Chapter 143
High Life Service (Part 1)
The guards stationed at the gate that led to the upper parts of Graven Hills weren’t surprised when they saw the bus with new servants arrive later than expected. Since the drive was rather long and went through the wastelands that were filled with all sorts of deadly creatures and bandits, it wasn’t out of the ordinary that something might happen to lead to this. There had even been cases where the bus had been completely taken down with all passengers slaughtered by whatever bloodthirsty beings decided to target the vehicles. Not only that, but there were numerous other non-violent reasons for there to be long delays.
What was strange was seeing the condition the bus itself was in. The back had large holes punctured into it and cuts that sliced right through the metal. Whatever had attacked them this time had been a very dangerous monster, yet they had somehow managed to avoid it. One could only wonder what tricks or equipment the driver had used to escape the clutches of such a monster.
The bus came to a stop at the front of the gate, where they waited for the guards to come down and do their usual inspection before letting them in. Soon the door at the side of the gate opened and two guards walked out, motioning for the driver to open the door and let them in.
“What exactly happened with you guys?” one of the two guards asked the driver. “I’ve seen cars that were in the middle of battlefields that survived with less damage.”
“Ah… Well… We were attacked by a Wasteland Scorpion,” the driver replied nervously. “As you can probably guess by the damage it did to the bus, it was quite large…”
“Damn! One of those things!? I heard even juveniles are bigger than cars!” the guard said as he looked at the damages the bus had sustained. “I’m honestly surprised you managed to get away from it! How did you do that!?”
“Well, it was mostly luck, I guess,” the driver began to explain. “We drove past a cave that apparently had something in it that likes scorpions. I wasn’t able to catch what it was, but thanks to it picking a fight with the scorpion, we were able to get away.”
“Man, that sure is lucky… Oh well, better for our residents, I suppose,” the guard said as he began to walk towards the back of the bus. “Can’t have our dear residents not be served, am I right?”
As the guard moved through the bus, he inspected everything his eyes could catch, while his partner looked over the outside and underneath the bus. As far as they could tell, this was just another regular transport with a bunch of workers inside. Nothing that was particularly worthy of notice.
However, the guard inside the bus suddenly saw something that grabbed his attention. There were two new female employees, dressed in maid outfits sitting on one of the benches. Their beauty immediately captivated him and he decided to strike up a conversation with them.
“Well, hello there, ladies,” the guard said as he smiled at the two maids. “What might bring you two here?”
“Doesn’t the outfit tell you enough, you blind son of a-”
The blonde maid’s angry response was cut short by her redheaded friend punching her to the back of the head. The redhead maid then turned towards the guard, who was stunned from the rude response.
“Please forgive my friend, good sir. She’s been having a tough time lately,” the redheaded maid said as she bowed her head down apologetically and forced her blonde colleague to do the same. “She had to come work here in order to support her sick father, which has put her on the edge. I swear that she doesn’t actually mean to be disrespectful.”
“I see… That’s unfortunate,” the guard said, breaking out of his stunned silence. “You have sympathy over the hardships you’re going through, but I would advise against letting your emotions loose like that. While that get you only minor issues with guards and other servants, the actual guests will most likely get you fired, if you’re lucky. I have seen people who made only slight mistakes get executed on the spot, so please be careful.”
“We’ll keep your warning in mind. Thank you for the advice,” the redheaded maid said with a smile.
The guard proceeded to look through the rest of the bus and found nothing suspicious. With the inspection done, he exited the vehicle and ordered the gate to be opened, allowing the bus to drive into the upper parts of Graven Hills.
“Ryle, you absolute moron! What the hell were you thinking!?” Erin hissed angrily at her blonde companion. “Do you actually want us to get caught or something!?”
“Hey, I didn’t sign up to get hit on by some greasy security guard, okay!?” Ryle said back, equally angry. “It’s bad enough that I have to wear this idiotic outfit, but that just crosses the line! I swear that if any pervert decides to start feeling me up, I’m going to break their arms!”
image [https://i.ibb.co/vzp3yz2/Ch-143-Pic-1.jpg]
“You will NOT do such a thing!” the redhead said sternly. “Remember that we are on a mission here and cannot fail this! So just suck it up and act like a grown up for once!”
As the two women kept arguing, the others in the group couldn’t help but watch them with concerned looks on their faces. They worried that if this kept going, they might get caught.
“Something needs to be done about those two and fast,” Durge said. “There only needs to be someone right outside the bus who notices this and reports it, then it’s into the jail with us.”
