A girl was sold to the largest brothel in town.
It was neither a tragedy nor anything special. The reasons for their sale were varied, but no one cared. It was just a commonplace event that occurred in every town.
A woman meets a man’s desires and earns money. It’s a simple business that has continued since ancient times.
However, the girl sold today seemed a bit too young to take on clients. Her skinny body, more indicative of malnutrition than delicacy, plainly represented her poverty. She was barely ten years old.
Even such a small, thin girl had some demand, but the brothel, which prided itself on being reputable, decided to have her work as a maid instead of selling her outright.
Having been sold without understanding why and now forced to work in a confusing place, the girl stood silently with her head down, filled with anxiety and bewilderment.
With cleaning tools thrust into her hands, she was sent to clean the toilets, which was her first job. There she met her.
“You must be the new girl! I’m Misa, your senior!!”
She was a beautiful girl, so lovely she could be mistaken for an angel.
Her soft, flowing peach-colored hair and large eyes sparkling in pink made her look enchanting. Above all, she wore a proud smile that seemed to say she was radiantly beautiful.
How pretty and beautiful she was! It was the first time the girl had seen someone so adorable. She was completely captivated.
An overwhelming presence and beauty. Only later did the girl realize that instead of wearing a splendid courtesan’s outfit, Misa was clad in the same filthy apron skirt as herself.
“Um, I—”
“Since I’m the senior, you have to obey everything I say! Got it?”
Before the girl could introduce herself, Misa thrust her mop forward and glared at her.
Her lovely, beautiful eyes stared directly at the girl, causing her heart to race.
“Y-yes!!”
“Good, good! That’s a nice response. You have potential!”
Looking pleased, Misa smiled brightly like the midsummer sun and began to slap the girl on the shoulder without reservation.
“Hehe, as long as you follow me, I won’t let anything bad happen to you. Just quietly come with me.”
Before the girl could respond, Misa finished saying what she wanted and started working.
While cleverly pushing the task of cleaning the dirtiest toilet onto the girl under the guise of instruction, she quickly took care of the easier jobs. However, despite being used for convenience, the girl was already fascinated by Misa’s radiant beauty and cheerful demeanor, which seemed to lead ever onward.
“—Misa is amazing, isn’t she?”
“Huh? What do you mean that’s obvious?”
A month had already passed since the girl arrived at the brothel.
Since finishing her first toilet cleaning, the girl faithfully followed her senior maid, Misa, and it was deemed that they were getting along well. Given that their ages were nearly the same, Misa and the girl were crammed into the same room and generally worked together.
Lying on a used bed situated in a cramped, dusty room that resembled more of a storage shed than a bedroom, the two chatted during their small free time before sleep.
“Because I’m the cutest!”
“Yeah, Misa is the cutest. But you’re not just cute… you can work, you can talk to adult clients, and you can handle the accounts too, right? You’re amazing, Misa, you can do anything!”
“Hehe, you’ve got an eye for that! It’s true, I’m not just cute; I’m a capable woman too!”
Misa, satisfied with the pure and honest praise, playfully patted the girl’s head like a dog, her smile growing wider.
“Hehe…”
The girl accepted the tousling of her hair gladly.
She loved Misa’s smile. Seeing her smile made her happy. When Misa was in a good mood, it made her happy too. And it brought her even more joy that Misa noticed, praised, and acknowledged her.
It felt as if her heart was being filled with the love of a god.
“B-but, I’m sorry… I keep holding you back, Misa…”
Having only been working for a month and still not used to the job, the girl struggled to find her footing.
She had received insults for her clumsiness and slowness many times, and she had even been hit. There had been close calls where Misa almost took the blame for her mistakes.
Being next to Misa made her happy. However, her feelings of whether she deserved to stand beside someone like that only grew stronger each day.
As for her appearance, it felt increasingly mismatched.
With her frizzy, dark brown hair and unappealing narrow eyes, she had forgotten how to show a pure, childlike smile from her upbringing, instead wearing a bitter imitation of a friendly grin. Her body was scrawny, her skin rough. She had no attractiveness as a girl, and felt like an ugly presence.
She couldn’t help but think that being beside someone so beautiful and noble might tarnish Misa’s grace.
