Category: I Am a Devil, I Only Understand Transactions

Chapter 18: Scammer?

“This is…” Yukinoshita Haruno looked around at the layout of the izakaya.

The decoration was not bad, and the owner was dressed quite strangely.

Did her mother call her here to drink?

She shook her head and walked up to her mother, whispering, “Mother, have you thought of a solution?”

She could understand coming to a place like this to drink late at night.

Who knew how many tabloid reporters were staking out near their home, and how many acquaintances with fake smiles they might see at those decent restaurants, wanting to devour them.

This world was too real, so real that Haruno’s heart was filled with weariness.

This year’s stock market was too strange, too strange for her to accept.

In addition, the construction industry was also in a slump, and the family business had plummeted.

If they couldn’t get past this hurdle, the Yukinoshita family would cease to exist.

“Haruno, are you willing to give everything for the family?” Yukinoshita Saori looked at Yukinoshita Haruno solemnly.

Luo Feng sized up Haruno and placed his right index finger on his temple, starting to listen to Haruno’s inner thoughts.

‘Give everything for the family? What does that mean? Get married?’

‘Mother shouldn’t be that naive. Even if she really uses me as a bargaining chip and marries me off to some family’s young master, it might just be a chess piece for them.’

‘After marrying me and injecting capital, there’s still a high probability of them swallowing up the Yukinoshita family. At that time, it won’t just be my life that’s lost.’

‘It’s really annoying to socialize with those people, but I have to do it. If I don’t, it’ll be my sister’s turn, right? I can only shoulder her share too.’

‘Sigh… unfortunately, the Hiratsuka family can’t be of much help either. Today, it was actually my sister who went to ask. I’m really derelict in my duty.’

Her soul wasn’t as pure as Ginko Sora’s, but rather turbid like Yukinoshita Saori’s.

However, Yukinoshita Saori’s soul leaned towards evil, while this Yukinoshita Haruno’s soul leaned towards good.

Yukinoshita Saori’s mind only had her own family and the family’s educational principles, while Yukinoshita Haruno’s soul carried a hint of kindness, kindness towards her sister.

This girl is actually a siscon, right?

Unfortunately, the souls of these two were not the special kind like Ginko Sora’s. They could only be in a state of barely passing.

After obtaining their souls, they would either become the foundation of hell, become working souls, or become his subordinates…

As subordinates, they would all be in a barely qualified state, not suitable to become collectibles or to serve him.

“Who promised you that they can inject capital?” Yukinoshita Haruno shook her head. “How much stake do they want? Dry shares or what, will they participate in decision-making or not?”

“He is willing to save our family. None of these costs are needed. What is needed is our souls.” Yukinoshita Saori said softly.

“Mother, did you go to a fortune-teller?” Yukinoshita Haruno almost laughed out loud. “You don’t believe those scammers, do you? What, do you want to put me on an altar and sacrifice me?”

In the past, she was very respectful of her mother, but that was based on the Yukinoshita family being in a normal state.

Now that things had become chaotic and it was still unknown whether the family would survive or not, Haruno could no longer listen to her mother in everything.

“I know you have some doubts, but… why care about things after death?” Yukinoshita Saori said in a deep voice. “As long as you’re willing, just try it. There’s no loss in trying.”

“Alright, how do I pay?” Yukinoshita Haruno felt that she should take her mother to see a psychiatrist. Had she become like this because the pressure was too great now?

“Just sign a contract.” Luo Feng rubbed his temple. “Saving your family, just some funds will do, right? The souls of you two, they’re barely passable. Plus one more condition, this Miss Yukinoshita serves me for ten years. That’ll do.”

Yukinoshita Haruno turned back with an icy face, looking at Luo Feng as if she were looking at a charlatan.

Souls and such, they’re just empty talk, right?

What he really wanted was those so-called ten years of service, right?

Ten years of service, how could she not understand what that meant? He probably wanted her to be his mistress for ten years. What a great plan!

Even if he didn’t have the ability, or if he used some method to seemingly want to invest and then withdraw, she might have to sleep with him for a while.

“I don’t know what you told my mother, and I don’t know if you’re a hypnosis expert or an ordinary scammer.” Yukinoshita Haruno said, “My sister is a police inspector. Even if our family has encountered some mishaps now, not just anyone can scam us.”

“Haruno!” Yukinoshita Saori immediately interrupted Haruno’s words.

Haruno turned her head, unwilling to back down as she stared at her mother.

“Mother, you’re drunk. Let’s go home.” Haruno said softly.

“I’m not drunk.” Yukinoshita Saori nodded firmly. “I’ve seen his magic with my own eyes…”

“Magic tricks?” Yukinoshita Haruno sneered. “He might be sent by another family. You should know that other families definitely won’t be so kind-hearted. At this time, they will certainly use all sorts of methods…”

“If you don’t believe it, how about a bet?” Luo Feng smiled. “If you lose, you do a striptease on the spot?”

“Heh.” Yukinoshita Haruno turned around and stared at the scammer in front of her. “I don’t know how you’ll trick me, and I indeed don’t have the ability to see through magic tricks. But I know you can’t be trusted, and that’s enough.”

Luo Feng pointed in the air, and two paper contracts appeared out of thin air, flying in front of the mother and daughter.

“If you don’t believe it, sign it.” Luo Feng said.

“Holographic projection, or are there wires connected to it? It’s indeed quite amazing.” Yukinoshita Haruno stood up and swiped her small hand over it, feeling a bit surprised.

What’s going on? No wires?

She touched the contract and felt as if the contract didn’t exist.

“Hiss…”

Haruno quickly withdrew her hand. When she touched her mother’s contract, her hand felt as if it had been scalded.

“Scammers nowadays really go all out to trick people.” Yukinoshita Haruno said, “But that’s to be expected. If scammers didn’t have some skills, how would they dare to come out and scam people? Let’s talk about reporting this to the police tomorrow. Mother, let’s go. We haven’t reached a dead end yet. I’ll activate my funds and sell the house and car. We can still hold on for another month. There might be a chance to turn things around.”

“Haruno, we can’t hold on.” Yukinoshita Saori’s eyes were a bit complex. “With two circuit breakers in two days, do you still dare to believe in hope?”

“Stay steady. It’ll warm up. I refuse to believe it can trip the circuit breaker a third time.” Haruno said firmly.

“This…” Yukinoshita Saori had a bit of a headache. If she had known, she should have come tomorrow and talked to her properly before bringing her here.

Now Haruno’s wings had hardened, and it was a bit hard to suppress her.

“Don’t worry.” Luo Feng smiled. “My place always welcomes your arrival. I uphold the principle of fairness and voluntariness here and won’t force you.”

It’s just that the next time you come, the price might not be the same.

Right now, their family still had a chance to turn the tables in a desperate situation. The more time passed, the smaller the hope of turning things around.

Naturally, the price here would also rise.

Chapter 17: The Price

“What can I offer?” Yukinoshita Saori tightly clenched her small hands as she silently looked at Luo Feng.

Money? If she had money, or if the stocks hadn’t suffered such losses, she would still have some assets.

But would a devil need money?

Wait, was she really going to make a deal with a devil?

Stories, TV shows, and movies about devils were everywhere, but without exception, they all talked about how terrifying the devil’s traps were.

However, all of these had one premise: that the devil could really fulfill people’s wishes, even if he wanted more in return.

For Yukinoshita Saori, her family was the most important. She didn’t want the Yukinoshita family to fall apart in her hands.

In the past few days, she had already tasted the coldness of human relationships and didn’t want to live like this anymore. She wanted to be as glorious as before.

“Soul, lifespan.” Luo Feng shook his head. “Unfortunately, your own soul and lifespan aren’t valuable enough to save your family.”

“That person just now…” Yukinoshita Saori opened her mouth.

The young man from earlier had become a rich second-generation just by offering his soul.

“Your family’s assets are quite different.” Luo Feng showed a delighted smile.

Yukinoshita Saori nodded, temporarily accepting this reason.

“Then… what if I include my daughters?” Yukinoshita Saori probed.

