "I want to know how much the information for the Renard will cost me. Other than that, I want to know the prices of the girls here and I will make my decision based off of that."Shauntac's brow raised slightly because he hadn't expected Vahn to even remember his original purpose after the drug kicked in. He realized that Vahn was likely very interested in sampling the Renard girl and had a 'knowing' smile on his face as he explained, "The information for the Renard girl will cost you nothing as long as you purchase each of the girls here...lets say an even 1,000,000V for the first four and an additional 700,000V for the twins."With a hesitant expression on his face, as if he was contemplating things seriously, Vahn released a sigh as he handed over notes that amounted to 2MV. Shauntac had a pleased expression and pocketed the notes as Vahn said, "I don't care about the change, just have these girls properly dressed and give me the information I came for. Consider it a bonus to celebrate the conclusion of our successful business."Each of the girls had a happy expression on their faces and the twins were both slightly misty-eyed as they hugged each other before leaving into one of the side doors. Vahn was escorted by Shauntac back to the earlier lounge and gave him an information packet that not only included the image of Haruhime, but also detailed some of her personal information like breasts, waist, and hip size. After reading it over, Vahn understood why Shauntac had been wanting the conceal the information and hadn't been able to purchase Haruhime himself. The current 'owner' was none other than Ishtar, Goddess of the Ishtar Familia and the primary governing force within the Entertainment District.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Slave Exhibition','Exotic Collector Yashima','The Mastermind Appears')I am currently at $749/1200 of my new goal~! If I can reach this amount, I intend to start having character profiles and images of all the characters created so I can update the information to a wiki~! Though the Wiki will be accessible by anyone, only Patrons will receive the high-res versions of the images &lt;3

Fortunately, even though Haruhime was owned by Ishtar, she seemed to work in one of the brothels to the southwest and Vahn would be able to confirm her safety. Though it might cause problems and discourse between the Ishtar Familia and himself, Vahn could simply steal Haruhime away if he successfully infiltrated into the brothel. Of course, the first thing he had to do was discuss things with the others and find a place for the six girls he just purchased to stay. After settling them in, Vahn could always sneak back into the red light district during the early morning when there were fewer people around.Shauntac saw the contemplative and pleased expression on Vahn's face and nodded his head satisfactorily. He could tell that the boy before him was a pretty big sucker and it would probably be possible to squeeze some more money out of him in the future. Once they discovered where he lived and his source of income, they could even pressure him into taking on a debt or even kidnap the girls and resell them through another one of their brokerages. Naive boys with a lot of wealth were easy marks and one of the preferred short-term customers for their business.After a few minutes, the six girls were brought in wearing matching maid attire while holding shawls in their hands for later. Though he felt guilty to have the thought, Vahn thought they looked kind of cute in the matching getup. Especially the twins, who seemed to be in much higher spirits even though their auras were continually fluctuating. Vahn went through the process of sealing a contract and then placing a seal of ownership at a place of his choosing on the girls' bodies. The simplify things, Vahn placed them wrist where he had seen the previous marking. To facilitate things, Shauntac even gave the girls some wristbands to cover the mark before handing Vahn six collars that emphasized each girls hair color.Each girl bowed to him as he placed the collars around their necks and thanked him in the same, likely rehearsed manner, "Thank you for taking this lowly one as your servant. This one will do their best to serve you from now on, my esteemed Master." The only exception was Shiva, who couldn't even speak due to the curse that had been placed on her tongue. When things had finished, Shauntac gave him a wooden tab that could control the seals on the girls' bodies and 'punish' them if they misbehaved. Even though they were bound by a vow, it didn't mean accidents couldn't happen, such as when Shiva injured her previous master's genitals.Before leaving, Vahn gave a perusing glance at each of the girls' bodies with his perception before nodding his head and leading the way out of the brokerage. They each wore the shawls to cover their bodies so they wouldn't draw attention to themselves as Vahn escorted them through passages where