Chapter 13 and others

(Charlotte POV)

Charlotte left the table with the others. Her roommate was sleeping with William tonight. Too bad, she would have liked to learn more about Karine. She had a rather good impression of the young woman. Who knows, maybe they could become friends? Isn't it said that it's in adversity that the greatest friendships are forged?

Eventually, Charlotte entered her room alone. It wasn't small by any means, but it wasn't exactly spacious. She opened the chest of drawers and found a pair of pyjamas. She'd expected erotic pyjamas that barely covered her body, but the pyjamas on offer were very standard.

She quickly put them on and lay down on the bed. She stared at the ceiling. Could she wake up tomorrow morning in her own bed and find it had all been a dream? No. She couldn't make Nicole's mistake. It hadn't been a dream.

Now did it really mean she was going to end her life in a harem? It seemed so absurd. She had nothing against William. He seemed like a nice guy, but she didn't know him. How could anyone ask her to become a member of a complete stranger's harem?

Fortunately, Charlotte didn't have any boyfriends at the moment. With her job, she had never managed to keep one for more than 2 months. She was never around enough. She'd had to cancel several dates because of overtime. And when she did manage to find the time to go on a date, she was so tired that it stopped there.

Could she really make a love connection at this show?

(Nicole POV)

Anna and Nicole returned to their room. The day might have seemed long to some members of the harem, but for Anna and Nicole, who were used to working all day without counting the hours, it could almost have seemed like a vacation to them. A **** vacation where they were imprisoned in a village and transformed against their will, but a vacation nonetheless.

At least the advantage of being here was that she didn't have to worry about her exams coming up at the end of the month.

"What are you thinking?" asked Anna suddenly, who had probably been watching her for a while.

"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking that I probably don't need to worry about my exams right now." replied Nicole.

"Ah, exams. I can't say I'm not glad I don't have them anymore, but don't get too excited - the working world is full of disappointment." replied Anna.

To avoid an awkward silence, Nicole decided to continue the conversation.

"Have you known William long?" asked Nicole.

"I've known him for as long as I can remember. My parents and his parents were friends. We literally grew up together," said Anna.

"I see and you know each other well then," commented Nicole.

"I know him by heart, you mean. I know exactly how that idiot thinks." said Anna with a sigh.

"That idiot? I wasn't under the impression he was an idiot," said Nicole.

"He's not stupid, but he's an idealistic moron. He's as forgiving as they come and can be manipulated by anyone with 3 brain cells. Without me to look after him, I don't even know how many times he'd have been conned," says Anna.

"So do you look after him because he's your friend, or is there something more between you?" asked Nicole.

_"No, there's nothing like that between us. I think of him as my little brother," _Anna replied.

"A little brother? But aren't you the same age?" asked Nicole, not quite sure she'd understood correctly.

"I'm exactly 27 days older than him. So yes, little brother," clarified Anna.

"Oh 27 days, that must have been important when you were a child," said Nicole.

"You have no idea. I can't quantify the number of times we've argued about this. I'm obviously not talking about a real fight. I'm talking about a kid's argument that lasts 1 hour and then we end up hugging because the other is too important." clarified Anna.

"I see. And have you ever had a real fight?" asked Nicole.

Anna immediately stopped talking. Nicole was sure Anna wouldn't answer this question, but Anna finally answered.

"Once, a very long time ago", Anna replied before going to bed without saying another word.

(Marion POV)

Marion had stopped running hours ago. Now she wasn't even walking. It was pitch-black in this forest. She'd decided there was no point in running blindly. Besides, she was really exhausted. Marion was quite an athletic person, doing weight training every week. She swam for an hour in her private pool every week and finally she had her Sunday afternoon tennis lesson. But clearly, running for several hours in a forest without having had dinner was beginning to take a serious toll on her stamina.

She found a tree that wasn't too uncomfortable and settled herself between 2 roots. She looked up at the stars. She'd never seen so many. At the same time, it wasn't as if she usually took the time to look at them. She couldn't remember when she'd last looked at the stars.

Maybe she was too busy for that, or maybe she'd just forgotten how beautiful they can be. After running for so long in this cursed forest, she had managed to calm down a little.

Oh, don't put words in her mouth, she was still angry, but now it was a cold anger, a sweet thirst for vengeance. She could wait to destroy this woman and her employers. She had to find her boss before she could get her full ****. Never mind the petty thugs. Oh, she'd get her **** on Nezoko, but her main target was the show's creator. How dare he turn her into a freak show!

She touched his tail and ears again. It was a very strange sensation. They were parts of her body, but all the sensations she felt were unknown. It was as if she were discovering her body for the first time, like a newborn baby.

Oh well, she wasn't a tentacled monster with 6 arms and 4 pairs of legs. Her appearance, though clearly not human, was still reasonable. It could pass for a quality disguise. Cosplay was fashionable, it seemed.

