"Sorry for setting you up like that. I didn't want to snatch your prey, but fighting them there would put us in a really tough spot."

While following Damash into the Inn he mentioned before, Mike explained himself before Xyenna. While it might sound strange for boss throw excuses to his employee, young trader really wronged his guard back then.

Even while they were travelling to this city, there was a great tension born from the girl's dissatisfaction with her ability to showcase her worth. As a personal bodyguard, she was protected by her VIP frequently, yet every time she could prove that investing in her was a good decision, Mike in one or another way thwarted her advances!

To top it off, threatening a bodyguard was legally understood by all western countries as an act against his employer, yet despite all those occasions where Xyenna could legally exert herself and aim to gather some more battle experience, she had to stand down in the end!

"You made it up by setting that duel. Forget it already!"

Clearly not in the mood to talk, Mike companion cut the talk. Yes, she was granted a promise for her desired fight, but her blood was boiling now! Not in the future!

"Couple's quarrels?"

Observing the duo on the carriage couch caused Damash to burst with a short laugh. Just a moment later, they finally arrived before massive doors with an honest amount of iron fitting. From the street, there was almost to sound coming from the building. Only when the noble officer finally opened the way to the Inn, did the wave of hearty laughs, friendly quarrels and the obviously drunk song hit them.

"How's the day going, Dam?"

They didn't need to wait for a long time before the innkeeper spotted and greeted their guide.

"Who did you brought with yourself?"

"A new friends that I met at the city gate recently. In just a few minutes, they almost killed Town's guards and set up a duel with their officer for the day after tomorrow. Apparently, this young man here has some businesses with our merchants!"

Unbothered by the bustling atmosphere appearing in every tavern all around the world, Damash shouted over to his friend.

"Oh, I just realised. I never got to know your names!"

"I'm Mike and this sulky girl behind me is Xyenna, my bodyguard."

Contrary to what could be often found in adventurous stories told around the firepit, save for the innkeeper, no one paid any heed to their arrival. Those people were coming to the Inn to rest after work and drink with their friends, not to pick on any newcomers!

"Since it's your first night at Uveno, forget about any official blabbering. Sit down, enjoy the great meal and our beautiful maids, and keep your matter for tomorrow. Today's work is over, now it's time for the fun part!"

Surprisingly, someone actually noticed them! Be it because one of the trio was a stunningly beautiful girl, be it because of Damash appearance. In the end, Mike enthusiasm got extinguished before it even had a chance to start burning. Right as he turned intending to negotiate the situation with the owner of the voice, a massive hand suddenly slammed him down on the bench.

"Don't even think about reasoning with us! All those petty tricks performed by Town's hall are really exhausting. While you earned some brownie points for standing against those fuckers, don't lose our sympathy by being so stingy with time!"

A burly man sitting opposite to where Mike got seated by some other guests raised his beer mug and cheered.

"For all those beautiful women out there! Maybe some of them will finally find their way to this place!"

What was probably aimed to be a silly joke suddenly resulted in the man almost choking on his beer when he saw Xyenna annoyed gaze. Those weren't the eyes of some maidservant. Those were the eyes of a hunter in an extremely bad mood!

"Don't listen to this old drunkard."

In a timely matter, a lively maid appeared out of nowhere and put a plate full of delicious-looking food in front of the Imperial duo. With the usage of some kind of strange magic, she instantly pulled two beers from behind her back and dropped them on the table with a cute smile.

"Enjoy your stay here!"

Even if that would prove to be a bad move in the future, Mike was just a normal guy in his early twenties! Even if he was perfectly conscious of Xyenna deadly stare, he couldn't help but escort shapely and barely covered the bottom of the maid as far as he could. There was a great chance that only because of her consideration for the good mood everyone around, Xyenna had limited herself to muttering quick "Leecher".

Looking at the events in the tavern, an honest observer would never guess that they were taking place in the starving country! Overflowing wine and beer, tables bending under the weight of the fancy dishes, cute and barely dressed maids lively loitering around the place while carrying yet another serving… This place definitely was special!

"I'm tired. I will rent rooms for us, you can stay and enjoy the moment."

Probably uncomfortable in this typical man's cave, Xyenna swiftly excused herself, took some money from Mike's pouch and left for the counter. Just a moment later, she disappeared on the stairs.

Blink of an eye later, the place beside Mike that she was usurping just a moment ago, already got filled by yet another cute maid that instantly glued herself to the young man's arm. Apparently, his longing gaze didn't escape the watchful eyes of the owner!

Besides the obvious merits of the current situation that included, for example, a specific type of pleasant warmth that enveloped both sides of his hand, surprisingly every maid could somehow produce refills without even moving for an inch!

Only after chugging down two big cups of the local brew did Mike finally exhaled and relaxed. What surprised him on the other side was how much an admiring gaze from his cute little companion could encourage him to reach for yet another mug!

"That's what I was speaking about!"