there was little foot traffic. After a half-hour, they had made their way out of the red light district before Vahn turned around and looked into the eyes of the girls following him.Eager to please, the twins stepped forward in sequence and asked, "May we be of assistance, Master?" Vahn released a sigh and said, "I'll pick each of you up for a moment, don't resist, I won't hurt any of you." Though they were nervous, Emiru and Maemi nodded their heads as Vahn picked up the first person and disappeared from sight. Maemi, the twin left behind, immediately felt concerned until Vahn reappeared moments later. She saw that he didn't have her sister anymore and began to tear up before Vahn lifted her body and disappeared yet again.On the roof of a nearby building, Emiru had been standing in a daze for a few seconds as her Master disappeared from sight before reappearing moments later with her twin sister Maemi. The two girls immediately hugged each other and stared at the disappearing Vahn until he once again showed up with another girl in his arms. This repeated until all six girls were on the roof and the two twins began to wonder what kind of mysterious man had purchased them.After all the girls were situated, Vahn scanned his perception within the area of his domain and saw the people that had been tailing him had stopped moving. They seemed to be waiting for something but Vahn had already made plans as he walked over sheep girl Preasia and kneeling down. Using his [Eyes of Truth], Vahn peered into her stomach where a magical stone-like transmitter had probably been forced down her throat so they could track him. Because of her lacking emotions and absolute silence, she was the most likely candidate for forcing her to ingest the transmitter.Vahn looked into her light-grey eyes and said, "I'm going to make the thing in your stomach go away, I need you to remain absolutely still." Without responding at all, Preasia just looked down at Vahn with a blank expression that made him release a small sigh. Using his 'Oblivion' skill, Vahn identified the active component of the transmitter and severed it. Following that, he tried to destroy as much of the transmitter as possible and hoped her body would be able to process the rest later.After the signal was lost, the men tracking Vahn became active and backtracked to the brokerage, likely to report what had happened. Since he wanted to buy time, Vahn used [Enkidu] from a distance and ran it through the two men's achilles tendons before turning his attention back to the girls that had been staring at him with varying degrees of confusion on their faces. Vahn showed a small smile and explained, "Sorry you had to go through all of this, I'll be releasing you all soon. You don't have to call me Master, or anything else for that matter, just start thinking about what you want to do from now on. I'll try and help you return to your families or see if I can find a safe place for you to stay if that is impossible."The eyes of every girl, except for Shiva and Preasia, became wide as they looked at Vahn as if he had just said something incredulous. By the time they processed his words, Emiru and Maemi hugged each other and fell to the ground as they started silently sobbing. Mona had a somewhat gentle and happy look in her eyes as she hugged her hands between her somewhat massive breasts. Shizune had a thoughtful expression and had turned her head to the east in silent contemplation. The only lacking reactions were Shiva, who had a contemptuous look in her eyes, and Preasia, who didn't have any expression whatsoever.Without saying anything, because she couldn't speak, Shiva walked over and removed the band covering her slave seal. When Vahn saw her point at it, he understood what she wanted and shook his head from side-to-side. In response, Shiva's contemptuous look grew deeper as she spat off to the side and sneered at Vahn. Knowing she was misunderstanding, Vahn explained, "Wait, I'll release you soon, but first I need to remove the curse from your tongue. Though it's a strange thing to admit, I'm somewhat afraid that you might bite me if I try to do it later..."Though she still had a look of contempt on her face, Shiva tilted her head and stared at Vahn as if to ascertain if he was speaking the truth. Vahn showed a light smile and said, "Stick out your tongue, and please don't bite me..." After frowning for a moment, Shiva eventually stuck out her tongue and revealed the triangular crest that had been embedded into its surface. Vahn could see there were tiny runes along the perimeter of the triangle and he used his domain so slowly break down the elemental laws that allowed the curse to function. He couldn't remove the mark without a different method, but Vahn could at least remove its functionality and return her speech.After around a minute, Shiva could feel a tingling sensation on her tongue as the restrictive force in her throat vanished entirely. She opened and closed her