Chapter 232: Help, Someone's Kidnapping Rabbits!
A lucky draw?
Seeing the brightly painted characters on the wooden signboard outside, Haruto and Kaguya exchanged an intrigued glance before pushing open the creaking door of Kourindou.
"Welcome to our shop—"
The polite, practiced greeting died instantly in the air. The moment Rinnosuke registered Haruto's face, his professional customer-service smile froze into a rigid grimace. He had never quite managed to forget the agonizing loss of sixty thousand yen, ruthlessly swindled out of his pockets by the shameless Boundary Youkai standing before him.
Sure, Rinnosuke had previously tricked forty thousand yen out of the famously destitute Hakurei Shrine Maiden, but thanks to Haruto's interference, he had still ended up twenty thousand yen in the red.
"What's with that look?" Haruto raised an eyebrow, leaning casually against the doorframe. "Am I not welcome here?"
"Of course not. Feel free to look around and browse at your leisure." Rinnosuke forced a thin, strained smile, his knuckles turning slightly white as he gripped the edge of the counter.
Kaguya caught the heavy, awkward atmosphere lingering between the two men. She tilted her head, her dark hair cascading over her shoulder. "Did you scam him?" she whispered, poking Haruto's arm.
"Am I that kind of person?" Haruto scoffed, feigning deep offense. "Didn't I give you the short version of this story before?" He shrugged off his coat.
He quickly recounted the entire sordid affair—how Rinnosuke had shamelessly used two cheap cups of instant noodles to con forty thousand yen out of Reimu, and how Haruto had swooped in to 'uphold justice' by scamming the shopkeeper right back.
Hearing the full context, Kaguya shot Rinnosuke a deeply judgmental look. The shopkeeper shifted uncomfortably under her gaze.
The first time Kaguya had heard the story in passing, she hadn't paid it much mind. But thinking about it carefully now... this man was a total, unrepentant profiteer. He was even less humane than she was, actually having the gall to trick Reimu of all people.
She vividly remembered how pitifully poor Reimu was during those early days. The shrine maiden practically lived off plain ochazuke for every single meal. Whenever a banquet was held, Reimu would gorge herself like a starving ghost, frantically stuffing her cheeks as if terrified she might never see food again.
Haruto tapped his knuckles against the wooden counter, drawing Rinnosuke's attention back. "So, how does this lucky draw event of yours work?"
Rinnosuke immediately perked up. The tension vanished from his shoulders, replaced by the sharp instincts of a merchant. He bent down, grunting slightly as he hauled a large, heavy wooden box from beneath the counter and slammed it onto the table.
"One draw for ten thousand yen," Rinnosuke announced smoothly. "There are all kinds of rare and valuable prizes hidden inside."
"Ten thousand?!" Haruto barked, his eyes widening in sheer annoyance. "Are you trying to rob me in broad daylight?!"
Kaguya blinked in surprise. While she didn't have a perfect grasp on the outside world's economy, Haruto's explosive reaction was all the confirmation she needed. This silver-haired shopkeeper was trying to fleece them.
Her eyes narrowed. Stepping right up to the counter, she slammed both hands down onto the wood with a deafening crack. The heavy wooden lottery crate actually lifted an inch into the air from the shockwave.
She leaned over the counter, her voice dropping into a vicious, demanding growl. "One yen per draw!"
Rinnosuke fell dead silent. He stared blankly at the dark-haired princess, his eyes glazed over as he genuinely began to question his life choices.
Even Haruto shot Kaguya a deeply subtle look. He had only intended to aggressively haggle the price down to a hundred yen or so. He hadn't expected the sheltered NEET princess to be even more utterly ruthless than him.
"It... it really isn't expensive, I assure you," Rinnosuke stammered, frantically trying to salvage the situation diplomatically. "The prize pool is extremely generous. Gold, silver, imported figurines, special magical artifacts—everything you can possibly imagine is in this box."
He was sweating now. On one side stood the Young Master of the Yakumo Family, a man deeply connected to Gensokyo's most terrifying big shots. On the other side was the Princess of Eientei, an immortal who was equally not to be trifled with. If these two decided to flip his stall and beat him to a pulp, he wouldn't even have a place to file a complaint.
"How about a hundred yen per draw?" Haruto offered, crossing his arms.
"Five thousand. It really can't go any lower than that."
"Five hundred."
"One thousand!" Rinnosuke slapped his hand against his chest. "That is the absolute lowest price I can offer. Any lower and I'll be bleeding money!"
"Fine, fine. A thousand it is." Haruto waved his hand dismissively, accepting the deal.
Rinnosuke let out a long, shaky breath of relief. From an angle where the two customers couldn't see, a sly, victorious smile ghosted across his lips.
Haruto reached into a dark, eye-covered Gap that tore open in the air beside him, pulling out a thick stack of crisp bills. But just as he was about to hand them over, he paused, his eyes narrowing suspiciously.
"There won't be a bunch of 'Thank you for your patronage' blank tickets in there, will there?"
"Please rest assured, valued guest," Rinnosuke hurriedly guaranteed, adjusting his glasses. "This is a special promotional event. There are absolutely no blank tickets. Even the lowest tier guarantees a prize!"
Hearing this, Haruto finally relaxed. He grandly slapped the thick stack of yen onto the counter. "Let's start with a hundred tries."
"Right this way, please." Rinnosuke gestured toward the wooden box, his palm facing up.
