The Client

He did not know why, but the rice wine that day tasted a lot sweeter than usual.

"What have you done, kinslayer?" Goryo was at the bar, overseeing the operations of his ssanghua-dian that day. He shook his head dramatically and played on a qin. "Now most of my clients only ask for the kinslayer, and most of the mercenaries here struggled looking for coin,"

Yasuo smirked, feeling a strong sense of pride with his accomplishment. It has been a month, and he had accepted more contracts than he could count. Everyday the first thing he would do when he entered Goryo's premise he would head to the tender, and run through the available contracts, looking through the names and identities of the benefactors. Whenever he accepted a job, he would be gone for days, and hardly returned until he had completed his job.

Yasuo never accepted jobs for the coin. He knew who his clients were – corrupted officials of the Ionian government, tycoons who had connections to the Elders, and illegitimate children of the higher-ups who had them hidden away from the public's eye to keep their reputation clean and proper. He needed access to the most powerful people in Ionia, just so he could have a chance to investigate the Noxian invasion.

But so far, he had hardly found a credible lead.

Yasuo sipped his rice wine. "And yet the clients have proven useless to my cause. They have connections to the government of Ionia, but most said they had zero influence on the Circle of Elders,"

"The Circle of Elders are chosen from the purest and most honest of lords and commanders," Goryo said. "No way would a corrupt worm their way into the Circle. Though perhaps there is one..."

Yasuo stared at him, prompting him to continue.

"Some of the bigger clients have asked for you," Goryo continued strumming. "They have interesting jobs. Jobs that would be a breeze for you –"

"If it involves assassinating someone just so they could obtain their power, I won't do it,"

"You're naïve, kinslayer," Goryo's voice rose. "You murdered your own blood. What's the difference of another man? Your honor is tainted as it is,"

"I will redeem myself in time. But not through even more bloodshed,"

"I'm afraid you'll never find the truth then," the bard sighed. "One of my benefactors identified himself to be the heir of Elder Seiryu,"

Goryo let that sink in. And Yasuo's brow furrowed. The bard smirked, knowing he had his attention.

"Mayhaps you've been fooled, Goryo," Yasuo whispered dangerously. "Why would the trueborn son of a significant figure of Ionia himself come to the secluded regions of Tevasa to whore and drink? He could be a spy, ready to pull out the remaining roots of Ionia's whoring trade,"

Goryo's smirk widened greatly. "That's where you're wrong, boy. I know each and every one of my guests. And I can assure you, Lord Daikyu remains my most honoured guest and generous benefactor to my ssanghua-dian. Like I tell you, it's not hard to corrupt a man full of desires,"

"My doubts remain, Goryo,"

"For now," the bard cocked his head, smiling at Yasuo smugly. "But not for long," he put down his qin, and raised his chin towards a wealthy drunkard in one of the booths for his important guests. The man was partially disrobed, revealing his chest and belly. He held a mug in one hand, and one ssanghua in the other, whereas three girls were draped over him obscenely. He whispered something to the girls, and they all giggled, no doubt humouring their clients' crude jokes.

Goryo's face remained smug, and that implored Yasuo to keep watching.

The man kept laughing, until his laughter turned into a coughing fit. He pushed aside a girl to take a swig of ale, hoping to wash down whatever he choked on. The ssanghuas soon grew concerned, but he waved them off. "It's… it's nothing!"

Goryo then stood and approached the man. The ssanghuas saw him, and terror soon seized their faces. They quickly dispersed, leaving their client who now knelt on the floor, still coughing while clutching at his throat, his face turning purple.

"Master Ii-sun," Goryo greeted. Roshep soon came to his side, holding a long vial of red fluid with him. "Are you feeling fine?" he asked, sarcasm dripping venomously from his words.

"Goryo!" Ii-sun fell onto his back. "What's… what's the meaning-"

"You tell me, m'lord," Goryo's face turned dark. "There's a whisper in the wind, and it's about you,"

Ii-sun's eyes widened immediately, upon realization of what he meant. "No. Goryo, you have to understand –"

"I understand that I have provided services that you so desire and this is my reward," Goryo took the vial, and was prepared to smash it on the ground. Ii-sun panicked, and threw himself to his feet.

