I couldn't help but agree with Zoe. [Tireless Machine] was a useful skill that could suit everybody. But the reason the [Slave] had it was not so nice. Its purpose was to make the slave withstand more abuse and work longer and tirelessly.
Tireless Machine: lvl 1
Passive I
Sleep is for the weak. Fatigue is just another obstacle that stands in the way of reaching your (masters) goal. Your endurance and its regeneration is increased by 15%
"It's one of the skills I wanted to choose. I'm just not sure how to train in it," I said.
Zoe thought about it. "It is simple. The longer you do something that makes you tired, the more experience you will gain in this skill."
From what she said, that meant that if I kept fighting, even though I was tired, I would gain experience in this skill. Or if I wash this laundry, even though I'm tired, I'll gain experience. It was simple.
"When I was tired after sex, I forced myself to continue," Zoe said. "Now, thanks to [Tireless Machine], I can serve customers all night."
That was also a way to train this skill. But it wasn't my cup of tea. Anyway, I swapped [Master's Toy] for [Tireless Machine].
I smiled. "Replaced. Next up is [Faint Presence]"
"It might come in handy in the labyrinth," Zoe said, and she was right.
"That's true, I've been thinking about it, but I don't want to be someone who sneaks around my enemies. I want to face them and not hide," I objected.
"If you say so," she shrugged.
"Zoe, which skill could I practice while I do laundry here?" I asked her.
She smirked. "Definitely [Swift as a Whip] will come in handy. Being faster is always good. You should see how fast I can move my hips. Men really like it."
"I believe that, but I don't need to see it," I muttered.
However, I could not deny that this skill would be useful for me in combat. Being faster than my opponent and avoiding his attacks could save my life. But it wasn't the skill I was thinking about. I had a limited number of skill slots. I definitely didn't want to lose [Indomitable Will]. Without this skill, my mind would shatter very quickly. In addition, I wanted to make sure that no one would control my mind and restrict my freedom ever again.
"Zoe, can you tell me about the slave's other skills? I definitely want to keep [Indomitable Will] and [Lover of Work]. I would like to hear your opinion on other skills."
"I can start with the ones I have," Zoe suggested.
I nodded. "Sure, I'll be happy."
"So, as I said, [Tireless Machine] is good for endurance. [Swift as a Whip], then increase your speed, your reactions. Thanks to it, I can respond much faster to the needs of my customers."
Swift as a Whip: lvl 1
Active I
To be able to adapt to the pace indicated by the whip in the hands of the master, your speed will increase, and it will increase by 20%. However, it is at the expense of your endurance.
"You said it would increase my reactions, but I don't see anything like that in the description," I said.
"You have to reach the second tier, level ten."
"Okay, what about stamina?"
The girl smiled. "It's not written there, but the consumption of your stamina will increase by twenty percent. It will help you with the training of [Tireless Machine]. Anyway, the next skill I have is [Made for Torture]. This skill increases the flexibility of my body. I can put my feet behind my head and get into positions that cause others' problems without major issues. In bed, this skill is quite fun."
Made for Torture: lvl 1
Passive I
Your body must bend as the master desires. The flexibility of your body is increased by 15%
It was an ability that I didn't find so useful if I decided to become a seeker. Of course, I couldn't fight with a stiff body, but I didn't have to be an acrobat either.
"The last skill I have is [Master's Lover]. This is a skill that every woman will appreciate. It will make you queen." Zoe said, smiling. "I don't mean it literally, but it will make you more beautiful. Your skin will gradually get rid of blemishes, so no acne. Your hair will be healthier, shinier, and gain more volume. There are a lot of details and imperfections that will disappear from your body. You will simply be more beautiful."
I sighed. "It doesn't really fit into the labyrinth, but I'd welcome it. How can you train such a skill?"
"Simply put, you don't have to try so hard. It's about how many people you get attention from, how many people's hearts start pounding when they look at you. When you walk down the street, and someone looks back at you, or when someone remembers your beauty later. I gain the most experience when someone can really appreciate my naked body, but that includes sex most of the time."
"Nothing for me," I shook my head. "Not now."
"It's good that it doesn't matter who likes you, be it a man or a woman," Zoe said with a smile.
Master's Lover: lvl 1
Passive I
You are someone who represents your master, and you should look accordingly. Your appearance adapts to his preferences. (You don't have a master right now, the look will adapt to your preferences). Appearance adjustment 1%
Charm + 5%
"Zoe, what does the appearance adjustment mean?" I asked her. "Is that what you were talking about?"
She nodded. "Yes, you don't have to be afraid of the description. You will not become someone else. Your appearance adapts to your ideal, the way you feel it should look. You can gain a few pounds or lose weight, all in the right places. My girls were the biggest change. I used to be flat as a board, but now they don't fit in my hands."
