Page 57
Page 57
So Al walked to the suite's luxurious bathroom, which was comparable to a small swimming pool, pressed a switch, and the huge, gold-plated bathtub quickly filled with water at a comfortable temperature. He stepped into the water, sat down, and leaned against the smooth pool wall. The warm water quickly enveloped him, washing away the scent of desire that clung to his body.
Al silently pondered the possible scenarios. Before long, he stood up, water droplets sliding down the curves of his muscles.
It's almost time; I should go keep my appointment.
After being dressed by her lovers, Eileen whispered to him before leaving, "Darling, be careful."
El chuckled softly and said gently, "Wait for me to come back."
As I walked toward the door, Jin Nuo was already bowing and waiting.
He turned his head and smiled at her, "I hope you can give me enough surprises."
"Of course, please follow me."
Jinno led El through a luxurious corridor that led to an equally extravagantly decorated appreciation room. In the center was a huge, round low couch covered with silk cushions, surrounded by comfortable sofas and coffee tables. The air was filled with a rich aroma of incense, and in the corners were some priceless works of art.
These are not the main points. The main point is that the opposite wall is a magical crystal curtain wall, with a large amount of azure seawater flowing inside, as well as carefully arranged seaweed and coral reef landscaping and many swimming fish, creating the illusion of being underwater.
This place is more like an aquarium than an appreciation room.
"Your Excellency, please wait here for a moment. A surprise awaits you." After saying this, Jin Nuo bowed and withdrew, gently closing the door behind him.
He leaned back on the sofa, lowered his head, and idly fiddled with his fingers.
After a while, a figure slowly "swam" out from the opposite side, and El's gaze was instantly drawn to it, his breath catching slightly.
Because it was indeed a living siren, currently suspended in the middle of the sea.
Her upper body was undoubtedly that of a human woman, and an extremely rare beauty at that. Her eyelashes were long and thick, her nose was high and straight, her ears were pointed, and her lips were a pale cherry pink, slightly pursed, exuding a natural and pure temperament. Her skin was a lustrous, cool white like a deep-sea pearl, shimmering with a delicate luster under the magic lamp. Her long, silvery-white hair floated smoothly in the water like seaweed. Her collarbones were slender and delicate, and her body lines were smooth. She wore a strapless bra made of white seashells, which could hardly conceal her budding and alluring curves, adding to her seductive charm.
What is most striking is her lower body; instead of legs, there is a huge fish tail covered with scales that change from deep blue to silver-gray, with a wide and magnificent tail fin that gently and slowly stirs the surrounding water.
【Deep Sea Diva - Muels】
[Gender: Female]
Race: Sirens
[Level: Lv.32]
[Affection Level: Indifferent]
The Sirens, the songstresses of the deep sea, are renowned for their unique charm and deadly allure.
Legend has it that they possess enchanting, heavenly voices and often lure sailors at sea, causing their ships to veer off course, run aground, and sink. However, this is not their intention. The sirens long for the love and care that the person who is about to arrive will give them. For this reason, there are many historical records of kind-hearted "mermaids" pushing drowning people to shore.
El also keenly noticed that she was wearing a gold collar around her neck, which was clearly more than just an ornament; like the collar he had given Nina before, it was a symbol of slavery.
He approached step by step, slowly raising his right hand. His slender fingers gently touched the cold, smooth crystal. The siren raised her eyelids, her pure blue eyes, like the sea, meeting El's gaze through the crystal. Her eyes held a hint of confusion as she looked at his hand, seemingly understanding his meaning. A few seconds later, she finally cautiously extended her own hand, palm to palm, through the transparent magic crystal, their hands clasped together.
The siren girl slightly parted her cherry-pink lips, silently opening and closing them, exhaling a string of fine bubbles, like the whispers of the deep sea.
She didn't deliberately make any provocative gestures; she simply tilted her head slightly, her clear, watery eyes carrying an innocent naiveté and a curiosity unique to deep-sea creatures, yet more lethal than any succubus's deliberate teasing.
El felt his heart skip a beat. A perfectly balanced look of amazement and pity appeared on his face, and a strong sense of possessiveness rose within him.