"He-he threatened –," he gagged pathetically. "I had to tell him –"

"And to neutralize threats against me, I have to get rid of you as well,"

"I'll kill –" he gagged even more, gripping Goryo's knee tightly. "Promise! He dies – "

Goryo knelt down and grabbed him by his chin, forcing his mouth open. "You have two days. Show me his head,"

Ii-sun nodded frantically, tongue flailing out. His face had gone black now, until Goryo popped open the vial he held in his hand, and forced the contents into Ii-sun's throat.

The bard then slapped Ii-sun away, and the man just laid on the floor, gasping for air and wheezed when the antidote relieved his pain. All the while Yasuo sat, staring, with a mixture of horror and awe.

Goryo is a ruthless man.

"What was –"

"The Warlock's Breath," a man spoke beside Yasuo. He turned, shocked, and saw a bald mercenary beside him dressed in pale leather armor. "That's what I heard from the girls. In reality it's just magically brewed poppy wine, least that's what my master told me. See the vial Goryo forced into his throat? That the antidote, and everyone has a different antidote, and they won't know which one's theirs even if they broke into Goryo's vault,"

"He poisons them?"

"Nay," the bald man sipped from his mug. "Just that Goryo knows how to choose his benefactors. When a benefactor expresses his wish to join the ssanghua-dian, Goryo carries out a ritual. The benefactor ingests a dose of the wine, and it stays in them forever. This is to make them swear that they would never betray Goryo and blow their mouths 'bout the ssanghua-dian,"

"What did Ii-sun do?"

"From what I heard from my master," the mercenary hacked a glob of phlegm and spat onto the floor. "That whoreson was threatened by his own brother, and had to tell him 'bout where he went. Last mistake. Goryo has eyes and ears all over Ionia. I don't know how, but his reputation makes sure not even the mercs can sell him out,"

"That's why he doesn't make us go through the ritual?"

"You shitting me?" the mercenary snorted. "Why would he waste 'em on us? We's nothing, just shit that he won't even bother cleaning. Who would believe us anyway? We need him more than he needs us, he could just hire assassins and slaughter us in our sleep,"

"No mercs ever get out of his clutches before?"

"Those cunts can try," he lit a roll of weed, and offered one to Yasuo. Yasuo politely declined. "Goryo's gonna sniff them out anyway. Once we come here we are bound to this place till death. Goryo's putting fancy dreams in your head if he says you can leave in one piece,"

"Damn," Yasuo cursed under his breath.

"Name's Hyo-Je. Property of Master Xia-Ning, 13th son of Elder Xia-Yue,"

"Yasuo," he introduced.

Hyo-Je then fixed his cold stare at him, but Yasuo could not tell from his expression whether it was awe or hatred.

"So it was you," he mumbled. "Hogging all those contracts to yourself?"

"It isn't my fault if the contract issuers asked for my help solely,"

"Yes it is," Hyo-Je loomed dangerously close. Yasuo's hand instinctively went to his hip, then remembered weapons were not allowed in the ssanghua-dian. "Other people still got mouths to feed, and you have them coin all to yourself,"

The smoke from his joint wafted through Yasuo's nostrils, and he restrained himself from coughing. "You're going to pick a fight here? In Goryo's premises?"

Hyo-Je held the joint in between two fingers, tapping it with his index and watched ashes falling to the floor. Some of it got onto Yasuo's breeches. "Nonetheless you're still a rookie. And I don't fight with rookies. Be smart, Yasuo. The mercs aren't happy that you took all their jobs,"

With that Hyo-Je tapped his mug and left a few coins in the mug, then stood. Yasuo spat. "It isn't my fault," he stressed.

"That's what you think. Everyone else thinks otherwise. Now I'm gonna fuck the brains out of one of these girls," with that, Hyo-Je left, leaving Yasuo alone with his wine.