To be honest, she didn’t believe in things like souls before. She also didn’t know how terrifying it was to sell one’s soul to the devil.

However, this didn’t stop her from making promises with her soul because ignorance had caused countless people to fall into the devil’s traps.

Once the soul belonged to the devil, it meant that the soul would never have a next life and its existence would belong to hell.

The lucky souls might become the devil’s subordinates, while the normal ones would be constantly tortured, their suffering refined to become the foundation of hell.

Or they would be like those hellish programmers, living a life of being exploited and overworked day and night, adding bricks and tiles to hell’s happiness.

In hell, 97% were working, serving the 3% who were demons and devils.

And Luo Feng was one of those 3% being served.

“Then I’ll have to see if they’re worth it.” Luo Feng shook his head. “If their souls are full of sin or very pure, then they’ll have high value. If they’re just mediocre souls, their value will be a bit low.”

As he spoke, Luo Feng showed a delighted smile. “So, you should pray that your education has produced good daughters. Don’t try to let others exchange with their souls. You have no right to make those who aren’t blood-related pay with their souls. Even for your daughters, you can only let them willingly offer their soul imprints.”

“I have photos of my daughters…”

“That’s meaningless.” Luo Feng said indifferently. “No matter how beautiful the appearance is, it’s just an appearance. What I want is the soul. Only if the soul is beautiful enough can it be qualified to serve the devil. Only if the soul is evil enough can it eternally sink in hell and become the source of hell’s power.”

“I understand. I’ll have my daughters come visit.” Yukinoshita Saori took a deep breath. “May I ask if this deal can be made at any time?”

“I don’t mind.” Luo Feng spread his hands. “As long as you think your family can hold on, you can come back next year too.”

Yukinoshita Saori pondered.

Based on the current cash flow, plus the fact that everyone was kicking them while they were down, it would be a blessing if they could last a month.

Although the older daughter had been trying to find a way, there were definitely more enemies than friends at this time. Too many people were waiting for them to die so they could divide up the Yukinoshita family.

In such matters, one couldn’t trust friendship.

“If there’s nothing else, just stay here and continue drinking.” Luo Feng stood up. “As I said before, this meal is on me.”

“Thank you…” Yukinoshita Saori responded cautiously.

She wanted her two daughters to come now and let Luo Feng inspect them, but it was so late…

Thinking of this, she decisively took out her phone and started making calls.

“Hello, Haruno(1)? Where are you?”

“Phew… I just got home. He’s not willing to invest…”

“I understand. Come find me now.”

“It’s so late…”

“I have a way. Just come first and we’ll talk.”

“Okay, got it.”

“Hello, Yukino, where are you? Come find me.”

“I’m not in Chiba.”

“What did you go do? When will you be back?”

“Attending Ms. Hiratsuka’s wedding. She married a… I guess you could say a friend of mine.”

“Then while you’re at it, talk to Ms. Hiratsuka about our family’s recent…”

“I already asked. Ms. Hiratsuka is powerless. At most, she can lend me some money in her personal capacity, but it’s not nearly enough to make up for it.”

Beep, beep.

Yukinoshita Saori put down her phone with a gloomy expression. Have your wings hardened?

Luo Feng returned behind the counter and continued watching the news. After a while, he found it boring and started watching anime instead.

Speaking of which, why hasn’t Hunter x Hunter been updated yet? Should he lower the author’s gambling luck and make him run out of money so he’ll come update it himself? And the author of Black Bullet seems to like playing the stock market too, right? Should he tempt him to buy some US stocks?

Luo Feng shook his head. It seemed like even without his influence, they would fall into the trap.

Just then, a message popped up on his computer.

Luo Feng took a glance and immediately started laughing.

The programmers in hell were really useful. He had only stated the requirements, and they had made it so quickly.

He just didn’t know how many programmers had become the foundation of hell because they were too slow or for other reasons.

With this app developed, how many people would receive the devil’s favor and then willingly sell their souls to obtain the benefits they wanted?

I’m really the kindest devil, solving the wishing problems of so many people at once.

Luo Feng opened the app with an emulator and also issued a new command to develop a PC version.

He browsed through it bit by bit. The software was like a normal one, with the name “Seven Deadly Sins,” and the introduction stated that any transaction could be made on it.

As long as humans were willing to make a wish, Luo Feng would propose conditions. If they agreed, they could receive what Luo Feng granted, and then Luo Feng would collect the corresponding payment through the software.

Compared to the previous computer operation, it was a bit simpler and didn’t require Luo Feng to actively seek people out.

Just as Luo Feng was playing with this software, a woman entered through the door.

She had light red eyes and short gray hair dyed red at the ends. She was wearing a small suit and had an impeccable smile on her face.

Luo Feng could tell that her smile was fake, like a mask.

---

Character from the anime : Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Come wa Machigatteiru

Yukinoshita Haruno:

Chapter 16: Trapping Three in One Go

“You…” The young man was furious, tightly gripping the knife in his hand. He wanted to pull it out and stab Luo Feng, but found that he still couldn’t move.

Now, his mind was filled with thoughts of “three times in one night”.

The woman he loved the most, his only spiritual sustenance, was had three times in one night by someone else!

“You want to fight a devil?” A playful smile appeared on Luo Feng’s face. “You don’t even have the courage to kill him, yet you want to kill me?”

“What exactly do you want?” The young man growled.

“I want to give you a chance. I can swap you with him and turn that person into you.”

“What’s the price?” The young man’s mind recalled countless movie scenes. Those who made deals with devils never had a good ending.

“You serve me after death.” Luo Feng’s whisper sounded in the young man’s ear. “It’s a matter after death. Do you want to live this life steadily, or do you want to pursue the illusory next life? You should know, the current you has nothing of value to trade, only your soul.”

“What if I don’t accept?” Cold sweat flowed down the young man’s head.

“If you don’t accept, then I’ll leave.” Luo Feng stood up, lowered his hat brim, and looked back at him with a smile. “You know, there are too many people willing to make a deal. I won’t waste too much time on you. To me, your soul is dispensable.”

“I accept!” The young man gritted his teeth.

He didn’t hesitate for long. Luo Feng didn’t give him time to hesitate at all.

He wasn’t as gentle with him as he was with Ginko Sora. He was too ugly and a man.

“Sign the contract.”

As Luo Feng spoke, a contract appeared in front of the two.

“You still have room for choice now. If you want to sign, just press your handprint.” Luo Feng smiled, not caring whether he signed or not.

The young man decisively pressed his handprint on the contract and then fainted.

Snap!

With another snap of his fingers, Luo Feng and the woman appeared in a luxury car.

The driver was a handsome young man, and the passenger was a girl with a very pure look.

“Nanaka?” The young man’s hands were trembling slightly.

“What’s wrong?” The girl looked at the young man.

“Nothing.” A somewhat evil smile appeared on the young man’s face.

Luo Feng placed his right index finger on the woman’s temple. She could now hear the young man’s inner thoughts.

This guy seemed to have a lot of women, and there were quite a few he had seduced but hadn’t touched yet.

I have his life now?

Nanaka is nothing, just a played-out piece of trash.

I want to…

Luo Feng withdrew his finger.

The woman had a look of disdain. This young man didn’t really like his childhood friend but was just lusting after her body. Despicable!

Snap!

Luo Feng snapped his fingers again, and he and the woman disappeared from the car.

At this moment, the young man could no longer restrain his primal urges. He just wanted to find another hotel and have three more rounds with Nanaka first, indulge himself, and then cruelly abandon her!

Or directly in the car? It was his first time riding in such a luxury car!

The corner of his mouth curved into a delightful smile.

But just then, a large truck came rushing towards them.

The young man widened his eyes and quickly turned the steering wheel, but the truck seemed to follow him like a shadow, crashing into his car…

Time rewound to an hour ago.

It was the same car, the same scene.

Because they couldn’t avoid the truck, the car fell off a cliff.

Fortunately, both people were still alive, hanging on by a thread.

However, this soul had not been swapped yet.

Just as the two were in despair, a man wearing a trench coat walked up to them.

