The room was stark and oppressive — bare walls, cold iron bars, the air itself pressing down like a fist.
"Name."
The queen of courtesans sat with her legs crossed, dressed in a snow-white Public Order uniform that made her look every inch the upright authority figure. Her tone was icy and imperious.
The small, pitiful, helpless little fox-eared blonde was cuffed to the chair by a silver bracelet, her fox ears drooping flat. "Margaret."
"Gender."
"…Female."
"And what brings you here?"
"I, I got lost. I must have wandered into the wrong place by accident…"
"Oh?"
Li Fei curled her lips into a smirk and leaned down, tilting Margaret's chin up with one finger. "Funny — I received a citizen's report. Apparently a certain naughty little fox has been conducting illegal snuggling transactions at the Golden Kumquat Tavern."
"I didn't. I would never."
The wide-eyed, picture-of-innocence fox-eared cute girl protested, eyes glistening as though she might cry at any moment.
"Ha. You think I'd wrongfully accuse you?" Li Fei gave a cold laugh, reaching out to pinch one fluffy fox ear. "Confession earns leniency. Otherwise…"
The queen of courtesans increased the pressure just a fraction, her fingertips savoring the velvety softness of the ear.
"A-actually, I have a condition… if I don't snuggle, I'll die…"
Margaret's little face flushed crimson, her golden eyes filming over with a dewy sheen.
"Outrageous. Don't you dare try to pull that excuse on me."
Li Fei's voice dropped to a frigid snap. She straightened up and tugged open the collar of her uniform.
This uniform had been borrowed from her daughter-in-law Sofia — and Sofia, being that lean, willowy supermodel type of vampire officer, had more than enough length to spare. The problem was the chest, which was suffocating even at rest, and positively catastrophic when bending over. Fabric and propriety were in constant competition, and only one of them could hold.
The result of an ill-fitting top: what should have been a graceful teardrop silhouette had been squeezed into a spectacularly eye-catching sphere.
Once she could breathe again, Li Fei turned and picked up a leather riding crop, holding it level across her chest, then snapping it sharply to either side. A crisp, spine-chilling crack rang out. She fixed the "detainee" with a razor-sharp gaze, her tone glacially cold: "Looks like you won't cry until you see the coffin."
"But I'm innocent…"
Even as the little fox pleaded, her big fluffy tail was wagging away cheerfully, swishing against the back of the chair with a soft, rhythmic rustle — until the shadow of the off-brand Public Order officer fell over her in the lamplight and swallowed it whole.
After a spirited round of interrogation, the consummate queen of courtesans dabbed the sweat from her brow, then unlocked Margaret's handcuffs and produced a pre-prepared salve to apply to her — not that there was any real damage, just a generous scattering of red marks, but the service attitude had to be demonstrated.
"This ointment smells kind of familiar…"
Sprawled across Li Fei's lap, Margaret's nose twitched, a suspicious note in her voice.
"Your shifu made it."
Li Fei patiently applied the faintly essential-oil-like medicine with her fingertips, working it in with a light massage as she went.
"Is little Zhihua still in seclusion?"
"Should be coming out soon, I think…"
Li Fei suddenly felt a twinge of guilt.
She'd nearly lost track of how many days Zhihua-jie had been in retreat… As her little girlfriend, she had been rather — probably — most likely — quite guilty of a great deal of questionable behavior lately.
One second of self-recrimination later, the queen of courtesans — whose moral stat had cratered to a -23 purely from scheming against Grace — promptly jettisoned any lingering conscience she'd managed to scrape together:
Sure, she hadn't exactly kept herself pure as driven snow. But at least her heart belonged to Zhihua-jie. Even when she was rolling around under the open sky with a certain poker-faced Miss, the name she called out was still Zhihua-jie's — unlike Vice President Hathaway and Vice Dean Chloe, who didn't even have the option of collecting that particular hat, heh.
Meanwhile, the little fox-eared cute girl nestled in her arms had closed her eyes, drinking in the tranquil comfort.
Almost every sentient creature enjoys being touched — it's instinct. And the particular pleasure that comes from a gentle, patient caress runs deeper than skin, touching something in the soul. That was a lesson Li Fei had come to understand through Mrs. Annie.
