This was an open-air tavern.
Several tables and chairs were arranged in the courtyard at the entrance. Guests were sitting shoulder to shoulder, laughing heartily.
Like the surrounding buildings, the tavern was built of stone. Though it was only two stories tall, it extended far back, making it quite large in scale. The decor was also very trendy, probably the largest tavern in the area.
The signboard read "The Benevolent Mistress." Now that's a name with some personality.
Just a glance inside showed several waitresses in green uniforms, some were Spirits or Elves, others were Beastkin girls, carrying trays as they rushed busily between the front hall and the kitchen.
It was dinner time, and customers were constantly coming and going. The staff looked very busy.
At the bar stood a burly female Dwarf in charge of handing out drinks and food to customers; she was probably the tavern owner.
It seemed like all the staff in this place were women.
But… why did Freya bring him here?
To eat?
Well, after 'singing' all day, he was indeed pretty hungry.
"Wait here for a bit." Freya instructed him softly, then tightened her cloak and stepped into the tavern.
Her arrival immediately caught the attention of the tavern owner at the bar. The woman's expression tightened and quickly turned serious.
The two of them whispered to each other for a moment, and then the owner's face shifted to one of surprise.
Shortly afterwards, the owner stepped out from behind the bar, followed Freya, and exited through the tavern doors.
Inside the tavern, four girls, a green-haired Spirit/Elf waitress, two Catgirls, and one Human, all attractive in their own way, turned their heads toward the entrance with puzzled expressions.
"Is this the guy?"
At the door, the owner looked Ryoji up and down and let out a surprised grunt.
"He's got a not bad face, Ma!"
The owner's presence was intense.
She stood well over two meters tall, like a small giant, making it hard to associate her with the Dwarf race at all. Her face was rather plain, but her aura was shockingly strong.
"What a powerful female Dwarf… she feels even stronger than Tiona…" Ryoji was secretly alarmed.
As expected of Freya, even a random tavern she brought him to had a proprietress who was at least a first-tier Adventurer.
Not only that, the waitresses inside, Ryoji could tell just by sensing them, each one gave off a sharp, almost painful intensity with their gaze. None of them were ordinary.
A tavern full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons.
That was Ryoji's instant evaluation.
He was already prepared to flee. Although his intuition didn't sense any immediate danger, it never hurt to be cautious. If Freya suddenly changed her mind, he'd be in serious trouble.
"You want him to work in my tavern?" The owner glanced at the cloaked Freya beside her, speaking in a gruff voice. She didn't seem too fond of the idea.
"Work?" Ryoji was stunned.
Why hadn't he heard about this before?
"That's right," Freya nodded calmly. Though her face was hidden, her tone remained elegant and composed.
"Just treat him like a regular employee and train him. Then it will be alright."
"Hmph, why don't you keep him in your ivory tower instead?"
The owner crossed her arms, standing tall and proud, radiating overwhelming presence. One of her eyes remained closed.
"Just look at his unsteady steps, must've been completely drained by you. You pamper him so much, and now you're willing to leave him here to suffer?"
Her perception was terrifying.
With a single glance, she saw right through the truth, Ryoji had already been thoroughly squeezed dry by Freya.
Ryoji had a humble expression on his face.
Charm was seriously overpowered, he had almost lost his life to it.
"How unfortunate. He doesn't listen to me at all." Freya let out a troubled sigh.
If he actually listened to her, she would've already brought him into her Familia to pamper him properly. But he just didn't fall for her Charm.
What made her even angrier was how, after singing with her all day, he turned around and left without a moment of hesitation. When it was time to part ways, he didn't even look back. It was as if he had no attachment to her body whatsoever, completely unaffected.
Unbelievable. Was he even a pervert?
"Anyway, just let him stay and work here, then it will be alright."
"He doesn't listen to you either…?"
The tavern owner let out a surprised grunt and gave Ryoji a slightly changed look.
As a former member of Freya Familia, she knew well what Freya was capable of. The fact that someone could resist her Charm was genuinely unexpected.
Then, faced with Freya's almost commanding request, she furrowed her brow in thought. She clearly wasn't thrilled about the idea.
All the staff in her tavern were women.
While each of them was strong in their own way, this kid's face was unnaturally handsome. It was hard to say for certain that he wouldn't stir up some unnecessary thoughts and disputes among her girls.
This kid seemed like he'd be a lot of trouble. But Freya's request couldn't be ignored so easily.
"Hm… My tavern only has female clerks, and that's not going to change."
The tavern owner paused in thought, then a subtle, almost invisible smile crept onto her face.
"If he's willing to be a female clerk, then I might consider letting him stay."
"?"
Ryoji instinctively pressed his legs together, staring at the tavern owner warily.
"Don't even think about it!"
He was a man of morals reaching the heavens! No one could separate him from his brothers!
"It's not that big a deal!" The tavern owner was momentarily stunned, then her face darkened.
"Just crossdress and it'll be fine. Otherwise, you'll ruin my tavern."
"???"
Ryoji looked suspiciously between the tavern owner and Freya.
"You two are totally ganging up on me, right?"
He came all this way, and the first thing they asked was for him to crossdress?
It was hard not to question Freya's intentions!
Didn't she say she wasn't a petty goddess? And now she's trying to get revenge with crossdressing?
"How interesting!"
Freya's eyes sparkled. She offered encouragement, brimming with curiosity.
"Think it over, just sacrifice a tiny bit of dignity, and in return, you could gain Charm Ability like mine. Isn't that a crazy good deal?"
To a god, crossdressing was nothing!
In their countless boring years, they had already played with everything imaginable. Crossdressing was just a tiny, insignificant part of that; it was nothing out of the ordinary.
That's why Freya didn't think crossdressing was any big deal. In fact, she was very intrigued and wanted to see for herself just how devastatingly beautiful Ryoji could be while crossdressed, would he be able to rival her?
Of course, more importantly,
It felt cathartic. Ahahaha!
Freya was more than just a little pleased.
If she didn't have to maintain her image, she'd probably already be clutching her belly laughing.
No, she could barely hold back her laughter even now…!
"Crossdressing… Charm…"
Ryoji took a deep breath, his expression grave.
Crossdressing was a psychological trauma for him.
Back when he was a kid, a legal loli had forced him into multiple sets of girl clothes and taken tons of photos. Because of that, he developed an extreme aversion to crossdressing. Ask him to do it now, and he'd draw his sword in seconds.
But Charm was a powerful ability.
Especially as Freya described it, it could forcibly alter someone's cognition, essentially brainwashing them into obedience, regardless of their strength. That was undeniably terrifying.
So now the question was,
Would he choose dignity or power?
Ryoji was caught in a tough decision.
(End of Chapter)
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