Epilogue

A gang of rowdy thugs strolled through Boneview, like they owned the place. Judging by their demeanours, aggressiveness with women and of course, their manner of speaking, one could infer that they were sailors. Though, what sailors were doing so far from the port, one could only guess. Maybe they had just returned from a long trip? Or perhaps they were docking for a few days? Either way, not a soul that cowered before their cudgels and stenches had any misapprehensions as to where they were headed. No, on a night like this one, they could only be on their way to the red-light district.

Sure enough, they made the turn. They catcalled the women of the night, as if they needed more than their wallets to win them over. The loudmouthed goons eventually entered the Red Lady brothel.

***

“Do you have a blonde woman with brown eyes?” I asked the Red Lady receptionist.

“Hm? You mean Bunny?”

Bunny? Wow…

“Y-yeah, I guess.”

“Sorry, but she’s meeting a VIP client in a few minutes. He’s specifically asked that she not be used two nights before he meets her,” the receptionist informed me.

“Used?” I repeated with disgust. “You’re a woman, how can you say such garbage?”

The receptionist gave an uninterested shrug, as she ran a finger through her ledger. “Oh, how about Rose? She’s a rising star, and free for the next hour.”

“Where’s Bunny?” I insisted.

“I can’t tell you, I’m afraid.”

“Where’s Rose?”

“Money first,” the receptionist replied, extending her hand.

I scowled. “How much?”

“Fifteen silver.”

I paused. I’d grown familiar with the currency in this country. “Are you lying to me?” I asked.

“Nope. This is a high-end establishment. These are top quality professionals. If you want a common woman, you’ll find plenty on the streets.”

I shook my head. Whatever. My coin pouch was filled to the brim. I produced the money and handed it to the receptionist.

She disappeared into the back. She returned moments later with a tall, young woman. The woman’s fiery red hair reminded me of a certain ill-tempered investigator I had once met. The memory made me crack a slight smile.

“Ah, Rose, I think he likes you,” the receptionist grinned, misunderstanding my expression.

Rose looked creeped out. I felt bad.

The receptionist gave me a key. “Room 2,” she said.

I beckoned to Rose and we went upstairs.

***

The thugs burst into the Red Lady. “Where do you keep your women?” the one with the eyepatch asked the receptionist.

The receptionist looked up at them. She was unamused.

“’Ello there!” eyepatch said enthusiastically. “And how much do you cost for an hour?”

“I’m clearly not for sale,” she replied with a lethal glare.

“Everyone’s got a price, love,” the tanned, blond sailor pressured.

She hummed. “How about two hundred gold?”

The sailors looked at each other. Then, they burst into laughter. “Yeah, right, sunshine. We’ll take you for free!”

“Then you’ll have to deal with that man over there,” the receptionist said, pointing to a burly guard.

“Oh yeah?” eyepatch challenged. “Oi, man over there! You mind if we take this lady for free?”

“I’d have to kick you out,” the guard sternly.

Eyepatch produced one gold coin from his pocket. “’Ow about now?”

The receptionist grew severely uncomfortable, as she carefully eyed the guard.

***

I shut the door behind me. “Listen, Rose, I need your help.”

Rose rolled her eyes. “Don’t tell me you’re another one of those old men who buy a prostitute just to cry about their problems.”

“Do I look like an old man?”

“You look like half of one,” she joked.

I smiled. “What do you know about Bunny?”

“Bunny? Why? Are you here to hurt her?”

“No, but I think I know her.”

“Sorry, but I can’t tell you about any of the other girls that work here,” Rose replied defiantly.

I sighed. “Why do you work here?”

“None of your business.”

“Are you paying off a debt?”

Rose turned her head indignantly. “And so what if I am?”

“How much?”

She opened one eye. “Ten gold,” she tentatively replied.

“How much?” I asked again.

“Six,” she scowled.

“You little opportunist,” I grinned. “Fine.” I reached into my pouch and produced six gold coins. “Are you willing to answer all of my questions for your freedom?”

Rose’s eyes grew hungry. “Hey, I was willing to sleep with you for a fraction of it! Hand that over!” she exclaimed, bouncing up to me.

I pulled my hand away. “Here’s three. You’ll get the other half when you answer my questions.”

“Sounds fair,” Rose agreed, suspiciously eyeing the three coins I’d just given her. With a satisfied shrug of her eyebrows, she slipped them into her pocket. “Okay, what do you want to know?”

***

The strength I’d gained after meeting Phocles Yates had never left me. I brought the door of VIP Room 1 with one brusque kick. “Er—” I began.

The interior was far more luxurious than Room 2. The bed was large, with silk sheets and many velvety pillows. Candles filled the air with a vanilla scent. On the soft, wooden floor, lay a man with his shirt off. He had dark brown hair, mean eyes and a vicious scar on his chest. Most notably, however, was the gag in his mouth, along with the rope that bound his hands and feet. Nearby, stood a lady. She was gorgeous and blonde, with light brown eyes. She was thin under her elegant, white robe.

