Trafford's Trading Club

Translator: AlfredoPoutineSoup Editor: DesTheSloth

Gradually, Black Soul No. 18 found it wasn’t easy to tempt this potential customer in front of her.

There seemed to be some kind of power protecting her.

To be more accurate, a power similar to Black Soul No. 18 was luring the potential customer as well.

Of course, the other power was too weak, compared with Black Soul No.18’s.

A Black Soul Envoy couldn’t even attract potential customers to make the deal? If this news was let out, she would be totally ashamed.

“I don’t know how you got this necklace… but it doesn’t matter… Keke…”

Gruesome laughter resounded but Zhao Ru didn’t hear it.

She was passing through a bookshop and stopped.

Something was attracting her… so she walked in.

Soon after, she came out with a bag in hand.

She might have bought something from the bookshop.

Black Soul No.18 glanced at the sign: Xinhua Bookshop.

…

…

At dusk, Mai Xiaojun came back with his grandpa.

All his neighbors were much older than himself… Therefore, he had never seen a young elder sister.

He had never gotten so close to a female before, except for those female teachers and classmates.

He sensed that this elder sister was different from those other people.

But he couldn’t tell what it was… He merely noticed that Sister Xiao Ru never smiled.

Even though it was only a few days since she came.

Uncle Mai seemed to have a good harvest today, so he bought some cheap pig liver for cooking sautéed pig liver.

And many other homeless started to prepare their dinner.

Many good smells emitted from this place.

But Mai Xiaojun wasn’t attracted by those smells; rather, he peeped at this sister that had just came.

She didn’t talk to others—even if it was dinner time.

She just hid in her ‘house’, tore the bread, and put it into her mouth little by little.

Mai Xiaojun thought her meal must be very cold.

It seems that she was always thinking about something.

The rule here was that nobody would ask about anyone’s background. They always spoke about what they saw and heard today or yesterday.

But Mai Xiaojun was still at the age where he could not hold his curiosity.

“Sister Xiao Ru, do you miss your parents?”

At the age of Grade 4, he could only think of such questions.

Zhao Ru didn’t answer quickly, but she stopped and turned to look at him.

“Do you miss your parents?” Zhao Ru asked suddenly.

Nobody ever asked Mai Xiaojun this question—so he didn’t know how to answer her.

He held his textbook, and sat near the ‘door’.

“Well… sometimes.” Mai Xiaojun popped his head out to glance at his grandpa, before saying carefully, “Sister Xiao Ru, let me tell you a secret. But you must not tell anyone, ok?”

“Then don’t tell me that.”

Mai Xiaojun opened his mouth. He didn’t expect her answer—All his friends seem to care about the secrets of others.

“My grandpa said that if I study hard, my parents will come to me when I get into a university!”

“I told you, don’t tell me that.” Zhao Ru shook her head, “I’ll forget it.”

“Oh…” Mai Xiaojun lowered his head with disappointment.

Zhao Ru glanced at him and suddenly said, “Let me see your homework.”

“Thank you, Sister Xiao Ru!” Mai Xiaojun felt wild with joy… He found that this sister explained much clearer than his teacher in school.

He was so excited that even climbed into her ‘house’.

“Don’t come in.” Zhao Ru stopped him, “Let’s go outside, it’s too dark here.”

Mai Xiaojun nodded and crept out. Therefore, he didn’t see Xiao Ru hiding something in her coat.

…

At night, all members in the alley had fallen asleep, including Zhao Ru.

However, something like a shadow was moving around her.

The shadow seemed to look at Zhao Ru; it gave a ghastly laugh, watching the cold sweat emitted out of Zhao Ru’s forehead.

It knew that Zhao Ru was dreaming about her past.

In the dream, she came back to her original house in the other province, on new year’s eve (Chinese New Year Eve).

Without her noticing, she had grasped her clothes tightly and eyeballs beneath her eyelids started to turn about.

And that laughter turned even more gruesome—Of course, nobody could hear that.

Suddenly, it stopped laughing and left this rough ‘house’, never revealing its real figure until completely leaving this alley.

The black robe covered its body and only a pair of cat-eye-like eyes could be seen.

It was looking in front— A man wearing glasses was standing there quietly.

He seemed to have waited for a long time

The man looked at this weird shadow too.

He said first, “Are you an evil soul or a vengeful spirit?”

He shook his head after, “Whatever, you’ll disappear later.”

“Hehe, I found early on that someone was tailing this woman. Hehe, did you give her the crystal?”

The man wearing glasses chuckled, “No matter where you come from, don’t even try to rob this beautiful ‘material’ from me!”

After the words, he opened the fingers on his left hand; five small black crystal slid down from his sleeve.

They were floating above his palm!

Soon, these crystals shot out to five different places. Four on the ground and one in the midair, the five spots connected to their neighboring ones, and formed a pyramid shield with four triangles as its side faces!

The man came closed his hand and smiled, “I’ll use you as the next crystal’s core… if you are powerful enough.”

However, his words stopped there. A crack appeared on this hard shield used for catching solitary spirits.

The crack expanded very soon!

In a wink, the shield was smashed, this included the five crystals!

“Tut, I thought I met an interesting guy, it turns out you’re just a clown that just has some superficial knowledge of magic. Tut…”

The man face changed slightly while stepping back. His arms hung down and more crystals dropped out of his sleeves, floating above his palms.

“Even the fire-torture columns in Jerusalem couldn’t burn me to death… let alone a dabbler like you. You want to kill me? Tut tut…”