Chapter 315

For the third time in less than twenty four hours, Natalie was murdered by a dungeon monster.

She was becoming rather desensitized to the whole process, to be honest. Sure, feeling a blade go through her neck was definitely odd, but if there was anything she was good at, it was adapting to violence. Kinda the cornerstone of her career. Magical death and resurrection was just a spicy variation of it.

She rematerialized in the center of the Arena, whole and uninjured. Orienting to her sudden change in position—heart slamming, but healthy and energized—she placed a hand absently on her neck as the exit gate swung open. In previous runs, there had been a stake to complete before she could leave. Not this time.

Because the stake she’d accepted was a passive effect. For the next twenty four hours, anything she wore would be invisible to people she considered acquaintances.

Oh dear. Maybe she should’ve gone for the three-heart stake. The vibration one. Or even the—

Well. No. That one would’ve been too much. And the four-heart stake paid better than the three. So it was the obvious choice.

Her heart skipped a beat imagining her next meeting with Vanetta, who she would be heading to shortly. She’d promised—well, not promised, but suggested—to show up and, ah, patron her. If she was interested. And since she wasn’t sure how long she had before the next assignment reset came, she needed to get there expeditiously.

The stake’s effect worked on her too, Natalie discovered. Looking down, she was naked to her own eyes. She felt the metal of her armor cradling her body, but visually, there was nothing. It was interesting; she felt her chest, sliding fingers across the metal and observing the invisible force-field that prevented her from touching skin to skin. The armor was there, but she couldn’t see it. Like any of her teammates wouldn’t be able to.

Hm. Explanations were going to be awkward. Better than having to—deal with that five-heart stake, though.

At least it wasn’t real exhibitionism. While her cheeks colored as she strode out onto the streets—which were filled with people, the ‘daytime’ cycle having arrived—nobody gave her a second look, despite appearing naked to her own eyes.

That wasn’t entirely true. Some people did give her a second look. But no one saw a nude woman walking around; they just appreciated her scantily clad form as they had previously. Which was to say, she was more than aware of the ogling, since her armor was revealing, and she knew her body was easy to appreciate. But nobody was gawking as if a woman was striding naked down the street. Especially one with extra equipment between her legs.

She tracked down the Bordello. It was an establishment with a gaudy exterior made of the same marble as the rest of the city, but with a lot of decorative features. It wasn’t nearly as large as the Coliseum, Arena, or Palace. Of the primary buildings, it was the smallest, and it was tucked off to the side of the city center, away from everything else.

Walking inside, she was hit with the pleasant but overpowering scents of perfume—no doubt to mask all the other smells that came naturally to such an establishment. Fitting the trend, there was an automaton servicing a receptionist desk.

There was a clear sightline deeper into the Bordello. A dancing stage with plush sofas and chairs hosting clients caught Natalie’s eyes in particular. And there were clients—lots of them. Plenty of people had accepted their Bordello assignment for the day, it seemed, and even more had come to participate. Natalie fought a flush from creeping up her neck. While she had plenty of sexual experience, bordellos and their like weren’t included on that list. She’d been in red-light districts ... twice? And just passing through out of curiosity.

“Hello, miss,” the automaton greeted. “Here for a show, or a private encounter?”

“I’m, uh, here for a friend.”

“Of course!” came the chipper reply. She shared a knowing look with Natalie, and she almost opened her mouth to say ‘it’s not like that’—but it was. Literally. She’d come here looking for Vanetta so that they could ... she didn’t know what yet. But not have a friendly conversation. “Name?” the automaton asked.