Revenge-Seeking?

Before he knew it, Duan Mu had arrived in West District 3.

Walking along the bustling streets, Duan Mu felt as if he had passed into another lifetime. The taverns lining the street were filled with the scent of alcohol, and after holding himself back for over a month, Duan Mu nearly rushed inside.

Unfortunately...

He had no money on him, and since he had not worked for a month, there probably was not much savings left in the shop either.

"Sure enough, I still have to work hard."

Swallowing at the smell of alcohol, Duan Mu headed toward District 38.

If he remembered correctly, there should still be several bottles of Brewing Granny's finest liquor stored in the shop. Once he got back, he would drink to his heart's content, then sleep soundly.

"Hey, isn't that Duan Mu?"

"Duan Mu? Where?"

"It really is you! Where have you been this past month?"

"..."

The moment he stepped into District 38, Duan Mu was recognized. The neighbors' warm reactions made him smile.

But for some reason, Duan Mu felt that the way they looked at him concealed a faint trace of worry. Many of them looked as though they wanted to say something but stopped themselves, while others kept winking at him.

Had something happened?

Sensing the neighbors' odd behavior, a trace of wariness flashed through Duan Mu's eyes.

"Little Duan Mu, I just brewed some liquor. Take a bottle home and drink it."

Brewing Granny came over carrying a bottle and shoved it into Duan Mu's arms. Before he could thank her, she suddenly lowered her voice. "Did you offend someone? These past few days, some fierce-looking fellows have often come to your shop. I heard they came from one of the districts with a higher number."

"They came today too. That girl Uzuki has been dealing with them. If you have any—"

Brewing Granny's voice cut off, because Duan Mu had vanished from the street in the blink of an eye. The sight immediately caused an uproar.

But Duan Mu, the cause of it all, had no time to care about their reactions. He directly activated Shunpo and sped toward the shop.

People from a higher-numbered district?

Could Daimaru's men have come to seek revenge?

Thoughts raced through his mind. Within a few breaths, Duan Mu had arrived near the shop.

Before he even got close, he sensed numerous fluctuations in spiritual pressure in front of his shop.

Looking over, he saw many figures leaning in the shadows outside Yorozuya, standing on either side of the entrance like guards.

Duan Mu stopped, and his expression instantly darkened.

That was right. They were Daimaru's men.

He did not know their exact names, but among those spiritual pressures were many auras he had sensed once before.

Fortunately, Uzuki's aura inside the shop was very steady. She should not have been harmed.

Even so, as Duan Mu looked at the people standing on either side of the entrance, his gaze became sinister.

Killing intent silently enveloped the entire area.

The group of villains, who were extremely sensitive to killing intent, could not help but tense up. They turned toward the direction from which the murderous aura came.

When they saw Duan Mu walking toward the shop with a sinister air and killing intent in his eyes, they were delighted at first. Then, as if they had thought of something, their expressions changed again.

"Wait!!"

A scar-faced man hurriedly waved his hand, but Duan Mu suddenly vanished from his sight.

An unprecedented sense of danger surged into his heart in an instant.

Whether he was naturally quick-witted or had simply been scared witless, at this critical moment, the scar-faced man immediately threw back his head and shouted, "Big Sis Uzuki, help me!!"

Buzz~

Looking at the fist that had suddenly stopped in front of him, and Duan Mu's stunned face behind it, cold sweat instantly poured down the scar-faced man's forehead. He then collapsed limply to the ground.

"Who are you calling Big Sis?! You bunch of bastards have been blocking the entrance to my shop and scaring away all my customers. They don't even dare come here to commission work anymore!" Uzuki's furious voice came from inside the shop. The door of Yorozuya was kicked open. "I'll say this one last time: Duan Mu isn't here, and I don't know when he'll be back..."

Uzuki was angrily berating the group of villains when her voice suddenly caught in her throat. She stared at the equally stunned Duan Mu. "...Um, he's back..."

The scene before him left Duan Mu unable to react for a moment.

I really must be dreaming, right?

When had his frail little clerk become so domineering that she dared point at a whole group of villains and curse them?

"Boss... no, Big... no, Big Brother Duan Mu..."

The scar-faced man on the ground swallowed, his face full of fear. "W-We... came to commission some work. Big Sis Uzuki can vouch for me!!"

"..." Duan Mu looked at Uzuki.

Uzuki nodded, her face full of disgust. "These guys came five days ago and have refused to leave. They said they wanted to commission some work, but whenever I asked what kind of work, these bastards refused to tell me anything." After saying that, she glanced at the scar-faced man on the ground. "They even stay outside the shop every day, scaring away customers. We haven't had a single customer come in for days."

The corner of the scar-faced man's mouth twitched slightly. As far as he knew, no customers had come even before they arrived. After all, the person who handled the work was not here...

However, he did not dare contradict Uzuki. Who knew whether this lunatic in front of him would kill him over a single word?

He did not want to end up like those people who had died at her hands, turned into spirit particles, and helped build the Seireitei.

So they really were customers?

Although he felt somewhat speechless, Duan Mu still forced out a stiff smile. "Since you're customers, then come inside and talk. Don't stand outside." After saying that, Duan Mu led the way into the shop.

Although they had some enmity between them, since the other party had come to commission work, he did not mind hearing them out.

Business was business. There was nothing shameful about it!

The scar-faced man and the others exchanged glances. In the end, they all put on expressions of resignation and entered Yorozuya.

Seeing this, Uzuki curled her lips but said nothing. She returned to the counter, brewed several cups of tea, and placed them on the coffee table.

Duan Mu sat in a chair and pointed at the only sofa in the lobby. "Sit. Don't be shy. I'm always very gentle with customers—provided you really are customers and aren't here to make a fool of me."

"Uh..."

The scar-faced man hesitated for a moment before sitting opposite Duan Mu. The people behind him stood ramrod straight, all wearing expressions of intense focus.

"Allow me to introduce myself."

Although the scar-faced man was still somewhat afraid of Duan Mu, as a villain accustomed to witnessing life and death, he had already calmed down. "My name is Diao Ao. I'm Daimaru's second-in-command—the one who stood beside Daimaru back then. You should remember me, right?"

"I don't."

Duan Mu answered honestly. Back then, all his attention had been focused on Daimaru. How could he have had the leisure to pay attention to some second-in-command?

"Customer, you can just tell me what you want to commission from the shop. I don't mind accepting your commission, but I also don't want to have any relationship with you beyond work."

"..."

The scar on Diao Ao's face twitched. "I want to ask you to help us hold our territory in District 79."

"Huh?"

I've gone back to my hometown to celebrate the New Year, but there won't be any break in updates. I saved up some chapters in advance and set them to post automatically—one chapter every day at 6 p.m.