Chapter 3
Serge stared awkwardly at the wine glass in front of him.
“To my embarrassment, I don’t handle alcohol well. Something as strong as wine would probably cloud my judgment,” he said, his voice tinged with discomfort.
Josée kept her smile fixed, though her thoughts drifted back to the incident that morning.
“I wouldn’t dream of forcing someone who can’t drink to swallow poisoned wine... So that glass must’ve been meant for me after all.”
Serge blinked. “Josée-sama, what are you talking about?”
“Oh, nothing,” she replied breezily. “Just thinking out loud.”
She clapped her hands together, as if brushing away the tension. “That’s right. Serge-sama, if you’d like, why not stay here tonight?”
Serge’s eyes flicked around uncertainly. “I don’t have any plans tomorrow, so I suppose I could... though this *is* a bit sudden.”
“I thought it might be nice to deepen our acquaintance.”
“I see. Well, going back tonight seems pointless anyway. All right then.”
Josée tilted her head. “By the way... where did you hear about me?”
“Inspector Ginyui with the Royal Capital Police’s Human Trafficking Division. He said you were a trustworthy woman. Even mentioned that you take a harder stance against trafficking than the police themselves.”
“...”
“After what you said earlier, it all makes sense.”
There was a softness in Serge’s gaze now. Josée looked visibly relieved, and the courtesans around them exchanged proud, knowing smiles.
Serge watched the courtesans begin their meal before finally picking up his own utensils. Seeing his delay, Josée remarked with a sly smile, “You’re quite the cautious one, aren’t you?”
Serge cleared his throat, as if to change the subject.
Night fell.
By the flickering candlelight after dinner, Josée pulled out a newspaper and handed it to Serge.
“Headless corpses...?” he read aloud, eyebrows furrowing.
“This is the third case this year. Public safety in the capital is deteriorating fast. The police are useless—can’t the politicians do something?”
“They haven’t caught the culprit yet?”
“Not yet. So far, all the victims have been men. But if this keeps up, the courtesans won’t be able to walk the streets safely either.”
Serge lowered the paper, his voice quiet. “The weapon... was it a guillotine?”
Josée nodded, her expression unreadable. “I doubt it. These days, executions are carried out by lethal injection. No one uses guillotines anymore. Though... they were still in use twenty years ago.”
“I’ve heard some people developed... unusual tastes from witnessing them back then.”
“Frédéric-sama is one of them. What about you, Serge-sama?”
“I’m twenty-five. I don’t remember ever seeing one.”
“The executions used to take place along the Lubton River.”
“...”
“It almost feels like a statement. As if someone’s trying to turn these murders into a spectacle.”
Serge gave a dry smile, the candlelight catching the edge of his expression. “Did you summon me here tonight... just to hear my deductions?”
Josée snorted and teased, “What were you hoping for?”
Serge shook his head, chuckling. “I *was* expecting something, but not this. I thought being invited at night meant I’d earned some level of trust.”
For a moment, Josée’s confident façade faltered. Her proud expression gave way to something quieter, more vulnerable.
“...I’m afraid of losing my comrades. That’s why I want your help too.”
Serge looked stunned. “Comrades...?”
“You saw them, didn’t you? The courtesans laughing in the garden. This is the happiest I’ve ever been. I don’t want to lose it. Each of them has suffered so much to finally find peace here...”
“...”
“Maybe men won’t understand. But when public safety declines, it’s women who suffer the most. That’s why we gather together, encourage each other, and survive however we can. But the authorities turn a blind eye. It’s infuriating.”
Serge was taken aback by her raw honesty—so different from the composed madam she’d been just hours earlier. Still, he responded with calm resolve.
“If it’s for Lirondelle’s peace, I’ll help. Though I’m not sure if politics has any real solutions... Maybe more patrols?”
Josée’s eyes lit up like a child’s. “That’d be perfect!”
“Don’t the police visit Lirondelle? You could bring it up with them directly.”
“They don’t come here... especially not the detectives. We’re like cats and dogs.”
“?”
“Ah, I’m rambling again. Sorry.”
The more she spoke, the more cracks appeared in her polished persona. Beneath the refined madam was just a young girl trying to hold everything together. Serge noticed, and his tense demeanor softened.
“When would be a good time to visit Lirondelle?”
At that, Josée brightened immediately. “Anytime! You can drop by just to talk or eat.”
“What kind of clients do you serve? What hours are busiest?”
“Frédéric-sama has a reservation on the 23rd.”
“For the guillotine room?”
“Mm-hmm.”
They both laughed.
“Josée-sama.”
“Just ‘Josée’ is fine. Let’s pretend we’re close, shall we? It’ll benefit you too. Politics and the underworld are more connected than you might think.”
“Josée... On the 23rd, I’ll come under the guise of reconnaissance. Should I enter through the front?”
Josée’s expression shifted again, taking on the knowing smirk of a seasoned brothel madam.
“Yes. Come as a client first. That way, Frédéric-sama won’t suspect a thing.”
“This is... nerve-wracking.”
“If you plan to stay in politics, you’d better get used to acting. You’re from the military, right? But to climb the ladder in this world of masks and lies, you’ll have to learn the trade.”
Serge went quiet for a moment, then spoke with a note of nostalgia.
“It might sound strange coming from me, but I don’t think I’m cut out for politics.”
Josée listened quietly, her smile soft and accepting.
“I’m one of four brothers. All of them soldiers. I was the black sheep. Got injured, couldn’t stay in the military, so they shoved me into politics using family connections. I never wanted this. I just... went with the flow.”
Josée chuckled. “Then we’re the same.”
Serge looked at her, eyes wide.
“If this wasn’t the path you chose, then isn’t that all the more reason to rise higher? Let’s show those smug, half-baked elites what we’re made of. First, we expose the spy. That alone will make us a force to be reckoned with.”
Bathed in candlelight, Serge stared at Josée—almost dazzled by her.
“You’re... surprisingly optimistic, Josée.”
“No. I just intend to use every last person I can.”
“...!”
“Serge, embrace the ‘evil’ a little more. A politician’s job is to swallow both purity and corruption.”
The light in Serge’s eyes shifted. Josée watched him with a fearless smile.