Celestial Grimoire: Sanctuary of the Exile

I rip the paper as I prepare for the worst. However, when I see the paper only shine and does not explode, I release a relieved sigh.

It has been a week since I started training in making explosion tags and barrier seals. I already place the barrier seals on each corner of my house to protect it from intruders. It is not the best, but at least I can stack it up to four times to increase its effectiveness.

I wipe the ink on my hand and get up from the ground. They will last for a month before I need to rewrite the barrier or refuel them using some blood.

However, I don't think I need the barrier for more than two weeks. I decided to move out of this place. I want to continue my experiment but do not want others to know about it. Because of this, I decided to buy a piece of land near Youkai Town in the north.

The town is called Nakagawa Town. It is located near the Teshio River and southeast of Shibetsu City.

Yahiro-san is the one offering me that piece of land. Yahiro says that his nephew wants to move to Kyoto, where he will get married to a Tiger Youkai.

However, he needed money for the wedding, and that is why he sold the land and house. It was a bit expensive, but I think it was worth it. Now, I only need to wait for him to arrive here from Kyoto.

I look at the clock and see I have three hours left before the appointment.

I did not have anything to do left. Let's have some food while waiting for him to arrive with the document for the land.

==||==

I smile at the young youkai in front of me and say. 

"It is nice to have business with you, Naru-san."

"Me too, Haruhiro-san. Thank you for agreeing with my price."

"Think nothing of it. Your uncle helps me a lot, and your price not being too high also helps."

The goat youkai smiles and says.

"Do you want to move now? I can ask my friend to help you move. Don't worry, I will pay for this one."

"Truly? That will be helpful as I don't think a regular moving company is willing to help me."

"Of course. Just tell me when you want to move, and I will inform him."

I think for a second before saying.

"Can you tell them to help me move tomorrow? I will wait for them from eight in the morning. For now, I need to prepare for their arrival."

"Of course. That is easy enough. I will call them now."

I nod and let him call his friend. He told them about my address and told them to move my things to the new house. After a few seconds, he nods and ends the call.

"They will arrive around seven in the morning."

"Thank you for calling them for me."

"It is my pleasure, Haruhiro-san. Do you need anything else before I go?"

"Nothing comes to mind."

"Then if you have a question, please don't hesitate to call me."

"I will. Thank you, and congratulations on your upcoming wedding."

He smiles and bows his head before leaving me alone in the tea house. I drink my tea and stand up. However, before leaving the tea shop, I saw my Grimoire appear before me.

I blink and return to my seat.

I can see the Grimoire open up and start to flip page after page. After a few seconds, it stops, but just like the last one, instead of shining and absorbing the power, it closes and leaves me with nothing.

What is going on? Is the Grimoire already running out of juice? Do I need to do something to refuel it? Maybe I need to hunt some monster to refuel the Grimoire? I don't know.

There are wild animals I can hunt here, but I need a lot of preparation. Among them is buying armor and weapons. Even with all my Bitcoin, buying them will take a lot of money. Not only that, but I also need to make more seals, which will take time to create.

I need to buy a book about the wild animals around this place.

I drink my tea and leave the tea house. I walk toward Yahiro's shop, and when I arrive there, Yahiro-san greets me.

"Haruhiro-san! How is it? Are you done with the transaction with my nephew?"

"Yup. Has he not come here yet?"

"No. He already said that he would immediately return to Kyoto because of his busy schedule. He will call me when he is at the airport."

"I see. Anyway, I came here to see if you have any books about the wild animals around here."

"Mundane or Magical? Both. If you have them in one book, that will be better."

"What? You want to hunt them or something?"

"Something like that. I want to use their blood for seal making and ritual."

"Ah, I understand. However, you can buy blood and meat from the butcher, you know? That will be easier than hunting them yourself."

"Nah, I want to try to hunt them first before buying them."

Yahiro shrugs and says.

"Suit yourself. Wait here for a moment."

A minute later, he returns with two books.

"Here you go. The first book is about what you can legally hunt, and the second one is the basic information about all the animals in Hokkaido. Please be careful. Some of them are weak, but they can still kill you if you are not careful."

"I will. Thank you, Yahiro-san."

I pay for the books and leave the shop. I think I will start my hunt a week from now on. For now, I need to settle down in my new home.

==||==

I wipe a sweat from my forehead as I put the last clothes inside my wardrobe. It takes me a few hours to put all the things where they belong into my new house. I already saw the house and the land, but I still could not believe how big the house was.

It is a traditional Japanese house complete with a zen garden, koi pond, and even a dojo.

I close the wardrobe and leave my bedroom.

However, as I step outside my bedroom, my Grimoire appears in front of me once again. I release a sigh and wait for it to fail once again. I see the Grimoire open up and start flipping its pages for a few seconds before stopping.

However, instead of closing back, it shines, and my body absorbs the light. I can feel a rush of knowledge get inside my head. Countless spells and prayers get into my brain, making my head start to hurt for a few minutes before the pain goes away.

The Grimoire just gives me a lot of spells that let me borrow power from the Gods using prayer and chant. This kind of magic can be powerful, but my new power also tells me that I need to give an offering to the Gods I want to borrow their power from, or the spells will not be as powerful or, even worse, will not work.

At least this power also gives me knowledge of how to use close combat weapons to defend myself so I can focus on buttering up Gods and Goddesses that I need to worship for their power.

I rub my forehead and release a sigh. I look at the Grimoire underneath me and can only say one thing.

"What kind of book are you? Sometimes you work, and sometimes you do not."

I release a sigh and continue.

"I am grateful for the power but what the hell?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[1200 Words = 200 Points]

[Points from the previous chapter: 100 Points]

[Perks in this chapter]

Trinitarian Rhapsody (Touhou Project: Forbidden Hermit) [600 Points – Failed to Buy] [Points Banked]

You have the ability to be in three places at once. You may divide yourself up between three bodies, each at full strength and each existing in a different dimension simultaneously, while your "core" personality continues to act in your original body. With this, you could act simultaneously in Hell, Gensokyo, on the Moon, or within the Dream World, for example. Each body may have minor aesthetic differences tell them apart if you wish. You may, at any point, switch places between any of your three bodies; should you get injured, for example, you may instantly switch places with an uninjured body to continue fighting at peak efficiency.

[Point in the Bank: 200 Points]

The Magic Of Mortals (Campione!) [100 Points – Buy]

The esoteric powers for mortals aren't quite the same as those of divine nature, being more akin to borrowing small amounts of magic force from the gods, a prayer answered. Still, humans have come quite a way through making do with what they have. You are a prime example of such, being trained in spells and swords with a focus on their physically practical applications over versatile occultism from a young age. While you aren't quite in the same league as the Great Knights that lead their Orders, you could reach them in time given enough effort and opportunity.

[Points in the Bank: 200 Points]