A Decadent Weekend and the Dark Merchant

I stared at the spray bottle on my desk after finishing the breakfast Shinone Misano had prepared for me. The moment I looked at it, a detailed description window popped up, confirming it was indeed an item from the game. I knew exactly where something like this came from—the Dark Merchant network, a syndicate of underground dealers operating in the world's back alleys.

In Korea, I knew precisely who to contact to reach them. Japan, however, was a different story. The Dark Merchant system required a referral code from an existing member, making direct access nearly impossible even if you knew the right people. Fortunately for me, I had one person who could provide that referral.

The original owner of this very spray.

I immediately dialed Kurakake Kuma.

“Deputy Team Leader, I’m calling because I need a favor. I want to access the Dark Merchant site. Could you give me a referral code?”

Kurakake Kuma sounded utterly dumbfounded by my bold request. Of course I knew its value. But his financial situation wasn’t my problem.

“If that spray you used for your little rape attempt ends up in the police’s hands and the Dark Merchant gets investigated, you know that code will be voided, don’t you? You should also watch out for the assassins they’ll send after you.”

Since I had already decided to leave everything ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to Shinone Misano, there was no chance I would report it myself. I could make any promise I wanted.

“It’s already been twelve hours and the police haven’t shown up. What does that tell you? I’m a busy man. Just send the code already.”

I hung up without waiting for a reply. Kurakake Kuma’s authoritarian personality was probably boiling with rage right now, but there was nothing he could do about it. A moment later, the referral code arrived via LINE. Once you joined the Dark Merchant, you could generate referral codes based on your spending, but I doubted someone like him had more than one or two to give. Selling that code on the black market would easily fetch five million yen. He must be seething.

I booted up my computer, went through the multiple security steps, and finally entered the Dark Merchant site. The registration window prompted me for a referral code. I typed in the one Kurakake Kuma had sent. The message Valid code appeared, and the full registration form opened.

Personal information could be falsified, but the delivery address had to be real if I wanted to receive goods. I filled in the bare minimum for the rest and entered my actual address. I could always change it later once I moved out on my own.

The catalog was filled with the same items I remembered from the game. Guns weren’t particularly useful to me right now… What I really wanted were the occasional elixirs that appeared. Unfortunately, I didn’t have much money yet. I would have to wait until Health Miracle exploded in value.

The site didn’t just sell items; it also hosted regular auctions. I needed to check it frequently. Hmm… No auctions scheduled for March. That was actually a relief. If something good came up, I would have been forced to watch helplessly from the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sidelines. I needed to earn money quickly so I could participate.

As I was deep in thought about making money, a voice called from outside my door.

“Ryuta, come out here.”

“Yes.”

It seemed Shinone Misano had already contacted Taira Yukiko. Before returning home that morning, we had coordinated our story: I had stopped Kurakake Kuma’s scheme, escorted Shinone Misano home, and because she was too scared to be alone, I had slept on the sofa in her living room.

When I stepped outside, I found Taira Yukiko sitting on the sofa in the second-floor small living room. (It was called the small living room because it was smaller than the first-floor one, but it was still twice the size of an ordinary house’s living room.) I sat down across from her. Maybe I sat a little too close? I felt her flinch slightly.

“You prevented a major incident yesterday.”

“It was nothing. I simply reacted to something happening right in front of me.”

“Still, it was a big deal. But why didn’t you contact me immediately after it happened?”

Hmm, that was a fair question. Since I was directly connected to her as the chairman’s grandson, it made sense she would ask.

“At first, I was too focused on stopping it to think clearly. Also, I thought calling the police was Team Leader Shinone’s decision to make. And finally… it was already quite late after the drinking party, so I was worried it would be rude to contact you at that hour…”

“I don’t usually go to bed until after one in the morning. From now on, contact me without hesitation no matter what happens. Understood?”

I nodded at Taira Yukiko’s words. Curious about Kurakake Kuma’s fate, I asked her directly.

“What did Team Leader Shinone say she wanted done?”

