Chapter 116: Fortuitous Encounter (1)

“…Wouldn’t ten billion be about right?”

It was a slurred remark that slipped through Madam Celine’s lips. The blade of the Para Blade lightly tapped against her carotid artery. One wrong swallow, and it would be a blood fountain show.

“With a name like Madam Celine, shouldn’t you value yourself higher? You’ve got to have picked up some useful intel running the salon as its madam.”

“How important could info floating around a place like this be? Ten billion’s just right for my life.”

Madam Celine shrugged. She was feigning composure. Even with her mask cracked and gone, she seemed unfazed. Fitting for the madam of the salon—she had guts, alright.

Not that it mattered. That’s probably why she’d put Lee Taebaek up for auction as an item among her guests. But it wouldn’t work on him. He’d already checked her ki with Presence Detection, and she was tense as hell.

The faint quiver of her eyelashes. Dry, cracked lips with her tongue unconsciously licking them. Not cybernetic, judging by the goosebumps rising on her skin. Madam Celine’s vital signs etched themselves into Lee Taebaek’s mind.

In truth, she was practically more naked than those half-stripped corpses in the audience seats.

“Value yourself higher. Or you die.”

He didn’t press the blade closer. Just a calm warning. Then came the signal.

“…Cliché as it is.”

Madam Celine’s lips twitched.

“You think you’ll get away with this?”

“Every bastard I’ve met has said that line.”

Lee Taebaek replied, lowering the Python’s barrel. A gunshot followed by a piercing scream.

It didn’t last long. The chill at her nape made Madam Celine’s eyes glaze over as she stared down at her punctured foot.

“One thing I’ve learned doing all sorts of shit in this city: in a place where science is so damn advanced, time is life. So you don’t give the enemy time to flap their gums.”

“Wha… fu, what…?”

“You, under your shoe.”

Lee Taebaek nodded toward her foot. Below the hole in her instep, wires sparked with electricity. A perfect shot had smashed the emergency call device embedded under the wooden stage floor.

“H-how did you… know about that…!”

Madam Celine went pale as a ghost.

In this auction house, lives were bought and sold routinely. Accidents could happen anytime, so emergency call devices were hidden all over the stage. Only insiders like Madam Celine knew about them.

Or so she’d thought.

But who left out the developer? Truth was, Lee Taebaek had built this auction house himself—and the emergency network too.

Laykuns was developed as a 15+ game. The red-light district got censored, but the auction house was fine.

And in a dystopia like this, auction houses were an essential element you couldn’t rip out.

So developer Taebaek Ri had designed “Madam Celine’s Auction House” as a boss stage. Side note: the boss here was none other than “Shohei the Human Butcher.”

‘Wielding a Para Blade for a massacre show—same as that guy or me.’

Lee Taebaek suddenly chuckled.

Unintended, but Madam Celine’s face drained of all color. In her eyes, the viper-masked Lee Taebaek was no different from the Human Butcher. Another unintentional nod to the original lore.

“Thirty billion…”

“Higher.”

“Thirty-two… that’s really all I have.”

The still-warm barrel pressed against Madam Celine’s temple. Her eyes watered from the gunpowder stench.

“Thirty-five.”

“Bid accepted.”

Lee Taebaek withdrew the blade and barrel.

“Talk to the pig mask over there about the transfer. Mention thirty-five billion, and he’ll grin ear to ear. Guy’s a total money grubber, looks the part too.”

“…”

Madam Celine turned forward.

The viper mask crew was handling the corpses, Pig Mask especially ruthless. True to form, Jin Sobang grinned wide while inspecting the prosthetic bodies.

Jin Sobang, from the Tattered-Robes Faction, had switched to Blue-Robes partly due to his obsession with prosthetics. He couldn’t get enough of them—even secretly cheered when he lost an arm.

Jin Sobang whistled a tune.

“If I strip some of these and take ’em to the Lilith Order, they’d be useful. Their mechanics are ex-Daesung Group—top-notch skills. Could rehab our folks who lost limbs tragically!”

“You call me witch all the time, yet a branch leader like you wants to eat limbs?”

“Better than you! Don’t touch that finger! You’re gonna incinerate everything here, aren’t you?! Witch!!”

Goeun and Jin Sobang bickering.

The old Lee Taebaek would’ve frowned.

But now his mind was weathered steel. Brain numb enough for violence first, talk later. Of course…

Lee Taebaek shifted his gaze.

