Ch.132You May Kill Me. (3)

Brothel.

While brothels could be found anywhere on the continent, the Western Archipelago undoubtedly housed the finest. True to its reputation as a lawless zone, pirates roamed in droves, and brothels flourished to extract money from these same pirates.

It was also a place where nobles held clandestine meetings away from the eyes of the law.

The continent’s largest pleasure district.

That’s where The Great Witch was.

“…It’s quite something to have stayed in a place like this for ten years.”

Olivia clicked her tongue as she looked around. She hadn’t realized when viewing through the screen, but walking through the streets herself, she could see it was comparable in size to a decent city.

Despite being nighttime, lanterns illuminated everything so brightly that the sky seemed like daytime.

Pirates openly strutted through the colorful, brilliantly lit streets. Brothel doors swung wide open as scantily clad beauties enticed passersby.

The entire street was filled with the scent of perfume and alcohol.

“Is there a reason you’re deliberately announcing your presence?”

The Serial Murderer walking beside her asked. Thanks to the massive scythe in his hand, no one had approached them yet, but many women were beckoning from afar, attracted by his handsome features.

Olivia gazed at the oriental-style tower exceeding dozens of floors at the end of the street. According to the information Aria had provided, The Great Witch would be staying on the top floor of that tower.

“To give time for cleanup.”

“Cleanup?”

“Something like that.”

Leaving the Serial Murderer tilting his head in confusion, Olivia strode down the street.

Olivia wasn’t wearing her robe. As a result, her appearance was fully visible.

“…That’s not what I meant.”

The Serial Murderer muttered.

Blatant stares were directed at Olivia from all directions. If the Serial Murderer hadn’t been occasionally shooting murderous glances, they would have been surrounded by dozens of people immediately.

‘…She has absolutely no self-awareness.’

She clearly had no idea what kind of impact her appearance had.

‘It should be about time for someone to approach.’

Beauty had its tiers, and with looks like Olivia’s, the small fry naturally kept their distance. They couldn’t withstand the pressure emanating from all directions.

Therefore, the first to approach would either be a fearless insect or a skilled individual who had already established their place in the unspoken hierarchy.

No sooner had the Serial Murderer thought this than large pirates approached with long strides, blocking Olivia’s path.

They must have been somewhat famous pirates, as nearby pedestrians whispered with surprised faces. From what he could overhear, their leader seemed to be the captain of a large pirate crew.

But the captain wasn’t even given a chance to speak.

Swoosh!

The Serial Murderer’s scythe made one large rotation. Red aura clung to the blade.

A fountain of blood erupted.

The pirates’ bodies tilted diagonally. The captain who had led a renowned large pirate crew in the archipelago died just like that.

He didn’t even realize he was dead, not even having time to close his eyes.

“You, you brought me along for this from the start, didn’t you?”

The Serial Murderer clicked his tongue.

“To clear away the annoying ones for you.”

Bystanders screamed and backed away. Regardless, the Serial Murderer nonchalantly shook the blood off his scythe.

Normally, he wouldn’t have cared whether pirates approached or not. But thinking that he could take Olivia’s life in just three days, he simply couldn’t tolerate others trying to touch her.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Perhaps because the first challenger had been so spectacularly eliminated, no one else dared approach now.

‘They might have recognized my identity.’

Logically speaking, who would think that someone of the Grandmaster’s stature would visit the archipelago?

Guards with swords stood at the entrance of the brothel. Though they appeared unremarkable, their levels were much higher than the pirates the Serial Murderer had just cut down.

They didn’t seem like ordinary guards.

Well, protecting a brothel of this caliber would require considerable strength.

“Please stop right there.”

Their manner of speech was polite. They didn’t seem to have recognized Olivia’s identity. If they had, they would have rushed to inform the manager immediately.

They must have heard about the Serial Murderer’s abilities.

“Are you customers, or do you have other business?”

“What if it’s other business?”

Instead of answering verbally, the guards tapped their scabbards. It was a signal that they would use force.

Olivia let out a light breath and pulled out a token from her bosom. It bore the Emperor’s seal.

