Chapter 50

Chapter 50

Episode 50: Black Street After the show, Laila was in the office, its door blown off, talking to Rotuan. Rotuan noticed the slight bulge above her brown coat, but quickly averted his gaze and pretended not to see it. Laila’s swollen belly wasn’t the important thing right now. “What about the club members’ ledger?” At Laila’s words, Rotuan shook his head and replied, “There’s no such thing. Why would I need something that could get my head chopped off?” “Hmm… I see. Alright then.” Contrary to Rotuan’s expectations, Laila nodded rather readily. He had expected her to make a fuss, insisting it existed, but judging by her reaction, she seemed to believe him. From that, Rotuan figured she was still inexperienced in the world. Of course, the ledger existed. Incomplete, but it would be enough for what she wanted. But they had no reason to hand it over willingly. Even if Laila was from the Leopold viscount family and had been dispatched to investigate the club members, Sartun had no reason to cooperate with her. On the contrary, he should be hindering her. From the perspective of needing to keep the club members on their side, Laila’s existence was a thorn in his side. But that didn’t mean he could eliminate her. ‘If this bitch is really sent by the Leopolds, or even higher nobles, we’ll ruin ourselves if we touch her rashly.’ Logically speaking, even with a secret mission, there would be a contact somewhere. He wasn’t even sure if she had approached them deliberately, so eliminating her right away would be a terrible move. ‘In the end, the only option is to sweet-talk her and use her.’ Having already discussed it with Chenber, Rotuan knew how to treat Laila. Especially if she was just a naive kid with no experience in the world. All that remained was to confirm if their assumptions were correct. There was no need to ask directly to confirm that. From Laila’s next words, Rotuan could tell that Chenber’s hypothesis was somewhat accurate. “Then, in the future, when there’s another ‘show,’ contact me. I’ll take a look and do it again if I can.” ‘As expected, I was right.’ Rotuan nodded inwardly, recalling Chenber’s words.

-If that woman mentions participating in the show again, there’s a much higher chance she’s been dispatched by the Leopold viscount family, or their faction.