Madam Celine exhaled the breath she’d been holding in her lungs. Suppressing nausea, she heard his purpose here.

“The Curse Master has work to do.”

“What…?”

“I valued your life at forty billion. You’re short eight, so that’ll cover the curse removal fee.”

What kind of bullshit logic was that?

“W-wait. What do you—!”

“Won’t do it?”

Lee Taebaek’s eyes turned icy.

A chill ran down Madam Celine’s spine. This viper bastard planned to suck her dry to the bone.

Jin Sobang, wrapping up the prosthetics, overheard and burst out laughing. She should’ve known better than to mouth off. She’d hooked the wrong fish—hard. He’d never seen a viper like Lee Taebaek in his life.

Business done, Lee Taebaek and his crew followed Madam Celine behind the curtain call.

They entered as naturally as stepping into their own bedroom. Madam Celine was dumbfounded yet absurdly amused. Her thoughts tangled into a knot.

She gave up thinking and obediently led Lee Taebaek’s group to her secret room. Twilight and candlelight flickered softly. A faint incense scent evoked a fortune teller’s den.

Lee Taebaek froze the door with ice magic. As long as his mana held, no one could break in from outside.

Even if they noticed and tried melting it with fire, it was pointless. He had a fire specialist right there.

Just as naturally, Lee Taebaek pulled out a cushion and sat. His crew followed suit, laying out their own.

“Madam, you stand.”

With a hole in her foot already hobbling her, Lee Taebaek ordered her to stand.

“You… aren’t you going too far?”

“Too far?”

The Python whipped out like a sunbeam and spat fire. Bang, bang, bang. Three bullet holes in the floor.

A candle flickered out—maybe from the shots. Madam Celine’s last spark of hope died with it.

Lee Taebaek holstered his gun, muttering.

“You’ve got a lot hidden in this tiny room.”

“…”

Sure enough, another emergency call device lurked under the tatami. Madam Celine thought: I don’t even know anymore. Don’t want to know what this viper really is.

“Here to lift a curse…?”

Lee Taebaek removed his mask and nodded.

“You’re the city’s top Curse Master.”

“Give the poison, sell the antidote.”

She said that, but her mood lifted. The viper’s handsome face helped.

Well-groomed, he could put actors out of work. Ironic for someone slicing folks up. Having seen all types at the auction, she quickly regained composure.

“You found the right place. I’m Celine, madam’s proprietor and the city’s best Curse Master. Rough first meeting, but anyway. Can I sit now?”

“Go ahead.”

Madam Celine felt a momentary dog-like humiliation but sat on the cushion.

“So, the curse holder is that little girl over there?”

She meant Rock.

“Saw her use Curse Speech earlier. I’ve seen plenty of curse holders, but speech curses? Second one for me.”

“Who’s the first?”

“You know who.”

Madam Celine smirked at Jin Sobang’s question.

“Just ‘that one’ from the Ten Wings?”

“Hard to believe an idol holds a speech curse.”

“More secrets than that. Can’t tell you, though.”

Madam eyed Rock slyly. Rock, hating it, hid behind Lee Taebaek.

“One more.”

Lee Taebaek said. Jin Sobang startled. They’d just learned about Rock from the fight.

“No way, Viper—you cursed too?”

“Keep dreaming.”

Lee Taebaek nodded at Goeun.

“This kid and this woman. Both curse holders. To lift curses, you need two, right? Got ’em both—show me your skills.”

Madam Celine blanked, then let out a hollow laugh.

“You’re something else. Who the hell are you?”

“Don’t need to know that.”

Lee Taebaek flashed his membership card.

Two recommenders, both top-tier VVIPs. A regular waiter couldn’t tell, but Madam Celine recognized the nicknames instantly.

She’d bragged about ties to one of the Ten Wings—now her face twisted in shock.

“No need to drag it out. Get on with it.”

Lee Taebaek pocketed the card.

Madam Celine swallowed dryly, resolving to obey without question. Keep her head down, stay busy.

Yeah, that’s how to survive. I can do this.

“Um, but.”

Her tone had shifted.

“Curses don’t just evaporate like smells. They convert somehow. Usually to internal energy or mana… but super rare, they transfer as-is.”

“I guarantee no issues. I’ll handle any impurities. You do your thing.”

“What makes you so sure…?”

“I’m lucky.”

Lee Taebaek unfolded his legs into lotus position. Jin Sobang rose to stand guard.