“…Ha.”

The guards looked at each other after checking the token. Soon, snickering laughter could be heard.

“Seems like you’re a noble lady from the Empire, but Imperial law doesn’t apply here. The same goes for the Emperor’s influence. You’d better leave before you see something unpleasant.”

“Not that side. The back.”

At those words, the guard flipped the token over. They read the text with suspicious faces, then burst out in shock.

“…This?!”

There was bewilderment in the guards’ voices. They had discovered the identity of the woman standing before them.

They had confidently assumed she was some duke’s daughter, but they were wrong.

After hesitating for a moment, they asked in a much more respectful tone than before.

“…What is your business?”

“The top floor.”

“The, the top floor is currently…”

“Please accommodate her wishes.”

A woman approached with a smiling eyes. Before the guards could say anything, she raised her hand to stop them.

“It’s an honor to meet you, Grandmaster. If you don’t mind, I would like to personally escort you to the top floor.”

*****

Olivia followed the woman up the stairs. Befitting a brothel with dozens of floors, pretty boys and girls were busily moving about everywhere.

They seemed to be handling miscellaneous tasks before formally learning the night trade.

After climbing about halfway up the stairs, enduring the constant embarrassing sounds, the woman slowly began to speak.

“Our tower has a total of 60 floors. Up to the 20th floor is classified as lower grade, up to the 40th as middle grade, and up to the 59th as high grade. Of course, even our lower grade talents are sought after by other brothels.”

Indeed, with each change in floor, there was a noticeable improvement in the level of beauty.

“Typically, high-ranking nobles from the Empire use the late 40s to early 50s floors. The Foreign Minister, Duke Rohan… is currently using the 47th floor.”

When Olivia remained silent, the woman cleared her throat.

“We have the ability to immediately provide any product the Grandmaster desires. You can choose according to your taste in terms of gender, age, and even race.”

Judging by her exaggerated promises, she seemed to be the manager of this brothel.

But when there was still no response, the woman stopped speaking.

By the time they reached the 50th floor, the number of resident courtesans had noticeably decreased. Perhaps because qualified customers were so rare, they looked at Olivia with gleaming eyes.

“This person is beyond your reach.”

When the manager said that, they all hurriedly bowed their heads and fled. Watching this, the manager slowly turned her head.

“I’ll continue guiding you.”

The manager stopped at the 60th floor, the top floor. Living up to its name as the top floor, the entrance was larger than those of other floors.

The manager lightly tapped the door with her fingertip. Within seconds, the door silently opened.

The interior was so dark that it was difficult to see inside.

“The Great Witch is waiting inside. If you change your mind, please call for me anytime. Well then…”

As soon as Olivia entered the room, the door closed by itself.

Finding The Great Witch wasn’t difficult. Following the moonlight streaming in from somewhere, she found a woman half-sitting on the windowsill.

She was puffing on a long pipe, continuously exhaling smoke.

“…Well, I was having quite a bit of fun.”

A languid voice. What “fun” meant was immediately obvious. All she wore was a thin robe so sheer that her bronze skin was visible underneath.

The Great Witch scratched her disheveled purple hair as she looked at Olivia and the Serial Murderer in turn.

“What are you staring at? What, want to make it a threesome?”

When Olivia frowned, The Great Witch let out a decadent laugh.

“Or just the two of us?”

“Want to die?”

“Always so conservative.”

The Great Witch snickered as she stood up. With a snap of her fingers, the dark room instantly brightened.

“We need to talk, so everyone out.”

At The Great Witch’s command, male courtesans who had been hiding in the darkness hurriedly left.

“What brings you here?”

“You’ve got the order wrong.”

“…Hmm?”

“Shouldn’t you first ask how I’m still alive?”

The Great Witch burst into laughter. She laughed so hard that the robe wrapped around her body seemed about to slide to the floor.

“You don’t seem to be here just for a drink.”

The Great Witch, now sitting on the floor, was resting her chin on her hand while looking at Olivia.

“So. How much do you know?”

“Everything.”