Lounging in the chair and waiting for her to speak again, I took a moment to admire her beauty and presence since now seemed like the best time to do so; those sharp lines that made her face as handsome as it was ensured she exuded power, while her cold blue eyes gave that power quite the chill.
Her confidence and that silent, unwavering strength that rolled off of her in lazy waves was captivating, while her lithe frame was emphasized clearly by her impressive height; she was a handsome and domineering woman in a quiet way, and that was rather unlike anyone I had dealt with before.
She had real power too, though as far as I was aware it was nowhere near the levels that Renna, Leonisa or even Fenkar wielded, but even still I knew she demanded - and deserved - my respect, especially since it seemed she viewed Inik as a daughter of sorts.
"Miss Astra, if I may be blunt with you for a moment..?"
When I gave her a nod and leaned forwards her thin lips curved upwards slightly, though the rest of her face was as impassive as before as she pondered her words for another moment, weighing them carefully.
"What you represent to this is city is unadulterated, uncontested and uncontrollable power. It hasn't been long whatsoever and yet you have both Duchesses leaning in for every word you speak, have one of the Magistrates - the one to whom secession is an extremely unlikely but very plausible option - wrapped around your finger and now even have the Queen's personal intrigue.
So pardon me if I decide to be the one to ask, but what is it that you are hoping to do here in Birchan, Miss Astra? What are you planning for this city, and for this Queendom? It might be odd coming from the proprietress of an Auction House of all places, but I feel it needs to be asked."
A smile immediately sprung to my lips as I stared at the cold Elf in front of me, and after a moment of thinking over my own words I chuckled softly and said "It's funny because none of you ever believe me when I simply tell you that I have no plans."
The instant that left me lips she frowned, though she remained quiet and let me add "I truthfully never had grandiose plans of any kind. Renna was my neighbor and things sparked from there. Leonisa and I met under... intriguing circumstances, which led to us becoming intimate. Fenkar was much the same."
Leaning back into my seat and letting that smile turn into a grin, I waved my hand loosely at nothing as I continued on, my tone becoming more and more amused the longer I explained myself to someone rather interesting.
"My very being is tied to sex, Madame, and there isn't much more to it than that. I found Renna attractive so I pursued her. Fenkar was a handsome and charismatic Wolfkin that tossed a pouch of gold at me so that she could climb onto me in her bed. Leonisa asked if I might service her amazing body.
I came here with my family simply because it would give them everything they need while assuaging my own, and ever since we arrived things have just... happened. I never go out of my way to invite 'trouble' to myself, the same I don't really go out of my way to cause it either. Things just happen to and around me. That's all there is to it."
Taking a breath and nodding, the Madame reached into her desk and retrieved a long pipe, packing the one end with some kind of herb before igniting it and taking a drag, causing me to raise a brow and then shrug when she offered it to me.
The sweet, tangy scent of whatever she was smoking was alluring, so I took a hit of whatever it was before handing it back, enjoying the warmth and immediately grinning at her when I noticed it made my body tingle a little.
"My next question is more of a personal one. You can answer it if you want to, or not. See, Dark Elves don't simply just... walk around. Dark Elf women don't just walk around that often, and Dark Elf women without branding simply do not exist. So how does Kalia... exist?"
"Well, if you promise not to tell her, I can tell you that... if you have a bit of Nature attuned gemstones somewhere around here that you don't mind handing over~?"
She narrowed her eyes before nodding, causing me to grin before I gave her a watered down version of what happened with Yiksa; her expression never once changed, and she didn't even bother with offering condolences since she had seen how little I cared about what happened.
"So this Yiksa is a Dark Elf futanari that apparently barely grew up with her own kind..? Interesting. That would explain that..."
"You said branding... what does that mean?"
"Hm? Oh, Dark Elf women are marked when they come of age. A fertility crest of sorts is burned into their skin before they get passed around the group to conceive. It's old magic... dark magic, which ensures a Dark Elf woman can only ever give birth to another Dark Elf. Elves already have lower fertility levels, but Dark Elves are cursed to be 'worse'. Kalia... apparently is an exception."
I chuckled and nodded, having a feeling that any of these 'curses' that might affect a race would likely stop with me if I had any say in creating a new branch for the bloodline, but I kept that to myself and instead focused on the Madame.
"Is that why you are so interested in my darling daughter? Can't seem to figure out how such an adorable and amazing girl exists?"
Again her lips curved upwards, and after taking another long hit of that herb she blew the smoke into the air between us and said "That's exactly it. I told her before that if I had found her before she met Inik, I would have done everything to get her."
"There's nothing stopping you from having her still, y'know?"
That made her pause, and even as I took the pipe from her she just stared at me silently, so after relishing another influx of warmth from that blend I just grinned and added "It's not like she's going to be pregnant with Inik's baby forever. I'm sure you can figure out a way to get her into your bed again if you want. Besides, she seemed rather happy with everything you did to her~! Told me all~ about it, in great detail..."