//File 0.1 - Eunbyeol//

Eunbyeol tried not to judge her marks, that smacked of unprofessionalism. But this suit was loud and smarmy, and just about rubbed everyone the wrong way. He had swaggered in two nights ago into club Dis, only the latest club to open in the Vegas Strip, with his entourage of corp bankers and wannabe trideo actresses, and dropped enough nuyen to raise eyebrows even among the jetsetters. The night with him drinking from the private collection with the club owner, before he waltzed away in his Eurocar Westwind GT.

At least that was how her club manager Xing Liu described it to Eunbyeol. Things were quieter further down the Strip. Xing Liu had gotten a call from Dis' own manager, and okayed Eunbyeol on loan to work the gig. Something about not wanting to embarrass the owner's misjudgement. Nothing too rough, just enough to see the hefty bill repaid discreetly, with everyone's face still intact.

Eunbyeol had waited for him to return to his suite at the Palladio, one of the penthouse units on the fiftieth floor. He had tossed his keys to the chauffeur and entered the hotel lobby.

What do you do?

Eunbyeol had arrived outside the Palladio, and instantly considered if she was adequately prepared for the job, given that she was used to shake down those lower down the food chain. The Palladio was sixty stories of techno opulence, done in the style of new futuro-wave. Shaped like a diamond obelisk, with exterior walls edged with chromatic lighting that began from the nanoglass driveways and stretched up to split the sky like a bolt of reverse lightning, its porch was a steady stream of limousines and luxury cars, discharging its guests at its east entrance, through which lay the hotel lobby.

Visitors there for shopping entered by the doors at its north entrance, an arch of centrifigual neon, as if its purpose were to hypnotise and draw its supplicants to worship at the shrine of capitalism. Unlike other arcologies, the Vegas Strip never converted itself into one: its hotels, casinos and entertainment centres far surpassed any central arcology design. The Palladio was a prime example of such. And this target of hers, one Daniel Wu, seemed to be native to such a place. This job would certainly keep her afloat for a much longer while than her usual bit scores.

The arcade atrium opened out into at least four radiating corridors of stores, shops, boutiques as far as her eyes could see, and that was just the first floor. The atrium itself was a dome, the ceiling of which was twenty stories above her, and displayed an ever-changing kaleidescope of sky, if one's idea of sky consisted of artificial constellations revolving their diurnal path around a hovering holographic billboard the size of a small building, whose advertisments competed with each other for attention and for epilepsy.

"Welcome to Nu-Liminal." A programmed voice greeted Eunbyeol as she entered one of the fashion boutiques, minimalist rows of synthwear in this season's cut and colour. Shoulder epaulettes and high collars seemed to be all the rage, paired with knee high boots with metallic embellishments down the side. The prices appeared to be as sky high as the atrium itself.

Discreetly a boutique assistant appeared next to her, "Annyeong hashimnikka." and bowed slightly, ready to serve her next customer.

If Eunbyeol had noticed one thing it was that people were their shoes. The richest person trying to slum it would still show up in new shoes that cost as much as the club they were diving in; a drunk in a new suit would still be wearing roughed up old brogues. She could probably count on the hotel staff to make the same assumption, or so she hoped.

Based on that, she checked the price on a set of black, fitted boots with a silver inlay that ended in a thick silver sole. "I amkaedeul-eun eolmaibnikka?" How much for these bitches? If something happened she wanted to be sure she could still stomp heads in. If she had enough left over after that, she might buy a dress.

A holographic display of sizes and prices immediately popped up next to the shoe rack she was next to as she reached for the pair of Jean LaPerle boots. 360Y. Before she could indicate anything else, the sales assistant had brought her a pair to try, and electronically moved the clothing racks so that complementary styles of the latest fashion were displayed before Eunbyeol. The dresses also cost in the same ballpark, from 500Y and onwards.

The attendant brought the items to the fitting room for her and announced in a cheerful voice in Korean, "There's a discount when you purchase an outfit, only 780Y total," and held out the cred stick reader for Eunbyeol to make payment. She was ultra helpful to ensure that the dress and shoes fitted perfectly. It was certainly a fashionable, almost glamourous look.

"Welcome to the Palladio!" The man behind the counter greeted her with a big smile. Immediately behind him a holo display popped up with a welcome trideo of the hotel and its various facilities, and talking heads in various languages directly speaking through Eunbyeol's augmented reality feed. "Certainly, whom shall I say is calling on him?" The smile became even larger and warmer.

She decided to fall back on a ruse that usually worked, though it was probably the highest-class place she'd used it in, so she cleaned up her language a little. "Naneun donglyoui seonmul-ibnida!" I'm a gift from an associate! It should still get the message through, she thought. "Fun things!" she adds, holding up her backpack a little.

The guest service employee at the front desk didn't bat an eyelid when Eunbyeol implied that she was the entertainment, used to as he was in catering to the whims and fancies of the powerful and well-heeled. His smile remained just as wide, even though his eyes steeled themselves ever so slightly. "Mr Wu's appetite is impressive, but he doesn't seem done yet with his previous gift." There was no mistaking the euphemism, there was some other escort staying in his suite whom he returned to.

[translated from the original Korean, in the way that movies do after a conversation has gone on a bit]

"I was under the assumption that he was able to multitask. I suppose I can just let his associate know that he doesn't appreciate his offer..." She starts to dial a number out, slowly so that he can change his mind if need be. "I don't know what he'll do." Her eyes widen. "You have insurance, right?"

The man was used to seeing all kinds of guests and their behaviour, ranging from the sweet and whimsical, to the downright mean and threatening. He didn't think of Eunbyeol in either of those ways, but neither was he about to let any two bit Sunset Boulevard escort past his watch, seeing as it was his job to guarantee the privacy and security of his guests. But Eunbyeol's persistence made him pick up his phone.

It seemed to ring for a long time before someone at the other end picked up. "Mr Wu? This is the front desk. You have a visitor who is here on behalf of ... " Here he paused, and gave Eunbyeol a split second to answer, so that he could finish his sentence.