As Akira followed the echoing laughter of the Milk Maidens up a spiral flight of steps.
Her mind was abuzz with questions:
Why were they taking Ai? What could possibly be their intentions?
Might any of the Milk Maidens be interested in becoming Milk...SLUTS, instead?
Akira didn't know what to expect, but for the fact that fists and possibly bikinis were going to fly once she caught up to them.
The staircase culminated in a darkened chamber of a circular design, populated by marble statues depicting beasts as well as bizarre, multi-armed figures of divine import, all sitting cross-legged upon pedestals—with ominous, dead-eyed stares, that seemed to follow Akira's every step as she crept among them.
Outside of this company of statues—forming a complete outer ring—was a perfectly still moat that was filled to the brim with a pure white, sweet-smelling liquid.
'Is that...milk?' Akira wondered, with her ears perked in curiosity as she walked closer to it.
The aforementioned aroma was indeed like that of sweetened milk, and she WAS rather thirsty...
Throwing caution to the wind, she stooped down—nearly about to dip her mouth into the moat to drink from it—when, she was halted at last second by a voice.
"I would not so readily indulge in recondite sources of liquid, if I were you."
It was a faint woman's voice: light, and raspy. Decidedly weary, and tired sounding.
"The moat is brimming with a substance SO caustic, that it would instantaneously liquefy your skin and intestines upon contact."
Glancing up sharply, toward the sound of the voice, Akira flinched as the room was at once illuminated by multiple sources of light—flickering flames, held in torches embedded within the statues. In truth, the torches had all just been simultaneously lit by the smirking [Level 7] Milk Maidens that had been quietly hunkered behind them, hidden in their shadows all along.
"Where's Ai!?" Akira demanded as she rose—not catching any glimpse of her among their ranks.
"The girl is unharmed." The same voice from earlier replied—sounding so close and yet remaining hidden. "It is your OWN well-being you should occupy your thoughts with, at present."
"Bitch!" Akira shot back, keeping a wary eye of the few dozen Maidens that were closing in.
'I'm one level higher, but that doesn't matter much if I'm THIS severely outnumbered...'
Taking the time to browse her Dao Menu, with the one Dao point she had available, Akira knew she'd want another skill like [Leg Sweep], that could impact multiple enemies at once.
"Enough dawdling!" The voice bellowed—pulling her out of the menu.
One of the Maidens promptly did a cartwheel forward, landing with a kick that Akira barely evaded.
Looking down, she saw that the Maiden's foot had landed with such an impact that it shattered through the patterned tiles—causing a trailing cloud of dust in the air.
Just as she looked up, Akira was met with a roundhouse across the face that flung her aside.
The blow sent her staggering her against one of the statues—that of an elephant—which she had to cling unto to just barely keep on her feet.
'Where the Hell is Kanna!?'
As she thought this, another kick aimed at her tore the stone pachyderm's head clean off.
...
The Barkeep emptied a bottle of milk from behind the counter into a glass, and slid it over to Kanna.
"First round's on the house." She said, with a playful wink. "Give it a taste, darling."
Kanna shifted her gaze across the room. Milk Maidens were flitting about, serving patrons as normal, but occasionally casting her telling glances.
The knife at her side dug in a little—THREATENING her, through a small gap in her armor plates.
Without a doubt she was surrounded, leaving her no choice but to play along.
'Here goes...' She thought, blushing as she stared into the depths of the glass. 'Breast milk.'
Shakily, she brought the glass up to her lips to drink, and to her relief it didn't immediately revolt her with its flavor. In truth, it tasted like any regular cow's milk—only, it was incredibly sweet, with an added tinge of strong liquor, that puckered her face with its bitterness.
Kanna was still forming a verdict on this peculiar...beverage...while the Barkeep continued to speak:
"It's a huge relief to us Nandi girls, this bar."
"Madame Lakshmi basically PAYS us for making use of our annoying Racial Trait, that's just a huge burden otherwise..."
She scoffed, leaning back against the shelf of drinks behind her.
"I mean, imagine having...THESE—"she cupped her breasts in her palm—"every few days..."
Kanna shook her head. "Yeah, that's..."
The world around her was spinning as she clutched her head squinted her eyes, trying to focus.
'Damn...
'I'm no lightweight, so this stuff...'
The blood was rushing to her head, and she started to pant and sweat.
Before Kanna knew it, she had finished the entire glass and set it back unto the counter.