She seemed completely oblivious to this, gently swaying her tail and gracefully turning a small circle in the water. Her silver hair cascaded down like a waterfall, and the soft curves beneath her seashell-shaped bodice undulated slightly with the current. But soon, she swam closer again, this time gently pressing her forehead against the spot on El's palm.
Just then, the door to the appreciation room was knocked at the perfect moment. The siren girl seemed to receive some kind of signal and shrank back in fright.
"What is it!" Elton shouted angrily.
Jin Nuo pushed open the door and entered, followed by the clingy middle-aged man she had met at the casino. She said respectfully, "Your Excellency, please calm down. Are you satisfied with this surprise?"
Al slowly withdrew his hand from the glass, turned around, and earnestly played his role, his face showing a deep infatuation, as if he had truly been bewitched by the siren girl and blinded by her beauty.
Then, in a tone of absolute certainty, he said, "I want this siren."
"Your Excellency truly has discerning eyes. Indeed, this is the nearly extinct deep-sea pearl—the Siren. As you can see, her appearance is flawless, absolutely worth the price. However, I must remind you of one thing: if you are buying her to use as a bed partner, you must be prepared to be disappointed. After all, sirens are cold-blooded creatures, certainly not as comfortable as a succubus who can dance..."
Jinno explained in great detail, “Her true value doesn’t lie in her beauty, but in her heavenly singing voice. As long as you take proper precautions before listening, you can be absolutely safe and have an unparalleled mesmerizing experience. In addition, sirens themselves are top-tier materials. Their tears can condense into priceless pearls, and their scales are top-tier magical materials (which is also the main reason why sirens are on the verge of extinction)…”
She paused, "This siren was captured by the Golden Palace several years ago at great cost, deep within the Eye of the Storm. It is very likely one of the last pure-blooded siren in existence, so..."
"So, I have to pay more?" El sneered, continuing along Jin Nuo's lines, "Or are you trying to tell me that she's not for sale and can only be obtained through other channels, and that I have to prove my financial strength first, for example, by becoming a VIP of your chamber of commerce?"
Despite being rebuked, Jin Nuo maintained his impeccable professional smile.
In her view, this actually indicates that the situation is very favorable.
She complimented him, seemingly with genuine sincerity: "Your Excellency, I admire your keen insight."
"Stop talking nonsense and name your price."
Jin Nuo bowed respectfully, "I believe she deserves 500,000 gold coins."
An incredulous rage erupted in El's eyes, his voice rising with shock and fury, "Five hundred thousand? You might as well just rob us! Do you know how much tax revenue the empire generates in a year?"
“5300 million gold sola, not including in-kind tax.” A barely perceptible hint of sarcasm flashed in Jin Nuo’s eyes.
El froze instantly, coughing awkwardly as if suppressing his anger. "No matter what, I simply can't come up with that much gold sora all at once."
"Perhaps you need some financial assistance? We can discuss that in detail."
"Let me think about it some more."
After saying that, El strode out of the appreciation room. Once he was out of sight, the angry expression on his face vanished instantly, his eyes became calm and indifferent, and a silent sneer curled at the corner of his mouth.
Needless to say, this was clearly a carefully constructed trap for him.
That siren was nothing more than a tool for greed to amass wealth, used to lure lure nobles like him who were driven by lust.
But even knowing this, he still wanted to have her.
Saving her and freeing her from the fate of being used as a source of magical materials was not only out of pity for a beautiful creature, but also out of the deepest respect for his teacher.
It is known that fairies born in nature are often collectively called "nymphs," and there are many types of nymphs, such as spring nymphs, lake nymphs, and sea nymphs.
El's teacher, Menivel, was an extremely special lake nymph, the embodiment of water's holiness and wisdom.
In the hearts of the citizens of the Empire, she also has another, more prestigious title: Mentor of Heroes. Back then, it was she who personally forged the Holy Sword in the Lake and entrusted it to the hero to help him defeat the demon army that emerged from the earth.
Although sirens are not usually directly classified as a type of "Hynnii", there is indeed a certain kinship between the two. They are both beautiful creatures born from the world's original water element and blessed by nature.
"The teacher probably wouldn't mind keeping another fish at home," Al muttered to himself.
Chapter 134 The Water Dragon Has No Respect for Paradise
Just as El was about to return the way he came, the broker he had met at the casino caught up with him like a hyena smelling blood.
