Ryleth is rather proud of himself as he leads me to an entirely different part of town. On the other hand, I am still trying to make sense of what just happened back in the little brick house. We hadn’t been flat-out refused, which was good. But I can’t help but worry that, come the night of the next hunt, things will change and we will have wasted our time.

“That’s why we’re going to ask around a little more.” Ryleth assures me. “It can’t hurt to have extra help.”

I am beginning to feel apprehensive as we move further through the low-income districts of the kingdom. What started out as the cobblestone foundation that much of Naver’s streets are made of has transitioned to dirt paths that move between uncomfortably small streets that squeeze in between buildings. Ryleth offers his arm for me to take, but I ignore the gesture. I am not scared of the beggars we pass or the people who stumble about, drunk in the middle of the day and talking to themselves.

We have taken so many turns and even backtracked a few times when the scenery wasn’t familiar enough to Ryleth. Even knowing the kingdom as well as I do from my monthly patrols, I feel totally lost this deep in the slums with so many people out and about.

When my guide finally stops with a gasp, I am expecting to see some sort of unique landmark or a building that stands out from all the rest. Instead, we are met with an old shop with a crumbling facade that looks identical to everything else around us. Its windows are boarded up in the same fashion one would keep out bloodsuckers, but the wood is old and rotting, clearly indicating it has remained there for ages.

I look at Ryleth skeptically but he is not paying any attention. Rather, he approaches the simple wooden door in front, which also unfortunately holds a large lock. This does not yield my fellow hunter, though. He takes the lock by its prongs, then gives the key latch a twist to the right once, then the left twice, then the right again three more times. It pops open with ease and he looks back at me just to wink, then holds the door open for me to step through.

But the inside of the shop remains just as shabby and barren as the outside. In fact, there almost seems to be a very thin coating of dust upon every surface, from the floors to the abandoned circular tables and broken stools.

Is Ryleth trying to fool me?

I shoot him a glare and he chuckles, shaking his head and leading the way through the dark and dusty shop floor. Towards the very back wall, there is a counter-top that acts as a divider halfway across. When I follow Ryleth around it, I am surprised to see a set of stairs there and they stretch beneath the creaking floorboards and into impenetrable darkness.

We are cautious as we move down the steps; I run my hand along the wall as I descend, feeling my way forward to make up for my lack of sight. Ahead, there is a thin bar of light that glows a soft orange and it grows closer as we move further down. Ryleth stumbles in front of me and I hear him grunt, so I stop and wait. There is some scuffling and then a noise of exertion, which is suddenly followed by a steady explosion of warm light. It pours into the pitch black of the stairwell as Ryleth pushes at a door that I was unable to see before. When it is all the way open, he leans against the frame to reveal the destination that lay hidden beyond and my mouth falls open in awe.

Crossing the threshold, I find myself in what looks to be an entirely new and exotic world. The air is hazy with vaporized tobacco and the scent of cinnamon and jasmine permeates everything, creating an almost heady atmosphere that I struggle to resist. But it’s the sights before me that truly captivates and tantalizes the senses.

In stark contrast to the abandoned and dust-covered building we currently stand beneath, the basement is like a vibrant palace of rich crimsons, burnt orange and glittering gold colors. The floors are tiled with black marble and the walls have been draped with red velvet. It is surprisingly busy here, whether it be the people drinking honeyed mead at round tables and chairs, to the loungers occupying the cushions along the walls that are large enough to hold two or three people at once.

There are two staircases on either side of the back wall that lead up to a hidden middle floor inaccessible from anywhere else. It is sectioned off with a gilded banister that runs in front of a balcony, where a few couples are looking out over the rest of the secret club below.

“What is this place?” I whisper to Ryleth.

He inhales the dreamy smell around us and drapes an arm over my shoulder, pulling me into a side-hug of camaraderie.

“Paradise.” he answers.

“...It’s called Paradise?”

Ryleth shakes his head to my question, even though it is understandably the only possible conclusion one could have come to. Instead, he begins to walk, pulling me along, further inside.

“This place has no name.” Ryleth explains under his breath to me. “A name would make it easier to find and that is not quite what they want around here.”

It is around this time that I have started noticing the heads turning in our direction. They look at me with a scrutinizing gaze, but when they notice Ryleth, many people break out into smiles. These people are all dressed in a similar manner, which is in very little clothing and ornate jewelry or accessories. Those in more common attire do not have that same recognition as their decorated companions when they see Ryleth. In fact, they look at him almost warily as we pass by.

“Hey.”

I am pulled backwards suddenly as my wrist is snatched up by an uncomfortably sweaty hand. When I whirl around, I see that a short and overweight man is the one who made this bold move. His clothes show wealth, but he is nothing attractive to look at with a steadily balding head and a smile that makes my skin crawl.

“I don’t suppose you plan to have all your fun alone, do you?” the man asks me, licking his lips. “Perhaps you'd like some company? I’ll gladly share with you, love.”

I haven't the faintest idea what he means, but I know that if he does not release my hand, I will not hesitate to snap his wrist like a twig.

Lucky for him, Ryleth puts himself between us and looks up and down at the fat, balding little cockroach. At first, I think he is going to hit him. To my surprise, however, my fellow hunter smirks and leans in close enough that they are nearly nose-to-nose.

“I'm afraid you're not quite what my lady friend is interested in.” Ryleth purrs. “But I can share with you, if you'd like.”

The man turns beet red and releases me, waddling away and grumbling irritably to himself. I look pointedly at Ryleth and then close my eyes, fingertips rubbing soothingly at my temple.

