Flare

Area 2 - Flare (フレア, Furea) is the district of Midas housing high-class boutiques and restaurants, as well as many hotels that treat visitors according to the rank of their money card.

Unlike the loud Pleasure Quarters of Lhassa, Flare was catering to a different style of pleasure that mostly took place during the day. It was a well-maintained area, its clean garbage-free sidewalks welcomed uninterrupted waves of people visiting its luxurious establishments. That was, at least, the case with main streets. Tiny alleys flanked between the skyscraper clusters were another matter, much like in any part of Midas.

The Orange Road passed through it, doubling as the border with Janus.

## Moga Street

Moga (モガ, Moga) was a fashionable and refined part of Flare. On the east side of it, not marked on tourist maps was Red Baron.

From outside, Red Baron looked like a neat and proper Business Hotel, but in reality, it was an escort club that catered to all customers, regardless of age or gender. In it, on the 8th floor, in room 805, Katze had one of his offices. It was a stark and utilitarian room that complimented Katze’s image, much like his other establishments. He used it to conduct interviews with potential new employees.

## Pharmacy

Adjacent to the Orange Road, tucked in among other buildings was a 24h Pharmacy. This was a quiet and sparsely inhabited section of the Orange Road, and it was very unlikely that a tourist would find their way into the dark back streets where it was located. The place wound around itself like a maze designed to confuse the senses so only those with a clear purpose in mind ventured there.

The pharmacy itself was in a state of disrepair, but at least the glass door of the entrance was specially treated for climate control making the inside temperature comfortable. Due to its location and lack of customers, it didn’t do well with generating revenue, rendering its single clerk perpetually bored.

It sold supplements and legal drugs of varying quality. "Greed," "speed," "rally," and "angel high"—a patron wanting to fly without leaving the ground could buy it there. As it was a state-owned operation, the customer didn't have to fear impure products. But whether or not the stuff would agree with their metabolism was another question. There was, also, the option of obtaining illegal substances under the table, at a price.

There is some inconsistency as to the pharmacy's location in the books and occasionally it is indicated that it is located in Lhassa. However Flare is probably the correct location.

### Katze’s Office

Katze’s main office, his fortress, was located below the Pharmacy, which ultimately served as a front, obscuring the business he conducted here.

The pharmacy had a staff-only entrance, reserved specifically for Katze’s visitors. It was opened by a sensor scanning the palm of the hand, and only those on the roster were cleared for entry.

Katze’s office was accessed by means of an old-fashioned elevator, which was operated with a card key. This type of electric elevator was no longer produced and it was impossible to get the replacement parts unless special-ordered. Everyone seemed to think that its impracticality was at odds with Katze’s utilitarian nature. There were no floor-indicating panels in it, so it was impossible to tell how far underground the office was located.

The office itself was so starkly ascetic that it tended to leave its visitors with a sense of unease. Not only was it plain and drab, but it seemed like Katze got rid of anything frivolous, unproductive or useless in it to the point where it felt like a frigid, lifeless black box. It was neat and clean to an unusual degree and the only place in it where a visitor could sit down and be comfortable was a sofa in the corner.

Despite its simplicity, Katze’s office was equipped with the bleeding-edge cybertechnology that served any and all needs of a Black Market boss and a competent hacker.