mouth a bit as if stretching her jaw before she looked at Vahn and said, "You're a good kid. Now release me, I already have a place I can go." Vahn sighed and said, "I'll release you, but I'd like for you to stay here even when I remove your seal. There will probably be a few things that you need to tell the people that will come to investigate. Don't worry, it won't be anyone that can bring harm to you, just some people that I trust. After that, you'll be free to go at your leisure..." Pulling out a few notes, Vahn handed them over to Shiva before removing her seal. He had given her 300,000V in hopes that she could use it to get herself back to a functional point in her life.Shaking her hand a bit, Shiva rubbed the spot where the seal had been removed and had a cruel look in her eyes for a moment. She turned to Vahn after placing the notes into the lining of her bra and bowed slightly, "I misjudged you as another despotic fool at the slave house, I apologize. After I finish my business, I will see to the debt that I owe you." Her words finished, Shiva sat down on the roof without minding her frilly maid outfit getting dirty at all.After having them agree to stay in the area, Vahn freed the rest of the girls and told them to contemplate the future. If it was within his means, Vahn would help restore some normalcy to their lives. When they were all taken care of, Vahn sent a mental signal and, around two minutes later, a large dragon head appeared out of the shadows that sent each of the girls on high alert. Vahn explained that the dragon belonged to him before turning to Fafnir and saying, "I need you to pass a message to Milan and Chloe. Have them inform Eina about the current situation and then guide them back to my location."Fafnir nodded its head before taking the slip of paper into its mouth and responding with its telepathy, (*Okie-dokie~! Leave it to me Master!*) After its cheerful voice faded away, Fafnir disappeared from the room and Vahn turned to see the girls looking at him with strange expressions on their faces. Mona started laughing in a somewhat husky voice and said, "He is kind of cute." Emiru and Maemi gave her a strange look before sitting down against the side of the roof and cuddling up next to each other. Preasia just stood idly by, even after her seal was removed, and had stayed silent for the entire time. Shiva looked like she wanted to say something, but kept it to herself as they all waited for the arrival of the reinforcements.Not only Chloe, but Ryuu arrived on the roof sometime later in their full-combat attire. Chloe looked at the girls on the roof and asked, "Are these the girls you saved from the slave traffickers~nya?" Looking the girls over, Chloe noticed that they were all unique and somewhat exotic looking women. Though she knew Vahn's character well, she couldn't help but think he was trying to start some kind of strange collection due to his curiosity.Vahn nodded his head and began explaining in detail everything that he had discovered, including the matter regarding Haruhime belonging to the Ishtar Familia. Even though he didn't distrust the other six girls on the roof, Vahn didn't use the names of anyone he knew and left out any details that could lead to trouble if they were spread. Even now, he hadn't even told the six girls his real name and they still knew him as Yashima. Since they were both highly intelligent, Chloe and Ryuu quickly caught on and made sure not to let any information slip. They could always talk later in detail, once they situated the girls on the roof.After exchanging information, Chloe left to observe the brokerage and make sure nobody tried to escape while Ryuu dealt with the men Vahn had injured earlier. Though Vahn didn't want to get Ryuu involved in the darkness of society anymore, he couldn't force her to go away when she had shown up and proactively decided to take action. A few minutes later, they had the two men bound up as a group arrived from the Guild accompanied by a host of guards and a tall man that looked to be around Level 5 based off his aura.Before their testimonies were taken, Vahn had asked each of the girls what they wanted to do from now onwards. He had let them know that, if they chose to, he could arrange for them to join a Familia or even set them up with temporary housing. He had also sent a request to the Hostess of Fertility in his message earlier and gotten permission to send the girls there if the chose to stay in the City. When she had arrived, Ryuu passed him a small note that had been written by Syr and had been 'approved' by Mama Mia.Though they had no combat potential presently, Emiru and Maemi said they wanted to stay with Vahn and work as logistics personnel or maids if possible. They had been sold by their families when there was a famine going on and, even if they could return, they didn't want to go back to that kind of life. Since Vahn had treated them well, they wanted to pay him back until they found out