After the three girls are forced to relinquish their weapons in a temporary holding room, the four of us take in all the amazing sights that the Besthal Pet Shop has to offer, and that’s a hell of a lot of sights.

Everywhere you look there’s a Beastfolk as far as the eye can see. It’s a very, very big tent and I believe it could hold several hundred people if it absolutely had to. The main area is structured almost like a bazaar in and of itself, with smaller tents set up inside split into two halves. A helpful, young Catfolk girl with cute black hair and purple eyes working the entrance lets us know that there are boy Beastfolk in the left tents and there are girl Beastfolk in the right tents.

‘Can we see the boys, too?’ Zutiria asks with eyes that betray a hint of her excitement. 

“Of course. We’ve been waiting to visit for weeks. We may as well treat it like a fun little group date, shouldn’t we?”

‘I see what you’re getting at, Sir.’ The Mage adjusts her glasses and they shine as she all but reads my mind.

As much as Zutiria and I are trying to cool off today, the new powers of my eye are far from forgotten by either of us.

I look towards Sam in specific, knowing that her Bond Level gauge is still on the precipice of reaching the next level. Sure, we don’t know much of what it means yet, but it’s obviously a good thing, right?

Rather than being clingy as she would typically tend to be during group outings, Zutiria forces herself to withdraw from my side so that I can ambush Sam. The Princess blushes as I rush forward and take her hand in mine. “What do you say, Sam? Date?”

She raises an eyebrow and laughs. “Kind of weird to bring three of your four girlfriends out on a date to literally go buy you some new pussy, Boss.”

“Four and a half. Don’t leave poor Gwin out.”

...

Sam bursts into laughter at my inappropriate joke. “You’re on a roll today, first the casual sexism and now some good old fashioned racist jokes?”

“Just figured I’d brush up on my human supremacist humor, I feel I’ll be in dire need of it when meeting your extended family one day.”

Sam freezes in place, her face becoming somehow both elated that I’m even bringing up the possibility of meeting her family and then simultaneously remembering that she indeed comes from a family that indeed has long since dabbled in ‘purging the nonhuman filth’ from Karnalle every couple hundred years. “T-T-T-THAT’S NOT FUNNY.”

Even Meri decides to join in on the joke, smiling at Sam as she says, “But racist jokes are?”

Sam blushes feverishly and yells very loudly in this very public area filled with nonhumans, “I’M NOT RACIST! I LOVE NONHUMANS!”

Everyone just kind of gawks at her and she well and truly realizes how much of an ass she made out of herself. “N-No one in my family even believes in that kind of crap... right NOW, anyway...” She sweats even harder.

‘Give Cedric some time.’ Zutiria shakes her head and begins walking towards the first of the boy Beastfolk tents to distance herself from Sam.

There’s that name again. I open my mouth to speak but Meri beats me to it. “Crown Prince Cedric? That would mean...”

‘Sammy’s oldest younger brother. Handsome, smart, talented, strong... truly, a proper gentleman in every sense of the word so long as you can avoid giving him even the slightest chance to voice his astonishingly regressive views on blood purity.’

...

I... really, REALLY hope that doesn’t mean what I think it means, but judging from Sam’s dead, distant, stone-faced expression it seems to be the case. I’m not even going to remotely consider the implications of that statement right now.

Meri seems to notice the sudden sinking of everyone’s moods and clasps her hands together to get our attention, “W-What are we waiting for? We can still have our fun little group date!”

Our favorite Princess groans and starts holding my hand again as we both walk towards the first of the Beastfolk tents. “I changed my mind. Fuck being your link to the Royal Family, I never want you to meet them...”

“Yes well, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it... Princess.”

She smirks up at me and leads me to the tent within a tent, “If you say so, Daddy.”

...

No?

Nothing?

Damn. That was a cute, flirty little romantic moment, I thought... I was hoping it would get the Bond Level up where it needed to be but it’s not enough apparently.

I don’t really know how this whole new eye system works fully, obviously, but it’s safe to assume it goes up from spending time with each other and having big intimate moments like what happened the night before with Zutiria.

Personally I think it’s a bit unhealthy to think of my relationships like this in terms of purely numerical values, and that spending time with them solely to ‘level up’ those values is... a bit cynical of me, but whatever. It’s clearly a system meant to make me stronger and I’m only really dwelling on it because of how close Sam is to reaching level two.

We’ll get there soon enough, I-

‘...Told ya you’d figure it out.’ Luxy’s voice calls out to me out of nowhere, much to my surprise.

...I didn’t think you’d want to talk to me so soon.

‘Yeah, well... it’s just a quick check in. D-Don’t read into this shit too much, it’s not like I... feel bad about anything, or... y’know. Ugh. Just... Don’t stress too much about the Bond Levels and stop thinking about shit. Go adopt some kitties and spend a damn mental health day on yourself for once.’

