55. Do You Have Any Last Words?
"Spare me!"
The man trembled, seeing a staff raised above his head, ready to come crashing down. Such a terrifying situation—of course, he was scared! How had he fallen into this predicament?! His trembling caused his glasses to slip, and he reached up to push his round glasses back into place. Then, he looked at the cause of his trouble—Mitsuri Kenshin.
He swore to God he didn't have any bad intentions… well, maybe he did, but still! Isn't it too extreme to kill him over this? As a Kakushi who supports the Demon Slayers, doesn't he at least deserve to be spared? But the man who held the iron staff above his head—Kotaro Kenshin—was in no mood to hear his pleas.
Damn! He, Masao Maeda, wasn't destined to die here! He still had more erotic—no, cultured—clothes for women to design!
"I heard you not only made that uniform but also deceived Mitsuri."
"N-No! No, I'm telling the truth! That is the official unif—"
"You don't think I haven't seen a standard women's uniform before, right?"
Kotaro moved closer to Masao's face, showing a smile that terrified him to his core. Masao had indeed let his perverted nature run wild and designed a revealing outfit, highlighting Mitsuri's well-endowed chest. But who in the world would have guessed she had a husband?!
Masao Maeda had been working in the sewing division for a long time, making uniforms for members of the Demon Slayer Corps. His resume was impressive—he had even made uniforms for Hashira, like the Insect Hashira, Shinobu Kocho. Though it's worth mentioning that Shinobu burned the uniform he made for her. But regardless, that's how talented he was.
However, even he had never encountered a married couple working as Demon Slayers before! Tengen Uzui, the Sound Hashira, was a married man with three wives, but his wives never wore the standard Demon Slayer Corps uniform.
Until now, Masao had never made a uniform for a married woman. And now, it was all a mistake. Having encountered such an extraordinary chest—no, body size—he let his imagination run wild, only to discover that the one he made it for is married, and worse, her husband has caught him and is prepared to kill him.
…
It was the day for Kotaro and Mitsuri to receive their uniforms and weapons. After clearing the Final Selection, they weren't sent out on duty to kill demons right away, because the necessary tools for demon slaying—the uniform and the Nichirin weapon—take time to prepare.
After Mitsuri and Kotaro passed, they chose suitable Nichirin ore and provided their body measurements for customized uniforms.
"What! No Playful Cloud!"
And that's when Kotaro learned that his desired weapon—Playful Cloud—couldn't be made within two weeks. It would take time, and what's more, the wish to customize weapons was not available to them.
Both of them were Mizunoto, the lowest rank of the Demon Slayer Corps, and they wanted customized weapons? How could that be possible?
In the anime, the ranks of the Demon Slayer Corps were more of a superficial thing, nothing to take note of except for the salaries, but now it seemed there were more benefits to higher ranks.
"Why didn't the anime mention this?!"
But thinking about it, Kotaro found it logical. I mean, if anyone could have customized weapons, then wouldn't all the Mizunoto, the lower ranks, have one? Though the Ubuyashiki family makes a ton of money, it doesn't mean it's infinite.
"Hmm… It indeed isn't possible to spend so much money on lower ranks."
Sigh… To think that here, too, competition doesn't leave him behind. Whether in modern times or ancient times, one must compete to live a better life.
In the end, Kotaro told them to make nothing but a staff out of Nichirin. It made the Kakushi taking notes falter, but he didn't ponder much and simply nodded to his request. After his long time supporting Demon Slayers, the Kakushi knew that these people were abnormal.
As for how this man would kill a demon with a blunt weapon? He had no interest!
Similarly, Mitsuri couldn't get her future weapon—the Flexible Blade—and chose a normal blade like the others.
Two weeks passed, and the day came for them to receive the uniform and weapon. Kotaro tried on his uniform, finding it well-fitted, just as he wanted.
He was a bit sad about not getting Playful Cloud, but still, he spun the staff, finding it well-made for him.
"Oh! It's red! It's red!"
"What is red?"
"The blade, no, I mean the staff is red!"
Nichirin Blades have the property of changing color according to the user. Though Kotaro didn't wield a blade, his weapon was made out of Nichirin material.
And when he grabbed it… The silver staff turned red, making the blacksmith jump with joy. For some reason, the blacksmiths were obsessed with red.
They didn't know the protagonist had a black blade. But still, isn't the obsession with red a bit too much?
"Did the tale of the Red Nichirin Blade get passed down to them?"
Kotaro found it plausible. The Red Nichirin Blade, the transformation of the blade into red through temperature or pressure, makes it more harmful to demons.
Considering that the Sengoku Era was the golden period of Demon Slayers, it's not hard to assume that someone must have had a Red Nichirin Blade, and that tale got passed down through the blacksmiths.
"Damn! It's just a color. How obsessed are you?"
Kotaro pulled the staff, trying to get it out of the blacksmith Gozo's grip. He thought he could pull it out easily, but no! That blacksmith was strong! Look at those muscles in his arms… Shit! That grip strength… He tempers iron and makes weapons, of course he's strong.
"Kotaro-sama!"
Then he heard Mitsuri's voice. Kotaro turned his head, and his grip loosened, making the blacksmith fall.
"Mitsuri…"
Mitsuri stood there, blushing and fidgeting, clad in her uniform. And it was that uniform that made Kotaro's eyes pop.
The uniform was designed to show Mitsuri's assets to the outside world. The uniform was indeed good, a bit sexy but…
"Mitsuri, who made that uniform?"
"Oh! Maeda-san made it. He told me it's the normal uniform. Does it look good?"
"It does look good, but for now, can you take me to this Maeda-san?"
With a vein popping on his forehead, Kotaro snatched the staff from the bawling blacksmith and marched off to give corporal punishment to this Maeda-san.
"Damn! You dare to trick my Mitsuri!"
And that's the tale of Masao Maeda falling into the clutches of Kotaro Kenshin.
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A/N:
The exams are finally over... or so I wished, but the exam on October 5th was postponed to October 21st due to institutional issues. However, now that there are free days, the updates will resume!So, how is the chapter? Writing after a long time makes me feel as if I have lost my touch.