Dario’s mind raced as the Contadino boys argued with each other, trying to remember where his mother’s house was. He couldn’t let them go there. In fact, he didn’t even want them to know where it was. Was there any way to not get caught?

  He could try to sneak through an alley and grab the bomb, but the Ambers were already on high alert. Would it even work on them? Besides, if it did work, they might all end up dead, and would killing a young noble really make things better? How long would it be before the next group of Ambers came knocking at his door?

  Violence was not a good option, so the only thing he could think of was to barter. What he had on him was an artefact that would trigger a shield in the shape of a bubble, and a Ki battery. If he remembered well, that should be worth a tidy sum.

  Cursing under his breath, he let himself drop down the roof, stopping the obscuring effect of his light Ki before walking toward the group. He held his hands up and walked out with a bashful smile.

  “Gentlemen! I’ve been trying to locate you. How fortunate that you’re he-”

  The younger guard flashed toward him, an iron grip closing around his throat. He’d seen the Ki gathering in the man’s legs, but that speed had still caught him off guard.

  “There you are!” the older guard shouted. “You think you can make us look like fools and get away with it? There will be reparations!”

  Dario was tapping the hand closed around his throat, face turning red. When the guard finally released, he was left coughing and catching his breath before he could speak again.

  “As I was trying to say, it seems we missed each other. It may have looked like I was running away, but in fact I just needed time to find an appropriate offering for you, err, distinguished gentlemen. But when I returned, you were gone,” Dario said with an apologetic smile.

  From the younger guard’s angry stare, he wasn’t buying the story, so Dario quickly moved on, fishing the Ki battery out of his pocket.

  “Anyway, I have here with me my most prized possession, a fully functioning Ki battery! I’ve been told this is highly valuable, so it should more than cover the cost of your clothes.”

  He watched with anticipation as the young noble looked over the battery, eyes lighting up.

  “This is great! Fully functioning, as you said,” the young noble said with a nod. Dario felt a flash of relief, but when the senior guard broke in again, his stomach sank. “A great start, indeed. After handing over the rest of your treasures and ten years spent in the Ashikaga workshops, you will be forgiven.”

  Dario let out a choking sound as his eyes widened, flicking down the alley for an escape route, but the iron grip returned, this time around his wrist. The young noble was asking if this was really necessary, but the senior guard insisted it was clan policy. The chains rattled ominously as the guard grabbed for the cuffs. It was the sound of Dario’s precious freedom about to be taken away.

  Heart hammering, he gathered his Ki to prepare for a blinding flash as his own hand moved down to the shielding artefact. If he could blind the guard and ran off, he should make it to his mother’s house before them, then the both of them could hide-

  “Yare yare.”

  Though softly spoken, the old man’s voice still cut through the streets, followed by a sudden silence, as if a knife was held at everyone’s throat. The guards stiffened as they turned to the speaker, except for Dario, who felt a flash of relief as beads of sweat rolled down his brow.

  “Has the wayward disciple gotten into trouble again?” His mentor said with a friendly smile that deepened the wrinkles around his eyes.

  The old man walked slowly forward with his arms behind his back, the soft patter of his sandals on the stone echoing through the street. Below a magnificent white moustache, groomed to perfection so that each side ended in a neat point after a single curl, a flashy pink and yellow shirt was unbuttoned to reveal wiry muscles. The old man walked and spoke with a relaxed, confident demeanor, as if he didn’t have a care in the world.

  The senior guard cleared his throat.

  “Senior, if this man is your disciple, he has twice impugned the honor of our clan. We demand-”

  “Ashikaga, is it?” JeeJee asked, bending over to peer at the crest on Hokori’s tunic.

  “That is correct,” Hokori said, looking the old man over with a frown.

  JeeJee nodded, turning to Dario.

  “A resourceful and respected clan, known mainly for the making and trading of valuable artefacts. One would have to be a fool to cross them,” he said, then turning back to the young noble. “The young master seems to be holding a grudge?”

  With obvious unwillingness, the young noble summarized the events again, after which JeeJee turned back to Dario, asking him to explain.

  “I’ve got dibs on the third delivery of the week. The Contadino boys were trying to move in on my treasures, so I had to teach them a lesson. I didn’t see or recognize the, uh, young master here,” Dario said, scratching the back of his head.

