Era of Mist

The moment the lights were switched, the private room’s ordinary lighting instantly became dynamic. The large speakers suddenly roared to life, and soulful electronic music assaulted the eardrums.

"BOOM, BOOM, let’s GO!"

"Blah-de-blah-de-blah, gimme-gimme-gimme, I’ll just sing whatever, you don’t get it anyway, yo~"

"Tricky tricky, baby baby."

"Kissy kissy, pricey pricey~~"

Shi Tiexin was listening to a foreign song whose lyrics were completely incomprehensible, so his brain automatically transcoded them into something he could understand. The song was filled with psychedelic tones and an enchanting vocal line, mixed with suggestive panting that got the blood pumping.

At the same time, a line of women walked in through the doorway the madam had stepped aside from. One by one, chests out and heads high, a hand on each hip, they sashayed over with a catwalk strut.

Who knew if their strut was even the real deal? In any case, faced with this dazzling array of beauties of all shapes and sizes, Mai Ba and the hot-headed Brother D lost their composure. Even the thick-browed, big-eyed Brother Potcake started getting excited, giggling foolishly.

The music stopped right after that "Kissy kissy" line, just as the long line of exactly twelve women reached their positions. They turned to face the sofa, bowed in unison, and cooed, "Heeellooo, Booooss~~"

Their Mandarin was actually quite good; their accents weren’t too strange. They must have worked hard to learn it.

"Oh my, what’s all this ’Boss’ business? My apologies, I forgot to explain!" The madam hurried over, an apologetic smile on her face—whether real or fake, who knew—and then shouted at the women, "’Boss’ is what you call a stranger! This is Brother Zun! And there’s Brother Fei, Brother D, Brother Mai Ba, and Brother Potcake, understand?"

The young women all looked as if they’d had a sudden realization.

"Wow, so you’re Brother Zun!"

This particular girl’s big eyes fluttered.

"Oh my gosh, I finally get to meet you in person! I’m so happy~ Oh, my face is so hot~~"

This girl covered her face with both hands. It was hard to tell if her acting was that good, as her face did seem to flush a little—oh, wait. She was wearing blush. Her face had been red from the moment she walked in.

"I used to think Brother Zun was some scary old man, I never expected you to be so young, handsome, tall, and imposing!"

This one clutched her chest, a completely star-struck look on her face.

"Heeeellooo, Brother Zuuuuun~~~!"

A total of four girls swarmed over at once, surrounding Shi Tiexin in a tight, fragrant cluster. The winding, coquettish tones of their voices, tinged with a unique foreign accent, were simply tantalizing.

Meanwhile, the other girls also played to their strengths, flocking toward Ah Fei and the others. The girls seemed to have their roles clearly divided. They must have been assigned their targets before coming in. Two girls to one man, without any hesitation, leaving no one neglected.

Any man would be flattered into a fantastic mood by their cooing voices and attentive service, and might even be happy enough to stuff a little something into a cleavage.

The madam didn’t leave immediately. Instead, she stayed to get the party started before excusing herself and departing. As Shi Tiexin watched her go, he thought to himself that every profession truly has its own Champion Scholar.

In such a short time, the madam had not only arranged for the girls, but had also figured out who his four followers were. She’d even specially selected girls for each of them based on the preferences they’d shown while looking at the photos earlier. Her efficiency was impressive.

What’s more, Shi Tiexin had only just realized that the madam was also from Japan. Her Mandarin was exceptionally good, with almost no trace of a foreign accent. She must have put in an incredible amount of effort.

’Seems like no matter what line of work you’re in, you have to take it seriously to do it well.’

’What was that ’chicken soup’ phrase I was thinking of earlier? Ah, yes—"Attitude. Decides. Everything." That was it. It fits the situation perfectly.’

"Boss!" Ah Fei called out from across several of the girls, helpfully filling Shi Tiexin in. "Theoretically, the girls here are just for conversation, not for the bedroom. The house rules explicitly forbid guests from ’mounting up’ on the premises!"

"Oh?" Shi Tiexin was surprised. "A pleasure den like this actually has rules like that?"

"It’s a new system they brought in after coming to Japan. No female employee is allowed to engage in ’transactions’ with customers." Ah Fei said, his expression serious for a moment before turning lecherous. "But, Boss... the house rules say nothing against ’chance encounters’ or ’falling in love’ with a guest."

’Chance encounters? Falling in love?’

’Who would actually fall in love with one of the girls here?’

’I guess some people would. Life is tough, and everyone’s just trying to make a living. Still, I’ll pass.’

Shi Tiexin didn’t catch Ah Fei’s implication. By then, the girls were already taking the initiative. They had their roles clearly defined: some were laning, some were jungling; there were main DPS and supports, tanks to take the heat and specialists for crowd control. They unleashed their combos one after another, targeting all five men.

Of course, the first thing they brought out was the alcohol.

On the surface, Shi Tiexin remained perfectly composed, but he was secretly a little shy. Still, his naturally calm disposition allowed him to handle it. He glanced at the beer. Though alcohol was harmful, he figured that with his pseudo-core already formed, the impact would be minimal. A little drink now and then wouldn’t hurt. So he drank, but in moderation.

Meanwhile, Shi Tiexin noticed that among his four top lieutenants, Ah Fei was a true veteran. He handled the situation with unhurried ease. Not only did he hold his own, but in a short time, he had figured out the subtle dynamics between the girls. He immediately began forming alliances and sowing discord, turning the tables on the hostesses who were trying to team up and leaving them in disarray.

Three rounds of beer later, Ah Fei himself was reinvigorated, but many of the girls had been forced to drink a lot by his tactic of using their own momentum against them. One by one, their eyes grew heavy and they slumped limply. Ah Fei’s hands immediately started getting restless—a grab here, a squeeze there—making Shi Tiexin instinctively look away, too embarrassed to watch.

However, unlike Shi Tiexin and Ah Fei, Mai Ba and the others were getting a little carried away.

"Let’s sing! Let’s sing! I want to sing!" Mai Ba was the first to jump up, ready to let loose.

Shi Tiexin let out a sigh of relief. ’Good, singing is good. I can’t really handle this kind of intense scene. I’ll just listen to Mai Ba sing.’

The music started playing immediately. ’Hmm, judging by the intro, it’s a sickeningly sweet love song. I can’t believe a guy like Mai Ba would sing such a girly song.’

Mai Ba opened his mouth and began to roar.

"Let’s race our cars together, and go AWOOO AWOOO AWOOO!"

"Drifting and fishtailing right in front of you, hey now, AWOOO AWOOO AWOOO!"

"My engine is pounding, and there’s the smell of motor oil."

"If you can’t catch me I’ll just AWOOO~~"

’Holy crap, what the hell are these lyrics!’

"Boss, sing with us!"

Shi Tiexin didn’t take the microphone. "What’s this song called?"

"It’s called ’Howl Like a Racerboy’," a girl who leaned in answered. "It’s super popular right now. Let me sing it for you, Brother Zun!"

’With lyrics and a title like that, this song is actually popular?’

’What a travesty...’

"Boss, I’m going for a smoke."

Shi Tiexin never smoked, and his underlings were considerate enough not to do so in front of him in an unventilated room. Ah D made his excuse, grabbed a lighter, and headed out the door. Shi Tiexin and the others kept drinking.

𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Before long, however, a commotion erupted outside. The noise was loud and came from right outside their door.

"FUCK YOU, BITCH!"

’A Westerner?’

’What’s all the noise about?’

Then he heard Ah D’s furious roar, followed by a loud CRASH. It sounded like a fight had broken out.

Shi Tiexin shot to his feet.