That’s... uh... thank... you?

‘Hmph.’

...

Are you actually trying to look out for me, Luxy?

...Luxy?

...

I can’t feel her presence anymore, and it was a very quick exchange so I didn’t end up drawing attention to myself.

None of the girls seem to have noticed, as we entered the first of the boy tents and they seem preoccupied petting a lot of smaller, young-looking cat boys. This must be the ever popular ‘Shota’ breed that’s been popping up lately... or so I’ve read.

I end up giving one of them an ear scratch but have to stop after it gets a little too creepy for my taste. The girls seem to get a kick out of watching me pet him, though. Sorry, ladies. As much as I love you, that’s one line I’m not ever crossing...

A darker desire does stir though when I see Sam giving some headpats to a docile, purple haired Catboy. I think to myself that it must be nice being that small, and getting pampered by older women in such a state must be lovely...

The thought doesn’t last long, though.

As we make our way through the remainder of the boy tents, I keep thinking back to Luxy. I thought for sure she’d leave me alone for at least a week after our altercation... and I certainly wasn’t expecting 

A well-being check, of all things.

She’s right, though. Best not to think about it.

Each tent of boy Beastfolk is home to a wide variety of strapping young lads of every build. Mainly canines and the occasional feline, the rare bear or two, and even a number of mischievous looking vulpines could be seen mixed in here and there.

Male Beastfolk are valued for their stamina and their raw power and go for a very high price depending on what they specialize in. That’s not to say female Beastfolk are any less strong by nature, just that the Breeding Tribe prioritizes training their young into more defined gender roles to suit Karnallian tastes.

After a little under an hour of playful banter and getting to know a couple of the young male Beastfolk up for adoption we finally finish up our tour of this half of the Besthal Pet Shop. As me and the girls cross over into the female half of the tent, I suddenly find it much, much easier to focus on.

Naturally, I have no idea why...

Before we start perusing, I remind myself of Opalina’s advice. According to the good doctor she said she had a fairly good idea of which ones I picked and warned me that sometimes it said that it pays to be cheap.

As far as vaguely worded advice goes, that’s... really not all that vague. She basically just told me to look on the cheaper end of the spectrum and that’s more than fine by me. I came here hoping to spend a maximum of 200,000G, but if we can get at least two for less than that it’d also be ideal.

Eventually after enjoying our time in the first couple of tents, especially the one filled with buxom and inviting Bunnyfolk, we come across the exact tent we’re looking for.

One part cat...

One part maid...

The result?

A blessed combination that sets the hearts and dreams of men aflutter, each half coming together in perfect unison to create so much more than the sum of their parts. Sam and Zutiria each fill up with excitement much the same as I do, darting off to different parts of the room to chat with all the different girls on offer. The three of us have been waiting for weeks now since making that decision to eventually adopt some Catfolk maids so they’re just as ecstatic to finally see the lucky girls themselves up close and personal.

Meri sticks close by to me as we talk to a number of different maids and examine them very thoroughly. All these girls seem very kind and although their body types range very heavily, they’re each incredibly beautiful in their own distinct way. Some have long, fluffy tails, others have very thin ones, and all of them have lovely markings and patterns amongst their fut. Their maid uniforms are varied between the different girls leading me to assume that they’re allowed to pick whatever dress they feel helps showcase their assets best.

The only problem is that all of them seem to be much more expensive than I was expecting. Even the lower end of the spectrum starts at 200,000G for a single girl now, leading me to believe that the Catfolk Maid trend has become even bigger thus leading to a raise in demand. Good for the Breeding Tribe, not so good for my financials. I definitely wanted at least two girls, as the Guild is a very large building with many rooms I haven’t even mentioned as of yet.

It’s going to need a lot of work.

After seeing the different girls on their own, Sam and Zutiria rejoin us. Neither look too thrilled about our potential prospects.

“I didn’t think they’d be that expensive... seeing how we had so many of them at home, I thought they were... I dunno, cheaper?” Sam sighs.

‘Typical rich kid. Doesn’t know the value of a piece of gold.’ Zutiria sarcastically shakes her head causing Sam to blush, knowing there to be some truth in the Mage’s words.

“The cheap ones Opalina was referring to might have been sold by now.” I grimace at the thought.

“Maybe we should check the other tents, too? I mean maybe we can just adopt two normal Beastfolk girls and... um... teach them to be maids?” Meri suggests.

“It’s not like I hadn’t considered it, but the entire point of wanting to buy maids from the get go is that they’d already have experience and be trained in the art of housekeeping.” I sigh. “Although we may have no other option, truth be told.”

“Pardon me, Myaster.” An elegant and regal looking maid approaches the four of us who are convening near the entrance of this tent within a tent. Her hair is long, braided and pure white in color and her body is a curvaceous figure dressed beautifully in a traditional frilly maid uniform that plays up her natural beauty rather than her outrageous figure.

