The building looked just like any other from the outside; however, upon entry, they were left flabbergasted.
"T-These... are all clothes?!" Jehanne gasped.
Inside, the first ten floors were all reserved for clothing and apparel, mostly aid toward won. Jehanne and Zetian’s eyes skimd the place, eyeing the mannequins wearing interesting choices of clothes.
"Oh, this..." Zetian stopped by one of them. "This is similar to the one that little girl wore..."
What she was seeing was a simple outdoor style matchup: denim short pants with frayed edges, paired with a tank top and a cropped jacket. It prioritized comfort and ease of movent over cloth coverage.
"Hmmm... Although it looks less embarrassing than the Bunny Suit, I don’t think I can wear that..." Jehanne comnted, shaking her head lightly.
But just as they were looking around, the people present were staring at them too. A female soldier, an Empress, a cultivator, two maids, and one beauty—their lineup was quite an eyeful, after all.
"W-What’s that...? Is there so movie shooting scheduled here today?"
"Damn! What a group of beauties! Will they let lick their feet if I beg seriously?!"
"Was there a cosplay event nearby...? I don’t know which character they’re portraying, but I fell in love!"
People, regardless of gender, were forced to turn by the combined power of five beauties. Of course, Xu Tao’s prim, proper, composed, and aloof look wasn’t losing out either in drawing new fans from the crowd.
Naturally, with everyone literally staring at them, moving around beca troubleso.
"...Let’s go to the 10th floor," Henrietta suggested.
The 10th floor was the "premium goods" floor, after all. There were fewer custors there compared to the other floors, as it only showcased extrely expensive brands.
With Xu Tao’s silent pressure, he pushed the crowd away without even lifting a hand, opening a path straight to the elevators. As soon as they all entered, the door closed.
"W-Waaah!"
"M-My Emperor, I’ll protect you...!"
But soon after the elevator doors closed and began moving upward, both Jehanne and Zetian jumped to grab either of Xu Tao’s arms.
"T-The floor... it’s shaking! It’s an earthquake!" Jehanne shouted practically right into Xu Tao’s ears.
Zetian’s eyes, on the other hand, narrowed as she checked her surroundings. "I can feel a pressure pushing down on my body... There’s an enemy out there!"
"Uhh..." Xu Tao scratched his head. "Both of you, calm down. This is just a ride, a shortcut to head up. Nothing to be scared of."
Of course, Xu Tao was also seeing an elevator for the first ti.
However, unlike the other two, he was already familiar with sothing similar in function: the floating discs inside inheritance ruins that let one go up or down the structure, controlled through Qi.
With his senses, he could tell that this "elevator" functioned the sa way as those discs. The only difference was that this one was pulled by tal ropes and pulleys from above, using machines to allow it to move evenly and smoothly.
"That’s right." Even Yifa nodded along. "Broadly speaking, this elevator is also like the car we rode in earlier—a thod to move around faster and more efficiently."
But it wasn’t as if their nerves or fear could be dismissed with just words.
Neither of them let go of Xu Tao’s arms until the elevator ca to a stop a few monts later at the 10th floor. As soon as the doors opened, they dragged Xu Tao outside and breathed a sigh of relief.
"You’re both over-exaggerating..." He sighed, patting their heads lightly.
They were now at the 10th floor, and even from just outside the elevator, Xu Tao could visually confirm the differences between it and the 1st floor.
First of all, the walls of the floor itself shone as if they were polished to the limit. The ground even looked as reflective as a mirror, making it awkward if soone was wearing a short skirt among the custors.
The shops, too—the clothes on display were visibly more "expensive" and "expressive" than those below. These clothes weren’t just made to be worn, but rather to make a "statent."
"Ah, Miss Campbell, it’s been a while."
Just as they were standing still, a man wearing what seed to be staff clothes—or more like a butler’s simplified attire to fit modern aesthetics—stepped forward.
"Are you here to look at the new seasonal clothes? Their stocks just arrived."
"Hmm? You are..."
Henrietta stared at the smiling man before averting her gaze. "No, I can’t rember you. Anyway, I’m here to look at clothes for them, basically."
"M-Miss..."
The man looked hurt, hearing that Henrietta couldn’t even rember his na. "I’m Alfred, the 10th floor’s admin staff. Please try and rember it next ti..." He said, basically pleading. "Then, please follow , ladies. This way."
He walked forward with an amicable smile, but...
"...Eh?"
Nobody followed him.
Henrietta had been hoping that all the girls except her would tag along with the man, leaving Xu Tao’s side—so that she could enjoy her ti alone with him.
But Jehanne was wary of the man’s fake smile, while Zetian simply didn’t want to take orders from anyone. Yifa was perceptive enough to understand Henrietta’s little plan, and Uriel... was just waiting for everyone to move.
In short, they were at a stalemate!
"You girls..." Xu Tao felt a headache coming, shaking his head before stepping forward. "Mr. Admin Staff, we’ll follow your lead."
Only when Xu Tao followed did everyone else begin to move. Seeing this, the man quickly understood the "power dynamics" of this group.
’All of them were basically waiting on this poor-looking man!’
But as he reached this conclusion, another question popped into his head. He had been acquainted with Henrietta for so years now, and knew full well her attitude toward everyone.
Thus, it was hard for him to imagine her simply nodding her head and following soone’s lead!
’This man... perhaps, is he rich? Is he her new sugar daddy?’
Such rude thoughts circled his mind as he led everyone along the way.
He was lucky he didn’t dare voice such thoughts out. If not, then... his life might have been forfeit the mont he did.
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