“E-Erin?” I stammered.

Erin frowned. Then, her eyes widened. “Kugo?!” she shrieked.

Keep your voice down! I internally screamed, as Erin ran up to hug me.

“I haven’t seen you in eight months, what the hell happened to you?” Erin demanded, almost weeping for joy. “I thought I’d never see you again!”

I hugged her back. “Erin…”

“Kugo…”

“What kind of kinky things are going down in here?” I asked, eyeing the confused, tied up man.

Erin pushed away from me. “That’s right! Kugo, I’m working on a case. Everything has led up to tonight.”

“A case?”

“Yes! In a minute, my Investigator team will burst in and arrest specific targets,” she said.

“What about that guy?” I asked.

“Oh, him? Meet Jangar ‘Scarface’ Bellamy! He’s the leader of the Zero Limit gang. Turns out he’s into being tied up and dominated by women, which was lucky for me, since I didn’t even have to use my sleeping potion,” she explained.

“The Zero Limit gang? Wasn’t that the second half of The Whip?”

“That’s right! I decided to finish the first case we ever did together, to honour you!”

“Honour me? I’m not dead, you know?”

“Now I do. But before, I honestly thought you might be. Don’t you think it’s fate that we met here on this day?” she asked, her eyes sparkling with tears.

“I-I guess.” I didn’t have the heart to tell her that I’d been searching for her for months. “How did you find this guy anyway?”

Jangar protested from the floor, his voice severely muffled by the gag over his mouth. He wriggled around like a worm.

“It’s a whole thing. I’ll tell you later. But long story short, he uses about a dozen pseudonyms. We managed to trace one of them back to this brothel. I applied as a working girl, under the pretence that I needed to pay off a debt, and now here we are,” Erin proudly recounted. “Right, well, I suppose we need to get him downstairs. My team should already be there.”

I carried the wriggling Scarface down to the lobby, where we were greeted by an unpleasant sight. Four thugs were terrorising three people and the receptionist.

Where’s security? I thought.

“Hey!” Erin yelled. “Leave my team alone!”

The sailors looked over at us. They went from sneering to snarling in an instant, once they saw who I had over my shoulder. “That the boss?” one of them demanded.

“Oh, you know this guy?” I asked, nodding at Jangar. I carelessly tossed him on the floor. “Then, come get him,” I challenged.

The thugs rushed me with animalistic war cries. They were all armed, but that made no difference to me. I met them head on, with blazing fists and a wide grin.

***

It was late into the night. The streets were empty, and most establishments were closed. Erin and I exited a tiny noodle shop. We had spent the better part of two hours catching up, yet there was still so much left to be said. I had met her colleagues, but they’d all gone home by now.

Erin yawned. “We’ll talk tomorrow, won’t we?” she tiredly asked.

“Of course. I’ll remain in Boneview for a few weeks.”

“A few weeks? What, do you have somewhere to be?”

I shrugged. “There’s a lot in this world I don’t yet know about. Are you interested in accompanying me on my adventures?” I asked, hopefully.

Erin grimaced. “Unfortunately, I have to take care of my family and my team. I’m doing really well for myself, and I don’t want to let this go,” she admitted. “But don’t worry!” she brightened up. “I’ll accompany you in spirit. Where are we headed first?”

I looked off into the distance. “Maybe someday I’ll be able to return to Earth. Until then, I just have to keep searching.”

Erin’s smile softened. I could feel her sympathetic gaze on me. Suddenly, her face lit up again. “Oh! I do have something for you.” She rushed back into the noodle shop before I could say anything. She returned seconds later with a sturdy, black backpack.

My eyes widened. M-my school bag…

“The city guards recovered this from the HMS Wind-up. They were about to throw it out of the lost and found five months ago, but I collected it once I saw this.” She showed me the student ID I kept in my phone case. “Here.” Erin handed me my backpack, like a knight passing his sword on to his squire.

I gratefully took it. Erin and I hugged and said our goodbyes.

“I marked my house on the map. Drop by any time!” she said. Then, she skipped off into the night.

I sat down on the floor in front of the noodle shop to check my belongings. Phone, textbooks, pencil case, wallet. I opened up my wallet. The sight of Japanese currency made me strangely emotional. I took out my money to get a good look at it.

Hm?

In a separate pouch, I noticed a piece of paper. More money? I took it out. It wasn’t money; it was a note. I didn’t remember putting such a thing in there. Curious, I opened it up.

“Kugo,

Good luck on your final exams! You’re smart and prepared. You’ve got this! When you come home, I’ll take you out to eat whatever you want.

P.S. I know I’ve said it before, but congrats once again for your acceptance at UTokyo!

Love, mum. ♡♡♡”

I folded the note and looked out at the empty streets with tears in my eyes. Then, I gently placed my things back into my backpack and stood up.

Alone in the dark, I trudged off into the night.