what they wanted to do in the future. They had already thought they were going to be slaves for the rest of their lives, so neither girl had any plans and didn't know how to get by in the City on their own.Shiva said she had things to take care of and would likely be dealing with her own matters for the foreseeable future. She didn't care about joining a Familia or settling down but promised to return the debt she owed Vahn in the future. As for Mona, she was interested in joining the Hostess of Fertility, since she had been a waitress back in her village. Ever since their village was ransacked by bandits, her life had been somewhat rough as she was treated like a toy by several men due to her ability to generate milk. For the last few years, she had actually had several masters that were interested in her milk for a time before returning her. She wanted an easy life that didn't have too many responsibilities and heard Vahn mention the women's dorm at the Hostess of Fertility.Shizune wanted to venture back to the Far East and return to her hometown, but she wasn't sure the best method to do so. She had been kidnapped by slave traders a long time ago and had spent more than five years as a slave. Though she was no longer a virgin, Shizune hoped she could find a good man far away from the nightmare she had lived for the last five years. With time, she hoped to return to a normal life and settle down to start a family back in her motherland.The most problematic girl to deal with was Preasia, who had yet to say a single word even when they were back in the brokerage. She didn't do anything to appeal to Vahn and just acted mechanically like a broken doll. Even though she was a virgin, she had been toyed with and tormented for several months before her previous master finally got bored of her. Even after Vahn released her seal, she just silently listened to his words and continued to stand a short distance away at all times. Vahn wanted to tell her that he could heal all of her wounds, but he was also somewhat hesitant to breach the subject since it would require physical contact to do so. Since the majority of her body, minus her face, was severely scarred, it would take a while for the procedure to complete.Alongside the Guild entourage, Eina had also shown up and personally taken the testimony of each girl before sending the investigation team forward to crack down on Shauntac and his base of operations. It wouldn't do much to fix the underlying problems of slavery within the City, but at least it would increase the caution of those involved and make them lay low for a bit. They would also take the girls within into a protection program and try to return them to their homes in a similar manner as Vahn was doing for the six girls. Those that had trouble returning to a normal life would be educated by the Guild and become future receptionists and attendants before likely finding a man and later retiring.After leaving behind her testimony, Shiva disappeared from the rooftop with surprising agility while Shizune and Mona were escorted by Ryuu back to the Hostess of Fertility. Shizune had received money from Vahn to pay for her trip back home, but she wanted to stay in the City for a while and properly prepare for the voyage. Vahn then escorted Eina back to the Hearth Manor with Emiru, Maemi, and Preasia in tow. Vahn actually hoped that Fenrir and Tina would be able to help the girl open up and he wanted the other girls to explain the procedure to heal her body since he didn't think it would be a good idea to bring it up himself. Emiru and Maemi would act as maids and help upkeep the Manor while also joining the Hestia Familia as Supporters.Along the way, Eina had a strange look on her face as Vahn led her by hand through the dimming light of the afternoon. Vahn had noticed her look and said, "I'm sorry things got out of hand Eina...I just couldn't abandon them when they were right in front of me." Without his notice, the ears of the three girls behind them slightly twitched as Eina responded, "I know, Vahn, it's just like you to do something like this...this is one of the reasons I never wanted you to go to the red light district in the first place. There is a lot of problems in an environment like that which even the Guild can't regulate. Just promise this type of thing won't happen in the future and that you'll contact me before taking action like that..."Vahn nodded his head and leaned down to give Eina a peck on the cheek before whispering, "Thank you, Eina...you really are always looking out for me. Every time I think about it, I can't help but feel fortunate that you'll soon be my wife..." As if he was actually imagining it, which he was, Vahn looked off into the void with a peaceful and happy expression on his face. Eina looked at him and had a somewhat bashful expression on her face as she released a sigh and muttered, "We might need to push up the marriage at this rate..."(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'The Vahnguard Arrives','Twin Meido Obtained','Eina's Lamentation')I am currently at $749/1200 of my new goal~! If I can reach this amount, I intend to start having character profiles and images of all the characters created so I can update the information to a wiki~! Though the Wiki will be accessible by anyone, only Patrons will receive the high-res versions of the images &lt;3

