By the time he reached the Shi Association address, the rain had stopped, leaving a soup of trash floating along the streets. Muck swirled around his feet.
He sneezed as water dripped down his dress.
Where was the Shi branch? The map told him it was right here, but this was just another ordinary alleyway.
Well, not exactly. There was a symbol etched into one side of the wall that caught his attention. He approached the symbol, running his hand along the smooth, brick-carved strokes.
The symbol glowed, splitting in half to reveal a device inside.
It was a wide, holographic screen, with a single message displayed on it.
"Past this wall is Section 12's Shi Association. To enter, please answer one question. If answered incorrectly, you will die. Tap 'next' if you agree to the conditions. Back away if you do not."
Asher looked around him, but he couldn't sense anyone else. He tapped the button.
The screen slowly turned black and red, the colors seeping through the screen.
"Why are you here?"
He flinched at the sudden change in tone. Reading the question more closely, he sighed in relief. This was easy. He tapped on the letters on the screen, stringing together his answer.
"My name is Sophie, and I am Grade 7 Fixer who specializes in assassination. Thus, I came to the Shi."
He entered his response, but nothing seemed to happen.
As he sighed, wondering if his answer was insufficient-
'[Puppet Movements]!'
Asher's neck automatically snapped itself to the side as a knife whizzed past his face, barely nicking his cheek.
He whirled his head to where the projectile came from, only to feel a light hand on his shoulder behind him.
The attacker allowed Asher to turn around and inspect him.
"A young miss this time, hm?" A soft, snow-cold voice inspected Asher from head to toe.
The man, perhaps in his early twenties, was wearing a full black outfit, including black linen pants and a formal long-sleeved coat. Two red stripes lined the man's suit, one horizontally lining the collar and one running vertically down the suit's buttons.
On his face was a black fabric facemask covering his mouth, uniformly dyed except for a symbol elegantly painted in the middle. The symbol was a carbon copy of the one etched into the wall. Asher reckoned it was the emblem of the Shi Association.
"Most Grade 7's would've died from that, so congratulations. You aren't dead." The man rested his hand on a long katana sheathed on his waist.
"Thanks. Are you going to be my guide?"
The man nodded his head, unsheathing his blade in a flash. An elegant black katana gleamed in the air, its edge razor sharp and tinted a bright crimson hue. The man inserted it inside a small crack in the wall, pulling it out after a few seconds passed.
As the wall rumbled, the man turned back to him, his eyes curving into a wolfish smirk. Beneath the mask, Asher didn't know whether the man was smiling or not.
"Indeed, Miss Sophie. The name's Valentin, one of many Grade 4's of the Shi Association. Follow me."
Instead of the plain wall from earlier, in front of them now was a long, dark tunnel.
As they walked, Asher noticed that Valentin's footsteps made no noise.
But the ground was covered in brackish water, so how was that possible?
Asher's shoes sloshed with liquid as he tried to keep up, stepping over a drain deeper into the facility.
After walking for what seemed like a few minutes, Asher and his guide arrived at the heart of the Shi Association.
Valentin opened a door at the end of the tunnel, revealing to Asher just how different the Shi Association was compared to the Hana.
The inside of the building was incredibly utilitarian; there wasn't any paint on the plain brick walls, which somewhat comforted him. At least it was better than the Hana Association.
And there was also no reception desk, which all the Offices and Associations he saw so far had. Even Yun Office's shoddy, unused one.
Valentin nodded to several Fixers lounging in the main room, all wearing the uniform of the Shi. Each of them wore the same symbol as the one etched on the wall earlier, though in different locations on their clothes. Some had theirs on a collar around their neck, or stitched onto the back of their uniform.
The man turned back to Asher.
"So, are you looking to join or just curious? Because I can tell you straight, our Association isn't hiring people lower than Grade 5."
Asher's mouth twitched. Although he didn't want to join the Shi thanks to the sudden meeting with Pete and his friends, he felt a bit humiliated by the man's words.
Valentin chuckled, sensing the girl's emotions.
"Nah, it isn't like that. All Fixers are welcome if they're strapped for cash, basically. They can even form their own Office and still contribute to us. Interested?"
Valentin noticed the flash in Asher's eyes, smiling as the girl nodded.
"I'll explain at the end, so let's get this tour over with then, eh? So, five main hallways. The VIP and normal contractor hallways, offices and armory, and the lounge. We'll head down the last one, where us Shi Fixers can rest between missions. And the medical wing at the end of it too." He pointed to a far left hallway first, slowly moving his finger clockwise to point at each hallway.
