It took some serious navigating, a lot of cursing, and even me flipping some people off before we even got out of the alley. Apparently, people didn’t understand what a middle finger held high meant, because whenever I flipped someone off, they only stared at me. I wondered what was considered rude gestures here in this world if flipping the bird meant nothing. Maybe the Italian hand under chin wave thing? I don’t know, but anyway…

  The problem was the pure amount of traffic going by and the length of my wagon. Most of the carts people were using were maybe a yard long? Possibly five feet? My shit may as well have been an actual fifty three foot trailer trying to cut through some small town on Route 9 in the Catskills of New York. Which, speaking of, I’ve done before. It isn’t fun and you get some nasty stares.

  People here were like people everywhere else on the road. Their business mattered more than yours and fuck you for needing them to hold up a minute so you could get out of this alley and get on the primary thoroughfare. Once we did finally get out, everything was fairly easy. The corners in the city were wide enough to make the turns with a little maneuvering and easing Betsy to go slow.

  The delivery was just on the other side of town and was fairly straightforward. It turned out it was in a smaller more niche market than the last one I delivered in. Seemed like this market was more driven towards cultivator needs. Instead of the stalls and warehouse type buildings, this market row seemed to be actual shops. It actually kind of reminded me of some of the downtown shopping areas in the smaller towns in Upstate NY. This street could have easily been in Lake Placid, only without all the bobsledding and winter Olympic stuff.

  Everything I stopped to look at was super nice and expensive. I also felt the power some of it radiated. Well, I wasn’t sure what I felt from some products, but there was something about them. There was a sword I took a long look at while some people off loaded the alchemist’s crates. A wooden scabbard lay next to the sword, which was propped up longways in a display case. That feeling of power seemed especially to emanate from it. The neat thing was that the blade was a sleek, deep black. It looked like if you could meld the shadows into a blade, it’d make this.

  “Ahhh, you like the looks of the Soul Reaper, eh?”

  I blinked and looked up and saw a tall, slender man approach from the back of the stall. He looked like the studious sort, even wore thin rimmed round glasses. Small goatee and black hair he had done in a top-knot unlike most of the merchants I had met so far. He didn’t seem to be a blacksmith, but he definitely gave off the impression that he had something to do with the creation of this blade.

  I smirked for a second at the name. “Soul Reaper?”

  I couldn’t hide my ridicule at the name, even though I tried. I didn’t know anything about swords, but it appeared well-crafted. Definitely looked better than most of the mall ninja shit you saw on Reddit anyway, even if the name fit right in. I’m not sure Reddit was a good benchmark, anyway.

  The slightly curved blade was a deep, sleek, flawless black. It was so deep of a black that I seemed to almost lose myself while I stared at it. I could almost feel my vision shrouding in shadows as I stared. I had to blink and force myself to look away. A grey cloth wrapped the handle, providing ample space for a two-handed grip, and the guard matched the fabric. Nothing seemed especially powerful about the scabbard, but it was polished black wood.

  He frowned at my reaction. “It’s a blade from the shadows. Kenji himself would be happy to wield this sword. It was forged by what might be the best Arcanist in the lands, Silas Zhao. When it strikes a cultivator, it diminishes their ability to use their own spirit in battle.” He sounded indignant.

  I smiled and nodded. “That is neat,” I said, simply not knowing who Kenji was. He must have been some sort of a lord? “I’m sure he would love it.” I nodded my head and continued. “It is a beautiful blade.”

  The man seemed to regain some of his confidence and smiled at me.

  “Unfortunately, I don’t think I’m much of a fighter. I’d never be able to use your sword properly. I’m a simple transporter, a wagoneer if you will,” I said and raised a hand at him.

  “But you’re a…” The shopkeeper looked at my stomach and squinted his eyes. I felt a…. I’m not sure… It felt like a cold breeze swept over me. “You’re a cultivator, aren’t you? Albeit an odd one. What element do you cultivate? I haven’t…”

  “Oh uh,” I interrupted him with a raised palm. “I’m not from around here. We did things a little differently back home.”