“It’s jail, if we’re lucky, remember? They might just shoot up the bus just to be safe,” Zeldana said. “I honestly don’t see why they’re so upset. They at least had someone flirting with them. What about me? I’d say I’m the best looking maid here!”
“Ignoring your personal crisis for now, I do agree that we need to pacify those two quickly,” Lexton said. “Good thing that we only really need to calm down Ryle, as Erin will soon calm down herself once that happens. And I just so happen to know the best way to achieve this result.”
“What’s that?” Arkay asked.
“Why, Arnie my friend. It’s you,” the kobold replied with a smirk.
Erin and Ryle were still in the middle of arguing, when Arkay suddenly walked up to them. He gently tapped Ryle on her arm to get her attention. The blonde turned her attention towards the cat boy, wondering what he had to say.
“Umm… Ryle? I know that you don’t like the outfit and all, but can you just bear with it for now? We are going to need your strength in getting through this, so please just try to tolerate it for now. I’m sure you can do it,” Arkay said. “Also, I don’t think the outfit is all that bad. It honestly looks good on you.”
“YES! IT’S BEEN DECIDED! I SHALL WEAR THIS WITH PRIDE!” Ryle suddenly declared enthusiastically. “I was made to wear this!”
“...You have a very simple and predictable mind, don’t you?” Erin asked sarcastically as she glared at the blonde.
Seeing as how Lexton’s plan had worked, he and Arkay gave each other a thumbs up, which went unnoticed by Ryle.
Now that all the arguing had stopped and everybody had calmed down, they were able to observe their surroundings as the bus slowly drove through the upper area of Graven Hills. To say that it was different from the lower parts would be an understatement, as the difference between the two was like night and day.
Unlike the lower parts, where you could see filth and trash everywhere, this place was completely clean. Not a single piece of trash could be found anywhere on the ground and any possible stains had been wiped away. If one were to tell you that every inch of every possible building, road and any other surface was wiped carefully clean every day, you’d be able to believe that.
While the lower parts had hastily built shacks as buildings, the buildings in the upper parts were made not just out of proper materials with absolute care, but it seemed like said materials had also been specifically selected out of aesthetic reasons as well. Every building from the tallest to the smallest looked like it had been carved out of something fitting for expensive jewelry.
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Lastly, the people were a different sight when compared to their counterparts in the slums. One could easily tell the wealth and luxury they were accustomed to. Finest clothing and finest accessories could be seen on almost everyone. Only the people that were servants weren’t clad in such things, but even they looked to be far better off than the people in the lower parts. Not only that, but it was obvious with a glance that everybody had been fed well and there wasn’t even a hint of sickness to be found.
“Talk about a change in scenery,” Erin said as she watched the people and buildings through the window. “If you were just looking at this place, you’d never even imagine just how badly things cane be on the outside.”
“Yeah, it really makes you wanna puke, doesn’t it?” Ryle said with a frown. “This is just like how it was back home. Regular people like myself are only allowed near such places when we are needed, but otherwise we better stay out! These people make me sick!”
“Hey, don’t let your jealousy get the best of you! You should know that I want to live like this at some point, too!” Lexton suddenly said, getting the attention of the others. “Did you think I sell my medicines and golems for fun or something? Of course I’m hoping to earn enough money to live it up like royalty! Who the hell wouldn’t want that!? Anybody who tells you that they would start donating their wealth once they get to this point is nothing but a liar!”
“Hey, I wasn’t saying like that! I have no issues with people getting wealthy and using it however they want! Hell, if I had loads of cash, you can be certain that I’d get a sweet ride and big house with servants like Arnie surrounding me… Oh, that would be nice…” the blonde said as she began to drift into fantasies, only to snap out of it when she saw the others give her deadpan stares. “A-Anyways! Like I said, I’m not some whiny bum, who somehow thinks that others owe me for nothing! The reason I hate these people is because of their hypocrisy and disregard for others! Not only are they insanely rich, but some of them try to act like they’re some virtuous saints, giving speeches about the injustices of our world and such! Well, what the hell do they do!? Throw a bit of pocket money here and there to feel and appear good!? Like that is going to change anything! And the worst is how they have to take from people like us! Me and my brother had to move three times, because the rich pricks at home kept building things to places we were living at! Did we get any compensation? Hell no! They already had more than enough, so do they really need to take anything from us!?”
