Chapter 93: Infiltrating the Pleasure Quarter

"Boss, you-you're serious? You really are willing to sell them to our place?"

"Yes, Mama-san."

The owner and proprietress of the Tokito House stared in disbelief at the four little girls beside the tall man.

Especially the white-haired girl — at a glance, she was clearly a noble-born young lady.

They just couldn't figure out why anyone would be willing to sell her into the pleasure quarter.

Looks like a fallen noble house, probably.

But that wasn't their concern — good business was good business.

The proprietress of the Tokito House gazed at the tall, handsome Tengen Uzui, and couldn't help feeling a little flutter.

Then, glancing at the four little girls beside him, she thought for a moment before giving her answer: "In that case, I'll pay double to buy all of them…"

"I'm sorry, Mama-san, you can only buy one of these three."

Tengen Uzui pointed at Tanjiro and the other two, speaking with feigned regret.

He still remembered what Zero had told him before they set out.

"Why? Is it the money? I'll pay triple… no, five times — how does that sound?"

"I'm truly sorry, Mama-san, but Yu Yu Lingzi has already been reserved by the Kyogoku House." Tengen Uzui could only spin a random lie.

"I see. Well then, I'll take this Tanjiro girl — she looks more honest."

"Yes, thank you, proprietress. I'll work hard."

Though the Tokito House madam felt regret at not being able to buy Yu Yu Lingzi,

in her eyes, with proper training, Yu Yu Lingzi would surely become a top courtesan no other house could match.

Even the top courtesan of the Kyogoku House might not compare to Yu Yu Lingzi.

But the Kyogoku House had snatched her up first — competition would only be fiercer now.

She could only settle for the next best thing and choose Tanjiro.

She had originally wanted to pick Inoko, but although Inoko looked pretty, she seemed a bit slow — probably not too bright.

As for Zenko, in her eyes she saw a kind of bashfulness that belonged to a boy.

That kind of bashfulness — the madam had seen it on virgins before.

But this was something that simply shouldn't appear on a girl.

So, to play it safe, she chose Tanjiro.

Tanjiro might be a notch below the others, but she looked honest and dutiful, a true hard worker.

It was also fortunate that Yu Yu Lingzi's makeup skills were formidable — unless heavy water washed the makeup off her face, no one would ever notice.

As for why Zenko showed that bashfulness, it was naturally because standing beside Yu Yu Lingzi, she had caught that special body fragrance of Yu Yu Lingzi's.

Combined with that face, the fact that she wasn't completely bent out of shape was already a mercy.

Afterwards, the madam took out double the price and handed it to Tengen Uzui, though when passing the money, she took the chance to brush his palm.

Not being able to buy Yu Yu Lingzi, but taking the chance to take advantage of a handsome man — that wasn't too much to ask, was it?

After that, Tengen Uzui led the remaining three to the other courtesan houses.

Along the way, they came across a top courtesan's parade.

"What's going on?" Inoko asked, puzzled.

"That looks like the Tokito House's top courtesan, Koi Summer — this is a top courtesan parade." Tengen Uzui explained.

"Oh, that wouldn't happen to be your wife, would it? She's actually that pretty…"

Thwack!

Tengen Uzui immediately gave Zenko a knuckle rap on the head and said: "Idiot, that's not my wife!! The 【Ranking Board】 has the name written right there, can't you see it!!"

Inoko watched the parade, picked her nose, and said impatiently: "Walking this slow — if we were in the mountains, they'd have been taken out long ago!"

Just then, a madam noticed the three girls beside Tengen Uzui, her gaze turning unusual.

Especially upon seeing Yu Yu Lingzi — that bearing, that aura… no ordinary girl could compare.

"Excuse me, boss, I'll take all three of these children. What's more, for that white-haired girl, I'm willing to pay five times the price — would that do? Oh, allow me to introduce myself — I'm the madam of the Ogimoto House."

