Demon hunter's Cooking Manual-Chapter 948 - 4 The Familiar City, The Strangers
Walking out from the office of "Mask X Machete X Flesh," one only needs to walk down the metallic stairs to see the second-hand electronics store across the street.
"Rock Electronics."
The store sign was like a light box, white as its background color, with black letters.
Its corners were already worn, but it still worked and the owner hadn’t replaced it.
Two old washing machines and televisions were set up on both sides of the entrance. Paired with the decrepit sign, there was no sense of incongruity.
The shopkeeper was an elderly man, sitting sideways in a chair inside the store, watching a television placed at the entrance.
The television was a very old color set with a built-in antenna and a convex screen; its display full of snowflakes. Yet the old man was thoroughly engrossed, patting his thigh, clicking his tongue, and staring at the television screen fixated on a pair of legs.
"Good afternoon, Jason."
"Do you need anything?"
The old man greeted Jason in a very natural and enthusiastic manner.
Acquaintance?
Jason frowned secretly. freewёbnoνel.com
Meeting acquaintances was what he worried about the most right now.
Having no memories of ’himself,’ he could only choose a vague nod.
"I need a television," Jason said.
"A television?"
"Of course! For a single guy like you, even if it’s just to ward off loneliness, you should’ve gotten one by now!"
"How about this one?"
The shopkeeper pointed to the television he was watching and said with a smile, "Received it a week ago, eighty percent new, comes with an antenna, can securely receive five TV channels, and..."
As he spoke, the shopkeeper lowered his voice.
"It’s a great match for your profession!"
"Huh?"
Jason looked with surprise at the shopkeeper who eagerly leaned in, cloaked in mystery.
"The former owner said strange things happen with this TV—an inexplicable well appears, and a long-haired woman in white comes out of the well, then slowly climbs out of the TV."
The shopkeeper’s voice was hushed, feigning a creepy tone.
As he spoke, the shopkeeper also posed, hands in front of his chest, fluttering up and down, whispering continuously: "I so hate, I so hate..."
Jason merely shrugged his nostrils.
Not a single scent of food.
Thus, Jason looked at the shopkeeper, who was feigning mystery and horror, with a blank expression.
Being stared at by a burly man over 2 meters tall, with a rough-looking face, was absolutely not a pleasant experience.
The shopkeeper felt this too.
Quickly, he started to chuckle dryly under Jason’s gaze.
"I heard it from the previous customer," he explained.
"Where is that customer?"
While asking, Jason examined the television in front of him.
For Jason, such a TV was indeed an antique, but learning to tune it and the like couldn’t be simpler, because the rotary buttons on it already said everything.
"I don’t know."
"Speaking of which, he didn’t seem to be from Silver-11 district."
"I’ve never seen him before."
"Doesn’t matter, the paperwork is complete, and there’s a department store receipt. There’s definitely no issue with the TV’s origins."
The shopkeeper pondered but quickly shook his head.
"How much?"
Jason asked after a check.
"200."
The shopkeeper named a price.
"100."
Jason made a counteroffer.
Instantly, the shopkeeper jumped up from his chair.
That spry response definitely was not typical of a white-haired old man.
"How could you do this?"
"Never heard of slashing the price in half before... wait, wait!"
"Don’t go!"
Jason paid no mind to the shopkeeper’s clamor and turned to leave.
"120!"
"It has to be at least 120!"
"I took it in for 110!"
The shopkeeper blocked Jason, explaining rapidly.
Jason halted, his gaze shifting to a radio inside the store, and finally settling on it.
"120 is okay, and it comes with that," Jason pointed to the radio that was playing news with good sound quality.
"No way! Absolutely not!"
"I can’t... We can talk about it."
"Really, let’s talk!"
Seeing Jason about to leave again, the shopkeeper interjected once more.
Eventually, Jason acquired a second-hand television and a second-hand radio for the price of 125.
It must have been a price that struck at the shopkeeper’s heart.
Using his perception, eight times that of normal people, Jason listened to the shopkeeper’s heartbeat while deciding on his offer.
Watching Jason lift the television and radio, the shopkeeper shook his head.
Despite his burly appearance, why was he so good at bargaining?
Shouldn’t he have just not haggled and let me make a tidy profit?
As the shopkeeper pondered, he suddenly saw two figures and immediately ducked back into the store.
Urashima briskly followed behind his superior, the officer Ryosuke.
Watching the man’s rapid stride, Urashima couldn’t help but sigh.
As a senior, this man was not quite up to par; to this day, he hadn’t really learned much.
As an officer, he was even less adequate, always acting solo, without mobilizing the proper strength.
Just like with the present case.
The rather famous supervisor, Ichiro Sakajo, was murdered.
Moreover, his head was missing.
According to the investigation, the last person he met was a man named Jason.
The man lived at Silver-11-101 and owned an exorcism agency called "Mask X Machete X Flesh."
Following procedure, he should be the one to come here to inquire and make a record for a man named Jason, not Ryosuke, who was in charge.
