Chapter 39
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: Request (5)
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"Is that all? What about what I asked for at the beginning?"
At my words, Juyeon's face turned bright red. It didn't look like she was making that expression out of anger.
From Juyeon's perspective, I was an enormous catch. If she could hook me, she would think she could pressure the Black Book Clan and Blood Shadow Clan's knights.
That would mean a situation where she ultimately had to grant my demands.
"Fine. If you work diligently for us, I'll think about it."
"And the standard for that 'diligence' is up to you?"
"W-Well... yeah...?"
"From my position, what if I think I've been diligent, but you say no?"
"T-That... um..."
"How about this, then. After I join Hainelrune, when you ask me for a favor, I'll hear out your request and then make my demand of you."
I cleverly mixed 'request' and 'demand.' Not them demanding something of me, but them begging me, and me demanding their bodies in return.
Only then did Juyeon realize she was the one being hooked, but she already knew she couldn't back out.
To further grow the Black Wolf Clan and escape the pressure from the Black Book and Blood Shadow Clans, this was the only way.
"Alright. Let's settle it that way."
"Looks like we've wrapped up the talk nicely."
Juyeon wore a deflated expression at my words. It was the look of someone who had started by seeing me only as a reckless kid and had now been completely outmaneuvered.
I stood up from the sofa and said,
"Then you'll need to pay the down payment first, right?"
"Tomorrow, I'll have Celli wire 200 million gold to your bank."
Juyeon readily agreed to my demand. But that wasn't all of it.
"Heh heh. Like I said earlier, that's minor. I told you what I really want is something else."
"Hey! That's for after you've completed the job!"
"Not you. There must be others besides you who can satisfy me, right?"
My gaze turned to Celli and the others behind Juyeon.
"Huh? Them...?"
Having caught my meaning, Juyeon looked back at Celli and the others with a thoroughly flustered face.
They didn't seem like mere subordinates. If they were just simple underlings, she would have handed them over to me without hesitation, but that wasn't the case.
Instead, Celli smiled brightly upon receiving Juyeon's gaze.
"Lady Juyeon, we'll take care of Kai. Isn't that right, girls?"
Celli looked at Lily and Aili beside her.
Lily simply nodded, while Aili gazed at me intently and said,
"I was interested anyway, so this works out perfectly."
The three women each had their own distinct charms. Cute Celli, haughty Lily, and fiery Aili—they were all stunning beauties.
In the past, I wouldn't have dared make such a demand of beauties like them.
But now I knew my own worth clearly enough to make demands like this.
"Then we'll be off."
Once the others agreed, Celli said to Juyeon.
"It'll be... okay... right...?"
Juyeon hesitated at Celli's words. She seemed sorry toward Celli and the others.
"We approached Kai pretending to be fans, but it wasn't entirely a lie. We were interested."
Celli explained to Juyeon, then looked back at me and added—smiling brightly especially when she said, 'We were interested.'
"Alright... I get it. Go ahead."
Juyeon had seemed a bit annoyed with me at first, but since Celli and the others said they were fine, she decided to let us go.
"Shall we head out, then?"
I stood up, looked at Celli and the others, and said,
"Sure. I'll be looking forward to it."
Even knowing exactly what I expected from them, they didn't seem upset at all.
Despite my intentions being so blatantly dirty and obvious.
Leaving Juyeon in the room, the four of us left the mansion.
"Mind stopping by somewhere briefly on the way?"
"Where to?"
"The Mining Guild. I need to settle up real quick."
"Mining Guild?"
Celli looked puzzled at my out-of-left-field suggestion. Maybe because I'd built up the mood to take them out of the mansion, and this was what came out of my mouth.
"It'll just take a moment."
"Then I'll call a Valkyrie carriage."
At my words, Celli pulled up her Status and opened the Valkyrie carriage app.
A short while later, we boarded the arrived carriage, headed to the Mining Guild, and I settled up for all the diamonds I'd mined so far.
There were a whopping 2,500 diamonds. Even just using B-rank Valkyries for mining, I'd optimized the efficiency and gathered a substantial amount.
"Now we can really head out. Where to?"
I asked Celli as we left the Mining Guild.
"Oh? Isn't that something the man should decide?"
"I'm new to the southern district."
"New?"
Celli asked, sounding puzzled. She knew I was from Astera.
"I don't come to places like this often."
"That makes sense. Then can we guide you?"
"Please do."
Thankfully, Celli didn't suspect anything and let it slide. She took the lead, deciding on a place for us to stay and heading there.