“This is a brothel, isn’t it?”

My colleague looks affronted by the question but when he tries to deny it, he pauses and reevaluates whatever response he was about to make. I raise my eyebrows in clear indication that he is only proving my point and Ryleth relents and shrugs.

“Okay, it’s kind of… A little bit of a brothel, maybe.” he mutters.

I can’t help but feel a bit miffed by this. I was under the impression that we were putting together a group to help us with Silas and Ethias’s plan, not troll around for sex in a seedy basement whorehouse.

“So what, do you think I’ll fuck you if you rope in another woman?” I demand. “It’s not going to happen, Ryleth.”

He has begun to resume his walk towards the far end of the room, but allows himself to look back with a lascivious wink.

“You know, Lady Fayne, for someone who has absolutely no intention of sleeping with me, you sure do bring it up a lot.”

I decide not to reward that comment with any sort of response. Instead, I follow his hasty stride until we reach the space against the back wall between the two staircases. The floor there is slightly raised into a dais, creating somewhat of a platform or even a miniature stage. It is on this stage that a large golden birdcage sits, reaching all the way to the overhang of the balcony above. There are braided red cords wrapped around each bar that makes up the cage and what look to be charms are connected to them. As we get closer, I realize that they are glittering keys that dangle and catch the light, sending fleeting reflections across the floor like a prism would.

The door to the birdcage is wide open and a redhead lounges inside, nestled comfortably on a circular settee that is fitted to the radius of the enclosure. She smiles broadly at the sight of us and rises to her feet so that she can embrace Ryleth with open arms.

“Lord Ryleth, it’s been far too long!” she gushes with a flirtatious voice that could draw in even the most chaste person.

I am caught off guard when she greets me as well, gingerly kissing both sides of my face and then rubbing her nose against mine. My face goes hot and I have to force myself to look away because I have just noticed how sheer the black chiffon on her dress is and my mind wants to see even more. Yet again, Ryleth steps in and manages to divert the conversation quickly and effectively. Putting his hand on the small of my back, he pushes me forward a little and raises his chin proudly.

“Ahsha, this is my friend, Lady Fayne.” Ryleth tells the woman from the birdcage. “She will be sharing with me today.”

Or maybe he hasn’t saved me from embarrassment at all.

I glare and take a sharp breath in, but his hand slips around my side and he squeezes my waist to keep me quiet. I do so, but I am not thrilled.

The woman, Ahsha, holds her hand out before anything else can be said. After fishing around inside the folds of his clothes, Ryleth produces a small velveteen bag and places it into her palm. I can hear the distinct jingle of coins within and from the way he hefted it, it’s obvious that the bag is not light. Ahsha beams, tossing it a few times to test the weight, then motions behind her at the cage.

“Well, then, shall I prepare the usual for you?” she asks with rehearsed charisma. “Would you rather have a man this time? A woman? Or perhaps a bit of both?”

Ryleth chuckles. It’s a good thing he can’t see the way I am scowling at him.

“Actually, I was hoping that I could request the key to The Gardenia Room?” he asks. “If it is already taken, we can wait.”

Ahsha tilts her head up to the keys that hang further up on the bars, searching left and right until she stops on one in particular. She clicks her tongue a little, then stands on her tiptoes to unhook it for us.

“You best be careful.” she warns us as she hands the key over to Ryleth. “She’s been in one of her moods lately. Had to send for a healer when her last client collapsed from exhaustion.”

Just when I think I can’t blush any harder, I am proven wrong.

This causes Ahsha to look at me in concern, but Ryleth laughs and tousles my hair with his hand.

“This is Lady Fayne’s first time here.” he explains. “So let’s try not to scare her, shall we?”

Ahsha laughs and wishes us luck, taking the time to whisper in my ear that I will be needing it. I try to keep myself steady as Ryleth leads the way up one of the staircases and into the hidden middle floor above.

Compared to the rest of the basement, the second level is surprisingly plain. The walls are a simple white and the floors are made from a polished but otherwise unremarkable wood. There is only a single straight hallway aside from the balcony and it is lined on either side with too many doors to count. As we walk along them, I can see that they are marked by intricate carvings of different flowers from roses to lilies, to nightshade and even a simple poppy.

The door carved with a gardenia can be found towards the very end of the hallway and when Ryleth fumbles with the lock, I can’t help but notice the matching white flower charm that hangs from the key’s end. The door clicks, but he does not open it straight away. He looks at me instead, leaning in to whisper in a hush.

“I’m going to warn you now. Even I have no idea what she will do once we go in.” he says. “She’s much easier to cooperate with than Evvie. That is, if you can handle her.”

I nod and mentally steel myself for whatever is about to come.

As my fellow hunter gives the door a slow shove and it creaks open, I am met with a rush of cool air that smells sweet and floral. The entirety of the room is white inside, between the soft drapery of the canopy that floats over the mattress in the center to the long strands of beads that hang in varying lengths from the ceiling. The only thing that is not white are the lush green ferns that grow out of pots in the corner of the room, arranged neatly around a circular bath filled with hot, steaming water.

It looks like we are the only ones here, though. Everything is empty, from the crisp white bedding to even the tub. I look at Ryleth, hoping for an answer, but he looks just as lost as I am. It isn’t until we shut the door behind us that I detect the sound of movement. Something rushes at us from behind and I move to act fast enough.

A swift side-step narrowly misses a hand reaching for my shoulder as I lean out of its way, but I grasp it and yank it in towards me. The soft and slender body of a young woman collides with my front and when she looks up at me with her piercing blue eyes, I find myself looking at Thomasin.