“Are you dumb? It’s a given for seniors to look after their juniors!”
Misa playfully pouted with a mean face, ruffling the girl’s already messy hair, leaving her wide-eyed in surprise.
“Besides, stop worrying too much. I’m loved by the gods, so everything will go well. Those who believe will be saved!”
With the all-encompassing confidence that only children have—or perhaps even more than that—Misa declared with boundless confidence.
“You’re a loyal good girl, so that’s enough. The others are just a bunch of jealous ugly girls envious of my beauty. They’ll get what’s coming to them!”
However, her overly confident words were at least partly true.
With an outstanding beauty that was like a crown jewel, and a carefree personality that wasn’t intimidated by anything, Misa could attract the attention of clients in the brothel, but it also brought intense jealousy from other girls.
Though she hadn’t yet started selling herself, she had already gained a popularity similar to the featured courtesans, adored by clients, and was noticed by the brothel owner, who foresaw her as a future cash cow.
For girls in the same situation, there couldn’t be a more boring presence. As Misa shone brightly, the darkness became even more pronounced.
“That’s why you should just be yourself. If you follow me, I promise you’ll have good experiences too. For example—”
While saying this, Misa got up from the bed and opened the closet that was already cramped in the small room.
“—You can even have expensive butter candies!”
Misa pulled out a carefully wrapped paper bag while rummaging through the closet. It was not uncommon for clients to give treats to the girls…
“What! Th-that’s!”
“Hehe, it’s a gift for me!”
With a proud grin, Misa took out a muffin-like treat from the roughly opened bag and thrust one into the astonished girl’s hands on the bed.
“No, Misa, it’s bad to eat that in bed, especially before sleeping…”
“It’s fine, it’s fine! Doing something a little naughty is fun and tasty!”
There was no way she could go against Misa. Fluidly, they sat side by side on the bed and shared the sweets.
It was sweet and melting, a taste of happiness.
Years later. The time for the first menstruation had also passed, and it was about time for her to start taking clients.
Thanks to Misa, the girl had become somewhat presentable, but she didn’t think she had become suitable to stand beside her. Instead, the gap in beauty seemed to widen.
“Welcome!”
“Good evening, Misa!”
“Oh, Misa, you have a new outfit! So cute!”
“Hey, Misa, isn’t it about time? I’ve saved up quite a bit!”
“Idiot, you don’t have enough to buy me out.”
“What did you say!?”
“Shut up, you fake fan! I’ve been a fan of Misa for years!”
“Hey, hey everyone, the ladies are waiting, so if you don’t hurry, they’ll get angry!”
Standing at the front of the brothel, Misa had completely taken on the role of the featured girl.
Whenever she raised her voice, everyone listened, and no matter how tipsy or angry they were, she swiftly led them where they needed to go.
In these past few years, Misa’s beauty had only grown more refined.
Her pale pink long hair shone enchantingly under the dazzling lights of the brothel. While her face retained traces of childhood, it already exuded a mature allure.
Her beauty, which she boasted was favored by the gods, was accentuated by her glamorous courtesan outfit.
In front of dressed-up Misa, one would forget any jealousy over her beauty and become entranced.
With overwhelming beauty and wit, no one could openly criticize her anymore.
If she were to be sold, being number one would be a foregone conclusion.
Watching Misa climb to such heights, the girl gazed at her with squinted eyes, proud and awestruck.
“Good evening, Misa. You look exceptionally beautiful tonight.”
“Oh, my lord! I’m so happy you came to see me!”
Just before the brothel was about to fill to capacity, a young man appeared.
The one Misa called “my lord” was not just a nickname but the actual young lord who governed this town.
Having lost the previous lord due to an accident, he, the eldest son, had inherited the title at a young age. Fortunately, after receiving ample education and practical experience, and thanks to his own talent, he was proficient enough in governing the territory without causing any issues.
At one point, there was fear for the continuance of the lordship due to chaos, but now things were stable. There were hopes for further development as long as he continued to govern like this. He was a young and promising lord, both beautiful and charming.
He had completely fallen for Misa, whom he met during the most challenging period after he inherited the title.
“I’m sorry for being late. I was out of the territory for work… Actually, I just got back.”
