Is.h.i.+da found that the local authorities took their job of shadowing him very seriously.

When he waltzed into the hotel lobby, the first thing he saw was a group of men waving at him from the couch.

He narrowed his eyes, then headed to his room with his a.s.sistant.

They might be a pain, but he would not allow them to thwart his mission.

"What should we do?" his a.s.sistant asked, "They're not gonna leave us alone."

Is.h.i.+da curled his top lip. "This is both an instigation and a warning. We might not be able to act, but we will find someone who can do it on our behalf. Make sure that the person has no discernible relations.h.i.+p with us."

"Find someone to save Miss Hanako?" he repeated, "But we're too unfamiliar with this country to find someone we can trust quickly. We can't let you wait more than 24 hours…"

His words were interrupted by soft meowing that seemed to come from Is.h.i.+da. He watched in shock as the head of a black cat emerged from behind Is.h.i.+da's shadow.

He could not understand what the cat was meowing about, but he was actually saying, "Are we done? I'm starving. When will food be served?"

"Is that...Sir Kagemaru? Our great Blademaster has sent him here?" the a.s.sistant asked.

"He has, which is why we don't have to worry about taking too much time," Is.h.i.+da said, patting the top of the black cat's head.

He might not be able to understand the cat, but he has been by his side for more than half a year. Naturally, he could guess what he was saying.

"Call room service. He needs dinner. Make sure that the food is free from salt and MSG," Is.h.i.+da ordered.

The a.s.sistant complied obediently.

"Do we have to ask for help from j.a.pan?" he asked.

"No," Is.h.i.+da responded firmly.

This was his first overseas a.s.signment. He refused to ask for help on the very first day. He was confident that he would complete it successfully all by himself.

He fished for the phone that he had stuck in his pocket.

"I will make a call. I have a friend who's found his footing in Jiangmen City."

In an office building downtown, a man's phone began to buzz.

The middle-aged man was dressed immaculately. His hair was combed tidily, not a strand out of place. A gold necklace sat on the base of his neck, barely in view. He took his phone from the pant pocket of his three-piece suit.

He raised his eyebrows when he saw the caller's name.

"Why would this guy call me?" he wondered, then picked up the call.

"Mos.h.i.+ mos.h.i.+, Mr. Is.h.i.+da?"

"Yes, it's been a while. Who would have thought that you would take the initiative to contact me."

"Oh, you need info on someone?"

"We may not be specialists in background investigations, but I doubt this would be difficult."

"Alright, so the target is called Zhao Yao…"

The man hung up after collecting the necessary basic information. He then shot a quick message to someone else.

"You there? Help me do a quick check on a man named Zhao Yao. He should be a local. Graduated from university about two years ago. Looks like a creep. Acts like one too. He's willing to do anything to get ahead in life."

"Boss, that name is familiar. Give me a moment. I'm running through our database now. Do you want a summarized profile or a detailed one?

"Detailed."

A few minutes later, the man received the text he was waiting for. It contained an in-depth report of Zhao Yao's profile.

At the end of it was a surprising note.

"This guy borrowed RMB 2,000 from us?" the man chuckled.

He clarified this with his employee.

"He's not the only one who took a loan. Even his sister and aunt are indebted to us. They've chalked up thousands of dollars worth of loans."

The man eyed Zhao Yao's profile again, smiling.

"Very interesting."

He shared all that he knew with Is.h.i.+da, whom was taken aback by the news.

"This Zhao Yao owns his own cat cafe. He's even the super doctor of China's top officials. He should be rolling in money, not borrowing from money-lending apps. Even his family is borrowing money too? What's going on?" he thought.

"Could you have gotten the wrong person?" Is.h.i.+da could not help but ask.

"No way. He owns that cat cafe, right?"

Is.h.i.+da bit his lip. "Well, if his family is in some money trouble…"

An idea struck him.

"Matsuo, you must have his mobile number, don't you?"

Every user of a money-lending platform must create an account before being able to use its services. Basic information like contact details is always collected during registration.

Matsuo, the middle-aged man, laughed. "We absolutely cannot share the personal information of our clients."

"I'll buy his info for a hundred thousand dollars."

"Oh, well, if that's the case, thank you for doing business with us."

Half an hour later, Is.h.i.+da hovered over his a.s.sistant, dictating the message that will be sent to Zhao Yao.

The first message read, "Excuse me, are you Zhao Yao?"

The response was almost immediate. It was neither a confirmation or denial.

"Who are you?"

Is.h.i.+da took some time to craft the next one. "I'm just a fan of your super healing abilities. I've heard much about it."

"What do you want?"

This reply took an even longer time to create.

"I also heard that you're facing some financial issues right now. I would like to help you."

"Add me on WeChat. We'll talk there."

Is.h.i.+da's eyes lit up. A rare smile graced his lips. "Seems like I can buy my way to success."

"You are a genius, my lord!" the a.s.sistant praised, eager to please, "We won't even have to lift a finger!"

"We don't know for sure yet. He is a rich man. We might not have the appet.i.te to swallow his demands."

They added Zhao Yao on WeChat and browsed through his friend's list.

"These are all cats. Are they all his?" Is.h.i.+da asked.

"I believe so. I've definitely seen this one in the cafe before. He's alarmingly fat, so he made quite a big impression on me."

Is.h.i.+da nodded, then asked his a.s.sistant to fire a greeting to Zhao Yao. "h.e.l.lo!"

Zhao Yao skipped all formalities. "How much money will you give me?"

The straightforward question stunned the both of them momentarily.

"He's a bit too direct, isn't he?" Is.h.i.+da commented.

He thought about what he should say next. "There's a j.a.panese waitress at your cafe, right?"

"Why?"

"A friend of mine greatly admires her. Can we get to know her?"

"$1,000."

Is.h.i.+da's face contorted in shock, then rage. "Is he asking me for money?! What does he think Hanako is?!"

"Lord Is.h.i.+da, now is not the time to get angry."

"I know, I know," he waved the a.s.sistant off.

He stifled his fury and arranged for the money to be transferred to Zhao Yao.

"Could you please arrange for Hanako to have a meal with us?"

Is.h.i.+da knew that he could not take action anywhere near Zhao Yao or the cafe. He planned to meet Hanako somewhere else and take her back to j.a.pan.

He waited patiently for 20 minutes. However, a response never came. He asked his a.s.sistant to send another message to Zhao Yao.

It failed to send. Zhao Yao had blocked their number.

Is.h.i.+da gawked at the phone,

"Wait a minute. What's happening? Why has he blocked us?"

The a.s.sistant wiped the sweat from his brows. "Lord Is.h.i.+da, I believe we have been conned $1,000."

Is.h.i.+da was so furious that it felt like his lungs were ballooning to the verge of explosion.

What kind of monster were they dealing with?