They were about to cry for help when the man in the trench coat spoke, “Want to live? Two souls can save one person. Exchanging two souls for the chance of one person to live is very fair.”

…

Luo Feng and the woman were now back in the izakaya.

This transaction was simple. He had already obtained the souls of the rich second-generation and the woman. In the end, the one who gained the right to survive was the rich second-generation.

Of course, this was under his guidance. Otherwise, in order to live, people couldn’t do anything. He didn’t want to make a losing deal.

Then, coincidentally, this woman came to him. Even if she hadn’t come, Luo Feng would have gone to find that unlucky bastard.

He did indeed swap the rich second-generation’s life, but he became the rich second-generation’s scapegoat.

And that rich second-generation would be reborn in his body.

The rich second-generation was a guy who only knew how to chase girls and gamble. How could he endure the life of a poor boy? Who knew when he would die.

It wasn’t that he had no other abilities. The rich second-generation had received an elite education, and he wasn’t completely useless. But for him to make use of those abilities required a prerequisite: startup funds, connections, etc.

He didn’t have these, so he couldn’t fully utilize his skills.

In the end, because of a car accident, Luo Feng saved one and obtained the souls of two people.

That poor boy…

He was simply tricked by Luo Feng.

However, when making a deal with the devil, one had to be prepared for this kind of outcome.

The devil’s terms were extremely tempting but also full of various traps.

In Raphi’s words, Luo Feng was a true devil with no bottom line.

He casually took the life of an innocent person without any guilt.

Luo Feng added the souls of the poor boy and his childhood friend to the holy water he poured for himself, extracting the sins from their bodies.

Human sins, paired with holy water from the Vatican, were a rare delicacy.

Luo Feng picked up the holy water and downed it in one gulp.

Originally, it was just strong alcohol, but now it had flavor, like liquor mixed with a beverage.

Now, this poor boy and his childhood friend were truly together, only to be sent to hell to do endless work unless one day they could become devils like Luo Feng.

Unfortunately, becoming a devil was even harder than becoming an angel. It was simpler to be a brainless demon.

“How about it, beautiful lady? Do you believe in my ability now?” Luo Feng said softly. “In this world, there is nothing that cannot be exchanged. You see, that person used his afterlife in advance to obtain pleasure in this life.”

“What do you want? As long as it can save my family, I’m willing to give anything.”

The woman became exceptionally submissive, completely losing her previous arrogance.

Actually, compared to those immature guys, people like her were more terrifying because they could endure and dared to gamble.

In one second, she could look down on you with a condescending gaze, and in the next second, she could be gentle and agreeable for the sake of profit.

“What is your family called?” The corner of Luo Feng’s mouth curved into a delighted smile. “Also, what kind of bargaining chip can you offer?”

“My name is Saori Yukinoshita(1)*, of the Chiba Yukinoshita family…”

---

Character from the anime : Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Come wa Machigatteiru

Saori Yukinoshita:

 

Chapter 15: Three Times in One Night

“No friends.” The woman shook her head lightly. “Menu… this one, this one, and this one. These three items, and a bottle of sake.”

Those influential folks, seeing that I’m down on my luck, would rather stay far away from me.

“Then you should still have family, right? Husband, son, daughter?” Luo Feng glanced at the menu. They were all very basic snacks.

He walked over to the cooking area and started preparing the dishes for the woman.

She was the first person to enjoy Luo Feng’s cooking skills. She should feel honored.

“My husband? He’s in the ICU(Intensive Care Unit at Hospitals).” The woman shook her head.

“What happened to your husband?” Luo Feng was a little curious.

Your husband is in the ICU, and you still have the mood to come out for a drink? You’re quite bold.

“Heh, he lost big in the stock market. The family’s funds couldn’t be turned over, so he directly fainted from anger.” The woman sneered. “As for my daughters… the older daughter is running around everywhere, trying to find a way; the younger daughter is like she has no heart. After becoming a police inspector, she only thinks about solving cases and can’t help with any family matters at all.”

This year’s stock market was like it had seen a ghost. It wasn’t just her family that was hit hard.

“How old is your younger daughter?” Seeing that the woman was very talkative, Luo Feng couldn’t help but chat with her.

“She graduated from university less than a year ago.” The woman shook her head. “Let’s not talk about her. I just want to come and have some peace and quiet. Please don’t disturb me.”

This woman must have been a beauty when she was young. Just didn’t know what her two daughters were like.

Luo Feng took three dishes and walked to the woman, also opening a bottle of good wine for her. “This meal is on me.”

“Even if my family goes bankrupt, it’s not something an izakaya can compare to.” The woman’s eyes turned cold.

“That’s true.” Luo Feng poured the wine for her. “You’re a rare customer in my store. Actually, I can help customers solve any difficulty here, as long as you have a need.”

“Any difficulty?” The woman sneered. “Can you save the stock market?”

“How do you know you can’t if you don’t try?” Luo Feng stood up and smiled. “I don’t know if you’d like to see a good show.”

“What good show?” The woman frowned slightly.

Luo Feng stretched out his right hand.

Snap!

The sound of a finger snap rang out.

The woman felt a moment of dizziness. When she reappeared, she was already on the street late at night.

There weren’t many people on the street. In a dark corner, a young man was drinking alone.

He had one hand in his pocket and the other holding a bottle of sake.

The woman felt that this young man was very repressed.

Suddenly, she discovered that she couldn’t move. This feeling greatly shocked her.

Why? Why can’t I move?

She was like a puppet on strings, only able to follow Luo Feng’s movements.

No, isn’t it strange that we suddenly appeared on the street?

“Why, why does he have so much money without having to work hard, and why do I have nothing?”

The young man was muttering, “Damn it, Nanaka just got together with him like that. Is it because he has money?”

He gulped down a big mouthful of sake.

He sat on a step, dazed, not knowing what he was thinking.

“Young man, you need salvation.” Luo Feng sat down beside him, smiling as he looked at him. “Is there anything you want?”

The woman followed beside Luo Feng, like his maidservant.

Various possibilities flashed through the woman’s mind. Were there really people with special abilities in this world? Or was it a god? A ghost?

Who exactly was he?

“Who are you?” The young man instantly became alert.

The woman found that the young man seemed unable to see her.

“Who I am isn’t important.” A kind smile appeared on Luo Feng’s face. “Your childhood friend went off with someone else. Have you never thought that she might really only see you as a brother?”

“Impossible!” The young man said firmly. “I’ve been so good to her. She said she would marry me when we grew up!”

“You looked pretty good when you were young, but when you grew up… to be honest, you’re quite ugly.” Luo Feng patted his shoulder. “Your childhood friend likes money and looks, not you.”

The young man opened his mouth and glared at Luo Feng. “Believe it or not, I’ll beat you up.”

She… indeed had a bit of an excessive pursuit of brand names and fashion, but that definitely wasn’t her being shallow, just a normal pursuit of quality of life.

“I don’t believe it.” Luo Feng’s gaze looked towards the street with sparse pedestrian traffic. “You’re drinking to gather courage and even brought a knife. Are you planning to threaten her with suicide to choose you, or are you planning to go kill that man? Or kill that woman? You won’t want to cause trouble at this time.”

“You, what are you talking about? I don’t understand!” The young man was shocked.

“Tsk, people ah, at times like this, it’s easy to go to extremes, especially young people like you. When you’re older, you’ll know it’s not worth it.” Luo Feng was like an excellent elder, giving the young man guidance. “You envy his life. Do you want to become him?”

The young man secretly gripped the knife in his pocket and asked vigilantly, “Become him? What do you mean?”

“You live his life. Are you willing?” Luo Feng showed a smile again. “How about it? This choice is quite a bargain, right? You can possess everything he has. That handsome appearance, gentle personality, and you can become the only son of that department store owner. Drive a luxury car, sleep with beautiful women. As long as you don’t spend money recklessly, you can live comfortably until the end of your life.”

“No matter how you look at it, this life is much better than your current life. Your mother died in an accident last year. Your father ignores you and drinks every day. There’s not much savings at home. You just graduated from high school and have to work three jobs every day to support the family. The only childhood friend who was good to you went off with someone else.”

