Bab 4: Bathing in the middle of a forest.

"Sigh...listen. I know I told you that you can stay by my side, but that doesn't mean you can literally climb upon me like a snake... I warn you-" Stephanie hissed under her suppressed breath but Luna once again smiled from that nostalgic feeling.

"Hehe! Sorry~ but your warm beige skin is so smooth that I can't help but rub my skin against it. Mine's quite dry you see." Her heart's still unable to get over that feeling of gratitude towards God for giving her another chance.

It hasn't even been a minute since they entered the warm pool together for bathing and Luna has already loosened her control over her emotions which she has been holding in for so long. No wonder she was cuddling Steph's right arm like a small girl.

"Ugh..." But Stephanie was truly irritated by her this behavior. She never thought she would get stuck with this clingy girl. Something needed to be done. Fast!

"Okay so, tell me. Why are you... suddenly getting all so attached to me? What do you want from me? Have we ever met before?" She cautiously slid her arms out of Luna's grip and distanced herself as she couldn't tolerate the sight of her hand pressed between those soft round cushions. She was deeply embarrassed, much to her own surprise.

Her question alerted Luna that she became silent all of a sudden before finally speaking.

"... Yes. We have met before. You probably don't remember it because...you were in a rush at that time, but that day you saved my life from a running thief who was holding a knife. If you hadn't pulled me at that time in the street market, I would've been stabbed and seriously injured." Luna deliberately lied.

Even though it was all a made-up story, she first wondered if she should tell Steph the truth about her past life, but the confession was very risky so Luna just let it slide under the rug for the moment. Stephanie has always been very impulsive, thus she cannot afford to sever their newly formed bond with an unbelievable truth.

"Eh? I really don't remember. But never mind." Thankfully Steph didn't pay much attention to the matter or rather tried not to because from her perspective she could see Luna was mistaking her for someone else.

People have already divided into groups and they occupied different spots in this artificial brick-layed pond. Naturally, the queens captured the best spot under the shade of an old wisteria tree while on the opposite end, small patches of lone wolves like Stephanie and Luna watched them, standing naked under the dazzling sun.

The pool was surrounded by planted jungle which was marked as a privacy wall from the mansion. And surprisingly it was very effective because of its high density and single passage as the entrance.

'On second thought, this is quite a good experience. I feel like I am in an open jacuzzi blessed with the beauty of nature. The water channeled through the natural hot springs nearby is perfectly warm and relaxing to my body.

I can bet there's no place like this in the future I lived in. And even if it does, then I am sure it must be at the cost of one's fortune for only an hour-long bathing session.

With the poverty I lived in, even getting to see such pools from far away would've been a huge miracle.

But maybe God pitied my life that he gave me this pleasure to enjoy this public bath with my best friend.'

Luna smiled gently as she embraced the subtle sun rays falling upon her rosy cold skin and welcomed the cool breeze to play with her damp hair whose ends danced on the waves of sparkling surface of the water. Her body naturally flaunted those curves sculpted on her body and from a distance, Stephanie watched it all.

A bit inspired by her actions, she too looked above with closed eyes and sensed her surroundings. The distant noise of women gossiping, the feeble sound of water rippling around her torso but dead silence under it, the chilling breeze getting numb by the warm sun.

How did she miss all of this despite living here for more than a year?

The regret was evident on her face, but she didn't mind it as something more interesting has gained her attention. And that was standing right beside her.

"Stephanie?"

"Hmm? What is it?" She calmly replied back to the chirp of that bird and finally opened her grass green eyes to let them glitter under the shade of her long red lashes.

"Have you...have you ever thought about escaping this place?" But the question she asked forced Stephanie to come back to her stiff self. She immediately grabbed Luna by her shoulders and looked around to see if anyone was present near them.

"Shhh! Do you wanna get beheaded or something?! Don't say such things so boldly out in the public!" She hushed Luna in an anxious whisper while looking straight into her eyes.

"B...But!"

"No buts'! We'll discuss this thing later, so shut it. I know a place so until then don't even think about discussing this with anyone else. This place is filled with moles so be careful at every step you take. Understand?"

"Yes..." Luna lowered her gaze in disappointment as despite this being her second time, she once again made such a stupid mistake.

It felt horrible to her.

Everyone was done bathing and all were now resting in the giant bedroom they shared multiple small beds aligned in two lanes, waiting for a maid to arrive and notify them about their meal being ready. Since the mansion was specially built as a prostitutes' residence, aside from the girls, it only consisted of servants and guards assigned for management and security.

But as the emperor is usually busy in the main castle, the prostitutes had nothing to do but take care of themselves, not only from the injuries given by the emperor but also from the harassment they secretly received from the workers.

Instead of a proper three meals a day, they were only provided with two. A brunch at one past noon and dinner after sunset. Not to mention the watery soup and stale slices of bread as their main menu.

