***The City of Stadtsberg, the present capital of the League of Valley Cities…***

  Ever since the Prince Giuseppe Uhrian—riding on his popurity for siding with the Holy Coalition in the aftermath of the Imperial War and the Great Rising of the Undead—was elected to the Stadtholder’s office, the focus of economic and political developments in the area of the Valley Cities shifted to the city proper where the halfling prince ruled. As such, Stadtsberg was the first city to have its own train lines and stations, with the tter scattered throughout the districts that comprised the old and new parts of the region.

  “…”

  Because of that, Kuro was eager to try the city's public transport system. It was the first to implement the tram-to-train scheme, which made the journeys around Stadtsberg faster and only took a couple of hours.

  While he’s used to public transport in his world, such as the Light Rail Transit, the Duke of Maverny likes to experience the ones made in Chersea.

  “…”

  Aside from touring around Stadtsberg, which Kuro thought that it closely resembled an early 20th-century Earth city, he had another reason to come back. A week ago, he received mail from the Prince, requesting to meet with him at the dwarf halfling’s castle. By then, the preparations for his expedition to Equality were in full swing; he was just waiting for a ship to take him to the border crossing of Chersea-Equality. However, the prince clearly knew it was an urgent request, so Kuro decided to hurry alone. After all, he could always protect himself by blending into the crowd or killing his would-be assassins through conventional weapons or god-powers.

  “…”

  There was also another underlying cause for the Duke of Maverny to come without his escorts and entourage. It’s been a while since he got to experience his old life as a commoner. Of course, Kuro appreciated his rise to Chersea’s nobility. Still, sometimes he’d get tired of mingling with the ‘big shots,’ especially when each meeting required strict protocols and rigid movements so as not to be interpreted as a fool, contemptuous, or barbaric.

  Wearing his casual clothes instead of his noble garments, the Duke immediately detoured upon setting foot in Stadtsberg. He was expected at Prince Uhrian’s castle ter that afternoon, and since he arrived at the Main Station during the mid-morning, he decided to go around for a while. One of the pces he wished to visit was the old tavern where he reunited with the mercenary leader Gryffith and the members of his ‘Band of the Oak’. That particur mercenary group became the core of the ‘peacekeeping force’ under the employ of the Human Saint, so it was only natural that the pce would be nearly devoid of familiar people when he stood at its rustic fa?ade.

  However, while Kuro was walking to the tavern, he did notice a small marker by the doorway that greeted the guests with, ‘Here, the famous Band of the Oak under the mercenary leader Gryffith of New Elebor and the Commoner General, the Lord Kuro of Arles, joined forces to fight under Her Holiness’ banner.’ The metal pgue was signed by the Prince Uhrian himself, and though it was nearly obscured by dirt and rust to its edges, it still occupied a prominent spot in that pce.

  Drunk in nostalgia, Kuro did not hesitate to enter the tavern.

  “…”

  What greeted him immediately, however, was not an empty hall nor a tavern interior full of unfamiliar people. Once he set his foot at the entrance, a pair of beautiful dies—each wore almost revealing clothes and their bodies adorned with jewelry—appeared and quickly locked their arms around him, never intending to let the duke go.

  “Welcome, master!”

  “We’ve been waiting for you!”

  Kuro was shocked; he didn’t know what to do, or how to deal with these types of people. His nature of work in his old world never permitted him to frequent such pces. Ironically, so was when he gained a bit of ‘freedom’ when he came to Chersea. His hands were full of traveling around the realms, running away from his enemies, and dealing with problems that he never got to experience going to brothels.

  “…” Wait, this pce got turned into a brothel?

  As far as he could remember, this pce wasn’t one. Or maybe, he just didn’t notice it was one, especially when he first came here, he was too focused with Gryffith and his mercenary company. The duke tried pulling away from the dies that ‘captured’ him. However, they seemed trained to ‘pull in’ their hapless customers—even the accidental ones—and never let go when the opportunity presented itself.

  “Oh, dear master, where are you going?”

  “Please rex and stay with us!”

  “Sorry, I have somewhere else to go to,” Kuro, half-pleading, told them. However, he knew he couldn’t escape without getting violent with the dies. As he was trying to keep his cover, he didn’t want to get into a fight, so he just allowed himself to be dragged into the brothel, having pnned to scoot after just a few minutes.

  ----------

  The hostesses brought the duke to one of the empty seats facing the barmaid’s counter. Once settled, the barmaid took his order, while the two dies remained at both sides, ensuring the duke would find it difficult just to walk away.

  “Sorry,” Kuro told them. “Uh, but can you please leave me alone?”

  “No can do, mister,” one of the dies replied, pyfully tracing his cheek with her finger. “Now that you’re here, why don’t you rex and py with us?”

  “I always rex alone,” he revealed.

