Chapter 20

Warping inside the throne room of Sky Keep, Rey landed steadily on his feet, as he has teleported a few times at this point. Kazumi on the other hand was far less graceful, and the Centaur girl was just lucky that she was being held by Rey, as the sudden teleportation left her and Kazumi disoriented. If she hadn't already been starved by her slavers, she would've threw up in Rey's arms.

"God's damnit! At least warn us next time!" Kazumi grumbled as he tried to orient himself.

"That was my bad. But, I could sense that there were some enemies coming, and I didn't have a lot of time." Rey apologized as he summoned a plush black couch from his Space Ring and laid the girl on it carefully.

Rey then summoned the rest of the black couches that he bought and sat them near the throne. Rey had felt that the throne room was too empty and that it'd be very awkward if he was the only one sitting if he ever needed to talk to someone, so he bought couches.

Choosing a couch close to the throne but opposite the girl, Kazumi sat down lazily stretched his feet on the couch.

"Oh, this is nice. Yep, this is now my seat. So, do you want to talk about the Shinigami Sect? What made you decide to rebuild it?" Kazumi asked as he lit a cigarette.

Seeing Kazumi getting too comfortable on the new couch he just bought and the girl still shivering in shock, Rey just let out a heavy sigh and went to his throne. Before he sat down, he put the set of plush green pillows he bought down first. Sitting on a hard wooden and metal chair was far too uncomfortable for Rey, but the new additions of the pillows made it feel heavenly.

"Well, first things first is I'm training in seclusion at the moment. The Vanguardians think that they've killed me, and I want to keep it that way. But, it seems that I'll have to put training aside for a bit." Rey said as he turned to look at the Centaur girl.

"Hey, sweetie, I know what you've been through was rough, but I promise that you're safe now. No one is going to hurt you here," Rey said, with no response from the still shaking girl.

As if he just realized something, Rey unsummoned his Shinigami outfit, and was back to wearing his sleeveless black shirt, green sash, and black pants, his long black tail trailing behind him. Kazumi wore a surprised expression before he went back to the calm, lazy look he usually wore. Kneeling down in front of the girl, Rey looked at her for a second before he pulled her into a hug.

The girl stiffened up at first, but when Rey did nothing more besides hold her in a warm embrace, the girl soon started bawling her eyes out before she clung to him, crying in his chest.

"I-I was so scared. They said and did such nasty things to me when I did nothing wrong! Nobody helped! Nobody! My own parents just stood and watched as that disgusting pig came and picked me out like some treat in a candy shop!" the girl cried.

Rey and Kazumi could feel the pain in the girl's voice, making them wish they could kill that fat bastard slower for what he put that girl through. The girl cried in Rey's arms for nearly 20 minutes before she passed out in his arms. Laying the girl comfortably on the couch and pulling a blanket from his ring before he put it on the girl, Rey sat back on his throne, emotionally exhausted.

"You really are a good guy, huh? She won't last you know." Kazumi said as he blew out a plume of smoke.

"What do you mean?" Rey asked as he massaged the side of his temples.

"She's just a traumatized girl, not a fighter like us. You said it yourself, even the damn Vanguardians are your enemy. I'm no Sensor like you, but even I can tell she doesn't have a bit of Cultivation built up. It's best if we drop her off safe somewhere and let her start her life over." Kazumi said as he sat up and gave the girl a pitying look.

Though some might think Kazumi was being heartless by saying to just dump the girl somewhere, Rey could tell he meant it out of true concern. Kazumi was the one who jumped in to save her at the same time as him after all.

"No, she's not a fighter, and I wouldn't want her to be. I haven't told you yet, but the Shinigami that I'm rebuilding isn't a Sect that only focuses on cultivation and martial arts, but does nothing with it. No, I plan on building the Shinigami Order, where we cultivate in order for us to bring order to the chaos in this world. Kingdoms and Empires wage needless wars, beasts and bandits roam the lands and bring terror to people's lives. Hell, even the Vanguardians go around acting like vicious tyrants, using their power to control and scare the masses," Rey said as a look of disdain came on his face.

"The Shinigami Order will do whatever is necessary so that order comes back to the lands. Whether people see us as Heroes or Villains does not matter, because at the end of the day, the roads and homes will be safe, there will be no wars, and there will be no corruption from politics holding up important decisions from being made. So, Kazumi, are you still willing to join me knowing all that?" Rey asked, looking Kazumi straight in his eyes.

The two stared at each other for what felt like eternity before Kazumi let out a heavy sigh and took a drag from his cigarette.

"I was never one to crave power, so you being in complete control doesn't bother me. If you're really trying to bring some actual change to this fucked up world, I don't mind following you. As long as you take care of me like I asked, all you have to do is point out who you want me to cut." Kazumi said with a cool voice as Rey fought to keep his excitement down.

Rey doesn't know how he did it, but he just got a powerful Ronin to join his team!

'Jinbe, where do I find another Shinigami cloak and mask? We're going to need more if we plan on building up our numbers.' Rey thought to Jinbe.

'There should be plenty in the barracks that's located near the courtyard. But first, I'd like to have a conversation with this young man.' Jinbe said, confusing Rey on how he was going to have a conversation when he was dead.

Suddenly, Rey felt something drift from inside of him and then a transparent image of a bald, kindly old man in Shinigami robes appeared before them, scaring the hell out of both Kazumi and Rey.

"Jinbe, w-what the fuck man?! You nearly gave us a heart attack, then we all would've been ghosts!" Rey exclaimed as he clutched at his fast beating heart. It was only then that he noticed the ethereal red string that bound him and Jinbe.

"Oh, calm down you two. You act like you've never seen an old man before." Jinbe said as he sat in a lotus position, but he was floating in mid-air, giving the two young men yet another shock.

