The remaining harem had all been transferred to different rooms of 447 which had been grouped with 14 ladies.
Solara and Zui were glad that they had been placed in the same room, this gave off time for the two to bond better.
It wasn't an issue when they noticed that they had been highly favored by the others after the incident with the crazy succubus.
Murmurs were going on in the room, they were all talking about the tournament that was to begin the next day. The major fear wasn't about facing each other, but specifically about facing the succubus.
"What if we die?" One of the ladies suggested as she dreaded the thought of dying without achieving anything.
A gasp saturated the room as the murmurs only seemed to get wilder, then they turned their attention to one of their only hopes.
Solara leaned on the wall and rolled her eyes, she could remember when she was despised by the others because of her ability and now they were looking up to her?
"What are you all looking at?" She snapped.
They all avoided her gaze and bit down on their lips, some rubbed the side of their arms as they paced around.
Zui got up from her chair and walked up to Solara. Placing a hand on her shoulder, she held the eyes of a disheartened lady who was just trying to figure out how they would progress, just like the rest.
"I know we– I have been hard on you and was quite the competitor at the time. I had feared you would steal all the love of our Lord that I failed to realize we have a bigger threat that doesn't take this tournament as a way of having a fair chance."
Solara pulled Zui's hands off her and chuckled and playfully said, "are you afraid I might turn against you?"
Zui scrunched up her face and narrowed her eyes, but it soon turned into a bright smile as she laughed it off, "if either one of us could be by his side and rightly earn it, that's all that matters."
Solara felt her heart sink at her words, Zui had just made her realize that if they couldn't hold their lot against the others, they might one day be separated.
"You do know how to fend off your opponent and effectively switch from offensive to defensive, right?" Solara looked at her with beady hazel eyes.
The opportunity of having a friend amid the battle wouldn't be such a bad thing.
Zui gave a smile, "you saw how I discreetly held Pesa?"
Solara nodded and then there was silence, immediately after they burst out laughing.
The remaining females turned to the two, perplexed on why they were so carefree when their lives were on the line.
"Are you two certain you can win this?" A lady cut in on the two, her hands akimbo. "You seem just fine after just a little fending from a lady with wings."
She had light brown hair in curly locks reaching to her shoulders, some falling onto the side of her face which framed a strong, wild face and dark skin. Narrow multi-colored eyes consisting of auburn and amber ones set concealed within their sockets, as she narrowed them on the two.
'Tia.' Solara and Zui thought in spite.
Tia was human and her race had been at war with the creatures for hundreds of years and had only been forced to be at peace with one another due to the rules of Lord Hisha after they began to dwindle in numbers.
Not many could tell the difference between a human and a creature in most cases as they all had features that were the same as those who weren't deviants of their kind. The major distinction is that they didn't possess the baseline energy, instead, they relied more on their intellect and superior fighting skills.
Solara and Zui frowned not because she was a human, but rather because she had interrupted their discussion and was one of the proudest harem members of the whole meretrix.
Before their reshuffling, Tia had been in meretrix seven and they both loved the distance they had from others.
Staring at the one person they wished to avoid, they hoped she was done with her little speech.
"Were you two so weak that you had a hard time protecting everyone in your meretrix?" Tia pressed on with a snicker.
Zui gritted her teeth, feeling hurt by such words directed at them. "Who do you think you are?! How about you were there that day and let's see how you fare?!"
Tia took a step back and had a devilish smirk when Zui tried to pounce on her but was held back by Solara's hold on her shoulder.
They were not allowed to attack one another, not while they were in their rooms. Anyone who breaks this rule gets sent back to their tribe and family without a question–their mark is never removed and would suffer periodic shock waves just from interaction or making contact with anyone.
The news of the succubus evading this rule only fueled her hate towards the creatures.
"Who knew you still carried that same hate your race has towards mine." Tia placed a hand on her chest, faking surprise and disappointment as she concealed a glare at them.
She could hear murmurs from the back as the others contemplated what she had said. This only made her grin grow wide.
Being separated from the other humans in her previous meretrix only made her hardened and defensive against others–all were nothing more than opponents she would trample on if she wanted the true prize from lord Hisha.
A majority of the harem didn't know the truth behind being highly favored and selected by their lord. This had been the method that lord Hisha had secretly used to create a peaceful coexistence in the land.
Her family being one of the only ones who had been present at the time passed it on for generations and had been so generous enough to give her a heads up on what to expect.
She on the other hand was determined to get it at all costs at the expense of the other humans.
'I am the only one fit to get that prize!' She vowed in her thoughts.
"Hate or no hate, you're despicable and a disgrace to the peaceful community of the human race." Solara snapped, her innocent face proving false to the words she said right after. "Bitch!"
Tia gritted her teeth and pointed an accusing finger at Solara, "as much as you think so highly of yourself, when in the arena, being the fair lord he is, you are not allowed to use your ability against any human, just your brute strength and wits."
Solara raised a brow, not getting why this stale news was being brought up again.
"I'd see how well you can hold up without your ability." Tia challenged.
Solara smiled and tilted her head as she countered. "It's a pity I don't hit rabid animals, or I would have been scared that you would bite."
A wave of laughter erupted from the others and Zui only overly exaggerated hers and pointed a finger at Tina as she did.
"We'd see who gets to win the first wave." Tia stormed off in a rage after that, unable to make a big comeback.
"What are you all staring at?!" Zui snapped at the rest. "It's time to get some sleep."
The others dispersed as they did as they were told, they needed all the rest they could get before the next day.
Zui pulled on Solara's wrist. Leaning forward for a whisper, "thanks for standing up for me."
Solara laughed it off, "I hate the thought of being bullied when each one of us is equal in our own rights."
"Anyways, we should also have our rest, tomorrow marks the start of a life changer for us all." Zui smiled and pulled Solara toward their respective beds.
*****
A/N
Thank you [some_guy1234] for the GTs!
As requested from the little poll in the previous chapter, the harem introduction was utilized and I hope it gave a tiny bit of comfort to see them interact?
I do apologize for the slow update, I am trying to put up quality as opposed to quantity. Kindly put in a +1 if you think this was worth the wait.
My heartfelt appreciation to those who vote with power stones on my book constantly or happened to devote them currently.
Do use your comments, summoning pens, gifts, votes, and golden tickets to request faster/more updates(I'd respond immediately when we hit the target)