  “Oh, a shy one, huh?” the other dy chuckled. “I always love book lovers…and, you smell like one.” She whispered those to the duke’s in an attempt to get him ‘going’.

  Nevertheless, Kuro remained unmoved, “Ladies, I appreciate your time trying to keep me company, but I seriously don’t need it.” Then, he reached for his pocket and handed them gold coins and a piece of paper. “If you’re being forced against your will, or you want another line of work, you can come to the city of Maverny in the Empire and show that to the militia. They’ll lead you to my master.”

  “M-Master? You’re a noble’s servant?” the hostesses lost their character and were surprised at the duke’s gesture. But they looked at the symbol on the paper anyway. One of them was quick to recognize the coat-of-arms printed on it…

  “This…This is…?” one of them excimed, though she quickly lowered her voice when she noticed everyone’s attention focused on them.

  “I’m a servant of the House of Maverny,” Kuro winked at them, also speaking in whispers. “If you don’t like what you’re doing here, I can help you find better jobs in the Duke of Maverny’s household, since he needed people.”

  The gold coins, combined with the duke’s business-like smile, convinced the brothel dies of his cover. “Yes, but what job are we expecting there?” one of them asked.

  “He needs servants and guards.”

  “How about a bed companion?”

  Kuro shook his head, “He’s got lots of lovers, already, so he won’t need one.” Not like he was lying there; he really did have a company of dies to marry.

  The first hostess nudged at her friend, “We’re finally getting out of here, Lilian!” Excited at the prospect of moving up in life, the dies smiled, winked at him, and excused themselves, just in time for Kuro’s order to arrive.

  ----------

  The ‘tavern’ where Kuro reunited with the ‘Band of the Oak’ years before was almost the same as when he first arrived. The rustic interiors and exteriors. Worn out, wooden stools and round tables with no tablecloths. Tankards filled with ale and cheap, cquered bowls filled with food meant for commoners. Everything was exactly what he expected to return to, except for that wooden stage in the middle of the dining hall. It was new to him, though one look and anyone could tell it was an old elevated ptform that hadn’t been moved for years. As it was still ‘midday’, the other hostesses entertained the rest of the customers, instead of dancing on that stage.

  The duke couldn’t help but question his memories if it really was a brothel, or a tavern, as he originally remembered.

  “…”

  But in any case, Kuro resolved to leave the pce now that his ‘trip down the memory ne’ was over. It was getting awkward for him to stay there for long, anyway.

  “…”

  As he was about to head to the entrance, two big, burly men with clubs in their hands blocked his way. Kuro tried to go around them, assuming that he might be wrong for assuming he was their target, but they clearly pced themselves at the entrance to keep him from leaving.

  “Do you need anything from me, gentlemen?” the duke asked, his hand quickly reaching for his dagger inside his sling bag.

  The men nodded at each other, before one of them answered, “Our mistress wants you.”

  “No,” Kuro shook his head. “I don’t want another extra service. I’m already leaving.”

  “Extra services?” they chuckled, fshing their clubs to his face. “No, mister. We’re not asking you to come with us; we’re merely informing you.”

  The duke noticed that the other customers and hostesses were already going to safer pces, leaving him and the thugs alone in the dining hall. As such, he reached for his gun in his bag and showed it to them. “You’re bringing clubs to a fight with someone with a gun?”

  At that point, the thugs realized they were outgunned and softened their tones. “Mister, we’re sorry for scaring you, but please, will you come with us? Our mistress will kill us if you don’t.”

  “I see…” the duke lowered his weapon. “Well, it’s not that I’m stubborn to keep you guys hanging. Take me to her, then.”

  ----------

  The thugs took Kuro to a backroom, hidden in some hallways deep into the brothel. As he had the upper hand, he asked them to lead him, instead of him walking before them. The duke found it amusing, though; these guys were just there to intimidate what looked to them as ‘weak pushovers’, and would crumble before people who would fight back. At the end of one of the dark corridors, one of his ‘escorts’ opened a door that led to a wide hall.

  “…”

  On the other side, facing the entrance, was their ‘mistress’ and the owner of that pce, sitting on her cushioned recliner. However, contrary to any of Kuro’s expectations, her appearance was not the tall, dark-haired, mature-looking, bombshell of a ‘madam’ commonly found in Asian crime syndicate movies. If anything, the duke thought he was looking at a ‘miner,’ for she wore a woolen apron that also served as her skirt, a leather bra, and a pair of eyegsses. The dirt on her face and exposed limbs, as well as her petite yet well-built body, added to his impression that she was a thug than the ‘mistress’ of the brothel.

  “So, you—”

  “Yes,” the dy answered gruffly, swinging her big war hammer as if it was made of paper. “If you’re having doubts, then I’m certainly the owner of this pce. And if you find my height weird, it’s because I’m a dwarf! But I can certainly kick your human ass.”

