Shopkeeper

"With proper watering and pruning… and careful maintenance… the world can remain a beautiful place."

- Shopkeeper in Chapter 44

The Shopkeeper runs "The Shop" and Garden, the assassin organization which Yor Forger is a part of. While he seeks to "keep this world a beautiful place," his motives are largely unknown.

Appearance
The Shopkeeper is a tall, thin elderly man with dark skin and a long face. His black eyes are almond-shaped and appear sunken.

The Shopkeeper is always shown wearing a brown hat with a red string with two golden stiletto-like figurines attached at the ends, which are similar to Yor's own earrings and weapons. Underneath his hat is a long, white fabric that reaches down to his waist. He is seen wearing a white long-sleeve shirt whose sleeves he rolls up, along with a dark apron, gloves, and boots.

Personality
The Shopkeeper is always seen maintaining his mysterious and luxurious garden, tending to its plants and trees. He seems to be a calm and patient person, often seen smiling calmly, and normally accepts any petition or favor Yor asks him.

He also shows a somewhat mischievous side, swiping at Yor with his shears, seemingly out of a mixture of amusement and testing her awareness.

While he is largely a mysterious man, his greatest ambition is to make sure the world remains a beautiful place, and he passes his ideal to his employees, particularly to Yor Forger, whom he seems to deeply trust because he personally trained her.

History
The Shopkeeper appears to have known Yor in her youth, having taught her survival skills and trained her to be an assassin.

The Shopkeeper provides Yor with photos of the target, as well as information about their capabilities and defenses. The targets are given to the "Thorn Princess" because they are traitors to the nation of Ostania who they believe must be eliminated. Not much is known about the Shopkeeper, but he has connections to the Ostanian underworld, as he states that he owed a personal debt to the former head of the Gretcher family.

Introduction Arc
The Shopkeeper calls Yor to assign her a job, but she mistakes him for Yuri Briar, making him think she was fighting with him, recalling it as unusual. Yor apologizes, and the Shopkeeper informs her about a client for the "Thorn Princess" at the Royal Hotel, Room Number 1307.

When Yor moves to the Forger residence, she recalls to herself that the Shopkeeper allowed her to stay with them.

Imperial Scholars Mixer Arc
Yor is assigned with eliminating a faction of the Red Circus group in the northern district. After completing her task, she calls the Shopkeeper to inform him that the "customers have been served." During the call, Yor tells him she will be going straight home but remembers that she promised Loid that she would pick up eggs and milk on the way. As she finishes their call, Yor notices too late to see a surviving member aiming his gun at her and shooting her butt, which causes her great pain for several days.

Cruise Adventure Arc
The Shopkeeper informs Matthew McMahon to tell Yor that she has a phone call. When Yor picks up the phone, he calls her Thorn Princess and says she has a new "client."

The Thorn Princess and Matthew arrive at a garden maintained by the Shopkeeper. Yor compliments the garden, and he replies that with proper watering and careful maintenance, the world can remain a beautiful place. While Yor takes a moment to smell the flowers, the Shopkeeper decides to test her instincts with an attack. After Yor successfully dodges it, the Shopkeeper apologizes for his sudden actions, saying it was to test her. Satisfied that Yor's skills have not dulled, he proceeds to brief her on her latest assignment, the protection of Olka Gretcher and her child aboard the cruise ship Princess Lorelei.

After explaining the background and what the assignment entails, the Thorn Princess hesitates to take on the job as she worries about her cover at work and home. However, Garden has already prepared a cover story that she is there as part of her work. With her mind at rest, the Thorn Princess gladly accepts the assignment.

Friendship Schemes Arc
Yor meets with the Shopkeeper to inform him she met Melinda Desmond. Because Melinda is an important person in the country, she asks for his permission to be friends with her. Shopkeeper has no problem with it, but tells Yor that because Melinda is a conservative, he would not recommend it if "anything" were to happen. He then instructs Yor to at least watch herself to prevent Loid from thinking she has one-sided political beliefs. Yor says it should not be a problem, bringing up how Loid met Donovan Desmond and his interest in the National Unity Party, which piques Shopkeeper's attention.

Mole Hunt Arc
Yor approaches the Shopkeeper to request permission to kill Loid in order to maintain her cover. Shopkeeper approves, and Yor soon finds herself facing off against Loid and killing him, but it is revealed that it was all a fantasy by a drunken Yor.

Abilities and Skills
Trained Combatant: Although not much has been showcased by him, the Shopkeeper appears to be a combat expert. He uses a giant pair of garden shears as a weapon and has good control over them, as he tries to attack Yor with them with a quick and skillful thrust. He is also the one responsible for training Yor all she knows about assassination, indicating he is of comparable if not a higher level of skill in the art.

Teaching: The Shopkeeper has personally taught and trained Yor in becoming a full-fledge assassin. Upon meeting her again in person after she moved in with Loid and Anya, he tried to attack her while she was distracted to test her reflexes.

Yor Forger
The Shopkeeper is Yor's handler within the Garden organization, similar to Loid and Sylvia. He is considered her mentor as he taught her survival skills in her youth and trained her to be the Thorn Princess. The Shopkeeper calls Yor when a "client" is available and sends her out to complete assassination contracts. In a rare instance, he assigned her a mission whereby she would protect someone, that being Olka Gretcher and her son. He also allowed Yor to become friends with Melinda Desmond, but gave her a warning due to Melinda's political sidings and that something could happen.

Chapter Appearances

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Anime Appearances

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Trivia

 * The original concept for Shopkeeper was "a kindly-looking old man, futzing around his garden," but this was changed into his current and final design. The alternate design for the Shopkeeper showed him with his current design, with the addition of a black hat, glasses, and a long beard.