“You’re the prince?” I asked.
“Of course!” He bowed.
“Why were you in a commoner bathhouse on the street then?”
“Oh? Well, you see, when you’re a man’s man, sometimes you have these urges to-“
“Forget it, I think I understand now.”
“Haha! As a fellow man’s man, I knew you would!” He chuckled.
“Actually, I asked Brother to take me…” Eliana spoke up, blushing, “I like to occasionally step in the shoes of the common folk so that I might understand the city better. Brother was actually just catering to my desire.”
“Before I agree to this game, I must be clear here. I have no great desire to hold on to my girls as slaves. If they could be free… well, that would be for the best. However, I’ve found myself unable to remove them as a slave. I’m under a curse that prevents this from happening. Even if I were to lose the game, I wouldn’t be able to cater to your request.”
As I said this, the noble’s around me started to frown. It was finally Edward who spoke up.
“Let’s talk about this in private.”
I was suspecting he’d take me somewhere, but instead, he snapped his fingers. The room cleared out of everyone except the Esmere, the three nobles, and my group. Chairs to sit and even refreshments were brought out with us barely having to move. Although Lord Tibult was eyeing the Prince nervously, he didn’t seem at all unaccustomed to this act. It must be nice being a powerful lord of a nation. Upon sitting down, all of the eyes went to me.
“Now, why is it that you think you’re cursed?” Edward asked, a serious expression on his face.
His usual perverted self was quickly hidden and a man I believed could be a prince was now displaying himself. I considered coming up with many options. However, one of the reasons I had come to the Capitol was specifically to see if I could remove the slavery markers, thus, if the most powerful people in the city couldn’t find someone who could do it, then who could? I decided it would be best to simply be honest about it. I pulled my foot out of my boot and then put it on the table. Eliana made a displeased noise but I ignored her as I rolled up my pants leg. Oi, why was she suddenly blushing? I wasn’t putting on a show!
As for Edward, as the tattoo, an indescribable language wrapped around my leg, was unveiled, he stared at it in wonder.
“What is this? Words? They look… like a script?” He said, curiosity rich in his voice.
Lord Tibult also snorted and looked away, seemingly disinterested in whatever it was I was showing the group. It was Eliana who finally allowed herself to look at my leg who suddenly gasped when she saw the tattoo. She jumped forward and grabbed my leg, her mouth moving as if she could read the text.
“Sister, do you know what this?” Edward asked.
“It’s… it’s… lore. The very curse of a dungeon has been burned into his very skin. No… but it’s different now. It’s… like a blessing?”