  “Hello, then!”

  “You are that Imperial noble’s servant, eh?” she looked at him from head to toe, to which, her subordinates followed with a mocking ugh. “Not too shabby. I think you might do for this brothel’s waiter, or maybe a carrier.”

  “I think you’re making an assumption,” Kuro told her. “I’m not here to work for you.”

  “You’re also making an assumption, human,” the dwarf dy chuckled. “Are you thinking that, perhaps, if you try to leave this pce quietly after giving weird ideas to my girls, we’d just leave you alone? Oh no! You’re mistaken.”

  “I’m a servant of the House of Maverny.”

  “And so? That noble can come here to cim you if he wishes, I don’t give a fuck. Debts must be paid.”

  “When did I become indebted to you?” the duke replied.

  “Since the time you gave ideas to my girls. They’re asking to leave my brothel to work for your master and pay off their debts to me.”

  “Isn’t that normal? You and my master can negotiate.”

  “I don’t like dealing with human nobles. You and your master are fucking pricks, dipping your nose into someone else’s business. What, are there no beautiful girls in your pce that you resort to grabbing another’s employees?” the dwarf mocked. “You don’t know what I’m capable of, especially in this pce!”

  “Well, perhaps you also don’t know what the House of Maverny can do?”

  “Do I look like I care?”

  More than intimidated, Kuro was amused. Nevertheless, he wished not to aggravate the situation, so he shook his head. “Maybe we just got off on the wrong footing,” he told her, lowering his voice. “The House of Maverny wishes no feud with you, err…”

  “Lady Martelle,” the dwarf continued his sentence.

  “Yes, Lady Martelle, the Ducal House of Maverny doesn’t want enemies,” the duke reiterated. “We can pay for those employees of yours who would come to us, and also their debts. Double if you wish!”

  “The money is tempting, I must admit,” the dwarf revealed. “However, Iya and Henrietta are two of my most beautiful girls! And since you already revealed that you work for some rich snot-nosed human assholes, why don’t we make off money from you? After all, if your master truly values his servants, he’ll surely come to rescue you, right?”

  “I won’t try it if I were you.”

  “You really are confident of your aristocrat, huh?” she grinned. “Well, let me tell you, fucker, you’re in my territory. Even the prince of Stadtsberg and his soldiers fear venturing into these parts of the city. I make the ws here!” Then, the dwarf stood up from her recliner and swung her war hammer around, much to the fear of her subordinates. They quickly backed off as she stretched her limbs and moved her neck. “For starters, why don’t we show you why I’m the one who rules this pce?”

  At that point, Kuro knew that the negotiations finally broke down. And since he was also in a hurry, he wanted to finish the drama immediately. He pulled his gun from his sling bag and heated the iron-mithril needed.

  “Oh! So, you’ll really use that on me, huh?” the dwarf dy smiled when she saw his revolver. “You humans are so cowardly that you always resort to using weapons of cowardice to gain unfair advantage on your enemies!”

  “Lecture me on fairness once you let those dies go,” the duke chuckled and trained his gun on her. As he never wanted to kill the dwarf unless she did something worse, Kuro deliberately missed his shot and hit the ground near her instead.

  However, the dwarf dy took that as a sign that he was provoking her and attacked. “My stupid uncle would always stop me from swinging this hammer, human!” she told him. “Be happy that you’re the first to taste its wrath!”

  Though he was inferior to the dwarf regarding raw physical strength, Kuro made up for this through his nimble footwork, trained by Ursura, Lady Henristone, and Monfort. While his opponent made wide swings that missed, the duke just ‘danced’ his way out of her attacks, further exhausting her. While the dwarf couldn’t hit the human, she would end up crashing into walls or the pilrs that held the ceiling of that hall.

  When they saw their mistress being pyed upon by her enemy, her thugs pulled their weapons and were about to join the fray when she stopped them. “Fuck off!” she bellowed to them. “Let me bash the skull of this human!”

  Nevertheless, Kuro was actually having fun making her look like a fool. The dwarf may have power, but she is an idiot when she fights, leaving her guard wide open and doing unnecessary footwork. Finally, the duke had enough of the show and stopped evading her attacks.

  “Heh, you finally decided to step up!” the dwarf triumphantly decred, raising her war hammer as she summoned her strength to finish their fight. “I’ll make you regret that you came here!”

  However, just as her hammer fell on Kuro, the duke showed the distant difference in experience between them. While the dwarf jumped above him, he slipped away from her weapon and directly under her. She also saw his movement but was too slow to change the course of her attack. Kuro then switched to the handle of his gun and sent it crashing on her stomach.

  Needless to say, disgusting puke filled the pce, as the dwarf was sent flying away from the Duke of Maverny, unconscious.