Lake City’s flagrant violation of the law right in front of their eyes had left Lee Taebaek and his group in a state of panic.

There was an old idiom: wine pools and meat forests.

A lake made of alcohol and mountains piled high with flesh. The scene before them was like a painting come to life embodying that very expression.

“…”

“…”

“…”

The group fell silent, swallowing their groans one by one. Lee Taebaek understood their reactions.

He had tempered his mind with all sorts of Concepts. Even he felt bile rising in his throat…

Even for those jaded souls who had seen and experienced it all, this would hit like a double blow to the head.

Good thing I didn’t bring Kang Hyeonseong.

If he saw this place, a storm of bloodshed would have erupted.

The guy had an extreme aversion to corruption and bribery. But honestly, Lee Taebaek wasn’t much different.

Damn it.

There was no helping it.

If the one who could cure Goeun and Rock’s curses hadn’t been here, they never would have set foot in this place.

The quite well-off Jin Sobang closed his eyes and chanted a mantra under his breath. Goeun dropped her long pipe without realizing it. Rock tapped his temple to stop the auto-recording.

Guess he doesn’t want to see it even when he edits later.

They were all trying to hide their unease, but he couldn’t scoop up every bit of shock rattling their brains.

“Kuhahaha! Shake it more, more!”

“Kyarrararara!!”

“President Kim, why not spend a little more?!”

Lee Taebaek chewed on his solitude amid the clamor. His companions, too, were quietly shaken.

The Red-Light District in the lowest district? Compared to the decadence of the upper district salons, it was child’s play.

The perverts up top played in a whole different league. They watched and enjoyed acts too repulsive to even speak of, giggling all the while.

As Lee Taebaek and his group stood frozen, blocking the entrance, a waiter approached.

“Do you require an escort?”

He glanced sideways at the waiter, who had spoken politely. His hair, stiff with wax, gleamed with oil.

The egg-smooth mask had only narrow slits for eyes.

“…”

“Madam? Monsieur?”

No response. The eyes beneath the slits narrowed. Lee Taebaek could feel the waiter sizing them up.

His attire was impeccably neat, almost excessively so. He didn’t seem like an ordinary waiter.

If entry luck is bad, this might be the manager.

They needed to play this smoothly.

His prepared lines wouldn’t come out. I’m human too! This is demonic temptation!

A Concept might seize control of facial muscles, but it didn’t numb the stomach. It was just a Concept, after all.

“If you could perhaps present your membership—”

Before the waiter could finish speaking, someone from Lee Taebaek’s side struck first. Not him, but his companion, Goeun.

Slap!

A crack split across the egg mask.

The waiter’s head, which had been facing away, slowly swiveled back. Goeun slapped him again and spat.

“How dare a lowly waiter open his mouth first? Is staff training that bad here? Guess I need to file a complaint.”

“…”

Passing guests ignored it completely. This confirmed he wasn’t management level.

Goeun, catching on, dropped all restraint. She unleashed a barrage laced with killing intent.

“You’ve been eyeing us up and down since earlier, and it was creepy enough. Isn’t anonymity guaranteed here? Did something change while I was away? Oh, one thing did. The waiter’s attitude.”

As she snapped, Goeun pulled out her long pipe.

Click.

A spark lit the pipe’s bowl. She thumbed up the lower part of her rabbit mask and took a draw.

Cigarette smoke coiled like tentacles over the waiter’s mask. He stiffened like a statue.

Samadhi True Fire.

The most basic elemental magic. But the waiter knew achieving such precise control wasn’t easy.

Ker… Kergel Magic Tower!

The Kergel Magic Tower was treated separately from the megacorps. Its scholarly atmosphere meant it never visited salons.

They came rarely, and only for important business. He had nearly overstepped. Cold sweat beaded thickly under his chin at the chilling thought.

“Read the room.”

“Ah, ah… Ah…!!”

At Goeun’s warning, the waiter let out dazed gasps before snapping to attention.

He adjusted his rattling mask and bowed deeply, almost prostrating himself.

“F-Forgive me for not recognizing such esteemed guests.”

“Then no tip needed, right?”

“How could there be any question…! How dare I accept a tip from a r-rabbit… from you, honored one! Your mere presence graces our salon. B-But… procedures require membership verification…”

At that moment, Lee Taebaek stepped forward.

“Don’t bother us any further.”

“Heok…!!”

He flashed the card prominently, and the waiter choked as if suffocating.

Both recommenders were VVIPs, explaining the reaction.

