The moment Lydia noticed the handsome dark-haired boy with blue eyes, who was a head shorter than her, she smirked.
"Kid, there you are! I thought you'd hit puberty and locked yourself in your room. Even my sweet daughter didn't dare come visit you, but Monica... Who would've thought she'd be the one to drag you outside? Do you have a thing for curvy women?" Lydia shot Grey a sidelong glance and teased him instead of greeting him.
Grey finally realized where Lily had gotten her sharp tongue from. She probably wouldn't survive a single day without throwing at least one jab at someone.
'Like mother, like daughter... They really say children are their parents' reflection for a reason. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. A cat can't give birth to a dog,' Grey thought to himself.
For a brief moment, it felt as though he had uncovered the world's greatest truth, found the answer to every question, and even ascended to a higher plane of existence.
Lydia didn't like the look on his face.
"Hey, boy. Did you just think something bad about me?"
"Not at all, Aunt Lydia." Grey spread his hands and shook his head, denying every accusation, though he looked anything but sincere.
Lydia snorted and turned away. She was far too magnanimous to waste her time arguing with a little boy.
Monica smirked and greeted Lydia. Watching the two of them trade jabs made her want to tease Grey as well.
"Sis, you're giving me too much credit. He only came out to accept the delivery and pay the mercenaries. This little rascal cares far more about bare walls and empty floors than our curves." She laughed as she lifted her breasts with both hands, as if hoping Grey would be a good boy and spare a glance for her soft mounds.
"Ahahaha." Lydia immediately played along and turned halfway around.
She deliberately dropped her hairpin, then bent down in exaggerated slow motion, showing off her full hips wrapped in a thin purple dress with a deep slit.
"So, what do you say, little one? Are you going to keep hiding in your room, or will you let these two aunties take care of your first time? You shouldn't spend all day handling things by yourself."
"That's right. I've heard it's bad for your health. Just look how pale you've been lately. You can't keep this up," Monica added with a chuckle.
She moved her hands one after another, making her breasts bounce. It was a true feast for the eyes, as though two sacks had been filled with soft jelly.
Watching the performance of the two mature women, who knew exactly how to stir a man's desire, Grey instantly grabbed his nose, afraid it would start bleeding.
He wished the ground would swallow him whole.
He had spent the entire week locked in his room because he needed to sort out the accounts, not because he had given in to temptation. He was the very model of virtue! A true ascetic devoted to self-restraint!
Who could possibly understand all the pain and suffering he endured?
He was a grown man forced to live in the body of a teenager. Hormones and temptation hounded him without end. Living where he did certainly didn't help, especially with the nightly moans echoing around him every day.
Even so, he had to restrain himself and remain chaste.
Not just because of Junior's strict prohibition, though that was part of it, but because chastity was one of the key requirements for becoming a witcher.
Grey had no idea how it actually worked. Would drinking the potions really mutate his genes? How was staying a virgin supposed to help with the process? Even so, he didn't dare break the rule. It was his last hope of healing himself and gaining strength.
Being crippled was utterly miserable.
'I live in a world where strength is everything! I have to think rationally and not give in to temptation,' Grey repeated like a mantra, trying to ignore the performance of the two seductresses, who were making it perfectly clear that if he agreed, they would give him an unforgettable first experience.
"See, Lydia. He turned away. Our bodies don't attract him at all," Monica said with a sigh, yet she didn't stop putting on a show.
"Hm, you're completely right," the succubus nodded, striking a new pose. "But that makes sense. He's drawn to girls his own age. Only with age do men start to appreciate fuller figures… Who knows, maybe when he stares at the walls he's thinking of my daughter. Ahahah."
Monica looked at Grey with a faintly disappointed gaze and shook her head as if she had resigned herself to something.
'Hey, hey. What the hell are you even talking about?!' Grey wanted to howl at the moon. 'I'm a perfectly normal man! If it weren't for this weak body of mine, I'd throw myself at you right here and now in this spacious hall. I'd show you just how much I value soft flesh and curves. This brothel would become my backyard harem. Stop teasing me! My will isn't that strong yet.'
"Hey, aren't you tired of this?" Grey bared his teeth, no longer able to keep silent. "If you don't care about your own behavior, at least think about my reputation! Won't the other girls think I'm using you if they walk in? Please, let me keep some dignity."
"Dignity?" Lydia and Monica echoed in perfect sync, each raising one eyebrow. Their reactions were absolutely identical, as if they had rehearsed it.
Then the women exchanged glances and burst into loud laughter.
"AHAHAHAHAH"
"Hey, why are you laughing? Did I say something weird?" Grey was genuinely surprised.