“Is it possible?” The young man’s face darkened. “How could I possibly have his life?”

“I can give you room for choice.” Luo Feng pointed in front of him, and time in the entire world seemed to stop. “I’m a devil, a devil who can grant your wishes. I can do much more than you imagine.”

“Devil?” The young man sobered up a bit. He wanted to get away from Luo Feng but found that he couldn’t do it.

Devil?

Cold sweat flowed down the woman’s head.

There are really devils in this world?

How is that possible!

When bad luck strikes, can you even choke on cold water?

I was just casually strolling and walked into a devil’s store?

Snap!

Luo Feng snapped his fingers, and time in the world resumed its normal flow.

In a daze, the young man seemed to see his lovely childhood friend entering a love hotel, laughing and talking with a handsome guy.

After going in, they got a room. Then the woman took a shower first, and the man went in to shower together.

He wanted to keep watching, but he found that he couldn’t see anything anymore. The scene returned to the current one.

“This was the scene three hours ago. Your childhood friend was slept with.” Luo Feng said softly. “Three times in one night.”

Chapter 14: The Angel’s Disadvantage

“That’s the devil’s ability. We angels don’t use such things to tempt people to fall.” Raphi shook her head.

“So you’re saying this talent is real, and he can really permanently enhance my talent?”

“Yes, it’s real.” Raphi frowned slightly. She had a bad feeling.

“Making a deal with the devil requires paying a great price. Don’t fall into the devil’s trap. They will make your life a mess.”

“What are the terms of your deal? Don’t just consider what you think. Consider the deeper meaning.”

“For example, if he says the condition is ten years of your life, it might not be taking away ten years of your life but possibly leaving you with only ten years to live.”

Looking at Raphi, Ginko Sora always felt that this angel didn’t seem as capable as Luo Feng.

It was a woman’s intuition because Luo Feng gave her the feeling of being omnipotent, appearing and disappearing mysteriously, and possibly showing up anywhere at any time.

Moreover, when she was talking about Luo Feng and her deal, she didn’t know for sure what the deal entailed but was giving examples.

Now two things could be confirmed. The first was that everything Luo Feng promised her was real, not just talk. He could really enhance her, not just temporarily.

The second point was that even if Luo Feng was a devil, he couldn’t do whatever he wanted. He had to follow the rules of the deal. This made her breathe a sigh of relief.

Previously, she was afraid that Luo Feng would force her regardless of anything. Since he couldn’t force her, she was relieved.

No matter what happened in the end, it was her own choice.

“The terms of our deal… I won’t make a deal with him.” Ginko Sora shook her head.

“Young lady, you are wavering.” Raphi said seriously, “There’s really no benefit in making a deal with the devil. He’s a true devil with no mercy.”

“I’m not wavering!” Ginko Sora said firmly, “I definitely won’t make a deal with him. Definitely not!”

Raphi felt that this girl was putting on a brave face…

Her words were tough, but the desire in her heart wasn’t fake.

Why could devils often succeed? It wasn’t that people were all greedy, but that the benefits they offered were really hard to refuse.

Countless people were like moths to a flame, rushing towards the trap set by the devil without hesitation.

If she were to say that Luo Feng wouldn’t fulfill his promise or something like that, she wouldn’t do it. One reason was that the rules of the heavenly realm didn’t allow it, and the other was that it would be too easily discovered by Luo Feng. Then he would really have a reason to tear off her wings and use them as decorations.

Damn it, playing games with someone with unequal strength while having to follow the rules is too tiring!

“Mm, not wavering is a good thing.” Raphi said softly, “Think about it, life is so beautiful. Talent is something you’re born with. There’s no need to rely on external forces to forcefully enhance it.”

“Then… can you make me remember those two games? I don’t want the talent, just remembering them would be good…”

“I can’t, young lady.” Raphi gently shook her head, “Those are things you got from the devil. They’re his things. Even that part of your memory belongs to him. I can’t give you his things.”

Ginko Sora fell silent.

“Sorry, I can’t help you much. Heaven has its own rules, unlike hell which has no bottom line.” Raphi said, “What I can be sure of is that as long as you don’t actively interact with him and don’t waver no matter what deal he offers, you’ll definitely be able to go to heaven in the future.”

According to the rules and her previous life trajectory, it was indeed the case.

“Mm, I understand. Thank you, Miss Angel.” Ginko Sora felt a bit mentally exhausted.

“Phew, I’ve said all I needed to say. I’m going to go save more people.” Raphi said.

All she could do was talk.

In terms of ability to act, angels had a natural disadvantage compared to devils.

It was like a standoff between police and criminals. The ones at a disadvantage were always the police because criminals could kill hostages and destroy things at will, but the police couldn’t, except for warrior nations.

“Wait.” Ginko Sora suddenly thought of something, “He can manipulate my memories. Could it be that… something has already happened between us, and then he erased that part of my memory?”

The more she thought about it, the more scared she became. After all, Luo Feng had that ability!

“You’re overthinking it.” Raphi shook her head, “If he did it, he would definitely let you know. Devils are all twisted.”

“That’s good then.” Ginko Sora breathed a sigh of relief.

She still wanted to ask something, but she found that Raphi had already disappeared.

She leaned on the chair, feeling powerless.

If I expose his identity as a devil, will he panic?

Ginko Sora instinctively felt that he wouldn’t. He didn’t seem to care how she viewed him.

Angel, devil…

I just want to play shogi well, become a professional shogi player, and compete with Yaichi.

Is my life a bit too exciting?

…

After leaving Ginko Sora, Luo Feng returned to his store and continued lazing around.

As for whether he was afraid of Raphi causing trouble for him? He was only afraid that she wouldn’t cause enough trouble.

As long as she kept interfering with him, there would be times when she exposed her weaknesses.

Rather than tearing off her wings, it would be more exciting to turn her into a fallen angel.

Why did she think that a devil like him would really care about the so-called rules set by hell? Those political-minded people in heaven were too naive.

He stayed like this until late at night, only going out to make a deal and collect two souls in the meantime.

Ding-a-ling.

Just then, someone entered through the door.

It was a woman with a dignified appearance and a beautiful face full of authority.

She was wearing a kimono and looked a bit lost and dejected.

She looked to be in her thirties, but she was probably in her forties or fifties, just very well-maintained.

How lucky is this woman to have entered my store?

“Phew…” She found a table and sat down, looking a bit tired.

Compared to ordinary restaurants and bars, izakayas belonged to the late night. Some people came in groups of three or five, chatting away, while others came alone, burdened with worries.

Obviously, this person was the latter.

Luo Feng’s store wasn’t a place that just anyone could enter. Although the entrances were scattered in most cities across the country, not many people would be willing to come in.

It was like a row of stores. A popular store might attract customers, but a store with no customers would have a hard time attracting customers. He amplified this psychological suggestion.

People who liked familiar stores in the first place wouldn’t come, and ordinary customers would be even less likely to come.

Those who could enter were either people who particularly liked quietness or old unlucky fellows.

Luo Feng, like a normal izakaya owner, served her a stack of small dishes.

This wasn’t a mistake. This dish was specifically for her and couldn’t be found on the menu. It was equivalent to what other places called a service fee or seat fee, priced at 800 yen.

Don’t underestimate this dish. It was usually made by the owner using seasonal or recommended ingredients of the day, and sometimes it tasted even better than the dishes ordered by the customers.

“Beautiful miss, why are you out drinking alone?” Luo Feng placed the menu in front of her and sat down, looking her up and down.

Chapter 13: The Rhythm Master

Just now, he didn’t think much of it. After all, the distance between the two was just a bit close. But now, he had to think more about it.

It was Senior Sister who was grabbing that man’s hand, not the man grabbing Senior Sister’s hand.

Senior Sister… actually took the initiative?

Combined with Senior Sister’s nervous and strange behavior when they met yesterday, even if he was dense, he couldn’t treat them as just having a normal customer and store owner relationship. Even if they weren’t lovers, they should have a special relationship.

