Chapter 131: Contract Market IX
---
Sekhmet stared at the twins for a long moment. Of all the demands he expected. That was not one. His mind, for a heartbeat, did not know where to put that request.
It was not ambition.
It was not greed.
It was not romance.
It was... something else.
Fear, perhaps.
Fear of dying without leaving any mark behind.
Fear of living as paper and then dying as paper.
Fear of being erased completely.
Or maybe it was pride.
A stubborn insistence that if they were going to be owned on paper, then at least they would take something that belonged only to them and choose where it went.
Sekhmet exhaled slowly.
"You are weird," he said.
Vera did not take offense.
"We know," she replied.
Vela added quietly, "We have had many buyers. They look at us like profit. They talk about ’using’ us. They talk about ’handling’ us. They talk about how our bodies are worth their lust. But..."
Her eyes sharpened.
"We want to choose," she said. "Even if our choices are limited."
Auri’s voice was low.
"Master," she said, warning in it, "be careful."
Sekhmet did not look back.
"I am being careful," he replied.
Then he went silent.
Because now the room held three different offers.
Mira offer was.
Ten years of service. Cultivation access. A revenge she refused to name until trust and power was proven.
Vera and Vela offer-
A debt mountain. Excellent talent. Chaos Rank One. A bloodline trace so faint it might be a myth in their veins. They are the best candidate for a vampire.
And a demand that was both childish and heavy.
Concubines.
Not wives.
Not an ornament.
But a claim. A sister bond.
Auri watched Sekhmet’s face carefully.
Mira watched too, quiet now, like a woman understanding that her own contract was not the only one being weighed.
The twins did not look away.
They waited like people who had already been refused a hundred times and decided the next refusal would not break them.
Sekhmet’s mind moved quickly. He needed the twins. Not for pleasure. For power. For blood potential.
The system had recommended them.
He did not ignore system notes that came without warning. He had learned that the system was not generous for fun.
It offered advantage when advantage mattered.
And the twins were an advantage.
But slots were limited. He had only two empty slots for conversion.
For now.
If he turned Mira into a vampire, he would fill one slot.
That might be useful. It might also be wasteful.
Mira’s talent was ink and organization, not blood lineage. She was valuable as a manager. She did not need vampire power to manage ledgers.
Not yet.
The twins did.
The twins could become something extraordinary if turned. They might get stronger beyond Sekhmet’s imagination.
And Mira could still be useful without conversion. He can turn her when he has more slots.
Sekhmet’s gaze shifted to Mira again.
"Mira," he said.
She straightened slightly.
"Yes."
"You will still want ten years," he said, "even if I do not give you everything you want immediately."
Mira did not flinch.
"I want results," she replied. "Not promises."
Sekhmet nodded slightly. Then he looked at Vera and Vela.
"You are demanding concubine status," he said.
Vera nodded. Vela nodded.
"Yes," Vera said. "We will not be bought and then treated like guard dogs without being acknowledged."
Sekhmet’s lips pressed into a line.
Acknowledged.
That was the word hiding under their crude request. They did not want to be tools. They wanted to be claimed as his woman.
Because claim meant protection in Null.
Claim meant someone would think twice before taking them.
Claim meant they belonged somewhere.
Sekhmet understood that part too well. He exhaled slowly. His decision was formed.
Not fully comfortable. Not fully clean. But controlled.
He stood up.
The candlelight caught the edges of his coat as he rose, casting a longer shadow across the table.
Mira’s eyes lifted.
The twins’ posture tightened slightly.
Auri remained still.
Sekhmet spoke calmly.
"I will buy both contracts," he said.
Mira’s eyes widened slightly.
The twins did not show surprise. They simply watched, waiting for the knife hidden under the gift.
Sekhmet continued, voice steady.
"Mira," he said, "you will work for me. You will manage what I tell you to manage. You will prove you are useful. You will prove you are loyal. After ten years if you want to leave then I will let you go."
Mira nodded once, tight and controlled.
"Yes," she replied.
Sekhmet looked at the twins.
"Vera. Vela," he said.
Their eyes sharpened.
"I will settle your debt," he said. "You will serve as my protectors. You will train under my command. You will grow."
Vera’s jaw tightened slightly.
"And concubines," she said, not asking. Reminding.
Sekhmet’s gaze stayed cold.
"If you insist," he replied, "then yes. Under the terms I set."
The twins’ shoulders loosened slightly, like a breath released after holding it too long.
Auri’s eyes narrowed, but she did not speak. Not here. Not in front of them.
Sekhmet turned toward the door. He did not waste time with further discussion.
Words were cheap. Contracts were expensive. Action mattered most.
He stepped toward the door and opened it.
Rune-silence broke as the hall noise returned like a wave.
The clerk was waiting outside the room, hands clasped, face bright with practiced professionalism and greedy hope.
Sekhmet looked at him calmly.
"I want both contracts," Sekhmet said.
The clerk’s eyes lit up.
"Yes, sir," he said quickly. "Both... Understood. I will prepare the documents and summon the contract seals."
Sekhmet nodded once.
"Do it quickly," he replied.
The clerk practically glided away with excitement, already imagining the fees, the seals, the numbers.
"Ha Ha Ha. I will get a big commission." He thought rubbing his hands with a greedy smile on his face.
Sekhmet stood in the corridor, Auri beside him, the door to Private Room Seven behind him, and the Contract Market’s breathing crowd ahead.