"So, you mean there's somebody out there producing this incredible item and we have no idea who it is?"
"…That's correct. And there’s more than one of these goods. The other ones are even more impressive than this fan."
"Hmm. What about this merchant's rank and affinity?"
"He's truly nothing special, even being under average. Rank 0 earth affinity mage, despite being twenty years old."
"He must have been incredibly fortunate to find that trading opportunity."
"We think so too. What should we do about him and these "selnic" items?"
The woman looked around the room.
"Does anyone have an opinion on the topic?"
Another woman spoke in response.
"We can't do nothing. If we can get our hands on that technology, we'll gain a critical advantage in the region."
The minister of law and security intervened.
"That's right. I'm also worried about the Taende's empire. They're busy fighting on their northern border for now but that won't last forever. Once they're done there, we're probably going to be next."
"And so, any concrete plans?"
There was a long moment of silence before another man gave a suggestion.
"We can send a strong spy with shadow or wind affinity to track him at all times."
"Hmm. Anything else?"
"We can coerce him to reveal his secrets directly."
"I'd like to avoid these methods if possible. We're a free trading city. If we can get what we want without hurting the people that make the economy turn, that would be for the best."
"What about buying the information from him?"
They discussed a bit more before reaching a conclusion.
"We'll continue to spy on him using experts with high ranks. If nothing comes out, we'll interact with him directly. In the worst case, we'll use coercion or force. Does anyone disagree with this?"
With no one answering, the meeting's leader moved things forward.
"All right. Let's continue with the regular reports."
Half an hour later, the meeting concluded and the participants exited the room while chattering. When the door closed after the last person, only the two women with orange fur were left in the room. The one who directed the meeting turned toward the one still lazily reading a book on the sofa.
"New technology. Selnic items. What do you think, Mom?
However, the one lying on her side didn't answer her question. She was even completely ignored. Seeing this, she couldn't help sighing. It was always like this. Since her mother decided to give her the reins of Geola, she never helped her with anything, all because she wanted her to "learn on the job". That wouldn't be so bad if it stopped there. The problem was that if she dared make any mistake, her mother would tease her forever about it until she felt like strangling her. Unfortunately, there was no way she could ever do anything to the strongest fighter in the region. She could only grind her teeth while being on the receiving end of her endless mockery.
She left her alone and moved to the desk in the corner of the room. This place originally was a meeting room but because her mother always stayed there to keep an ear on whatever happened despite not intervening, she ended up making it her office too. She would never have admitted it but it was reassuring to be next to the experienced powerhouse that was her mother. Despite her being totally useless.
**********
In a dirty back alley of Geola, wet sounds were resounding in the otherwise dark ambiance, filled with despair and morosity. A young girl with black fur was kneeling in front of a man, bobbing her head over his dick. The man was groaning his pleasure without restraint while his two friends were alternating between watching the scene and monitoring the movements in the alley.
"Use your tongue, filthy brat!"
The girl frowned and didn't obey, just continuing as before.
"Shit, you just don't listen, huh?"
One of the two other men laughed.
"Since when did she listen to us?"
"Tsk. Useless kid. Whatever."
He took her head in hand and sent her deep onto his tool before forcing it up and down, essentially face fucking the girl. She gave a muffled scream full of hatred and tried to get away but his grip didn't give her any chance to do so. With grunts of excitement, he increased the speed of the girl's head movements. Eventually, he released his load inside her mouth with one last lowly groan.
"Ugh! Phew! That's the stuff."
After cumming everything, he removed his dick from her jaws.
"Hey, swallow it all."
With a face full of disgust, the girl spit his disgusting spunk right at his feet.
"Scram, you old garbage."
He slapped her brutally while the two other men sneered at the scene.
"Haha, as fierce as always. That's our Erin."
The girl let out a short shout of pain as she was violently hit and the loathing accentuated even further in her gaze. The man in front of her leered at her body through her rags.
"Aren't growing nicely, filthy brat?"
He extended his hand toward her breasts but she smacked it away.
"Don't touch me, you old shit!"
Of course, she got slapped again for that but she at least avoided them discovering that she was indeed growing a lot, a little bit too much for her well-being. Especially after being able to eat almost to her fill recently.
"We're done here, right? I'm leaving!"
One of the two other men, who she had to take care of just before, threw something at her. It was a piece of bread, of a completely different quality from what she had been eating the last few days, hard and almost moldy.
"Say hi to your little family. And remember why you're able to live without trouble."
She turned her back on them without responding, heading toward the sole well in the slums. She needed to clean herself up before she could appear in front of her siblings.