The girls were stripped of their normal clothes and were only allowed to wear the 'provocating' ones, as maids would say it, according to the emperor's direct orders because he could show up here at any time of the day.

But many girls had suspicion if it was really the emperor who passed that rule.

The life of a prostitute obviously was very tough here. Locked inside the four giant walls, they were forced to listen to the maid's taunts and lustful stares from the door guards every day.

Many had even committed suicide in the past but the cause of their death was discreetly removed even from the legal documents. The only way to get expelled from this mansion was to lose the emperor's interest in them. But as none of them had any family support, they had nowhere else to go to. It was wiser to remain in this fancy hell as a shelter than be thrown into the forest of wolves as an abandoned sheep.

There's a rumor that someone in the past once tried to escape, but unfortunately, the poor bird got caught and was beheaded in front of everyone on the very next day. Her head carrying a horrified expression was thrown at the foot of the previous queen of this mansion as an example and ever since then, nobody dared to raise an objection against the emperor and his men...

The messenger finally arrived an hour late, as usual, and the girls got ready to leave instantaneously. Their stomach was roaring loudly and in the depths of hell like this, they used times like these to lighten their mood by discussing ad gossiping about their favorite foods, what they all liked to cook, or how their life used to be outside.

It wasn't significant, but at least it helped them to divert from the stress.

Luna was wearing a backless light weight sky-blue gown that lasted up to her knees along with a few cuts exposing her thin waist. Since the neck wasn't too deep, it helped Luna to look somewhat decent and she covered her back with her long raven hair.

A thin silver head chain in the name of accessories was enough for her to look gorgeous. She walked along with Stephanie who was wearing a black cloth wrapped around her torso in such a way that it completely covered her up to the neck and only exposed her back and a little portion of her thighs above the knee. She had made a modern cocktail dress on her own!

"You look so gorgeous! Did you use a bracelet and a hair tie to tuck the fabric circularly inwards?!" Luna was impressed upon seeing her fashion idea. She never once realized Stephanie had such a great talent, but on a second thought, she wondered if it was actually a skill or a necessity developed to protect one's dignity.

For confirmation, she looked around and noticed a similar fashion trick on the queens' outfits as well.

Someone had probably invented this in the past and since then it has been passed down to others to cover their body as much as possible.

'But nevertheless, Stephanie still looks much better than those queens dressed in red and loaded golds. They're ruining their appearance by overdoing it.'

Shifting back to Stephanie, Luna gets to see her astonished face with a slight tincture of red spread over her cheekbones. Her lips painted red were tightly pressed in denial, but it was futile to resist her own complexion.

"Ahem! Thanks. You look great in that outfit too. It suits your personality." Steph angrily averted her gaze and started walking ahead of Luna, who was on the verge of laughing.

"Wait! What do you mean it suits my personality?!" She followed her from behind cheerfully and matched along with her footsteps.

"Nothing much. It just feels... How should I say it? It somehow feels calm and refreshing whenever I see you being you. It's almost as if your soul is the endless bright sky at which I am looking..." Stephanie seemed to be mumbling to herself as she recalled Luna's enchanting smile from that bath. But what surprised Luna the most was the fact that it wasn't her first time hearing that from her mouth. A desire to relive those ancient memories did arise in her mind but unfortunately, the curse would allow it.

"Th..thanks. I really appreciate it." She blushes and bashfully walks a little behind to hide it as she continues.

"Your outfit seems to match your personality as well." She said as a polite gesture but it backfired as Stephanie picks up on that with a contrasting tone.

"You mean I got a black heart? Haha! Well, I can't argue with that." She laughed as no one ever told her this that frankly. She didn't hate it, instead, she was impressed by Luna's courage. But her amusement was immediately cut off when a loud voice interrupted her chuckle.

"No! That's not what I meant!" Luna protested and argued.

"Your red hair represents your bravery and your sexy black dress shows how strong and beautiful you are. The way you walk in that dress clearly shows your confidence. It's as if you are indestructible despite any difficult circumstances that come your way.

A strong, bold confident woman with an insane level of beauty and skills. What more can a woman demand of?" It seemed like an ass-licker's flattery at first but the fiery gleaming in Luna's eyes said so otherwise. She was being serious, a bit too much, which with all honesty stunned Stephanie by hearing this opinion of her.

Her tongue struggled to find words on how to react to this. "Uh. Thanks! I..you sure are very good with your words, surprisingly." Was all she could say as an improvised answer but that was enough for Luna's heart.

"Hehe! I ain't that good. I was just telling the truth. Oh, look! It seems we are finally here!" She pointed at the front with a childish smile and they both approached the huge entrance of the dining hall.

The bond was at last sealed as they walked together while holding hands.