Chapter 01

(FAYALITE)

Biting my lower lip, I watched Milan dance almost naked on that stage where the light was red. She had a great body, I must admit. Aside from her sex appeal, her charisma attracted a lot of our clients, no wonder she was the highest-paid dancer here in the club and the favorite of the customers.

“You wanted money, right?” Julian asked. He was the person who saved me from being imprisoned when I ate in a restaurant without paying for it. Even though he did not know me, he still gave me a decent place to stay and gave me food. But in exchange, I would have to follow the steps of Milan.

I nodded in response to his question. Two months had already passed and I failed to locate the human vessel of Arsen, my beloved betrothed, here in the human realm. And unlike in our land, I was no princess here so I had to work, earn money, and look for him.

I stared at myself. My abdomen was fully exposed as well as my legs and shoulder blades. Only my chest and private parts were covered by a pair of undergarments having the same gold color decorated with a few golden strips of chains. It was not suited for a princess like me but this was all I could do to survive in this realm.

“This is your debut night so you should make a good impression. Remember the things Milan had taught you and you will be all right.” Julian held both of my shoulders and it seemed like he could tell how stiff they were.

He brushed my auburn hair to the back of my ear and gave me a smile. “You are beautiful, Fayalite. You should make use of that to seduce those men and earn tons of money. Don’t worry, I already promised you, didn’t I? You won’t be sleeping with any of those men.”

That was the condition I asked Julian before finally agreeing on his offer to dance on that same stage where Milan was showing off her body. Showing too much skin in front of men I was not betrothed was already a big mistake for a red fox princess like me to do. I was willing to break that rule but sleeping with men was not something I never wanted to do. Doing that would be a total shame upon my clan and I would no longer have any courage to face Arsen if I were to break that rule.

Julian cupped my cheeks as he initiated to take a few deep breaths, giving me a signal to follow him. I followed suit, hoping that my nervousness would at least be manageable before I step on that stage.

After a few minutes, the lights went off. That was my cue. Julian pushed me by the back and led me backstage as he kept on whispering encouraging words in my ear.

“Go on that stage, flaunt your beauty, and wrench out money from those men.” Those were Julian’s last words before he gave me a push to step out from backstage.

Would they really give me money? I was not as beautiful and graceful as Milan so I could not help but doubt if this action was worth doing. My heart that was once calmed after that few deep breaths suddenly beat faster when the light was on me.

I could not see clearly what the audience’s reaction was as they were cloaked by the darkness. Still, I shut my eyes to pretend like I was the only person in that room. When the slow music played, I crossed my wrists above my head while I looked at the side. Slowing down every move, I went along with the rhythm of the music.

Even though the music filled the entire room, the prominent sound ringing in my ears was my heartbeat. It was beating like crazy as if I returned to Oliviland and would have to face the angry king and queen upon knowing what I was doing right at this moment.

I let my hands fall slow on both of my sides almost touching my skin as I curved my hip to the right, making the gold loose straps sway on the opposite side. I badly wanted to cry out and leave the stage but what glued me to this place was the hope that if I endure, I would be able to find Arsen in this huge city. Julian and Milan were the only people I could rely on at this time of my need.

When I opened my eyes, I immediately regretted it. All eyes were on me that it heightened my fear I was afraid I might freeze on the spot and disappoint Julian. I could not even tell if they were pleased with how I was performing but I kept chanting in my head that this was all for my beloved man. I was desperate.

Within 10 minutes, I danced like that of a swan trying to impress her mate with both the silence and red light covering the entire room. Just like what Milan instructed, I turned my back on the eyes of the men to show off my bareback and turned my head on the side with my eyes slightly closed yet my gaze settled at the second floor of the bar. From there, I felt a cold shiver run down my spine when I locked eyes with a man having such a piercing gaze. Within three seconds in that position, the lights went off and relief showered over me.

Going backstage, I was greeted by Milan. I jumped on her and gave her a tight hug with my head nudging at the crook of her bare neck. I felt her warm hand rub my back, giving me comfort.

“You did great, Fayalite. Look.”

She broke our embrace and let me take a peek at the audience’s where the men were putting tons of money on their table as if making bets.

“What does that supposed to mean, Milan?” I asked.

A small smile was drawn on her lips as she turned to me and slightly pinched my chin.

“The person with the highest bet shall have you as an escort.”

I looked at her with curious eyes.

“An escort? Julian never mentioned it to me that I shall be seeing off the highest bidder.”

I was even more confused when she chuckled at my statement. I was being serious though. Milan patted my shoulder before pinching my nose like I was some sort of kid.

“Since you do not want to sleep with any man, you should at least escort them. And by escorting them, I mean having a date with them and accompanying them wherever they wanted to go. An innocent little girl like you is just too cute.”

After saying that, she left me since she was being called by an important client. Julian, then, came up to me with a satisfied smile plastered across his face.

Cupping my cheeks, he smiled. “Oh, you gorgeous little one! You have won over the favor of one famous person I did not expect to even appear here in my bar. You should be proud of yourself. Tonight, you shall be pampered by him.”

Before I could even react or ask more about being an escort, he grabbed my hand and led me into the changing room. He took a few dresses and after a few minutes, he grabbed a light red dress with a low neckline. Judging from his hurried action and expression, I could tell he was a bit excited even though he had not discussed this matter with me before. Handing me the dress, he pushed me into one of the little rooms.

“Dress up and meet me in the first VIP room upstairs!”

I spaced out a bit after hearing the door slammed shut. An escort? Going out on dates with a stranger was a bit off but… but if I were to go around the city, I might bump into that human vessel. Taking a few deep breaths, I put on the dress even though it was already uncomfortable to show off my cleavage.

Going out of the changing room, Milan leaned away from the wall and called out my name with such a soft voice. Her dark eyes grew softer compared to her usual composure so I was a bit confused why she looked like that.

Holding both of my shoulders, she said, “That person who won the bet to have you as an escort is a dangerous person. You should always keep your guard up and if he ever forces you to do something, use this.”

She handed me a black object that just fits on my palm. It had a button on it but I had no idea what it was used for. Could it be some kind of weapon that turns into a sword once I press the button? When I switched it on, I flinched when it produced some kind of lightning… was it a flash of small lightning?

“It is a stun gun. Also, bring this bag with you to keep it. I also put in some pepper spray. If he ever plans to assault you, spray it into his eyes and run away. Do you get it?”

I replied with a tight hug, feeling elated that she was looking after me despite us knowing each other for only a while. Since she was not the type to be physically intimate, she broke the hug after a few seconds. She gave me one last warning before we parted ways.

Walking upstairs, I took a few deep breaths before stopping at the door of the first VIP room. Okay, whatever happens, I must endure but if he were to attack me, I already have some weapons against him. Clenching my hand into a fist, I knocked on the door to inform anyone in the room of my presence.

“Enter.” His voice was low and husky, making me gulp as it gave me the impression that it was a man probably in his 40s already. From what Milan stated, she despised getting involved with 40-year-old men as they were already too old for her, especially when they already have wrinkled skins. However, in my case as a red fox and an immortal, 40 years old was simply a child.

Shaking my head to keep my mind straight, I held the knob and opened the door. The moment I entered, I caught a whiff of a very faint yet familiar scent.

“Arsen?”