"Your Excellency! Please wait, please wait!"
El stopped and glanced at him sideways, expressionless.
He rubbed his hands together, his face plastered with a fawning smile: "To be honest, Ms. Jin Nuo's pricing is indeed a bit out of reach, isn't it? After all, that's the official pricing of the Golden Palace, so it always carries a bit of, well, premium."
El's tone was indifferent: "What? Do you have a cheaper way? Can you help me bypass the Golden Palace and get that Siren?"
The broker chuckled. "Your Excellency, you flatter me. But," he leaned closer and lowered his voice, "there's something I can tell you in secret. Not to boast, but I'm quite the astute intelligence dealer, but if your wife hadn't mentioned the Sirens earlier, I wouldn't have known that the Golden Palace was hiding such a rare commodity!"
His tone was full of schadenfreude. "In my opinion, no matter how rare that thing is, this deal is a complete disaster. Even if we slaughter that siren and sell it to the sorcerer, skin and all, it won't even cover the cost of the voyage, let alone the expenses of keeping it for the past few years. It's a total loss! That lord must be furious, which is why he asked for the astronomical price of 500,000. It might not necessarily be targeting you, after all, a distinguished guest like you... well, with such unique taste, is truly rare."
Using "unique taste" is actually quite subtle.
The Church of Goddess's "Confessions" records the following story: A young man came to the church to confess to a succubus nun about the sins he had committed.
He said that he and his father went fishing and caught a big fish, but because he was bewitched by a demon, he inexplicably stuffed it into his pants. Afterwards, he hid the fish and continued to "use" it until his father discovered it because of the fish carcass's odor...
Do you also think I deserve to go to hell?
The succubus nun, who was already quite knowledgeable, was speechless.
The boy suddenly posed a profound question: "But the Gospels say that everything is the arrangement of the goddess, so this must also be the goddess's arrangement?"
The succubus nun clasped her hands together and said, "Oh, my lord, please forgive this sinner. He is just an ignorant child."
In the end, the boy paid the price for his words and actions and was sent to the priest's room to repent day and night.
The story of "The Nun and the Fish" became widely circulated and a laughing stock because it was so niche and bizarre.
Closer to home.
El was also somewhat enlightened at this moment, which overturned some of his previous views. According to this, Greedy's decision to organize a fleet to go to the extremely dangerous Eye of the Storm was definitely not just to capture a Siren as a collectible. Given her personality, she would never do a losing deal. There must be other purposes, and capturing the Siren was just a side effect.
The broker chuckled and said, "On another note, I don't think you really want that siren. You probably just want to try it out and have some fun. Here's what I'll do: I'll take you to a place that's not only fun but also incredibly exciting, and the price is very reasonable."
"Oh?" El raised an eyebrow, a hint of interest in his expression. "Tell me about it."
He licked his slightly chapped lips. "Some things lose their meaning when spoken aloud. Why don't you come and see for yourself?"
A look of interest appeared on El's face. He hesitated for a moment, as if weighing his options, and finally nodded "reluctantly": "That sounds interesting. Lead the way. If it's really as you say, you'll get your share of the benefits."
"Alright! This way please!" The broker was overjoyed and bowed even lower, eagerly leading the way.
Of course, this understated style is only relative to the extreme luxury of other areas of the Golden Palace.
Finally, they arrived at a place called "Water Dragon Paradise." It was bustling with people, men and women coming and going; the atmosphere didn't seem like any shady place, but rather like an amusement park.
"Please enjoy yourself; I won't come in with you."
Before entering the core area of the park, all guests must change clothes on their own.
El couldn't help but feel a little strange, so he followed suit and, like the other guests, took off his fine clothes, put on leather armor, and wore a helmet, dressed as if he were going to the battlefield. Upon closer inspection, wasn't this the attire of an adventurer?
They then filed in together from the entrance, went down the stairs, and headed in what seemed to be an underground area. Observing everything around them, they were increasingly surprised. The rough stone walls, the flickering magic torches, and the deliberately dim environment—could this be an underground city?
Suddenly, a female attendant dressed in leather armor and an assassin's attire quietly emerged from the shadows and gently stopped him.