'It must be...really...really..."
She could hear the Barkeep cackling with laughter.
"You're lookin' pretty rough there after just one drink, human." She teased.
"Don't feel so bad, though! When we Nandi get our drink on, a lot of the alcohol gets pulled straight into the milk we produce!"
With a firm shove, Kanna was toppled from her bar stool—landing flat unto her back, on the floor.
The Barkeep stood over her. "Whatever business our boss might have with your friends, it must be serious—it's not often we get called upon to INTENTIONALLY get one of our customers drunk!"
"I do think THAT should keep you tied down long enough, for them to finish upstairs."
With her entire body falling numb, it was now a struggle for Kanna to speak, or much less stand.
Whatever was going on between Akira, Ai, and this 'Madame Lakshmi' of the Amrita...it was fully apparent that she was not in any state to help.
...
Akira was being pushed to her limit, in the continuing fight against the swarm of Milk Maidens.
She ducked and weaved behind statues—staying mostly on the defensive—but countering in instances where she was presented with an opening.
Meanwhile, the mysterious voice was somehow keeping track of all the action.
Akira was crouched next to a statue of a giant serpent, taking a moment to catch her breath, when it spoke to her again:
"I'm a bit disappointed. I had expected more out of you, Akira Maximilian..."
"As a low level player, that had managed to dispatch a divine-class being like the Great Ape Beast, I had thought my Milk Maidens wouldn't have stood a chance."
"You're talking about...the Macaque Village?" Akira gasped. "How do you know about that?"
The voice answered with a throaty laugh, that only served to anger Akira further.
Another Milk Maiden came rushing at her, but this time she was ready.
Akira grabbed the Maiden's extended leg to restrain her—leaving her wide open, and thus vulnerable to a well-placed [Paralyzing Pinch].
With the first incapacitated, a second tried to attack her from behind, but she ducked to evade it.
"Face it, CEO—you're not strong enough!" The voice jeered at her, from on high. "Give UP already, and perhaps I'll show you mercy."
Akira shook her head. She was panting. Sweating. Bleeding. Still, she wouldn't quit.
"Idiot." The voice bit back. "I am providing you with a way out."
Akira shook her head again. "Not...yet. I can still...fight."
"Forfeit NOW!" The voice insisted. "Dispense with your foolish pride, and I will send you and your concubines along on your way."
Akira couldn't. Akira wouldn't. It simply wasn't in her nature.
She had vowed to put her girls' safety above all else, but THIS was different...
THIS time, someone was challenging her. SOMEONE, who dared speak with the utmost confidence that they had prevailed over the world's richest, youngest, cutthroat playboy billionaire CEO.
It went beyond mere pride—Akira had to send a message, and make it abundantly clear.
Sensing the presences of multiple Maidens drawing toward her at the same time, she saw it as her chance to strike using the skill she'd unlocked earlier.
Akira, rearing back her clenched fist, felt an incredible power surging through her arm.
'This...is it!' She realized. 'The power of the...[Seismic Shock] attack!'
With a great, rage-filled roar, she brought her fist down into the ground in a powerful swing—without any holding back.
The impact caused the ground to tremble, knocking the surrounding Maidens off their feet.
Akira didn't simply stop there, however.
She performed the attack, again and again, causing cracks to form and spiderweb across the tiles.
Broken off bits and chips of the tiles were falling off into the surrounding moat—to then be heard sizzling away into nothing by its caustic contents.
"Wh-what are you doing!?" The voice reprimanded her. "At this rate, you'll—"
The voice broke off—ostensibly, upon realizing what she had feared was already coming to pass.
The platform, upon which Akira and the Maidens were situated upon, was crumbling away in huge chunks—falling with noisy splashes into the moat. The maidens shrieked and whined, as they huddled among themselves in fear unable to stand amidst the shuddering impacts. All they could do was hold tightly unto each other, and the statues, in desperation, while the cracks in the floor were spreading ever steadily and dangerously closer to their positions...as well as Akira's.
The voice...was FURIOUS. "Imbecile! You'll die too, if you keep this up!"
Nonetheless, Akira didn't stop. She couldn't care less about how much collateral damage she caused, or even if it meant putting her own life at risk, in this final gambit. Not after she'd had her precious Ai SNATCHED from her, and been forced to fight like a caged animal.
As well, Akira Maximilian, above all else...would NOT allow anyone the satisfaction of beating him.