Shortly after a young man saw the bottom of his third glass, the guy insisting on leaving the business matters aside laughed. Only now did merchant realise that his joyful expression could come from the pair of sneaky girls that were using their whole body to hug both his arms.

Maybe because of the perfect lighting system installed in the hall, but for whatever other reason, Mike suddenly realised something. Most of the maids he could see around were wearing a very short top that highlighted theirs… attributes, rest of their uniform clothing comprised short, sylphlike skirt, where some strange strips connecting to the knee-high socks held the cloth in its place.

What caught Mike's eye though, was that most of those skirts folded in a slightly different way than those belonging to the servants of his burly drinking companion! While even his maid cloth was orderly kept just below the ethical line to cover maid's charms, the situation was different on the opposite front!

"See, everyone is noticing them eventually!"

Noticing where Mike's gaze was travelling too, his table companion laughed up and hung his beer high into the air.

"Cheers to Galamand the great!"

"Cheers!"

Instantly after the toast was raised, the whole hall cheerfully responded! It was as if an eruption happened in the building, throwing everyone's hands high up!

"Don't look at me like that!"

The burly man laughed right into Mike's face.

"We have a tradition here, whenever we enjoy some kind of local invention, we cheer for its creator!"

"But what is this invention? What do you mean?"

Maybe because his brain was already slightly mulled down from the alcohol, maybe it was the influence of the cute pet rubbing herself on his arm, Mike didn't really catch the counterpart meaning.

"I'm speaking about those skirts of course!"

As soon as the question was asked, the man burst out in even greater laugh and lifted the skirt of the maiden to his right. Surprisingly, while it gave some gift to the imagination, it actually didn't reveal almost anything! Those strange strips apparently prevented the cloth from revealing any vital parts!

"We have a special kind of drink here! Instead of gulping it down like you just did, you need to be really careful around it!"

At this moment, a man's face took a conspiratorial look as he slightly bent over the table to get closer to Mike.

"But for every time you drink it, you may remove one strip!"

As he whispered those words, he yet again erupted with jovial laughter.

"Remember, what you drink, it's yours for the night! But every maid has a different number of those stripes! Every time she gets conquered, she will remove one of them permanently! So as you might have probably noticed, your little thing is yet to be won! Consider it as both a gift and a challenge!"

Surprisingly enough, this bit made the whole hall erupt with the cheers yet again! In this kind of situation, there was no way that a proper man like Mike could back out!

"Bring me this booze!"

He shouted and turned his eyes down at the petite girl squirming around his arm.

"For every drink, I have the right to remove one strip, and whatever results I will achieve they are mine for the taking?"

While others might account that to the great body specifics, Mike's gift "unspoiled" side effect was the ability to cleanse his body from most of the toxins! Lightly stimulating this part of the gift allowed him to clear his head enough to return to his usual scheming self.

"You are absolutely right! But you ought to know that this isn't just a stronger drink! It will arouse your senses and increase your responsiveness, In other words, it has an effect of an aphrodisiac!"

Suddenly turning serious, a man put out a tough expression and stressed those points out.

"The more you drink, the harder it will get for you to remain sane. The time or your maid's reward are the only ways to alleviate the effect of this drink. Be advised that if you freaking out, we won't bother to be gentle with handling you!"

While those words could sound scary, from the impatience and expectations written on everyone's faces, he quickly understood what this sentence actually meant.

"Bring it on!"

*****

"How do you intend to deal with him?"

While Mike was waiting to be served a plate of drinks, Damash was talking with two of his friends at the Inn counter.

"I think we should go with the number two. No matter the outcome, we stand nothing to lose and much to gain!"

From the slightly devious expression of the person speaking, one could infer nefarious meaning behind his words.

"Don't you think that it's a bit wasteful? Why invest so much attention to just some small fry? In the worst-case scenario, we will just use his duel!"

Damash protested weakly, as if not sure about the power of his arguments. While he kind of used newcomer during the incident at the gate, he quite liked his wits. Not to speak about the idea he proposed!

"Don't worry and just observe! If not anything else, at least we will see quite a show!"

******

Back at Mike's table, the young merchant could finally see the task he had to accomplish. Row after row of small glasses filled with some kind of sparkling, violet drink. The aroma that it spread around smelled like tulips mixed with sweet berries. Not daring to waste any time, trader reached for the first bit, when the young cuddly thing on his side stopped his movement and pulled his arm back.

Finally letting go of his hand, she smiled shyly as she jumped and sat right on his lap. With an adorable smile, she skillfully reached behind her, grabbed the first glass from the row and raised it to her mouth. With an erotic pose, she threw her head to the back, bending her sensual body. When the entirety of the liquid finally ended up in her mouth, she kept it inside for a few moments while letting Mike adore the exposed curves of her waist and chest, only to let her head returned to its normal position a moment later.

As soon as her eyes levelled up with Mike's, she held his head in her hands and closed in. After a second of insane softness pressing against his lips, a flood has begun. With her jiggly tongue prying open his lips, all the liquid she stored in her mouth poured into Mike's throat.