The next morning, Vahn awoke cradled between Hestia and Fenrir. Tina lay next to Fenrir while Milan was on the opposite side as the five had slept in a bundled line of bodies. Vahn felt very comfortable and lazed about for a few minutes as he absentmindedly hugged Hestia's waist. Because of the issues of the previous day, Vahn didn't get to spoil her as he had wanted. Instead, it was Hestia leading the charge to help tend to Vahn for the majority of the evening. Remembering her promise to always be here when he was down, Vahn felt a comforting feeling coming from her gentle warmth.Since it was a weekend, there were no plans to go into the dungeon today and Vahn had also cleared his schedule for the time being. Everyone enjoyed breakfast together before Vahn set out on his own into the early morning mist. Because it was cold this time of year there was a mist that covered much of the City early in the mornings and made stealth easier. Vahn had left a note for Hestia to pass off some information through the network before giving each of the girls a variation of a hug and a kiss right before he set out.While he was relaxing the previous night, Vahn had thought about several forms of approach he could take that might prove useful to his cause. Since he had the [Eyes of Truth], Vahn could just sneak around from building to building inspecting the inside and looking for any girl that matched Haruhime's description. Though he would be invading the privacy of others, Vahn thought it could be a viable approach to take if he wanted to avoid walking the streets and trying to pick up a scent trail.Another option he had was to try and get information through brokers while changing his appearance a bit as he checked the information through other networks. Since he had [Thria*Mimos], Vahn could change his ears to match almost any of the common races while also growing a tail to match. Since it also affected his hair color, Vahn could use the magic to disguise himself to an extent. The major downside to this, as Chloe had explained, as that any information that was requested through a broker was usually spread around to others in the trade. They liked to keep track of who was asking questions and why in order to increase their profit margins. Even if Vahn took on multiple identities, it would raise a lot of red flags if there were people asking for the same information all of a sudden. In the worst case scenario, he might even draw more attention to Haruhime and she would either be moved or concealed further from sight.One of the last options Vahn could think of, other than the method he would have to employ if things went south, was to actually gather information slowly through 'normal' means. He could visit high-class brothels as a customer and potentially get information from the various gods and goddesses that ran them. If he passed off his desire to meet a Renard girl as a natural curiosity, Vahn might be able to gather information about Haruhime without drawing attention to himself at all. The caveat is that he would actually have to act as an active clientele for whichever establishment he decided to visit. For various reasons, though this could potentially be the fastest method, Vahn was the most apprehensive about it.The final method included visiting various pubs, bars, or gambling dens and trying to pick up information from drunkards, but Vahn knew it would cause problems if someone as young as him was asking questions and seemingly not getting drunk. There was also the chance that Vahn could get wrapped up in a larger scheme due to the fact that most gambling dens and casinos were run by gangs and mobs behind the scenes. If he had no interest in gambling or business, Vahn would attract a lot of attention from the various criminal organizations that ran the facilities.After arriving in the red light district, Vahn sat atop a six-story house and surveyed the surroundings as he contemplated the best course of action. As he expected, the business was almost non-existent in the early mornings except for some customers lazily leaving the various brothels with tired expressions on their faces. Vahn learned that the majority of the establishments weren't too active until the afternoon and late evenings. If he wanted to employ the method of searching buildings, the best time to do so would be in the early mornings where it wasn't easy for 'workers' to solicit customers while the night chill remained in the air.For the next few hours, Vahn inspected several buildings after using his domain to detect presences and then check the