Seeing this, Tengen Uzui quickly thanked her: "Really? That's truly wonderful, but you can only choose these two."

He pointed at Zenko and Inoko beside him.

"Why? If it's the money, I can pay ten times!" the Ogimoto House madam said anxiously.

This white-haired girl looked full of potential — she would surely outshine the top courtesans of both the Kyogoku House and the Tokito House.

A monopoly then — who'd worry about not making money?

"It's like this — Yu Yu Lingzi has already been reserved by the Kyogoku House, so I'm sorry, Mama-san." Tengen Uzui could only repeat what he'd said at the Tokito House.

"I… I see. Well, that's truly a pity… but these two girls aren't bad either."

Unable to buy Yu Yu Lingzi, the Ogimoto House madam felt it was a shame, but she still took out double the price and bought Zenko and Inoko.

Tengen Uzui took the money, smiling as he watched Zenko and Inoko leave.

"Take care, Zenko, Inoko!"

Not long after they left, Yu Yu Lingzi held out her hand toward Tengen Uzui.

"Uh… what's this?"

"A share for all who witness it — half each. Since I'm worth so much, taking half isn't too much, is it?"

"…"

Alright, he conceded defeat.

It really wasn't too much — after all, what came next still depended on Zero.

He then split the money, giving half to Yu Yu Lingzi.

Yu Yu Lingzi didn't stand on ceremony either, nor did she care about the eyes of those around her, and directly stuffed the money into her clothes.

In the end, Uzui Tengen led Yu Yu Lingzi to the last brothel — the Kyogoku House.

Arriving at the Kyogoku House, they found the madam.

The two sides exchanged a few words.

The moment the madam saw Yu Yu Lingzi, she was immediately struck by her beauty.

Such a beautiful girl — it was the first time she had ever seen one.

"You… you said… is it true? You're really willing to sell Yu Yu Lingzi… to my Kyogoku House?!" the Kyogoku House madam asked, somewhat unable to believe it.

"Yes, Mama-san."

"Then that's truly wonderful! In that case, I can't let you suffer a loss either. I'll pay three times… no, five times the price. Boss, please wait a moment while I go get the money!"

Seeing this, the madam didn't dare delay even a moment, afraid that Uzui Tengen might change his mind the next instant.

Such a beautiful girl with such enormous potential, if trained properly, would absolutely be stronger than the courtesan Warabihime.

Moreover, recently she didn't know what was going on with the courtesan Warabihime, but she always felt she was getting colder and colder, throwing tantrums and hitting people at the slightest provocation.

Several 【Kamuro】 had been swapped out because Warabihime had beaten them all injured.

Not only that, but deep down she even felt that Warabihime, she might…

Although Warabihime had brought quite a bit of business to her Kyogoku House, the madam herself only wanted to run her business properly and didn't want any other trouble to arise.

If her guess turned out to be true, one day Warabihime might get unhappy, and then the Kyogoku House might just…

Therefore, she wanted to train another courtesan.

A moment later.

The boss came to Uzui Tengen carrying a large bag of money and said: "Boss, please see if this is enough."

Uzui Tengen didn't even look and said: "I trust you, Mama-san. In that case, I'll be leaving first."

"Good, good, good. Then please take care on your way, Boss. Oh right, my name is Madam Sanjin. I hope there will be more good business like this next time — you can come find me directly."

Watching Uzui Tengen leave, she turned back to look at Yu Yu Lingzi.

The more she looked, the more satisfied and fond she became.

"Your name is Yu Yu Lingzi, right? From now on, just treat this place as your own home. I will definitely train you well and make you the most beautiful courtesan!" Madam Madam Sanjin said with a smile.

Yu Yu Lingzi didn't speak, only smiled and nodded slightly.

Madam Sanjin didn't take offense either, only assuming that since it was her first time in an unfamiliar place, she was a little nervous, and that once she got used to it, everything would be fine.