He shook his head in an exasperated manner, then pondered about the things that transpired that evening. Suddenly he was interested about Goryo's job offer earlier, from one of his self-proclaimed loyal benefactors.

Yasuo decided it was better for him to lay low, and so he only took on minor jobs for two weeks – collecting debts from a group of peasants who refused to pay, or retrieving an illegal shipment and escorting the cargo to safety.

And for two weeks, Goryo remained persistent.

Whenever Yasuo was in the ssanghua-dian drinking, the perfumed bard would come close to him and sit next to him, always telling him the same words.

"The job is still available, kinslayer,"

"You can always earn Lord Daikyu's favour to cleanse your name,"

"This is no simple contract, and it's only fit for someone your skills,"

And he rejected him every time.

When Yasuo saw him walking over to him one dusk, he already knew what to say. But when the bard plopped himself right beside him, and began fanning himself furiously with a paper fan and began to tut to himself, Yasuo decided to remain silent, wondering what he was about to say.

"What do you want?" Yasuo snorted rudely.

"Are you a virgin, Yasuo?"

He was so taken aback he almost bit his tongue.

"I must say," the bard sighed, his tone full of pretentious forlornness. "My girls are chosen after I have personally seen them in the act, and what I hear from the clients is that these girls are nonetheless skilled, talented and beautiful. No mercenaries had been able to resist them,"

Yasuo grimaced. "What's your point?"

"As much as you enjoyed mercenary work, it saddens me to see that you have not tried other services as well,"

"I drink your mead, entertain your benefactors' wishes. Is that not enough?"

"Not that I'm complaining, but the ssanghuas are quite curious what kind of man you are,"

He rapped his knuckles on the table impatiently. "First you insist that I should take on a lord's request to murder someone, and now you're trying to talk me into fucking one of your slave-girls,"

Goryo's eyes widened and covered his mouth with his fan, faking a gasp as he pretended to be aghast. "Mind you, these are not slave-girls. But ssanghuas, and they are sweeter than any other whores you may get in the whole of Ionia,"

"I do not have time to indulge in these lordly pleasantries,"

"Does your code of honour include rules on absolute celibacy as well?" Goryo mused. "And now that you remind me…"

Yasuo groaned.

"… if only you would take a minute and listen to what this job is all about, I'll leave you alone after this,"

"I told you, I won't murder a man for a lord's benefits, or joy, if rumours about Lord Daikyu's reputation is to be believed,"

"It's not a man," Goryo placed his fan on the table, and steepled his fingers together. "And it's not murder either,"

Yasuo looked at him oddly, and Goryo smirked, knowing he had his attention.

The bard leaned in, and whispered, so only both of them could hear. "There has been mysterious deaths lately. The royal and the venal alike, highborn and lowlife, and it happens in a pattern. Like once every month.

"A man would die naked in a bed in a tavern, or in his own house, or anywhere secluded. Autopsies had proven that these men died during an intercourse, or after. At first they were just left on the bed, tangled in sheets and blankets. But recently, the murderer got smart, and placed objects around the room in such a way to represent a suicide,"

Yasuo took a sip. "Let me guess – a vindictive prostitute?"

"No one knows," Goryo shook his head. "They detected magic residue in the air, illusions must have been used, either on the victims or the murderer, no one knows. What they all know is that the victim has no idea what's coming for him, and he had at least climaxed when he died,"

"Very useful information," Yasuo said, his voice dripping with obvious sarcasm. "And if so many men had fallen victim, how come it hasn't been the talk of the town?"

"Lord Daikyu covered up the deaths. He bought the heralds and medical officers and told them to be quiet about it, so he could investigate it on his own,"

"Why the sudden interests in keeping the streets safe?"

"The son of Elder Seiryu is a cruel and cunning man," Goryo explained. "He wants the murderer captured, alive, mind you. So this job is not about murdering people,"

"And what would he do with him, or her, for this case?"

Goryo grinned from ear to ear. "I'll give you all the details, once you accept the job,"

Yasuo scoffed. "You think I would accept the contract just because I'm curious of what he would do with the killer?"