  “Fighting over the right to sift through garbage. The Belt truly lives up to its reputation,” the senior guard said with a disgusted shake of the head. “Be that as it may, my Lord’s clothing was destroyed and his honor impugned. On the honor of the clan, this wrong must be righted.”

  JeeJee nodded with understanding, still holding that kind smile. “At times, honor appears so ephemeral, does it not? So hard to acquire, yet so easy to lose.” The old man let out a wistful sigh before continuing. “But monetary value is more tangible. To this old man’s knowledge, the worth of that Ki battery should far exceed that of high-quality garments. A scion of the Ashikaga clan must surely be aware of this object’s value. Yet the disciple’s generous proposal has not been accepted?”

  The younger guard turned away from Dario, slowly moving toward JeeJee’s flank. The senior guard exchanged a look with Hokori before answering.

  “The value of the battery would be acceptable, but that does not address the considerable matter of-”

  “Your honor. Of course. It occurs to this old man that your group may be planning to venture out into the wilds and hunt for a Koto ahead of the Ascension?”

  The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Both men nodded.

  “Well then, it so happens that this wayward disciple, despite his many flaws, makes for an excellent scout. His Kaku was formed in the eyes, allowing him to see what others can’t, including Ki signatures. An invaluable tool in tracking down even the most elusive beasts. A humble old man would propose that those services, for the duration of your hunt, should be sufficient restitution.”

  Dario opened his mouth to protest, but JeeJee threw him a look that shut him right up. In fact, it wasn’t the look itself, so much as the fact that his old mentor was moving a trickle of yellow Ki through his body at the same time. In all his time training with him, he’d never spotted even the slightest smudge of Ki in the old man. After all that time covering it up, why was he revealing it now? Was he expecting a fight? Come to think of it, could JeeJee beat up two Ambers? He had no idea how advanced his mentor really was.

  “We don’t require the services of this… miscreant,” the senior guard spat. “For the insults given, he should spend at least a decade in the workshop! By the pillar’s light, we might still be within our rights to demand his right arm!”

  “Surely a scion of the magnanimous Ashikaga clan would prefer to find a peaceful solution?” JeeJee said calmly, though Dario could see his Ki surging in a complex pattern. “It is always so regrettable, when matters have to be resolved with violence.”

  There was no effect formed by the Ki as far as he could see, but for some reason the two guards stiffened. In fact, the senior guard’s eyes were bugging out, his legs shaking. It looked like they were trying to draw their weapons, but were somehow unable to move.

  Hokori’s frown was changing to a look of panic as his eyes flicked between his two guards, strained and fearful expressions on their faces. The younger one let out a soft gurgle as he dropped to a knee, beads of sweat rolling down the side of his face.

  Then, just as suddenly as it started, the pressure was gone. Both guards gulped for air as they got up and moved to stand between Hokori and JeeJee, who was still innocently smiling at them, hands clasped behind his back.

  “M-my Lord,” the senior guard stammered. “Perhaps the honored senior’s proposal has some merit. We could use a scout. A magnanimous thought indeed,” he breathed, shooting Hokori a pleading look, “for this to be resolved without any violence.”

  “...That’s what I’ve been saying the whole time. You’re the one who insisted-”

  “Very well then! It is agreed.”

  After that, the three of them hurried out of there, telling Dario to meet them in Endanshi at the eastern gate at dawn five days from now.

  “Okay, now that they’re gone, how are we really going to solve this?” he asked, but JeeJee had already turned his back to him, leisurely walking to the training yard. Dario sighed. His gut was telling him that one way or another, this was going to turn into a painful lesson.

  He made to follow his mentor, until he noticed the two twins trying to sneak away.

  “I know you’re not dumb enough to think you can hide from me,” he called out.

  The twins froze, slowly turning around with guilty looks on their faces. When they began to blurt out excuses, Dario cut them off.

  “I don’t want to hear it. You fucked up, now you gotta pay the price. If you don’t want me to make your lives here living hell, you’ll meet me here tomorrow. I’ll think of a suitable punishment by then.”

  They ran off, and he slowly made for JeeJee’s yard. The old man was leaning back in a chair with his feet up on a table when he entered.

