MIDNIGHT PRINCE: Empire of Sin



Inside a booth on the second floor, Shuri observed the people below as they mingled with each other.

She did not really come here to receive some intimacy and she knew that if she were to enter a closed room, things could rapidly turn disadvantageous for her. After all, who knew if this establishment was actually made by an enemy of hers or not?

That very reason was a driving factor why she had given clear instructions to her secretary about her whereabouts and also made sure that she did not drink nor eat anything from this establishment.

Her phone was recording everything from the moment she had entered the establishment and the information was being directly saved on the cloud in real time. Moreover, if anything were to happen to her and she was unable to input a code by tomorrow, the information would be automatically sent to a few of her select friends in the higher echelons of society. Friends that she could count on to extract her from any danger.

This might seem utterly counterproductive when taking in the fact that she was out for a night of fun right now. However, she had dealt with too many cases where people got trapped in the plan of their opponent due to their carelessness and letting their guard down.

She had also personally socially buried many of her opponents by creating this kind of scandal. So she knew what to avoid and how to traverse through these situations.

'What I am even doing here?'

Simply being in this place was a hazard to her life. She was not arrogant enough to think that she could plan for all possible situations and scenarios that could play out against her. It was rather strange for her to take such a risk and come to such a shady place.

But… She needed this. She needed to breathe some air, to see the world outside without thinking of work or the harrowing details of her husband.

'I really want a drink right now.'

She sighed, fighting the desire to buy a bottle and drown her sorrows in alcohol in a place where she knew no one; where dangers were abounding in every corner.

'What should I do now?'

She looked down and smiled quietly as she saw the way the host dealt with the women on the first floor.

'He was never this charming.'

Her marriage with her husband could never be described as exciting per se. It was a rather traditional one. Meeting him on a blind date arranged by their family, hitting it off from the get-go, and then finally marrying each other after a certain time.

This was a commonplace situation in Japan due to the declining birthrate and national crisis of the country.

Even though she saw herself as more of an American than a Japanese, she had not refused her relatives just for the sake of it. She really had no reason to cut her ties with them. All her life, she had been far too busy to establish herself in the world to even think about love and a life outside of work.

Work, work, work, and even more work.

Even after marrying, she was not able to change this lifestyle of hers. Well, she was not able to make any significant changes, at least.

Still… She had once liked and could even say to have loved her husband. Like her, he was not the warmest kind of man. He was also quite focused on his work. She thought that she had found a real partner in him. Someone who could understand her thirst for success and who would walk the way with her until the very end of their lives. She believed that she had met her soulmate.

Even if their relationship never had the fire to illuminate the sky, it had a certain calmness in the coldness that would make it last much longer….At least this was what she thought.

Remembering the photo of his new family. She realized one simple fact.

She had been horribly wrong and she did not even know whether or not she could blame her husband or blame herself for being too much of a workaholic.

'Kuh…Should I just drink?'

Just thinking about her husband had a wife and a child outside while she was alone and childless made her wish to drink a little more.

From a certain perspective it was as if she was actually the mistress and that woman was the official wife.

The idea of a divorce was becoming more and more likely. But at the same time, she feared the repercussion it would have on her company.

A bitter smile formed on her face. Even now she was thinking of her law firm. But anyone could blame her?

She had worked all her life to attain the level she currently had. She had sacrificed so many things, even the simple happiness of a normal woman in order to reach her position.

Was she unhappy? Did she regret it?

Truthfully…She did not. If she was given a second chance, while she would do things differently, she would never give up on her job. This was what allowed me to stand so high. This was her own little baby in a way.

But even though she had everything she could dream of, she had no one she could really share it with expect the son of her best friend.

'I wonder what they are doing?'

The desire to drink was slowly becoming overwhelming. Her class had changed lately.

The group of four that once made her day whenever she came to give class was no more.

Natasha had gone on sick leave, Alberto had seemingly stopped coming to school, Sae had transferred to some school in another state and Adam was ditching class for some time now even though he had woken up.

It was sad to see how things she became used to could change so fast in but an instant and never be the same ever again.

At the very least, Cecilia had called her to say that Adam was alright though she had yet to go and visit him as she was too swamped with her own personal problem.

She had also started having rather disturbing ideas about him she was not supposed to have and did not wish to let her desire shrouded with loneliness affect the relationship she had with her friend.

'Fuck it. I am just going to drink. Fuck the possible consequences.'

All her life, she had lived in the most stable and structured possible way. There are many moments she missed in her youth out of caution.

Could she not allow herself to go all out now?

She took her phone and took a photo of herself and the place she was and sent it to the cloud.

'Just in case.'

"Now then. I think I will drink."

"My. Then should I accompany you?"

Shuri nearly let out an unlady-like curse when she heard the voice from behind her and she was even more spooked when she turned around and was faced with someone wearing a mask.

"Who…Who are you?"

Was she already facing the consequence of her first night of having fun outside? Was the man some kind of serial killer?

"Well, I wouldn't really say who I am while wearing a mask, right?"

The man chuckled as he took a few steps back and gave a respectful bow.

"I think knowing who I am will not really interest you. What matter is what I can do for you."

A gentle laughter escaped from his mask, "In this place, they call me Cinder and I will be your host. Happy to meet you, dear princess."