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Chapter 5: An unexpected visitor.
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The next day I must make an initial report on my progress to the Chief Procurator. He doesn't show much interest in my observations, and it isn't until I tell him of my contract with an Elf Maiden called DF36 that he makes any comment at all.
"Make sure you keep your Elf Maiden under control," the Chief Procurator responds. "Some of them are too smart for their own good."
"What about the poor state of the buildings they live in?" I ask. "More of them would survive winter if they lived in good housing."
"More of them surviving winter won't address the Elf Maiden problem. It will make it worse. Thurn is becoming overrun with elves."
"Many of our farms and forestry operations rely on cheap elven workers," I observe. "As for mining, that industry is almost entirely reliant of elven workers. The increase in the elven population means we are able to produce more food, timber and ore."
"That may be so," agrees the Chief Procurator begrudgingly. "But the workforce is made up entirely of adolescent elves. It's Elf Maidens who are the problem. They seduce good honest Thurnian men and tempt them to perform lewd sexual acts. The women of Thurn are understandably upset."
I could point out that Thurnian men are more than happy to be seduced by Elf Maidens. And unless Elf Maidens are allowed to produce more elven children, the supply of adolescent elves will eventually dry up. As for Elf Maidens performing lewd sexual acts, then I can only assume the Chief Procurator is talking from personal experience with his own private harem of Elf Maidens. But he has a point about Thurnian women being upset. It's an issue born from the frustration of knowing Thurnian men can enjoy sex all year round with Elf Maidens, while Thurnian women can only enjoy sex in the brief three weeks of the rutting season.
The rules governing what elves can and cannot do is a patchwork of laws modified so many times over the years that some of the current laws are bizarre. Nobody knows why the law says Elf Maidens must wear collars and be confined to city ghettos. In fact, more and more Elf Maidens are leaving the ghettos for private harems. Apparently that's all perfectly legal thanks to the law allowing Elf Maidens to live outside a ghetto if they have a work contract with a Thurnian male of good standing. Quite how anyone is supposed to determine whether a man is of good standing isn't specified. And the law allowing them to live in a man's harem can be inconsistent with the law prohibiting them from being inside the city walls during winter. But it would be a mistake to think anybody is in a rush to sort out the anomalies in the law.
My meeting with the Chief Procurator ends without my being able to get his agreement on any issue. I leave his office feeling a little despondent. How am I supposed to complete my work if the Chief Procurator and I disagree about nearly everything to do with Elf Maidens. The only issue we agree on is how great it is to fuck them. While I'm in the building, I pay a visit to the Registrar of Land Titles. He at least can tell me who owns the run-down ghetto buildings.
"Those land titles were cancelled many years ago when the buildings were declared derelict," says Registrar. "That means ownership has reverted to the Imperial family."
"So the Emperor owns them," I say.
"Not in the case of the elven ghettos. The buildings of all the elven ghettos are all owned by his daughter, Cassandra."
Hearing Cassandra's name brings back memories of our friendship while we were studying history years ago. But I refuse to believe the Cassandra I knew would allow her tenants to live in such squalor. However, I remind myself that none of the Imperial family would involve themselves in such lowly matters as property management, so she us probably unaware of the problem.
"Is it a common arrangement to do that?" I ask.
"The laws regarding elves are ridiculously complex. Elves aren't allowed to live on land owned by the Emperor, so ownership of all properties in elven ghettos is vested in his daughter."
"So who manages the properties on Cassandra's behalf?" I ask.
"Um... I have no idea. Probably nobody. The Imperial tax collectors will collect the rent, but that's as much as they will do."
"How does anyone go about having the properties repaired?" I ask. "Some of them are in danger of collapse."
"Which is probably why the buildings were declared unfit for Thurnian habitation years ago. If repairing the buildings matters so much to you, then have the Elven Council petition the owner."
"But elves aren't taught to read or write," I say.
"Hmm... That does present a problem, doesn't it," says the Registrar, clearly losing interest in the subject. "You could register your concern in the city land register."
"Which would achieve what?" I reply.
"Probably nothing. But I would be obliged to notify the property owner of the entry, so it may prompt some action."
I do as he suggests and then I return to my house. DF36 has set up a small work area for herself in a corner of the living room. She's busy making what appears to be a decorative leather bodice. She acknowledges my arrival but she doesn't stop working.
"Who are you making that for" I ask.
"I don't know. The sale of everything I produce is handled by elven merchants. Sometimes they request a specific item, but generally I produce what I think will sell. I give the merchants my finished goods and they sell them on my behalf. I never know who buys what I produce."
"Aren't you concerned that they may cheat you of your earnings?" I ask.
"No. That's a Thurnian way of doing business. It's not the elven way. We must trust and help each other if we are to survive in Thurn."
"Well, that bodice looks pretty. I'm sure a Thurnian woman would be glad to own something like that."
"Perhaps. But few local Thurnian women want anything produced by an Elf Maiden. They regard us as vermin and they don't want anything to do with us. Usually our merchants must transport elven goods to cities where elves are forbidden to live. Women there seem happier to be seen wearing elven made clothes and ornaments."
In the fifty years since elves were transported to Thurn, only six cities have allowed elves to live within their boundaries. A dozen more are happy to have adolescent elves work on their nearby farms, forests and mines, but elves are never allowed to enter the city. I must investigate the situation in the other cities that have permitted an elven population to develop. It could be a mistake to assume the prejudices against Elf Maidens in this city are replicated in other cities.
"I must go and meet with your sister," I say. "I should be back in a couple of hours."
"That's okay. You don't need to tell me about your movements. I have everything I need for my work."
My meeting with DF35 was shorter than I expected. She is no longer in heat, so my visit didn't include any sex. Which I found disappointing, but I guess I'll get over it tonight with her sister. My visit to the ghetto only confirmed my earlier observations that something ought to be done to improve the lives of elves.
I return to my house about half an hour earlier than I said to DF36. I walk in to find that we have a visitor. Cassandra! She and DF36 are busy discussing something, and Cassandra quickly hides something behind her back.
"Cassandra! This is an unexpected pleasure. I see you've met DF36."
"Alex. Hi. Sorry, you caught me by surprise. Your elven friend here said you weren't due back for another half an hour."
"I can go away and come back then if you wish," I reply, perplexed by Cassandra's embarrassment.
"That would be silly," laughs DF36. "Cassandra was just admiring my oiled leather cock."
It probably wasn't the most tactful thing to say in front of the Emperor's daughter, but it solves the mystery of why Cassandra is blushing.
"Um... Err... Yes... Um..." stutters Cassandra, producing the leather cock from behind her back and handing it to DF36.
I've never heard of a Thurnian woman using an imitation cock to pleasure herself, but I am hardly an expert on the matter. The strict moral code adopted by Thurnian women, and the never-ending list of self-imposed social taboos probably forbid masturbation in any form. But that doesn't stop people's curiosity. It occurs to me that if an Elf Maiden can have an orgasm when not in heat, why can't a Thurnian woman achieve the same?
"I can have yours ready in a couple of days," says DF36. "Do you want to try this one out now? We can help you since it's your first time."
I'm completely bemused by this conversation. If I'm correctly interpreting what DF36 has said, Cassandra has asked DF36 to make a leather cock for her. I look at Cassandra only to see that she has overcome her embarrassment and taken on the determined look I've seen before.
"Sure," she says. "Don't look so surprised, Alex. Do you think I'm an innocent in such matters. Does it not strike you as strange that I'm used to an Elf Maiden's strong body odour. I've seen my father play with his harem of Elf Maidens, and for ages I've longed to be a part of such games."