The easiest way to approach the club members was to participate in the show as a showgirl or prostitute. As Chenber said, she was clearly targeting the club members. That’s why she deliberately provoked Trnil, a Sartun member, and got caught by Sartun. It seemed she was gang-raped by Sartun’s men due to some mistake in that area. Anyway, she sacrificed her body to infiltrate the underground plaza and participate in the show. And from there, she probably got some clues about the club members. Having finished his reasoning, Rotuan put on a surprised expression and questioned her words. “Huh? But…” It was a hesitant response containing a subtle refusal, but Laila didn’t understand and tilted her head. “Why? I think it’s a good deal for you guys?” At her words, Rotuan smiled inwardly. The moment she mentioned ‘deal,’ she had blatantly revealed her intentions. A deal is only made when something is exchanged. In this case, it should be called a service, not a deal. How could it be called a deal when she’s working as a showgirl on stage without getting a penny and acting coy? As expected, the girl in front of him was still a novice. She had great background and power, but little experience. “That, that’s impossible. I don’t know if you know, Miss, but that ‘show’ is a banquet enjoyed by important people. We had no choice but to send you this time, but never again.” Of course, that was a lie. Sartun was a brothel, but it always had trouble preparing women for the show. The perverted club members were always coming up with bizarre ideas, and most of those ideas didn’t consider the safety and bodies of the women. There were many that weren’t like that, but that was just a coincidence, and they were mostly like that. Naturally, he didn’t have many reasons to refuse Laila’s offer. Nevertheless, the reason Rotuan refused was simple. He needed to break her momentum here, so that it would be easier to handle this monstrous woman later. As if she hadn’t expected Rotuan to refuse, Laila looked bewildered and asked back. “Why? It was fine just now. Besides, I’m doing it despite the embarrassment, so is there a reason why not?” As Rotuan and Chenber had predicted, Laila was showing a strong obsession with the show. At Laila’s words, Rotuan felt that his thoughts were gradually falling into place. Logically, what woman would enjoy being pinned down and raped by a monster? It must be because she has a good enough purpose that she can endure such things. “That was just a special case. We can pass it off as a coincidence once. But anything more is absolutely impossible. The guards that the people who watch the show bring alone are no ordinary people. If we make a mistake with those people, our heads will fly.” “Hmm, would you say the same thing even if I killed you here?” When Rotuan vehemently refused, Laila threatened Rotuan with a faint smile on her face. But Rotuan smiled at those words. He couldn’t let it show on the outside, so only in his heart. “E, even so, it’s absolutely impossible. I’d rather die cleanly now than be caught and eaten alive by wild dogs.” “Hmm…” He didn’t know if the club members would really do that, but lies and deception were the aesthetics of the underworld. If you can deceive, what reason can’t you give? At Rotuan’s firm refusal, Laila erased the smile from her face. Rotuan, reading the anxious expression on her pure and beautiful face, smiled even more deeply in his heart. Chenber was right. The woman in front of him possessed powerful force, but she didn’t have much experience in the world. Moreover, judging by her actions, her barriers to sex were clearly low. He didn’t know if she had received such special training for the purpose of using her beauty, or if she was like that from the beginning, but anyway, that weakness was worth exploiting. Rotuan wore a stern expression, as if he couldn’t compromise at all. Of course, he was only pretending to be like that on the outside, but he shouldn’t make a suggestion again here. In order to make her realize who was holding the knife, she had to make the suggestion first, not him. The man who had dominated the underworld for a long time knew how to lead the flow of conversation. After a moment of silence, Laila opened her mouth again with a bitter expression. “Is there no way?” He had been waiting for those words to come out. Rotuan cheered inwardly, organizing his thoughts. Underworld grudges are engraved in the heart. He was going to take revenge on Laila for destroying Sartun’s men and humiliating him. Slowly, without her noticing. “…There is one way.” He hid a cunning dagger in his heart and handed her a poisoned cup. // I looked at Rotuan in front of me and smiled inwardly. Just as I thought. It seemed this idiot thoroughly believed that I was a stooge of the Leopold viscount family. Well, if he didn’t know even with so many hints, he wouldn’t have been able to run an organization of this size. That’s why it was easier to deceive a guy who was moderately smart. Of course, this time, my position was advantageous from the beginning. The ring Milan gave me had a really big effect. Despite the fact that I showed openings several times, they didn’t even show the will to suppress me, let alone kill me. It seemed a bit absurd, but it was natural from their point of view. Someone who has lived their whole life on the precarious tightrope of the underworld would never make a reckless choice. Especially someone with a high position and a lot to lose like Rotuan. Even if they found evidence that I wasn’t a member of the Leopold viscount family, there was almost no chance that they would suspect me. Instead, they were more likely to deduce that I was a hidden dagger of the viscount family. People tend to think in the direction they want to believe, and they attach justification and validity to the imagination they once came up with. Just by participating in the inhumane show on purpose, I was able to give him the impression that I was targeting the members of ‘the Club’. It’s obvious. The former is overwhelmingly more likely than the assumption that I wanted to fuck a monster. After that, it was easy to handle him. Rotuan would think that I was a spy dispatched by the viscount family, or even a higher noble, and would worry about how to treat me. There are two choices he can make here. Prepare to run away in the night by gathering his assets for fear of the aftermath, or cling to one side. “…How about this?” But listening to that pretentious expression and ridiculous proposal now, it was clear which one he had chosen. If he had chosen to run away in the night, he would have chosen to buy time by pushing and pulling smoothly. I deliberately made a dumbfounded expression and asked back in a threatening tone. “You want me to do that?” What Rotuan said was that he wanted me to become a sex slave for Sartun’s men. Frankly, it was such a ridiculous nonsense that I wondered if there was any idiot who would listen to that and accept it. Except for me, of course. “You’ve already smashed about twenty Sartun members. Even though they’re our members, it might be difficult to cover up such an incident. There might be stooges from other organizations. Soon the rumor will spread throughout the underworld, and you’ll be noticed in the underworld. The club members aren’t stupid. If they used the protagonist of such a rumor as a showgirl, they would definitely notice something strange.” Still, it was a convincing argument. It was worth being deceived. Except that the conclusion was bizarre. Knowing that, I pretended not to know and asked. “So, what does that have to do with me becoming your sex slave?” Well, it was an obvious answer anyway, but I wanted to hear what kind of excuse it was. “Since you made such a fuss, wouldn’t it be better to prove that you were caught in order to quell the rumors? Besides, if the club members get information that you’ve become our slave, they’ll drop their suspicions.” It was more convincing than I thought. But, again, there are logical flaws here and there. In the first place, from the moment the rumor that twenty members were smashed by me was confirmed, the club members would pay attention to me. The rumor doesn’t go away just because I’m caught and have some sex. It would be more likely to be inflated. To approach it more fundamentally, I wonder if the club members need to be so thorough. From their point of view, they only need to deal with the underworld properly, so they won’t pay much attention to the rumors in the underground plaza. In the end, the conditions are too strong. I shouldn’t be suspected if I bounce back once with these conditions. I made an angry expression and opened my mouth in a threatening tone. “Bullshit. Are you going to imprison me and rape me day and night like last time? You have to say something that makes sense. I can kill you right now.”

“Of course, if that happens, you won’t be able to participate in the show. And, even as a slave, you only need to pretend. You know better than anyone that I can’t touch you.” This was a question testing the waters. Having confirmed the mark of the self-proclaimed noble, it was a question asking me to reveal a bit of my true identity. I met his expectations, feigning surprise on my face before quickly erasing it. Then, I noticed the corners of Rotuan’s lips subtly lifting. This definitely worked. I smiled inwardly and continued, “…Damn it, fine. But, I have my own life, so I can’t be locked up like yesterday or the day before.” Absorbing essence from monsters was important, but continuing as an adventurer and learning magic from Mien was also important. Essence absorption in the underground plaza was just a bonus. And, if I say this, Rotuan will provide the guidelines himself. “In that case, let’s go with the idea that you can move freely, but you have a weakness. We will call you when there is a show, and you just need to come and perform the agreed-upon role. It will only take about two days.” “…Alright. Fine, I’ll do it.” I deliberately grumbled as if I didn’t like it and then extended my hand to him. Of course, I had no intention of just pretending. Essence absorption is good, but I should also take care of my personal enjoyment. Two days is enough for some pretty intense play, so it was a satisfactory deal. Just looking at his current state, it’s obvious he intends to train me, but I prefer the real thing to such teasing. I shook his hand and warned him, “…Keep your promise.” “Of course.” With that, Rotuan and I shook hands, both hiding our smiles. ———= Author’s Notes ———= This is a cliché I’ve seen somewhere before. And thank you for the coupons… I don’t have time for a continuous release right now, but if I have time around the weekend, I will do a continuous release immediately….ㄷㄷ