Although many of the maids up for adoption wore many different types of uniforms, many were skimpy and revealed much about the wearer’s body. This older, elegant maid seemed to value the opposite in her choice of attire as it revealed little yet made her all the more appealing because of it.

Her cat features only seem to enhance the classy feeling coming off of this maid, as her fur is pure white and it happens to be very fluffy.

(Rough draft)

“I apologize for the delay. I was busy helping another customer, nyaa. My duties now belong entirely towards helping you and your mates find the perfect match for your home.” She curtsies before us with a refined grace and her wholesome, catty smile grows upon raising her head. “I am Snowball, but Myaster and his mates may refer to me as Snow if they so desire.”

Sam giggles, “I think we had like four maids named Snowball back home.”

“Don’t be rude, Sam.” I comically bop her on the head and she whines.

“We find that our litters do well with names emulating the silly little names you Humans give your traditional pets. I am not the only Beastfolk named Snowball within the tent, as it were.” She smiles warmly and laughs, placing her delicate, furred hands on her cheek. “May I ask what Myaster’s tastes are? Forgive me if I’m wrong but I assume you are looking for maids who are open to the more... licentious aspects of being a maid, nyaa?”

‘That’s putting it mildly.’ Zutiria pats me playfully on the back, and thankfully Snowball doesn’t freak out at the sudden magic text suddenly in her vision. What a professional.

“Yes, I think it’s safe to assume that lewdness will end up being part of the job description. I have a high libido.” I cough awkwardly.

“Oh, trust me, Myaster. I can tell.” Snowball’s eyes briefly show a hint of lust as she looks playfully at my girls.

Meri blushes and tilts her head, unaware that the elegant Catfolk maid can smell not only the fun I had with her this morning, but also the fun she had with Sam last night, and likely even the foursome play the day before. “W-wha?”

“It’s nothing, Dear.” Snowball smiles softly and turns to face me. “Is it safe to assume your tastes are as wide as your current companions imply that they are, nyaa?”

“Yes, but I’m not here to specifically pick girls to my specific interests or anything.”

“No, of course not, Myaster. Forgive me. Are there any who currently catch your... discerning eyes?” She tilts her head and asks curiously.

“You’re not up for sale are you, Kitty?” Sam licks her lips and advances on the refined maid before Zutiria pulls her back by her belt.

‘Sammy, no. You’re better than Theo. Act like it.’

Sam whines.

Snowball doesn’t seem put off by this and instead giggles. “Not exactly. I was bred and raised to serve as a maid but it was determined by the Elders of our tribe that my talents were better utilized on the homefront, training the young ones and working with potential adopters. It's true, I dream of what a life with a Myaster may be and since I’ve not yet become a Breeder I could technically leave the tribe if I wanted to. But I am very happy as I am, nyaa.” She curtsies once more to show her heartfelt sincerity, and Sam groans as she snaps her fingers. Even if we COULD adopt Snowball I have the feeling we’d be well, well out of our price range.

Meri steps up to plate and asks meekly, “There are so many choices, but... um... we’re having a small problem, Miss Snowball. It’s... about the prices.”

“I am deeply sorry to hear that, Mistress.” Snowball hangs her head in apology. 

“M-M-Mistress...?!” The masochist blushes, unsure how to feel about that.

The maid turns to me and asks for more specifics. I tell her that I run the local Adventurer’s Guild and that it’s not been doing so well, until the last month or so where I’ve managed to kick up some momentum. In a show of honesty I admit just how bad my neglectful care of the building has been thanks to mental health related reasons and not once does the beautiful maid judge me, instead showing nothing but devotion and understanding.

When I finally tell her that we were hoping to adopt two maids for 200,000G or less, Snowball’s gaze becomes distant and she thinks deeply about something. “I believe there may be hope yet, Myaster. Should you desire it I can arrange a meet and greet between two such maids who are currently not on display that would certainly fit your budgetary qualifications, nyaa.”

“Really? How much are they?” I ask as hope begins to build.

“50,000G each, and they must go with you as a pair.”

Zutiria steps in and asks the question on everyone’s mind point blank. ‘Is there a reason they’re so heavily discounted and that they’re not out here with the rest of the maids, advertising themselves?’

Normally I would have slung that arrow myself but when the price is so low I don’t even feel like haggling. I’m a shrewd businessman, sure, but when you’re offered a two for one deal at a 75% discount... well. At a certain point it’s practically too good to pass up even if there’s something slightly ‘off’ about your purchase.

“Yes, well. They’re a bit of an odd pair, nyaa.” Snowball looks to the side, and I can visibly see a sense of sadness and hesitation grow in her eyes.

“We’ll gladly meet them.” I say. There’s not exactly much to lose by at least giving these two a chance, yes?