Haruto rolled up his sleeve, reached deep into the box, and fished out a neatly folded slip of paper. Kaguya immediately leaned in close, her face practically pressed against his shoulder, her eyes sparkling with the innate curiosity of a gacha addict.
Haruto unfolded the slip.
[One Lollipop]
"Congratulations, you've won a lollipop!"
With a flourish that looked entirely like a cheap magic trick, a single, brightly wrapped lollipop appeared in Rinnosuke's hand. He placed it gently on the table.
Kaguya let out a sudden "pfft" and burst into giggles, covering her mouth with her sleeve. Even with her limited knowledge of modern currency, she knew damn well a single piece of candy wasn't worth a thousand yen.
Haruto's mouth twitched violently. He really hadn't expected to draw something so pathetic, especially the cheap ten-cent variety.
Refusing to accept defeat, he shoved his hand back into the box, pulled out another slip, and snapped it open.
[Two Lollipops]
Haruto slowly raised his head. The sheer, unadulterated murderous intent radiating from his eyes made Rinnosuke shudder involuntarily. The shopkeeper quickly swallowed the smug smile threatening to form on his lips, suddenly very aware that physical violence was back on the table.
"G-guest, perhaps your luck was just a little poor these first two times..." Rinnosuke adjusted his square-framed glasses, forcing his voice to remain steady.
Half-believing the excuse, Haruto plunged his hand in and yanked out ten slips of paper all at once. He lined them up on the counter and rapidly unfolded them one by one.
[One Lollipop]
[Three Lollipops]
[One Lollipop]
By the time the tenth slip was opened, Haruto just stood there, staring blankly at the uniform rows of the word "Lollipop." He slowly dragged his gaze up, locking onto Rinnosuke with the cold, dead eyes of a serial killer.
The shopkeeper swallowed hard, taking a half-step back. He opened his mouth to explain, but Kaguya suddenly shoved Haruto aside, her eyes burning with a fiery, competitive spirit.
"Let me do it! I've never lost at drawing cards!"
Hearing her bold declaration, Haruto withdrew his murderous glare and stepped back, watching the paper slips pile up in Kaguya's hands.
[One Lollipop]
[One Lollipop]
[One Lollipop]
The pile of cheap candy on the counter steadily grew. By the time she reached her fiftieth draw, Kaguya finally stopped. She slowly looked up, her teeth grinding together so hard they squeaked. The veins on the back of her hand bulged dangerously as she crushed the remaining slips.
They all read the exact same thing.
"A scam shop! This is a complete scam shop!!"
She violently slammed the crumpled papers onto the table, lunged across the counter, and grabbed Rinnosuke by the collar of his jacket, shaking him back and forth.
"Are you freaking sure there's anything else in that box besides candy?! You're even more black-hearted than a certain T-company's gacha rates!"
Rinnosuke, however, looked genuinely bewildered as he was rattled around. He wasn't faking his confusion. He had indeed used lollipops as the lowest-tier filler prize, but the odds shouldn't have been this utterly ridiculous. Out of sixty-something draws, not a single mid-tier item had dropped?
Haruto, surprisingly, remained perfectly calm.
He reached out and patted Kaguya's trembling shoulder. "Don't worry, don't worry. Don't we still have about forty chances left? Let's just draw the rest and see."
Kaguya finally released her death grip on Rinnosuke's collar, shooting him a vicious glare. Her crimson eyes practically screamed, 'If nothing good drops, I'm burning this place to the ground!'
Rinnosuke watched nervously as the two resumed their drawing, clasping his hands together beneath the counter and silently praying to whatever gods were listening that they would pull something—anything—of value.
If it was just more lollipops... his little antique shop wouldn't survive the wrath of these two walking natural disasters.
However, the exact thing he feared most came to pass.
Another massive pile of lollipops clattered onto the table, turning the original small mound of candy into a towering, colorful mountain.
Rinnosuke slumped against the back wall, feeling like life was no longer worth living. He closed his eyes and braced himself for the inevitable beating. But to his absolute shock, Haruto simply reached out and caught Kaguya's wrist just as she was rolling up her sleeves to start swinging.
"One must accept their losses when gambling," Haruto said smoothly, his tone entirely devoid of anger.
With a casual wave of his hand, he swept the entire mountain of lollipops into a freshly opened Gap. He then took Kaguya's hand, turned on his heel, and walked right out the door.
Rinnosuke stood frozen behind the counter, his jaw hanging open. He... he just let it go? Just like that? The shopkeeper had fully expected them to at least demand a full refund at knifepoint.
"I clearly put quite a few good things in there..." Rinnosuke muttered suspiciously to himself in the empty shop.
Frowning, he reached into the wooden crate and casually pulled out a single slip of paper. He unfolded it. Instantly, his expression contorted into something extremely strange.
[High-end Graphics Card]
Meanwhile, deep within the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, near the borders of Eientei—
"Help—!!"
"Abduction! A rabbit is being abducted!"
"This rabbit is going to die! Someone save the rabbit, waaaah!"
Tewi's terrified, high-pitched screams echoed frantically through the dense stalks of the bamboo forest.
Just moments ago, she had been strolling down the dirt path, humming a cheerful tune. Then, without warning, the ground beneath her vanished. She plummeted into a deep, perfectly concealed pit trap. Before she could even orient herself, a rough burlap sack was violently shoved over her head, plunging her into darkness.
Now, she was being hoisted into the air and carried off at a dead sprint, completely blind and entirely unaware of where she was being taken.
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