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In the corridor, Vera 17 and 18 lay sprawled on the floor, holding their slightly swollen stomachs with contented expressions.
“You two look completely undignified.” Yaeger approached with Little Blue in her arms, speaking in mild exasperation.
The floor, polished around the clock by humanoid puppets, glead spotlessly beneath them. Yet these two were lying on it without a care, clutching their bellies in a manner that was far from ladylike.
“Ma… Master!” Startled by the familiar voice, they scrambled upright and stood rigidly at attention, their expressions tense.
“Relax. Just don’t lie around on the floor next ti,” Yaeger said as she released Little Blue, who began floating beside her.
She gave each of them a light pat on the shoulder.
Before she could speak again, pained groans echoed from inside the guestroom.
“I’m starving! My stomach can’t take it anymore! I want food… so much food!” Vera 2’s cry rang out, filled with desperation.
Vera 1 clutched her stomach, face pale with hunger and tornt. Vera 3 seed slightly more composed, but she was no better off than the others. After a full night of ntal tornt from the sll of delicious food, they had reached their breaking point.
Hunger gnawed at their bodies and minds, leaving them in ruins. Had it been simple starvation, they might have lasted another day. But listening to Little Blue, Vera 17, and 18 feast all night had devastated them both physically and emotionally. No one could endure such tornt.
“We surrender! We give up!” Vera 1 sobbed, unable to watch Vera 2 suffer any longer.
“I surrender too…” Vera 3 murmured as tears stread down her cheeks.
“Didn’t you three act so tough last night?” Yaeger said as she opened the door with a teasing smile.
At her words, their faces flushed with sha, their hearts boiling with humiliation. But none of them dared protest. They feared that any defiance might earn them another round of the previous night’s tornt.
‘It was terrifying. Absolutely horrifying.' Just thinking about it made the three of them shudder.
“What’s wrong? Cat got your tongues?” Yaeger stepped inside as the trio quickly shuffled toward her.
“We… we are willing to serve you,” Vera 1 muttered bitterly.
“And the two of you?” Yaeger turned her gaze to Vera 2 and 3.
“We’re willing as well,” they answered softly, heads bowed in defeat.
The hunger had broken their will. They no longer had the strength to pretend.
“Very good. Then swear your loyalty.” At that mont, Little Blue pulled out three mini baguettes from seemingly nowhere and tossed them over.
The three caught the bread, but their expressions turned puzzled as they stared down at the offerings.
‘What does this baguette have to do with pledging loyalty?'
‘Don’t tell the loyalty ritual is just… eating this rock-hard baguette?'
They were so starved they could have eaten dry flour if it ca to it. But even that didn’t an they were ready to chew through a brick disguised as bread. Their teeth would probably break on impact.
“Watch closely. You three need to do this,” Little Blue said as she floated in front of them, tapping the air to project a recording of the ritual.
Yaeger’s lips twitched as she watched, completely speechless.
In less than a minute, the demonstration ca to an end. Vera 1, 2, and 3 reluctantly stood, each holding a baguette like it was a ceremonial relic. They gripped both ends of their baguettes and raised one knee in sync.
With a dry snap, the baguettes broke cleanly into six uneven pieces. They lifted their heads, looked straight at Yaeger, and declared, “I, Vera One (Two, Three), pledge my eternal loyalty to you!”
As the words left their mouths, they felt sothing deep inside slip away— most likely, their dignity.
‘I’m not really pledging loyalty. This is just temporary. I’m faking it to survive. That’s all…' Vera 1 clutched her split baguette and repeated the excuse in her mind like a mantra.
Vera 2 stared directly at Yaeger, her eyes burning with a singular, overwhelming hunger. Vera 3 lowered her gaze, her thoughts hidden behind a quiet, unreadable expression.
“That’ll do,” Yaeger said with a nod, clapping her hands lightly. “Give our new recruits the best food we’ve got.”
“Yes!” Vera 17 and 18 responded eagerly, hurrying off to the kitchen.
At those words, the faces of Vera 1, 2, and 3 lit up with joy. After enduring so much hunger, they were finally about to eat real food. It felt like the end of a long and torturous ordeal.
Vera 2 collapsed to her knees, overco with emotion. Warm tears stread down her face. Vera 1 and 3 crouched beside her, tears running down their cheeks as well. Though their reactions seed a little exaggerated, as if they were forcing it just a bit.
Soon after, Vera 17 and 18 returned with Chef One in tow, pushing a cart piled high with exquisite dishes.
“Help yourselves. Eat as much as you want,” Yaeger said.
The mont the words left Yaeger’s mouth, Vera 2 lunged at the food, devouring it like soone who hadn’t eaten in nine lifetis. Vera 1 and 3 hesitated for a brief mont, then followed suit. They held nothing back. Their hunger had long surpassed the point of sha.
Yaeger considered saying sothing about their disgraceful table manners but ultimately just sighed and walked out of the room. The three girls hurried to follow her. Behind them, the door shut automatically with a soft click.
Just then, Little Blue seed to rember sothing and spoke up, looking a little embarrassed. “Master, I… need to tell you sothing.”
“Oh? Go ahead,” Yaeger replied, pausing and turning to face her.
“Well… it’s the freezer,” Little Blue said, her cheeks tinged pink. “After last night’s… conversion ceremony, we kind of ran through most of the food supplies.”
Vera 17 and 18 suddenly found the ceiling and walls to be quite fascinating.
They both knew perfectly well that the freezers had been fully stocked. Under normal circumstances, even ten people wouldn’t finish it in days. Yet sohow, the three of them had managed to nearly wipe out the stock in a single night. They were walking, talking food disposal units.
Yaeger blinked, her brain briefly going blank with disbelief. Without warning, she flicked each of their foreheads with rapid precision. The hallway filled instantly with startled yelps of pain.
“Do you have any idea how much risk I take just to keep you all fed?” With hands on her hips, Yaeger scolded them, her tone full of exasperation.
“I’m sorry…” Little Blue whimpered, clutching her forehead with teary eyes. The other two quickly followed suit with identical pitiful expressions.
“I’ll let it slide this ti. Don’t do it again,” Yaeger said, giving each of them a pat on the head.
“Got it!” they chirped, breaking into bright laughter. It was obvious their earlier remorse was just an act.
Yaeger rolled her eyes, completely unamused. “If you pull this again, I’ll hang you up and whip you myself.”
The threat made the trio shudder, and they shook their heads frantically in unison.
“That’s enough. Little Blue, take to the shopping mall. We’ve got ti before it opens.”
It was exactly six in the morning—plenty of ti before stores began to open. Yaeger figured she had just enough ti to restock everything they had devoured.
‘Now that I’ve got three new Vera doppelgängers, food consumption is going to double. If I collect the entire series… my grocery bill will be astronomical.' With that thought lingering, she vanished in a flash of white light.
Inside the ga—
At the always-busy Adventurer’s Guild, open all day and night, a man burst through the entrance. He shouted at the top of his lungs, “Young Master Zhang! Urgent news! The Empire has taken over the auction house!”
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