Yaichi Kuzuryuu tried his best to search through his memories. He really didn’t know about the existence of such a person.

Ginko Sora’s social circle was very small, basically all people from the shogi world. It was rare for Yaichi Kuzuryuu not to know someone.

Stay calm, I have to stay calm. Just pretend nothing happened, pretend I didn’t see anything.

As for their relationship, I can ask Senior Sister later. Senior Sister will definitely tell me. I’m her junior brother after all…

This time when Yaichi Kuzuryuu ran into them, Luo Feng didn’t remind Ginko Sora.

“So, do you think I’m more like a god or a devil?” Luo Feng said softly, “Think carefully before answering. This answer is very important.”

“Neither.” Ginko Sora gave a third answer.

If she said he was like a god, the request he made didn’t match the image of a god in her heart at all.

If she said he was like a devil, he also wasn’t like the devil in her heart who did whatever he wanted.

“Tsk, what a boring answer.” Luo Feng shook his head helplessly, “I’m going back. You’re not the only one who needs my salvation.”

“Does your salvation always require such a big price…?”

“How do you know that sleeping with me for a year isn’t a kind of salvation for you?” Luo Feng said meaningfully, “Your junior brother has very good romantic luck. If you get hung up on him, in the end, you might lose both shogi and him. You will have nothing and die in agony.”

After saying that, Luo Feng broke free from her small hand and walked towards his izakaya, leaving Ginko Sora in a daze.

He, he said sleeping with him was saving me?

She stood there for a full three minutes before understanding Luo Feng’s train of thought and reluctantly piecing together yesterday’s and today’s events.

He was a god who listened to her inner thoughts, pitied her, favored her, and brought her to his place.

He gave her talent for three days, wanting her to permanently obtain this talent at the cost of sleeping with him for a year.

Why did he give this reason? Was it really because she disrespected a god? Was he really that petty?

If Luo Feng were still here, he would definitely answer Ginko Sora: He was indeed quite petty.

But Ginko Sora combined today’s events with the other things he said and came to a different conclusion.

Since he could see memories and read thoughts, he must be able to see the future, right?

By proposing that condition, did he want her to break things off with Yaichi?

Because Yaichi might marry Keika in the future, or marry Ai Yashajin, or marry Ai Hinatsuru?

At that time, would she completely break down? This wasn’t impossible to happen!

Her world only had Yaichi and shogi. If Yaichi ended up with another woman, she didn’t know what kind of mood she would be in at that time. She didn’t even dare to think about it.

Then… because she was attached to Yaichi, her shogi skills would decline, and she would gradually fade out of Yaichi’s sight?

Ginko Sora had already seen the talent of his two female disciples. She felt those two girls might really threaten her position.

Since Yaichi loved shogi so much, would he also love them so much?

Ginko Sora felt very cold as if her blood had frozen.

If she lost to those two girls in shogi and lost Yaichi in love, what would be the point of living?

“Who will he end up with…”

Ginko Sora opened her mouth and only then realized that Luo Feng had disappeared.

That’s right. Whether he was a devil or a god, his eyes couldn’t only be on her.

Who would he favor?

There definitely wasn’t only one talented and cute female shogi player.

Ginko Sora’s heart was in turmoil. Without thinking, she walked towards the train station.

No, I have to go home and calm down.

Ginko Sora’s rhythm was successfully thrown off by Luo Feng, making her completely misunderstand Luo Feng’s intentions.

After Luo Feng’s meddling today, a crack appeared in both Yaichi Kuzuryuu and Ginko Sora’s hearts, like a spark that could start a prairie fire or an ant hole at the bottom of a thousand-mile embankment.

If Luo Feng were just an ordinary person, he wouldn’t be able to do this at all. He wouldn’t even be able to get close to Ginko Sora.

Unfortunately, Luo Feng wasn’t an ordinary person but a devil.

With Ginko Sora’s side having problems, with a little trick, naturally, that unconfident Dragon King could also have problems.

“Little girl, you seem very lost.”

Just as Ginko Sora arrived home, white feathers fell from the sky.

In a daze, a girl in a pure white dress appeared in front of Ginko Sora. Like her, she also had silver hair and was crossing space, walking towards her.

What the hell?

Have I been praying to gods too much lately? Why am I seeing an angel again?

If it were before, she would have thought she was dreaming.

But now that she had even met the God of Shogi, meeting an angel wasn’t that unacceptable.

Ginko Sora looked at the other party in a daze and asked puzzledly, “You… are an angel? An angel sent by the God of Shogi?”

“No, I don’t know any God of Shogi.” Raphi floated in front of Ginko Sora, “But, it’s true that you’ve been targeted by a devil.”

“Devil? Is he really a devil? Then why does he have such shogi skills?”

Luo Feng had already admitted that he was a devil before, but Ginko Sora wasn’t sure about either side.

Now that someone with a golden aura appeared, no matter how you looked at it, their aura was higher than Luo Feng’s and seemed more reliable.

“That’s not his shogi skill. His shogi ability is only at the level of knowing the rules. He just stole someone else’s talent, giving you this illusion.” A sacred light emanated from Raphi, “If you want to live a normal life, it’s best to stay away from that guy and never see him again. Ignore him. Devils follow their own rules. As long as you don’t go to him for a deal, he won’t do anything to you.”

If he really forced this girl, that would be a good thing. The more he did such things, the further he would be from the position of Lord because it would affect his evaluation as a devil. After all, the rule of devils was to make deals.

This was a rule they set themselves and shouldn’t violate… right?

As for Ginko Sora’s fate?

Raphi expressed that she would sincerely pray for and bless her.

“Then… can you give me my current talent?” Ginko Sora’s eyes lit up.

Chapter 012: The Devil’s Whisper

Ginko Sora was stunned for a moment and instinctively followed Luo Feng’s gaze. She saw Yaichi Kuzuryuu actually waving at Luo Feng without a care in the world!

In Yaichi Kuzuryuu’s eyes, although he found it strange, as long as Ginko Sora knew someone through shogi, it wasn’t strange to the point he couldn’t accept it.

The only thing that made him a bit uncomfortable was that Luo Feng’s distance from Ginko Sora just now was a bit too close.

Yaichi Kuzuryuu smiled bitterly. He was quite dense when it came to matters outside of shogi, especially not understanding women’s hearts. In his mind, it was impossible for his senior sister to like him.

At this moment, he didn’t know whether to go up and say hello or continue listening to Keika and send off his senior sister.

For a moment, he felt a bit lost.

Seeing a convenience store nearby, he decisively walked towards it without any intention of going up to greet them.

“What a polite Dragon King.” Luo Feng pondered, “Is this guy a bit dense when it comes to matters of the heart? He didn’t even come over to ask?”

“…” Ginko Sora remained silent. She originally wanted to say ‘none of your business,’ but thinking about how she didn’t obtain this talent through normal means because of disrespecting a god, she didn’t speak.

However, her tightly gripped fan told Luo Feng that she was very unhappy right now.

“Let me see.” Luo Feng placed his finger on his temple and said softly, “Hmm, this guy is a bit interesting. He’s been interested in big-breasted older sisters since he was young. His first love… his first love was actually your master’s daughter.”

Ginko Sora widened her eyes and looked at Luo Feng with disbelief.

Was he guessing, or did Yaichi really like big breasts?

What’s so good about big breasts? They’re just useless fat. In shogi matches, they could even become a burden. Was her junior brother really that superficial?

“Hmm, Asuka Oishi(1)*, is that her name?” Luo Feng said, “He almost disliked shogi because of this person?”

“What do you mean?” Ginko Sora instinctively asked.

She herself didn’t expect that she could actually stay with someone who wanted her to sleep with him for so long.

Phew, he’s a god, he’s a god, he’s forcing me to chat with him.

As for this girl, she also knew a thing or two. She was the only daughter of Oishi family, who ran a bathhouse and shogi dojo with her father. She had also gone there to take a bath.

