Chapter 13 #2
It’s so beautiful. And it did him good to know that these types of places existed everywhere. Even in the land of the yōkai.
Remember: You’re on a mission. He had to keep his focus on what needed to be done and not on the plentiful drinks being served one after the other.
Don’t get distracted.
Koichi swaggered over to one of the low tables and signaled a waiter with ten eyes and scaly green skin. “Sake, please.”
The waiter gave him a peculiar frown. “Sake? We don’t have that here. Kagemura’s a dry town.”
“What?”
The server shrugged. “Thought everyone knew. Ever since Lord Inumagami came, all alcoholic drinks have been cut off. Said it was helping produce a criminal element. Food’s good, though, if you’re hungry.”
Stunned by those words, Koichi felt his heart stop.
Oh, the agony . . .
This sacred place was a temple to evil. It had tricked him! He could hardly imagine anything more rotten.
An izakaya with no sake.
Was there no justice in this life?
“What about that yōkai I saw as I entered?” Koichi asked. “He was stumbling outside. Surely you’ve got something good back there to knock him off his feet.”
The server snorted. “He’s just clumsy. Last time, he fell down the stairs and nearly broke his neck.”
Koichi raised an eyebrow. “Really?”
He nodded. “But even if the drinks don’t flow, the rules are the same here as any other.”
But a dry izakaya . . . That concept alone shook him to his core. Such things shouldn’t be allowed to exist.
Fine. There were worse things in life. Koichi couldn’t think of any right now, but he was sure there were worse things out there.
Like the sound of Ryuichi-kage snickering from the shadows.
Since the sake option was gone, Koichi turned his thoughts to what he really needed to accomplish. “Maybe you can help me with something. I have a bit of a problem.”
The server shook his rectangular-shaped head. “We all got problems.”
When he started to crawl away, Koichi pulled his coins out and held them up to get his attention.
At first, he didn’t think it’d work. Not until the server returned and took them. “What do you need?”
“Where can I find the Ryukage?”
The server’s eyes widened. “Are you out of your mind? Why would anyone want him back? Or to find him? Do you have a death wish?”
“Not today. But it is important that I find him.” He passed a handful of silver to the waiter.
Trying to act discreet, the waiter quickly put the coin in his pocket.
Then he leaned forward and made sure no one else was listening.
“I’ve heard rumors. And you didn’t hear it from me, but they say there’s a ferryman who knows the place.
A real stickler, doesn’t talk much, and he works exclusively for the lord of Kagemura. ”
“How does that help me? I’m not the lord of Kagemura.”
The waiter leaned in and whispered, “He’ll take anyone, but the price is high.”
“How much are we talking?” Koichi asked.
He shrugged. “It depends on his mood. Pray you catch him in a good one.”
A moment later, a large, wolflike yōkai, his mouth filled with rows and rows of sharp teeth, sat down next to them. He was twice as tall as any man. He had to hunch over to make sure he didn’t go through the ceiling. He had the biggest smile on his face.
The waiter lifted his head to the newcomer. “Haru, what brings you in today? You look like you’ve just struck a deal.”
“I have. Business is booming.” He laughed. “So I thought I’d treat myself a little.”
Koichi stared at his hat. He had never seen anything quite like it. It was a metal helmet, but it looked like two thin sheets of metal fused together with a bowl attached to cover the head. In an odd way, it resembled a lizard.
Haru smiled. “I see you’re staring at my hat. It’s from Portugal. I was told this once belonged to the king. It’s their version of the emperor.”
“Portu . . . what?” Koichi cocked his head. He’d never heard of it.
“Portugal.”
He still had no idea. “Where’s that?”
Haru became oddly quiet. “I’m not too sure, actually, but it has to be far. I’ve never seen anything quite like the man who sold it to me.”
“Are you sure it was a man?”
He nodded. “He had really pale skin and hair, and he talked funny.”
Koichi pointed at the kasa. “How do you know it’s real?”
“Has to be. The man who sold it to me wore funny clothes and . . .” His eyes narrowed on Koichi. “Wait a second. You’re a human, aren’t you?” The yōkai sniffed him and recoiled. “Definitely human. You reek of the human world. When’s the last time you went to a bathhouse?”
Now the beast sounded like Haruki.
And it brought shame to him, as he didn’t like the thought of it. “It’s been a while, okay?”
Haru inspected Koichi’s clothes. “Here.” He pulled out a purse full of gold. “I’ll treat ya. I’m feeling generous.”
This was what Koichi loved about these kinds of places. Solutions simply manifested by kind strangers.
“Actually, I have a bit of a problem.”
“Nothing a little money can’t fix.” Haru smiled, counting his coins.