A new member’s status depended on their recommender’s rank.

And Lee Taebaek’s recommenders were none other than Great Master Hong Geolgae and Saber Master Muyachi.

The waiter might not know their real names, but those two V’s would burn into his retinas.

As Lee Taebaek casually withdrew the card with both hands, the waiter asked,

“Where shall I escort you, honored guests?”

“We’d like Salon 31.”

“Ah! You’ve come for Madam Celine!”

So that’s the name she’s using.

“Something like that.”

“As expected of esteemed guests! …But alas, Madam Celine is currently occupied with official duties.”

“Official duties?”

“Apologies, but regulations prevent disclosure.”

The waiter spoke quite sternly.

Staff training was solid. Not that it mattered. Lee Taebaek already knew Madam Celine’s real job.

“Auction starts at what time?”

“In 30 minutes.”

Mentioning the auction fully dispelled the waiter’s doubts. He now seemed convinced they knew Madam Celine personally.

“Good. Lead the way.”

“Thank you for this honor.”

The waiter turned and led them.

Lee Taebaek and the group nodded to each other before following.

Thanks to the solid groundwork from the entrance, they entered with all their belongings intact.

The Para Blade’s sharp chill pressed against his lower back. The Python at his waist asserted its presence too, as if urging use if needed.

They pushed through the humid air.

Curtains hung along the path, shadows of debauchery flickering like candle flames beyond.

By then, Lee Taebaek’s group had grown numb. Their expectations of humanity simply plummeted.

They crossed a sweat-soaked corridor. Moans echoed sporadically. Just as they wondered when this hell would end.

Swish.

At the end, the waiter stopped. He parted the curtain and gestured politely inside.

“Here you are, madam, monsieur.”

Lee Taebaek gave a slight bow and entered. The group followed single file.

A vast space welcomed them.

A stage evoking an opera house. Seats filled with animal-masked figures like themselves.

Fuck.

For a moment, Lee Taebaek suffered PTSD. Memories of the electric chair flooded back.

No wonder his guts had twisted the whole way. Sure enough, a den of corruption awaited.

The difference from the Gaol is the attire, I suppose.

In the Gaol they wore tuxedos; here, it was… embarrassing to call it clothing.

An impulse surged.

He wanted to eradicate the rot.

Hold it in, hold.

As he took deep breaths to calm the Para Blade and Python, Pig (Jin Sobang) asked slyly.

“Tae… no, Viper, you okay…?”

“What’s not to be okay about?”

“…You look unwell, that’s why. Anyway, talk after this is done. Lots to explain.”

“Yeah… sure…”

They took empty seats side by side.

Each armrest had a placard with a number for bidding identification.

Jin Sobang and Rock fiddled with theirs, venting discomfort in their own way.

Soon, a ‘pop’ plunged the auction house into darkness. Even with nothing visible, the tension in the hall was palpably rising.

Flash!

Darkness lifted. Lights from four directions beamed onto the stage center.

A butterfly-masked woman stood at the center of the lights a moment later.

“Welcome, everyone!”

Her voice boomed as if she’d swallowed a steam locomotive’s whistle, filling every corner.

With witty banter and a mic alone, the butterfly-masked woman seized control of the stage.

“To make a living in the upper district, you’ve got to have that much.”

Jin Sobang muttered beside him.

“Viper, you’ve got a silver tongue too. Why not get a job here? Pretty face like yours would be popular.”

“Forgot I have your credit card?”

“Just joking, bro.”

“Good.”

After explaining the order, the auction proceeded.

Items were quite normal. Common jewelry to pottery steeped in Eastern aesthetics. Nothing unpleasant yet.

Audience members began bidding one by one.

As boredom crept in,

The butterfly mask recaptured attention.

“Everyone! Bored, aren’t you!”

Jeers poured like cheers.

She shrugged theatrically and continued.

“Boredom makes dopamine surge more! Hmm, still, 10 minutes in—you rabbits held out well!”

“Hahaha!”

“Now, the real show begins. Straighten those backs! Whoa, everything else stays put!”

“Kyarrararara!”

Vulgar as hell.

Finally, the main act.

Lee Taebaek straightened his relaxed posture and was about to raise his placard.

“First event item!”

Thud-thud-thud-thud.

Pulsing drumbeats from all sides.

Erratic lights locked on one spot. Eyes converged.

“That viper mask over there is our first item!”

Damn, not drums—it was the rim.

“Things are going smoothly.”

No delay.

Lee Taebaek pressed the Para Blade’s deployment button.