“...I know what you mean. It’s honestly a sickening sight to behold,” the kobold said with a frown on his face. “People like the ones you just described think that just because they donate a free meal to a starving child will somehow make them a hero, when all they do is massage their own egos, like we are their personal pets or something. My kind have seen that more than you could ever imagine. They think they’re helping the “poor kobolds” by using us as slave labor and feeding us scraps, like some animals. And for what? So they can steal our secrets and get even wealthier, when they have more money than they can spend in their lives? Greed really is powerful, I tell you that much…”
“You got that right!” Ryle said in agreement before suddenly grinning. “Guess even the two of us get to agree on something, huh?”
Erin smiled a bit at the antics of her friends. At first, she had been worried that another argument would break out, but it seems that her fear was for nothing. Instead of a bitter disagreement, it seemed like Ryle and Lexton had found something that they agreed on. Maybe the two of them had far more in common than they knew?
“I’m just as surprised as you are,” Lexton said with a smile. “Although, it’s “my brother and I.” Not “me and my brother.”
“OH, BITE MY ASS, WOULD YOU!?” Ryle shouted angrily at the kobold over being corrected on her grammar.
Erin let out a deep sigh. It seemed like her hopes had been for nothing in the end.
“Hey, if you guys wouldn’t mind, there are others here as well?” Micah suddenly called out from the driver’s seat. “And I might only be speaking for myself, but I would like it if I didn’t get arrested and executed, okay? So would you mind and keep the noise down there?”
“O-Oh yes! Sorry about that!” Erin apologized. “My friends here have a tendency to get a bot out of hand every now and then!”
“More like on a daily basis, if you ask me,” Durge muttered, earning a glare from the redhead.
“I don’t care if it’s once a day or once in a century, all I want is that you guys CUT IT OUT!” Micah yelled angrily. “Seriously, when your idiot friend started talking back to that guard, I’m pretty sure I dropped a load in my pants!”
“We really didn’t need to hear that last part,” Lexton said.
“Okay! No more arguing! No more complaining! No more dropping loads into pants or whatever! Let’s just stop it all for now, okay!?” Erin shouted, having grown tired of all the arguments that were going on. “We all have work to do and none of this is helping! So let’s focus on that and get through this predictably long and hard day! OKAY!?”
Seeing as the redhead was in no mood for any arguing, everybody else inside the bus decided to simply nod in response and sit back down on their seats. The bus continued to drive in silence, until finally coming to a stop at very large and luxurious hotel.
Having reached their destination, Erin’s group and everybody else on the bus got up and walked out, gathering close to the front door. They all lined up and stood in perfect attention, except for Ryle, who had a rather sluggish and relaxed stance. This was quickly corrected by Erin, who smacked the blonde on the back of her head.
Soon the front door opened and a very overweight female dwarf dressed in fine clothing walked out, followed by a maid and a butler close behind her. Both the maid and the butler were elves, and had an air of stiffness and authority to them. It was easy to figure out that these were the heads of the servants in the hotel. Unlike the dwarf, who was most likely the owner, both the maid and the butler carried themselves with dignity, while the dwarf seemed to be a messy person to say the least. Despite her fine clothing, you could easily spot the stains from whatever she had for lunch not too long ago. Not only that, but the way she carried herself was that of someone with a boorish personality, a complete opposite to the two behind her.
image [https://i.ibb.co/873myVK/Ch-143-Pic-2.jpg]
Looking at the dwarf, Erin couldn’t help but be reminded of the old saying about being able to buy almost anything, except class.
“So are these the new recruits that we’ve got!?” the dwarf asked, seemingly out of breath from just walking a bit. “There are far fewer than I expected! And they don’t look all that good either! What will our honored guests think of this!?”
“I’m afraid this is all we could get, madam,” the butler said as he bowed apologetically. “It seems that there are fewer and fewer who are willing to work here.”
“And why is that!?” the dwarf asked angrily. “Don’t we already pay these people more than enough!? What more do they need!?”
“With all due respect, madam, I believe that people are afraid of the treatment they might receive here,” the maid said. “News of servants being punished here to the point of execution have made their way to most places. We fear that is a key issue that causes people to not want to join.”
“Bah! Bunch of spineless cowards the whole lot of them!” the dwarf cursed. “So what if a couple of incompetents get killed for messing up at work!? That just means more opportunities and tips for the ones who remain! But how are we supposed to give our customers any quality service, when all we are left with are the bare minimum workers!? I could just die from embarrassment!”
