Ryuji was stunned. “How…” he said dumbfounded. It was understandable, after all; he had considered me an easy opponent, someone he could always beat in chess.

“I must’ve picked up some skills after playing for so long,” I replied, slightly smiling. But he made a major mistake in his moves, which was underestimating his opponent. However, it was expected since Jun had lost to him over and over again. This must’ve come as a surprise when I suddenly won. His oversight cost him dearly this time.

Just then, I could hear the chair’s armrest cracking. Ryuji must be taking out his frustration, he took a slow breath and demanded, “Again.”

I nodded, there was no reason to refuse it. The game continued, and the pieces moved on the board in various ways, but each time, I won. I almost broke my character, making the man lose miserably. It must be a bitter pill to swallow.

I could sense him staring at me in deep thought. I could tell he was annoyed, but will he let out the truth of the reason he visits every time? Surely, it couldn’t be because of playing board games.

“You’ve changed,” Ryuji commented, taking a cigar out of his pocket and lighting it.

I flinched as the acrid smoke wafted to me and the being near the overwhelming smell of the cigar. “Have I? Did you ever truly know me before in the first place?” I calmly retorted.

Ryuji let out a small chuckle and placed his hand under his chin, gazing intently at the courtesan. “You sure are the finest courtesan in the pavilion. How about I buy you?”.

This offer was unexpected. Going with him would be much easier, but this would risk letting my identity be known, and also, I would be restricted in my plans. “I do not think I’m of such value for the great Kurokawa Ryuji to bring me along with him,” I replied, masking my smug expression.

A tense silence followed. I couldn’t help but suppress a faint smile, my guess was right. This Ryuji was from the Kurokawa clan and held a significant position. The way he acted reminded me of a scene from the novel. Yu Daewon, when he entered this world in his 10^th regression, was followed by a big-time yakuza. The regressor defeated the yakuza, but he kept coming back, wanting to fight for his clan. The yakuza was an extra villain, but his persistence made a mark in my mind when I read the novel.

The yakuza was Ryuji, and I had no doubt.

Suddenly, I felt a thumb brush against my cheeks, but I maintained my stoic expression, though I was a bit unsettled. “What are you doing?” I asked. I didn’t even realize when he approached me.

“It’s best if you don’t poke around your nose where it doesn’t belong, my courtesan,” Ryuji said, putting his thumb into my mouth, letting it linger, swirling it around, and tainting it with my saliva.

Something was wrong with this man. Had he gone crazy? I was a virgin, and I intend to remain that way.

Ryuji took out his thumb with a sigh. “You’re quite good at provoking me,” he remarked.

I haven’t done anything, sir. Keep your perverted self away.

Just as I sensed that Ryuji was about to continue with his advances, the door slips open. I heard the familiar steps enter the room. “Ryuji-sama, the time is up,” the maid announced.

I could feel the intense gaze of Ryuji burning through my face one last time. “I guess I have to leave, my courtesan,” he said before he walked away.

Before Ryuji exited the room, he looked back, “Don’t forget to visit my place when you need that favor.”

I leaned back in the chair slightly, my eyes turning sharp as I heard the footsteps confirming that Ryuji had left the room. I knew the individual who had made me the high-ranking courtesan; I could now proceed with the second step of this plan. But I still felt somewhat uneasy.

“Let’s head back to your quarters. You have no other visitors for today”, the maid said. She appeared next to me and guided me back to my room. As I walked the spacious hallways, I could hear the murmur of the lower-level courtesans tinged with envy. I could almost feel their scornful gazes.

“Please disregard the chattering of these witches. They’re just jealous of Jun-sama’s beauty. Now that you’ve regained your senses, there’s no reason for them to insult you”, the maid said.

I scoffed. These types of witches could only be gotten rid of when they were dead. There’s no other way except that to stop their blabbering mouth.

Night had arrived as I continued with the embroidery task the maid had assigned me. As a guy, there was no way I knew how to do it, but the body, as usual, using its muscle memory, completed the embroidery with remarkable precision. Even blind, Jun’s skills were awesome.

I sighed and packed up the supplies scattered on the table. I had completed the embroidery, and I stood up, planning to use my night wisely. I had regained my sight with the help of the skill, [Night Vision].

I walked towards the bed and pulled out a hidden chest from beneath it. It was a heavy wooden chest; I unlocked the latch and opened it. Revealing the weapons and pills within, these were the things handed to Jun as he left the previous residence. Jun’s adoptive mother felt a bit guilty as she was sending Jun to the pavilion, so she gave him this chest from their family. These were things that were useless to them, but they will prove useful to me. “Thank you, fake mother,” I said, cackling. “Your misplaced kindness will serve me well.”

I looked through the chest and could only find some rusty swords. They were all of the same quality, so I grabbed the one on the top of the pile. There was dirt piled on them since it hadn’t been opened ever since Jun moved to the pavilion. I blew the dust off the rusty sword, revealing a curved, single-edged blade. “It’s a katana,” I noted, my fingers gliding along the metal, feeling its balance and weight.

Katana wasn’t found in the martial artist clans since they were used by the samurai, which not a lot of people admired since the martial artists seemed more powerful and, well, they were. If you couldn’t reach the top with the katana, then there was no purpose in using them. Yet this katana couldn’t help but intrigue me; I couldn’t ignore its potential.

I stood up and opened the window, revealing the red and ominous sky. The Tower’s dominating presence made my skin prickle. I calmly gazed at the Tower; I extended my arm towards the Tower, tracing it in the air with my fingers. I smiled and curled my fingers into a fist, grasping the Tower. “You’ll be mine,” I whispered.

And then I leaped through the window.

I was going to fight with the Shades. Some would say this was reckless, but you had to put yourself in harm’s way for your potential to show. I had no idea how to use these skills nor how to fight, but I trusted myself and started to train for the Tower. If I wanted to thrive and complete my mission within the Tower, I had to start training immediately.

Not much was known about the Shades in the novel; I didn’t even remember them until the maid mentioned it. She also described what they did and what they looked like, which gave me an insight into how to defeat them.

It was quite an eerie atmosphere outside at night. The maid said that the Shades were sensitive to the sounds. So, I moved quietly through the trees behind the Pavilion. After a few minutes, I finally was able to see the streets, I glanced around and did not see a single person. It was to be expected since the country forbids normal residents to stay outside longer than 7 pm.

I walked around the streets, taking in the sights and confirming that I was indeed in District D. I saw the cluttered and almost breaking homes alongside the streets. I realized that the Pavilion was the only extravagant structure within the district. This is the only way for this district to make some income. Glancing around, I saw some carts outside, which still had some vegetables on them, and garbage was on every corner of the street.

I scoffed. This wasn’t the way I wanted to spend my precious night looking at the cluttered and narrowed slums. I was on the hunt for some Shades; they made me curious as to how they weren’t defeated by some Players. What could the reason be?

I found a spacious area down the street; I grabbed my katana’s scabbard and screeched it along the rusty nearby wall. The sound echoed through the empty streets, calling out to the Shades. I didn’t have the time to wait for them to find me – I was bringing them to me.

A rustling sound came from behind. I turned, my eyes catching the sight of a shadowy silhouette emerging from the bushes. The creature had a form resembling a person, its head half-missing, and only a gaping mouth with sharp, jagged teeth could be seen. Mist oozed from its form, a menacing and threatful shadow.

Then, It lunged at me with a burst of speed.

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