Chapter 32
Reborn Tsurumaru
As the sun set and the moon rose, Dongshu quietly returned to his room after finishing all his chores.
He wrapped himself in the blanket, leaving only his head exposed. His black hair was messy from being kicked, with two strands sticking up from the top of his head.
Feeling uncomfortable, she struggled to pull her hands out from under the covers. The curtains appeared before her, and she flipped through them as usual, finding familiar images everywhere she looked.
Dongshu paused, suddenly remembering that he hadn't forged his sword today.
Somewhat annoyed, Fuyuki tapped his head. There weren't many tsukumogami in the citadel, so adding more members was necessary. Fuyuki silently told himself: Tomorrow, I must not forget!
Forging swords, forging swords, forging swords... Fuyuki repeated the word to himself several times to make sure he remembered it before putting away the sword book.
The terminal lit up with a communication interface, and a contact with a book-shaped avatar sent a message.
[Little Stray Dog: Little Winter Tree! Everyone's fighting today too, it's so noisy QAQ]
[Little stray dog: They're so naughty! Ort...]
[Little Stray Dog: I miss you so much, when will you come again? >_<]
[Little Stray Dog: When are you coming? Come on, come on~ -v-]
As the messages kept popping up, Dongshu nodded in response.
[Sapling: It will come when there's a mission.]
[Little Stray Dog: Huh? Fuyuki replied to me! qwq]
Fuyuki propped her cheek up as she looked at the lit-up terminal. The world consciousness had the right to apply for exclusive responsibility from the Saniwa, and she didn't know if she was lucky or not, but she was chosen by a world she had visited once.
Or perhaps it's more accurate to say they've become attached to each other.
In short, the world of Wenoye is now under her jurisdiction.
After being assigned to a different world, the Saniwa takes full responsibility for everything. The diligent government then developed a world version terminal to facilitate communication between the world and the Saniwa.
The nickname "Little Wild Dog" was chosen by the world himself after registering the account; it was not a nickname given to him by Fuyuki.
Well, in some ways it suits him quite well, Fuyuki thought, propping his face up with his hand.
The Bungo world has existed for quite some time, but its world consciousness has only been awakened for a few decades.
The little stray dog seemed like it hadn't grown up, or perhaps it was just a child.
Yokohama was his relative, but his consciousness had awakened many years earlier than Yokohama's, and Yokohama at least appeared more mature.
Faced with the expectation of a mature and respected parent, the little stray dog became even more interested.
Previously, they communicated using paper in the world, and there was very little interaction between them. Fuyuki hadn't expected that the nascent world consciousness would be so... adorable.
He has an extraordinary obsession with emoticons, determined to add one to every message, yet every word he says reveals his naivety.
I eagerly anticipate Fuyuki's next visit, and I tirelessly mention it every time, to paraphrase her words, "Little Fuyuki, come quickly, I miss you~ QAQ"
Yes, that's the only reason. The young Saniwa, who had only been back in the citadel for two days, expressed that she didn't want to leave.
[Little Stray Dog: Waaaaah... Little Winter Tree's silent treatment... Waaaaah TAT]
Dongshu paused slightly, her dark eyes blinked, and a hint of a smile appeared on her face. She was somewhat taken aback by those words.
Quickly delete the original text and retype it.
[Sapling; Don't learn strange things!]
The underage Saniwa pretends to be an adult and begins to "educate" the world that has gone astray.
[Little Wild Dog: qwqqwqqwq]
This time, they've simply used emoticons.
Dongshu gently wiggled her toes, which were covered by the blanket, and chatted with the little stray dog for a while. Her eyes felt a little sore, so she stopped her urge to chat.
[Sapling: Time for bed, goodnight~]
She wants to be a good Saniwa with a regular schedule.
[Little Wild Dog: Goodnight~Oo0]
The two cubs' chat was interrupted by the night.
1 hour later
Fuyuki put down the terminal, hugged her rabbit doll, snuggled against the soft pillow, and began to let her consciousness drift into sleep.
The moon gradually rose above the branches, its cool light spilling onto the quiet Honmaru. A cool breeze swept through the darkness, causing the leaves to sway and casting jagged shadows.
A dark figure darted past, skillfully traversing the citadel. His light, graceful footsteps touched the ground without making a sound. The door to the forging room opened with a light touch, then closed behind him.
Blue data bars suddenly appeared, and the presence of 0s and 1s spread in the forging chamber. It expanded and was then suppressed, and the lifeless blue light flowed mechanically.