interiors with his [Eyes of Truth]. It was a mentally taxing job to penetrate so far through some of the deeper buildings, but Vahn still felt like this was the safest approach. Fortunately, even the buildings that had barriers for surveillance, counter-surveillance, soundproofing, detection, and security, Vahn could see through them all the same. It was difficult, if not impossible, for normal methods to counteract his use of his Innate abilities.Each time he cleared a building, Vahn would update it with a tag on his map before moving on to the next one and repeating the process. Unfortunately, by the time business started picking up in the afternoon, Vahn had failed to find any traces of Haruhime and he didn't have the mental energy to peer through buildings and inspect so many people. [Eyes of Truth] required a great deal of focus and it was admittedly difficult to focus on things if Vahn peeked into a room where there was some 'intense' action going on. In one instance, Vahn had looked into the basement levels of a building where the aura of a god was located. When he inspected the scene, Vahn saw the god tied up to a cross-shaped platform while he was being teased by a somewhat motherly looking woman wearing a black, leather, outfit.After that, Vahn decided it might be better to try a different approach and headed through the backstreets toward one of the information brokers he had marked on his map. Vahn noticed there was a decent amount of traffic going in and out of the building in the last two days, so he assumed it was either reliable or part of a larger network. Removing his Báihǔ transformation, Vahn used [Thria*Mimos] to change into a Raccoon person which also caused his dark-brown hair to take on a hazelnut brown color as he grew small circular ears and a short bushy tail. After changing his outfit and wearing a flat cap on his head, Vahn walked into the information brokerage with what he assumed was a stoic expression on his face. He knew from several sources that his face could be read easily, so Vahn was localizing his aura while using [Will of the Emperor] to forcibly calm his mind.Stepping into the unmarked building, Vahn was immediately noticed by a young receptionist woman that was wearing a blue maid outfit and had a collar around her neck. She had purple hair and lavender eyes and Vahn could tell that, though her expression was calm and professional, her aura was dreary and stagnant. Walking forward, the receptionist asked, "Welcome Sir, do you have a referral, or would you like to be interviewed by one of our esteemed brokers?"Vahn noticed the girl's aura fluctuate when she mentioned the brokers and couldn't help but squint his eyes slightly. He very quickly realized what kind of institution this was and wasn't sure if he should be happy or sad at the influence of karma. Though this was definitely an information brokerage, it also seemed to actively be involved in slave trafficking. Even though they had just met, Vahn could identify the girl in front of him, who only appeared to be around 17-18, as a slave that was forced to work against her will.Even though his expression didn't change much at all, since she was trained to read people's expressions and body language, the girl quickly realized that Vahn wasn't part of their intended clientele. He seemed to have accidentally wandered in before realizing what kind of place this was and even acted as if he took pity on her. A bit of melancholy colored her eyes for a brief moment before the girl whispered, "You shouldn't be here, this isn't a place for kind people..."As if machinated by fate, the moment the girl spoke a tall, somewhat sharp looking, man with blonde hair and golden eyes walked out of the door in the back accompanied by a regal-looking old man and a blue-haired girl with tired eyes and a forced smile on her face. Though it was almost unnoticeable, Vahn could see a small tattoo on her wrist that matched the emblem on the old man's suit. No matter how he looked at it, the girl had likely just become a slave for the gentlemanly looking man.Shaking hands with the client and sending him off with his purchase, the blonde-haired man had a perfect business smile on his face as he approached Vahn and the receptionist. He asked in a calm tone, "Tiffany, have you properly attended this young man?" Hearing her name called, the girl named Tiffany bowed low and explained, "This esteemed guest did not have a referral and I was asking if he wanted to speak to your honored self. Please forgive my failure to inform you expediently Master Shauntac."The man, apparently named Shauntac, had a cruel smile on his face as he waved the girl away while saying, "You'll be dealt with later. Return to your post from now and contemplate your mistake." After bowing, Tiffany walked over to the small desk she stood at and Vahn could see her aura turn chaotic with a deep purple color to it. Because she had tried to warn him, now Tiffany would be receiving some