  “So, now that they’re gone, what are we really going to do?” Dario said, leaning against the fence. Instead of replying, JeeJee only raised a single eyebrow.

  “Well,” he continued, “it’s not like I can actually go out to the wilds on a hunt. It might take what, two weeks? Ten days at the least. That means I’d be missing a dinner with my mother, maybe even two. That’s simply not possible.”

  “Hohoho,” JeeJee chuckled slowly, “what an innocent and idealistic world the young disciple lives in, where actions do not bring consequences.”

  Dario scratched his head, considering. “I mean, it looked like you scared the crap right out of them. Not sure they’ll be coming back after that. What was that about, actually?”

  JeeJee shook his head. “There were witnesses. When their clan’s name is at stake, nobles will never desist. That is one of many lessons to be learned from a fateful encounter such as the one that took place today. But an old teacher can tell when a disciple is not yet ready to learn. First, let us speak of matters of the heart.”

  The old man pulled his feet off the table to sit cross-legged on top of his chair, fixing Dario with a knowing smile.

  “It is possible for a cultivator of sufficient advancement to administer pressure only with their Ki. That is what the young Ambers experienced today. Understanding this, the disciple will ask yet another question,” the old man said, gesturing at Dario with an open palm.

  “Wait, how high did you climb?” he spat out right as JeeJee finished talking, and the old man continued smoothly, as if everything was proceeding as he expected.

  “...but that is not the most pertinent question to be asked here, for the disciple knows little of the other floors. After a moment’s thought, a more relevant question will come.”

  The old man looked at Dario expectantly. He considered for only a short moment, before asking again.

  “If you could go higher, then why are you living down here in this dump?”

  JeeJee’s smile widened. “There are many things the disciple doesn’t know about the higher floors. There is more prosperity, yes. Wondrous cities and powerful cultivators capable of impressive feats. Every person living there either made it up through rigorous self-improvement, or was likely born into a powerful clan and raised in luxury. Naturally, the most beautiful women in Tenjou are found on higher floors. A feast for the eyes!”

  “Right,” Dario nodded. “so why would you…”

  “Imagine what those people - those beautiful women, in particular - might be like, having been either raised in luxury, or having fought their way up? Or even both, such as the nobles being sent down here ahead of the Ascension. Consider, disciple, that most of them have their homes on the third floor and have never seen the Basement in all their lives. Consider what would happen, should they fail to find and integrate a Koto.”

  “Errr,” Dario scratched his chin, considering. “Well, they’d be stuck here, wouldn’t they? Just like the rest of us.”

  “Just so. Even a noble’s fate is not without its cruelty or pressures; to be forever banished from their homes, unless they advance in cultivating and make their own way up. Knowing this, what might people on the third floor be like?”

  “I don’t know… smart and strong, I guess? Persistent, tough, if they made their own way up. If they were born there and never left, I guess they’d be pretty spoiled, by comparison?”

  “Exactly! Blind to their privileges, most of them are, whether they fought their way up or not. Arrogant, or conceited, would be another way to put it. Stuck up! Those spoiled beauties think themselves far above all the rest,” JeeJee said, speaking passionately now, even showing a rare frown.

  “...Okay. I don’t really see where you’re going with this?”

  “If there would be only one teaching this old man could leave behind, it would be this: always follow your Dao Heart. Find your true inner desires, and live to fulfill them. It is the only way to progress. The only way to live! It is because of his Dao Heart, that this old man finds himself lingering in the Basement.”

  Dario’s frown deepened. What was the old man going on about?

  “After all,” JeeJee continued with a huge grin on his face. “there is one thing which the upper floors lack, which the Basement has in abundance.” He leaned forward to meet Dario’s eyes with a serious look.

  “Brothels, young disciple! Houses of pleasure! One would be hard pressed to find even a single one on the higher floors. It’s a terrible shame!”

  He blinked twice at the old man, then scoffed, shaking his head. “Ugh, you lecherous old goat. I should have known. I’m more likely to break the Ceiling than get a serious story out of you.”

  “It’s the truth!” JeeJee called out between peals of belly laughter, “Never stray from your Dao Heart! One must find oneself and embrace it!”

  When Dario got up and made to leave, still shaking his head, the laughter stopped.

  “The lessons are not yet over. The time has come for the practical part.”