Chapter 171 Girl In A Hoodie

The overall vibe of the slums spoke just how deteriorated the place was. Trash littered every nook and cranny of streets, and stray cats roll around in all places, playing with garbage and pieces of paper. People slowly shuffle by as if they have no purpose in life, and Crispwisp and Satoshi couldn't help but slow their pace down to match it with the residents of the place.

Makeshift houses filled both sides of the streets. From time to time, they would encounter stalls that sell suspicious stuff. Crispwisp and Satoshi didn't bother checking any of them since that would just be a waste of time. Instead, they continually kept their guard up and observed everyone in sight. They came to a point where they stopped conversing altogether, the two of them getting too into their patrol.

.....

A little girl was surrounded by a bunch of men, eyeing her as if she was their most prized possession. One of them patted the girl's head. "We have an order, you know what to do." The guy said, and the girl nodded in response. Even though the man who patted her on the head seemed oddly distrustful, he was the girl's father, and right now she was going to do as she was told.

The girl carried a basket in hand. She was told to approach the first two men who would to the alleyway and give them the basket she was holding. There was no need for her to collect the payment since the shipment was already paid for. It should be a smooth exchange, her father reminded her that much.

With unsteady footing, she cautiously approached the corner of the alleyway. For a moment there, she forgot to breathe since she was filled with nervousness. Every single time her dad told her to deliver something, the people who would pick it up from her always looked like bad people. She couldn't even look them in the eyes no matter how much they complimented her. She was a mere courier, and thanks to the shipments she delivered in her basket, his dad and his friends could leave comfortable lives. She also didn't have to suffer just like everyone else in the slums.

Still, the girl was still a child (ah yes, the floor is made out of floor) so she could tell whether she was doing something bad or not. While she doesn't know what sort of stuff she delivers or why she was delivering it, she could sense that something wasn't right. It's as if every part of her being was telling her to stop. However, every single time her body tells her to succumb to her gut feelings, she would just shake them off as if she didn't hear them. She was living a comfortable life, her dad doesn't hurt her anymore, and the men who were with them were happy.

That's all that matters.

As she approached the corner of the alleyway, a strong gust of wind blew her hood, revealing a pair of horns on her head, half-buried by her red hair. Her eyes were like flames, and one could tell that she was the type of girl that didn't belong to the slums. She could easily pass off as a child actor, and yet she was staying in the slums with her good-for-nothing dad.

Meanwhile, her dad just watched her from afar while he smoked with his buddies. Deliveries were always not safe in the slums and a package would always look suspicious. But a girl carrying a basket of cupcakes she sells for a few yens apiece? Now that's the perfect cover for a perfect parcel delivery.

However, no matter how lucky a person is, or how much he'd overcome the threads of fate, luck would always run out. Everything will be revealed, and the girl and her dad was not an exception.

They were supposed to be the two customers, two customers who would pick up the parcel, pat the girl on the head, and thank her, and then everyone can be on their merry way. But no, fate had a few cards up his sleeves... or maybe it was Heimdall's foresight that decided to catch them red-handed?

As the girl reached the sharp corner, she turned around, only to be greeted by two young-looking men. She stopped short in her tracks and stared right at them. That's when she remembered what her dad told her, that she should never show her full face to the customers. She immediately set the basket she was holding down on the ground as she put her hood back up. It was too late though since Crispwisp and Satoshi already saw her face crystal clearly. What she did just made her look suspicious.

Usually, the deal would go like this. The girl would ask if they want to buy a few cupcakes. If the men would say yes, then they aren't the customers and she would just sell them cupcakes. But if they said no, and that they were actually getting something from her, then she would know that they were the customers and she would access the hidden layer of the basket and give them the parcel— a box, an eight by four inches box. Whatever's inside it, the girl could only wonder. She had never seen what was inside, not even when she once tried to sneak a peek while they were packing it.

"Would you like a cupcake?" She asked, opening her basket to reveal a few freshly baked cupcakes. "They're just fifty yen apiece."

"Oh, sure, I'll— " Satoshi was about to buy from the good-natured girl, pulling out his wallet from his sling bag when he realized that Crispwisp's eyes were glowing yellow. He stopped speaking as he stared both at Crispwisp and the girl, trying to figure out what was wrong. From the surface, Satoshi could only see that the girl was trying to sell a few cupcakes to earn a little cash. But to Crispwisp, it was different.

Thanks to his superpower, he could see things in a different light, literally, and something in the basket looked a bit odd. That's why he stopped Satoshi shortly as he focused his gaze on the basket, hoping that he could get a better glimpse at the objects hidden under the cupcakes.

"Sorry about that, how about we get everything, including the basket?" Crispwisp said, forcing a smile on his face so he could act a wee bit friendlier towards the little girl.

'Those weren't in the options... but they didn't just want the cupcake... so that means they're the customers, right? They're just probably hungry so they want to get everything.' The girl thought to himself before she nodded and handed everything to Crispwisp and Satoshi. "You don't have to pay. The money is more than enough!" She continued.

"What are y— " Satoshi was about to ask something when Crispwisp grabbed him by the shoulder and squeezed it so hard he winced in pain. It was a bold gesture to shut him up and it worked.

"Thank you, young girl, what's your name?" Crispwisp asked.

"My dad said not to give my name to customers. Goodbye," She bowed before going back to her dad. Somehow, she didn't feel anything weird from the customers. This time, she didn't feel afraid.

'Why? Why wasn't I scared of them? I've always been scared of them.' She asked herself.