Purrrr…
By the time Margaret was on the verge of dozing off, Li Fei finally finished applying the medicine.
Margaret opened her eyes with a reluctant, drowsy flutter, deciding to reward the exemplary service: "O-one more two bottles…"
"You'd even finish all that?"
Li Fei glanced at the barely-touched bottles in the corner, gave Margaret a gentle pat, and spoke with the faintly reproachful warmth of a girlfriend trying to stop her lover from wasting money on presents. "Don't be silly."
The truth was, Golden Kumquat Tavern patrons generated surplus wine every single night. Unless a guest specifically requested storage, cheap bottles were poured out, and expensive ones were shared among the staff — in an establishment with margins healthy enough to care about its reputation, not even an unopened bottle got resold.
Worth noting: sometimes an opened bottle was the more popular one.
Margaret blinked, her face going even redder. She buried her face in Li Fei's lap and let her big tail swish from side to side.
"Li Fei, you've changed."
"Oh?" Li Fei propped her chin in one hand, the other lazily massaging the fox tail. "I'll give you a chance to elaborate — say something nice."
In truth, even Li Fei herself hadn't noticed: nearly every time she left Loxibrook, she returned a little different.
The chaos in Viranean — the ache she'd felt watching Li Yue turn back and Qin Zhihua prepare to hold the rear — had shown her that with certain people, she simply couldn't flip the kill-switch all the way. That was why, later, she'd talked through Eve's marriage with her rather than simply commanding her to earn a dowry on her behalf.
Folded Space D-07 — the old chief's willingness to sacrifice his entire tribe just to grant Li Fei something she could have obtained with a single coy pout — had driven home a lesson she'd never forget: the commission from selling wine was small change. Sometimes, a single word from the right client was worth more than gold.
And that had refined the queen of courtesans' approach to her craft.
Clearly, on the path of the Transcendent, perhaps she truly couldn't do without the System miss. But in the art of winning hearts? Even without the System, even without Depravity, the queen of courtesans would have risen to the top of the Witch Coven eventually, standing alone in full bloom — the reason for "perhaps" being that clients' tips could buy the rare treasures needed to refine her beauty, and she could still become a Witch, even chase after those rare but real opportunities to improve her innate aptitude.
The System? Just a little sister who gave the queen a nudge so she didn't have to work quite so hard.
"Mmm… you used to always be thinking about selling more wine."
Margaret puffed out her cheeks.
She didn't care about the money. But that kind of attitude had damaged the experience — it shattered the client's cherished illusion that she doesn't want my money; she genuinely likes me.
"Not anymore."
Li Fei smiled — a real one, from somewhere genuine inside her. "These days, I care far more about client satisfaction than I do about wine commissions."
After seeing Margaret off, Li Fei carried two bottles of wine into the break room.
"Oh my, Fei-bao made Public Order officer!" Agatha, grand collector of stamps, grinned as she teased her. "What an honor for us all."
The dark-haired human onee-san still wore her signature smoky eye makeup — a look that was simultaneously polished and beautifully world-weary.
"Drop dead."
Li Fei rolled her eyes at her, then held up the bottles and gave them a little shake. "'Deep Blue Breath' — help yourselves, sisters."
"Ahhh, the queen of courtesans' clients always order the most expensive tier." Dasha drawled languidly, flicking out her forked tongue. Her serpentine tail slithered forward and coiled around the bottle in Li Fei's hand, spiriting it away.
"Tea for the big boss."
A junior sister dressed in a pink mini-skirt, the picture of innocent sweetness, put on her most dedicated lackey expression and reverently presented a cup of pale pink liquid that wafted with a fruity fragrance.
Li Fei, however, was well aware that the alcohol content of this particular drink was high enough to light with a match.
This little creature harbors designs on your queen.
Just as Li Fei was regarding her with a suspicious squint, the junior sister sidled closer and gave a bashful little smile.
"Little sister has something to ask…"
"I heard there's a new place that opened in the south of town. Apparently the pizza is absolutely incredible, but I just haven't had the time to go…" Li Fei suddenly sighed, gazing off to the side.
