A week had passed since then. 

Oh, what’s with the sudden time skip? Truth to be told, after Shun recovered from their initial shock, he quickly realised that there was  no out seeing that Shihime had already set everything up for them to sell her Dươngs. After convincing Rya that “we need the money once we leave Shangri-La”, the two of them quickly got down to business. 

In the morning, they would take the tram to Phoenix district for their daily training (torture) with Neko in the abandoned mine. Since the bazooka had been rendered unusable after their first session, Neko forced Shun to train with a sword instead. It wasn’t too difficult to wield it, but as someone who wasn’t used to swinging a sword at training dummies for hours straight, his stamina was unfortunately lacking. 

“Boy, how are you struggling with a sword when you can defeat Lady Shihime with a goddamn pan?” 

“Shut up, you’re too noisy.” He panted and dropped the sword onto the ground to rest his tired hand, which earned him a furious roar from the cat. 

“HOW MANY TIMES MUST I TELL YOU NOT TO DAMAGE THE BLADE!!!” 

Meanwhile, Rya would quietly practise her magic at one corner of the mine, trying her best to suppress her laughter. 

Their sessions would last until evening, with lunch and dinner provided by Neko. Then, they had to reach Central by sundown to open up their totally-not-a-sex-toy-shop at the entertainment market. At midnight, they would pack up and head back to Reimiru’s inn.  

All in all, they spent the week together quite uneventfully. Perhaps the most interesting thing that happened was Shun finding out Rya was actually very good at marketing. 

“We sold like, what, a hundred dildos within the first three days!” he exclaimed to Shihime when they finally met up after the week. 

“H-huh? No, it really isn’t anything to be proud of,” she said hesitantly, fingering the hem of her skirt in embarrassment. “I have attended many parties and ceremonies in the past, so I simply picked up many interpersonal skills along the way…” 

Putting down her jade abacus, Shihime gave them an uncharacteristic smug smile. “I must say, my expectations have been overwhelmingly exceeded. See, Zhu’er? I was right to hire them as my distributors.”

Zhu’er nodded her head in response, though it wasn’t certain whether she did so because she agreed with Shihime or simply out of respect. “As per the conditions of our deal, you are entitled to half of the total weekly revenue, which will be twenty gold ingots.”   

Both of their eyes lit up upon hearing her words. 

“But after deducting the fees that Neko requested as compensation for your training and meals, as well as the rent, but adding back Reimiru’s deposit…”

Zhu’er held up five fingers. 

Shun grimaced. “T…this must be a scam…”

“Oh, I don’t really think so?” Neko purred while he gleefully stroked the pile of gold ingots placed in front of him with his paw. “In fact, if I were to convert the money to USD, boy you are earning three hundred dollars just for working five hours a day. I’m actually jealous.” 

“How do you…” He shot Neko a suspicious look, but the cat sidestepped his question tactfully.

“If you would excuse me, Lady Shihime,” he meowed politely. “I have to return to my residence to make my preparations.” 

“Mm, go ahead.” Shihime turned to Zhu’er. “Please go and ensure that everything is being prepared accordingly too.” 

“Is there something coming up?” Rya asked curiously.

“Oh, did Reimiru not tell you two? Tomorrow night is the Luna Festival.” 

They stared at her in confused silence for a moment before she seemingly realised she had to explain what she just said. 

“The Luna Festival is held on the fifteenth of the seventh month, when the moon is at its fullest,” she continued. “On this day, we honour the spirits of the Qing River by putting up majestic firework displays and release sky lanterns as part of the celebrations, you see.”

“That sounds awesome,” Rya breathed. 

“Mm, it’s certainly something you don’t see back in Arcadia or elsewhere,” she said with a pleased smile. “Back then, Iocus and I…ah, I digress. I will be free tomorrow evening onwards, so would you two like to accompany me to the Qing River?”