QT: Against My Will (Volume 2)

4.40 - Lyras - Dangerous Angels

Aine let her patron into the meeting room. On her way back, she met Nile and other girls. Smiling at each other, they walked into her room.

"Will it really work?" asked Rianta, sitting next to Aine on the bed, other girls sat around the table and sofa.

"All my patrons promised," said Nile quietly.

The other girls looked at her in envy, as they spoke about how some of their patrons switched to those 'slutty' Lyras. Their leader told them that those women deserve lots of respect too, as she herself would be unable to take on that job.

To satiate their lust, some men would have to visit another part of Eliaros. In there, a courtesan that offered her body resided; Tianqin = Lyra. To keep the business striving, Tian Shi invested in a variety of services. She looked for intelligent women who enjoyed sēx more than anything else.

At first, they were not as popular and desired as Tianshies due to their inferior beauty and no 'purity'. Beauties nevertheless, they were slowly catching up. Now, it became a competition on who could catch the biggest fish.

Alarmed, some Tianshies wanted to auction their bodies, which was strictly prohibited by Tian Shi. They were holding the title of angels; others could accuse them of witchcraft and burn them alive.

Slaves had no rights. They weren't recognized by law: they couldn't marry, divorce, inherit or own any properties. They could be killed and tortured by their masters as they saw fit.

Even though a fellow citizen could prosecute a master who excessively mistreated a slave, it was not for the sake of the slave, but to avoid the citizen's aggressive behavior, which would further push the slaves to revolt.

Not everyone was driven by revenge, as long as the slaves had a sense of safety, they would be content with the little they had. Many households held their slaves close to their hearts. Slaves didn't look any different from others; many times, their knowledge exceeded the fellow citizens, integrating them into society; it was easy to overlook their origin.

Those girls' power lay in their 'traditional feminity' such as their charm, beauty, and elegance to obtain what they want. Bing Shi and those girls were working on lifting the rules, in the hope of gaining at least some human rights.

Their patrons would finally be able to gift these girls, without worrying that Hasan would steal everything away. Those at the top wouldn't abolish slavery instantly, nobody would want to give up the free labor force; the process would be slow, and incredibly difficult; only wealthy slaves would be able to purchase freedom and properties.

But their leader was getting there. Slavery would not disappear overnight, but as long as it was black on white, it wouldn't take long before it became illegal. Maybe one day, they could even marry.

Some might view catering to men as degrading, but how could Bing Shi brainwash these girls to become someone like Edan? That girl was cool, deadly, yet ridiculously poor, and she needed to be wealthier than anybody else in this world, wealthier than the prince of Rania Kingdom.

For that, she needed many streams of income. She didn't find a group of bloodthirsty warriors but a bunch of money-printing machines. Her first and second streams of income were these little Angels and mature Lyras, who were going to become incredibly rich thanks to their close relationship with the most powerful and prominent men of Rania's kingdom.

It allowed them to spread their wings further away, secretly influencing politics. To advance their place in society, they wouldn't hold back from snatching a big part of the credit.

"Now, that his highness is missing," one girl asked in realization, "Who will become our leader's new patron? After a week, a new bid would begin. Except for his highness, nobody ever bid on her."

"No matter who, I hope she's alright," another bit her handkerchief in worry, "Whenever she goes out with his highness, I pray for her safe return. I heard his Highness is planning to take another wife in."

"Don't jinx it!" All the girls looked at her, accusingly, "Let's just hope it won't be our leader."

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The next day...

'Hm. Hm. Hm ♪♫'

While the kingdom was in chaos, there was an attempt to erase the rumors of His Highness's disappearance.

Sequestered in a lavishly decorated private room, Bing Shi toyed with a bidding card, her eyes flicking towards the man beside her, "Shall we buy everything? I'm sure it would spread far and wide," she asked the prince's doppelganger.

"..." The man, clad in a mask identical to that of Zhao Rong, offered no response. He was one of the prince's shadow guards.

Tian Shi was among the ones who knew the truth, so they decided to use this courtesan to stop the rumors by giving everyone a sense of doubt and hesitation. Monitoring the clinic in the shadows, they were currently looking into the staff's background.

"We can't risk His Highness's life," he finally spoke, his voice a whisper that barely disturbed the air.

"I understand," Bing Shi walked out of the private room and sat at her designated seat, the front row.

'Ah, how nice of her. Taking the owner away while leaving his wallet behind.'

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A few moments later...

"Going once, going twice, sold to number one!" The fall of the auctioneer's hammer constituted the sale of a valuable herb.

The bidders watched how this Tian Shi kept raising her number card up shamelessly at the last moment. No matter the item, no matter the price. Did his Highness fall out of his mind?

This way, Zhao Rong would get ruined by that courtesan! Allowing her to flaunt his money as she pleased, his head had to become muddled by that enchantress with no conduct to his highness' image!

Bing Shi raised her eyebrow at the man who intentionally raised his stakes, her lips curved up in amusement. She raised her number card confidently, with no hesitation, as if praising his bravery to go against his Highness's wallet.