It looked far more luxurious than the Traveler's Rest I usually stayed at.
The south definitely felt like a richer neighborhood overall.
It was like Gangnam in Seoul. There were upscale shopping streets and restaurants, and even hotel-like accommodations.
If the mansion district felt like Pyeongchang-dong or Seongbuk-dong, this was more like Apgujeong.
"This place okay?"
We'd arrived at a massive building. The landscaping was neat, and it was about ten stories tall, like an apartment building.
"Is this an inn?"
"Not an inn—a hotel."
"Ah..."
Celli's words made me realize for the first time that this place had hotels too.
It certainly looked flashy on the outside. As we approached the hotel entrance, a waiting staff member greeted us kindly and opened the door.
The hotel lobby was incredibly spacious and luxurious. Polished marble floors gleamed, and bright, ornate lighting gave the whole area a vibrant feel.
"Welcome. Would you like a room?"
The staff greeted us courteously.
"Yes. The top-tier suite, please."
"Our hotel's finest is the private suite on the top floor. It's 30 million gold."
The staff's words left me utterly stunned.
Of course, I had plenty of money now. I could skip the Golden Reed Forest and focus purely on leveling up from here on.
I had 100 million gold from hunting so far, 150 million promised by Diana, and 200 million from Juyeon.
That made 450 million already, but 30 million was still an enormous sum for a commoner like me.
"Yes, we'll take that one."
Celli booked the room without batting an eye at the price.
Her actions made cold sweat break out inside me. Spending a night with beauties like this—did it really require shelling out this much? Or was she getting revenge on purpose because I'd made her mad somehow? All sorts of thoughts raced through my head.
While I panicked, Celli pulled a card from her bag and paid.
She'd paid 30 million gold just like that, so easily.
"Huh??"
It happened so fast that a bewildered sound escaped my lips.
"The Black Wolf Clan has plenty of funds to spare for this. No need to worry. And Kai is that precious to us."
Celli smiled as she spoke, and in that moment, I felt profoundly moved.
I was impressed by the Black Wolf Clan's capabilities, and touched that they treated me this way.
Celli's actions boosted my self-esteem immensely, making me feel great.
At the same time, a twinge of guilt arose.
In a way, I was using the Black Wolf Clan. I was practically a spy infiltrating to carry out Diana's request.
Yet they were treating me so sincerely that I didn't know how to handle it.
"You look really flustered. It's fine, truly. This much is nothing."
Maybe my expression had stiffened, because Celli looked at me and reassured me again. She probably thought I was reacting to the high price.
Celli took my hand and led me to the elevator.
Our room was on the top floor, so we rode the elevator up.
Celli swiped the card key, and we entered to an overwhelmingly grand foyer that welcomed us.
White-toned clean walls, decorative plants, and sculptures made it feel like we were entering another building within the hotel.
It was as if the hotel and the suite existed in separate worlds.
Celli went in first and neatly placed slippers at my feet.
I slipped on the slippers she gave me and stepped inside. Passing the foyer, the living room came into view.
Luxurious furniture that made my eyes widen and various artworks greeted us.
Beyond the living room was a huge floor-to-ceiling window overlooking a large swimming pool. The pool glowed beautifully from its interior lights.
"Have you eaten?"
"Yeah, I have."
"Then how about some drinks and snacks?"
"Sure...?"
Celli's practiced demeanor made me feel a bit intimidated instead.
Her initial top-tier treatment had boosted my confidence, but entering this massive suite made me feel small and out of place.
I sensed myself shrinking in this new environment, so I took a short, deep breath inwardly.
I reminded myself that they were treating me this way because I was the superior one.
I thought I needed to boost my self-esteem a bit more.
As my gaze drifted to the pool, Aili spoke up.
"Kai, want to go swimming?"
She seemed to be addressing my dazed self.
"Huh? Oh... yeah, sure."
Could I really swim with them? But since she'd brought it up first, there was no reason to refuse.
"Then we'll go change into swimsuits."
"You have swimsuits?"
I asked, surprised by her words, as if she'd anticipated swimming ahead of time. Lily, who had been quiet until then, answered.
"The suite pool provides swimsuits for guests, but we figured we'd be bringing you here, so we prepared in advance."
"All three of you?"
"Yes. We prepared one for you too, Kai. Would you like to wear it?"
"Ah... yeah."
At Lily's words, Aili handed me a swimsuit.
"Then we'll go change."
Just then, Celli finished ordering room service, and the three headed to the bedrooms to change.
Only then did it start to sink in that I was here with these beauties.
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Celli
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Lily
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Aili