It was Lord Yan Trow. Leah, who had frozen stiff, quickly fixed her disheveled clothes.

‘If my identity is discovered like this, it’ll devastate the social circles.’

Though regrettable, it seemed best to retreat for today. Leah patted Helix urgently as if saying they should leave quickly. Lord Trow, who saw the two getting up from the bed, smiled lewdly.

“I apologize for interrupting when things were getting heated…”

Click.

‘Huh?’

Lord Trow locked the door.

‘What? Why is he locking the door?’

Leah hesitated at this unexpected situation.

Lord Trow approached the bed while sending sticky glances up and down at the two of them.

“From the looks of it, you seem to be some noble’s precious pet.”

Goosebumps rose on Leah’s arms.

“Seeing how expensive your clothes are, your master must cherish you quite a bit.”

It seemed he was taking Leah for some noble’s mistress. Lord Trow smiled like a villain who had found a weakness.

“Acting coy in your master’s arms, but meeting a handsome kept man at the club.”

What?

For a moment, Leah’s soul left her body.

She had suddenly become a character with a complicated backstory – ‘a cherished mistress of a high noble who secretly meets with a handsome kept man at a secret club while wearing a mask.’

No wonder the Trow family’s scandalous reputation didn’t come from nowhere. Lord Trow whispered with a perverted, sly smile.

“If you let me join in, I might not tell your master.”

Lord Trow lowered his voice suggestively towards the dazed Leah.

“Let’s enjoy ourselves, the three of us.”

“…”

She thought he was just trash, but turns out he was a pervert too.

Misinterpreting Leah’s coldly frozen gaze as reluctant acceptance, Lord Trow moved closer to her.

“Heh. What’s this you’ve got in your chest?”

Leah instinctively furrowed her brows. However he interpreted that expression, Lord Trow grinned.

“No? You’re saying those are your real br*asts?”

He lunged forward, reaching his hand toward Leah.

“I’ll have to feel them to know!”

***

Just as Leah stiffened in shock, Helix’s fist flew out.

“Ugh!”

Lord Trow’s nose was crushed and a couple of teeth went flying. Leah watched the scene in shock.

“Uh, uhh?”

Lord Trow collapsed to the floor, blood gushing from his nose.

“Keurgh.”

After making a strange groaning sound like a burp, he touched his nose and saw the blood on the floor.

“Y-you lowborn bastards! How dare you!”

He sat up with his eyes rolling back.

“You won’t leave here in one piece today! Someone…!”

WHACK!

With a sound like a watermelon splitting, Lord Trow lay sprawled on the floor.

Leah put down the chair while panting.

“You scared me, I thought he was about to call someone.”

Helix came over and examined the man.

“He seems to not be dead.”

It was her first chair shot ever, knocking out a pervert. Satisfied, she dusted off her hands and glanced at Helix.

“Still, you shouldn’t have punched him first like that.”

“My hand moved before I knew it.”

He glared at Lord Trow with a pale face that could kill.

“He was trying to touch you carelessly.”

“Well yes, he did deserve to be hit, but…”

Leah was about to say more but closed her mouth when she saw the veins bulging on Helix’s hand. Helix looked fierce as if he had completely sobered up.

‘Why is he still handsome even like this?’

Usually when he made such an expression, he looked like he could cut out someone’s heart with an ice blade.

While he always looked incredibly handsome, there were times when he felt distant because he seemed inhuman, but now, perhaps because of his disguise, he just looked reliable even with his scary expression.

‘Or is it because I saw him drunk that he feels more approachable?’

Remembering Helix’s drunken behavior, Leah’s face turned red.

Ahem.

Fanning her inexplicably heated face, she looked down again at the sprawled Lord Trow.

“Anyway, now that we’ve knocked him out… Wait. Hold on.”

Leah realized something.

‘This is perfect!’

They had come to steal the potion that Lord Trow was supposedly carrying anyway. She immediately sat down in front of Lord Trow and started searching his front collar.

“Sniff?”

When she got close, there was a strange smell.

“Is this burning? Or maybe oil?”

Leah muttered while sniffing.

“It’s faint, but it’s there. Helix, come smell this too.”

Watching this, Helix deflated. Somehow feeling like he’d gotten worked up alone, he ran his hand through his hair.

“Leah, you really…”

“No, this guy has the potion, I’m telling you!”

“…Why didn’t you say so earlier!”

Helix hurriedly joined in.

“Fix your clothes properly first!”

“Ah, alright!”

After searching thoroughly, they found a transparent bottle hidden in his boots.

“Is this it?”

Inside the crystal bottle, a bright red liquid sparkled as it reflected light.

A delicate light.

But beneath that fragile and beautiful surface, a terrifying power was surging. Feeling like her throat was being squeezed, Leah took a breath.

“This is Dragon’s mana…!”

