Time rewinds to the previous night.
After completing his level-up with Loki, Ryoji had a sparring match with Tiona.
"Aahhh! I can't do it!" Tiona had shouted and burst into tears on the spot.
Saying something like, "I can't bring myself to hurt Ryoji," which had honestly touched Ryoji deeply.
After much persuasion, and promising her a head-pat reward afterward, Tiona reluctantly agreed.
After it ended...
Tiona sat in a chair, questioning her entire existence. Ryoji, on the other hand, quietly slipped away from the Familia.
Late Night.
The Southern District, one of Orario's eight main sectors, was a famous bustling street.
Grand theaters, casinos, luxury hotels, buildings of this kind filled the area, towering and tightly packed along both sides of the streets. With night fully settled in, the area had grown even more lively, reaching a crescendo of noise and activity.
Well-dressed merchants, rough-looking adventurers, even elegant and radiant gods, customers like these could be seen everywhere. Ryoji, cloaked in a hooded cape, ignored all the glitz and glamor as he turned from the noisy main street into a narrow alleyway behind it.
His destination was toward the southeastern part of the city.
At the edge of the Southern District near the East-South Main Street, known as Orario's Fourth Street, the atmosphere was completely different from its surroundings, as if stepping into another world.
"Hey there, handsome, wanna come in and play?"
With a seductive voice, an Amazoness beckoned a young, full-of-vigor adventurer off the street. He wrapped his arm around her waist and entered a building bathed in dim, alluring lighting.
Unlike the dazzling and loud bustling street nearby, this place oozed a sensual and hedonistic atmosphere. The Magic Stone Lamps inside the buildings and along the street glowed a hazy peach-pink, casting a soft blush across everything.
Everywhere, women with sultry red lips, dressed in backless evening gowns that revealed their bare backs and waists, stood enticingly. They used their bodies and seductive gazes as living signs, advertising like fresh, ripe fruit.
Centered around Amazonesses, there were also humans, small races, beastkin, and even a few elves in pairs or trios. They would whisper into the ears of passing men, flirt a bit, and then lead them arm-in-arm into the buildings.
Voluptuous bodies and seductive voices flickered in and out of view through the windows of the nearby establishments.
The identities of these women were obvious: they were prostitutes. This street was none other than Orario's infamous Night Street.
Ryoji's gaze swept calmly past each of the prostitutes along the road. Hidden beneath his hood, his expression was composed, his eyes held not a hint of lust.
"My memory bank for 'Fateful Encounters' is almost full!"
Yet his inner expression looked like someone wearing a mask of pain.
He had seen too many beautiful women lately. His "Fateful Encounter Memory Bank" had grown overloaded. He was now forced to delete some encounters, those that weren't "big" enough, or those with less-than-ideal shapes.
Every now and then, a prostitute would toss him a flirtatious look, seemingly ready to chat about 'music technique', but Ryoji simply quickened his pace and disappeared from their view in moments.
Even with his cloak on, one could tell he was an absolute pretty boy. But to their dismay, he was so quick on his feet that he vanished in the blink of an eye. The women could only sigh and give up, turning to search for their next customer.
Ryoji continued to delve deeper into the alleyways. At one point, as he exited a narrow passage, the space before him suddenly opened up.
A massive building stood tall at the very center of this street. There was no doubt, this was the largest brothel in the area.
Yet the atmosphere here was completely different from the surrounding establishments. While the outer brothels were soaked in raw lust and temptation, this place carried an air of regal majesty, like a palace built in the middle of a boundless desert.
Its golden, shimmering decorations could only be described as luxurious beyond belief.
This wasn't a brothel, it was a palace.
Passing through the semicircular front courtyard, Ryoji arrived at the main entrance of the palace. On the large doors was a striking Familia emblem.
Carved into the emblem was a depiction of a nude woman, or rather, a prostitute, with the upper half of her face veiled in a silken scarf.
"Whoa, not even a single guard at the door?"
Despite being the base of a Familia, the palace was buzzing with activity, with people coming and going freely. Countless scantily clad Amazonesses strolled inside arm-in-arm with male adventurers, their expressions intimate. Occasionally, adventurers with satisfied expressions exited the doors.
While the sheer number of customers was impressive, what caught Ryoji's attention the most was the Amazonesses themselves.
It wasn't just their sensual allure; each one carried a long, practiced aura, far beyond that of normal people. They exuded a sharp and refined presence, clearly not ordinary women.
Normally, a Familia's headquarters wouldn't be so easily accessible, especially not to adventurers from other Familias. Allowing outsiders inside risked intelligence leaks and potential disputes.
Take Loki Familia, for example. They always had multiple people taking shifts guarding the entrance. Ryoji himself had been on gate duty twice during leveling breaks.
But this Familia was different.
Most members of this Familia were prostitutes. In order to attract customers, they simply kept the main gates wide open for business. They didn't mind if adventurers from other Familias came in.
That's because every single one of them was an adventurer, powerful prostitutes blessed with a God's Falna.
In other words: combat prostitutes.
This was the business model of one of Orario's top-ranking factions, Ishtar Familia.
Their chief deity, Goddess Ishtar, was a divine patron of prostitution. Naturally, her Familia was composed mostly of prostitutes.
They controlled a large section of the southeastern district, and the entire street they operated on was firmly under their influence. With such overwhelming strength, they didn't care about spies from other Familias.
Ryoji walked directly through the main entrance into the Ishtar Familia headquarters. Even though he was wearing a cloak, no one tried to stop him.
A few combat prostitutes did glance at him with suspicion, but simply assumed he didn't want to reveal his face, perhaps to hide the fact that he was visiting a brothel.
Such behavior wasn't unheard of.
For example, there were certain gods who'd sneak out with Familia funds to indulge themselves, only to be dragged back in fury by their Familia children if they were caught, so they often came here disguised and sneaky.
Thanks to that, Ryoji was able to enter Ishtar Familia's base with ease.
But once he was inside… he had no idea what to do next.
"Excuse me, could you tell me where Phryne's room is?"
"Huh? You're looking for Phryne?"
The male passerby he grabbed had just finished pulling up his pants and was walking out of a room. Upon hearing this, his face went pale with terror, the afterglow of his pleasure instantly vanishing.
"Bro… look, I know everyone has their fetishes… but I seriously recommend you go see a doctor at Dian Cecht Familia."
"Airmid's really good, yeah. But I'm actually looking for Phryne right now."
"Why throw your life away like this…"
The man sighed deeply, then said in a low voice:
"I heard that ever since she pissed off Loki Familia last time, Goddess Ishtar herself got so mad that she locked Phryne up. But as for where exactly she's being held... I have no idea."
(End of Chapter)
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