A low murmur rang out: "That was quite a shock. You're actually of use."
Something lit up in the darkness, the sound of metal shattering and falling cut through the silence, and the forging room returned to calm.
The broken fragments trembled and floated up from the ground, struggling to move toward the sleeping swordsmith.
Just once, just once.
No longer will there be any trace of them; it will be pure white... cranes.
In the room, Dongshu, who was wrapped tightly in the quilt, suddenly woke up with a start, and her sleepiness vanished in an instant.
She propped herself up on her arms, stumbled off the bed, haphazardly stuffed her feet into slippers, flung open the door, and rushed out.
A strong intuition left her no room for hesitation, and she ran relentlessly in one direction.
The sword curtain hidden in the void fluttered wildly, then suddenly came to a quiet stop on a page.
The white tsukumogami is gradually losing its color, turning grayish-white, and the remaining bright white is about to be swallowed by the gray.
Dongshu suddenly felt a tightness in her chest, her eyes stung and turned red, and cold tears welled up in her eyes, blurring her vision.
Whose...emotion is this?
"Bang!" The door to the forging room was suddenly flung open with a loud noise.
A fleeting glint of silver light fell into the blazing flames, and the resting swordsmith shikigami began its work.
Even in the fire, the broken swords gleamed with a sharp light, their clean fractures indicating that it was no accident.
As Fuyuki approached, the door behind her was nimbly closed by the wind. In the blink of an eye, tears fell, which she hurriedly wiped away with her small hands before focusing her gaze on the busy swordsmith.
Her heart clenched.
Reforging.
The Saniwa never expected this.
It's no secret that corrupted spirits can remove their corruption through reforging, but generally no spirit will do that.
The prerequisite for removing corruption is to shatter one's own weapon without external force, which is a major challenge for the spirit.
It's not that they're afraid of pain—pain is commonplace for those born into combat—but rather that they find it difficult to inflict significant damage on their own bodies.
Even though the spirits possess bodies beyond the reach of ordinary people, their main weapons are still their original swords, which are incredibly hard and cannot be broken by bare hands. They can only be damaged by powerful forces, such as the Time Retrograde Army.
Using swords to break swords?
No, it wouldn't bend or cut itself; that's a complete fallacy.
The first tsukumogami to remove the corruption was because his master transferred all his spiritual power to him on the verge of death, which gave him temporary control over the spiritual power. The spiritual power was freed from the limitations of external forces and became internal force.
He then possessed two weapons, making it possible for him to shatter his own blade.
His spiritual power was also exhausted after he successfully reforged himself.
It was because of his bold attempts that it was discovered that corruption could be removed.
Fuyuki didn't know how Tsurumaru Kuninaga had done it, but he had indeed entered a state of reforging, and now all she could do was wait.
3h20m
This is the time for Tsurumaru Kuninaga to forge his weapon, and also the time for Fuyuki to prepare to stay here.
The night air carried an undeniable chill, and the Saniwa, dressed in thin pajamas, felt the cold. She shivered, hugging herself and rubbing her arms to try to warm herself, occasionally letting out a muffled sob.
Suddenly, her spiritual energy circulated, dispelling the chill that was almost freezing her.
"Master!" The door to the forging room creaked open, and the tsukumogami, who should have been fast asleep, gathered at the doorway, peeking their heads into the room.
They keenly sensed the movements of the night, and moreover, the Saniwa had no intention of concealing their actions.
They saw Fuyuki, dressed in thin pajamas, crouching in front of the forge, hugging himself.
Her frail body was hidden alone in the darkness. Her red eyes were clearly from crying, and there were still tear stains on her face. Her dark eyes were wet and confused. When she heard the door open, she turned to look at them, her lifeless pupils looking like she was about to shed tears again.
A deep sense of sorrow filled the hearts of the spirits.
Ran Toushirou nimbly squeezed through the doorway first, quickly reaching the Saniwa's side and embracing her with his seemingly frail body.
He softened his voice and said gently, "My lord, we are here."
With her feet off the ground, she nestled against Ran Toushirou, her small hands tightly gripping his shirt, and nodded blankly, "Mmm."
Her black hair was a little messy, and Kashuu Kiyomitsu, who came in later, carefully tidied it with his fingers, slowly making it smooth: "You look cuter now, Master, don't be sad."
Then everyone came in. This was the first time there had been so many people in the small forging room. The tsukumogami surrounded the Saniwa, comforting her with words of comfort.
