FILE 9: THE BOOKSTORE PART 1

Three weeks have passed since our five-day holiday at Haneda Onsen Hotel and Spa. It is now early spring and the flowers are blooming. The weather is pleasantly warm, so I dressed for the occasion in black pants and sandals, and a T-shirt.

I glanced in the mirror, wondering if I should cut my now chin-length hair, but when I asked the ladies on the street the other day, they immediately denied it. So I'll give long hair a try. 

I sent my parents their gifts from Japan, a Daruma doll, which confused my dad, but my mom loved her Sashiko. My training with Mars was going spiffing.

I could already disappear in minutes, but I still struggled to reappear. But vanishing at all in such a short time is quite an achievement, apparently.

I hummed as I cleaned our house, dusting the corners and wiping the floor. We had our first client coming, and I wanted to give off a good impression.

Mars slept on the island, as always. I had just put out refreshments when there was the sound of the wind blowing. Good. My guest has arrived. 

I bowed respectfully as a medium-sized silver fox elegantly sat on the couch on all fours. It examined my living room with sharp grey eyes, as if in disapproval. Hey, it was just renovated and looks modern. There's nothing wrong with it.

"Quaint. Are you the one called Jason McNeill?" He inquired snobbishly. I am calm, I am composed. "Jason is my father. I'm his son, Nathan," I corrected him as I went to sit across from him.

Sniffing in disdain, it didn't say anything. Its fur shimmered while I watched as it transformed from a fox into a teenage boy.

He still had silver hair, fox ears, and grey eyes, but he now wore a dark blue traditional Korean outfit. I hated to admit it, but he looked pretty as he sat there, relaxed, before me.

"I see now that you mentioned it," he smirked. The bastard.

I gritted my teeth as he poured himself a cup of tea. Mars, sensing my displeasure, joined the conversation. "Welcome to our abode, Mr. Gumiho.

Please make yourself at home. Now, how can we help you?" he asked politely. Gumiho sipped his tea irritatingly slowly to spite us and started.

"I have lived for a very long time. Thousands of years and it was very boring at times. I lived in the mountains, but sometimes I came down to watch the humans.

The last time I came, Nam-gu was just being built." Heh, no wonder he has silver hair. He's just a freaking old man.

"I watched as it grew larger and more people settled. It started to look interesting, so I went to explore the place until I came across a tiny bookstore. It had just opened, and there was a young couple inside. 

So out of curiosity, I proceeded to take a look. It was very stuffy, but also cosy. They couldn't see me, so I browsed through the books without interruption.

To my dismay, I couldn't read most of the books. Most were in a language I couldn't understand, and those that were written in Korean were textbooks or literature that were too difficult to read," he explained.

"It must be English," I informed him. "English is one of the most spoken languages in the world." He looked upset. 

"I don't know, nor do I care. Stop interrupting me," he snapped snobbishly. Brain-dead beast. "Sorry for his rude behaviour. Please continue," Mars apologised. 

Ignoring me, he went on, "I was a bit frustrated at the time, so I observed the couple instead. To my delight, the female began an event she called 'Story time'. So I listened to fairy tales and adventures from the books.

I became part of her audience as she told a story once a week. As time went on, I noticed them getting older, and they had a baby too, who also grew up to become a young lady.

But the mother never stopped story time so it didn't matter to me. As a thank you, I helped them become more prosperous. 

In addition, they opened two more shops under other management, and they lived very comfortable and healthy lives. That is, until recently. She told fewer and fewer stories, and eventually, she stopped coming completely.

Worried, I did something I would never do. I visited her house to check up on her." He sipped his cold tea. 

"She lay in her bed, stone-cold dead. Her family was there, so it seems she recently died. The family was confused about why. She had no afflictions, nor was she in an accident.

She just died! But, you see, it's my fault. Mine!" He started to tear up. "I had forgotten, you see. To grant a person luck, they had to pay a price in return.

I did it without them knowing, so they didn't give anything in return. Thus, her life was taken as the price for their prosperity. 

I should've left them alone. They might have been okay by themselves, but I meddled, and now someone has lost their life! Mother warned me, but I forgot!" he cried.

