The gang, except for Nira, arrived at the dark side of the city, well among many things. It was just nightfall, and things in this place had never been more dangerous. The streets were dark, with nothing but the light from the buildings leaking to the outside, or the fires lit up by some people at some corner somewhere. There was a high chance you’d stumble if you didn’t properly watch what’s in front of you.

  Aside from the dim surroundings, the environment also seemed quite dangerous, especially if you weren’t with a group. You know what they say; dark elements appear in the… well, dark. A rough-looking dirty man was sitting down on the ground, sniffing and convulsing every now and then — his brain must be dry as fuck at this point from whatever he was taking.

  There was a group of people snickering among themselves in a secluded corner. While another group was punching each other out, those around them were cheering. Their fight was violent and bloody; it was not a friendly fight at all, with a high possibility of killing each other. Hey, not like anyone would care if someone dies in this part.

  “What did you say, you bitch?!” There was a man shouting at a woman.

  “You’re always drinking! Get some food for your son!”

  “Shut up!” He aggressively slapped the woman on the cheek, causing her to fall to the ground. “Fuck that kid, and fuck you! Leave me alone.”

  The man walked away, and the woman ran away crying, her cheek starting to swell red. Like, wow, that was rough.

  I could also sense some gazes from the decrepit, and old, and ugly houses in the area. Those must be people hiding from trouble or something. There were also prostitutes on the streets waiting and beckoning for customers, appearing at their most seductive appearances.

  There were also just some people walking around, avoiding interaction with anyone in their way. One group went past in front of us and gave us a sharp stare as they went.

  Glancing to my side, I noticed Miyako looking exceedingly concerned and uncomfortable. She was wearing a cloak, me and Satomi as well. Given that they were basically criminals, we had to hide their faces. As for me… well, thinking about it, it was the same case. But I mostly just covered myself because I was extremely beautiful.

  “Are you alright?” I asked Miyako.

  “... It’s just… I didn’t think it would be this bad.”

  “Is it not this bad at yours?”

  “... No. At least… not in the capital city.”

  “Then what about other places, towns and cities?”

  Miyako couldn’t answer immediately. “... I’m not sure. Things have always been bad on our islands… so this kind of thing is normal in a lot of cases. But looking at this must be repulsive to you.”

  “... At least you know it’s bad. But we have bad parts here and there. Although, honestly, in Shinoroa it’s much more extreme.”

  “I see…”

  “But it is not impossible to fix.” She glanced at me. “It only needs someone who’s willing to start.”

  With that, we continued onward. As we went, several people paused to stare at us. It was pretty easy to tell that we were not from around here. We might have been bullied if not for our numbers. Still, this place really gave off the impression that I might get mugged at any moment. Good thing we looked intimidating enough not to make them do something stupid.

  Velar guided us to our destination. Eventually, the bar was in sight, and we stood a bit away for the moment. The bar was bigger than I had first expected, and it was the best-looking building around here. It was not broken and decrepit like the surrounding buildings, very well maintained.

  There were drunk people around the outside, but some seemed to be just normal. Just standing and looking around with blatant sharp gazes. They must be some security in incognito or something. I could also hear the music coming from the building, which was a surprise. Not always did we get to see those from around here.

  “Well, here we are,” Taneva said. “We going in?”

  “Yes, but don’t cause any trouble. Especially you, Taneva.”

  “Heh. I’m a behaved man, what’s with the doubt?”

  “Just don’t do anything unnecessary.” I just knew what kind of person he was, so I was warning him. But not like any of my threats would work, anyway. It was fully up to him whether he would cooperate.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  “Fine, fine.”

  I turned towards Miyako. “Ready?”

  “Of course.” She smiled.

  We made our way to the bar’s entrance. The guard of the front door was a big guy, as one might imagine. As we approached, he narrowed his eyes, blatantly wary of us. When I was in front of the door, the guard suddenly stood in front of us, blocking our path.

  “You’re new here?” he asked in a deep, stern voice.

  “Yes.” I avoided eye contact, keeping my head low.

  The guard looked at the rest of the crew until he stopped at two of our guys. “You two I fucking know.”

  “Hey,” Taneva casually waved his hand.

  The guard grunted. “You guys are new, and in a large group. Armed even. Don’t cause any trouble, or you might die in there.”

  I nodded. And with that, he moved aside. What did he mean by die? I felt ?that if we started killing each other there, they wouldn’t protect any of us or urge us to stop. They’d let us kill each other, basically. Well, considering that most people here would be legit fighters and monster hunters, they’d have a hard time stopping the fight. So, it's better just to let it be.

  “We don’t intend to start a fight. Just want to meet someone.”

  “Whatever. Just go.”