“It must have been tough. But the fact that you came to visit me makes me so happy, it feels like you really love me.”
“Being told that makes all my efforts worth it.”
“Then for you, the hard-working lord, I’ll provide you with a special treat today.”
“I’m looking forward to that.”
The two of them, engaging in cheerful conversation, disappeared into the VIP room at the back of the brothel.
Misa had not yet been promoted as a courtesan. However, her buyer was already determined.
The lord, who was genuinely in love with Misa, had made arrangements with the brothel owner for a significant sum for her release.
It was an unprecedented and extraordinary achievement. For a woman whose livelihood was based on selling her body, such a scenario was a dream come true.
To marry a young, beautiful nobleman with status, fame, and wealth, purely based on love—this was a whimsical dream that Misa was about to make a reality.
“You’re really amazing, Misa.”
Watching Misa strive for the highest happiness filled the girl with happiness as well. A dream-like ending. This was indeed a fitting conclusion for the admired Misa.
The dreaming girl must have been basking in a sweetness even greater than Misa’s.
“Ugh…”
It was a strangely uncomfortable morning.
As if she had dreamt an odd dream.
“Well, I’m getting a bit tired of just floating around here.”
After getting dressed and finishing breakfast, the morning discomfort disappeared entirely, replaced by dissatisfaction about lingering days in Damascus under the guise of preparing for the next expedition.
The conquest of Damascus had been enjoyable in a long time. After all, dwarven warriors stationed in the royal castle were elite. They were truly worthy opponents.
Slaughtering demons was fun, but too little resistance made it boring. That said, she wasn’t going to go out of her way like Ai to look for strong opponents or to purposely impose restrictions on herself.
Misa didn’t particularly enjoy fighting. She loved the view from the top after crushing enemies and stepping on mountains of their corpses. Such a sight was worthy of the beauty beloved by god, the Eleventh Apostle Misa.
“—Hey, Misa. You in there?”
“What do you want, Nero? Is it already that boring this early in the morning?”
“Don’t lump me together with you.”
Nero waltzed into her room with a knock, and Misa chuckled lightly.
She liked Nero. Just as she had said before, there was no lie in that.
“So, what’s going on? Did some demon challenge you or something?”
“I lost Avalon to Chrono. I’m turning back here to get it back.”
“Oh really?”
Misa feigned disinterest, her response flat.
The truth was, she didn’t care what happened to Avalon at this point. The only thing she found slightly concerning was,
“What happened to Marie?”
“She’s dead. Her head’s on display for everyone to see.”
“Oh, so Marie’s dead… That foolish girl shouldn’t have died over something so trivial.”
The Twelfth Apostle, Mariabel. Though she had been a serious good girl the girl didn’t care for, she didn’t dislike her either. She had cared for her in her own way; Marie had been one of the few she felt comfortable around.
“Now there’s another reason to kill that guy.”
She felt angry enough to add revenge for the loss of a person who marred her beauty to her list.
“What will you do, Misa?”
“Hmph, I have no obligation to escort you back to Avalon.”
“I figured you’d say that.”
“The idea of turning back now after coming this far is a joke. I’m not going back anywhere until I kill that man, Chrono.”
Without hesitation, Misa chose to continue moving forward.
She had come this far for a reason. After passing through Adamantoria and crossing the wilderness, the Varna Forest Sea lay ahead. Once they crossed it, they would finally reach the Atlas Desert, the dominion of the Elroad Empire.
“Is that really okay with you? You’re just going to let me take on your sworn enemy?”
“Who knows? When I return to Avalon and you reach the desert, I don’t know which side he’ll protect.”
“I have Peaceful Heart on my side. Obviously, I’ll reach the desert first. Well, you can take your companions and head home slowly.”
“…Yeah, I’ll do just that. See you, Misa. Thanks for everything.”
“It’s fine, don’t mention it. It’s a senior’s job to take care of their junior, after all.”
With those words from days gone by, Misa cheerfully sent Nero and his forces off without losing her good mood.
This marked the most foolish decision made—dividing the Great Expedition Army in two, each side holding onto an Apostle.
January 6, 2023
Happy New Year! I look forward to your support for “Black Demon King” this year as well!