“Mm, this girl once said she had something to ask your junior brother. Your junior brother thought she wanted to date him, but she said ‘please teach me how to play shogi.’ This young Dragon King was very disappointed.” Luo Feng sighed, “He also collaborated with the big-breasted female professional shogi player Tamako Rokuroba(2)* for the Kisei match analysis and was distracted by her boobs multiple times.”

Crack.

The folding fan in Ginko Sora’s hand was actually broken by her.

At that time, she had also watched that analysis and knew that what Luo Feng said was true.

“Your junior brother is very real.” Luo Feng put down his finger. “What he likes is the same as normal men. Hmm…”

He looked Ginko Sora up and down and couldn’t help but show a pitying expression.

Ginko Sora seemed to have noticed something and hurriedly covered her chest, taking a step back. She said with some embarrassment and anger, “What are you looking at?”

“Nothing.” Luo Feng looked regretful. “You don’t seem to be your junior brother’s type.”

“That’s my own business.” Ginko Sora felt her heart ache a bit.

If someone else said this, she might treat it as a joke and at most feel angry.

But when Luo Feng said it, it was unexpectedly more convincing.

He seemed to know everything and be capable of anything.

“Ha, okay, okay.” Luo Feng laughed, “This is your own business. I won’t interfere.”

“Wait, were you peeking at his memories just now?” Ginko Sora turned pale and finally realized where the key issue was.

“Yeah.” Luo Feng said softly, “Don’t worry, I didn’t look at your memories. I only read your mind once.”

“Read my mind?” Ginko Sora gritted her teeth. “What did you read?”

“Aren’t you curious about why I approached you?” Luo Feng looked pitiful. “It’s because I saw your intense inner struggle when you were being interviewed. A girl with great talent and ability was about to collapse just because she won a game. If I hadn’t appeared in front of you… do you believe that with your dazed state at that time, it wouldn’t have been surprising if you were hit by a car?”

Ginko Sora opened her mouth. Thinking about last night, she was indeed on the verge of losing control. Being hit by a car or something wasn’t impossible.

Thinking about entering the gladiator arena of the 3-dan level, her self-doubt and fear were stirred up by Luo Feng’s words.

“So you just casually peek into other people’s hearts and memories?” Ginko Sora said in a deep voice. “You doing this, doing this…”

“Isn’t the way of a god? Then you can treat me as a devil.” Luo Feng showed a delighted smile. “This way, is it easier for you to accept the fact that I have no bottom line?”

Ginko Sora was stunned for a moment. “Devil?”

“Mm, I won’t pretend anymore. I’m showing my cards. I am a devil.” Luo Feng lowered his hat and said softly, “So, since I’m a devil, can I do whatever I want?”

Ginko Sora was so scared that she took another step back.

Luo Feng grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

“If you take another step back, you’ll be on the main road. Be careful.” Luo Feng said with concern. “Whether you see me as a devil or a god has no impact on me.”

“If I don’t look at memories or read minds, how can I know who needs saving?”

“If you think it’s okay, I can seal this ability of mine. Then if someone cries for help in the future, because of you, I sealed this ability and couldn’t hear their cry for help, their death will be on your hands.”

“If more and more people like this appear, it’s certain that you’ll go to hell after you die. It will even affect your life. You may not live past twenty, your shogi luck will be extremely bad, you won’t succeed in anything you do, and anyone related to you will be haunted by ghosts and be as unlucky as you…”

“Stop talking…” Ginko Sora turned her head away.

“It seems you don’t believe me. Then let’s try…”

“No!” Ginko Sora hurriedly grabbed Luo Feng’s large hand that was about to point at his temple.

“So, you admit that I should peek into other people’s memories and listen to everyone’s inner thoughts, right?” Luo Feng smiled.

“Mm…” Ginko Sora nodded somewhat helplessly.

She didn’t know why Luo Feng had to explain so much to her.

She was just a tiny ordinary person. Whether he was a god or a devil, there was no need…

Ginko Sora felt that Luo Feng still had a bottom line. At least he had never forced her and had explained everything properly.

At this moment, Yaichi Kuzuryuu had just walked out of the convenience store and happened to see Ginko Sora holding Luo Feng’s hand.

 

---

Names with links:

Asuka Oishi(1)*

Tamayo Rokuroba(2)*

Chapter 011: Greeting

As Yaichi Kuzuryuu admitted defeat, everyone present was a bit surprised.

He… lost?

The Dragon King actually lost?

The Dragon King actually lost to a female shogi player!

Shogi wasn’t like Go. In Go, there could be some female prodigies, but in shogi… there had never been an example of a female professional defeating a male player above 4-dan.

Ginko Sora truly deserved to be called the first woman in 1,400 years. She really won.

Even if it was just an ordinary game and not a competition, it was still praiseworthy, right?

Could it be that he let her win?

No, if he didn’t take shogi seriously, the Dragon King wouldn’t have achieved such accomplishments. His opponents would also feel that it was disrespectful.

“Senior Sister, yesterday’s match had a big impact on you.” Yaichi Kuzuryuu admired, “You broke out of your usual patterns. I didn’t react in time and fell into a trap. In this game, you won beautifully.”

He didn’t go easy on Ginko Sora, but he wasn’t going all out like in a competition either. It was a fair and square game.

Hearing the surrounding praises and seeing Yaichi Kuzuryuu’s appreciative gaze, Ginko Sora’s heart was extremely excited.

She couldn’t help but tremble. This was a tremor brought by joy, the joy of defeating a strong opponent, the person she considered the strongest in her heart. It was a joy that came from the soul.

I won. I beat Yaichi!

Even if it wasn’t in a professional match, I hadn’t won against him for over two years!

Have I… truly reached his level and become a shogi prodigy?

I never knew there could be such a wonderful feeling in this world!

“Be even happier.” Luo Feng stood outside the crowd, showing a satisfied smile. “Enjoy this feeling more.”

Ginko Sora forgot that this talent could only last for three days. She forgot about the other people present and could only see the shogi board.

It was like an ordinary person suddenly winning 5 million yen. At first, they would be filled with immense joy. At that moment, how could they have the mind to think about their boyfriend or girlfriend? Their minds would be filled with thoughts of their happy life.

It was like a great scholar parting the clouds and figuring out a problem they had been stuck on. At that moment, they wouldn’t be thinking about their wife or children, but about the changes they could bring to the world, the prosperity of their country, or their own breakthroughs.

Some were vulgar, some were great. This wasn’t about whether their love for their significant other was enough or not. It was just human nature.

Seeing Ginko Sora like this, Luo Feng couldn’t help but lick his lips.

“Gin, congratulations!” Keika Kiyotaki didn’t have the mind to care about Luo Feng beside her or the other people in front of her. She hurriedly squeezed through and walked to Ginko Sora’s side, sincerely congratulating her.

“It’s no big deal.” Ginko Sora’s mouth didn’t spare anyone. “My junior brother was careless.”

“Yeah.” Yaichi Kuzuryuu nodded.

“Next time, you have to go all out against me.” Ginko Sora tapped her small hand with her fan.

“I will.” Yaichi Kuzuryuu agreed with a bitter smile.

“Keika, I’m a bit tired. I’ll head back first.” Ginko Sora said to Keika Kiyotaki.

“Alright, go back early.” Keika Kiyotaki clenched her fist, cheering her on. “Accumulate your momentum and become a professional within half a year!”

“I will.” Ginko Sora calmly nodded and stood up, walking out with big strides.

Seeing Ginko Sora leave, the people around began to disperse. Luo Feng put his hands in his pockets and followed her out.

Before leaving, he virtually pointed in the air, in the direction where Keika Kiyotaki was.

Seeing everyone disperse, Keika Kiyotaki walked up to Yaichi Kuzuryuu.

“Yaichi, why didn’t you see Gin off?” Keika Kiyotaki said.

“Um… the train station is right at the door, isn’t it?” Yaichi Kuzuryuu asked puzzledly.

“You, hurry up and see if she’s gone far!” Keika Kiyotaki glared at Yaichi Kuzuryuu. “You should at least see her off at the door.”

This dense guy, he was quite capable when flirting with her, but how come he didn’t understand anything when it came to Gin?

