Chapter 16: Children of God(2)

The brothel “Tears of the Moon,” operated by the Night King Nox, was experiencing an unprecedented golden age.

In the past, heroes had avoided openly using brothels for the sake of their reputation.

However, since the Hades Guild took control of Gideon, things had changed significantly.

The number of people who cared about their reputation decreased, and many began to openly express their desires without hiding them.

Moreover, with the Hades Guild backing Nox, there was no longer any hesitation on their part.

Perhaps that’s why the “Tears of the Moon,” affiliated with Nox, was the first to cross the line.

Naturally, many looked down upon the “Tears of the Moon,” but no one could stop them.

This was because the Hades Guild and Nox were firmly behind them.

“Welcome, esteemed guest.”

“Excuse me, which guild are you from?”

They began to openly discriminate against guests under the pretext of a high-end strategy.

They treated guests from reputable or large guilds with the utmost respect, while blatantly neglecting others.

Of course, they weren’t foolish enough to make it too obvious.

For instance, they would sell cheap alcohol as premium drinks or provide low-quality courtesans in poor condition.

It was a win-win strategy, preserving their image while earning money.

Previously, a nobody from an insignificant guild had noticed the scam and was slightly shocked, but fortunately, it could be smoothed over due to a drunkard’s antics.

“The Iron Shield.”

“The Iron Shield? The guild that was on the blacklist?”

“I’m sorry, guest. We’re fully booked at the moment.”

Roden, the man in charge of receiving guests at the “Tears of the Moon,” concealed his contempt behind a smile as he attended to the guest.

A worthless guild that would never have made it through if they hadn’t ended up on the blacklist.

He didn’t know how this insignificant guild had noticed the trick, having likely never tasted premium alcohol, but nonetheless, thanks to this, the Iron Shield had made it onto the “Tears of the Moon” blacklist.

Thus, he naturally attempted to send the guest away, but he didn’t budge at all.

He simply continued to stare at Roden, and just that was enough for Roden to feel considerable pressure.

“Is there a problem, guest?”

“Alcohol.”

“Excuse me?”

“Bring me a drink. The most expensive one.”

“…Is that all you need?”

The man nodded.

For a moment, Roden hesitated.

Should he just give the man the expensive drink and send him on his way?

Or should he follow the manual and attend to him accordingly?

However, the contemplation didn’t last long.

‘Let’s stick to the manual. If he wants it, then so be it.’

Roden was merely a receptionist.

If he made a judgment on his own, he could be called in and scolded.

Besides, the other party was a third-rate guild, so even if things went wrong, it could easily be smoothed over.

With a gesture from Roden, other receptionists waiting behind him quickly brought over a bottle of alcohol.

The luxurious golden bottle contained, in fact, cheap liquor diluted with water.

Pouring the drink with care into the glass that came with the bottle, Roden cautiously handed the glass to the man.

The man immediately gulped down the drink.

A brief silence fell over them.

“Um, guest? If you’re done… please…”

“His words were right.”

“What?”

“To serve cheap liquor mixed with water.”

Clink.

The glass in the man’s hand shattered into countless pieces under an immense grip.

However, that wasn’t the issue at hand.

The monstrous aura left him almost breathless.

The man, Isaac’s anger impacted even the other heroes enjoying themselves at the “Tears of the Moon.”

Thinking it was an ambush, the heroes who dashed outside could do nothing.

With unstoppable force, it felt as if he could split the sky beyond the bamboo.

Naturally, Roden and the other receptionists, mere ordinary people, couldn’t withstand it.

Finally, he spoke.

“Bring me the person in charge here.”

“Ugh…!!”

“There’s no need for that, guest.”

Just when Roden felt he might suffocate, he was saved by the Master in charge of the “Tears of the Moon.”

She was a woman with golden hair that fell to her waist, dressed in a white gown.

“What kind of rudeness is this, coming in unannounced?”

“I hear you scammed my guild member.”

“A scam, you say…?”

“I’m talking about this bottle of alcohol.”

Before he knew it, Isaac was holding the bottle that Roden had the receptionist bring.

He had preemptively secured evidence.

It even had the logo on it, leaving no room for denial.

