At the second bridge, Genzaburo catches up with Minato and Koharu, carrying a folded account sealed with village wax. The elderly villager stayed behind, clutching her recovered heirloom, still too frightened to trust the quiet square.
Genzaburo
The figures are copied from the villagers’ ledgers. Grain vanished before market days, then appeared in this broker’s storehouse at twice the price. Let our new code face a truly cruel target.
Beyond the river bend, blue doors dominate a timber storehouse. An elderly fox man in a dark silk haori, lean and long-limbed, with russet fur, pointed ears, and a white-tipped tail visible behind him stands beneath a black grain tally, narrow-faced and silver-whiskered, with two armed attendants nearby.
The Grain Broker
I am Hachiro, licensed to buy and hold grain. Private stores and contracts lie beyond a bandit’s authority, and beyond a wandering ronin’s as well.
Koharu
Your contracts explain the ink, not the empty bowls. The account names villages, dates, and quantities diverted before the prices rose.
Genzaburo
We promised not to prey on honest workers. We did not promise to protect a man who starves them behind blue doors.
Hachiro’s attendants shift their hands toward their swords. The broker lifts one finger, restraining them, while Genzaburo waits beside Minato and Koharu watches the warehouse entrance.
Obtain the broker's ledgers