"I'm not giving up on my chances,"

"Why ask me in particular?" Yasuo wondered. "There are many mercenaries here desperate for a heavy sack of coin,"

"Lord Daikyu wishes for someone with a complete sense of secrecy, and would never sell him out, whatever the costs. Your name is so tainted that you've been erased from existence, no one will know your name or cry for you if you were to die. No one would believe the words of a kinslayer, even if he uttered the truth. To me, you are the perfect candidate,"

"And what do I gain out of this?"

"Information," the bard stressed. "Remember that Elder Seiryu is the Minister of Warfare and Safety of Ionia. He is put in charge of hidden records of highly wanted criminals, and also the only person to have access to the deepest dungeon of the Pyunwoo Cells. Lord Daikyu is not your average degenerate son of a tycoon. He's a shrewd man, and he invests in affairs that would only benefit him for now and the future,"

"You ask me to trust the words of a cunning man,"

"I ask you to be intelligent enough to let him trust you, so you may bargain your reward with him. Rewards don't necessarily have to be gold or women,"

That gave Yasuo some thought. He pondered his words, and realized what he said weighed truth.

Goryo smirked, knowing that he was considering it. He snapped his fan close, and stood from his chair. "Give it some thought, Yasuo. Lord Daikyu does not forget the face of the man who helps him greatly," With that, he left the bar, while Yasuo finished his ale.

Just before he could leave, there were cat-callings and whistles around him. He knew what's going on, that it happened once every two weeks. The auction, they called it. But this was no simple auction of slaves or valuable goods, but that of the ssanghuas, where each girl were to go on stage with their assets and face covered save the eyes and hair. Each ssanghua will choose an instrument of her choice, and perform a song to serenade the audience. The benefactors would sit in booths, the closest to the stage, whereas the ones with a lower status and mercenaries would be at the farmost behind, some standing on their toes to see the girls sing on stage.

Once the ssanghua is done performing, the benefactors, or the mercenaries (if they are rich enough) would begin bidding. The one with highest bid would have the ssanghua for the night, successfully becoming her client for one whole night.

The first ssanghua went on stage. Yasuo watched, interested. She carried a lute, a red shawl covering the lower half of her face and her body wrapped in long linen cloth. Her hair was a rich chestnut brown, with large doe eyes that caught the dim light of the ssanghua-dian, sparkling whenever she looked shyly at the audience.

Everyone sighed. And the girl began to sing.

"Sweet eyes, that one," Hyo-Je's voice rumbled, catching Yasuo off guard. "But I bet Lord Kaien had his eyes on her. It's always the same girl for him,"

"It's the same batch of ssanghuas for every auction?" Yasuo asked out of curiosity. Hyo-Je shook his head.

"Nay, sometimes Goryo got newcomers, maybe we'll see someone different today,"

Just after the ssanghua stopped singing, the benefactors began to ring their respective bells, calling out different amounts. The auctioneer – a short man dressed in flamboyant colours, shouted out the highest bid amounts. The mercenaries behind sighed in defeat and shook their heads, knowing they would never have enough gold to bid against the wealthy lords or sons of lords, hence they only looked away or stared at the ssanghua enviously.

It was all over when Lord Kaien shouted the highest amount, and the auctioneer sounded the gong, signifying the girl was his for the night.

Then next came a Shuriman girl, with hair as black as night and almond-shaped eyes. The audience was silent when she appeared on stage, obviously the Ionians were not interested in a foreign beauty. She held a drum, the least graceful instrument she could find, and began playing and singing.

"Will the audience ever bid for her?" Yasuo mumbled to himself.

"Unlikely," Hyo-Je shrugged. "When she first came by, Goryo named her Ondari. Since she's from Shurima, I doubt she understood what the name meant,"

Yasuo laughed.

And just as Hyo-Je said, not many people bid for the ssanghua. The benefactors did not bother to place an amount, whereas the mercenaries started bidding, and soon she was given to a mercenary with a bid of 450 gold.