form of punishment later? The cold sensation in Vahn's mind began to spread slowly through the rest of his body as the business-like smile returned to Shauntac's face.Reaching out his hand, Shauntac said, "It is a pleasure to meet you, my young friend. I trust you come here with the intent to purchase information...or perhaps you'd like to discuss more private matters? Regardless, my name is Shauntac, may I ask for this esteemed guest for his noble name?" Though he had already decided to crush this place in the future, Vahn kept his expression plain as he reached forward and shook the man's hand and said in a low tone, "Yashima."Since Vahn had decided that he would have different names depending on his form, it actually wasn't a lie when he introduced himself. Even the system updated whenever he decided to change his name so Shauntac wasn't able to see through his words or expression. Instead, he had a business-like smile on his face as he firmly shook Vahn's hand and led the way to a private room for their 'interview'. Vahn scanned the walls and noticed there were several formations that were hidden within the hollow interiors as well as several presences located very near the room that were likely security personnel or slaves.Soon after they sat down, three different girls entered the room with trays of tea and snacks which they neatly arranged on the small table separating Vahn and Shauntac. Each girl was both beautiful and youthful and they all had characteristics that drew the eye. There was a blonde half-elf with watery eyes, a short human girl with a very lively appearance and brown hair, and a cool looking beauty that appeared to be of a race Vahn had never seen before. She had azure blue hair that had been neatly arranged into a long ponytail with small horns on top of her head with droopy off-colored ears underneath. The most notable features were her incredibly large breasts and the bell around her neck even though she still had a young face.Seeing Vahn's 'appraising' gaze, Shauntac smiled and said, "Is this your first time seeing a Cow Person? There are quite common in the west, but relatively rare here in Orario after all. If you'd like, I can arrange you get to know each other better?" Vahn felt a strong urge to clench his teeth and rebut the man but just shook his head with a small smile and said, "I do have an interest, but I'm looking for something different right now. Even though these three are beautiful girls, my preferences are of a different persuasion."Sending a signal to the girls with his eyes, they left the room as Shauntac asked, "Oh? My brokerage prides itself on our ability to procure information and meet the needs of our customers. Of course, that is assuming they have the capability to pay for the information. As it is our first meeting, I'd like to get to know you better Mr. Yashima. I wonder, where did you come from? What interests brought you here to my place of business?" A cold light shone in Shantac's eyes even though his expression didn't change in the slightest.Without feeling pressured, Vahn explained, "I migrated to Orario from a port City name Bri near the Serpent's pass. I haven't been in the City for but a few months and I've been trying to make a living as an Adventurer since then. I only discovered this place recently after visiting the red light district to look for a specific kind of girl that I had met a few times within my hometown. Without intending to brag, I've never had any significant trouble with women, but I'm looking for something specific."Other than the fact that he originated from Bri, everything else about Vahn's story was true and Shauntac wasn't able to discern any lies from his words. From his perspective, he thought that Vahn had just intentionally concealed his own hometown, likely so his origins couldn't be easily traced back to his family if anything went awry. Since it was rare for anyone to divulge that kind of information, the fact that the rest of Vahn's story was true made him a viable client for the time being.With a smile on his face, Shauntac said, "It seems our meeting was fated to be a cooperative one. You have a desire, and I have the ability to facilitate your needs. Shall we discuss the specifics of our cooperation Mr. Yashima?" Reaching for the cup on the table, Shauntac raised it slightly as if to toast their future business ventures. Vahn lifted his own cup and, even though he could detect some kind of chemical within, drank down the tea without hesitation.(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Whims of Karma','Seething rage concealed behind a smile','Deception through small truths')I am currently at $749/1200 of my new goal~! If I can reach this amount, I intend to start having character profiles and images of all the characters created so I can update the information to a wiki~! Though the Wiki will be accessible by anyone, only Patrons will receive the high-res versions of the images &lt;3

Chapter 250: Lead