They walked down the rightmost hallway. The first room they encountered had a humongous 'mission board', which was covered in folders containing information about targets, as well as the estimated difficulty of the mission.
Valentin explained to Asher as the girl stared at the sheer amount of folders there were.
"Those are our cases, by the request of anyone who has the money to spare. Just take one down and eliminate the target, then you get paid. We don't bother putting Urban Legend level cases on here, because those can be handled by other means. Let's go."
Contrary to what the man said, they did not leave. Instead, Valentin walked behind a petite woman contemplating the wall of folders. The uniformed woman was about as tall as Mei, just a bit taller than Asher.
"Tenma, don't bother with that one. Just go with this." Valentin's apathetic tone seemed to soften slightly as he placed a folder into Tenma's hand.
She looked back, a ghost of a smile touching her face.
"Thanks. Well, see you after you're done." Tenma opened the folder, absentmindedly flipping through it as she tucked her hair behind her ear.
Valentin turned back to him, his gaze more relaxed. But when he saw Asher staring at him, his expression changed back in an instant.
They walked away, with Tenma whispering a faint farewell as they left.
The next few rooms were all filled with various activities, ranging from video games to pool to blackjack. A couple Fixers lounged inside each room, recuperating after their missions.
"Our Association has a little more recreation than others. With the pressure that comes with dangerous, sometimes weeklong cases of tracking and hiding, if we didn't have these... many of us would break. Mentally."
Asher peeked into one of the rooms, where he saw a couple in the corner, separated from the rest of the group.
The blonde woman raised her shoulder, and Asher could see why the man beside her looked so worried.
Her arm was severed below the bicep, bound tightly by a black sash that was slowly soaking in her blood. Even as her partner fussed over her, she just grinned widely. A bit too wide. Her eyes were trembling. Through the atmosphere of hopeless and forced mirth, the man joined her in laughter, weeping at the same time.
Valentin traced Asher's stare, chuckling hollowly as the ashen girl glanced at him.
"The gruesome happens daily here, in the darkest Association in the world. In the Shi Association, our strength is forged by death. Forged by Shi. That is the meaning of our symbol, pronounced the same as 'four' in Japanese." Valentin pointed to the flowing strokes on his mask, which taken together formed the symbol for death in some foreign language.
They stepped past the recreational rooms, reaching the end, the medical ward. Even Asher could feel the sheer hopelessness of the hall. Valentin closed his eyes, contemplating the deathly aura in front of him.
This was the place where the dying would lie for their last wishes and words. No one came from this place's beds alive. With minimal exceptions.
"I recommend a tour of this place too; it is an enlightening experience. No one has understood Shi as we have. We come to this ward daily, to remind ourselves of our fragile mortality. Keeps us on our toes."
Asher hesitated slightly, accepting Valentin's invitation after a moment of consideration. It couldn't be much worse than the Carnival, right?
He nodded his head, allowing Valentin to take him to the first room in a hallway of dozens, maybe even hundreds of hospital rooms.
Opening the door, the sickly air stung Asher's lungs, both mind-shatteringly sweet and disgustingly bitter. A thin sheet separated him from the shadow of the patient behind it.
"...h...ey? dear...?" A soft man's voice wheezed in the air, delirious from pain and trauma.
Valentin opened the curtain in one swish, and Asher nearly crumpled from shock.
A sickly pale patient attempted to get up, but failed. Valentin didn't comment, allowing the man to struggle.
Asher could see him desperately flailing his limbs around. It was as if the man's back had been glued to the bed.
The man propped himself up on his elbows. With a huge effort, he tried to straighten his body, but something firmly held him down.
"i can't... g-get up." The man dropped onto the bed, then clenched his fists.
"my head...
hurts..."
The man placed his hand on his forehead. He stiffened as they stood in silence.
"what... what is this?" He carefully inserted his index finger into his head, much to Asher's horror. The man's eyelid twitched.
"...my stone..." Asher heard a sound, like an eggshell cracking. His forehead bent under his hand. The Shi Fixer pushed another finger into the hole.
Putrid pus spewed from the wound. Asher could hear his skull cracking.
The man slowly removed his fingers from the hole in his head, a colorless ooze dripping from them. He held something, a round and shiny object.
"...that's why..."
He swung his left hand, throwing the object at Asher. A small irregular ball bounced off his arm and landed at his feet.
"this... this is what put me to sleep... Dear... I won't be coming home..."
His head lifelessly dropped on the pillow of the bed and became still. The man had died.
Asher thought he could handle such a view, but the bile coming up his throat told him otherwise. Valentin placed a trash can in front of him.
