From the back cover:
Kimihiro Watanuki has a wish on layaway with Yuuko Ishikawa, the sultry time-space witch who can grant anyone’s deepest desire… for a price! Still, working like a slave in Yuuko’s shop hasn’t dampened Kimihiro’s enthusiasm for his cute classmate Himawari-chan, nor his irritation with his too-cool rival Doumeki, the guy who always seems to be around during Kimihiro’s most embarrassing moments.

But when Doumeki, trying to be a good samaritan, inadvertently becomes the object of a terrible grudge, Kimihiro seeks Yuuko’s help. However, the cost for her assistance is steep: Kimihiro would be permanently impaired! Is such a sacrifice worth it for someone he would rather have disappear?

Review:
I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Watanuki and Doumeki. It isn’t rushed, and gives the sense of realizations being made on both sides. I’m not personally a fan of Watanuki’s spaz attacks, but I hope that Doumeki’s influence is going to get him to chill out a bit. It would be neat to see the main character change and mature so much throughout the series.

Aside from this subtle progress in bonding, there wasn’t any obvious elaboration on the hints from the previous volume about some task that Watanuki is going to have to perform. There were, however, a couple of references to another character that make one go “hm.” I wouldn’t say the pace is too slow, because the volume certainly didn’t drag, though it’s a little frustrating that the resolution isn’t going to be coming down the pipeline any time soon. Volume 9 isn’t even released in Japan yet.