‘Damn, where did such a psycho come from?’

Did they not know who was behind the “Tears of the Moon”?

Or was it just the youthful blood of a young hero?

Either way, it was clear that the situation was turning against them.

She quickly thought on her feet.

She couldn’t directly admit the truth.

Doing so would cause the image of the “Tears of the Moon” to plummet to the ground.

However, if she continued to deny it, that bottle of alcohol was too much of an eyesore.

“It seems there was a misunderstanding along the way.”

“A misunderstanding?”

“Yes, indeed. We at the “Tears of the Moon” always promise the best service.”

In that brief moment, a solution to the situation flashed through the Madame’s mind, and she donned a natural smile again.

Her serpent-like gaze then turned to Roden beside her.

“But occasionally, a few receptionists may cross the line due to greed.”

‘Huh? Wait a minute, could it be…?’

“Isn’t that right, Roden?”

The moment their eyes met, Roden felt as if a snake was slithering over his skin.

At that moment, Roden realized.

Now that the tail had been cut off, there was nothing he could do.

“Y-yes. It was all my doing.”

Unable to endure the pressure, Roden ultimately confessed to his mistake.

Only then did the Madame nod with a satisfied smile.

Isaac frowned and spoke.

“All I want is a sincere apology and prevention of this happening again.”

“What are you doing, Roden? Don’t you think you should apologize to the guest?”

“I-I’m sorry…”

“No, not you. You should apologize directly.”

However, Isaac didn’t stop there.

He pointed a finger at the Madame.

The Madame, now being pointed out, felt cold sweat running down her back.

Did he really catch on to everything?

No, that couldn’t be.

The Madame shook her head.

There was no way he could have picked up on the tail-cutting.

However, Isaac’s gaze remained fixed on the Madame without change.

“I-I’m sorry. On behalf of everyone, I sincerely apologize.”

Moments later, the Madame finally bowed her head and apologized to Isaac, who had brought Dig with him.

If she didn’t, it felt like something terrible would happen right then and there.

She even returned all the money.

After receiving the money back, Dig finally smiled brightly again.

Zeke looked at Dig with disdain before turning his head.

As if recalling something, Zeke’s eyes sparkled.

“Master, you’re amazing! You caught onto the scam!”

“It’s not that remarkable.”

Isaac shook his head.

To be honest, he hadn’t truly caught the scam.

They weren’t fools, either.

Because the cheap liquor was diluted with water, it was extremely difficult for an ordinary person to distinguish it.

Of course, Isaac was no different.

Since the original description felt exactly the same, he vaguely thought, Ah, these guys are scamming us, and that was the truth.

“Thank you! Master! Thanks to you, I got my money back!”

“More importantly, how did you figure out it was a scam?”

“The taste was completely different from the liquor I had before.”

“Is that so?”

Isaac tilted his head.

It was very expensive liquor, so it would be hard to even drink it.

How could this kid have noticed?

Isaac sighed.

He didn’t know.

Right now, he was just tired and wanted to sleep.

Only focusing on that thought, Isaac returned to the guild.

Perhaps because of that, or for some other reason, he didn’t notice that someone was following them until they arrived.

“Huh? Who are you?”

The last to notice was Zeke.

He was startled and shouted upon seeing the child following closely behind him.

At Zeke’s voice, Isaac and Dig finally noticed the child.

She looked to be around 13 years old, with bright pink hair and a small frame, but she wore a revealing outfit that seemed out of place.

The first to notice that was Dig.

“Hey? That’s the kind of outfit the whores wear at the Tears of the Moon!”

“How do you know that?”

“Why are you looking at me like that? What’s wrong with a guy holding a girl?!”

“Ugh, how pathetic.”

“It seems like there’s a story behind this.”

Ignoring the banter between Dig and Zeke, Isaac slowly examined the child.

Her body was covered in wounds and scars, and even her bare feet, which had no shoes, were bleeding from stepping on stones.

A 13-year-old girl with pink hair, who had become a whore at the “Tears of the Moon.”

No matter how he looked at it, she resembled the child from the flashbacks in the third volume of the original story.

Isaac said, “Would you like to rest here for a moment?”

At Isaac’s question, the girl nodded vigorously.