It was a bustling night in the red light district. People were coming and going, chattering happily with friends on the streets and inside establishments. One narrow street was especially lively tonight. Despite it being a dead-end, people were coming and going out at a noticeable pace. The silver light from the moon further enhanced the glittering of the gold ornaments of the building. It was the purple rose.
To celebrate the beautiful full-moon in the night sky, purple rose had a special discount on all services tonight. This special event is highly anticipated by people from across the kingdom as a chance to get a discount on the popular secret massage that is said to make all fatigue disappear. Why hold it during the full-moon? Well it is said that the owner, Madam Garnet, had special memories concerning the beautiful perfect moon that made her hold special events during the time the moon shines the brightest every month, which is the 15th. No one knows the full details of it, but some have heard it concerns a fond memory with her past lover.
In the hall of the purple rose, a woman wearing a silver mask is standing behind the counter. She is working as the receptionist and guide to the massage rooms tonight. It was Alex. She had her first session of training with Catherine this afternoon, but the massage points needed to be exact in order to get full effect of the secret technique. Therefore, she's put in charge of the front desk tonight.
There's so many guests tonight she barely had any time to take a breather. People kept coming in, and she saw many commoners as well as high ranking officers tonight. Almost all of the guests yesterday were high ranking officers and people with status, but during the time of discounts, a lot of commoners would come here to try the massage as well.
When the time strikes 9, Will and his two friends walk in on purple rose. As a loyal customer, they certainly won't miss the time of discounts and not come. "Oh look, it's the new woman working on the desk today," said Roche. He remembered the woman as silent and cold from their little encounter yesterday.
"What services are you gentlemen looking for tonight?" Alex approached them and asked when she saw the group of men coming in. "All 3 of us want to have a massage please!" Hendrix replied on behalf of Will and Roche. Roche just had a massage yesterday but he also doesn't want to miss a discount! It's very enjoyable and he can talk with Lulu again in private. "I want to book my session with Lulu please!" Roche added right after Hendrix.
Alex looked at the group of men and noticed the familiar face standing in the middle. It was the guy who barged into her room this morning. She didn't say anything and silently wrote down the men's words on a parchment paper she held. Writing down the words, she held the paper up in her left hand that was wrapped in bandages.
"Are you okay, miss? Are you dressing up as a mummy tonight?" Hendrix saw it and asked while giving a little laugh, he's trying to make a conversation. He saw Alex's mummified left hand and thought she had a chance to make this cold woman laugh. Alex didn't know what the man was trying to do, she can't even perceive it as a joke. She just stared at him for a second before continuing to write.
Poor Hendrix got an awkward silent treatment. Will and Roche burst out in laughter seeing the non-existent response from her. "You called that a joke?" Roche roared in laughter and started hitting his good friend's shoulder. Hendrix felt defeated, he won't ever try to talk to this silent woman again. Will also noticed the bandages wrapping the woman's hand. He remembered the green-eyed girl that helped him this morning. How foolish he thought, the woman is actually the new lady from last night.
"You can wait in table 33 at the lounge. I will call you when it's your turn" Alex said and pointed at the lounge before leaving them. The three of them said their thank yous and walked to the lounge. Alex glanced and looked at the people inside the lounge. There are nobles, military officers, merchants, and commoners in the establishment right now. "Today might be a good day to gather some information," she thought. After the thought, Alex then proceeds to take her break in the lounge.
"Hey, how's the investigation going on your side?" a man sitting near the bar asked his mates drinking with him. "Not much. We just encountered road blocks one after another" the man sitting across him answered. "There too? It's the same in our part" another man added while sighing hard enough to be heard from afar. "So strange… I expected to find something at least, it's been a week already!" said the first man. Alex noticed the group of men and looked at their uniforms. The signature white uniform held little star insignias on each shoulder. It was an investigator's uniform.
She remembered the group of men talking about the investigation and her house yesterday. Is this the group responsible for the investigation? Alex perked up her ears and tried to listen to them as best as she can despite all the other noises in the lounge. From what they were discussing, it seems they are currently investigating her house's tragedy and who was behind it. She listened trying to get some clues but it looks like the investigators didn't know anything either. Regardless, it might be good to follow these men and see if they found out something later, she thought.
"By the way how is the girl you're seeing last week?" one of the men suddenly switched the topic to ladies now. Alex squinted her eyes in disappointment. "She's no good," the other man laughed. "I would love her, my wife is too nosy" said the first man. "I would love to have a more obedient lady" he added with a sigh. "I know right, I want a shy and gentle lady who is clumsy and needs me. My wife is too independent" said the other man.
"Why don't you find a mistress to have fun?" one of the men suggested an idea and they all seemed to agree with him. "That would be nice.. a young woman who is nice and obedient. Someone who actually needs a man to protect her" said the guy. They discussed ladies for a long time after that while eating and drinking.
"Gentleman, the room is ready for you" said a woman who came to their table and told them their massage turn was up. "Great, it's finally our turn" said one man who stood and led the group up, he seemed to be the leader of the group and walked at the front. The woman escorted them upstairs to the rooms.
"Ah!" the woman who was leading them up the stairs suddenly yelled and fell down, she seemed to lose her balance.
"Careful!" The leader of the group moved to catch the woman who was a little bit in front of her. He catched her right in time and rescued the woman from falling down the stairs in his arms.
The woman looked shocked and scared, she closed her eyes, seemingly ready to feel the pain. She paused and felt an arm holding her instead. She opened her green eyes slowly and looked up to the one holding her, it was the man who led the group. Their eyes met and the woman looked at his eyes for a few seconds before her cheeks started to become red. She blushed and pulled herself away shyly before frantically trying to apologize for her carelessness.
The man noticed her heels that broke on one foot, causing her to stand imbalanced. "It's okay, it's not your fault that your heels suddenly broke," the man said to the woman gently. The woman, still blushing shyly apologized again and continued upstairs to show them to their rooms. She bowed before leaving the men.
"That woman is really my type," the man said to his friends. "Shy, seemed docile, and a little bit clumsy. Furthermore, she had beautiful green eyes and quite a body" he added with lust showing on his eyes. The other men nodded at his words. "Why don't you take her? You could have some fun here" another man added and the man nodded, he thought it's a good idea.
Downstairs, the woman walked limply towards the receptionist desk. "Are you okay?" a woman that's on the desk currently saw the other woman approaching and noticed her limping over. "I'm okay, my heels broke" she said while giving out a thin smile. "Oh no! Why don't you change your heels first, Alex?" the other woman said with concern which she appreciated. She nodded and went to change her heels.
Alex went to get a new pair of heels from the dressing room. She had a thin smile earlier and her smile grew a bit wider as she walked. However, the smile seems to be kinda eerie instead of sweet. The woman had been carving little cracks on her heels in the bathroom using the knife she borrowed from the bar. She had been careful to walk slowly and softly to not break it before the right time. She purposely put her weight on the side of the heel when she went up the stairs and stomped hard enough for the heels to break. It works perfectly.