First Deal

Early the next morning, Kino came downstairs feeling refreshed.

Galina Dubois's round, peachy backside had left him wanting more.

Not bad. Now that was an ass!

Only the rear-entry position could fully display the astonishing curve of that ass, along with its... explosive bounce.

Maria Hill shot him a contemptuous look. "How many words did you learn in one night? Let me guess. Oh, definitely three, right?"

"Hill, that doesn't sound like something you'd say," Kino said teasingly.

Had Maria Hill learned to throw out snark too, since one was influenced by the company one kept?

Wasn't she supposed to be an icy beauty who followed every rule to the letter?

Last night, Galina Dubois had taught him three English words—YES, YES, YES, OH... YEH!

Well, after hearing them shouted all night, Kino had fully experienced the context in which those three words were used.

He had actually wanted Galina Dubois to teach him something like "FUCK me," but she had strongly resisted. Thinking about it, though, that word was better suited to bold, uninhibited women, not a sweet, healing-type girl like her.

Kino hadn't forced her. Learning three words was already pretty good.

"Hmph. If your first client hadn't come knocking, I wouldn't have bothered calling you," Maria Hill said, glaring at him before turning and leaving.

They had been yelling "YES" for most of the night, keeping her from sleeping properly. How could she possibly be in a good mood?

Besides, she believed that if Galina Dubois truly hadn't been able to take it anymore, they would probably have kept going until dawn.

Heh, Kino had done it on purpose.

If he wanted to, even if Maria Hill were sitting right beside him, she wouldn't hear a thing.

After their fierce battle for most of the night, Galina Dubois was still asleep on the third floor. She probably wouldn't wake up until evening. As for her agent and driver, they had long since been sent away.

As for whatever endorsement events she had, how could they compare to the appeal of "eternal youth"?

"Oh? My first deal is here?" Kino's eyes lit up, and he hurried downstairs.

After a week of hustling, business had finally come.

Although the shop's sign hadn't been designed yet, ads and service listings for the Odd Jobs Shop had long since appeared on major websites, WhatsApp, MSN, and other chat software.

It had to be said that Rogue was quite skilled with computers. She wasn't a top-tier hacker, but she was still excellent.

Kino knew nothing about business licenses or commercial registration. Maria Hill was handling all that.

In the first-floor lobby, a short-haired woman around thirty, looking like a white-collar worker, sat on the sofa while Rogue attended to her.

There was no need to use Mantra or any psychic ability. Kino could tell at a glance that this woman... had recently suffered a severe blow.

Wasn't that obvious?

Why else would she come here if she hadn't suffered a major blow?

Was she here for a meal or something?

The woman looked rather ordinary. She wasn't even as pretty as Rogue.

"Ma'am, I'm the owner here. You can tell me whatever commission you have," Kino said with a smile when he saw that she was still hesitating. "Don't worry, they're both trustworthy. If you're concerned, I can send them away."

"No need. I... do you really take any kind of job here?" the woman asked hesitantly.

"Yes! Even murder!" After saying that, Kino cast Hill a subtle glance. "Of course, I have to determine whether that person deserves to die."

"He deserves to die! He deserves to die! He..." The woman's emotions flared, but she quickly fell silent again, clearly still wary.

"You two go upstairs first." Kino turned and gestured.

The two women hurried upstairs. Hill even gave him a warning look.

Kino understood exactly what that look meant. She was worried he would slaughter innocent people. Shaking his head, he sat down across from the woman. "First, I need to tell you this: no matter how difficult your commission may seem to you, it's nothing here!"

With a wave of his hand, the kitchen knives flew over in unison and hovered around Kino.

Before the woman could even scream in shock, they flew back to their original places.

"Second, you've now seen my abilities. You have only two choices. One, make an official commission and complete the transaction. Two, I erase your memories, and you leave."

Gulp—

Only then did the woman recover from her shock. She swallowed with difficulty, but her eyes shone with blazing light.

"Will my memories be erased after I make an official commission?"

"No!" Kino shook his head.

People came here to commission jobs. Most of them had suffered persecution and torment. They needed an outlet; they needed the thrill of seeing their great vengeance fulfilled. If their memories were erased, then even if the head of the person who had tormented them were placed before them, how could they possibly feel excited? This was business, after all. He had to provide perfect service to his clients.

"But I'll be keeping an eye on you. If anything about my affairs gets leaked, you know the consequences."

Kino felt it was necessary to give her a warning.

The woman hurriedly waved her hands. "No! No! I promise!"

"Then before we begin the official commission, may I ask your name, ma'am...?"

"Nydia Valen. You can call me Nydia!"

"Very well, Miss Nydia. What is your commission?"

"I want you to help me kill someone."

"My pleasure."

Kino nodded and motioned for her to continue her story.

Nydia Valen fell silent. After struggling for quite some time, she finally gritted her teeth and slowly began. "My husband was..."

About ten minutes later, Kino understood.

The plot was cliché, straight out of an American TV drama.

Her husband had been a department supervisor at a financial company. By chance, he discovered evidence of his superior's crimes, so this hot-blooded young fool rushed to the police station to report it. The next day, he was shot dead in his car on the grounds that he had hidden "powder" and resisted arrest.

Nydia Valen had felt that something was wrong. Her husband had never been interested in "powder," and he had been brutally shot dead just one day after making the report.

She believed there was something fishy going on, so she had kept investigating.

Finally...

"Carl Hoffman... that name sounds familiar," Kino said, smacking his lips.

"He's a detective," Nydia Valen said.

There was a faint sense of familiarity. Kino was certain he had seen that name in some movie or something before, but after traveling forty years into the past, he had already forgotten nearly everything.

"A detective? That might be a little troublesome, but... if he deserves his punishment, I don't mind sending him to the afterlife. Still, his identity as a detective does make things a little troublesome. I'll need to investigate first before deciding the amount of the commission fee," Kino said, stroking his chin.

The commission fee varied according to the difficulty of the job.

Of course, there was no such thing as "difficulty" for him!

"No need. I've already investigated some things." As she spoke, Nydia Valen took a file from her handbag. "This is the information."

"Oh? Let me see."

After just one glance, Kino remembered who Carl Hoffman was. Not because of him, but because of another name—"financial expert" Leland.

Kino had some impression of that name.

"Financial expert" Leland, James Wesley, Detective Blake from the police department, and Detective Carl Hoffman—the four of them should all have been Kingpin's subordinates.

Kingpin... a top-tier overlord.

He hadn't expected to run into such a juicy target right after opening for business.