74 Chapter 74 Ancestral.
...
Early morning.
The sky was already dimly bright, and the mist was faintly spread between the trees.
Dew wet the broken ruins of the blacksmith village.
Houses destroyed by wind pressure are everywhere.
Because of Tecchin's quick response, he almost notified the evacuation at the first moment when the demon was found.
The blacksmiths——have long been hiding in the refuge built before.
Therefore, the blacksmith village is only damaged houses.
And because he had anticipated this kind of thing happening, so there are several uninhabited empty blacksmith villages in various places in Japan, waiting to move at any time.
So, the damage tonight is almost zero.
...
At this moment.
On the ruins of the blacksmith village.
The blacksmiths wearing Warding mask are bending over, picking and choosing in the ruins, picking up some useful items.
The village chief's house.
In the temporarily built small shed.
After picking up the resurrection of Hantengu and Gyokko, Tanjuro and others returned to the blacksmith village together.
At this moment.
Everyone is gathered here.
"This time, I am deeply grateful for the Hashira's timely rescue."
The village chief of the Swordsmith Village was a small, frail man with a head of white hair. He sat kneeling on a cushion, his aged and wrinkled hands full of calluses.
His voice was old and sharp, and he wore a Warding Mask. His tone was lively:
"Not a single swordsmith was injured, thanks to all of you."
As he spoke, he sat on the cushion, his thin body slightly bent over. A dull voice came from beneath him, addressing the people in front of him:
"I am extremely grateful."
Himejima Gyomei sat cross-legged behind the crowd, fiddling with his prayer beads. He nodded slightly:
"Namu."
Two lines of tear stains were faintly visible on his face:
"Ah... this is what we should do."
Tanjuro and Shinjuro remained silent.
The Tokito family of three sat together, watching this scene with great interest.
At this moment.
"Village chief, I also contributed!" Tecchin on the side couldn't sit still. He quickly raised his voice and patted his chest:
"I was the one who evacuated everyone."
The village chief took a few deep breaths, and he glanced at Tecchin next to him.
That was a look of disappointment.
Tecchin, who was stared at fiercely, suddenly became dumbfounded. He lowered his head in embarrassment and stopped talking.
"By the way." The village chief seemed to suddenly remember something, and he raised his head.
His somewhat blurry eyes distinguished between the muscular Himejima and the brightly colored Shinjuro.
Finally, he slowly looked at Tanjuro:
"Without a doubt, this is Kamado-san."
He put his hand into his sleeve and shook slightly:
"Your Nichirin Sword will be forged by me."
"If you have any requests, habits, or needs related to swordsmanship, don't hesitate to tell me."
"Of course, I also know Kamado-san's previous request—"
"You want a very durable sword, right."
When he said this, the village chief's eyes lit up. His gaze passed through the Warding Mask and directly looked at the Kusabimaru next to Tanjuro:
"If Kamado-san has a favorite sword from before."
"You can lend it to me for a look, it will facilitate the forging of the Nichirin Sword."
His tone rose, and he looked at Tanjuro with eager eyes.
Ah—here it comes again.
On the side, Tecchin lightly covered his forehead and looked at the village chief helplessly.
Every time the village chief forged a sword for a swordsman,
He always wanted to compete with the swordsman's previous swordsmith.
After all, every swordsman who commissioned the village chief to forge a sword had extremely demanding conditions, and only the village chief with the highest skills could do it.
And the way to compete—naturally, it was to compare the quality of the forged swords.
How to say it... the village chief's special hobby?
Tecchin thought to himself and sneakily glanced at Tanjuro.
"Of course." Tanjuro agreed very decisively, picked up the Kusabimaru next to him, and handed it directly to the village chief.
The village chief took the Kusabimaru with both hands. He nodded at Tanjuro: "Generous."
Then.
Click.
He held the hilt and gently drew the sword.
The black body of the Kusabimaru reflected the red Warding Mask of the village chief.
On the body of the sword.
The traces of being struck by lightning and scorched by flames were still faintly visible.
The village chief's expression hidden under the mask froze in place.
Tecchin saw the village chief holding the Kusabimaru and freezing in place. He peeked out his head and whispered:
"...Village chief?"
The village chief seemed to come back to his senses when he was called.
He quickly raised his head and muttered "Excuse me" to several people.
Then he took small steps and quickly walked out of the shed to the low sunlight.
The village chief held up the Kusabimaru, looking back and forth at the just-risen sun through the light.
From time to time, he even took out some tools like hammers and tapped on the body of the Kusabimaru.
Not long after.
The village chief, holding Kusabimaru, slowly walked into the shed.
He sat back on the cushion, placed Kusabimaru horizontally in front of him, looked at Tanjuro with a serious tone:
"...Kamado-san." The village chief's tone became slower, not as lively as before, and his voice seemed a bit dull:
"How often do you maintain the sword?"
Tanjuro sat upright, his face expressionless, blinked, and his voice was no different from usual:
"I've never maintained it."
"This, I see." The village chief's figure paused slightly, he coughed twice, and the expression hidden under the mask became incredible:
"Can I... know who the blacksmith who forged this sword is?"
Blacksmith...
Tanjuro pondered for a while, the image of receiving Kusabimaru from Kuro flashed in his mind.
And the words Kuro once told him.
"It's Heirloom." Tanjuro answered.
He did not lie.
Kusabimaru——indeed, in another world, it was a sword passed down from generation to generation by the Hirata family.
Upon hearing this, the village chief bowed his head and was silent for a long time.
Then, he held Kusabimaru with both hands and handed it back to Tanjuro:
"I understand, I will try to forge a more durable Nichirin Sword."
Speaking of this, the village chief looked at Tecchin, his tone was a bit tired:
"Tecchin, you take a few Hashira for a walk."
"I'm a bit tired."
This was the first time Tecchin saw the village chief in this state, he quickly nodded and agreed: "Yes."
...
...
After everyone left.
"...Incredible, incredible."
The village chief sat alone on the cushion, shaking his head, frowning, propping his chin with his hand, talking to himself:
"Such a sword... logically speaking..."
"It's already a miracle to be able to use it..."
"How did it do it..."
For the first time in his life, the village chief felt that his view of swords had been severely impacted.
...
...
On the crisscrossed streets of the ruins.
Tecchin walked in front of everyone.
"Kamado-san, right" He turned around, spoke to Tanjuro, and pointed to the earring on Tanjuro's earlobe:
"I wanted to ask before."
Tecchin looked at the Hanafuda earrings, the Warding mask he was wearing was a puzzled expression:
"You have a pair of Hanafuda earrings, my family also has a pair."
"But, it's not hanging on people's ears."
"How did you get your earrings?" Tecchin looked at Tanjuro curiously, asking about the earrings.
"It's Heirloom."
Tanjuro answered.
-----
read up to 20++ advanced chapters on patreon.com/GMadman