Afterwards, she led Yu Yu Lingzi to the second floor and found the best single room available. The decorations inside could be said to be even better than those of the courtesan's.

This was enough to show how great Madam Madam Sanjin's expectations were for Yu Yu Lingzi, this future courtesan.

"Yu Yu Lingzi, you'll have to bear with it for now and stay in this room. Later I'll send two 【Kamuro】 to attend to you. How does that sound?"

"Thank you."

It was only a brief sentence, two words, but in Madam Madam Sanjin's ears, it sounded even gentler than the courtesan Warabihime.

"Then you should rest first. In a few days, I'll send someone over to teach you some of the things a courtesan needs to do."

"Mm."

After explaining some simple rules to Yu Yu Lingzi, she finally left the room.

Yu Yu Lingzi came to the table and sat down. Inside the 【Nano Space】, she switched the drones to stealth mode, then released them all.

They flew out the window, monitoring everything in the surroundings.

Not long after, Madam Madam Sanjin returned once more.

She brought back two little girls, only about 10 years old, to Yu Yu Lingzi and said: "Yu Yu Lingzi, these two will take care of your daily life from now on."

Yu Yu Lingzi nodded and smiled: "Thank you for your hard work."

Madam Madam Sanjin smiled with satisfaction. Yu Yu Lingzi's attitude was really not bad.

After explaining a few things to the two little girls, she left.

The little girls stood at the doorway, somewhat trembling, not daring to speak.

"Come here for a moment." Yu Yu Lingzi smiled and beckoned them over with her hand.

The two were very obedient, cautiously making their way to Yu Yu Lingzi's side.

"What are your names?"

"I… I'm called Orik Setsu."

"I'm called Hanaki."

"Orik Setsu, Hanaki — very nice names. I'm called Yu Yu Lingzi."

Seeing that Yu Yu Lingzi was easy to get along with, the two little girls Orik Setsu and Hanaki gradually let their guard down.

They opened up and chatted happily with Yu Yu Lingzi.

…………

Ogimoto House.

"Wow, Boss, these two children are really beautiful!"

A geisha looked at the Zenko and Inoko brought back by the madam before her and couldn't help exclaiming.

"Of course! Although it cost several times the price, as long as we package these two up, they'll definitely be more popular than the Kyogoku House's Warabihime and the Tokito House's Koiatsu! It's just a pity we couldn't buy that Yu Yu Lingzi back, otherwise we could definitely make our Ogimoto House even more famous!"

"Boss, who is Yu Yu Lingzi?"

"Yu Yu Lingzi is also one of those girls. Let me tell you all about it…"

The madam recounted the entire story of encountering Yu Yu Lingzi and the others.

The geisha were also somewhat incredulous upon hearing it. Was there really such a devastatingly beautiful girl in this world?!

But looking at the boss's demeanor, it didn't seem like she was lying.

"Alright, you few, take them to familiarize themselves with the workings of Ogimoto House and the rules first. Treat the two of them well."

"Yes."

Afterwards, Yoshiko and Inoko were led away by the other geisha to familiarize themselves with the work.

Yoshiko was temporarily assigned to the work of playing the shamisen and biwa alongside the geisha, while Inoko was assigned to serving tea and water.

Yoshiko had assumed that the so-called "treating" meant being treated to good food and drink, but never expected it would mean playing the shamisen herself…

If it's going to be like this, wouldn't it be better to just stay with Yu Yu Lingzi~

Maybe if she stayed with Yu Yu Lingzi, she wouldn't have to work and could still eat and drink well…

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got, and the faster she played the shamisen and biwa — even better than the geisha beside her!

"Wow! This cute little girl is amazing at the shamisen! She's new, right?!"

"She is new. They say the madam bought her back for several times the price, and there's another one who's also very cute!"

"Really? Then didn't the madam make a killing?!"

The surrounding geisha buzzed with discussion, even more curious about Yoshiko and Inoko.

Tokito House.

