[Wano Country, Flower Capital]
Rosse, unlike Kozuki Oden who was weighed down with troubles, looked relaxed as he strolled through the Flower Capital with Gion.
Among the cities he had walked, the Flower Capital couldn't exactly be called prosperous.
But the customs of Wano did carry their own distinct flavor.
"Want to go in and take a look?", As the two walked up to a bustling pleasure hall, Gion suddenly asked with some interest.
"You want to broaden my horizons?", Rosse glanced at the brightly dressed courtesans, his voice tinged with teasing.
Although most of these women were of fine appearance, none could compare with Gion.
Still, for Gion to take the initiative to bring him to a pleasure hall. That was an experience of a different sort.
"Of course. I don't think I've seen you go before," Gion smiled brightly, pulling Rosse along inside.
She didn't know whether Rosse had been or not, but she herself was curious.
Pleasure halls and courtesans were one of Wano's features. Her family had often mentioned them when she was little, and now that she had the chance, she naturally wanted to try it.
Later on, who knew if there would still be a chance.
"Then let's take a look," Rosse smiled, and with the curious stares of others on them, the two entered the hall.
Listening to songs in the brothel, well, consider it pre-battle stress relief.
As soon as they stepped inside, a gorgeously dressed courtesan welcomed them with a sweet voice, "Guests, please come this way."
While she spoke, most of her gaze lingered on Gion.
Though Rosse's looks and physique were striking, Gion's dashing female samurai presence was even more captivating to her.
She had truly never seen a woman warrior visit a pleasure hall. In fact, women warriors were extremely rare.
In Wano, the status of women was not high.
Most beautiful women were brought into pleasure halls one way or another.
Though courtesans might feel envy in their hearts, they never showed it outwardly.
As long as money was paid, what did it matter whether the play was for a man or a woman?
"Do either of you have acquaintances here?", The courtesan looked at them like it was their first time, but still asked as per custom.
"No, what do you have for pla—", Rosse's words suddenly stopped mid-sentence, as his interest shifted toward a closed room up ahead on the left.
The courtesan was still wondering what Rosse had seen, when suddenly that door was slammed open. A tall but slender shadow was flung out, crashing against the wooden wall of the corridor.
"Damn it! This one refuses, that one refuses, I paid a high price for your first debut, and now you act all high and mighty?"
An angry voice cursed from inside, and then a middle-aged man in samurai attire appeared before Rosse and the others.
At the sight of him, the courtesan's expression changed at once, hurrying to greet him with a fawning smile:
"Daimyo Uzuki, Black Maria is still y*ung and doesn't know better. Please, be gentle with her."
Hearing this, Rosse's face remained neutral, but Gion's eyes toward the daimyo shifted slightly.
'She's ni*ne, you Scum!'
Being called a daimyo, bearing the Uzuki name, Gion knew who he was.
The daimyo of Udon, Uzuki Tempura.
But Gion's gaze lingered on him only for a second before turning toward the girl called Black Maria.
Black Maria wore a black kimono, with long golden hair, pale skin, long legs, and a tall figure of nearly four meters. If not for the courtesan just now mentioning her age, and the still undeveloped chest, no one would think she was only ni*ne.
Gion guessed that if this girl stood up, she would be taller even than Uzuki Tempura.
"All right, Black Maria, be good and go back with Lord Uzuki. If you serve him well, your future will be secured," The courtesan soothed Uzuki Tempura, letting him gr*pe her a few times, before moving to Black Maria's side, pulling her up and instructing, "Come, first apologize to Lord Uzuki."
"In your dreams!", Black Maria glared at Uzuki Tempura with eyes full of hatred, unwilling to cooperate in the slightest.
"How can you be so unruly? Lord Uzuki paid twenty gold for your first debut. If you serve him well, you'll even get a share of one gold."
The courtesan frowned unhappily at Black Maria, but seeing so many people watching, she forced herself to speak gently.
Such a beautiful girl, and her first appearance worth only twenty gold?
Gion furrowed her brows slightly at the price.
Converted, twenty gold was only two hundred thousand berries. Two hundred thousand, that couldn't buy much of anything.
"Stop your damn yapping. If she won't cooperate, then I'll do it myself," Uzuki Tempura, thrilled at getting such a rare prize, couldn't hold back any longer. He grinned lecherously as he strode toward Black Maria.
Seeing him approach, Gion hesitated slightly, her gaze shifting to Rosse.
Rosse simply shook his head lightly, continuing to play the onlooker.
He was no saint.
Even if he were to save her, now was not the time.
He did have his eye on the girl, though. He liked that look of hatred in her eyes.
But he believed she was capable of even more.
As Uzuki Tempura advanced, the courtesan wisely stepped aside.
This was one of Wano's top figures. She had no wish to bring trouble on herself.
It was only because he wasn't interested in her, otherwise she wouldn't have given Black Maria such an opportunity.
At that moment, Black Maria was like a bristling hedgehog. Seeing Uzuki Tempura come closer, she immediately lashed out with a kick, a stance of preferring death to submission.
"Hah!", But Uzuki Tempura was no gentle soul. With a swift kick, he struck Black Maria's leg.
"AHHH!"
Black Maria screamed, feeling as though her shin was about to snap. She collapsed onto the ground, cold sweat pouring.
Her large frame was enough to bully ordinary people, but against someone with true power, it was useless.
Watching Uzuki Tempura loom over her, a glimmer of despair and sorrow flickered in Black Maria's eyes.
'Why is my fate so miserable?'
From childhood, because of her size, her parents saw her as a burden. Though she ate less than ordinary people, they still blamed her for their poverty.
A year ago, they even sold her directly into the pleasure hall.
In the hall, only thanks to her strong physique had she avoided bullying.
After months of training, she was made the hall's new centerpiece, paraded before disgusting men and auctioned like merchandise.
In the end, Uzuki Tempura bought the rights to her first use.
Had it been another courtesan, she might have been overjoyed, thinking she could climb to a daimyo's branch.
But in Black Maria's heart, there was only suffocation and despair.
This was not the life she wanted.
As Uzuki Tempura once again reached toward her with a lecherous grin, madness flashed in Black Maria's eyes.
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