The bar was empty. It wasn't like this a mere month ago, but now, only spiders on the ceiling were making company to the owner of the bar.

  "Urgh…" the owner y on the bar, tapping his finger on the wooden desk that saw its golden days in the long distant past. The bluish white smoke of a cigar was rising to the ceiling and its unique smell was lingering over the entire bar.

  "Sir, are you sure you want to continue?"

  "What for?" The owner grumbled at the young barkeep standing before him, polishing gss.

  "You've hired dependents of Lord Purple to investigate the newly opened shop that became a thorn in your eye, wouldn't it be better to use them while they are still in town?"

  "Pah! A group of weaklings they are! They had such an easy job of creating commotion so they could pnt in Spyders without anyone noticing, but all that ended up with the guy makin' the commotion getting captured! Only thing that was good about that imbecile was that he killed himself before he could spill any beans! And don't let me start on those so-called 'Well trained Spyders'! Those stupid beasts refused to enter the damned building all together!" the owner scratched his head with one hand while hitting the desk with his other hand, causing it to redden a little. The bottle before him jumped a few times, but the barkeep managed to catch it before it dropped to the ground. On the other hand, the cigar fell crushed to the desk and its cinders stained the desk.

  "Are you sure that shop will be as much trouble as you think?"

  "I know it! Aaah, since you can't see the cursed energy, you wouldn't understand it. That booze he's selling… it disperses the cursed energy we so painstakingly build up over the year… Not to mention that the cleansing ceremony will happen soon, too… If only we could corrupt the sapling of the Holy Willow in the cathedral before that…"

  The bar's owner used to owe a great amount of money to a money leasing group under the Reversed Sun crime syndicate, but as he tasted the power he could only dream of before, he decided to join the Reversed Sun instead and work through the organization’s ranks. Sadly for him, the leading operatives of the Reversed Sun, the Eight Colors, saw him as nothing more than a useful pawn.

  This entire operation in Au was set up by him to get better standing within the organization while also initiating a great unrest in the kingdom. If enough Cursed Energy was collected, a Demon Summoning ritual could be performed even within the sacred halls of monasteries or Holy grounds. Since Au is the closest city to the Capital, which is under the protection of a Divine Artefact left behind by Creator God, there was a possibility that the Cursed energy and Demons rampaging in this city would create enough of a disturbance to weaken the barrier for the Reversed Sun to snag the Divine Artefact and endanger the entire Risha kingdom in one swell swoop.

  To gather Cursed Energy, you don't need much, just create enough negative emotions for them to start stagnating and use a medium to siphon them out. To do this, the slums were the perfect pce, however, the slums worked as a well oiled machine, so they had to target the weakest group by far, the orphans. Many orphanages were destroyed in unknown accidents, and many caretakers-ssh-adventurers never returned to the city due to ‘accidents’. To boost that, he paid a great deal of money to a corrupt priest in charge of the orphanage, to not take in any child from the slums. The pn worked. The occasional kidnappings boosted fear and unease in the hearts of the children. The Cursed Energy collected from the city was collected in this bar and by condensing it, it was liquefied. This so-called 'Cursed Water' was ter used in small doses in the bar’s drinks. Tampering with Beer was easily spotted, so he added it to wine and liquor that was hard to notice.

  However, the kidnappers were arrested, new booze with purifying effect started making its rounds around the city and the orphans began to live happily. Everything that could go wrong, did so in the worst possible way. Even just earlier today, a bunch of low-lifes disappeared without a trace. Knights of the Duke started patrolling alongside the city’s guards, making a tight security net.

  "If only that happened, indeed," a third voice, that didn't belong to either a man or a woman entered the conversation.

  "Wh-who are you?!" The owner turned around and noticed an androgynous figure in a tuxedo, bowler hat and orange mask without slides for eyes or mouth. Strangely, even without the holes, the words of the person were clearly audible. The figure also had reddish pink hairs, giving him a mysterious look.

  "Oh, haven't you heard of me? I am one of the Six Masks working under Lady Orange. They call me Hollow," the figure bowed elegantly before jumping from one leg on the other, getting closer to the bar's owner with every side jump.

  "Now then," Hollow leaned on the old wooden desk, signaling with his free hand to the barkeep to give him a bottle, "We've heard you are in a bit of a pickle. Would you mind if our hand washed yours?"

  "And how exactly would I wash yours? That is, if I manage to keep it."

  "Hoho! Smart man you are," Hollow ughed merrily, "Let's just say that we would ask you to pnt a little innocent flower for us, you could do that, riiiight?"

  "Tsk, what kind of flower?"

  "A happy kind, of course," Hollow cracked his head on a side, with its hands and palms up.

  The bar owner drunk from his bottle, thinking. Six masks are one of the closest associates of the drug dealing division's boss, maybe currying a favor with them would be smarter than hoping for help from Bck or Purple divisions.

  "And how exactly would you wash my hands?"

  "Welllll!" Hollow made a dramatic pause, "Let's say that we will have some fun on the northern street."

  "Hah! That shop's owner has Duke behind him. Gemma company too, and just a few days ago, he got himself the remnants of Humming Fairies."

  "Yeaah, that was a good job on Bck's siiiiide," Hollow ughed, "We could aaaaalso provide you with this fun powder."

  Hollow threw a paper bag on the desk, from which fell out small crystals crushed to powder, strongly resembling sugar, but with purplish hue.

  "What's this?"

  "A drug, of cooooourse!" Hollow cpped his hands, "This fine material is called [Sailor's mist] a drug made by my friend High!"

  In other words, another of the Six masks… the Bar owner thought with a frown.

  "And what does it do?"

  "Nooooothing special! You just get reaaaaally addicted to the drink you had it with!" Hollow ughed, hiding the pce where mouth should be with his glove-covered hand.

  "Fine, you got a deal. Let's crush that eyesore of an Ancient," the bar owner held his hand out for Hollow to shake it.

  "A greaaaaat choice Mr. Bar Owner," Hollow shook the hand, smiling victoriously under his mask.