Dina's face was still a swirl of emotions as she stepped into the brothel's lobby. The guards spent not a second longer with her than necessary, disappearing behind the doors without a word. She paused in the dimly lit room, leaning her back against the entrance, and let out a deep sigh. Her mind wandered to Zevran, to little Züiya, to the scent of the orphanage garden, and then she saw Zevran's gaze again.

Pushing herself off the door, she smiled and started down the corridor. A strange smell lingered in the air—she had noticed it when she entered, but her drifting thoughts had kept her from paying it any attention. Now, however, the scent suddenly intensified, and Dina...

"Ah!" she let out a brief scream, covering her mouth. Harod was sitting in the dark, on a chair directly opposite her, likely watching her the entire time. Only the whites of his eyes gleamed, making him appear like some kind of monster. Or perhaps, he was one. He still held a cigar stub between his fingers, having only just put it out.

Dina tried to calm her ragged breathing, forcing a smile, this time for her own sake.

"Harod! You scared me!"

The half-breed stood up deliberately, stepping closer to her, and tossed the cigar butt into the ashtray on the table with a measured calm. Then he looked into Dina's eyes. She had expected at least an apology, but Harod's gaze was more akin to a hunter who has found prey in his trap. He looked down at her, confident and almost gleefully smiling.

Inside Dina's mind, alarm bells rang—I need to get out, now!

"It's late, I think I'll head off, good ni—"

"Ts-ts..."

Harod's grip on her upper arm told her she wasn't going anywhere. He pulled her back in front of him.

Dina quickly glanced up at him, but she couldn't meet his gaze, nor did she want to. Blinking rapidly, she looked away.

"Were you waiting for me, Harod?"

"If you must know: yes. I wanted to see you when you returned. And"—he nodded—"I saw exactly what I expected."

Dina forced a carefree smile. "And... were you satisfied with what you saw, weren't you?"

"Not quite, sweetheart. Not quite."

Her smile solely disappeared. "I don't know what you mean. But it's late, I've been away all day, and tomorrow I'm going again, the guest who paid the Tád a pher..."

"Oh, this famous Tád a pher guest of yours!" Harod sneered.

Dina tried to keep up the act. "But Harod...! How can you say that? We owe him for the reputation, and you said yourself that..."

"I'm tired of you not being here!" Harod suddenly grabbed both of Dina's arms, shaking her as he shouted in her face. "I'm tired of not knowing what's happening with you! He needs your company from morning till late evening, but tell me, what in hell could a man possibly do with an uneducated whore for nine hours, huh?!"

Dina stared back at the enraged half-breed in terror.

"Answer me! What?! What are you planning?!"

"Don't think badly of us, Harod... we're not planning anything, we just... enjoy each other's company, that's all, really, that's all..."

Harod didn't seem convinced. "Don't take me for a complete fool, sweetheart!"

Dina's eyes pleaded with him, but she knew there was no point in replying. He clearly needed a different kind of proof.

"You know what, darling? Show me what you've got too. I want to see what this mysterious man of yours sees in you!" He stepped even closer, and Dina instinctively tried to back away.

"But Harod!"

"What do you mean, 'But Harod'?"

"You promised to let me be at my best for the client! It's in your interest too!" Dina pushed against Harod's waist, wanting to take another step back, but then Zevran's advice suddenly came to her: never let yourself be cornered. So, instead of retreating, she stopped and faced Harod with a resolute look. "Stop! You'll get everything in time! We agreed that after the Tád a pher, I'd be yours!" She only used this argument because she secretly hoped that time would never come. "But for now, please, let me rest, I need to sleep!"

Though Harod didn't move closer, it was clear he hadn't heard her request. He stared at Dina angrily, raising his chin and nodding in small motions. "Fine. Fine. If I promised, I promised, no fucking yet. But I still want to see you!"

Dina shot him a wary glance. "See me? How...?"

"I want to see you! Strip!"

"What...?"

The commotion had caused several doors to open slightly, and a few pairs of eyes peeked out at them. One of the guards arrived, holding a candle, its threatening light spreading through the room. Dina's gaze darted around nervously, before finally settling on Harod, who had taken a step back and spread his arms wide, like a ringmaster before a performance.

"Come on, little one! Don't stutter! You're a Tád a pher courtesan! Strip and dance for me, right here in the hall! I promise I'll sit back in the chair alone and you won't be the one who I am touching! See? Everyone wins! Now, get started!"

Harod was clearly provoking her, his frustration obvious, yet he didn't take his eyes off her as he stepped away. Dina stood there, breathing heavily, her hands clenched into fists at her sides.

"Well? What are you waiting for?! Entertain me! You're such a renowned courtesan, aren't you? Then strip! Strip already!"

But when Dina didn't move, something snapped in Harod. He lunged at her, grabbing her waist with one arm and yanking at the green dress on her shoulder with the other. She screamed, fought back, flailing her arms, but Harod didn't stop. He kept tugging at her dress, pulling her along with it, until finally, she was half-naked, her chest exposed. Curling in on herself, she turned away from him, covering her body in vain.

Then she heard one of the guards speak softly next to Harod. "...you'd ask us yourself if you were sober. Nothing personal..."

When she looked up, she saw the broad-shouldered, black-clad guard standing next to Harod, whispering into his ear from close proximity. Another guard appeared on the other side, silent but ensuring order through his presence. Harod didn't move. He kept staring at Dina, fuming, but he didn't move.

Shaking, Dina quickly pulled the torn dress back over herself as much as she could.

