Ch. 60 - The Heart-Pounding Incense Shop Lady

“Yuehan, you’re heading out?” Tang Yihan called as I clocked out. She’d just finished the last of the shop’s chores and stopped me.

“Uh, something up, Senior?” I asked cautiously. She’d been riled up by Ying Shiqian earlier—first startled, then tricked into thinking she’d get a new recipe, only to nearly make herself sick testing it. I was worried her bad mood might spill over.

“I talked to the boss about your pay. You see the deposit?” she asked.

“Oh, yeah, I got it. Thanks, Senior!” I said, relieved. Just that, thank goodness.

“Good. You’re buying incense, right? I can recommend some shops. Quality’s all over the place, so don’t get ripped off.”

“Really?” My eyes lit up. I had zero experience with incense and was just going to grab whatever. A recommendation from her could save me a ton of hassle.

“Yup. I’ll send you the shop’s address later. Got to run—catch you later!” she said, waving.

“Bye, Senior! I’m off!” I called back.

After parting ways, I headed to the nearest transit station. My villa wasn’t far, but I wasn’t ready to go home. It was just me there—heading back meant going to bed early.

Might as well buy some incense and maybe check out the meditation room.

I checked the time— it was still early. After hearing Ying Shiqian rave about meditation rooms, I was sold. The problem was that a proper meditation room wasn’t cheap.

My phone buzzed. Must be Tang Yihan sending the shop’s address.

The name caught me off guard: “Aromatherapy Boutique.” Wasn’t I looking for incense? Weren’t aromatherapy and incense the same thing?

Confused but curious, I locked in the destination and mapped out the bus route.

I arrived, but finding the place took some effort. The shop was tiny, squeezed between two bigger storefronts.

Inside, it was narrow but elegantly decorated, lined with rows of bottled aromatics. Even sealed, a heady, almost overwhelming scent filled the air.

“New customer? Looking for anything specific?” a voice called from the back.

That voice—silky, almost hypnotic, dripping with charm like the shop’s fragrance—gave me instant goosebumps.

I turned and saw her: a stunning, tall witch gliding toward me, her heels clicking sharply, echoing in my head. Her tailored dress hugged her curves, every move screaming refined elegance.

I was frozen until she stopped right in front of me.

“Uh… s-sorry!” I stammered, mentally kicking myself. Why was I acting like some creepy dude? So embarrassing.

“No need to apologize,” she said with a soft laugh, unfazed by my awkwardness. “I didn’t expect a freshman to wander in. I hope I didn’t startle you.”

She was taking the blame? Her kindness only made me feel worse.

“It’s my talent,” she continued, her eyes glinting. “You were a cute boy before, weren’t you?”

“What?” My embarrassment vanished, replaced by shock.

How did everyone keep figuring out I used to be a boy? What gave me away?

“My talent draws in people attracted to women,” she said, casually reaching out to pinch my cheek with a smile. “If you weren’t a boy before, you’d have to be a deeply closeted lesbian.”

“S-Sorry!” I swatted her hand away, my heart racing as she leaned closer. What kind of talent was this? It was terrifying.

“So shy. Definitely a boy,” she teased, pulling back without a hint of offense. “So, what brings you to my shop, little one?”

“I… whew…” I stepped back, catching my breath to steady my racing heart. “My senior recommended this place for incense. Uh, Senior, do you have incense here?”

After my run-ins with older students, I’d learned calling anyone “Senior” at the academy was a safe bet.

But I needed to know about the incense. The shop was packed with liquid aromatherapy bottles, not a stick of meditation incense in sight. Were these the same thing?

“Recommended, huh? Mind sharing who sent you? I don’t get many customers,” she said, her voice still dripping with that magnetic charm.

“Uh…” I hesitated. Tang Yihan hadn’t said if I could name-drop her. Would it be rude to spill?

“Oh, my bad, I got nosy,” she said with a light laugh. “You’re after incense, right? For meditation?”

“Yes!” I nodded eagerly, catching on. So there was a difference between regular incense and meditation incense?

“Alright, but meditation incense can get pricey,” she warned, turning to fetch something.

I let out a breath as she walked away. She seemed kind, but her presence made me jittery. That talent of hers—fatal attraction? Terrifying. Good thing I had some self-control, I told myself, patting my chest. Was it my imagination, or did it feel… bigger? Probably. I’d been putting in serious effort at night to help things along.

Her comment about the price didn’t surprise me. My paycheck had hit, but a full day’s work only netted about two hundred bucks. A few days of that wasn’t much. I hoped the incense wasn’t too steep—I still wanted to hit the meditation room later.

Translator's note: In Chinese internet slang, "cute boy" is often a teasing term. It usually refers to someone who looks like a cute girl but is actually a boy. This is common in anime culture.

Comments