Volume 2 - CH 142

Two weeks have passed since the festival ended.

It has gotten much colder, and the wind coming down from the mountains pierces my skin.

Along with that, the atmosphere has also become colder, and the chilled air moves back and forth through my body.

The cold air felt as if it had mass and made me feel as if I was breathing in solid air. (TN: Heavy air or thin air like when you on the high altitude)

It is something you can’t really feel when the temperature is warm.

I thought that if it was this cold, it would probably snow already, but the Oni said that it would get colder from now on.

I was relieved to know that there are four seasons in this world, and headed to the blacksmith shop to pick up my completed sanshaku (three-foot-long) sword.

Only Alena was accompanying me.

It seems that she remembers the promise we made to each other, so she follows me.

Children’s ability to remember is astonishing.

With this thought in mind, I was making my way to the Blacksmith’s shop.

Walking through the village, I could see what was going on there.

It had not yet snowed, but there were already Oni walking around the village preparing for the winter.

Among them, we could often see kanjiki (snow shoes), deep boots, and other traditional Japanese clothing, such as suga-hasa (bamboo hats).

Apparently, it is cold even for Oni.

It would be pointless to travel if you are stuck in the snow, so it might be better to move to the Kingdom of Salettana before the snow piles up.

We can also get our equipment ready here and we can make it work.

Let’s ask the Oni to prepare this for us again.

As long as we walked while looking at the situation in the village, we soon arrived at the blacksmith’s shop.

Even in winter, the sound of hammering iron could be heard.

“Yo-. Thanks for your hard work.”

“Welcome to ……, Ouren-sama!”

” No need to be so surprised, ……. I thought you were the one who called me.”

“Hawawawa! I’m so sorry! I’ll go get my master right now!”

“…… please take your time, okay?”

Completely ignoring my words, the young Oni clattered away and ran to the back of the room.

As I watched him, I wondered if he was really all right.

Well, the reason I came here today is partly to get my weapon, but also to buy another one for Alena.

“Alena. Did you find any good weapons?”

“This!”

She pointed to a smaller naginata that she had tried to pick out when she first came here.

I remember I told her before that she could buy it when she could earn her own money, but she completely ignored that.

“… did you like it that much?”

“Yes!”

“I thought you were going to earn your own money to buy it.”

“Uh…”

Apparently, she remembered.

Usually, she would have gone along with it, but she couldn’t tell a lie while still hiding the expression on her face.

And no matter what she would do, Alena’s physique would never be able to wield it properly.

Even if she did have it, it would be a waste of money.

So, instead of a naginata, I suggested something different.

“How about this?”

“… what is this? This is not a sword, right?”

I handed her a weapon with four blades and a hole in the middle of it.

It was a shuriken.

I thought about a kunai, but those are very difficult to throw.

Therefore, I chose a shuriken that anyone could throw.

They say that the old Shinobi used to cut down their enemies with these, and there are other uses besides throwing.

This shuriken is easy to carry and even Alena can use it without any problem.

The question is whether Alena will like it or not. ……

“It’s weird! How does it work?”

“You see… This is how it works. ……”

I threw the shuriken I was holding at a log that was supposed to be a practice field.

It was the first time for me to throw a shuriken, but it stuck into the log just as I wanted it to.

It would have been extremely embarrassing to miss, so I patted my chest in relief that it had successfully pierced the log.

“It’s stuck!”

“This is a shuriken. Not only can you throw it, you can slash with it.”

“Let me try ……!”

“……, don’t do anything rash, okay?”

Since we cannot damage the product by throwing it in a strange place, I will deploy the infinite water manipulation for the time being.

Since the water is compressed, even the slightest touch should kill the momentum.

Alena took a big swing and threw a shuriken toward the log.

Since it was doubtful that Alena’s muscular strength would be enough to reach it, I had deployed water on the ground as well. ……

Alena’s shuriken flew in a straight line without drawing any trajectory at all, and it successfully missed the log and pierced into the deployed infinite water manipulation.

“…!?”

“Ah, it missed the target.”

I think I even heard the sound of cutting wind from the shuriken that Alena threw just now: …….

It was probably just my imagination.

Alena seemed to like the shuriken, as if it felt right when she actually threw it.

I wondered how many to buy, but since too few would be too much, I decided to buy fifteen for now. (It mean he don’t know is it too few or too much)

The shopkeeper had not yet returned, so I decided to let Alena have them for the time being.

At the same time, a short, old Oni came out from the back of the store.

This Oni was the blacksmith who had been hammering the weapon for me.

Behind him, the young Oni who had just rushed out was walking toward us, holding a long, thin cloth-covered object with both hands.

“There we go, Ouren-sama. Thank you very much for coming to a place like this.”

“No need to worry about it. It was me who asked you to do this. Is it that ……?”

“Yes, sir. Here, take off the cloth.”