"I'll have it delivered to you by tomorrow, jiejie."
The junior sister made her position clear immediately.
"Oh, I couldn't possibly impose." Li Fei curved her lips into a smile, leaning in warmly. "Go ahead — ask me anything. I'll answer every word."
"It's just — I have this one client, and she's a little strange. Sometimes she starts crying for no reason. She says nothing feels like it matters. She's even talked about ending it all…"
The junior sister laid out the whole situation, then asked at last: "How should I guide her through it?"
A rough estimate — probably depression? Nothing too severe yet.
Li Fei's mind drifted, casting back to all the reading she'd done before transmigrating — research she'd done trying to understand a depressed neighbor-jie she'd cared about.
As the question hung in the air, the break room went quiet. The assembled courtesans — every one of them glamorous, charming, and consummate professionals — pricked up their ears and turned their eyes toward Li Fei with focused, earnest anticipation.
Because even in a fantasy world, mental health struggles were far from rare. The ones with severe depression naturally weren't likely to come to a tavern looking for a good time — but there was no shortage of those with mild depression who tried to chase "happiness" as a lifeline, hoping to claw their way out of the darkness. And was there anywhere in Loxibrook more reliably joyful than the Golden Kumquat Tavern?
No. There was not.
Which meant more than a few of the sisters had already dealt with clients like this, and none of them had found it easy.
Now they waited to hear what answer their peerless queen of courtesans would give.
Especially the newer girls — those who had only recently stumbled into this life, who were still unfamiliar with Li Fei, and who had missed Li Fei's sermon the night they brought Zhihua-jie back from Qin's Apothecary. They watched with a more appraising eye.
These newcomers wanted to know: was the legendary courtesan everyone — clients and seniors alike — couldn't stop praising really as capable as the stories said? Or was she just a pretty face coasting on her looks?
"Someone pass me a cigarette."
The queen of courtesans smiled with an effortless air of calm and crossed her legs.
Lit by a dozen small flames reflected in her pupils, Li Fei touched the tip of a menthol cigarette to her fingertip, igniting it with the flame of a fire-element witch. Her upward-curved lips drifted in and out of view through the rising curl of smoke.
"It's not consoling. It's guiding."
Her voice was assured and unhurried, reaching every courtesan in the room:
"You need to understand — when clients like this are being tormented by negative emotions and start to tear themselves apart, if you respond by saying 'it's okay' or 'you're overthinking it' and try to console them with that — even with the best of intentions — you're actually negating her feelings. That will instinctively trigger resistance, even resentment."
"The right approach is to guide her. You put on an air of genuine empathy, and you follow her lead — I understand you. I hear your pain."
"Then, gently remind the client: since her emotions have been up and down, that means she's already conquered those dark feelings more than once before — she's already climbed out of the pit. That will rekindle her confidence and affirm all the effort she's put into fighting her way back up."
"And finally — you must express, with absolute conviction, that you believe in her. Let her feel that sincerity. Tell her you know she'll overcome this, and that more bright, sunny days are ahead of her."
"Of course, guiding and empathizing are only the core principles. Beyond that, patience, companionship, and physical presence are indispensable."
Li Fei — whose tendencies were drifting ever further toward the philosophy of tender on the inside, guarded on the outside — shared everything she knew without reservation, and the courtesans listened to her every word with undivided attention.
After laying out the key points clearly and accessibly, Li Fei took a sip of the pink drink, her gaze taking on a quiet, distant depth.
"In my view, this state is a kind of illness. It can be treated — seek out a mage of the Order alignment or the Life school."
"But once someone is in that state, they're like a drowning person. To escape the suffocating weight of those negative emotions, they'll struggle with everything they have, desperate to grab onto something — anything — to keep afloat."
"So my personal recommendation: extend your hand first. Give them that lifeline. Once you've made yourself the only pillar they have left to lean on — then remind them to seek treatment."
"That way, everyone wins."
Spoken lightly, yet the words landed in the ears of every courtesan in that room like a temple bell — each one felt as though a veil had been lifted from their eyes.
They looked at the queen of courtesans, and it was as though they were gazing at a mountain at the end of a long road — immovable, unconquerable.