She grabbed her breasts for a demonstration. But I understood what she meant. Perhaps everyone was not happy with something on their body. Some trifle, an ugly birthmark, a freckle, a bald spot, an asymmetrical bust, just something that bothered her or him. This ability gradually eliminated these shortcomings. Maybe this was an ability that could one day help me get rid of those mutations on my body.
"...and what about charm? I don't have something like that in my status!" I objected.
"Me neither. No one has such a stat, yet everyone has some charm. As I would say,… charm is a personality trait and means appeal, natural grace, or personal attractiveness. It's about how you affect the people around you. It is magic that will highlight your features, increase your charm."
"So, something like Mind Magic. Mind Control?"
"No, no, not at all - it only affects you, your behavior, your traits. As I said, it highlights them. You will be more attractive to some, and vice versa to others." Zoe explained.
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I nodded, but I couldn't say that I understood exactly what charm was doing. Maybe it was because I never worked too hard on my look. I have to admit that I was satisfied with my appearance. I never had the urge to apply layers of make-up to my face and used only the most basic make-up. I saw no reason to hide my face under a mask.
Of course, my look was not perfect. When I was younger, I hated the freckles I had under my eyes and on my nose. That has changed over time. Before I got to Eleaden, there were a few little things on my body that I didn't like. I didn't even remember them now. I was a monster now—a mutant.
My ears were gone, replaced by something that reminded me of sails, and I'm not even talking about the antlers on my head. Wings grew from my loins now and a tail above my buttock, with which I could sweep the floor. Other places overgrown with hair or feathers were a trifle. Yes, if this skill could reverse the mutations in my body, I would welcome it.
"[Silent suffering] is something I don't need much as a companion." Zoe continued her explanation, unaware of my thoughts. "It suppresses all the sounds your body makes. Almost everyone likes to hear their sex partner. I would use this skill just when I need to fart," She laughed.
I laughed too. "That would be helpful sometimes. It is a skill that could be useful in the labyrinth, but again it's more suitable for someone who sneaks around enemies and tries to avoid them."
Zoe scratched her neck and nodded to herself. "The same goes for [Odorless Odor]. It will clear the odor your body produces, but apart from the fact that monsters don't smell you, I see no other advantage in this ability. All you have to do is take a bath from time to time. Maybe if you are lazy to take a bath or have a problem with flatulence. Do you have such a problem?"
I immediately shook my head. "Nothing like that. What about [Master's Shield]? I don't suppose you use this skill?"
"No, I don't even know of any [Slave] who would have it. I can imagine that slaves who are sent to war or labyrinths and dungeons could have it. But they do not live long."
"Oh, I see," I nodded, not wanting to talk about this disturbing topic further. "...and [Painless Agony]?"
"I honestly don't see why the [Slave] class has such a skill. It's exactly the same as [Pain Resistance] that everyone has," Zoe said.
"You too?" I asked.
"Me too. Ah, I almost forgot about [Lover of Work]. I don't love work, but I like sex. It's my profession, my job, and even in this industry, more strength is needed. It's always good," she smiled.
She was right. Greater strength has always come in handy. I could have the skills I wanted, but if I couldn't support them with enough strength, they would be useless to me. Thanks to Zoe, I now had a better idea of some of the skills. During my stay in the cellar, I often thought about what skills I would choose myself, and one thing was clear to me from the very beginning. If I wanted to be something other than a slave on Eleaden, these skills wouldn't help me. The General Skills were to play a significant role in my future, because [Slave's] skills were a mixture of everything that could be useful to a slave, but they didn't excel at anything. They didn't make me a warrior, and I couldn't be a great blacksmith or an excellent seamstress. That's why I focused my hopes on General Skills, where I had a choice of more than a hundred of them.
But I wanted to wait until the evening to change the rest. I really needed more time for that.
My skill list didn't look too impressive now. For someone who was at level 92, I only had one skill of the corresponding level. If it weren't for my stats, I would be a complete beginner. I gained one point with each level, which I could assign to any stat of my choosing. As I said, the system gives me this option, but Dungreen didn't. I couldn't change what he did with my stats, but I could change my skills.
Now that I was looking at my Class Skills, I was happy. The skills I hated were gone, and even though I would welcome something like [Super Extra Mega Punch], I was satisfied. I chose [Masters Shield] as one of the six skills because I wanted to test whether it could be useful for me in the labyrinth. However, I was ready to exchange it for another if it was worthless. Most of the skills were at level one, and I was looking forward to leveling them up.
Class skills:
Indomitable Will lvl 108
Lover of Work lvl 8
Tireless Machine lvl 1
Master's Lover lvl 1
Swift as a Whip lvl 1
Master's Shield lvl 1
Yeah, I had a lot of work to do before my skill levels matched the level of my class.
I also had a lot of work to do in the form of dirty laundry, waiting to be washed. Zoe explained to me how to wash clothes. Where they store soaps and fragrances. Which type of laundry needs to be boiled and which didn't. How the stoves work, where to get clean water, where to get rid of dirty water. Where and how to hang the laundry correctly.
