"Ahaha~ Anyway, I really have to hand it to you guys!" Jiu Ming's words made the few people behind Suzumiya Haruhi force awkward smiles.
They had finally escaped the endless hell of opening and closing doors and going up and down stairs. Looking back, it all seemed so unreal. This place was actually real!?
But now that they were here, why did they feel a faint sense of disappointment, despite their amazement?
Where were all the dazzling, rare and wondrous goods they'd been promised? This place was nothing but a house with no doors or windows leading outside, like a cage. And then there was someone's shameless display of wealth that made everyone jealous and resentful!!
"Of course! You have no idea how hard your Regiment Leader has worked all this time!" Suzumiya Haruhi crossed her arms and accepted Jiu Ming's praise without a hint of modesty. Then, as if she'd just remembered something, she held out her palm to him. "Hand it over."
"...What?" Jiu Ming scratched his head in confusion. "Do I owe you money?"
"Don't play dumb! The thing! The thing you promised me yourself—the thing that lets us come here whenever we want!!" Suzumiya Haruhi practically shouted in his face, making him lean his head away and push her face to the side with one hand.
"You're standing too close..." Seeing Suzumiya Haruhi's unwilling expression as she tried to resist, Jiu Ming noticed Nagato Yuki and remembered their agreement. He withdrew his hand, immediately releasing his hold on her. Yeah, best not to annoy her. Who knew what might happen if she went back in an awful mood and took it out on their "cheap" world... Tsk, tsk.
"Um, given the circumstances, can I go back on my promise?" Jiu Ming didn't mind bringing a little more life to the Mysterious Shop, where he was often the only one around. But if he gave her an Invitation Card, it seemed that he'd have to deal with more than just "a little" extra company. He'd never have a moment's peace...
Since becoming a ghost, he'd never minded a lively atmosphere, but he'd also become even more comfortable with silence.
"No way! I'm telling you, if you don't give it to me, it's the death penalty! Death penalty!!" Suzumiya Haruhi grabbed Jiu Ming by the collar and shook him hard. With a thought, Jiu Ming instantly changed from solid to intangible.
Huh?
Why was she still holding on?
Jiu Ming looked at his collar, which she still gripped tightly, and paused in surprise. Even though Suzumiya Haruhi seemed like an ordinary girl, unaware of her own abilities, the strength she'd revealed unintentionally was quite extraordinary.
What ordinary person could grab him by the collar and shake him around without using any special power?
"...I'm already dead."
"Then die again!"
"Ah, fine, fine." He scratched his head. Unable to shake off Suzumiya Haruhi's demands, Jiu Ming rubbed his fingers together, and a transparent card appeared out of thin air in his hand. Before he could explain, the girl's intuition kicked in, and she snatched the Invitation Card from him.
What a rude little brat. If I had a worse temper, I'd have to teach you a lesson...
"Is that the only one?" Suzumiya Haruhi studied the transparent card in her hand for a while, then pointed at the SOS Brigade members behind her.
"Eh-heh!" Jiu Ming gave an awkward smile. "It's the only one! What would you need so many for?"
"Of course, it's proof of membership in the SOS Brigade."
"That's a lot of nerve..." He sighed. "To tell you the truth, this is the last one. If you want another, you'll have to wait ten days—but I definitely won't give you one."
Even Jiu Ming found the ten-day production cycle strange. The Mysterious Shop could do almost anything, yet making one tiny card took such a "long" time?
Was it afraid the shopkeeper might abuse them?
Under the pressure of the girl's stare, Jiu Ming continued, "Well, one card is enough. The SOS Brigade? You can make it your group's treasure. One card is enough to bring lots of people here—as long as you can pay enough 'Source.'"
As he spoke, Jiu Ming glanced at the Three-No Girl quietly standing off to the side. "See the number on it? Every hundred points lets you bring one more person... blah, blah, blah..."
After explaining at length, he finally got Suzumiya Haruhi to understand exactly how the Invitation Card worked. The people beside her looked at Jiu Ming strangely. It was that amazing?
"Mm-hmm!" Suzumiya Haruhi nodded repeatedly, then tucked the Invitation Card away and stamped her foot. "Okay! Starting today, this place is the SOS Brigade's second branch!"
She didn't seem at all worried about what she'd use to pay the "price" for activating the Invitation Card.
"Don't go making up random names for the place," Jiu Ming said helplessly, pressing a hand against Suzumiya Haruhi's head. "And don't just declare that you're taking over my house with a single sentence!"
"Quit whining. It's an honor for you!" Suzumiya Haruhi retorted without the slightest sense of reason. Her gaze shifted to the High-Energy Crystals scattered on the floor, then moved to the row peeking out from beneath the edge of the sofa cushion...
"Watch this!"
With a loud cry, Suzumiya Haruhi flipped back part of the sofa cushion. The other SOS Brigade members immediately froze.
