Scared Rat

Shu had always prized himself over the fact that he was sneaky, slimy, as slippery as an eel doused in oil and always got the job done, he assumed that if every job he accepted were always fulfilled as intended, then no one would possibly have any problems with him, and indeed, it had been true for years, his fellow disciples may not respect him as a cultivator, but they certainly respected him as a merchant, and many even viewed him as a good friend as his prices were never exorbitant and he was one of the few inner disciples to have ties with the core disciples.

All in all, his position was very good, he had slithered himself just high enough within the sect to remain without question, and forged himself a web of people that liked him for one reason or another and would be willing to help him in most situations.

Well, apart from occasionally getting shaken and picked up like a ragdoll by Yin, but he had to admit that it wasn't that bad to get threatened by a one meter and eighty-four centimeters tall blonde beauty.

Shu had feared that he had a problem when he realised that he didn't dislike it that much, but thankfully, it seemed that it was just that he found Yin in particular very attractive.

At least there was something good to be taken out of his current situation.

"How may I help you?" Shu looked up with a wry smile, feeling like night had fallen as a massive shadow blocked all light.

"By procuring the items I asked for- You know, the ones on that list I gave you?"

"Ahahah… Aaah… I must have forgotten about it!" the inner disciple wiped sweat off of his forehead "W-Why don't you take a seat? Mister Anoteros?"

"Oh, do call me Edrick, we are business partners after all, we can allow ourselves a little bit of familiarity, heh?" Anoteros sat down and settled on a chair much too small for him, Shu also plopping down with a nervous sigh.

Shu had just wanted to walk out of his quarters to go check on his regulars, but instead of being blinded by the sun of day, he had been blinded by a hulking figure that was waiting right in front of his door.

Edrick hadn't waited to invite himself in and at that moment, Shu had been certain that his brain was going to be converted into soup by the soles of the special disciple's shoes.

"Listen Shu…" leaning back, Edrick raised both hands "...I can tell that you don't want to kidnap people for me, and you know what? I respect that"

The inner disciple began sweating bullets, when people that were supposed to be mad at you were understanding and nice, it meant that you were in severe trouble, and if they weren't planning on bringing you ruin, then it meant that you were conversing with a lunatic that was unpredictable, which was worse.

"It- It is simply that I do not have the finesse or capabilities of doing so… M- Edrick… I would only be bringing you trouble by trying to do so…"

"I know, I know, no need to regurgitate the excuses you prepared ahead of time" with a smile, Anoteros waved off Shu's concerns, making the latter gulp.

"Instead, I will be offering you another deal- Forget about abducting people, I'll only be needing you to work as my… Let's say, intermediate with other people… Fellow disciples, city folks or travellers- I'll instead be telling you qualities I am seeking, and I'll trust you to bring them to me"

"Huh… That- That sounds like abduction but in nicer terms?"

"No, not at all! I'll be offering them stuff and I swear, for real, that they will all walk away with their life" Edrick flashed a small smile, making Shu want to sink down into the ground and never reappear again.

"That sounds acceptable…" he tentatively agreed.

"Great! No need to hurry, you can take the week to find as many as possible before sending them to my residence one by one… I'll be in need of some female, inner disciples with a strong desire to remain within the sect, but without the means to do so- Preferably somewhat pretty, but I can work with anything, any questions?"

Shu almost wanted to ask for what purpose, but he was afraid that the obvious answer he was thinking of would turn out to be much less worse than the truth, so he kept his lips sealed and shook his head negatively.

"And don't forget about the other goods that were on the list, I know where you live now"

"How did you find out about that, if I may ask?"

"I asked, you weren't expecting your little friends to cover up for you when questioned by a special disciple, did you? They all buckled within seconds"

"Of course…"

"I also learned that you had a little crush on Yin? You're into women stronger than you?"

"Wh- How?!"

"I passed by one of your quartermates and he happily spilled the beans"

'Damn bastard…' immediately seeing which one it was, Shu narrowed his eyes.

Silence encroached the place, only interrupted by the groaning of wood as Edrik shifted in his seat, leaning forward, his dark purple eyes seeming to shine.

"I am a fellow man, Shu, if you show some enthusiasm in fulfilling my orders… How about I pay you by helping little old you get closer to her?" upon hearing Edrick's words, Shu swallowed hard, a bead of sweat travelling down from his forehead to his chin, all the way down to the floor.

"For real? You could do that?" he recoiled and blushed in embarrassment at himself, he had instantly tried jumping on the offer without thinking.

"I mean…"

Edrick stopped him by raising one hand up.

"I am many things, but not a liar…"

'That's exactly what a liar would say'

"...As it stands, you are in the worst possible position to court that girl"

"Because she hates my guts and despises me for smuggling things for other disciples?"

"No, if that was the case, she would have already broken your arms and legs- She pities you, the worm who's afraid of the outside without the sect's protection, she did not reveal everything to the elders because she doesn't want a weakling like you to get beaten to death in the streets"

"And let me tell you, it is much easier to make a woman appreciate you when she hates you, than when she pities you, Yin views you as a fragile little thing that needs some correcting every once in a while, but fret not, even your kind can get in her good graces, eventually"

"But that's for when you get me what I want, now follow me, we are going out into town"

"Huh?"

"You heard me, I need a guide"

"A-Alright…"