I didn't say anything as he cried. We waited for him to calm down, offering more tea, which he accepted gratefully. "I'm so sorry. But what is it that you want us to do?" I inquired seriously. He wiped his nose on his sleeve, yuck, and spoke up again.

"After her death, the daughter and father kept fighting over the bookstore. They don't know it, but their mother's spirit knows about their bickering and is in despair.

I want you to go and resolve their dispute so that she can find peace." Wait, you say that again?

"You want me to be a peacemaker?" I asked incredulously. He nodded. He pulled something from his sleeves. I got goosebumps. It was his snotty sleeve too.

"As a payment, you can have this piece of diamond I found. I have no use for it, but I heard humans love diamonds," he said earnestly. 

"Where's this bookstore? What are the names of the owners? What's the number? Do they have an email?" I questioned him eagerly. 

I grabbed his hand, forgetting there was snot on it previously, and peered at the diamond he was holding. It was at least four carats! He gazed at me, flabbergasted, as he pulled away.

"I don't know! I planned to guide you there. What's an email?" I never had a chance to answer, though, as Mars interrupted us.

An hour later, I was wiping a scratch on my face as I followed Gumiho to his favourite bookstore, Baek Books. I got a bit carried away, and Mars was forced to bring me back to my senses.

I am now furious at him, as my perfect face is now flawed. No dinner for him. I scowled as we neared our destination. Gumiho came to a halt, and not paying attention, I bumped into him, causing even more pain. (CENSOR!) 

"Ouch! Dammit. What's wrong? Why did you stop?" I rubbed my nose tearfully. It's turning out to be a bad day. He pointed shakily at the window.

"Look there. They're fighting again. Please go stop them!" he pleaded. Easy for you to say. Gathering myself, I opened the door and went inside, causing the doorbell to ring.

Inside, the bookstore was as homey as he said. It was two stories, with a wooden staircase leading upwards. Bookshelves lined up everywhere filled with books, DVDs, CDs, etc.

In the centre was a lounge where you could sit and read if you wanted, and at the entrance a giant cashier's desk. The two people behind the desk eyed me warily. I had interrupted their argument.

"I'll return later, Daddy." Oh, she calls him daddy. How cute. And she's quite a looker herself. Athletic build and long brown hair tied in a braid she wore a black business suit.

Wow, she has excellent taste. By habit, I smiled flirtatiously. She huffed as she stormed out. Maybe another time.

Her father, looking haggard and grey, turned to me. "Sorry for the commotion. Please help yourself," he sighed. 

"Child problems?" I suggested. I pretended to browse the books on sale. "You have no idea," he agreed. "Can I help? Maybe advice from someone her age could offer a word of wisdom?" I offered. He guffawed.

"A word of wisdom, eh? All right, I'll give it a shot. Take a seat." So I returned the book I wasn't reading and we seated ourselves. "My wife Soo died a few weeks ago leaving us the shops.

Mi Cha, my daughter, wants me to sell the business and retire, but they are the only memento of my late wife. Due to our fights, it has chased away many customers and caused bad reviews. Yet, I can't sell the stores. How would you approach this, young sir?"

"So you're saying, your daughter wants to sell, but you don't want to, and your argument caused bad reviews which caused bad business. Correct?" I recited.

"You are correct," he confirmed. Hmm. This is more in Mars' area of expertise. Should I come back tomorrow after consulting with Mars? No way! This was my case. Besides, Gumiho was still waiting expectantly outside.

I finally made a decision.

"Let me speak to your daughter." Yeah, I'm not confident enough yet. Besides, as they say, you have to know both sides of the story before giving your opinion. Mr. Baek, however, started to shake beside me. "Huh? W-what's the matter?" I stammered. 

He grabbed me hard by the shoulder. "And what is it that you want with my Mi?" he snarled. Typical. He's possessive of his daughter. I smiled slightly.

"I just want to find out what her reason is for making you sell your store, despite knowing you love this place. That's all, I swear!" I promised.

He roughly released me. "You think I haven't asked her? What makes you think you can do any better? If you don't want to buy anything, then scram," he said snidely.

What a nice guy, yeesh. And my delicate shoulder hurts now too. 'Why is everyone hurting me today?' I groaned. So to soothe him I bought a book on How to Train Your Cat and quickly left.