Then the third ssanghua came on stage, and when she made her presence known, the buzz beneath the stage had gone quiet. It was a different version of silence, compared to the one earlier which reeked of pure mockery, but this one was born out of curiosity, bafflement, and a strange sense of wonder.

Her beauty was a rare one, and obvious enough that not even the modesty of the dark coloured shawl and linen cloth could hide it. Her hair was oiled and well-braided, flowing down her back, black enough to reflect the lights of the candles. Her fringes were free, wild, yet there was an odd sense of perfection that Yasuo could not place, as though the imperfection was what complimented her perfection. Her skin, milky and pale and smooth, free of hair, just like any standard Ionian beauty. Her eyes were closed, but when she opened them, everyone released a breath of awe at the same time, their eyes fixed upon the ssanghua, mouths hanging wide open like a gaping fish. Her eyes – green mixed with drops of yellow, lidded with elegantly curled eyelashes, topped with arched, shapely eyebrows. The accents and contours of her curves only made her more alluring and seductive, if not the eyes that reflected every man's strongest desire.

Even he must admit, this was the most stunning creature he had ever laid his eyes on, even though she was concealed completely to hide her beauty for the richest man to afford her.

Yasuo leaned closer to Hyo-Je, whose eyes were unblinking, still staring as though the goddess herself had descended upon the earth. "Who is she?" He nudged Hyo-Je, bringing him out of his bewilderedness.

Hyo-Je blinked, confused. "Never seen her before. I think she's new, and Goryo got himself a truly dazzling one,"

The ssanghua held a qum, the heavy instrument laid upon the stage as she knelt down before it, both her legs folded elegantly as she sat on her knees, her hands laid neatly in her lap. Her eyes stayed on the instrument – not even once, did she look at the audience, and when her fingers danced across the taut strings, strumming a single ghosted note, the whole world drew in its breath, awaiting.

When she sang, it was the most beautiful voice he had ever heard.

"I've gone to the temple to light a blessing,

But the monk grabbed ahold of me,"

Suddenly Yasuo stopped breathing, and he swore he felt his heart stop.

"And so I had no choice,

but to sleep and serve and plea,"

The world around him did not matter, the ssanghua-dian suddenly seemed merely an illusion, and Goryo, Lord Daikyu and Hyo-Je were ceased to exist.

"If word got out about this,

It would surely be my fault,"

At that moment, he saw, heard and felt only her – the girl on the stage, covered everywhere except her eyes and forehead, playing an instrument and singing a melancholic ballad that only one other person he had known to have known it. A lone tear began to fall, unbeknownst to him.

"So to whom do I confess my sins to?"

"To whom do I confess my sins to?" Yasuo whispered the last line of the Ssanghua-jyom, his eyes still unable to leave hers.

He was brought back to the world he was in when the bidding began, signalled by the loud ring of a single bell. They all looked to who rang the bell, and it was none other than Lord Sa-Baek, whose menacing looks and fidgety hands made him the least favorable client among the ssanghua. He placed a high price immediately, yelling "1500 gold!"

The audience buzzed. Yasuo watched the crowd, noticing some of the mercenaries looking away again, knowing they had to pass this one on as well. Some of the benefactors seemed troubled as well, since Lord Sa-Baek had started the bid with a rather high price, and none seemed to be willing to top it off.

The auctioneer tapped the gong lightly once. At the third hit, the ssanghua would belong to Lord Sa-Baek.

Until a ring of the bell caused the auctioneer to put down the brass drumstick.

"1750 gold!" Lord Do-Baek, the younger brother of Lord Sa-Baek exclaimed, shooting cunning glances at his brother.

Lord Sa-Baek's lips curled in dismay, but without hesitation he rang his bell again. "2000!"

"2150!" Lord Do-Baek challenged once again. His elder brother glared at him, obviously annoyed, but he did not make any gesture to ring the bell again, his fingers angrily rapping on the table.

"The Baek siblings, always with their mindless squabbling -" Hyo-Je laughed, then looked to Yasuo and his smile died when he saw what he was doing. "What are you thinking?"

