Rika & Jun

The Young Master spun gracefully, positioning himself between Rika and Jun. The arms that had been raised to his sides were laid around their shoulders.

"If you have to choose between me and something else, bet on me. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Young Master." Rika answered.

Despite the Young Master now being at her right, her gaze remained stuck on his face.

"I'll make you richer than you ever dreamed of being. As long as you keep betting on me. Get it?"

"Yes."

The Young Master turned his gaze to face Rika.

"That's right..." The arm around her shoulders moved, and his hand caressed her cheek. "Someone as beautiful as you should never look down. As long as you choose me, I'll make sure you never have to look down."

Inches away.

Heat.

Her throat had gone dry all of sudden. Her lips quivered.

The Young Master was moving closer... No... She was?

Lei suddenly looked away, and Rika's eyes widened, taken aback by the fact that she had been the one getting closer.

"What about you, Jun?" 

She was to his right, and he could only see half of her face.

"Huh?" He pressed, and she clenched her teeth while remaining silent. "Are you unwilling to choose me, or unwilling to go against your so-called Lord Feng?"

"I can't..." Jun muttered.

"You can't what?"

"I can't choose like that." Her voice was shaking. "It's weird in the first place. Why would a Young Master want us to spy on his Instructor? Aren't Personal Instructors chosen by the Master or by the Young Master himself? I can't choose. I don't want to be against either-"

Lei took his arm off Rika's shoulders. He stood right in front of Jun.

"I'm not saying you have to be against anyone. Just on my side."

"But on your side of what? Why would you-"

"Having a falling out is normal, isn't it? True, Feng is my Personal Instructor. But that doesn't mean things can't go wrong."

Jun remained silent for a couple of seconds.

"This isn't some kind of test, is it?"

"Of course it is." The answer surprised her, but it didn't surprise her as much as the gentleness of his touch as he lay his palms on her cheeks. "Everything is a test."

"Everything...?"

"Now, will you join my side? Will join a Young Master's side, or will you remain as you were?"

"There's nothing wrong with how I-"

"Mm." Lei nodded. "There's nothing wrong with it. But that doesn't mean you don't want more, does it?"

Jun remained silent. She didn't look away.

"You want more, don't you?"

The question did elicit something in her. Lei could tell. 

He stepped back, turned away, and stepped in the direction they had been heading.

"Then, what do you expect from-"

"Your eyes are burning." Lei said as he turned around. "Don't let go of that fire, alright?"

Nod-

"I'll make sure it burns even brighter. As long as you always bet on me." He started walking again.

The two ran to catch up to the Young Master after a moment.

"What exactly do you expect from us?"

"Tell me more about how it went with Feng."

"Well, we kept drinking for a while. He complained a lot."

"Apparently the Elders gave some remarks he didn't like... Probably about our presence there."

"Right." Rika nodded. "He complained a lot about this... Servant girl?"

"Yes, he said she had the eyes of a Beast..."

"And that she was lucky he was generous enough to accept her in the stables."

"I suppose you praised him when he said that."

Both Jun and Rika scratched their heads.

"Well... Yes but-"

"Good." Lei interrupted. "Exactly as you should."

"Does this mean you're going against-"

"Don't ask questions. What else did he talk about?"

Rika pressed her lips together.

"He talked about you. About how after he spent so much time raising you, you were now..." 

"I am now...? Keep going, Jun."

"Well..." Jun looked away, fiddling with a lock of her long and brown hair. "He said that you don't call him Uncle Feng anymore."

Lei turned around and walked closer to her, slightly surprised.

"Why do you say with that tone?" He asked.

"Um..."

"You find that sad?"

Jun pressed her lips together, and the Young Master lay a hand on her head before caressing her hair on the way down.

"I like you a lot too."

"You... Do...?"

"Mm." He nodded. "You're surprisingly soft for a whore." Lei added with a chuckle.

He turned away and walked.

Both Jun and Rika remained unmoving for a couple of seconds.

Rika brought a hand to her mouth. She couldn't resist.

"Pfft!" She wanted to laugh out loud but kept herself from doing so.

She turned towards Jun, from whom she expected a similar reaction to hers and,

'She's...'

Rika couldn't believe her eyes.

'She's blushing? No way... No way! I've seen her act as the hottest woman alive, the sexiest, the most seductive... Acting! But now... Blushing? I've never seen her blush in front of...'

Jun took a deep breath in, shivered, and walked forward while fiddling her thumbs. 

'That shyness... What the hell? Jun is completely out of -Work mode-! What the hell!'

Rika suddenly realized.

'Work mode...'

The Young Master was about a dozen steps in front of them.

Rika pulled on Jun's arm.

"Hey... Do you think we're getting those twenty Silver Coins?"

"Huh? Oh... I completely forgot about that."

"Yes, I could tell."

They whispered without making it obvious.

"What do you mean you could tell?" Jun furrowed her brows. "In any case, those two came in while we were with Feng. They took the money."

"But that doesn't mean the Young Master won't... You know... Pay us!"

"Why would he? He had his fun with the others."

"No, no, no! He asked how much for the one he chooses, remember?"

"So?"

"Well... We're here, aren't we?"

"So... We're the ones we chose?"

"Maybe! He didn't say -How much for the one he... Has fun with- but the one he chooses!"

Meanwhile, Lei had decided on how he wanted to use the two weeks he had. The two weeks that separated him from the fated meeting with the Hero.

One. Learn more about the world.

Two. Get stronger.

Three...

"Mm..." Jun thought for a bit. "That would help a lot. With 20 Silver Coins, I wouldn't have to worry for my younger sister for a while..."

"Right? And I won't have to see my parents for a while!"

"You sure are nice," Jun chuckled. "Taking care of parents who hate you."

"Yeah, well... Whatever! Anyways..."

"Where do you two spend your time in the city?" The Young Master asked suddenly.

"Mm? Um..."

I can't start sacrificing pieces now. Not when I have so few-

Three. Get more pieces to play with.