  He looked back at my face with my very pale features, brown hair, and green eyes. If that wasn’t enough to say I wasn’t clearly from around this country, the long hair I wore down, and the thick rimmed punk glasses I wore really sold it.

  “Obviously,” he said flatly.

  I frowned and shrugged. “Anyway, that’s why I seem… uh… Odd.”

  He nodded as if that explained everything. “Yes, I’ve heard cultivators can be very different depending on the country you’re from. I heard the ones on the Western continent, Illian, cultivate animal spirits?”

  This piqued my interest, but before I could reply, someone called and interrupted me.

  “Maikeru, we’re done!”

  I looked back to where the voice was calling me from before refocusing my attention on the shopkeeper. “Anyway, thank you for your time. It is a beautiful weapon.” I even gave the man a soft bow.

  He smiled and returned the bow to me. “Have a good day Maikeru. If you ever need any spiritual weapons, look me up. My name is Soma Hirasuke and I’m usually here or at one of the auction houses around the Empire. Safe travels.”

  Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

  “Thank you, have a good day,” I said to him before I turned and left the shop. Before I could turn and walk away, the shopkeeper looked back at me like he had an idea.

  “Actually, you said you transport things?”

  I nodded at him. “Yeah, anything that’ll fit on my wagon that the person can’t get there themselves I’ll take,” I explained.

  The shopkeeper stroked his chin and nodded his head. “Come back when you’re done. I might have some things you can take to the capital for me?”

  I nodded enthusiastically. “Absolutely. I shouldn’t be gone too long.”

  “Excellent,” he said to me as I left the shop.

  I went a few shops away where I delivered the alchemist crates and found someone who could have been Moritoshi’s brother. The same narrowed jaw and sniveling look he gave me. He smiled though, so he was already nicer to me than Niku’s master was. “Thank you for getting this stuff here so quickly.”

  We were in the entryway to the shop, which I was thankful for. I had gone in when I first arrived and the place was a cluttered workshop. Half full beakers and vials with some open flames here and there and stuff boiling away. There were also the racks of glass supplies and various other expensive looking equipment. My clumsy ass would end up owing a small fortune after one wrong step.

  I reached out and took the small coin purse he held out to me. I opened it and looked inside. Instead of the copper coins I was expecting. Instead, there were seven silver coins that matched the copper ones. The etchings looked to be the same and there was still a hole in the middle. Besides that, there were five golden coins that didn’t have the hole in the middle and instead had the Emperor’s crest on them. When I looked back up at the alchemist, he was sneering at me.

  “I’m sure you’ll find it all there.”

  I tied the bag shut right away and nodded my head. He made my mistake more than obvious, and I nodded. “Yes, sorry. I’m new and I love the coins you guys use here. They’re amazing.”

  The man sniffed and stared at me while he put his hands on his hips. “Yes, well. We have work to do since you brought us all this equipment and supplies,” he said as he looked past me at the door.

  Recognizing my dismissal, I smile and nod at the man. “Alrighty, thank you, have a good day,” I told him before I turned and left the shop.

  I stopped to look in some random shops while I went back over to the weapon seller. There was even a bakery. I hadn’t realized I was so hungry until I stepped in and the various scents of fresh dough and cinnamon hit my nostrils. The bakery had a few tables out front with some people sitting there enjoying tea and baked goods.

  My eyes went right to the display case just past the tables. They had all kinds of confectionaries and buns and breads, and my stomach gave a loud gurgle. I wasn’t in the shop long. Just long enough to make pleasantries with the older woman in checkered pants and white apron and covered with flour, with a dab of chocolate on her face. Also, long enough to get a small sack full of things that looked delightful.