The sound of an emptying stomach filled the room. Asher couldn't feel his fingers or toes as blood rushed to his head.
When he was finished, Valentin bent down, picking up the odd metallic object on the ground.
"So this was his end. An Atelier round smashed into his frontal lobe, instantly crippling his rationality. As training taught him, he used a K Corp Serum to heal his wound. This caused the bullet to fuse into his brain, permanently destroying his mental processes. Total time elapsed in Room 1: three days."
As Valentin spoke, he recorded the autopsy report into a machine on the side.
Valentin then bowed toward the man's body, mumbling under his breath.
"Death favored you too much. Your wife will understand."
Asher flinched as Valentin turned back to him, reaching over to press a button behind him.
"The Cleaners will come soon. I wished to show you the wards. This is life in the Shi, and we respect anyone who can't handle it. You can leave right now if you are one of them."
Asher really, really wanted to leave. But he felt that if he did, Sophie might not forgive him. They could both see the honesty in Valentin's words, and they were filled with the hard truths of the world. They all lived in the Backstreets, and this reminded him of what life was truly like here.
"You said I can't join the Shi, but can still earn money and contribute to it. Can you explain that to me?"
Valentin nodded.
"Pull out your phone."
Asher pulled out Sophie's phone, which Valentin promptly swiped from him as it unlocked. The man explained what he meant earlier as he tapped on her phone.
"There's a group we have for Fixers who are unqualified or have their own Offices, kinda like how the Zwei does it. We post the Legend and Myth level ones here, where it's up for grabs for whoever responds first. Whether you need cash or you simply want more experience, this group's perfect. Join?" Valentin looked at him.
This was interesting. Asher nodded his head, excited by this new opportunity.
With Fixer missions from the Hana and this, he could live a comfortable life in the Backstreets.
However, he didn't want that. He wanted to find his future companions and learn the truth of the world. And get into the Nest, too.
Whether he liked it or not, he needed money.
Valentin handed his phone back to him. In his Line was a 'Shi Section 12' group chat with over a hundred members.
Looking at past contracts the group had, Asher could tell the difference between the Shi and Hana's missions immediately. While the Hana Association always had an air of righteousness to their cases, the Shi did not bother with such pleasantries.
The last target posted was the wife of a small businessman for a thousand Ahn. It was taken in minutes, no questions asked.
Asher pocketed his phone, planning to look at it later. As he turned to leave, a thought struck his mind.
"So, is your leader here? Can I...?"
He was cut off by Valentin.
"Even if she was, do you think she would bother with someone like you? Director Yujin is a 'Shinigami', meaning 'Death Goddess'. She is assisting the Black Silence right now, tracing the Blood Red Night to her lair. This tour is finished."
Asher muttered a short 'oh', before stepping out of the room, suitably chastened.
Valentin walked out of the deceased man's room, but went opposite of Asher, delving deeper into the medical ward.
At the end of the hallway, after the last room, was a hidden elevator. Valentin didn't hesitate, entering the elevator to go down to the only floor below.
Floor four.
The door opened, revealing room 'Shi'. The room of Death, the Director's personal medical bay.
A single bed with blood-soaked red sheets stood in the middle. A tomboyish woman lied in the bed, her breathing steady but faint. Her short black hair seemed to sway listlessly on her gaunt skin, but she otherwise looked fine.
"Why must we keep the truth away from the non-Shi? Director, the Blood Red Night is already in Black Silence's eyes. Besides, you aren't too injured!" The man tried to comfort her as she struggled to stand.
Yujin's illusion faded away, revealing her true appearance. Even Valentin gasped.
Every inch of her body was covered in pulsing blood vessels, sucking the very life force from her body. Her hand weakly clawed toward one of her eyes, which had rolled onto the sheets.
She raised her other eye at him, unfocused and in mind shattering pain. However, her voice was crystal clear.
"Now the Blood Baroness feeds on my strength, too. If the Black Silence does not make his move soon... we shall both perish-"
Yujin coughed, peppering the walls and sheets with fresh liquid. Blood vessels emerged from the puddle, writhing as they tried to attach themselves onto a living being.
"...I survive, not for me or the Shi, but for the sake of the City. Get out of here, lest you become infected as well. I shall live, you will not."
As Valentin walked away, Yujin's coughs became even more pulpy, until he could clearly hear chunks of bone and flesh spattering the floor behind him.
But he didn't look back. He could only pray that the Goddess of Death had overcome the very domain she governed.
There was nothing that he could do against the Stars that ruled the City's night. Even Section 12's Death was made into such a wretched state by them.