Now she had to decide what position to adopt. Assuming she ever got out of this forest, she'd probably have to spend time in the village again with that bunch of idiots. But even idiots had their uses, her father had taught her. It doesn't matter if you have a bad poker hand, as long as you know how to use it, you can win the bet.

His objectives were simple for the moment. Step 1 leave this forest. Step 2 identify this woman's employers. Step 3 find a way to harm them. Step 4 strike when they least expected it.

Of course, she'd probably have to cooperate a little with these people for the time being, but who cares what she had to do? As long as she won in the end and managed to get her ****, any sacrifice would be acceptable.

(Elisa POV)

Elisa and Hélène returned to their room calmly. Elisa was no longer sure what to think of her comrade, who was younger than her daughter. She'd seen her in his restaurant but had never really spoken to her before.

Her first impression on seeing her at the start of the show had been that Hélène must be a fragile, sweet, gentle girl, and that she really didn't deserve to end up in a show like this. How could someone so young and therefore innocent have such a fate inflicted on her?

However, recent events had **** him to revise his point of view drastically. How could such a sweet-looking young woman be so violent? Clearly, Hélène must have had a problem, but Elisa was still struggling to understand what it was. So she naturally decided to ask the question. Perhaps she could help the young woman.

"Do you want to talk about what happened earlier?" asked Elisa in her calm, almost maternal voice.

"Ah yes, Mr Hamon was very interesting to listen to at dinner. Not that it changes anything with the usual, he's always fascinating while he's teaching" replied Hélène, her gaze lost in emptiness.

What was she thinking? Elisa had no idea, but one thing was certain: she had no intention of letting their conversation end there.

"I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about your reaction to Iris. You could have really hurt her or yourself," said Elisa.

"Oh that." said Hélène as if she'd already forgotten the incident. Did it really matter so little to her?

"I was at fault. I should have trusted Mr Hamon more. I know he won't abandon us. However, that doesn't excuse the ignominies she put out. For that she certainly deserves to be punished," says Hélène.

Elisa was speechless. How could she say such a thing? Iris hadn't been diplomatic and had made a mistake, but in the end she hadn't said it to hurt anyone.

_"Hélène, are you in love with William, I mean are you in love with Mr Hamon?" _asked Elisa.

Hélène blushed instantly.

_"Me in love with Mr Hamon? No. I really don't know what you're talking about. How could I possibly deserve to have a relationship with Mr. Hamon? He's so perfect, handsome, funny, charming, intelligent, ..." _said Hélène, maching her words so much at the end that Elisa wasn't sure what she was saying. Anyway, she'd got the answer to her question.

Hélène was in love with her teacher. The young woman had had to bury her feelings so deep that she couldn't admit it now. It was a forbidden relationship. A teacher is not supposed to have a relationship with his pupil. But now that they were in this situation, how could anyone blame Hélène for expressing her feelings?

"Oh my poor darling. It must have been really hard for you. I've got your back, don't worry. You can tell me how you feel," said Elisa.

Hélène looked at her with wide-open eyes before asking the simple question.

"Really?"

_"Of course. I'll even do everything I can to help you realize your dream," _said Elisa.

"Promise?" asked Hélène.

"Promise." replied Elisa without hesitation.

"Okay, great. Let's make the two of us the best harem members for Mr. Hamon," said Hélène.

_"Wait what?_" said Elisa.

(Iris POV)

Marion still hadn't returned. It was almost 10pm already. Iris was frankly beginning to doubt whether she'd be sleeping with her tonight.

"Too bad, I'd really liked to interview her," Iris said aloud.

She flipped through her notepad again. She'd already learned a lot about the show and its participants, but there was still so much to discover. She was so excited that she'd never be able to sleep if it went on like this.

Iris decided to review the information related to the show for the time being. The show was magical. It focused on 2 main points transformations (which she still hadn't experienced yet) and sex.

As far as sex was concerned, it was obvious that it was mainly about having sex with the Master, but nothing had been said about the fact that sex between contestants didn't pay off. This point was worth exploring.

Were any members of the harem bisexual or lesbian? Nicole had made her preferences clear when she still thought it was all a dream. Would any other member of the harem be interested in having relations with her? Iris would love to be able to take notes on this sort of thing, but if it didn't happen spontaneously, maybe she'd have to get involved herself.

Then one of the most important points of the show was the VP score. For the moment, everyone was at zero, unless perhaps Karine had already taken action. That's worth checking tomorrow morning. Otherwise, the VP score was important, because whoever had the highest at the end would be designated the winner of the show and would receive a wish.

A wish. It could tempt anyone, but Iris admitted she wasn't particularly interested. Sure, she had desires and dreams, but she'd much rather get them on her own than through a wish. If it all fell into her lap without any effort on her part, it would be boring, and if there's one thing Iris couldn't stand, it was boredom.

However, she had to admit that this was probably not a shared way of thinking in the harem. The other members were no doubt dreaming right now of what they could do with that wish. Oh what Iris wouldn't give to be able to see their dreams. Who knows, maybe she'll get the chance later