The older woman, who by Earth’s standards would be classified as a "MILF," looked at me with a bright smile, lightly thumping her chest.
"It is I, your favorite auntie."
I offered a wry smile.
’I just had to run into her, didn’t I?’
[Who is that? She looks rich.]
’Well, she is... but she isn’t exactly sane.’
Aunt Mary was one of the few people I could somehow bring myself to trust in this world.
Yeah, I know. Trust was a pretty big word for someone like me, who’d survived one trauma after another. But... I really did trust her.
To an extent, at least.
After all, when my parents threw my sister and me out of the house during one particularly brutal winter, she was the one who took us in, even though we were practically strangers.
Ever since then, she’d treated me like her own son...
Well... for the most part.
Every now and then, she’d blur the line between motherly affection and something that made me seriously question her sanity.
Which was exactly why I wasn’t too keen on being alone with her. Somehow, she always found an excuse to get a little too handsy with me.
"So, what brings you here?" she hummed, gently cradling my thighs as she leaned her chest against me. "Don’t tell me you’ve been stalking little ol’ me," she added with a light giggle.
"Hahaha... no," I replied flatly. "I just wanted a quiet place to think."
"Hmm..." She tilted her head, her lips parting slightly before her gaze dropped to the back of my hand, where a mark resembling a mage’s staff flanked by two wings rested.
"Wait... You awakened!" Her voice rang through the room.
As several people turned to look our way, she immediately clapped a hand over her mouth.
"When did this happen?" she whispered.
I was about to give her another uninterested answer when a thought suddenly struck me.
’Shouldn’t someone as rich as Aunt Mary be able to give me some money?’
Although the System had said I had to earn ’the money’ on my own, that didn’t mean I couldn’t get an odd job from her, right?
A small smile spread across my face as I firmly gripped Aunt Mary’s shoulder.
"Come to think of it, didn’t you tell me last month that you had a little job you wanted me to do?" I asked. "I need some money now, so... is the offer still on?"
Aunt Mary visibly stiffened beneath my hand, her face flushing bright red.
"Oh~! Y-Yeah~" she mumbled, her eyes darting away from mine. "I still have the job if you want it. But don’t expect it to be the usual kind of work."
My eyes narrowed slightly as suspicion crept into my mind, but the thought of finally having enough resources to fund the System clouded my judgment.
"Don’t worry," I said with a firm nod. "I can handle anything you throw at me."
Aunt Mary’s face lit up. "If that’s the case, can you give me a moment?"
She quickly stood up and hurried out of the café, leaving me sitting there in silence.
’Wait, this won’t come back to bite me in the ass, right?’
I doubted letting my needs cloud my judgment would lead to anything good, but at this point, I had bigger things to worry about.
If I could get enough money to buy a Luck Card, I could gamble my way to enough cash for the System’s basic items and stat boosts.
Add a few tutoring or sparring jobs on top of that, and I’d be set for the first dungeon expeditions.
Just as I finished gathering my thoughts, Aunt Mary pushed the front door open once more, an even bigger smile on her face.
Her breathing was uneven, and her phone was still in her hand, as though she’d just ended a call.
"Kaiser!" she called enthusiastically. "How about we change locations?"
...
It didn’t take long for Aunt Mary and me to arrive at a karaoke venue that also doubled as a gaming center just down the street.
Along the way, she chatted almost nonstop while I listened with only half an ear, at least until we reached the hallway leading to the private room she’d reserved.
Aunt Mary pushed the door open and stepped inside. I followed close behind, and the moment the heavy door clicked shut, the constant clatter of keyboards and chatter drifting in from the gaming area vanished, leaving the room in near silence.
The room was dimly lit, making it difficult to make out the people inside at first.
It wasn’t until the faint scent of sweet perfume and warm skin drifted past me that my eyes adjusted, revealing the two women waiting within.
Aunt Mary walked beside me, her arm looped possessively through mine.
Her tight brown dress hugged every curve, and its low-cut neckline put her ample cleavage on full display.
"Come on, Kai," she whispered, her voice low and honeyed as she gently tugged me forward. "Don’t be shy. I’ve been dying to introduce you to my friends."
She winked playfully before leaning in to whisper, "Don’t act like I’m your aunty, alright? Just be a little bit flirty, please~"
I couldn’t help letting out a sigh before giving a small nod.
Once Aunt Mary’s face lit up, I turned to face the other two stunning women, who were already lounging inside with drinks in hand.
The moment they saw me clearly, their eyes lit up as though they were planning to eat me whole, and I felt a strange shiver run through me when the woman on the right side slowly ran her tongue across her lips.
Before entering the room, Aunt Mary had already filled me in on each of her two friends, and although I was only doing this for money to spend on the System, I couldn’t help but feel like some sort of boy toy.
On the left side of the couch sat Ms. Anna, a high school teacher and mother of two, known for her cheerful personality and motherly demeanor.
She wore a white blouse stretched tightly across her chest, with the top three buttons undone to reveal a lacy black bra beneath, while her pencil skirt was scandalously short for a teacher.
She adjusted her glasses with a manicured finger, her lips curving into a gentle smile.
"So you’re Kaiser, huh? I’ve heard many good things about you."
She shifted her gaze to Aunt Mary. "And Mary, you weren’t exaggerating when you said he was too handsome," she said, her voice smooth and teasing.