The young Oni took off the cloth that had been covered, revealing a sanshaku (three-foot) sword in a white sheath.

The scabbard was translucent white and clean.

The strap wrapped around it is purple and fastened with golden metal fittings.

The guard was also gold, as were the metal fittings, and there was a serpent carved on the guard.

I think they are too conscious of it, but it is good because it is not very eye-catching.

The handle is also white, and although I don’t know what kind of skin it is made of, there is a golden glow sleeping behind the white string that ties it together.

The handle head is also golden as well.

From it hung a single, slightly thicker strap, from the end of which hung several small fangs of some kind.

“Oh……”

There is no unnecessary carving or decoration.

The beauty of the exterior of the sword made me let out a gasp, but what I was more interested in was what was on the inside.

The blade of the sword was not yet exposed.

I quickly picked up the sanshaku-katana and tried to open the koiguchi (the mouth of the carp) with a sharp snap.

It sounded very eerie.

I pulled the sword out of the scabbard at once.

Since the sword is three feet long, it takes a certain amount of space just to pull it out.

If I had it at my waist, I wouldn’t have to do that, but now I have it in both hands, so I have no other choice.

What emerged from it was a …… transparent blade.

No, if you look closely, it is not transparent.

The sword blade, polished like a mirror, is assimilated with the surrounding scenery.

I noticed this and moved my face closer to the blade to see it in more detail.

The blade of the sword was finally revealed to me.

The beautiful appearance of the irregular ripples on the blade seemed to suggest that there was nothing better out there.

Excellent workmanship.

The sword blade is made of high-quality ore by a skilled blacksmith and polisher, and the appearance of the sword is created by a skilled craftsman who is also a skilled goldsmith.

The craftsman who created the perfect scabbard for the sword is also a master.

This is truly a masterpiece.

“I’m surprised …… you made it this far.”

“Everyone was delighted. The fact that we were able to take possession of Ouren-sama’s weaponry was more than a festive occasion.”

“May I try it?”

“By all means. It belongs to Ouren-sama. The sword is also happy to be in the possession of the Lord.”

I don’t know what that feels like, but I guess the craftsmen know what they are talking about.

I was a little nervous about this, but I put the three-foot sword at my waist.

The sword is not inserted all the way to the sheath end, but is held at an angle with a little room to spare.

Although the brim of the sword is slightly protruding toward the front, this is about right.

When I put my arm on it, I feel like I’m doing something really elegant.

“That’s unfair! I want something like that too!”

“Hahahaha! How is it, isn’t it cool?”

“Hmmph… it’s cool though.”

If Alena said so, there would be no problem for now.

Still, I feel comfortable with the sword.

I’d like to test something out right now, but on the other hand, it seems like a waste to use it.

I think I might actually be a bit foolish to think that way.

“Ouren-sama, that sword has a name.”

“Oh, what is the name?”

“Yes. It is called 【 Hakuryuzen】 (The Past White Dragon). And …… this is 【Kageorochi】(Shadow serpent)! Please accept this as well.”

He handed me a white Wakizashi, which was also white.

It was almost identical in appearance to the Hakuryuzen, but looking at the blade, its color was black.

However, below the ripples, there was the sword’s true brilliance, and only there did it seem to show its fangs.

“Are you going to give me this one too?”

“Of course. One is not enough for you, I’m sure.”

“Thank you, then.”

This one is put on the hip in the same way.

Yep, it’s very nice. It looks very nice.

Kageorochi …….

The meaning of this name is easy to understand.

The sword is a serpent, and the word “shadow” is not used very often.

But it is still necessary to use it in some cases, so the expression “shadow” may have been applied.

However, …… this Hakuryuzen.

What is the meaning of this name?

“Hey, what does this Hakuryuzen name mean?”

“Well, I wonder why.”

“Oh come on, ……. Who named it then?”

“Well, if you ask me, I’d have to say …… that particular sword was …….”

The way it goes, there are no godparents, but the name was already chosen when this sword was created. ……

“A little more specific.”

“Hmmm ……. When the blade of a sword is made, it is sometimes mysteriously already engraved with an inscription. That is the case with these two swords. Therefore, we do not know the meaning of the name.”

For the first time in a long time, I feel like I’ve been able to reaffirm that this is a different world.

That’s right.

Unbelievable things happen in this world, don’t they?

“Okay, then. I’ll take these two swords then.”

“There is no need to pay for them.”

“Then I will pay for the girl’s share. Give me fifteen of these shurikens.”

“Understood, sir.”

I wanted to buy a few more since they are almost consumable, but I thought it would be enough since having more would be too much of a hindrance for Alena now.

I bought a shuriken with the money I had and handed it to Alena.

For now, I am done with what I have to do in this village.

it’s not going to be long, before we leave for the Kingdom of Salettana.