Overwhelmed by so much warmth and care, Fuyuki's tears, which she had managed to hold back, fell again. She wept silently, burying her head in Ran Toushirou's arms.
Feeling the dampness on her chest, Ran Toushirou gently patted her back: "It's alright. If you're sad or scared, lord, just cry it out. We're always here for you."
Fuyuki just nodded haphazardly; she could no longer feel that strange emotion. The crying she was experiencing now was entirely her own feeling.
Some connection has been broken.
The spare swordsmith shikigami carefully slid down from the height, huffing and puffing as they dragged out a small stool from somewhere and laboriously moved it toward the Saniwa.
The movements of the swordsmith shikigami were noticed by the clever little tiger. The black bows around their necks swayed back and forth. The little tiger observed them for a while, then suddenly stepped over.
"Awoo awoo." It made two symbolic cries, and without caring whether the swordsmith shikigami understood or not, it lowered its head and picked up the small stool. Some swordsmith shikigami who couldn't let go in time were hung on it, and only with the help of their companions were they able to land safely.
The swordsmith spirits huddled together, trembling, watching helplessly as the little tiger suddenly snatched their stools and went to fawn over their beloved master.
The swordsmith's shikigami went berserk: Damn tiger thief!
Fuyuki gently rubbed the little tiger that came closer, and even while sitting on the stool, she didn't forget to give the swordsmith shikigami a well-behaved smile.
With his advantage of wearing a quilt, Yamanbagiri Kunihiro stood out among the many Tsukumogami and won the right to hug the Saniwa in full view of everyone.
Facing the gazes of his companions, the katana simply tugged at the blanket covering his head, making the Saniwa even more covered.
Don't look at me like that.
Facing the green eyes peeking out from the crack, Fuyuki took his hand and said, "Thank you."
The golden-haired spirit's embrace was very warm. Although she didn't need it, the Saniwa didn't refuse everyone's kindness. Faced with so many expectant eyes, she simply couldn't refuse.
The flames of the forging furnace burned continuously. They had seen such scenes before, but this was the first time they had ever seen it at such a time of the early morning.
Everyone gathered in the small forging room, waiting for their partner to be reborn from the ashes.
The fiery red flames burned and flickered in Kazuya Kiyomitsu's red eyes, and he etched them deeply into his heart.
—Reforging? That's great.
Yamato no Kami Yasusada squeezed his hand, a hint of worry flickering in his blue eyes. Kashuu Kiyomitsu gave a faint smile and blinked to indicate that he was alright.
The night outside the window was only dotted with starlight. The moonless night seemed exceptionally long. Everyone waited, occasionally urging the Saniwa to go to sleep, fearing that the young girl might harm her health.
Dongshu simply shook her head, her black hair falling over her shoulders. She only showed a small part of her head, her lowered eyes making her appear even more vulnerable. Her youthful face showed weariness, yet also determination.
"Waiting for...reforging...is very important." Her words were already broken, but she still tried her best to express her thoughts.
Realizing she was not fully conscious, she reached out and patted her cheeks.
The spirits looked at each other, and could only let the Saniwa be willful tonight. All they could do was give Fuyuki two more layers of clothing.
Fuyuki pulled at the somewhat heavy concern on her body, buried her face in the warm cloth, and then looked up with a soft smile: "It's very warm, thank you."
The night was long, but it had an end. When the first rays of dawn shone into the forging room, a katana, predominantly white and gold, was finally placed before her.
The swordsmith spirit silently withdrew, finally ending its overtime work and able to begin its rest time.
Fuyuki looked at the familiar katana, placed his hand on it, and gently channeled spiritual energy into it, forming a contract between them.
Pink cherry blossoms scattered in the air. His white eyelashes trembled as he opened his eyes, revealing dazzling golden eyes. His smile was bright and gentle, radiating his natural liveliness.
"Yo, I'm Tsurumaru Kuninaga. Were you startled by this sudden appearance?"
Familiar lively chatter appeared, but there were also some differences.
He said, "It's a pleasure to see you again, my dear master."
The sunlight shone directly on him. Dongshu's features were still youthful, and her dark eyes were filled with an unconcealable warmth. Even the sunlight outside the window couldn't compare to the radiance of her smile.
"Tsurumaru, welcome to Honmaru No. 197. I am the Saniwa, Fuyuki."
[Author's Note]
*Game Dialogue
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