Yasuo laid all the gold he had on the table, counting them as quick as he could. "Making a bid," he explained hurriedly to Hyo-Je, still counting the gold he had.

"2200!" Sa-Baek continued to bid.

"I heard that you took on plenty of contracts, but to have this crazy amount of gold? And you would waste it all on a ssanghua?" Hyo-Je exclaimed, staring at him incredulously. "And no one here dares irk the ire of the Baek siblings. There are other ssanghuas,"

"Allow me some guilty pleasure, Hyo-Je, as long as I had been here, I had never used Goryo's other services," Yasuo counted the last gold, grabbed his metal tankard and brought it down three times upon the wooden table, creating a sound loud enough to draw everyone's attention. The auctioneer's brass stick held suspended before the gong, and he glared at Yasuo, irritated, no doubt thinking him intentional to disrupt the auction.

"2300 gold!" Yasuo shouted at the top of his lungs. The audience gasped. Goryo's eyes widened slightly, then smirked to himself, watching as the events transpired.

The Baek siblings both stared at him, their faces morphed from pure shock to frustration then disgust. Lord Do-Baek threw up his arms in defeat, and yelled "I'm not wasting half of my fortune on this whore! Take this one as you like, brother!", right before he stood up and left the auction.

Refusing to lose to a lowly mercenary, Lord Sa-Baek rang the bell again. "2350 gold!"

Yasuo merely smirked, then hit his tankard. "2500 gold,"

The audience talked amongst themselves. Even the auctioneer seemed shocked, and looked at Goryo while raising his brows. Goryo only smiled, gesturing to the auctioneer to continue. Never had they ever seen a mercenary bid this highly on a ssanghua.

The noise died when Sa-Baek rang his bell again.

"3000 gold!"

The audience erupted in gasps and shouts. That was the highest bid ever made in the history of the ssanghua-dian.

Yasuo's smug grin died, and he saw Sa-Baek smiling arrogantly at him. The auctioneer tapped the brass stick lightly on the gong once, twice, then pulled back and slammed the gong loudly for the third time, and the deal was made. The ssanghua now had a client, but it was not Yasuo.

A round of applause drowned out Sa-Baek's raucous laughter. Yasuo looked down in shame. Hyo-Je only slapped him lightly on the shoulder. "Well at least you get to keep your gold,"

Yasuo shook his head, then ordered another drink. He drank himself to oblivion, unable to fathom what happened. He remembered getting up and stumbling around until he fell onto something soft, then gave in to the lure of sleep.

In his dreams, he saw many things. His brother was playing the qum, singing the Ssanghua-jyom, over and over again. He had forgotten his face. In his mind Yone's face was a slurred image, as though a reflection of a puddle of water but continuously disrupted by ripples. He went closer, hands out, wanting to reach for him, but every time he went close enough, Yone disappeared.

In Yone's place was the girl. The ssanghua. The one who reminded him how the tune went, the only remnant of his brother left in his memory.

Yasuo jolted awake, and found himself in a chamber laying against a mountain of soft pillows. He mumbled and blinked the sleep out of his eyes, feeling completely disoriented. Wiping the drool from his lips, he looked down, and found himself in a complete disarray. A pounding headache hit him as he rose, and he rubbed his head, thinking. I drank too much.

The moment he saw who else was in the chamber, he was wide awake. His headache, gone, in an instant.

On the bed was a man completely nude, the sheets completely soaked with blood and other bodily fluids. His eyes were opened, but dead, and his mouth hanged open, while a red, bloody smile was seen across his neck.

It took him a while, but he recognized him. Lord Sa-Baek. The ssanghua he had was nowhere to be seen.

Yasuo looked down at his hand. A bloody blade. He hadn't realized he had held it, until he looked down.

Right at that moment, the door opened. "Are you done with your fantasies, brother-"

Lord Do-Baek stared at the bed, shocked and deprived of words as he saw his brother dead. Then he looked to where Yasuo sat, still trying to grasp what was happening.

When his gaze fell to the knife in his hand, Yasuo felt nothing. Nothing, but a huge sense of dread gripping him.