He had absolutely no idea that his reputation among the brothel's workers could not sink any lower.
Ever since Monica had caught him with his pants down, she had repeatedly turned to her colleagues, hoping someone would help the boy with his problem.
The girls had not rejected the idea, for Grey was very handsome and sincerely cared for each of them. The thought of taking his first time did not disgust them; it was even a little exciting.
Who wouldn't want to remain forever in the memories of such a charming boy?
That was why all the workers had lately been trying to show him signs of attention. They constantly teased Grey, created awkward situations, or "accidentally" revealed more than they should.
Yet since then Grey had faced far too many problems of his own, so he had paid no attention to their strange behavior. He had no idea that his seclusion was taken for hesitation, which only heated their interest further.
The girls had even secretly bet on who would become his chosen one in the end, and together they had agreed to reward the winner.
The more stubbornly he resisted, the more temptations he would have to face. That was simply how psychology worked.
If Grey had realized this fact, who knew what he might have done. But he did not know, and so he was genuinely baffled by Lydia and Monica's lively reaction.
"Hmph," he snorted and looked at them with a contemptuous gaze. "You two are completely shameless. A pair of old cows wanting a taste of young grass? Keep dreaming! I didn't grow my flower for you!"
Grey spun on his heels and strode toward the exit, demonstratively swaying his hips from side to side. He had no intention of letting their mockery go unanswered. He knew how to tease and joke too.
The women exchanged glances, then nodded to each other. Their eyes gleamed with a dangerous light.
"How dare you, you little nobody!"
"Who's the old cow here?"
"He's definitely provoking us. Let's teach him an unforgettable lesson, Monica!"
"Agreed," Monica nodded at once. "We need to beat him up, Lydia! Otherwise he'll never learn to respect his elders!"
"Right, right! Hold him tighter, and I'll find the most painful whip!"
Realizing he had gone too far by mentioning their age, Grey tried to run, but was quickly knocked off his feet and pinned to the ground.
His cripple status once again played the cruelest joke on him. It was the reason for his abstinence, and now it prevented him from fleeing the scene of the crime. What irony!
Monica and Lydia were true experts, even if not of the highest rank.
They swiftly yanked Grey's trousers down and mercilessly spanked him for his rudeness. Even Quintilian in the slave camp could not have devised a more refined method of punishment than two enraged women.
Grey remained lying on the floor.
His appearance was truly pitiful. His hair was disheveled, his arms twisted behind his back, and his backside glowed red from the endless blows.
"The younger generation has completely gotten out of hand. They don't understand even the most basic politeness," Lydia complained, casually brushing off her hands.
"Sister, you're right. As the elders we simply must set them on the true path. Otherwise who knows what troubles they'll face in the future," Monica added with an indignant air.
"I've understood my mistake," Grey hurried to admit guilt on every count, hoping the prosecutor, judge, and jury in the form of two enraged lionesses would soften the sentence. He no longer dared tease them in return.
Lydia and Monica cast him a contemptuous look, brushed off their hands, and high-fived each other. Then both snorted, turned their heads away, and strode toward the exit, swaying their soft hips from side to side.
The women completely ignored him.
Grey was in despair:
"Please, my dear ancestors. No matter how old you are, you will forever remain the most beautiful and desirable in my heart. This nobody was only joking. Please don't take it too seriously and find it in yourselves to forgive my rudeness."
"What did you just call us?" Lydia narrowed her eyes dangerously and asked again. "It seems you still haven't learned your lesson."
"Ancestor?" Grey quickly realized his mistake. "I meant to say: Dear… Your Highnesses… Sisters? Daughters?"
He kept sorting through options, carefully watching their faces as if hoping to find the right one by process of elimination.
"Daughter? Ahahahah," Lydia could no longer hold back her laughter and spanked Grey's backside again, this time just with her palm. "You little scoundrel, how dare you call me daughter?"
Grey smiled awkwardly and hurriedly rubbed the sore spot.
"I just wanted to lift your spirits, both of you. Don't take everything so seriously."
"Fine then. This time we'll be generous and forgive the little mouse," Monica nodded.
"I'm not…" Grey wanted to object and ask them to stop calling him by that nickname, but noticing the dangerous gleam in Monica's eyes he quickly shut up.
"Ahahaha," Lydia laughed even louder, watching his antics, but then, as if remembering something, she suddenly froze.
"Right, you rascal! I completely forgot that Lady Veronika was looking for you. She said you need to discuss a few 'important matters.' And you're already late. Let's see if you dare joke the same way with her."
Grey felt a chill at the back of his neck again.