The hardest thing about it was for me to learn to wash on the washboard. I've been used to doing my laundry since I was eighteen, but this couldn't be compared to operating a modern washing machine and dryer. I had no problem putting laundry in the washing machine, pouring a reasonable amount of washing powder and fabric softener, choosing a program, and pressing the start button. However, I had a problem washing clothes on the washboard. It was more physically demanding than I imagined. I even considered quitting a few times.
I didn't think it was wrong to admit that I couldn't do something. But I was afraid that if I gave up now, it would continue to haunt me. Today I give up one thing, tomorrow another, and eventually, I end up as a whore, or worse, just because I give up now.
No, I didn't want to end up like that.
When Zoe and I finished doing the laundry, I felt tired, and the skin on my hands was soaked and shriveled. I was honestly surprised that [Lover of Work] didn't gain the next level. However, the system did not leave me without a reward.
(ding) Tireless Machine reaches lvl 2
….
(ding) Tireless Machine reaches lvl 4
(ding) Swift as a Whip reaches lvl 2
(ding) Swift as a Whip reaches lvl 3
(ding) Master's Lover reaches lvl 2
The last notification confused me. I thought I needed others to like me. However, in the laundry room, I was alone with Zoe. No one else came here. But the girl told me what she knew about the skill, her point of view. How she trained this ability as a companion and based on the fact that I had just gained a level in it, there must have been something else.
She couldn't like me, not with all the mutations on my body. Plus, she was a young woman like me. Zoe couldn't think of me that way. At the thought, I felt hot.
"Are you okay?" Zoe asked me. "You are red. You're warm, aren't you?"
I nodded. "Yes, it's hot and stuffy in here."
"Laundry room is always like that, but we're done for today," Zoe said.
I sighed. "Finally, even with my stamina and strength, I'm pretty tired."
Together with Zoe, I returned to the brothel's main hall, where it was much more lively now. There were a lot more people than when I came in. Apparently, the time has come for customers to start visiting Broken Heart. A man sat on one sofa, surrounded by three giggling women endowed with ample bosoms. Another was talking to a companion he apparently knew very well. I didn't want to study everyone here, and I definitely didn't want to think about what might have happened in this building's rooms.
"Zoe, Korra. Are you done?" Alyson asked when she noticed us.
I nodded. "Yes, Madam."
"Ah, call me Alyson. I am no madam," said the owner. "How did she do, Zoe?"
"Even though she never did the laundry, she did well," Zoe evaluated my work.
"I am glad to hear it. What about you, Korra? Will you show up tomorrow, or it isn't a job for you?" Alyson asked.
"Well," I hesitated. "It's harder than I expected, but you can count on me tomorrow."
Alyson smiled. "Very well, the girls will be happy to hear it. Well, since Zoe helped you today, I'll give you half of what we agreed on. Do you agree?"
"Yes," I nodded.
My first paycheck on Eleaden, fifty coppers, appeared in the owner's hand. Alyson didn't pull the money out of her bra, as I saw in the movies, but she must also have a spacial ring like me or an object with a similar function. Magic like that could not be limited to rings. I liked spacial magic tools because I moved my first paycheck straight to the moneybag in my spacial storage.
"All right, Korra, it was nice to meet you, and I hope I didn't see you for the last time today," Zoe said. "Now, I'm going to change and make myself presentable."
"I'm glad to meet you, too. If I have any more questions about skills, can I come to you?" I asked.
The girl smiled. "Of course you can, but do so when I'm not working."
"Great, I'll go too. I still have a job at Broken Mug, and I'm pretty tired already," I said.
"Bye," Zoe said goodbye.
It wasn't exactly socially appropriate, but I couldn't help but yawn. I grabbed my hands, lifted them over my head, and stretched. It was incredibly pleasant. My whole body was relieved, and at least for a moment, the fatigue I felt was gone.
"I'm sorry, Alyson," I apologized quickly.
This was not the first impression I wanted to make.
(ding) Master's Lover reaches lvl 3
"Eh?" I wondered.
Why did I get another level in this skill?
"You don't have to apologize to Korra. Did something happen?" Alyson asked, noticing my strange reaction.
I hesitated. "I assume you know about the skills that [Slaves] have?"
"Sure, I need to know who works for me, what are her or his strengths."
"I thought so. Before, I exchanged some skills, one of which was [Master's Lover]. Right now, I have gained another level in it, and I do not understand why." I said.
Alyson put a hand on my shoulder and laughed. "Of course, you got another level, fool."
"Why?"
"First of all, the early levels are easy to get and even easier with your appearance. Especially when you draw attention to yourself as you did before," Alyson explained.
What was she talking about? I knew that the stretching wasn't very appropriate and caught the attention of others. However, I thought it would rather get the negative reactions of others.
"What do you mean by my appearance? I'm not exactly pretty," to say the least.
Alyson grinned. "You have a very exotic look that will be attractive to many people, girl."