  We entered the bar. Already the smell was just… a bit foul for my taste. It was all liquor smell, sweat, or whatever there was. Music also filled the area, played on interesting instruments. There was a three-stringed instrument with a long thin neck. There was also a wooden flute. A pair of round drums being played with the slam of hands.

  The counter had bottles upon bottles and barrels of liquor, with guys heavily drinking already. We walked further inside and observed the surroundings. The bar was filled with people. They were distinct, all looked dangerous, present with weapons and all.

  There were groups sitting in the corners, drinking at the tables with women in their arms. They chuckled and pressed their faces against the women’s breasts. There were also some women walking around, their breasts bare for all to see, carrying trays of food. A man and woman were leaning on the wall, kissing and their hands slipping into private body parts. I also noticed a dark corner, with a woman kneeling before a man doing that. A word so perverse that the pure innocent me would be impossible to utter.

  Wow, everyone just let loose here, huh?

  There were also groups that were more conservative. They may have had special entertainment, but they focused more on drinking and talking. A few of them even stared at us for a moment — well, glared at us to be more accurate. Everyone was quite tough here.

  I was indifferent to such a scene. But it was different for both Miyako and Satomi, the latter must be concerned for her lady more than herself. Miyako’s face was contorted especially, either because of surprise or disgust. She covered her eyes.

  “H-How could there be such a depraved place? D-Did you know about this, Estelia?”

  I wryly smiled. “I did not.” I turned to look at Velar and Taneva. “Why didn’t you specify it was this kind of place?”

  “We’re going either way, right?” Taneva casually said with a shrug.

  “I didn’t expect it would be relevant to you. This scene is not very different from when we first arrived on this island.”

  Well, not relevant to me. But for the purehearted Miyako, it was different.

  No, wait. I was purehearted. So, I should be disturbed by this as well.

  I made a pouting face. “You could have told me about the amount of debauchery.” I turned towards Miyako, making almost the same face as her. “I’m sorry about this.”

  “T-This is not a place for ladies like us, Estelia. This is dangerous. Look at how they treat the women here.”

  “Well, technically, it's their job to entertain. So you can’t really put us in the same situation.” There were also some women here, dangerous looking too, but they were not being outright disturbed by the others. So, as customers, we should be completely fine. Well, again… should… That was why we should expect surprises.

  “Even so…! I… I have never been in a place like this before. Look, they are even doing sexual acts in the open!”

  “... That’s true. But such is the nature of this place. We need only endure it. Together.” I grasped her hand and directed a smile at her.

  “... O-Okay.”

  I nodded and made my way to the counter. “Order something,” I said to Taneva. Best to blend in.

  “Does everyone want one?” he asked.

  Hartwin responded in the affirmative, but Velar rejected it.

  “At this point, I want a drink,” Satomi said. “But I still have to guard milady. This place is dangerous. I need to focus.”

  Taneva looked at me. “Estelia?”

  “I don’t drink.”

  “What? Really? Last I remember you we—”

  “Do you want to get cut to shreds?” I told them not to mention that to fucking anyone.

  “Hehe, alright, alright. Just the two of us then.”

  They ordered drinks, and I looked around. Huh, I expected someone would have approached us, the women. To flirt or whatever. But there were none. Perhaps being in an armed group really helps, making us hard to approach. Or the cloaks were just not making it obvious what we were and hid our beauty.

  “Now then, where is the guy?” I asked Taneva and Velar.

  “Right there.” Taneva pointed.

  I turned in that direction. There was a muscular man drinking in a spacious area. Like it was his own little space in the bar. There were a couple of men sitting on the other seats, must be his close subordinates or something. On both the man's sides were women, chuckling as they fed him drinks and food.

  “So, do we just go in and try to talk to him?” Hartwin asked.

  “We sure can,” Taneva said.

  “No,” I shook my head. “Hartwin, Taneva, stay here and keep watch. Especially you, Taneva.”

  “What? Why?” His eyes widened.

  “Did you forget how much you like provoking people for no good reason? Don’t want us causing a fight with someone who can help us.”

  “Fine…” He drank his liquor. “Just gonna hang out here then.”

  “Velar and Satomi will stand as guards as Miyako and I talk with the man.”

  “Does my lady really need to interact with that man?” Satomi asked with obvious concern.

  “Yes. Don’t you love the challenge, right, Miyako?”

  “Uh… Mm.” She glanced away awkwardly.

  “If that man even touches the lady, I will strike him down.”

  “No one’s getting touched.” I sighed. No one’s diddling anyone, like damn. So pessimistic. “I won’t let that happen.” I stood up from the chair. “Let’s stop wasting time.”

  We headed straight to the man. As we approached, he turned a sharp, inquisitive look at us.

  I stopped in front of them. “We’d like to talk business.”