Inoko's diligent, hard-working attitude won the geisha's affection.

"Inoko really is hardworking."

"That's right~ Although she has a scar on her forehead, she really is quite cute. The madam didn't lose out spending that money."

The geisha discussed among themselves when the madam walked over from not far away and said: "Stop chatting here, hurry up and get back to work."

"Yes."

Then she called out to Inoko again.

"Inoko, come here for a moment."

"Yes, Madam. Is there anything else you need help with?"

"We're a bit short on hands. Help carry these things to Koi-ka Courtesan's room, then go rest."

"Yes, Madam."

Under everyone's astonished gazes, she effortlessly stacked a huge pile of bundles together, then lifted them and carried them to Koi-ka Courtesan's room.

"Speaking of it… Inoko's strength… is way too much…"

"Y… yes…"

Looking at Inoko's expression, it didn't match her appearance at all.

Arriving at Koi-ka Courtesan's room, she saw two 【Kamuro】 whispering there, and also overheard something about "chūsoku."

"What is chūsoku?" Tanjiro set down the bundles, walked up to the two of them, and asked.

"Ah, Inoko-nee."

"Inoko-nee, you don't know what chūsoku is?"

The two little girls explained 【chūsoku】.

Chūsoku refers to working in the pleasure quarter and fleeing before one's debts are cleared — once caught, the consequences are unknown.

"The previous Suma Courtesan also…"

Suma! That's Mr. Uzui's wife…

Inoko clearly remembered that before Uzui Tengen set out, he had told everyone the names of his three wives.

They were respectively:

Suma of Tokito House.

Makio of Ogimoto House.

Hinatsuru of Kyōgoku House.

"Stop dwelling on those rumors." A beautiful woman walked in through the door, radiating an air of refinement and learning.

She was Koi-ka Courtesan.

"Tanjiro-imouto, come here for a moment."

"Yes."

Koi-ka placed a small bag of candy and pastries into Inoko's hands and said: "Thank you for helping me carry the things. These pastries are for you — find somewhere with no one around and eat them quietly."

"Thank you… Um, may I ask, is Suma Courtesan really a chūsoku…"

"Why would you ask such a thing?"

Koi-ka grew somewhat wary.

Seeing this, Inoko knew that if she said the wrong thing, she wouldn't be able to get the information she needed.

So she could only spin a lie: "Actually, Suma Courtesan is my… my… sister…"

But her face showed an unusually strange expression.

After all, the upright Tanjiro (Inoko) couldn't maintain a normal expression on her face.

Koi-ka and her two 【Kamuro】 were also startled by this strange expression.

But Koi-ka quickly calmed herself down, steadied her emotions, and said: "So you're Suma's little sister… After the elder sister, the younger sister was also sold into the pleasure quarter?"

"Y… yes. We had been in contact by letters before. My sister shouldn't be the type to do chūsoku."

"I see… Actually, I don't think little Suma would do chūsoku either. She's a serious, steady child — although in her diary she did write about wanting to do chūsoku…"

Koi-ka shared what she knew about Suma.

Inoko felt that Suma's so-called chūsoku was probably fake, and that even the diary was likely forged…

…………

One night had passed since infiltrating the pleasure quarter.

Uzui Tengen stood on the rooftop, watching the bustling street below, lost in thought.

But no matter what, he still had to carry out Zero's plan.

Before setting out, Zero told everyone his plan: if there was no news within five days, he would detonate the bomb and create some commotion.

And use himself as bait to lure out the Upper Rank demon.

And Uzui Tengen would need to rescue those hostages trapped in the underground cavern.

Tanjiro and the other two would evacuate the civilians.

Moreover, Zero decisively deduced that Uzui Tengen's three wives were still alive!

After all, once discovered, they would surely be interrogated for the Demon Slayer Corps' headquarters location and other important intelligence.

"Zero, you are truly flamboyant! I'll have to leave it flamboyantly in your hands then! Hahahaha!"

………