For some reason, she deliberately uncrossed her legs, giving me the briefest flash of her panties before crossing them again. "You really are a handsome young man, Kaiser."
I offered her a small, practiced smile before turning toward the woman seated on the right side of the couch.
According to Aunt Mary, she was a stay-at-home wife married to a wealthy billionaire who was hardly ever home.
Actually, between the three women in the room, she was by far the youngest, perhaps in her early thirties or even late twenties.
She wore a tiny black crop top that barely covered her perky breasts, every movement threatening to expose more than it concealed.
My gaze drifted lower, past her flat stomach and the small navel piercing that caught the dim light, to the low-slung micro-skirt that did almost nothing to hide her soft thighs.
I couldn’t wrap my head around how she had even gotten here dressed like that, but once I noticed her overcoat hanging behind her, I understood what was going on.
This wasn’t just a meeting between a son-like figure and her friends. These women were...
I found myself swallowing hard as though something heavy was caught in my throat. ’Don’t tell me they want my body!’
"Hi there~" Yumi whispered, leaning forward. "You’re Mary’s godson, right? Come sit between us. We don’t bite, I swear."
The three women began giggling as though she had just made the funniest joke in the world, but I couldn’t laugh.
Hell, I couldn’t even move.
It felt like I was in a lion’s den. No, this was more like being trapped in a spider’s web.
Despite every protest my mind could muster, I ended up sandwiched between the three of them.
As the wise man once said, money could turn even the proudest man into a gold-licking dog.
I sighed at my current predicament as the women took their sweet time cozying up to me.
Aunt Mary’s soft chest pressed firmly against my left arm.
Anna’s stocking-clad feet brushed against my thighs as she sat on the headrest, my head resting between her thighs, while Yumi leaned in so close that I could feel the warmth radiating from her barely covered body.
I just sat there completely frozen as they talked about matters I had no interest in hearing, their hands wandering around my body as though I were some kind of toy.
’Should I touch them back?’ I wondered, closing my eyes for a moment. ’Nah, they’re married women. That could land me in serious trouble.’
If it was going to jeopardize the money I could squeeze out of these women, then it was a hard pass for me.
Still, I couldn’t deny it. This was the most boring get-together I’d ever been to.
’Shouldn’t married women have some premium gossip?’
As if sensing where my thoughts had wandered, Aunt Mary smiled and purred, "See? I told you my friends would love you."
Yumi scooted even closer, grinning. "You’re really fun to be around, big guy."
I wanted nothing more than to scream and pry every single one of them off me.
Instead, I let out a long sigh and dragged a hand through my hair.
"As long as you’re happy, Ma. Though I seriously doubt someone who’s spent most of the evening half-conscious is all that entertaining."
A dangerous smile spread across Yumi’s face as her fingers traced slow, lazy circles a little too close to my crotch.
"Actually, I like quiet guys," she whispered into my ear, sending an involuntary shiver down my spine. "Especially cute ones."
My Excalibur immediately chose that exact moment to wake up.
’Traitor!’
I bolted to my feet so fast that all three women could only stare at me in stunned silence.
"I’d like to use the bathroom," I blurted, sounding like a man possessed.
Yumi leaned back in her seat, looking far too pleased with herself.
"Oh, the bathroom?" she teased. "Please, take your time."
The other women’s puzzled expressions quickly gave way to knowing grins, as though they were thoroughly enjoying how flustered I’d become.
’Fuck it! I can get my revenge after I calm this bastard down.’
Just as I was about to leave, Anna rose from her seat and walked over to me.
"Could you help me with something on your way out?"
I raised a brow as she pulled out her phone.
"Let me transfer some money first."
I didn’t waste a second pulling out my own phone. After all, this was the whole reason I’d come here in the first place.
A soft chime sounded as the transfer went through with a quick scan of the QR code. Moments later, a notification popped onto my screen, confirming the $600 deposit.
I kept my expression neutral as I weighed my options.
’Let’s just run, System. I don’t think I can survive another minute with these crazy women.’
The next moment, Anna rose onto her tiptoes and leaned in close.
"On your way, could you get some rubber for us?"
"Rubber?" I echoed, blinking in confusion.
Then... realization hit me, and I felt my ears burn red.
"What?!"
Anna took a step back, caught sight of my horrified expression, and dissolved into a fit of giggles behind her hand.
"So cute."
My eye twitched.
Somehow, that only made the three of them even more amused.
Honestly, I just wanted to get the hell out of this place, pocket their money, and start preparing for my first dungeon expedition.
But no matter how down on my luck I was, I was still Michael Kaiser. There was no way I was letting these old motherf***ers tease me and get away with it.
I took a slow breath, forcing my emotions back under control before giving them a slight bow.
"Then I’ll take my leave, ladies."
Straightening, I let my gaze drift across each of them before stopping on Anna.
"And don’t worry," I said with a faint smile. "I’ll make sure to get exactly what you asked for, Miss Anna."
"Though I doubt one will be enough, so why don’t I buy as many as possible?"
Anna’s eyes flew open as a rosy blush spread from her neck to her cheeks.
"W-What..." she stammered. "What did you just say?"
I scoffed. ’If you guys want to play this game, then I’ll play too.’
[That’s the spirit, Host! If they want to mess with us, we’ll show them we can play this game too.]
[Let’s make some good money and empty their damn wallets!]