Perhaps Suzumiya Haruhi hadn't heard what Nagato Yuki had said earlier, but the others had. They knew how valuable these things were, and had been wondering just how many were hidden beneath the cushion.
One deadpan-faced boy had even maliciously wondered, out of jealousy and resentment, whether there was anything under there at all, or if Jiu Ming had only hidden the row along the edge of the sofa.
Now the cushion was up, and they could all see just how many of those glittering High-Energy Crystals were underneath!
"Uh... Is this guy a dragon or something?"
"What, do you want to play dragon-slaying heroes?"
Jiu Ming raised an eyebrow and looked at the deadpan-faced boy. Of the five people there, the ones who stood out to him were Suzumiya Haruhi and Nagato Yuki. As for the other three... even the one with the baby face and enormous breasts didn't count...
Well, the timid girl had caught his attention for a moment, but she was still an ordinary person.
"More like an evil spirit," Suzumiya Haruhi said. She picked up a handful of High-Energy Crystals and examined them, then clinked two of them together. "They don't look like glass..."
"Take one to any glass factory and you could trade it for a whole truckload of glass marbles." Jiu Ming scratched his head. Why had she thought of glass? "Only an idiot would mistake these things for glass!"
"...Cut the nonsense!" Suzumiya Haruhi shot Jiu Ming an irritated look and tossed the handful of High-Energy Crystals back to him. "Here. Take them."
"..." Seeing what she did, Jiu Ming shrugged lightly, a faint smile on his lips. "Don't just stand there. Sit down."
He snapped his fingers, and the layout around the coffee table shifted slightly. Several more sofas appeared beside the one Jiu Ming usually slept on. Suzumiya Haruhi looked delighted. "You didn't do that last time!"
"There were fewer people last time."
Jiu Ming put the sofa cushion back in place, then lazily lay down again, claiming an entire sofa for himself...
Kyon's eyelid twitched. He couldn't help sneaking a glance at Nagato Yuki. What Jiu Ming had just done looked a lot like the ability she'd shown before!!
"Come on, show us your goods already! Your Regiment Leader can hardly wait." After sitting down, Suzumiya Haruhi still couldn't keep still. Ever since arriving here, she'd been in an unusually energetic mood. Was she really that excited?
"Sure, but shouldn't you introduce everyone first?" Jiu Ming opened his palm slightly, and the Card Collection Book appeared.
"Adorable Asahina Mikuru." Suzumiya Haruhi pointed to the timid girl with the enormous breasts, then pointed to the young man who wore a constant smile and seemed easygoing. "Harmless Itsuki Koizumi."
Then she pointed to Nagato Yuki. "The Three-No Girl, Nagato Yuki."
Finally, she pointed to the deadpan-faced boy, who looked troubled. "Kyon."
"Why do the first three get descriptions? You're making me feel like I'm completely insignificant!"
"Cut it out. Then you can be Kyon the wisecracker."
"..."
"Uh, you're pretty close, huh." Jiu Ming smiled faintly, feeling a little envious. They really got along well, unlike him...
Fifty-year-old preserved egg fossil, Life Force, Gap... Since he'd made an agreement with Nagato Yuki, Jiu Ming was careful not to bring out the Defective Electricity ability card or the cellphone Suzumiya Haruhi had left behind. The latter might make her realize something, while the former could...
Sigh. What would happen if someone who could wipe out his world with a single thought learned superpowers?
Would she wave a hand and send out a bolt of Purple Heaven Divine Thunder or something!?
That was far too dangerous.
"This one!" After glancing over the first few cards, Suzumiya Haruhi immediately grabbed the one-use Gap ability card.
"The price..."
"Isn't it just money? Come prepared! What are you waiting for? Lend your wallets to your Regiment Leader!" Suzumiya Haruhi held out a hand to the other members, completely unapologetic as she demanded tribute.
"How can I lend you my wallet... Fine, fine." Under Suzumiya Haruhi's fierce threats, the deadpan-faced boy reluctantly took out his wallet, his heart aching.
"I don't think you can buy these things with money, can you?" Itsuki Koizumi asked, scratching his head. Jiu Ming had shown them very little, but everything he had revealed was utterly baffling, especially the fifty years of Life Force.
"Phew, finally someone who isn't so crass." Jiu Ming let out a sigh of relief, as if torn between hope and disappointment. "To buy things here, you have to trade something valuable of your own. You could even trade parts of your body, or a talent that sets you apart from other people. If you want, you can sell yourself, too! ...Why are you all looking at me like that?"
"When you were explaining it just now, your expression was terrifying..." A very timid girl's voice replied. When Jiu Ming looked over, the girl with the enormous breasts had practically shrunk behind Kyon. She seemed a little afraid of ghosts.
"Was it? I was smiling the whole time."
Before you continue