“Alright…” Yaichi Kuzuryuu was speechless and quickly chased after her.

Keika Kiyotaki saw that everyone was discussing the previous game, so she wanted to find Luo Feng to continue playing teaching games with him.

However, she couldn’t find Luo Feng and felt a bit puzzled. Could it be that he couldn’t understand shogi, found it boring, and left?

She had seen quite a few people like that. They were all enthusiastic for three minutes. After watching a movie, they thought they could do it, but when they actually tried, they found it too difficult and stopped learning.

…

“How does it feel? Comfortable?”

Ginko Sora hadn’t walked far when she heard a playful voice.

Swish.

Cold sweat flowed down from her head.

Even though she was wearing a coat, Ginko Sora felt a bone-chilling coldness.

It was him, the God of Shogi!

She turned her head and saw Luo Feng leaning against a wall, his hat brim lowered. Only the lower half of his face could be seen.

“What did you come to find me for?” Ginko Sora quietly swallowed her saliva.

“Nothing much.” Luo Feng raised his head. “I happened to be passing by, so I went to the Kiyotaki Dojo for a visit. Don’t forget, I’m the God of Shogi. Of course, I have to see if anyone needs my blessing.”

“Don’t touch Keika.” Ginko Sora took two steps and stood in front of Luo Feng, looking up at him. “And don’t touch Yaichi either.”

Even if he only appeared last time to return her fan, Ginko Sora didn’t dare let her guard down.

Keika was too obsessed with and loved shogi too much.

In Keika’s heart, shogi ranked first, and she often complained about not having a boyfriend.

If this wicked guy went to make a deal with Keika, she might not be able to resist such temptation.

“Tsk, it seems that in your heart, she can’t resist temptation?” Luo Feng said with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile. “Don’t worry, my deals are very fair. As long as you can pay the price, it’s fine. I don’t just bless you alone.”

He didn’t say that he looked down on people like Keika Kiyotaki who were only beautiful on the surface. Anyway, Ginko Sora didn’t know.

Her personality was a bit domineering, but Luo Feng’s personality was even more so.

“Would others want this kind of blessing?” Ginko Sora asked unwillingly.

“Do you believe that under the same conditions, there would be plenty of people willing to agree? Want to make a bet?” Luo Feng said softly.

“You…” Ginko Sora gritted her teeth. “Why do you want… that kind of deal?”

She knew that what Luo Feng said was true. Indeed, many people would be willing.

“Because I like it.” Luo Feng looked as if it was only natural. His face approached Ginko Sora’s. “And also because you disrespected a god, young lady. If you hadn’t disrespected a god, I might have asked for something else, like… ten years of your life.”

Ginko Sora felt that she would rather give up ten years of her life.

“Oh, your junior brother came out.” Luo Feng straightened up and looked towards the Dragon King who had just walked out of the dojo and happened to look in their direction.

Smiling, he greeted him.

Chapter 010: Wonderful

“It’s just that his students happen to be elementary school students. He’s very talented…” Keika Kiyotaki felt that she couldn’t defend Yaichi Kuzuryuu too much.

That time during the live video, the number of viewers on the shogi channel broke the historical record, not because the game was brilliant, but because an elementary school student claimed to be the Dragon King’s bride and kissed the Dragon King in front of everyone.

At that time, Yaichi was taken into custody, causing quite a stir in the shogi world.

“In that case, can I go and watch?” Luo Feng asked. “A 3-dan in the Reward Association is only one step away from being a professional. When Teacher Kuzuryuu became a 4-dan, he won the Dragon King title within a year, which shows that any 4-dan has the ability to challenge that title and also demonstrates how high the threshold for professional shogi players is.”

Strength and victory are not determined by ranks. Otherwise, in shogi, one could just show their rank, and the lower-ranked person would admit defeat.

“Um, won’t you feel like it’s a waste?” Keika Kiyotaki asked uncertainly. “There will be no one to explain the game at that time.”

Luo Feng had paid for the time, not for a few games. If he used this time to watch a game that he couldn’t understand at his level, it would be a complete waste of time.

“The Snow White of Naniwa is a regular customer at my store.” Luo Feng chuckled. “Watching her play seems quite interesting.”

“You know Gin?” Keika Kiyotaki couldn’t help but change the way she addressed her.

“Yes, she’s my customer. My place is an izakaya that also sells various things. If you like, you can come visit.” As Luo Feng spoke, he handed over a business card.

Keika Kiyotaki took the card. Blade Izakaya? Knife Izakaya? What an interesting name.

The owner’s name was Luo Feng. Phone number… email…

Like her father, she was a drinker and enjoyed drinking, especially when she was in a bad mood. This card might be of some use to her.

When she felt like drinking, she would go to his place for a drink. After all, it was just an ordinary izakaya, so it didn’t matter where she drank.

“Why didn’t you say so in the first place?” Keika Kiyotaki asked puzzledly. “If you have a referral from an acquaintance, you can get a 20% discount on membership.”

“Miss Sora is just my customer. We have an average relationship. She’s only interested in the things in my store.” Luo Feng smiled. “She doesn’t seem to like me very much.”

“That’s not true.” Keika Kiyotaki thought of Ginko Sora’s personality and interpersonal relationships and quickly defended her. “She’s not a bad person, just sharp-tongued and a bit domineering in personality.”

It seemed that when she mentioned the 3-dan in the Reward Association earlier, his slight laugh indicated that he already knew about Ginko’s situation. Today, he must have come specifically to watch Ginko play.

Keika Kiyotaki had some idea of how many people Ginko Sora could offend.

If someone showed goodwill towards her, she couldn’t just offend them casually.

“It’s a small matter.” Luo Feng tidied his clothes. “Let’s go watch the game.”

…

Ginko Sora sat in her seat, silently looking at the shogi board. Her junior brother, Yaichi Kuzuryuu, sat across from her, greeting the dojo’s regular customers.

Ginko Sora was still wearing the same sailor uniform as yesterday. She had many sets of the same outfit, as it was her favorite style.

Unlike Yaichi Kuzuryuu, who greeted everyone, she quietly waited there for the game to begin.

She gripped her fan, not knowing how to play this game.

Now she had that powerful computing ability, but if she used it now and lost that power in three days, wouldn’t she be back to square one?

But if she didn’t use it… she didn’t even know how to not use it.

Now, whenever she saw a move, a shogi board would be simulated in her mind, automatically deducing the moves. It had become an instinct, just like seeing 1+1 and instinctively thinking of 2.

Her computing power had only increased based on her own foundation and wasn’t forcibly obtained from someone else’s ability like Luo Feng.

“Senior Sister, please guide me.”

Yaichi Kuzuryuu’s voice announcing the start of the game brought Ginko Sora back to her senses.

“Please guide me.” Ginko Sora bowed slightly.

It didn’t matter. She had finally stood at the same height as Yaichi, so how could she not use her hard-earned talent at this moment?

Ginko Sora played first, using her most familiar opening. Yaichi Kuzuryuu didn’t find anything unusual.

It was a very normal opening, a very conventional move, without any novelty or characteristics, even making people feel bored because it was too routine. Neither side gained an advantage.

However, by the twentieth move, Yaichi Kuzuryuu sensed something was off.

Senior Sister’s attack was too early. According to her style and personality, it shouldn’t be this early!

Could it be that she gained inspiration from yesterday’s match?

Because Yaichi Kuzuryuu didn’t notice it at first, he was a bit flustered for a moment.

Fortunately, although her strength had increased, it hadn’t exceeded Yaichi Kuzuryuu’s understanding.

He had encountered opponents of Ginko Sora’s level countless times and quickly turned the situation around.

Ginko Sora didn’t feel it very clearly when she was at Luo Feng’s place, but now she truly felt her own strength.

Her mind began to calculate rapidly, simulating countless possible scenarios and the consequences of each move she made.

Was this the world of shogi prodigies?

Luo Feng nodded.

Wonderful!

He didn’t know what was wonderful about it, but the spectators all thought it was wonderful, so it should be wonderful.

He was too lazy to borrow someone else’s talent to analyze. He was just there to watch the fun.

