I woke up late.
Well, not really. The sun barely scratched the horizon. The day was in the process of slowly brightening up.
But it was already too late.
I jumped out of bed, one that turned out to be far more comfortable than the one I had back at the camp.
'Perks of living in the city,' I thought, pulling out the formation guide.
First, I had to pay a visit to the brothel. Not only to throw them a bait to keep them, but I also had an important inquiry that would decide what the next few weeks of my professional life would look like.
'Those rings are really convenient,' I thought, clearing all my belongings from the room with a single sweep of my hand.
I was already amazed by its ability to store the luggage while saving me the burden of the weight, the convenience of having the ring was just immeasurable.
With the room clean, I got out of the lodging.
We paid for the entire stay already, so there was no point in alerting Lucius about my whereabouts whatsoever.
Just like he would go to the brothel when given the chance and peace of mind, I would go out to make money.
"The sun is already high," I muttered, raising my hand to shield my eyes from the sharp rays of the nearby star.
Even though I woke up early, I still spent nearly half of a day on learning. And all for a simple reason.
Sleep was for the weak. Without the threat of a hunt hanging over my head, I didn't need to be in my pristine state. Only a few hours of sleep were more than enough for me to rest.
As for why I didn't visit the brothel first thing in the morning... With what kind of establishment it was, I expected it to open slightly later into the day than the rest of the city.
And just like I expected, when I walked into the area where the entrance to the brothel was, I could hardly spot a living soul.
"He is here," the whispers started to circle around me the second I made my way inside the building.
I doubted that people expected my appearance so soon, but it went without a doubt that they were quick to notice it.
'It seems that my last visit turned out to be quite... memorable,' I thought, standing in the middle of the deserted hallway and just waiting.
A moment later, my expectations proved to be correct.
"So you came back," the Madam that I clashed with before came to confront me.
"So I did," I replied, happily indulging in the childish standoff.
For a moment, we continued to stare each other down, unwilling to give any ground to the other party.
Then, the Madam finally averted her eyes and muttered, "what did you come here for?"
'Did she give up, or was it just a part of her plan for the negotiations?' I asked myself, allowing a small smirk to surface on my lips.
Whatever was the reason, I didn't mind playing along.
"Preparations for the reveal," I replied coldly. "But are you sure this is the right place to discuss it?" I asked, changing the tone of the conversation.
I raised my arms and then looked around as if trying to point out how open the area was.
"If you don't care, I don't mind talking about my inventions here," I said in a dissatisfied tone while lowering my eyelids to half of my eye's height.
"No, let's not do that," the Madam finally caught my drift, turning sideways and pointing ahead with her hand. "Please, let us move to my office," she obediently invited.
'This token really has some power to it,' I thought.
I could still remember the impression it made on everyone in the brothel, but my current situation?
The Madam went above and beyond every courtesy that she offered me previously!
'Did something happen?' I asked myself, squinting my eyes as a wave of suspicion filled my heart. 'Or maybe she thought thinks through?' I guessed.
'No, it doesn't matter,' I lectured myself. 'I should not lose myself in the battles of arguments that have yet to appear,' I decided.
There was no point in trying to understand every last thing that she did. She was here to make money out of my ideas, and I was here to get money by sharing my ideas.
We were here for mutual benefit, so no funny business should be involved.
"You got your show," the middle-aged female announced the second she closed the door behind the two of us. "I hope you are happy with it," she added in a spiteful tone.
Even though she welcomed my presence here, it was clear that she still didn't like me, even in the least.
"Don't put it on me," I shrugged my shoulders while sending the woman an empty look. "I didn't ask for it," I said. "You are the one who started it."
For a moment, we took part in yet another battle of stares. And once again, Madam gave up after a while. She averted her eyes and exhaled.
"What do you want?" she asked.
"Here," I said, reaching out to my pants.
At the sight of my actions, Madam scoffed in a quick sneer.
A second later, a row of several dildos, carved directly out of the monster's bone, appeared on the top of her desk.
"What are those?" she asked, raising her eyes at the wares only to move them on my face a second later.
"Sex toy," I replied, reaching out and grabbing a random piece.
I then turned its bottom towards Madam's face.
"By covering this rune with your finger and injecting it with your spiritual energy," I said, doing just as I explained, "you activate it."
The second mana infused itself into the formations carved out in the middle part of the dildo, the entire thing started to vibrate.
"That's the one on the weaker side," I announced, only to suck the device dry of mana and move my hand to the next one. After repeating the process, the piece of bone started to dance in my hand as if in an attempt to free itself from my grasp.
"This one is on the stronger side," I explained.
The Madam of the brothel spent too many years in her line of work not to understand the purpose of those sticks after my little demonstration.
"This is what you want to sell me?" she raised her eyebrows and asked, looking right down my eyes.
"Sell?" I echoed her words, only to release a small chuckle. "No, not yet," I shook my head in denial. "I came here only to show you the first functionality of this item," I said with a smile before putting the dildo away.
I then fixed my position on the chair and combed my hands together, resting my elbows on my knees as I leaned forward.
"Tell me everything that you know about dual cultivation," I requested with a wide smile.
I deemed those two sentences to be sufficient of a hint for Madam to figure out what kind of plan I had in store!
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