Chapter 5: An unexpected visitor

The next day I must make an initial report on my progress to the Chief Procurator. He doesn’t shown much interest in my observations. It isn’t until I tell him of my contract with an Elf Maiden called DF36 that he makes any comment at all.

“Make sure you keep your Elf Maiden under control,” the Chief Procurator responds. “Some of them are too smart for their own good.”

“What about the poor state of the buildings they live in?” I ask. “More of them would survive winter if they lived in good housing.”

“More of them surviving winter won’t address the Elf Maiden problem. It will make it worse. Thurn is becoming overrun with Elves.”

“Many of our farms and forestry operations rely on cheap Elven workers,” I observe. “As for mining, that industry is almost entirely reliant of Elven workers. The increase in the Elven population means we are able to produce more food, timber and ore.”

“That may be so,” agrees the Chief Procurator begrudgingly. “But the workforce is made up entirely of adolescent Elves. It’s Elf Maidens who are the problem. They seduce good honest Thurnian men and tempt them to perform lewd sexual acts. The women of Thurn are understandably upset.”

I could point out that Thurnian men are more than happy to be seduced by Elf Maidens. And unless Elf Maidens are allowed to produce more Elven children, the supply of adolescent Elves will eventually dry up. As for Elf Maidens performing lewd sexual acts, then I can only assume the Chief Procurator is talking from personal experience with his own private harem of Elf Maidens. But he has a point about Thurnian women being upset. It’s an issue born from the frustration of knowing Thurnian men can enjoy sex all year round with Elf Maidens, while Thurnian women can only enjoy sex in the brief three weeks of the rutting season.

The rules governing what Elves can and cannot do is a patchwork of laws modified so many times over the years that some of the current laws are bizarre. Nobody knows why the law says Elf Maidens must wear collars and live in the city ghettos. In fact, more and more Elf Maidens are leaving the ghettos for private harems. Apparently that’s all perfectly legal thanks to the law allowing Elf Maidens to live outside a ghetto if they have a work contract with a Thurnian male of good standing. Quite how anyone is supposed to determine whether a man is of good standing isn’t specified. And the law allowing them to live in a man’s harem can be inconsistent with the law prohibiting them from being inside the city walls during winter. But it would be a mistake to think anybody is in a rush to sort out the anomalies in the law.

My meeting with the Chief Procurator ends without my being able to get his agreement on any issue. I leave his office feeling a little despondent. How am I supposed to complete my work if the Chief Procurator and I disagree about nearly everything to do with Elf Maidens. The only issue we agree on is how great it is to fuck them. While I’m in the building, I pay a visit to the Registrar of Land Titles. He at least can tell me who owns the rundown ghetto buildings.

“Those land titles were cancelled many years ago when the buildings were declared derelict,” says Registrar. “That means ownership has reverted to the Imperial family.”

“So the Emperor owns them,” I say.

“Not in the case of the Elven ghettos. The buildings of all the Elven ghettos are all owned by his daughter, Cassandra.”

Hearing Cassandra’s name brings back memories of our friendship while we were studying history years ago. But I refuse to believe the Cassandra I knew would allow her tenants to live in such squalor. However, I remind myself that none of the Imperial family would involve themselves in such lowly matters as property management, so she us probably unaware of the problem.

“Is it a common arrangement to do that?” I ask.

“The laws regarding Elves are ridiculously complex. Elves aren’t allowed to live on land owned by the Emperor, so ownership of all properties in Elven ghettos is vested in his daughter.”

“So who manages the properties on Cassandra’s behalf?” I ask.

“Um ... I have no idea. Probably nobody. The Imperial tax collectors will collect the rent, but that’s as much as they will do.”

“How does anyone go about having the properties repaired?” I ask. “Some of them are in danger of collapse.”

“Which is probably why the buildings were declared unfit for Thurnian habitation years ago. If repairing the buildings matters so much to you, then have the Elven council petition the owner.”

“But Elves aren’t taught to read or write,” I say.

“Hmm ... That does present a problem, doesn’t it,” says the Registrar, clearly losing interest in the subject. “You could register your concern in the city land register.”

“Which would achieve what?” I reply.

“Probably nothing. But I would be obliged to notify the property owner of the entry, so it may prompt some action.”

I do as he suggests and then I return to my house. DF36 has set up a small work area for herself in a corner of the living room. She’s busy making what appears to be a decorative leather bodice. She acknowledges my arrival but she doesn’t stop working.

“Who are you making that for” I ask.

“I don’t know. The sale of everything I produce is handled by Elven merchants. Sometimes they request a specific item, but generally I produce what I think will sell. I give the merchants my finished goods and they sell them on my behalf. I never know who buys what I produce.”