Chapter 18

Before Akaso Kaze could answer, a voice came from the side.

"Of course it's true. Hello, I am Ochiai, the curator of this art museum."

The person speaking was an old man who was somewhat bald, had thick, long eyebrows, and a gray beard.

"I have seen that moving armor with my own eyes."

"It was the night before last, Kubota and I were on duty in the art museum."

"In the middle of the night, I went to the bathroom, and Kubota saw the armor walking back and forth on the monitor."

"When I came back from the bathroom, Kubota told me. I didn't believe it at the time and ran to see the place where the armor had appeared."

"Then, I saw..."

Curator Ochiai paused deliberately, seeing everyone staring at him nervously, then said softly:

"The armor was really walking, right in front of me!"

"I flashed my flashlight at it and saw two flames glowing with green light from the visor! Then, I was scared unconscious."

"When I woke up, only Kubota was by my side, but the armor was gone."

Akaso Kaze curled his lip.

This old man's ability to make up stories seems quite strong!

What saw green flames?

That moving armor was this old man himself, okay?

Do you think I haven't watched the manga and anime?

Kogoro Mouri asked curiously from the side: "Really? Could it be that Curator Ochiai saw wrong? Also, did the surveillance video capture the scene of Curator Ochiai and the armor facing each other?"

"No."

Kubota, who walked over upon hearing the sound, shook his head, "At that time, the armor happened to walk to a place the monitor couldn't see."

"Sir, there is no need to doubt. Curator Ochiai's words will absolutely not be false. He has worked at the Medieval Art Museum for a lifetime, is honest, and would absolutely not lie about this."

Wouldn't lie?

Akaso Kaze sneered in his heart.

This old man has already started practicing for murder, and he wouldn't lie?

Ran and the others were still asking questions, and Akaso Kaze started wandering around, looking for the magic tool material he predicted.

"Predict materials suitable for making magic tools."

Prediction magic cannot be used all the time, otherwise it consumes too much magic power.

Just use it every once in a while to confirm the direction.

Looking at the direction of the arrow, Akaso Kaze's eyes suddenly lit up, and his mouth curled up.

Is this thing also a magic tool material?

That would be too amazing.

A hundred times better than those broken branches.

However, it is very clear that it is probably the most important prop for Curator Ochiai to kill, and it won't be easy to get.

Akaso Kaze's eyes flickered, and a thought turned in his heart.

He turned and walked toward a middle-aged man who was bossing people around in the distance and was very conspicuous.

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Manaka?"

"Who are you?" Manaka turned his head and looked at Akaso Kaze suspiciously.

This handsome young man had a very dignified temperament, making people have to respect him.

"I am an Onmyoji, named Akaso Kaze, this is my business card."

"Akaso Kaze..." Manaka thought for a moment and was suddenly stunned, "Could it be the Akaso-sama who defeated the three great Onmyoji of Tokyo?"

Akaso... sama...

Am I that famous now?

Akaso Kaze nodded.

"What are your orders, Akaso-sama?"

Manaka's attitude immediately became respectful.

I heard that this young man has real skills; the three most famous Onmyoji in Tokyo were all defeated by him.

Those three Onmyoji had even secretly told others that Akaso Kaze had obtained the inheritance of Abe no Seimei and was a top-tier Onmyoji in the island nation.

Little did Akaso Kaze know, the three men he had defeated had blown him up to the heavens just to save face.

He looked at Manaka and said in a deep voice, "Mr. Manaka, as an Onmyoji, I must remind you that there is an ancient artifact in this art museum that emits a curse."

"No, it can't be." Manaka was startled.

He had been planning to renovate this place into a restaurant; if it were cursed and some incident occurred in the future, the losses would be massive.

"Did some bizarre events happen here a while ago? The incident where the armor walked on its own was a sign that the curse had erupted."

"Th-this is true? Lord Akaso, you aren't just trying to scare me, are you?"

Manaka’s face turned pale, but he remained hesitant in his heart.

Buying this art museum had cost him quite a lot of money.

"Believe it or not, I’m just giving you a kind reminder."

Akaso Kaze looked at him and smiled, "The target of this curse is anyone who wants to destroy the art museum. Anyone who tries to close the museum will become a target of its curse."

"Think about it, how did the previous owner go bankrupt?"

Cold sweat broke out on Manaka.

The previous owner’s bankruptcy had indeed been somewhat inexplicable; everything he invested in failed.

Buying stocks, loss.

Buying funds, loss.

