Stay... For now

You can feel the hairs in your tail bristling and your hackles rising.

On the one paw - a mythic item!

Most mobs, such as yourself, would not even see a single artefact of such rarity in their entire lifetime, much less get to own or use it.

On the other paw - How in the blazes, the names of all the Kami and the sweet salacious tits and/or bits of Tenko O-Kami did the the priestess even get the one she was offering you? She was not that much higher on the totem pole from you, so all the reasons you had to salivate over the mythic should also apply to her.

On the third paw - what even was the difference between a regular claimant crystal and the superior version?

And, on the final paw - No way in the eight great realms of damnation and the 16 lesser realms of misfortune and woe was any quest resulting in a reward of a mythic artefact going to be anything but nigh - or even outright - suicidally difficult.

No, you were smelling a rat, and you were not talking about the Nezumi shinobi.

But...

Dang it all, you really, really wanted that shiny!

Ok, ok, ok...

Think this through.

You were good at being smart.

She said she wanted you to answer some questions as well as do... whatever it was she wanted you to do.

So, play this smart.

Stay. Listen. Agree to nothing before you get a heckuva lot more information.

"I will want a lot more information before I agree to anything, but I will consider answering your questions if you would agree to do the same for some of my own questions. Would that be acceptable?" You propose cautiously.

Hayami considers you for a split second before nodding in acceptance.

"That would be fair, I guess. So, what do you want to know, youngling?"

You were prepared for another jab at your ego, so naturally, her easy frankness caught you flat-footed. Again. Darn it.

You really hated doing this. It rankled you as a person and as a foxkin to do it, but needs must, and you were, 'afore all else, a pragmatic sort. You had to be, to save sanity in this fucked up world.

"Yes. Ok! All right... Look, in the interest of speeding things up, can I just yield now? I know that being smug, annoying assholes are the hallmark of our species and all, but right now, it's getting in the way. So, it's your win, I concede defeat; I can't hope to match your Wits, Int or Man in a verbal spar, so can we just move on and do away with the whole affair until some other time?" You plaintively proposed.

That drew up another bellyful of barking, yipping laughter from the priestess. It got so strong, in fact, that her shaking from laughter exposed a good bit of jiggling boobs out from beneath her outfit.

"Oh, dear Kami, I needed that. You really are something special, Shin. I really like the cut of your Jib!"

You stared at her in incomprehension.

"Cut of my whatnow?" You asked in confusion.

"Eh, just something I heard from some adventurers, and it stuck with me. Means I like yer attitude."

"Ah, alright then. So, your first question?"

"Your Ancestral power. If I remember correctly, and as you have demonstrated, it allows you to pass through solid objects. Has there been a limits put on what and how much you can pass through? Other than your inability to pass through bright light."

You eye her suspiciously, but ultimately don't see how that particular bit of info could be used to hurt you, so you acquiesce.

"No... Only duration and cooldown." You hestitantly venture.

"Good, Good... It used to work through magical blocks, again, so long as the light is not too bright, is that still true?"

"Ehhh... Mortal magic. I never could pass through barriers Kami put up to keep away... I think I see where this is going... You want me to sneak in somewhere, and probably steal something for you?"

"Smart boy! But not quite. What I want you to do is go with little Keiko to a sealed secret exit, go through the seal, and trigger the opening mechanism for her." Her smile is a blend of maternalistic pride and predatory.

"And where am I supposed to break into?" Despite your caution and natural paranoia, you can't help but feel your interests piqued. Her next words prove your instincts to have been right.

"Hidden vaults beneath the main temple of Tanko O-Kami." Seeing the sudden onset of terror-driven paralysis taking over you, she just gives another peal of that yipping bark of laughter befor hastily explaining. "Oh, don't worry little Shin. I do not expect you to challenge the Noble district and Ōkami. No, no... The exit you will be going for is on the outside of the Zone. There should not be any problems for a lvl 7 and a lvl 5, so long as you are not being stupid. Doesn't mean our 'noble cousins' may their arrogant tails go bald on them, will not be able to detect the intrusion the moment it happens, so you would be working against the clock. Should help a smart boy like you from trying to be too smart for his own britches."