  I ate this treat they called dango off a stick. It comprised three little balls on a stick that was some kind of rice flour wrapped in… mochi? I wasn’t really sure what it was, but it was delicious. In my bag I had a sweet bun, and something called a dorayaki. Some people who were eating in the shop assured me I would enjoy both. Finally, for Betsy, I got these rice crackers they called Senbei. I wasn’t sure if oxen liked sweet treats or breads, so rice crackers seemed like a safe bet.

  Upon my return to the weapon shop, I finished the treat on the stick and returned the stick to the bag.

  “Ah, you found Mama Koga’s shop. She’s a wonderful lady. Some of the best baked goods you’ll find in the city,” he said with a smile.

  I smiled and nodded. “Yeah, the things on a stick were great. Do you want a bu -”

  Before I finished offering breakfast, the man shook his head and rubbed his stomach. “No, thank you, though. I eat little until late afternoon.”

  I cocked an eyebrow. Did he call me fat? I know he was thin like a stick and I was a little more round, but that seemed a little uncalled for. “Alright then. So anyway,” I shrugged it off. I’m sure I misunderstood what he said because everyone here was far more slender than myself.

  “You said you had a job for me?”

  The man nodded enthusiastically. “Yes! If you’re interested in going to Yoshino?”

  I shrugged. I knew Yoshino was the capital city of the Empire and I had seen the location on a map. It was quite a bit further of a journey than it was to get here from Sunjin, but that just meant I’d make more. I hoped.

  “Excellent, excellent. In the heart of Yoshino, there’s a little tea house known as Karyu Tea House. It shouldn’t be too hard for you to find. It’s right down the street from the arena where they do the sumo tournaments,” Hirasuke explained to me.

  It took me a minute to catch up, but my eyes got wide. “There’s sumo here?!”

  The man took a step back and cocked a brow. He looked at me, well; he looked at me like I was an idiot. “Yes, of course. Do they have sumo where you come from?”

  I got wide eyed and searched for an explanation. “Oh, uh, sort of. I’m sure it’s different. Nevermind that, anyway, yes. I’m sure I’ll be able to find it.”

  His brow remained lifted, and he looked me over dubiously while he crossed his arms against his chest.

  Oh yeah, that’s it. I blew it. No job for me. Well, maybe I can go back and see Niku again and those guys.

  It took him a minute, but he relaxed his posture and shrugged. “Well, good. I’m sending along some things they use in their tea ceremonies when they entertain cultivators.”

  “Oh, your work isn’t limited to weapons?” I asked.

  He shook his head and once more looked at me like I was an idiot. “No, of course not. I’d be in the shacks with the poor if I did that. I sell many enchanted and magical things,” he nodded.

  “Anyway, it’s too bad there won’t be a sumo tournament going on while you’re there. After what happened last week, I don’t know if there will be any more sumo tournaments at all,” he said with a sigh.

  He continued the story when I questioned him. “Oh, you must be very new to the Empire, huh? Well,” he paused and put a finger under his chin in thought. “Now, mind you, I’m not really into the sport. The sumotori and cultivators don’t really get along.”

  Well, we’ll have to unpack that more later. Right now I want the gossip, I thought to myself.

  “It seems that one of the Masters of a popular Beya was really a kami. The lightning kami himself, god of honor and single combat, Kentaro,” he said finally. “Anyway, he appeared and became erratic and attacked, unleashing lightning or something within the arena. I’m not too sure about the details but, that’s what I’ve heard,” he said and watched me.

  That must have been what that skeleton was talking about back at the Lying Lily. I frowned and tried to recall what the supposed god said to me. The details were fuzzy now that I tried to think about it and recall what he said. Was it a skeleton god I was talking to that night? I shook the thought away. The more I tried to think about it, the less I seemed to remember.

  I just stood there not sure what to do or say so I just looked at him wide eyed and he nodded. “Yes,” he said simply as if that was the exact response he was expecting. “Anyway, let’s get you going.”

  Patreon

  Discord and start a conversation.