With Alia's wisp watching over Emily, Shui wasn't worried that anything would happen to her. Though it was just a wisp, Shui sensed power only slightly weaker than a Sky Realm expert from it.
Shui then went to Iris' mansion to hear her response to his proposal. At the time, Iris was cultivating alone in her room. Though Shui's scheduled visit was part of the reason, she also had to spend time stabilising her mind since the eruption of demonic energy during their last meeting. Although the demonic arts promised great power, demonic cultivators were constantly at risk of losing control. Some controlled this risk by indulging in their desires and being true to themselves, but eventually it would become hard to tell if they were still sane, and they often met terrible ends as a result of their carelessness.
Iris chose the opposite path of temperance. She would consider her desires to determine her goals, but she wouldn't let them interfere with her thoughts. Thanks to her strong will, she had been able to stay stable since becoming a demonic cultivator, but Shui's provocation had been too much for her. The whip he showed her was certainly appealing, but she couldn't erase the urge to get some payback.
Suddenly, she heard the door open and then close. She was prepared this time, so she wasn't flustered and looked at the intruder with a calm gaze.
"Have you made your decision, Aunt?"
"Before I give you my answer, shouldn't you provide some idea of what favour you want to ask from me? It wouldn't be a problem letting you play with my girls, but I can't take too much of a risk just for a good whip."
"There is some danger involved, but as long as you perform your role well, you shouldn't face any major difficulties. This involves the underground auction that you'll be participating in tonight."
Just by mentioning the auction, Iris had a good idea of what Shui was planning, and it did fall into her range of acceptable risk.
"I suppose I can lend you a hand then. But why me? I know we don't share much trust."
"There's no need for trust on a personal level. As long as we act for the sake of our interests while bearing the consequences in mind, there won't be an issue. It's easier to predict any possible betrayals that way too."
"Kukuku, that might be true. So what are the specifics of your request?"
"I don't have all the details, so we'll need to talk to someone else. Before that."
With a snap of his fingers, Shui used a triple layering of 'Purify' to clear the room. From the moment he entered, he had noticed a hidden poison in the room mixed in with Iris' demonic energy. He was in a little danger since this type of poison was more effective on those with strong senses, but he was able to cleanse the poison that touched him before it could do any harm.
Iris clicked her tongue as she sensed the demonic energy and poison in the room rapidly fading. Like Shui suspected, she had filled the room with an invisible poison in the form of powder that had mind-numbing effects. Due to the foul nature of the ingredients used in the poison, it could easily blend in with her demonic energy. This concealment should have been effective against anyone below the Sky Realm, but Shui's abnormal perception was far greater than she imagined.
She had predicted that he would slip into her room again, so she planned on waiting for the poison to take effect before she took advantage of his dazed state to make additional demands. Now that her scheme was foiled, Iris didn't make any excuses. Instead, she pretended that nothing strange had happened at all.
"So will they be coming here, or will we meet them?"
Shui didn't plan on pursuing her attempt either, so he continued normally.
"Give it a moment. They should send a response—"
Before Shui could finish his statement, a knife struck the outside window sill. Attached to the knife was a location and a drawing of a fox mask. After memorising the note, Shui burnt it and placed a foot on the window sill.
"We'll be meeting them, so follow me."
"Can't you just use the door like a civilised person?"
"I won't stop you for acting civilised as long as you can keep up."
Shui then leaped from the window to the gate and moved on from there. Iris grumbled, but she soon followed him through the window. To prioritise speed, they travelled using rooftops and alleys that had low foot traffic.
Suddenly, Shui stopped in an alley even though they weren't at their destination. Iris was about to ask why they stopped when a figure appeared from the end of the alley.
"You really got her to come."
The figure had a slender physique and wore a black cloak that covered their body along with a fox mask over their face. Though he had never seen that mask before and they used a deep male voice, it was obviously Fox.
"Did you really think I lied?"
"No, but you surely surprised me. Did you plan this when you heard me mention her?"
"To an extent. Sorry for the abrupt notice; I wasn't sure if I would be able to get her help when we discussed."
"...Understood. Are you sure you weren't followed?"
"Don't worry, I left an illusion to keep them occupied."
Given that Fox had chosen to intercept them here, Shui guessed that she was wary of an ambush, so he patiently resolved her immediate concerns. However, Iris was just about out of patience.
"Isn't it about time we moved somewhere else? Surely you're not planning on finishing our talk here."
Shui and Fox looked at each other in response to her complaint before Fox turned around.
"Fine. Follow me."
This time with Fox leading the way, Shui and Iris made the rest of the journey. They didn't move very far from the alley before entering an old, vacated three-storey building and going to the top floor. Once they reached the top floor, Fox sat down on a sofa in the middle of the space and gestured for them to make themselves comfortable. There were other seats, so Shui and Iris each picked a chair and sat down. Despite being seemingly abandoned, the space on the top floor had little dust, so Shui guessed that this was one of Fox's secret hideouts.
"Let me start by asking how much have you told her."
"Just that I need a favour, and it involves the underground auction. I figured I would leave the rest of the explanation to you."
"Sounds like you just wanted to shove the work over to me, but that's fine, I guess. So, Miss Pink Devil, are you willing to lend us a hand at tonight's auction?"
"Of course. Please feel free to make your demand."
Sensing the use of charm techniques in her response, Fox was relieved because this was in line with Iris's character according to the information she had. If Iris had been completely different, then there would have been no way she would continue with this plan, even though she had some trust in Shui. After all, you had to be alive to use any treasure.
"I'll accept that for now. What we want from you is simple. Don't die or make a fuss during the auction."
"Huh?"
Iris had expected their request to be along the lines of helping them to infiltrate the auction or cause some sort of scene, but she never expected such an 'easy' task.
"Don't worry. Well, you might not believe me, but we're not trying to trick you. I'll even tell you something interesting for free."
"What's that?"
After glancing at Fox and receiving a nod in response, Shui said what he had in mind.
"You're a target of one of the underground guild's rank advancement missions."
After hearing that news, Iris looked like she had eaten something bitter.
"I knew I was gaining enmity, but to think they would use me as a whetstone. I'm guessing they plan on attacking me at or near the auction."
"That's right. We still need you to attend, of course."
"Certainly. I don't like walking into a trap, but being underestimated like this is more trouble than it's worth."
"Good. Looks like we have an agreement then."