"Like looking up at a mountain peak," one courtesan murmured in admiration, pressing her palms together.
"If the queen of courtesans had not come into this world, the Way of the Tavern would have been shrouded in eternal night," another sister said with a self-deprecating laugh. "I could never."
"I… I know what to do now." The junior sister who'd asked gave a fervent nod, trembling faintly — as one does when one has heard music from on high.
"Good."
The queen of courtesans nodded with a satisfied smile, then got up and settled herself beside the vampire courtesan Isabella. Of all the tavern girls, aside from Gneia and Aurora, Isabella was who Li Fei felt closest to.
Isabella was draped across the sofa without a care in the world, utterly unbothered by the dishevelment of her sleek silver hair. Her ruby-like eyes shimmered with vivid light. Her long, snow-white legs hung in the air, one foot lazily hooked around the heel of a black high heel she'd half-kicked off, letting it dangle and swing without letting it drop to the floor.
Very provocative. Li Fei quickly drew a comparison to her daughter-in-law Sofia, and after a moment's smelting process, cheerfully affixed a new stereotype to the vampire race:
Sheet-metal supermodel build.
"How come Aurora-jie isn't here tonight?"
Li Fei toyed with Isabella's fingernails — painted in vivid crimson — and asked with curious interest.
"Oh, her. She skips every other shift. You get used to it."
Isabella tilted her head, eyes locking with an unwavering gaze onto Li Fei's pale, elegant neck. She unconsciously licked her lips, the tips of her fangs just visible.
"Don't you dare bite me."
Li Fei's hand flew up to guard her throat.
"It won't hurt, I promise…"
"No way~"
The queen of courtesans interlaced her fingers and beamed.
"Fine, fine." Isabella let out a long-suffering sigh but shifted her attention to the hem of Li Fei's still-unworn uniform, tracing her fingertip along the edge with an unreadable expression. "This uniform does look somewhat familiar."
"Hm? You know Sofia?"
Li Fei looked curious.
"How could I not."
Isabella let out a quiet sigh, and her crimson lips curved — though the smile carried a faint edge of irony. "The princess of the Toredo Clan. The Duke's most beloved daughter…"
Oh. Quite the pedigree.
Li Fei raised an eyebrow, signaling with her eyes for Isabella to go on.
"But we're not close."
Isabella gave a small shrug. "After all… she has pure and noble blood. Even here in Loxibrook, she's still a respected officer of the law."
"And I… am merely a wine-girl who sells herself on her looks. And on top of that, I'm a…"
Remembering there were non-Witch sisters within earshot, she swallowed the second half of her sentence — a Witch whose identity can't see the light.
…I paid too little for her.
The thought flashed through Li Fei's mind and was gone. She reached out and took Isabella's hand in both of hers, her voice soft with reassurance.
"It's alright. All of you have a bright future ahead."
Home. Heels kicked off at the door.
Ram had prepared tonight's late supper: braised eggplant with minced meat, sweet-and-sour pork ribs, and stir-fried tiger liver.
It wasn't restaurant quality, but in this atmosphere — and from these hands — Li Fei ate every bite with more genuine pleasure than she'd had in a long time.
"Thank you for the trouble, Ram. Next time, just a tiny bit more salt."
Setting down her chopsticks, Li Fei smiled warmly.
"Noted."
Ram dipped her head to commit it to memory.
She might not master haute cuisine overnight — but she could always make the meal that suited Li Fei's taste best.
"Don't go yet."
The Mother of Fairies — who subscribed to the philosophy that warmth inspires other kinds of warmth — reached out to catch Ram before she could take the dishes away, then swept her gaze around the cluster of bright, pretty fairies nestled around her, the familiar hunger stirring.
So then — which lucky fairy would be chosen tonight?
The Mother of Fairies was suddenly struck by a brilliant idea.
So she bent down, unhurriedly rolled off her slate-blue crystal-silk stockings, then wrapped the still-warm fabric around her own head, covering her eyes.
"Let's play a little game of hide-and-seek."
"Whoever I catch… has to accept their punishment~"
Li Fei licked her lower lip, and smiled the smile of a thoroughly wicked ruler.
____
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