At that moment.

Suddenly the room became bright.

“What?!”

Leah jumped up clutching the potion bottle tightly.

“It seems to be coming from outside, not here.”

As Helix spoke while slightly pulling back the curtain, Leah also squeezed in to look outside.

There were flames rising.

***

“Help me, please!”

A woman’s piercing scream was heard.

It was coming from the back building, slightly separated from the secret club’s main building. Unlike the proper main building, the back building was shabby, and the fire was quickly spreading along its old wooden walls.

“Fire!”

“Save us!”

More women’s screams followed. Helix’s face turned pale.

“…There are people inside.”

Conflict showed on Leah’s face as well.

They were currently in disguise conducting a secret operation. It was dangerous to get involved over there.

But they couldn’t just stand by while people were crying for help right in front of them.

“I’ll go out first, after getting you out Leah.”

Helix said.

“Then I’ll go rescue them.”

“…Alright.”

Leah agreed, feeling somehow deflated.

“Let’s alert the people here about the fire on our way down.”

Helix glanced at Lord Trow sprawled on the floor.

“What should we do with him?”

“He’s a regular here. Let’s just leave the door slightly open when we go.”

Though she wanted to hit him one more time while she had the chance, she held back.

“…I’ll get complete revenge later.”

At Leah’s muttering, Helix stretched out his long leg.

WHACK!

She looked at him in shock.

‘Helix kicking someone who’s unconscious?’

Avoiding her gaze, he said gruffly.

“It was an accident.”

“…For an accident, you kicked his face quite precisely.”

“A guardian’s limbs move on their own by mistake when they see villains.”

“…”

Leah, who had briefly lost words, whispered quietly as she left the room.

“Guardians are kind of cool.”

“Just figured that out?”

***

They hurriedly came down the stairs and met a staff member.

“Excuse me.”

Leah stopped the club employee.

“There’s a fire in the back.”

“Ah, yes.”

The voice was oddly indifferent, as if they already knew.

“It will be out soon. Customers don’t need to worry.”

‘Huh?’

This was strange.

‘Why are they so calm when there’s a fire?’

Leah tried speaking once more, just in case.

“I could hear people screaming.”

“They’re just screaming out of fear before anything happens. Don’t worry.”

The employee calmly answered and passed by them to set up new drinks at a table.

‘Come to think of it… why is everything exactly the same as before?’

The first floor of the secret club was still full of laughter and flirting, as before. It was hard to believe there was a fire in the building right behind them, given how peaceful it was.

Helix seemed to sense something was off too. She whispered.

“Even if the customers are like this, why aren’t any of the staff going to check?”

“Let’s go outside first and assess the situation. There might be other staff members.”

Leah nodded.

Just as they were about to exit through the entrance.

“Oh? You came out?”

A man wearing a hat and cloak pulled low greeted them familiarly.

“Big brother?”

It was Ruyan.

“I was waiting outside, but you didn’t come out even when the fire started.”

At the mention of fire, Leah responded.

“What happened with that fire? Are people putting it out?”

“Would they?”

Ruyan said in a bitter tone.

“That’s where the prostitutes stay.”

***

Ruyan explained.

Women with nowhere to go who work at the secret club. Young ones, old ones, prostitutes with low recognition. It was where such people stayed and received customers, he said.

‘So that’s why nobody’s reacting.’

The customers enjoying themselves as if it’s not their business, and the staff who won’t even turn their heads toward the lodging area, let alone go to put out the fire.

Leah clenched her fists. Something was boiling inside her.

“Did you come alone, brother?”

Leah asked quickly in a strained voice.

Sensing something unsettling in his sister’s voice, Ruyan quickly replied.

“I brought the guys.”

He must mean he came with the knights.

“Good.”

She nodded and gestured to leave.

The three hurriedly went outside the secret club. Leah held out her hand to Ruyan.

“Brother, let me borrow your cloak.”

Ruyan, who had already been uncomfortable with his sister’s revealing outfit, quickly took off the cloak he was wearing and handed it over. She quickly put on the cloak.

Then she ran toward the back building.

Helix and Ruyan hurriedly chased after Leah. But wind had already started stirring at Leah’s fingertips.

“…Hey!”

Unable to call her name, Ruyan shouted with a frustrated growl. Leah ignored him and called up more wind in her hands.

Ruyan wouldn’t understand why she was acting this way. Even Leah herself wasn’t sure.

They were complete strangers. Why was she so angry that no one was helping these people who were in mortal danger?

‘…What am I supposed to do with this anger?’

Mana swirled around her body.

“I’ll do it!”

Helix, who had followed, said.

“I’ll handle it. Step back!”

“No!”

“It’s dangerous if you get discovered!”

Leah turned around. Helix, wearing his mask and wig, was looking down at her with eyes full of worry.

“…I’m worried too.”

“What?”