"Please wait a moment, sir. Is this your first time here? Would you like to join the dragon hunt? Sorry, but you'll need to make an appointment beforehand."
El looked in the direction of the voice, nodded, and then asked bluntly, "Is this a brothel with a dungeon theme?"
“You’re right,” the female assassin readily admitted. “We do offer those services, but in order to achieve the most immersive experience, please forget about that for now and focus on being your adventurer.”
El had no interest in prostitution, but the name "Dragon Hunt" piqued his curiosity. Could there really be a dragon acting as an actor here?
So he generously handed over a few gold coupons as a tip, and then asked to watch the hunt.
The female assassin readily agreed and gestured for him to proceed. They walked one after the other, and after passing through a dark tunnel, they arrived at a stage-like setting with complex terrain including forests and lakes. The scene before them was so realistic that he couldn't help but stop.
El stroked his chin, teasingly saying, "I thought you guys would just leave a treasure chest in the stone chamber and that would be it."
He hadn't expected it to be for real. He looked around and realized that this place couldn't be considered a brothel anymore; it was more like a large-scale multiplayer role-playing game.
A brilliant idea flashed into my mind. After thinking about it carefully, I realized that I could apply what I learned to a prison project in the future: create an adventure game with elements of searching, fighting, and then retreating.
“You’re joking,” the female assassin’s voice was tinged with laughter. “Such a simple place won’t keep any guests.”
On the field, the adventurers participating in the hunt have already begun their fierce battle with the "monsters." Without exception, these bizarre "monsters" are all played by beautiful succubus actresses, and the weapons they wield are specially made soft rubber weapons to ensure that they have no actual killing power. The guests' equipment is the same.
The use of magic or martial arts is forbidden here. Violators will have their deposit forfeited, be forcibly expelled from the Golden Palace, and be blacklisted and never be received again.
El observed that some guests, after winning battles, couldn't wait to enjoy their spoils, completely disregarding the fact that they were in a simulated battlefield environment. On the other hand, a female guest playing the role of a knight was being dragged away weakly by several goblins smeared with paint. Judging from the situation, she was likely to be held until she lost her mind.
"The punishment for defeat is also one of our main selling points, and our guests have given it rave reviews."
As they were speaking, a deep, majestic, and ancient roar suddenly came from behind the artificial waterfall. Judging from the roar, the volume of the roar seemed to be quite large!
"You really have dragons here?" El was filled with awe and looked at the female assassin with a shocked expression.
Honestly, this has completely exceeded his expectations.
The female assassin nodded slightly, her tone carrying a hint of pride, "Yes, you should know that we don't engage in false advertising."
"What a grand gesture!" El couldn't help but exclaim again. This was like a pillow being delivered to someone who was sleepy. What better tool for causing trouble than a real dragon?
Chapter 135 The Humiliating Dragon
Before long, the curtain of water from the artificial waterfall suddenly parted to the sides under the action of the mechanism, and a huge, ferocious head slowly emerged from the water curtain cave.
It had a pair of vertical pupils that looked like they were cast in gold, and a broad forehead that extended backward to form a protrusion. The scales covering its entire body were a deep sea blue, flowing with a metallic sheen in the dim light. Its enormous head was lowered, its nostrils flared, and with each breath, puffs of steam billowed from its blue nostrils.
This is not a model or illusion, but a living, breathing dragon!
"It really is a dragon! I thought dragons had become extinct."
El's gaze was fixed on the dragon, noticing a heavy, magic-suppressing collar around its thick neck. The collar was engraved with intricate magical runes, and several thick, adult-arm-sized, rune-engraved mithril chains extended from the collar, embedding themselves deeply into the surrounding rock walls, firmly binding it to the stone platform behind the waterfall.
Its wings were folded and tightly bound to its sides, its sharp claws and teeth were worn down, and its strong tail was also burdened with weight... Imprisoning a proud dragon in a brothel, pulling out its claws and teeth, and forcing it to play the role of "prey" for people to hunt and have fun is not just a simple insult, but the most thorough trampling on the dignity of the dragon race. What deep hatred could possibly be behind this?
El thought for a moment and realized, "Is there even a question? That greedy fellow must have his eye on the dragon's treasure."
【Ocean and Aquatic Life Guardian – Melona】
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