The woman gestured for us to follow her.
"I'll guide you to your rooms."
As we walked further into the brothel, many different areas came into view. There was one space that had a bar and a scene with men and women dancing and showing off their bodies. A little further away were many semi-isolated compartments where clients were quietly drinking and discussing with employees. There were also a few rooms that had their doors closed and I could only imagine what was happening inside based on the erotic moans that were hearable from outside.
I observed both the clients and employees and realized something interesting. While a few of the personnel had strained smiles, most of the rest had either great skill at appearing happy or were genuinely so. I approached the ear of my comrade to whisper something.
"I have a question. Are the people here working because they have no other choice?"
Giya put his mouth close to my ear to respond in the same manner.
"A few of them are like that. Bad luck, debts, or just wanting some quick cash before moving on with their lives. But the majority still work here because they want to. There are a lot of employees that enjoy sex."
That was a pleasant surprise, especially compared to my world. Maybe this was due to there being so many different species. I still had no idea about relations between them, power plays, politics, and the like. That was something I would need to learn on the fly.
We were guided toward the back where stairs took us to the second floor. The ambiance was quieter here, with all the rooms having their doors closed, and the noise from the first floor fading out in the background. We stopped in front of a door.
"Your stop, Giya. The girl will be here soon."
"Alright. See you later, Tila. Let's wait for each other when we're done and leave together, okay?"
"Of course."
He handed five silver coins to the woman and entered the room happily. We didn't have to walk much more after that since my stop was only two doors away.
"And you'll be here, sir… Tila, right?"
"That's right. And you are?"
"My name is Oga. I mostly manage employees and clients but you can also buy me, for a lot more money than what Giya spent tonight."
"I see. That's good to know."
"Oh, I forgot to ask about something important. Would you prefer to have a man or a woman?"
"A woman, please."
"Alright. And also… I'm sorry to ask this but could you tell me your species? I've seen many people but no one like you before. I need to know this for matching purposes."
"What do you mean by matching?"
She giggled.
"Well, it's mostly about size. You wouldn't want to match an elephant together with a mouse, right? There are also a few incompatible species but you don't look like that sort."
I had no idea what an elephant and a mouse were but still nodded fluidly.
"That makes sense. I'm a mutant monkey."
I had been using that species a lot but still had no idea what a monkey was either. It was a bit funny if I thought about it.
"Oh, I see now. I can see a little resemblance. Alright, it won't be a problem to match you. Please wait inside the room, the girl will be there soon."
"Thank you, ma'am. It was a pleasure to meet you."
"The pleasure was all mine. Please enjoy yourself, sir."
She swiftly left after that, heading back toward the first floor. I entered the room and checked the inside. It was quite simple, with a large bed in the center, a basin of water on the ground next to it, a nightstand on which a lit candle provided some light to the room, a couple of towels, and a small chest. I could truly feel how backward this place was compared to my planet and the inner world of the dome. It seemed running water didn't even exist as a concept in this city.
Curious, I went to check what was inside the chest. I found a pot of cream that couldn't be anything other than lubricant, a few sexual toys made of wood, a few hourglasses of different sizes, some more towels, and what seemed to be scented candles and perfume. How so very interesting.
Once I was done looking around, I sat on the bed, wondering what the girl would look like. From what I had seen in this city, it could truly be anything and everything.
Just like Oga claimed, I didn't have to wait long. After a couple of minutes, someone knocked on the door.
"Come in."
The door slowly opened and a girl timidly came inside. She was smaller than me, perhaps reaching my chin if we were standing next to each other. In a slightly similar way to Giya, she had two long horns, one on each side of her head. Her hair was quite the sight, light brown with small white stripes. She kept it relatively short, only covering a slightly long neck partially. Next to her horns were round and elongated ears, standing at a slight angle on both sides of her head.
She was wearing a very light transparent negligee that didn't leave much to the imagination, her bra and panties being visible through it. I could see that her skin was slightly furry, also brown and white like her hair. She was very thin without a lot of curves, though her bra still formed a slight bulge over her chest. Her medium-sized tail was covered in long hair and completed her appearance. Her black eyes were looking at me with insecurity and apprehension as if I was something unusual.
"H-hello, sir. I'm Linon. I'll take care of you this evening."
"Nice to meet you, Linon. I'm Tila."
"Y-yes."
She stood before me, looking at the ground while glancing at me several times, but unmoving otherwise. I wasn't sure what to do either since this was my first time in such a situation. After a few seconds of heavy silence, I cleared my throat, startling her a little.
"Ah! I'm sorry, sir. We… We don't have a lot of time, right?"