“You wouldn’t happen to have enough money to buy a shinigami’s services, would you?”
That sent one of Haru’s eyebrows north. “You want someone killed?”
The waiter coughed as he brought a pot of tea for Haru. “He’s talking about our shinigami.”
“Oh, now that is interesting. What would a little thing like you want to do with someone like him?”
“I have my reasons.”
“Fine. Don’t tell me. If it’s what I think it is, then I think I can help you out.”
The waiter was aghast. “Haru, don’t be an idiot. You don’t know this human.”
Haru dismissed his concern. “I know what I’m doing. Most days anyway.” He sneezed and a fistful of gold coins appeared in front of Koichi.
Never had Koichi seen so much money. Whatever absurd price the shinigami had, this was more than enough to cover it. He was sure of it.
It was also very heavy. Not a problem, for a large wolf yōkai. But for Koichi . . .
He could feel it weighing him down.
“Don’t!” Ryuichi-kage appeared from the shadows to prevent him from taking it, startling Haru and the waiter.
“What are you doing?” Koichi asked.
“No yōkai is so kind. He wants something,” Ryuichi-kage said, puffing out his chest.
Haru lifted one corner of his lip up, exposing his long canine teeth. “Who is this insolent pup?”
Koichi put his hand over Ryuichi-kage’s mouth. “Don’t listen to him. He’s no one of importance.”
Ryuichi-kage bit Koichi’s hand—hard.
“Ow! That hurt, you little deviant!”
“Listen to me. You can’t trust the wolf. He’ll ask for something awful in return. They always do.”
Perhaps, but Koichi was desperate, and this was more than enough to find their lost companions.
Especially now that he knew his student was running out of time.
So he pushed the shadow back and took the money from the wolf. “Thank you.”
Haru shrugged his gratitude away. “No problem. Just remember: This is a loan. I expect you to pay it back.”
“You have my word,” Koichi said.
“I’m planning to be out of town soon, so if I’m not here, drop the money off with the owner. Let him know it’s for Haru.”
“Absolutely, I will.” Koichi couldn’t believe his luck.
Maybe this would get them on track.
But as soon as the wolf left, Ryuichi-kage showed the true depths of his fury. “Why did you do something so stupid?” he whisper-yelled.
“I know what I’m doing.”
Ryuichi-kage snorted. “Tell that to me again when we’re being eaten by an angry wolf.”
* * *
Haruki nudged Koichi awake with her foot. “Good morning.”
“Morning.” Koichi was still a bit tired from his late-night excursion. As he sat up and stretched, he felt the heavy purse at his waist.
It hadn’t been a dream.
Haruki straightened her hair and twisted it into an elegant style with an ease that amazed him. “So, where do we go first?”
Koichi scratched his chin. “I think I know a place.”
He already had all the information and money he needed.
They could leave any time.
But he had one thing he had to take care of first.
His promise. After all, Koichi was an honorable man. That was something no one had been able to take from him.
Luckily, he’d seen a kimono shop on their way into town, and it wasn’t far. If he lived an eternity, he’d never forget the look on Haruki’s face when she realized he was staying true to their agreement.
“Thank you, Koichi-san! Thank you!” Gushing, she left him and Ryuichi-kage outside while she went in to get her new kimono.
Ryuichi-kage wasn’t as amused. “We’re going to be here all day.”
“It won’t take her that long.”
He stared at Koichi as if he were as drunk as he’d intended to be the night before. “You haven’t done this much, have you?”
“Have you?”
“Apparently more than you. I know how long women take.”
Koichi didn’t believe him.
Three hours later, he was writhing in agony.
Just as he walked into the store to pull Haruki out, she emerged dressed in a bright blue kimono.
Koichi barely recognized her. Not just because she truly looked like royalty, but because the joyfulness she was clearly feeling made her features even more beautiful.
“How do I look?” she asked him.
He felt the heat rising in his cheeks. Koichi cleared his throat. “I guess you look fine.”
Her eyes brightened. “I must look amazing for you to say something so kind.”
Haruki adjusted the kimono while Koichi counted out coins. “How much do I owe you?” he asked the store owner, an old spider yōkai with wobbling legs.
“Nothing.”
Koichi was stunned by his words. “Nothing? Has business been so good you’re giving kimonos away for free now?”
The yōkai sighed heavily. “Unfortunately, the opposite. We’ll be closing soon. My daughter has been sick. We finally found a doctor who can help her, but it cost us everything we had for the treatment. We can’t afford this little old place anymore.”
Koichi felt terrible for the creature. “That’s horrible.”
Haruki was on the verge of tears. “Oh, Shiragumo-san. I’m so sorry.”