The One Who Refused

Her name was Yakumo Yukari...

She was a Great Yokai who had lived for at least a thousand years. As for why she had come here, that was just a coincidence. She had traveled through a Gap and ended up here. At first, she'd thought someone had ambushed her, but then she'd seen a "ghost" living in a very strange house.

It was a very strange house. There were doors inside, but elsewhere there wasn't a single door or window leading outside. It was practically a sealed cage!

Well, she hadn't been in the best mood lately, thanks to a few things.

When you were in a bad mood, everyone got on your nerves. The unfamiliar place and her displeasure meant she'd attacked without saying much to the other person... But that wasn't the point!

The point was that the ghost had been holding a treasure that even she coveted. She could sense the immense energy inside it from far away. Its nature didn't suit her, and absorbing it would waste a considerable amount, but even so, it would give her a substantial boost afterward.

When a yokai decided to be unreasonable, what reason did she need!?

If she really had to give one, how about this?

How dare a mere ghost smile at me? He's asking for it!

The fight was over. The entire hall had been ransacked from top to bottom three times, and she'd been subjected to Jiu Ming's mockery almost as often. Since she couldn't find a way to deal with him, well... maybe they could call a temporary truce?

Let's leave it at that for now.

"How about taking on two more of my requests?" Yakumo Yukari said with a faint smile. "There aren't many people I'd bother introducing myself to. You can call me Yakumo Yukari."

Yakumo Yukari...? Huh!?

"I'm Jiu Ming."

Yakumo Yukari's eye twitched ever so slightly, and her smile grew wider. "What a coincidence."

That tone just now... If he figured out why her attacks had no effect on him, would he still be able to smile? Would he dare to?

"Ha. Should I thank the charlatan who gave me my name?" Jiu Ming chuckled and put away the Sealed Cards on the coffee table, including the one containing the Super Energy Crystal. "If two requests can make up for such a huge difference, they must be pretty difficult. But are you really sure you don't want your ability back?"

An ability related to space!

"Actually, I offer another kind of service." Jiu Ming thought it over for a moment. "You could make a partial trade."

"What do you mean?"

"You can trade away only part of an ability, like that Defective Electricity. You'd retain the rest of your ability, and it wouldn't erase it entirely. The more you trade away, the weaker your ability becomes. Of course, you can train it back afterward."

"But keep in mind, this is a fundamental separation. Your experience and the level you once reached won't let you regain your original strength smoothly. To put it bluntly, it'll be no easier than it was the first time!"

"Oh?" Yakumo Yukari laughed out loud. It was hard to tell whether she was mocking him or genuinely amused by his good intentions. "You really are a proper little shopkeeper."

Anyway, once she'd calmed down, she'd spoken with him face-to-face for a while. The little brat in front of her didn't seem quite so annoying, after all.

That was assuming he wasn't human.

"Um? Ahem! Of course, since it's only a partial trade, the improvement someone gets after acquiring it won't be as fast as with the full version. So the price for a trade with me would be lower... much lower!"

So much for ripping people off! So much for being a heartless merchant! So much for making them pay through the nose and taking a big slice of their flesh!

Sigh. He just couldn't do it!

"Why didn't I see anything about that in here?"

Yakumo Yukari held up the little booklet.

"That thing's just a rough introduction. The rest depends on the shopkeeper's discretion. Mm-hmm, that's right."

So, if you didn't want to get fleeced, you'd better make sure the shopkeeper liked you!

"How do you calculate a partial trade?" If she only lost part of her power, she might be able to accept that. It would just be a temporary weakening. As for giving up her Gap ability entirely? Absolutely not!

Not unless something happened that truly forced her to give it up!

"Let me put it this way." Jiu Ming tapped the coffee table, and a faint screen appeared above it. "We use a rating system. That Lightning Bead just now was rated at 14,300, while your Gap ability is rated at 88,888.8..."

"Heh." Yakumo Yukari chuckled softly, her eyes narrowing as she watched Jiu Ming. "Little shopkeeper, you're not being entirely honest. If that's all there is to it, the actual difference in value would be more than sixfold, wouldn't it?"

More than sixfold?

It could easily be twice that!

That was only how people saw it. To the Mysterious Shop, the item's value didn't matter. It would offer whatever price it offered, ignoring outside factors and everything else!

Got a problem with that?

If you did, you could keep the valuable item in your own hands!

The shop wouldn't force you to sell it, after all. Though if you kicked the bucket... heh!