“She said she wanted the company to handle the disciplinary action internally. Apparently having a husband makes reporting it to the police feel burdensome.”

Ah, right. Shinone Misano had mentioned that company discipline was far more terrifying than the police. I should ask about that too.

“Yesterday, Team Leader Shinone spoke as if company punishment was scarier than going to the police. Is that true?”

Taira Yukiko smiled faintly at my question. It was the smile of a mother watching her immature son ask all sorts of curious questions. Maybe it was because I resembled the late Taira Saburo? I could often sense maternal affection in her eyes.

“It’s half right and half wrong. Normal disciplinary actions are no different from any other company—written warnings, suspension, that sort of thing. But when something big enough to involve the police happens, like this case, the chairman’s personal disciplinary squad takes over. In truth, the victim and the perpetrator can both choose. Police involvement or internal punishment. However, no one who chooses punishment has ever been seen again. That’s why it’s so terrifying. An unknown fear, you could say.”

That sounded like some kind of urban legend. A disciplinary action where people just disappear? It was a little chilling.

“They’re probably meeting with Kurakake Kuma about now, aren’t they?”

“That was fast.”

“Even I don’t know the details. Ah! And about the car I promised to buy you as a welcome gift for joining the company.”

Right. Taira Yukiko had said she would buy me a car. Since she hadn’t mentioned it for a whole week, I thought she had forgotten.

“It will be delivered here on Tuesday, apparently.”

“Already?”

Did cars usually arrive this quickly? Before I was possessed, buying a car took months from order to delivery.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

“Of course. Since it’s for you, I had them skip a few steps in the queue. I chose a safe, understated black color.”

As expected, being the chairman’s grandson came with privileges. Honestly, even before I was possessed, I hadn’t cared much about cars. As long as it wasn’t some gaudy color, I was fine. Cars just needed to drive. In the 2050s, seventy percent of vehicles were electric. Of the remaining thirty percent, twenty percent were split between internal combustion and hydrogen vehicles, while hybrid demand sat at about ten percent.

These hybrids were slightly different from the ones I had driven before being possessed. After the Third World War, EMP attacks had become common, frequently disabling pure electric vehicles. As a result, many hybrid systems had been developed that allowed emergency operation during EMP events. In short, modern hybrids primarily ran on electricity but included a small internal combustion engine for emergencies.

“Thank you, Mother.”

“One thank you is enough.”

She was so cool about it. In that case, maybe I should tease her a little.

“When the car arrives, let’s go on a date, Mother.”

“A… date?”

“Yes. We could watch that movie you wanted to see, or have dinner outside ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠somewhere.”

Her face flushed as she repeated my words, but since I was talking about a purely platonic mother-son date, she nodded in understanding. Of course, whether that date would remain platonic or turn erotic was something no one could predict.

“Alright. I’ll make some time.”

“Yes. I’ll head back to my room now, Mother.”

“Go on.”

As I opened the door to leave after our conversation ended, my phone rang. Once inside my room, I checked it and saw a notification from the Dark Merchant app.

Oh. By the way, Ryuta was my username. It looked like Kurakake Kuma had already been taken by the disciplinary squad. I had heard rumors that the Dark Merchant had connections to major corporations across countries. The fact that his points were transferred to me the moment he was caught proved those rumors were true.

For reference, points were the currency used on the global secret app known as the Dark Merchant. Any national currency could be deposited and converted into points. It prevented confusion during auctions—if one person bid 100 dollars while another bid 122,000 won, it would be messy. So everything was unified under points. You could call it the world’s most successful virtual currency.

Point value was tied directly to the dollar. In other words, one dollar equaled one point. Let’s see… How many points had that bastard Kurakake Kuma saved up?

Was he insane? Instead of spending his earnings, he had dumped nearly ten million yen into this? Well, the Taira Group paid fairly high salaries even for deputy team leaders. Saving a little every year for several years could easily reach that amount.

Earlier I hadn’t paid much attention since I had no points to spend anyway, but with this much, there were quite a few things worth buying. I should take a proper look around the Dark Merchant site.