Betting on sports, loss.

In the end, he went completely bankrupt.

Could it really be because of a curse?

Fortunately, he hadn't spent money on the renovations yet; there was still time.

It’s just that buying this art museum cost one hundred million, which really hurts. ===== CHAPTER 51 =====

Akaso Kaze smiled slightly and said indifferently, "Actually, if you think about it, it’s nothing much. At most, a few people will die."

"What? Die, die? And a few of them?"

Who could be okay with that!

Manaka was so scared his eyeballs nearly popped out.

Akaso Kaze looked him up and down, making Manaka’s hair stand on end.

Only then did he show a look of regret, shake his head, and turn to leave.

"Don't, don't go, Lord Akaso, you have to save me."

Manaka hurriedly blocked his path.

Judging by what the Onmyoji said, the few people who die won't include me, will they...

Akaso Kaze smacked his lips.

After hesitating for a moment, he said, "Fine, since I’m a kind-hearted person, I’ll write you a talisman. You must keep it on your person."

"If you encounter a life-threatening danger, take it out, and the crisis will resolve itself."

"Okay, okay, thank you, Lord Akaso."

Manaka was moved to tears.

Akaso Kaze took out a piece of yellow paper and a ballpoint pen, then casually drew a horizontal line on the paper.

He handed it to Manaka.

Manaka froze.

Looking at the crumpled yellow paper and the crooked horizontal line on it.

The feeling in his heart was truly beyond words.

"Lord Akaso, what... what is the use of this talisman?"

He originally wanted to say that this talisman was too perfunctory.

But fearing he might anger the Onmyoji, he had to change his question to ask about its purpose.

Akaso Kaze pointed at the horizontal line, speaking with conviction.

"Mr. Manaka, your Japanese isn't very good, is it? Isn't this just the character for 'one'?"

"It can save your life."

"I see." Manaka half-believingly tucked the rough talisman into his pocket.

He looked up, saw that Akaso Kaze hadn't left and was still standing there watching him, and suddenly realized something.

"Lord Akaso, I can't take this talisman for free. Tell me, how much?"

"I’m mainly doing a good deed. As for money, give what you think is appropriate. It is just a life, after all. If you give more, you’ll definitely be unscathed. If you give less... tsk tsk, you might end up with some injuries."

Akaso Kaze said very magnanimously.

A life...

Give what I think is appropriate...

Some injuries...

It seems it definitely won't be a small amount.

Manaka gritted his teeth and wrote a check for ten million.

"Lord Akaso, I’m a bit tight on cash lately. This small amount is just a token of my respect."

Akaso Kaze kept a straight face as he accepted the check.

In reality, he was overjoyed.

He drew a single stroke and collected ten million; this money was too easy to earn.

Waving goodbye to Manaka, Akaso Kaze strolled off to find Ran to play.

Of course he wouldn't leave; there was still a good show to be staged later.

The sun slanted to the west.

Mr. Manaka arrived at the Hell Exhibition Hall.

Surrounded by eerie and terrifying exhibits, he felt terrified.

He touched the talisman in his breast pocket and immediately felt much more at ease.

But thinking of that crumpled yellow paper and the line drawn so casually, he felt uneasy again.

Could he have been scammed?

He couldn't help but mutter to himself.

Clack, clack, clack.

The sound of armor clashing suddenly rang out behind him.

Before Manaka could turn his head, he felt a sharp pain in his back.

"Ah!"

He let out a shrill scream.

Bleeding from his back, Manaka fled to the corner of the wall.

Not far in front of him, a suit of armor holding a European longsword stumbled and fell before him.

"A ghost! How can the armor move?"

Manaka’s eyes widened.

"Could it be that what the Onmyoji said is true! This is the monster created by that curse!"

"Right, I have the talisman, I have the talisman that can save my life!"

He frantically rummaged through his pockets, completely ignoring the sound coming from inside the armor opposite him.

Ochiai, hiding inside the armor, frowned slightly.

This guy, why isn't he playing by the script?

"Look at the tag behind you, it has my name on it. How come you don't want to know who I am?"

The voice buzzed inside the armor. Although the sound reaching the outside wasn't loud, if one listened carefully, it could still be heard clearly.

Unfortunately, Manaka didn't care at all; he was just frantically searching for the talisman.

"Forget it, I must kill him today, otherwise there will never be another chance."

Curator Ochiai gritted his teeth and stood up, raising the European longsword once again. ===== CHAPTER 52 =====