Wasn’t Ginko Sora more interesting than shogi?

His gaze lingered more on Ginko Sora’s face. When she was serious, her charm was really great.

Tug, tug…

At this moment, Luo Feng felt someone tugging on his sleeve.

He turned his head and saw Keika Kiyotaki.

Luo Feng was a bit puzzled. Why did you tug me?

Thinking of this, he tugged on Keika Kiyotaki, considering it even.

Keika Kiyotaki was instantly covered in black lines. She had no idea what Luo Feng’s purpose was in tugging her.

“Can you understand it?” Keika Kiyotaki whispered.

Everyone was discussing among themselves, but their voices were low, as if they were in a library, afraid of disturbing the two players.

In Japan, secretly filming was illegal, so no one was recording at this time. This was just a private game of shogi.

“I don’t understand.” Luo Feng whispered back. “If everyone else nods and I don’t, won’t they know I don’t understand? Just go along with the wonderful moves.”

Keika Kiyotaki was speechless. Was this even possible?

As they played move after move, the people present gradually couldn’t understand, but they could see that the young Dragon King was gripping his pants, seemingly becoming serious.

“I lost.”

Chapter 09: Home Visit

The next afternoon, Luo Feng arrived at the Kiyotaki School’s dojo.

Ginko Sora came from the Kiyotaki School. When she was four years old, she lost a teaching game to Kousuke Kiyotaki(1)*. Afterwards, she found the address of Teacher Kiyotaki’s residence through the internet and went there every day by train to seek revenge. There was even a legend that “because her hands couldn’t reach the ticket machine, the station staff specially placed a platform in front of the machine for her.”

After Ginko Sora’s parents discussed with Teacher Kiyotaki, she eventually became Kousuke Kiyotaki’s disciple.

There were many shogi dojos like this in Japan, similar to chess and card rooms in China. However, the functions here were not as diverse; one could only play shogi here and not play cards or go.

The tatami room was densely packed with many shogi boards, and many seats were already occupied.

Most of the people active in such places were middle-aged and elderly. Young people still preferred to play online.

As soon as Luo Feng entered, a girl came to greet him.

She had brown hair and green eyes, dressed maturely, and was quite good-looking.

“Hello, customer. This is Keika Kiyotaki.” Keika Kiyotaki’s voice was very gentle, with a strong housewife vibe. “Are you here alone? Do you need me to arrange a suitable opponent for you?”

This customer’s attire is so strange. A trench coat, fedora, vest, shirt, and pocket watch, just like an English gentleman. The only thing missing is a cane. But judging from his appearance, he is an Asian.

Does he understand if I speak Japanese? Should I speak English?

New faces like Luo Feng were not common here, as most people who came were regulars and members. Keika Kiyotaki noticed him as soon as he appeared.

“Yes, my name is Luo Feng. I’m here alone. Are you a shogi player?” Luo Feng asked casually.

His Japanese was very fluent and even had a Kansai accent, which was the convenience of being a devil.

He had no interest in such a beauty.

He liked people like Ginko Sora, who had personality, their own pursuits, obsessions, and achievements.

If they couldn’t reach these standards, even if they were beauties, he wouldn’t bother letting them trade with him using their bodies, because he would even feel like he was getting the short end of the stick.

“You… want to play with me?” Keika Kiyotaki was stunned for a moment. “I’m a women’s professional shogi player… If you don’t mind, I’m okay with it.”

Women’s professional shogi players had always been looked down upon in the shogi world, and it was even worse in Japan, where women’s status was relatively low.

For example, in instructional games at events, women’s professional shogi players would be challenged in even games. Even strong amateur shogi players were not certain to lose to players like Ginko Sora.

Of course, such amateur shogi players themselves had the ability to challenge professionals. Amateurs were not guaranteed to lose to professionals.

If a woman won in a women’s game, the opponent might make excuses, saying they didn’t take it seriously because the opponent was a woman. If they lost, they might even say, “I’ll teach you how to play shogi,” and hand over a piece of paper with their address written on it. Regardless of winning or losing, they would be looked down upon.

“I only know the rules of shogi. Can you teach me?” Luo Feng showed a kind smile.

His level was indeed only knowing the rules. Let alone shogi, his go level was also just knowing how to play. As for Chinese chess, it was a bit better. At least if given a chariot handicap, he could play with the old men in the park.

When he played shogi with Ginko Sora before, he used other people’s abilities, not his own.

He was like using cheats, knowing how to make the right moves, but he didn’t know the significance of making those moves and couldn’t see the development dozens of steps later.

“Sure, I’d be happy to.” Keika Kiyotaki nodded.

Luo Feng was not bad-looking, and one could even say he was quite good. In addition, his unique aura and attire were also very attractive.

Since that was the case, even if he had ulterior motives and wanted to take this opportunity to pursue her, Keiko Kiyotaki had no resistance.

This was the advantage of good looks. If a handsome guy accidentally bumped into someone on the train, the other person might think it was unintentional. If it were a lecherous old man, they might think he was a pervert.

Soon, Luo Feng paid the fee and found a corner with Keiko Kiyotaki to start playing.

The dojo had more than just her as a service staff, so there was no problem with her playing shogi.

After sitting down, Luo Feng sniffed and said softly, “Have you been drinking?”

“Um… sorry, last night my father’s disciple became a 3-dan in the Reward Association, so we held a banquet to celebrate.” Keika Kiyotaki said apologetically.

“Oh, a 3-dan in the Reward Association.” Luo Feng chuckled.

“She’s a girl, you know. The first female 3-dan in the Reward Association.” When Keika Kiyotaki saw that Luo Feng seemed unimpressed, she quickly explained on behalf of Ginko Sora.

“That’s impressive.” Luo Feng nodded. “Do you want to become a 3-dan in the Reward Association?”

“Me? I’m way too far from that.” Keika Kiyotaki laughed bitterly. “Being able to become a women’s professional shogi player is already a blessing from the God of Shogi.”

Her rank was C1, with B2, B1, A2, A1, and S above her.

Only A-rank could enter the Reward Association, and that was the lowest 6-kyu. Above that, there were 5-kyu, 4-kyu, 3-kyu, 2-kyu, 1-kyu, 1-dan, 2-dan, and then Ginko Sora’s 3-dan.

“If you want, the God of Shogi will bless you.” Luo Feng smiled. “Let’s start the game.”

“Thank you for your kind words.”

Keika Kiyotaki didn’t pay much attention to Luo Feng’s consolation. She had heard such consolation countless times.

She had just become a women’s professional shogi player not long ago, and the road ahead was still long. She didn’t know if she could reach A-rank before retirement, let alone possess Ginko Sora’s current level.

Talent and aptitude were the biggest limitations. Those monsters were all talented and hardworking people.

As the two began playing shogi, Keika Kiyotaki truly let her guard down. Luo Feng was indeed a beginner who only knew the rules and couldn’t even tell the outcome.

As they played, she instructed him, telling him what situations were dead ends and at what point he didn’t need to make any more moves.

Luo Feng also maintained a learner’s attitude and played happily.

The two casually played three quick games, and then exclamations were heard from the dojo.

“The Snow White of Naniwa is here.”

“Miss Sora, congratulations.”

“The Dragon King is here too.”

“Oh, Gin and Yaichi are here. They will play a public game in the dojo today.” Keika Kiyotaki’s eyes lit up.

With such outstanding disciples, as a teacher, one definitely had to show off. Moreover, having them play shogi in this dojo could also attract more customers.

Even if Ginko Sora was unwilling, it was not good to disobey her teacher.

“You have a good relationship.” Luo Feng said softly.

“Yes, I’ve always treated them as my younger siblings. You probably don’t know yet, but Yaichi is the Dragon King. He’s a very impressive shogi player. Last year, he even defeated the godlike Meijin(Shogi title).”

“Is that so?” Luo Feng’s narrow eyes opened slightly. “I read related reports. He seems to be… a lolicon.”

 

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Kousuke Kiyotaki(1)*

https://ryuuounooshigoto.fandom.com/wiki/Kousuke_Kiyotaki