Erin and her companions did their best to hold back their anger over the owner’s disregard towards the safety of her employees. They all wanted to get angry and yell, but knew that it would only make things worse for them. Bu gritting their teeth and clenching their fists behind their backs, they managed to keep themselves calm enough to not show any of their ire.
“Madam, we understand your concern, but I’m afraid there’s not much that can be done about it,” the butler said. “We cannot simply buy the type of people we require. We can only send out a notice of open spots and hope that we get the people we are looking for.”
“I know that, you incompetent fool! How many years do you think I’ve been running this business!? I didn’t start yesterday!” the dwarf shouted at the elf. “If only we had the resources to properly train people, we could probably buy slaves to use here!”
“Madam, please don’t say such things so openly,” the maid said in a concerned tone. “You know fully well that slavery is illegal.”
“Oh, it’s only illegal when people call it that! How many rich families do you think have bought people as their personal servants!? Hell, I’m sure even Lord Golorath has some in his service!” the dwarf continued to rant. “The whole slavery business is only illegal on paper, but I know for a fact that it’s practiced far more than you’d ever know!”
By now, it was starting to get difficult for Erin and her companions to hold back their emotions. The woman before them was saying such outlandish things that each word was like a nail on a chalkboard. They hoped that this whole introduction would end soon, before one of them snapped and ruined everything.
“Whatever… I guess crying about it isn’t going to help, is it?” the dwarf asked sarcastically. “This just had to happen when we have such important guests, too!”
“We know, madam. We are well aware,” the butler said with a sigh. “Thanks to them, we have already lost three of our staff and they’ve only been here a couple of days.”
Everybody that was standing on the line began to look at each other nervously. Even Erin and her friends were doing it, even though they knew just what kind of people they were dealing with. They were simply trying not to stand out and blow their cover.
“And I’d be willing to let them take away dozens more, as long as it means that our service is a success! Do you have any idea what is at stake when it comes to serving such guests!?” the dwarf asked. “If my services are good enough, they might consider hiring me into the direct service of Lord Golorath himself! Can you imagine what that would mean!? That’s why our service needs to be absolutely perfect this time! Is that clear!?”
“...We’ll keep that in mind, madam,” the butler replied.
“You better! Now, let’s get back to business,” the dwarf said, as she turned her attention to the new arrivals. “Alright, listen up you all! I am Madam Goldjoy and if you know what’s good for you, you will do exactly as I say! Those who fail to follow my orders, can expect to be swiftly kicked out of here, if they’re lucky! Understood!?”
All of the newly arrived servants nodded nervously, including Erin and her friends.
“Good! At least you all have working ears!” Goldjoy said. “The butler behind me is Holmstrom, he will be in charge of the male servants. So all of you guys better listen to him! The maid’s name is Elvafay. She’s in charge of the girls, so all you gals listen to her!”
The dwarf’s question was answered with nods from everybody.
“Alright, now as you might know, we have some very important guests staying here right now. Not only are there those who work under Lord Golorath’s direct service, but his lady herself is also staying here!” Goldjoy explained. “What this means is that there is no room for any, and I do mean any, screw ups of any kind! Our service has to be absolutely perfect! If you mess up… Well, you all probably already know what that means, don’t you?”
Once again, she received nods in response.
“Excellent! Now go follow the person who will be in charge of you! I have other business to attend to, so I can’t stay around watching over you all!” the dwarf said. “Get to work and earn your pay!”
As the group of newcomers began to split up between the male and female servants, Goldjoy noticed someone among them that caught her eye. The dwarf walked up to that one person in order to look at them a bit closer.
“Hold up!” Goldjoy called out. “Have I seen you somewhere before?”
“Huh? Me?” Zeldana asked in return.
“Yes, you!” the dwarf said in a frustrated tone. “There’s something about your face that looks very familiar to me!”
Erin and her other companions felt cold shivers run up their spines. They had forgotten that Zeldana was a wanted criminal that was possibly known throughout the whole world. Her face would have obviously been spread to numerous places, meaning that anyone could recognize her.
“This is not the first time I’ve heard that,” Zeldana said. “I’ve been told I have a very common face.”
Goldjoy stared at the elf for a moment, before suddenly turning around and walking away.
“That’s probably it. You elves all look the same to me anyways,” the dwarf said.
“And you have a face I wouldn’t be able to forget, even if I tried,” Zeldana muttered as she rolled her eyes.
Erin let out a sigh of relief, as the crisis had been averted. However, they were still in for a lot of challenges, as they would have to take up the work of servants soon.