"Wow, Mara, you really know how to please women, huh?" she said with a crooked smile full of implications.
Suddenly, a sharp knock landed squarely on Mordred's head.
"Stop bothering her, you provocative cat," Cecilia said, without even lifting her eyes from her bowl of soup.
I wonder what she wants to talk about, Mara thought as she brought the first spoonful of soup to her lips.
As she continued savoring her soup, its warm, comforting aroma wrapping around her senses, Mara noticed the weight of two fixed gazes resting on her.
Cecilia and Mordred were watching her with an attention that bordered on unsettling.
If it hadn't been for Cecilia's serene elegance and Mordred's feline beauty, that silent scrutiny would have made her deeply uncomfortable.
"Ehhh… is something wrong?" Mara broke the silence, lifting her gaze. Her eyes met theirs, and they seemed to be sharing a thought without the need for words.
Cecilia and Mordred exchanged a brief glance, loaded with tacit understanding, before the catgirl was the one to speak.
"Mara, there's something we'd like to ask you…" Mordred began, her voice gentle but firm. "What do you plan to do from now on?"
Beside her, Cecilia didn't take her eyes off Mara. Her slender, pale hands were interlaced on the table, reflecting a calm, expectant patience.
The question struck Mara like a cold gust of wind—not because of its harshness, but because of its devastating simplicity.
She realized that, up until now, she hadn't really stopped to seriously think about what to do with her new life beyond simply trying to enjoy it.
It's not like I've really had time to think about that… hehe, Mara thought to herself, recalling what had happened with the two women in front of her—and with Alice—the day before.
She had been so absorbed in savoring every moment she'd spent with the three of them, the taste of warm food, the strange comfort of not being alone, that the future was still nothing but a blank page.
"Being completely honest… I still haven't decided what I'm going to do," Mara replied, a little embarrassed.
Mordred exchanged another look with Cecilia, longer this time, as if they were confirming something.
"Look… Cecilia and I were talking, and we think we know a place that could help you, if you don't have anywhere to go," Mordred said.
Cecilia nodded softly, backing up her words.
"Really?" Mara felt something loosen inside her chest. "That would help a lot… thank you."
My Skill really must be some kind of CHARM, the girl thought to herself, now more convinced than ever.
"Good," Cecilia interjected, and her voice no longer carried the sharp, arrogant tone that usually defined it. "Then we'll take you there once we finish getting everything ready. Does that work for you?"
Mara simply nodded in response.
The rest of breakfast flowed by with soft laughter and light teasing. Cecilia and Mordred poked at each other with sharp remarks, but without any real intent to hurt.
"I'll be back in a moment, girls," Mara announced as she stood up, holding the empty bowl in her hands.
As she passed through the door leading to the kitchen, she found Alice there, her hands submerged in foamy water, washing dishes and utensils with routine movements.
Morning light streamed in through the window, glinting off the edges of still-wet knives.
"Hi, Alice," Mara greeted the older woman softly. "You wanted to talk to me, right?"
Alice turned slowly, drying her hands on her apron. Her expression was serene, without a trace of the embarrassment Mara had almost expected after the intimacy of the previous night.
Instead, there was a quiet, expectant seriousness.
"Mara…" she said, her voice sounding like a familiar echo. "Do you remember what we talked about last night?"
"You mean… about you taking care of me?" Mara mentally revisited the blurry fragments of that conversation, those whispered promises she'd heard before falling asleep.
"You don't have to worry about that… we were in a bit of a… passionate moment."
She tried to downplay it, to turn it into something fleeting, but Alice didn't look away.
"I meant it," she said, every word spoken with certainty. "If you want, you can stay here. And work with me."
The offer hung in the air between them, as tangible as the steam rising from the hot water.
Stay here… work with me. Alice's words echoed in Mara's mind.
She kept her gaze on Alice—the same woman who had offered her comfort last night, and then much more.
Work here? Mara thought, a little skeptical.
But part of her remembered the sense of belonging she had felt among them.
The emptiness of her past life contrasted brutally with the intensity of the day before.
"It's just that…" Mara began, searching for the right words. "After what happened last night… I don't want you to think I'm only accepting because—" she said, clearly unsure of how to finish.
"What happened last night wasn't just pity, Mara," the older woman interrupted, speaking gently but firmly.
"As I told you, I want to help you because you remind me of myself in the past… so why not stay here?" Alice said with complete sincerity.
"Yes," Mara finally whispered, sweet surrender in her voice. "I'll stay."
Alice smiled warmly.
"But before anything else, there's something more I need to explain about the work here, Mara… The Velvet Veil Inn… isn't like any other," Alice said as she removed the apron she'd been wearing while washing the dishes.
"Besides serving food and offering rooms," she continued, slowly turning toward her, "we also attend to… certain particular needs. For those clients who request it and are willing to pay for it, of course."
Mara felt something stir in her stomach. It wasn't fear. Nor rejection.
It was… curiosity.
A curiosity heavy with the still-fresh memory of the previous night.
"Particular… needs?" she asked quietly. Alice nodded slightly.
"That's right. Many of the women who come here are adventurers, merchants, even nobles in disguise, looking for company, comfort… or pleasure. No judgment. No strings attached. We offer them a safe space for that."
Mara took a deep breath. The weight of Alice's gaze, even through the blindfold, was palpable.
"And what… exactly… would I have to do?" At that, Alice curved her lips into a faint smile.
"What you already did. Listen. Keep them company. Please them. Always within your own limits, of course. And always with generous pay involved," she said, placing a hand on Mara's shoulder.
Mara remembered Alice's breasts, Mordred's hands in her hair, Cecilia's unexpected submission.
A warm shiver ran down her spine.
"So… my job would be…?"
"You'd serve in the dining hall, help in the kitchen, clean the rooms," Alice listed gently.
"And if a client asks for private company and you accept… you'd attend to those desires. For an extra fee."
Mara looked down at her own hands—the same hands that, only hours ago, had explored other bodies with a confidence she hadn't known she possessed.
"All right," she said, lifting her gaze. "I accept."
At her words, Alice opened her arms and pulled Mara into a hug.
"Welcome to The Velvet Veil, Mara," Alice said, hugging the orange-haired girl tightly.
The new chapter of her life, it seemed, had already begun.