"She works day and night, but she can't strip in front of others! Tell me, whore, do you take me for a idiot?!" Harod barked at her. The guards kept calming him down, with one grabbing his shoulder, but Harod shrugged him off. "Get off me! Get out of here! All of you, get out!"

The doors quickly shut. Two guards didn't leave as hastily, one of them throwing Dina a concerned glance—the first emotion she had ever seen from them. Although she wasn't naïve enough to think it was concern for her, the guard was probably just protecting his job. After all, it was less risky to stop their boss from damaging the girl who brought them fortune than to let him ruin the brothel's reputation.

"Harod." The guard didn't continue, just exchanged a meaningful look with the half-breed. Everyone else had retreated behind closed doors. Only the three of them remained, Dina curled up in the farthest corner.

Harod paced around the room silently, stretching his neck and arms as if trying to take deeper breaths. The guard watched him quietly.

"I'm fine, nothing's wrong, I am no angry, I'm fine." Harod said, shrugging as though nothing had happened. Then, with an awkward glance at the remaining guard, he added, "You can go too, I can control myself."

The guard didn't respond, just exchanged a final look with his boss before slowly leaving the room and shutting the door behind him.

Dina was now alone with Harod in the dark. She glanced between him and the hallway leading to her room, desperately waiting for her escape route to clear. But Harod just paced back and forth, running his hands through his hair. Dina stayed motionless in the corner, clutching her dress tightly.

After a long silence, only Harod's footsteps could be heard, growing calmer with each step. Eventually, he stopped, looked at Dina, and started walking toward her.

Terrified, she turned toward the wall, frantically trying to cover herself completely, though it was probably in vain.

"Dina, my sweet, little one..." Harod's voice was soft, almost pleading. Dina didn't respond.

He gently touched the smooth skin of her back beneath the torn dress, sliding his hand over it.

"Don't touch me!" Dina hissed, forcefully pushing Harod's hand away.

But he acted as if nothing had happened, caressing her exposed skin again.

"I just want what's best for you."

Dina didn't respond, not even in her thoughts.

Harod continued to stroke her back.

"I know what's going through your mind. I also know you like to pretend to be stupid in front of me. But you're not, my little one, you're not..."

Dina swallowed. She felt disgusted by his touch.

"You're riding high right now, but the higher you are, the harder you can fall. You need to be careful about what you do. Not just for yourself, but for all of us."

"I haven't done anything to harm the brothel!" Dina growled.

"You're still too young. It's obvious you're slowly falling in love."

Dina stayed silent, though the words made the tension inside her grow.

"Don't do it, my dear, don't sabotage yourself—or us. Harden your heart, and don't let him get inside with his sweet talk."

"Why does it matter to you, what's in my head? Or in my heart? If it mattered, you wouldn't treat me like this!"

Harod acted as if he hadn't heard her bitter words.

"Because everything you are belongs to me, my dear. Not just your body, but your soul, your thoughts too. Can you imagine that? They're mine because I'm responsible for you. If you feel bad, that's on me, my little one. In fact, even what's in that little head of yours is my responsibility." His fingers ran through Dina's straight, pale hair, which the moonlight tinged with a greyish hue. "In return, I demand complete dedication."

Dina trembled under his hand, shaking with rage.

Harod sighed, sounding troubled. "But it's so easy to tempt a silly woman's heart to stray," he said, feigning sadness. His voice hardened a little, his palm slid over Dina's bare shoulder blade, and he leaned in closer to her. "That's why you're spending so much time together, isn't it? He whispers sweet things to you, doesn't he? That ever since he saw you, you're all he can think of, that you're the only one for him, that in such a short time you've already bewitched him, that he loves you forever, that he wishes you would run away with him, that he wants to spend his life with you—he says all that, right? Endlessly, to completely ensnare you...!"

As Harod spoke, Dina's heart twisted tighter and tighter.

"Believe me, all he wants is for you to fall in love so he can manipulate you. Has he talked about helping you escape? Made any plans or hinted that he'd help you...?"

The sharp words dug into Dina's mind, and she couldn't hold back anymore. Her eyes filled with tears, her throat burned, and then suddenly, soft but honest sobs burst from her, cutting off Harod's monologue.

"No! He's never said any of that!" Dina cried, this time painfully sincere. "None of it! He's never said... any...!"

She covered not just her chest but her face now too, trying in vain to hide her flowing tears from Harod. Perhaps he sensed that this time, Dina wasn't wearing a mask, because he simply watched her cry for a while. Then, gently, he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and rocked her slightly.

"There, there, my little one. I didn't mean to make you sad. I want you to be happy. And do you know the secret to your happiness, my dear? It's to think of this man as nothing more than a client. Yes, your job is to be with him, but in the next moment, your heart and soul should be here with us. You do it for us, for the brothel. For the place that gives you work and shelter. You belong to us, my little one."

Dina couldn't even argue. She just kept crying. She let the man she so deeply hated hold her, rock her, while the thought gnawed at her that maybe Zevran was using her just like all the other men. Maybe Zevran was just a bit more refined, but... that's all. He didn't really want her either. Perhaps in every town, there is a favourite courtesan he returns to, but truly, he loved no one. Why would Dina be an exception?

Harod pulled her closer and softly caressed her neck. "Believe me, I've been running this place for years. I know your little womanly hearts."

Dina still didn't answer him. However, his body was now pressed intimately close to her back, and she hated even his smell. So she wiped her tears, straightened herself as much as her torn clothing allowed, and steeled her gaze before simply stepping away from Harod.

He didn't try to stop her.

Dina thought of some excuse, like it was late, or that she had to go, but in the end, she said nothing. She just shot him a frustrated glance and hurried towards her room.

From the gallery above, Siss watched them with a malicious smile.