A clever setup made of cardboard boxes.

“You’re clearly named Reg!” Chimata patted Reg’s shoulder in a gesture that was only just recovering.

“Ah, no, I’m Flawless! Uh, yes, yes, I am Reg.” Reg emphasized his other name, then continued his conversation with Chimata.

Just then, a game-like interface suddenly appeared before his eyes.

[Reg (Juvenile)] [Automatic Life Strategy System Fragment: 0.01% (Message: Don’t look here. This only shows status.)] [Health Bar: Low] [Stamina: Exhausted] [Combat Power: Normal-Upper ~ Fierce-Lower (Final Growth Stage: Desperate State: Raging-Lower, Entering Flawless: Quasi-God)] [Trait Points: 180,201]

“Huh? Mr. Dark Fairy Tale, what’s wrong? Respond to me, are you not here?” Reg was momentarily stunned, then realized that maybe after consuming Trait Points to accelerate his growth, the system had also activated with the return of some of his memories?

However, the current status of his near-empty Health and Stamina bars gave a very straightforward indication of his predicament.

“Hey, Goddess of the Market,” Reg looked up at Tenkyuu Chimata, who was struggling to sit up at the bottom of the pit, her aura still weak but thankfully no longer rapidly deteriorating.

“See? I’m almost starving. My Health bar is almost empty. In this desolate wilderness, are there any human villages nearby? I need to get some food.” He pointed to his flat stomach and then patted the tree trunk.

“I saved your life. My demands aren’t high. First, take me to the nearest human village. Second, share any food you have with me. Third… hmm, just those two for now. Fair trade, no deception to young or old. This is your domain, after all.” He specifically emphasized the last sentence, glancing at the constantly stabilizing crown hovering above Chimata’s head.

What’s going on? Reg looked puzzled. How did Chimata, who was on the verge of death moments ago, suddenly become so stable now?

Never mind that. Even if she was pretending, a God could easily kill his current self. Although he had some fighting skills and could barely tear off a piece of a God’s flesh, without an invincibility frame and without super high physical endurance, an attack would be extremely painful.

In fact, the pain was the main thing. Pain was what Reg feared most. His Flawless Path even developed a side effect because of pain: the inability to assert his true name during agitated moments or while making love with others, and a tendency for emotional outbursts.

Once I enter Flawless, it’s the Day of Destruction.

Chimata clutched her slowly healing shoulder wound, looking at the mysterious yet down-to-earth little boy before her. His candid request for payment, paired with his tired but still childish face, made even her, the God who governs transactions, feel a mix of exasperation and amusement. His demands were truly simple; she could easily perceive his simple needs in her heart: survival and a full stomach.

Chimata laboriously led Reg to an inconspicuous corner of the Youkai Mountain. Her dwelling was truly primitive: a large box hastily put together with thick cardboard and special talismans, its surface covered with crooked, secret runes. It looked utterly out of place amidst the rugged mountain rocks and the pervasive Youkai aura, like a toy carelessly discarded by a child. Thanks to the faintly glowing formations, its presence was somewhat blurred, preventing it from being too conspicuous.

“There, we’re here. My temporary shrine.” Chimata pointed to the box, her tone self-mocking and helpless. “It’s small, but make do.” She stepped forward and cautiously moved aside a piece of cardboard that served as the door.

Reg’s heart sank as he looked at the rickety structure. Did the God of Transaction, who had a short, glorious past, really end up living in such a terrible cardboard box?

As he followed Chimata and put half his body inside, his foot seemed to step on a slightly uneven seam.

Snap! Crash!

After a soft cracking sound, the entire cardboard house instantly collapsed inward as if its spine had been removed! The cardboard squeezed, bent, and tumbled, making a series of teeth-grinding noises. In the blink of an eye, the space that barely held them was reduced to a mess of scattered cardboard and talismans on the ground, like a giant, flattened paper box. A small plume of dust rose.

Reg froze in place, one foot still near the edge of the ruins. There was no surprise on his face, only a numb ‘I knew it’ feeling.

“Money money money?!”

Chimata was completely dumbfounded. She stared blankly at the total destruction of her pitiful belongings, opening her mouth, but for a long time, she couldn’t utter a word of goodwill, as if she were about to demand the boy sell himself into servitude. The carefully arranged formations failed with the structural collapse; the talismans lay scattered and lifeless.

An awkward silence spread between the two.

After a good while, Chimata suddenly turned to Reg, her purple hair seemingly moving on its own with anger. She pointed at the ruins, her voice filled with disbelief and deep frustration. “Your bad luck is unbelievable.” She couldn’t find the right words, stomping her foot angrily.

Taking a few deep breaths, Chimata barely managed to suppress the urge to freak out. She looked at the seemingly innocent Reg, her eyes hardening with undeniable determination.

“Listen up! You knocked down my shrine! You have to be responsible for this loss!” She put her hands on her hips, leaned in, and stared into Reg’s eyes. “From now on, you have to follow me! Help me market transactions, go to various markets and villages, promote my transaction ability, and recruit believers, until… until you earn back this loss for me!”

She paused, her tone laced with a grinding threat. “Otherwise… forget about the ability I promised you! You won’t get a single penny of benefit! Understood?” She pointed to the pile of cardboard ruins at her feet, the meaning clear: no work, no pay. The debt of saving her life, plus this new debt, canceled everything out.