The instant wave of heat struck him. The second it happened, he tightened his embrace on the girl's waist. With the drink flowing through his organism, he almost instantly felt his brother reporting for the duty and immediately rubbing against the hidden oasis of the girl above.

Apparently, this way of doing things makes the challenge even harder, since the more he was to drink, the more of this brew would end up in the girl's blood. Making both parties aroused to the limits would only serve as a vicious circle through the process of the challenge!

Breathing in the sweet smell of sweat right into his nostrils, Mike guided the maid eyes towards the plater behind. Startled by his drive towards the booze, she bent her waist a bit, forced by the drug flowing in her blood to actually look where she was reaching.

Moments after, the whole process repeated itself. This time, however, the girl's tongue freely ventured around the insides of Mike's mouth, making an acquaintance with its male counterpart. This kiss also lasted a lot longer than the first one!

As they finally separated their lips, the maid's face was flushed red. Her haggard breathing could be seen from the swaying of moderately sized goods in front of the young man's eyes.

"Two drinks, means I have to right to remove two strips, am I right?"

Suddenly breaking the intimate connection that developed between him and the petite girl, Mike turned his attention back to the real world and the man sitting beside the table.

"Yes! Feel free to enjoy your rewards!"

As usual, the man replied with a hearty laugh.

Looking back into the girl's eyes that were already flooding with the hidden desire, he pointed his chin at the glasses.

"Another one!"

When the girl hesitantly broke the eye contact and twisted her waist to reach for the drink, Mike reacted.

As if following her movement and keeping adoring her body, he raised his hands to the level of her chest, avoiding the front side though!

Only when the maid threw her head back to intake the liquid again, did he suddenly pinch and in the end - sever the two thin twines connecting the front and back layer of her breast cover.

Surprised by the unexpected event, the startled girl swung her head forward, spitting mouthfuls of the drink in the process. Ignoring the astonished silence that ensued after his action, Mike greedily slammed his head against girl's waist and started licking down the liquid flowing down from her mouth through her neck, collarbone, breasts and belly. Following the traces of the liquid, his mouth quickly dried her exposed abdomen, the young man moved on and attacked her breasts.

Stunned by the flow of the events, the maid wasn't able to hold her mouth shut, making the remaining liquid flow down her body yet again. That only added the fuel to the fires of Mike's lust. Kneading one of her proud mountains with one hand and ravaging the other with his mouth, the young man quickly brought the girl to the verge of climaxing.

As if in a try to calm herself down, the cute maid did her very best to claim yet another glass from the table. While it felt dangerous when one was starting to drink, after igniting the drug with one's arousal, a person would feel the urge to drink more and more of it, like it had some kind of cooling effect!

As a matter of fact, that was only an illusion brought by the master brewer who came up with this drink. While giving a false sense of security, it only stacked its effects on the person who drank it!

While others might've thought that Mike already lost himself in the colourful phase, it wasn't actually the case!

The ability that was bestowed on him was "Unspoiled". While one might consider it a great tool for a merchant dealing with foodstuff, during his eventful life Mike figured out its other applications!

Constantly driving his blessing to its very limits, he was able to keep his head clear enough to notice a slight hand sleight when the maid grabbed the drink! While the great lightning provided the guest with a perfect environment to have fun, it also allowed Mike to spot small drops of some powder landing in the brew and instantly dissipating within!

Others might instantly get alarmed and focus all of their attention on the unannounced addition in the drink, Mike actually couldn't help but feel impressed how this maid kept her mind clear enough to try this kind of tricks!

Realising that the maid already brought the drink up to her mouth, Mike had to decide as soon as possible. While he was capable of detoxing himself to a certain extent, his energy was already substantially impaired! Taking yet another unknown substance, one given to him in such an elaborate way, was simply too risky!

The instant that girl allowed the drink to flow into her mouth, Mike jumped up!

Since the maid was sitting on his lap, she shot up, only to be slammed down on the table when Mike crushingly laid on her, forcing his tongue into her mouth!

He couldn't allow anyone to notice that he was sober! He had to keep the act up!

Connecting their mouths made some of the enhanced drink instantly mix with his saliva and enter his stomach. Firing himself up, he started rubbing his upper body on the exposed maid chest, while forcing the drink down her throat.

For outsiders, that might have looked like a desperate action of the man in heat, but the maid understood the implication of the situation! She enriched the drink herself and despite all the heat and aphrodisiac making her thinking slow down considerably, her pupils still managed to expand as her body shivered.

Feeling the slight shrug of the other party, Mike played along and made his movements more frantic while tightening his handgrip of her right breast. In just a moment, he stiffened and relaxed. Hiding his face in the maid's hair, he closed his eyes and stabilised his breath. Driving his blessing to its limits, he tried to purify as much of the drug in his bloodstream as he could, but in just a moment he hit his limit and felt exhaustion overwhelm him!

Decomposed by the influence of Mike's gift, aphrodisiac turned into yet another usual drug, instantaneously making him pass out.