Meanwhile, fifteen days later, a strangely dressed man arrived at Sakonji Urokodaki's home, bells jingling with every step.
The visitor wore a peculiar red mask that resembled a twisted, ugly human face, along with a bamboo hat. Several oddly shaped objects wrapped in white cloth were strapped to his back.
"Makomo, Ye Chen, your blades are here."
When Sakonji Urokodaki saw the visitor, he called out to Ye Chen and Makomo. Hearing him, Ye Chen hurried over.
"You're Yatsuka Nightstar? Looks like you've trained your body pretty well."
The visitor sized Ye Chen up, then took a white-cloth-wrapped Nichirin Blade off his back and continued:
"You both have a good eye. The tamahagane you picked was top quality, both pieces. Also, did you know that making a Nichirin Blade takes more than just tamahagane? You also have to wait until the sun has just risen..."
"All right, sir, why don't you come inside and sit down? And let me have a look at my blade..." Ye Chen felt a little awkward as the master swordsmith began rambling, but no matter what he said, the man kept explaining.
Makomo stood beside him, equally at a loss, and could only listen with a strained smile.
Just like in the original story, he doesn't listen to a word anyone says. If he keeps this up, who knows when he'll finish? Ye Chen had little interest in how swords were forged.
"Still refusing to listen, same as always." Sakonji Urokodaki wasn't surprised by the master swordsmith's behavior. "All right, that's enough chatter. Give them their Nichirin Blades."
"Ah, young people these days. So impatient."
The swordsmith had no choice but to follow them inside and take out both Nichirin Blades.
Ye Chen accepted his Nichirin Blade, and its blade turned bluish white. Perhaps because his physique had evolved, tiny points of starlight now seemed to shimmer along it, making it look truly extraordinary.
Makomo's Nichirin Blade turned blue, naturally. Since she used Water Breathing, that was hardly surprising.
"Oh, a blue blade, and one with a strange color." The swordsmith looked surprised at first, then sighed in disappointment. He gave Ye Chen a reproachful look. "I still didn't get to see the legendary red blade."
"..." Ye Chen was speechless. What the hell does that have to do with me? Do you think I can control my blade's color? Besides, although a red blade was powerful, it wasn't necessarily better than his. Xeno'jiiva's flames might not counter demons as effectively as Sun Breathing, but they could absorb energy and feed it back into him. That was ridiculously powerful too.
"Um... I'm sorry..." Seeing how disappointed the man was, Makomo looked embarrassed. Ye Chen couldn't stop grumbling inwardly at her reaction. What the hell are you apologizing for? We didn't do anything wrong!
"No, no, I'm not blaming you. I'm blaming this brat." At Makomo's apology, the swordsmith shook his head as though it were only natural and pointed at Ye Chen.
Ye Chen: "..."
He no longer wanted to say anything. Sure, Makomo's a girl and I'm a guy, but you can't play favorites this badly! Is such blatant sexism really okay?
"Um, you can't put all the blame on Ye Chen. He can't decide what color his blade turns." Seeing Ye Chen's constipated expression, Makomo defended him with a strained smile.
"Well, I think this color is pretty nice. It's much prettier than red." Ye Chen didn't care in the slightest. He raised his bluish-white Nichirin Blade, dotted with stars, and continued with a smile.
"What did you say? Red Nichirin Blades are the best! What do you know? What could a little brat like you possibly know?" The next instant, the swordsmith sprang up, seized Ye Chen by the collar, and roared, giving even Makomo a fright.
Having read the original story, Ye Chen wasn't startled. The swordsmiths in Demon Slayer all had rather eccentric personalities, after all. With a perfectly calm expression, he said, "Mister, you're prejudiced against both genders and colors. I don't want to talk to you."
"What did you say? Mister? I'm only twenty-six!"
"Sorry, but at my age, twenty-six already makes you an old man."
"You little brat!!"
"If I'm a little brat, then you're an old brat."
"Damn you! With that attitude, don't expect me to ever forge another blade for you!!"
"I don't want some creepy old man forging my blades anyway."
At last, after Makomo's repeated attempts to stop them, their verbal sparring came to an end. The swordsmith left, still shouting, while Ye Chen sat calmly where he was, showing no sign that he'd just been in an argument.
"Ye Chen, it's not very nice to speak to the master like that."
Seeing how calm he was, Makomo spoke with a strained smile. Swordsmiths weren't people they could casually afford to offend. If their Nichirin Blades were damaged or broken, they would still need the smiths to make replacements. Members of the Demon Slayer Corps couldn't do without their Nichirin Blades, after all.
"It's fine. He's not the only swordsmith in the Demon Slayer Corps. Besides, my blade won't break that easily." Looking perfectly composed, Ye Chen poured the freshly brewed tea into a cup and took an elegant sip.
As if he'd ever backed down from trading insults. Quite apart from the Demon Slayer Corps having plenty of swordsmiths, Ye Chen wasn't worried about his blade getting damaged. He had the ultimate blade-sharpening tool, the Whetstone, and the Monster Hunter Shop sold weapons too. Besides, he was already incredibly strong, and his blade wouldn't break easily. What the hell was there to fear?
Sakonji Urokodaki shook his head. He wasn't going to interfere. Although the swordsmith had a terrible temper, he would still do what needed to be done. Ye Chen didn't seem to have much of a mild temper himself, though.
In other words, he only looked good-tempered. If someone took a jab at him, he would pay them back double. Urokodaki had tested him once over a meal, and afterward, the brat had kept challenging him to spar whenever they ate. He really was a little menace. Worse, he always looked perfectly calm while talking back, which made him all the more infuriating.
Ye Chen clearly understood that showing his anger would only please whoever was provoking him, so he never let it show easily. He had merely pretended to look calm earlier. In truth, he hadn't felt calm at all, though he hadn't been angry either. Watching the swordsmith get so worked up by his retorts, he'd nearly laughed out loud.
"Is it here?"
Ye Chen raised his head slightly. Now that he had his Nichirin Blade, what came next would naturally be an assignment from the Demon Slayer Corps-his first assignment. He had just sensed a creature flying toward him from far away.
Following his gaze, a small black shape flew across the distant sky. It was clearly the crow the Demon Slayer Corps had given him. After flying over, it perched outside the window and spoke in a human voice.
"Yatsuka Nightstar, strange signs have been found in a town to the northwest. Go investigate immediately! Go investigate immediately!"
Hearing the crow, Ye Chen chuckled and rose to his feet. Makomo's sparrow flew over too, chirping as it handed her a slip of paper. That was evidently her assignment.
"After waiting two weeks, it really is time to get moving."
Before you continue