“Do you know my life motto? Don’t do troublesome things, help kin over justice, and eliminate brainless individuals.” Reg fed the core of the Youkai he had just killed into his mouth. The Presence in his hand grew, slowly condensing into a flawless sword.

“Do you want to die? Do you want to seize control of me? But aren’t your words too childish?” Reg spoke calmly, an unrestrained killing intent surging from him, as if he had just survived countless massacres.

He had been practicing the sword since the womb, and he had acquired the Automatic Life Strategy System, though the system seemed broken and could only display his partial status now. As a swordsman for nearly 18 years, Reg liked helping desperate people, but if someone pushed their luck… Reg wouldn’t mind seeing their head roll. Respect for life is a rule that can only be formed when one’s own life is secured.

Chimata’s eyes widened, looking at the faint but soul-stinging sharpness at Reg’s fingertip. That was no ordinary Youkai power, but a pure Presence condensed to the extreme, capable of severing the connections of all things in the world. As the God of Transaction, she instantly understood its weight; this was not an entity she could easily trade with or coerce.

The anger caused by the collapse of her shrine instantly vanished from her face, replaced by a complex, indescribable expression. There was fear, surprise, and most of all, deep apprehension.

This guy… did he reincarnate? I wonder which lifetime was this fierce… Wasn’t he supposed to be the generous, gentle older brother next door? Why does he look like a war machine straight out of a battlefield? That look gave Tenkyuu Chimata a severe fright.

She clutched her slowly healing shoulder wound and subtly took a small step back. The movement pulled at her injury, making her involuntarily gasp.

“Ahem…” Chimata cleared her throat, trying hard to make her voice sound calm, even adding a subtle hint of appeasement. “That… Reg… er, Lord Flawless?” She tentatively changed her address, her purple eyes carefully watching Reg’s expression.

“I… I misspoke just now. I was overwhelmed and spoke without thinking. Please don’t take it to heart.” She pointed at the completely ruined pile of cardboard and talismans on the ground, forced a bitter smile, her tone utterly accepting defeat. “The shrine collapsing is fine; it was only a temporary place to stay anyway. It couldn’t shelter much from the wind or rain, and the formation was crude. It’s not worth anything. It was my own… ahem… poor choice of location, and the materials were too flimsy.”

She paused, looking at Reg’s youthful but expressionless face, feeling even greater pressure. “You saved my life; that’s a great kindness. About the ability I mentioned earlier… er, what kind of roll did you want? One with… an invincibility frame?”

Chimata tried to recall Reg’s earlier words, only now remembering that Reg wanted to trade for a specific ability. An invincible roll? Isn’t that language unique to external video games? The Former Hell has them too. I haven’t played games in a long time. Did he really want that skill? In ancient times, she often saw people constantly rolling around; that image… Tenkyuu Chimata couldn’t help but be transported back to the past.

Right now, she just wanted to quickly placate this powerful, unfathomable Great God. Please, I saw a mysterious blessing suddenly appear on this guy just now. If this isn’t Reg’s reincarnation, I’ll eat my hat right now!

That paper house? To hell with it! Life is paramount! The God of Transaction knows best how to weigh the pros and cons.

The white light at Reg’s fingertip quietly dissipated. He felt the persistent poverty of his internal Ki, then glanced at the rubbish pile on the ground. His expression didn’t change, but the aura of ‘do not approach’ significantly diminished.

“Oh, if it collapsed, it collapsed.” He said lightly, as if he wasn’t the one who had almost initiated a fight moments ago. “The invincibility frame can wait. The most important thing now is that I don’t have suitable subordinates.”

He rubbed his flat stomach, his brows habitually furrowing again, with a mix of childlike grievance and frustration. “I’m so hungry. This awful body gets hungry so fast.” He looked around the desolate wilderness, his eyes full of low expectations for finding food. The meager energy from the Youkai Core fragment wasn’t even enough to fill a gap, especially after he had expended a lot of Presence.

Chimata immediately understood, enduring her pain to stand up straighter. “Understood! I know this area well! I know there’s a small, secluded village outside the Youkai Mountain, near the Human Village. There are Youkai there too! There must be food there! I’ll lead the way!” She was eager to leave this unlucky place and quickly find a stable place to recover her injuries and divine power.

“Fine, let’s go. We’ll see if we can recruit a few companions there to join me on an adventure.” Reg nodded, too tired to say more.

He took a few steps with his short legs, but his foot seemed to trip over some invisible small stone. He stumbled, barely managing to steady himself with his pitiful Ki.

Chimata’s eyelids twitched watching him. She quickly gathered her wits, cautiously leading the way, making every step extremely steady, afraid that some new mishap might arise. She made up her mind: as long as she could deliver this person to a safe place with food, she would accept any cost. She dared not mention the debt of bad luck again.

I’ll wait until Reg grows up before attempting to conquer him again. No one else should be swallowing the boy during this time, right? No, I need to find time to protect him.

However, the invincibility frame condensed onto you using my power… that’s one of my trump cards…

Reg’s current Presence power seemed to be near Normal-Upper ~ Fierce-Lower. The reason for ‘Normal’ was the high possibility of being killed by a sneak attack; ‘Fierce-Lower’ was mainly because Reg could hold his own. Tenkyuu Chimata tentatively assessed Reg’s power level, her heart still unsettled, because most entities with established power in Gensokyo were generally Fierce-Upper or higher.

The two figures, one following the other, gradually disappeared into the rocks and the spreading mist.