43. The Zahard Family
A mansion built a short distance from the center of the city where Takuma and the others lived. It belonged to the Zahard Family—the powerful merchant house that controlled the city’s commerce.
Since they had ruled over the city’s land for hundreds of years, it was said that defying the Zahard Family would result in being driven out of the city. In fact, that was considered fortunate; in the worst cases, people were eliminated entirely.
In reality, many people had already been expelled by the Zahard Family and subsequently lost their lives.
The current head of the Zahard Family, the 13th generation master, Tekk Zahard, was a man particularly steeped in greed and lust among all the generations of the Zahard lineage.
“Rona.”
At Tekk’s single call, a maid immediately appeared.
“You called, Master Tekk?” “When is the slave from Kolobo’s place arriving?” “According to the schedule, it should be the day after tomorrow.” “The day after tomorrow, huh…”
Tekk lay on the bed, roughly kneading the breasts of the two women lying beside him with both hands as he fell deep into thought.
The room where Tekk and the women were was luxurious, befitting the grand mansion and prestigious family. It had a massive bed, high-quality furniture, and paintings—typical decorations of a wealthy household—hung on the walls. A dazzling chandelier hung from the ceiling, but it was not lit.
It was indeed a time of day when lighting wasn’t necessary. However, the curtains on the windows were tightly drawn, plunging the room into darkness. Only a faint ray of sunlight leaking through the curtains and the soft glow from a stained-glass lamp near the bed illuminated the scene.
Moreover, a strange, sweet scent filled the room—one that could drive a person’s mind insane if they stayed in it for too long.
It was a world unbecoming of the head of a distinguished family. No—precisely because he was the head of such a family, this kind of depraved world existed here.
“Rona. Change the schedule to tomorrow.” “Understood. What time would you prefer?” “Exactly noon. Also, clean up after these two.” “Understood.”
Tekk got off the bed, his plump body jiggling as he walked toward the door.
“Rona.” “Yes, Master Tekk?” “How old are you this year?” “I turned twenty-six this year.” “I see… I thought you’d been here quite a long time, but you’re only twenty-six…”
Rona had become the head maid of this mansion last year. This was her fifth year working here as a maid.
That was more than double the time of the other maids. Among the maids, the next longest-serving after Rona had only been here for two years.
The reason was obvious: Tekk’s terrible behavior. His own personal rules played a major part as well.
“You have a nice face and decent breasts. You’ll work for another four years. Understood?” “Yes, Master.”
Another four years. That clearly defined number meant Rona would be thirty years old.
Tekk’s personal rule was simple: he would not keep any woman who reached the age of thirty by his side.
Of course, this rule was one that only Tekk had established among the long history of the Zahard Family. It was purely his own preference.
Because of this rule, the previous head maid who had worked here for four years was dismissed last year, and Rona had taken her place.
“Also, I’ll raise your salary. How much do you want?” “Th-the current amount is already more than enough…” “Is that so? But it looks like you want to say something. Hm?” “N-no…”
Rona’s slight hesitation in her words wasn’t because she was afraid to ask her master for a raise.
It was because she was trying to endure Tekk’s hand casually slipping between her legs.
This was a daily occurrence for the maids who worked here. For Rona, who was in her fifth year, it was no more significant than eating a meal.
Some maids had been stripped naked and licked all over, while others had been suddenly restrained and whipped. Compared to those, this was nothing.
However, the scent filling Tekk’s room was driving Rona mad.
Recently, Tekk had been burning an aphrodisiac incense he had obtained from a traveling merchant. While it only doubled male sexual desire at most, for women it multiplied the effect several times—sometimes even more than tenfold.
It was still in the prototype stage, so exact numbers weren’t known, but its effectiveness was clearly visible: the two women lying exhausted on the bed who had been brought in two hours ago, and Rona, whose underwear was already soaked despite being touched for less than a minute.
“You really are excellent… Alright, I’ll double your current salary. I’ll leave the rest to you.” “U-understood…”
Finally, Tekk removed his hand. Leaving Rona in the room, he headed toward the bathhouse.