Chapter 26 - No such thing as a free lunch (1/2)
"This… this is…" Geoff stammered
Gray and Geoff stood before the "Casa di Tolleranza" they were said to go check out and both of them looked mischievously at each other. What the translator had said "Casa di Tolleranza" meant was "House of Tolerance", but the actual translation was… brothel… Both Gray and Geoff were not evil in nature, but nor were they completely pure. Naturally they were both curious so they came to the conclusion that they would go in just to broaden their horizons.
"Well, it is very loud in there so I'm guessing there is a lot of NPCs we could talk to…" said Gray innocently.
"Yes, let us go mingle with the locals!" said Geoff also trying to sound innocent.
Gray and Geoff walked side by side into the establishment like two brave adventurers exploring never before seen land. They pushed open the double doors and were momentarily blinded by the bright lights, when their eyes adjusted to the lights what they saw was not what they had pictured.
A large opulent main hall was adorned with bright lights that kept everything well-lit. Several round tables were lined up neatly in front of a large stage where a troupe of dancers were performing a highly energetic dance routine involving a lot of leaping and twisting to the music of a synthesized orchestra. Lined along the hall was several doors that each had a sign outside of it advertising what was inside. To their left a bar could be seen with several shelves of liquor and glasses on it and on the other side was a service desk of sorts that Geoff and Gray didn't quite know what it was for but it appeared to be selling tickets for shows since there were names, times, and costs written on a chalk board.
"This isn't what I expected, but it is lively though!" said Geoff.
"I know what you mean, but this is also a definition of a brothel as in ancient feudal China they were used for artistic entertainment as well."
Gray and Geoff paused for moment then looked back at you and said "Well played author, well played"
A large man with a scar on one cheek came up to them when Gray and Geoff tried to venture towards the tables near the stage. Gray assumed this would be a bouncer of sorts as he completely fit the stereotype.
"Tickets or Pass?" said the bouncer.
"Uhhh, nope…" replied Gray
"You can get both from the booth" said the bouncer while pointing at the service desk Gray and Geoff noticed before.
Gray and Geoff both nodded then walked over to the service desk where a middle-aged man dressed casually was smiling at them as they approached. "Greetings gents! Tonight you are in luck! Miss Maven will be singing tonight! For one ticket it will cost 100 Alliance credits, 150 if you want the general access pass instead that lasts until close. I also apologize we do not accept Hegemony credits!"
"Alliance and Hegemony credits? All we have are merits." Said Gray.
The ticket seller looked confused "Merits? We…"
The man suddenly thought of something and his confused expression changed back to normal. "I'm sorry, I was getting confused, one of my boys plays video games a lot and I was thinking about one of the units of currency he was talking about in one of his silly games. What I meant to say is we normally don't accept merits and you will have to exchange them for credits from one of the many banking hubs setup around each city. Unfortunately ours is not setup yet so if both of you would be willing to forget our blunder I will present both of you with a pass that will let you get in to every room for the rest of the night!"
Gray and Geoff were a little surprised but certainly were not going to say no to such a kind offer!
"Thanks a lot! We, uh, we promise not to mention this to anyone." Said Gray
"Excellent, and might I ask if any more players will be coming to our establishment?"
"Not that we know of, but I doubt any others will come since it cost us a lot of merits to get here." Said Geoff while shrugging.
The man instructed both Gray and Geoff to hold out their armlets and he touched them both twice with his scanner. "I've uploaded your passes to your armlets, please enjoy your visit!"
The man bowed slightly to Gray and Geoff as they went back to the bouncer to show him their passes. Under his breadth he muttered to himself "Damn players, thought they weren't coming for 4 more days"
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Gray and Geoff hurriedly showed their armlets to the bouncer that scanned them to verify their passes and then let them through to the main floor. Most of the tables had at least one person around them as Gray looked around the area. Although most of the customers were male, Gray saw a surprising number of female customers. As if Gray was the main character of some novel or something, a table near the front towards the right of the stage was open and Gray and Geoff helped themselves to a seat.