"Well, I am a merchant... but I don't seem to be the kind who's suited to ripping people off." Jiu Ming sighed, sounding regretful that he lacked the talent to be ruthless. "For a partial trade, there's a discount based on the proportion you separate, plus another discount. The lowest possible rate... is random!"

Not entirely random. Jiu Ming knew the range was two to ten times. The exact amount depended on how the Mysterious Shop rated the item.

"If you think it's a bad deal, you can trade something else."

Jiu Ming was starting to feel that being the Mysterious Shop's manager wasn't easy. He couldn't trade one item for another of equal value, because he had no way of knowing their true worth—unless the other person was a fool who didn't know the real value of what they had.

Trading gold for bricks was a win by weight, sure. But by value... Maybe he should find a tall building and take a leap of faith to clear his head?

"Let's leave that for now. We should talk about the requests."

Yakumo Yukari shelved the matter and changed the subject.

"Sure. What do you need?"

"First, find someone in the Saigyouji family for me, then kill her! And if you come across any bald monks from the Saigyouji family along the way, feel free to kill them too."

"Um... Is there any extra reward for killing them?"

"How about a good review?" Yakumo Yukari glanced at Jiu Ming without a care. "You're not very generous."

"Tell me the second request." Jiu Ming shook his head. Killing someone for no reason? That really wasn't for him. He was a Mysterious Shopkeeper—at least, that was what he called himself—not some shameless hired killer.

"Recently, I came across a Flower Demon who really annoyed me, but wasn't particularly strong. I'd planned to teach her a lesson myself, but something came up and I couldn't spare the time. You can take care of it for me." Yakumo Yukari winked at Jiu Ming. "She's only a tiny bit uglier than me..."

Only a tiny bit uglier? Why did that sound so weird?

If it was such an easy task, why not just take care of it herself? Was it really such a coincidence? And what was with that especially suggestive last line?

"No!" Jiu Ming refused without so much as a moment's thought.

"Huh?" Yakumo Yukari had known he'd refuse, but she hadn't expected him to do it so decisively. She let out a small gasp. "Won't you at least think about it? I'm not planning to give up my Gap ability, but I can tolerate a temporary weakening."

"It's not because of you." Jiu Ming waved a hand, quite seriously. "It's because of me. I don't want to do that sort of thing."

"Heh. I forgot—even a ghost used to be human." Yakumo Yukari gave a faint, cold laugh.

"This has nothing to do with sides. First, is everyone in that Saigyouji family evil?"

"They're a bunch of people who believe in exterminating yokai."

"The kind who don't care who's right or wrong?"

"What do you think?"

"I see." Jiu Ming nodded. "If that's the case, then if I run into them..."

"Hmph. If you run into them, you'll have to fight, whether you want to or not—unless you want to die all over again." Yakumo Yukari snorted, her words dripping with disdain.

"I don't mind dying again. It's not like it'd be the first time. It just depends on when I choose to do it... Anyway, let's leave that for now. About the second request, that Flower Demon—why are you trying to get me killed?"

Jiu Ming scratched his cheek. They'd been talking nonsense for quite a while, and he was starting to realize that the girl in front of him seemed to be dragging things out. Oh, boy. This was why scheming against each other was so exhausting. How many brain cells did a single clash have to cost?

Was she trying to buy time and figure out why he could ignore her attacks?

Well, that was easy. Just bring your face closer...

And with those two utterly insincere requests, tsk, even from the way she talked, neither sounded like something she needed help with.

As for the first one, she was plainly asking him to wipe out a family. If he could avoid doing that, he should. Setting aside how wicked it was, if they really deserved it, then maybe taking them out would be the right thing to do—but only if he could handle it. He shouldn't bite off more than he could chew and end up getting screwed...

As for the second request, thinking it over, it was probably just that. To be more cautious, if he changed "looks" in Yakumo Yukari's last sentence to "strength," the truth seemed pretty close.

All in all, he was beginning to understand why the previous shopkeeper had been replaced. Someone like Yakumo Yukari, who was constantly scheming against you—one or two people like that was manageable, but if they became too numerous, one bad deal could get you dragged down with them.

"Refusing a customer's request is a bad look, isn't it?" Yakumo Yukari's face lifted slightly, a contemptuous smile on her lips. "Are you scared?"

"You figured it out!? That's right! I'm scared of being beaten to death—every which way, whether it's the first request or the second."

Every which way: he could be killed by someone he'd provoked, or stabbed in the back... and either outcome was quite likely.

"Tch. What a coward." Seeing that Jiu Ming wasn't reacting in the slightest, Yakumo Yukari gave up on the pointless act. At the same time, the two requests—neither of which she herself thought was sincere—had confirmed something for her.