"Now, Young Kazumi, you are the grandson of Yukihira Hanzo, correct?"Jinbe asked, his translucent form looking right at Kazumi.

"Y-yes, I am. How did you know?" Kazumi asked, still trying to sound cool despite the still stutter in his voice now. He wasn't the best when it came to the idea of ghosts, as they were one of the few things he couldn't cut.

"You use his sword style and bare a striking resemblance to him when he was a young man. How is your grandfather doing? He isn't still peeping on girls in the shower, is he?" Jinbe asked, with a face that said he already knew the answer.

Kazumi turned his head away and scratched his cheek embarrassed. "That dirty old bastard is the reason we have to live in seclusion on a damn mountain in Tsugan. He got caught peeking on the daughter of a powerful Yokai in a bathhouse, and we had to hide in an old temple mountain just so that they won't find us. I was this close to sealing the deal with this pretty girl when he dragged me away with him and ended up incriminating me as well." Kazumi said as he shook his head.

'There are Yokai in this world too?! Holy fuck! I want to find a cute Kitsune for myself!' Rey thought to himself excitedly, only for Jinbe to look over his shoulder and give him a disapproving look. He forgot that the old man knew his every thought.

"Well, it seems that all the punishments I gave him were pointless. I just hope his undying lust for women didn't transfer to you as well, Young Kazumi Hanzo." Jinbe said with a pointed look.

Jinbe had suffered a lot of trouble thanks to Yukihira's salacious antics, and he didn't want his successor to be forced to go through the same trouble.

"Ahh, don't worry, Old Man. I love women, but I'm no pervert like that old bastard." Kazumi said as he went back relaxing on his couch.

Seemingly satisfied with his answer, Jinbe nodded his head, then quickly drifted back inside of Rey, who was slightly less startled than the first time. With everything normal again, Rey told Kazumi that he was free to explore Sky Keep as much as he wanted and to pick whichever room he wanted as long as it wasn't the Master Suite.

Rey would've shown him around himself, but he didn't feel comfortable leaving the Centaur girl by herself. He didn't want her to wake up and be terrified to find herself all alone in that huge throne room.

Understanding Rey's intentions and not needing to have his hand held, Kazumi left the room to go check the sights. With nothing else to and not wanting to train his combat since it might wake the girl up, Rey simply resorted to studying Inscription.

According to Jinbe, he was making good progress and should be ready to start drawing some simple Inscriptions like he had in his basic manual. One of the first Inscriptions in the manual surprised him by how serious it was, as it was an Inscription called, Confidentiality.

Confidentiality was a small Inscription that'll be hidden on someone's person, according to the manual, a new Shinigami Sect Initiate, and prevent them from revealing any of the Sect's secrets, and if they tried, they would feel a gradual pain the more they tried to force themselves, until they eventually died.

Jinbe explained that like many powerful groups, the Shinigami had a lot of secrets that if they got out, it could lead to either the fall of the sect, or a powerful spell or technique may get in the wrong hands. The Inscription posed no danger unless you intended to betray the sect. It also has the feature to alert the sect Master and Elders.

Rey felt conflicted about this, as it was basically like that tattoos that the gangs from his old neighborhood would make their new members get when they first joined. He also remembered Jory's threat about if she ever caught him doing Rune Branding, which is exactly what this was. Still, though it felt morally wrong, Jinbe did have a point.

Just the first few things he learned from the Inheritance Scroll already made him very powerful, and that was just a portion of Jinbe's knowledge, not the whole Sect's. Also, Rey had seen too many movies or shows where everything falls apart thanks to the betrayal of one random person, and he had no interest in going through that. With some reluctance, Rey decided to learn the Inscription and choose to make the Inscription into the Image of a lotus, like on his Shinigami Cloak.

After some trial and error, Rey successfully made his first Talisman, which held the Confidentiality Inscription. As he looked at the lotus inscribed Talisman, Rey got a sudden idea thinking back on those gangs from his old neighborhood. The manual said it was best if the Inscription was hidden, but the best place to hide something is in plain sight.

Plus, if he didn't tell anyone what the Inscription did, they wouldn't know, possibly even after they tried to betray him. A small smile grew on his face as the plan cemented in his head.

Just like those gangs, an Initiate would have to get this lotus tattoo to show that they are a member of the Order. Rey was reminded of an anime he used to watch called, Fairy Wings, that had guild members where their guilds tattoos proudly. Excited by the new idea, and knowing that he would obviously never betray his own Order, Rey boldly placed the Talisman on his palm, and channeled some mana through it.

The lotus Rune on the Talisman lit up as Rey felt a tingling sensation on his palm before the Talisman disintegrated and a black lotus was now on his palm.

Rey was so excited that his first Talisman was actually a success. It was also very easy to use, as all Rey had to do was channel a tiny amount of mana within the Talisman, and the spell appeared like he had drew the Runes himself. Rey started thinking that if he were to prepare a bunch of talisman beforehand and and use them in a battle, he would be like a one-man mage army. He could cast countless spell and conserve most of his mana. That was on top of the fact that he could do it one handed, so he could still battle while using his talisman.

The moment Rey smiled the largest was when he thought to implant the spells, Heal, Cure, and Mana Wall within a Talisman. Not only would they be greatly useful within battle, he could make a fortune selling them! Healers were hard to find and health potions were not only expensive, but they spoiled and the bottle could shatter. That was on top of the usually bad taste. But, talismans we're lightweight, didn't expire and paper-thin, making transporting easy.

But, that was an option for later if he needed more funds. For now, Rey was only interested in building his arsenal of Inscriptions, which he felt would become irreplaceable for him. Absorbed in studying the new Inscriptions and creating arrays, which were basically like complicated computer programs, but for Runes, Rey hardly noticed the passage of time.