Choose your weapon

"Everyone, thank you for your hard work."

"You have done better than I expected. It has been a long time since any of the Final Selection sites saw so many swordsmen pass at once."

"You should be proud of your resilience and strength."

Morning light pierced the nighttime mist, and the faint scent of wisteria drifted through the blood and gunsmoke. Shenli, the priest with moon-white hair and pale silver eyes, stood before the nine remaining swordsmen.

"So, from this moment on, you are members of the organization."

"The Corps' demon-slaying swordsmen are divided into eleven ranks."

"Apart from the [Hashira], the other swordsmen are ranked Kinoe, Kinoto, Hinoe, Hinoto, Tsuchinoe, Tsuchinoto, Kanoe, Kanoto, Mizunoe, and Mizunoto."

"All of you are currently at the lowest rank, [Mizunoto], which means you are newcomers who have only just joined..."

Xia Xi looked around.

Fewer than half of the original participants had survived and passed the test.

In fact, if he had not intervened in that chaotic battle two days earlier and taken out several powerful demons in succession...

There would probably have been several fewer survivors now.

Wasn't this supposed to bring fresh blood into the Demon Slayer Corps? From what the examiner said, even nine survivors were cause for celebration?

Then how many normally survived?

Five or six? Two or three?

With casualties this high, how many new recruits could they get in a year?

If this were a brutal promotion trial to select Kinoe swordsmen, it would at least make some sense.

The whole [Without resolve, this is as far as you go] setup.

But after this bloody selection, those who passed didn't become top-ranking Kinoe swordsmen.

They were just a bunch of new swordsmen who had only just changed classes.

Was something wrong with the writer's worldbuilding? Or was this foreshadowing?

Like the Demon Slayer Corps actually being a trap or something.

Still...

He scanned over the swordsmen's heads and checked their panels.

Compared to seven days earlier...

Their attributes and Breathing Style levels had all improved to varying degrees.

Besides, compared to these NPCs whose names he could not even remember...

He was more interested in the Hashira the priest had mentioned.

"Persimmon, are those Hashira he mentioned strong?"

Xia Xi nudged the young swordswoman beside him with his elbow and asked quietly.

"How do they compare to the [Twelve Kizuki] that demon mentioned?"

Seiko considered it. "I don't know anything about the Twelve Kizuki, but the Hashira... my trainer did mention them."

"The Hashira are the strongest swordsmen in the Demon Slayer Corps."

Oh? Our side's top-tier fighters, then?

Wonder how they stack up against the enemy's best.

The priest ignored their whispered conversation and continued, "Next, we will prepare uniforms for you. Once your measurements have been taken, your ranks will be embroidered onto them."

"Also, these are the Kasugai Crows specially assigned to you. From now on, they will be your partners, delivering information and missions."

With a flutter of wings...

Several ink-black crows swiftly descended from above and landed on them.

"Incidentally, these little fellows have minds of their own."

"Please do not tease them."

With that, he turned his gaze toward a certain swordsman who could not keep his hands to himself.

The swordsman withdrew his hand from the bird's head with a sheepish grin, only for the Kasugai Crow to peck his forehead several times.

The crow shouted angrily, "Rude brat! Rude brat!"

Xia Xi also looked curiously at the crow perched on his shoulder.

"My name is White, my name is White! Caw! Pleased to meet you!"

[White (Energy level: 1)]

Xia Xi: ...

But you're clearly black.

Also, could this free pet level up alongside him?

Xia Xi gave a somewhat friendly response. "Mm."

Once everyone had their own Kasugai Crow, the priest continued his instructions.

"The final matter is for each of you to personally select the steel you prefer today."

"In ten to fifteen days, your personal Nichirin Blades will be finished."

With that, several masked [Kakushi] carried over a large chest.

When it opened, more than a dozen pieces of metal ore of different sizes lay inside, faintly radiating a gentle warmth like the morning sun.

"This is the steel for the blades that will slay demons and protect you."

"Please make your own selections."

Somewhat to the priest's surprise, not a single swordsman moved.

Instead, they all turned their eyes toward Xia Xi at the back of the crowd.

Some even instinctively cleared a path to the tamahagane for him.

This one?

Wasn't he the boy who went in first at the start? I hadn't expected him to carry such weight with the other swordsmen.

The priest pondered this.

Xia Xi did not stand on ceremony either. With the Kasugai Crow perched on him, he strode casually up to the chest.

An ore-gambling minigame?

He was a veteran gacha gambler.

He asked the Kakushi beside him, "Nara, right? Are there differences between these stones, like whether they were mined in different places?"

The Kakushi froze for a moment, wondering how Xia Xi knew his name.

Still, he explained, "Every piece of tamahagane has a soul of its own. You need to sense the steel's [personality], in other words, resonate with it..."

Xia Xi said, "What about the material itself?"

The Kakushi replied uncertainly, "Maybe... they're probably all about the same? After all, they're tamahagane smelted in the same batch..."

Got it. Just a ceremonial bit of material selection before forging the sword, for the setting.

Xia Xi simply picked up the largest, most intact piece of steel. "This one."

The other swordsmen then selected their own pieces in turn.

"Well then, everyone, in a few days, someone will deliver your uniforms and Nichirin Blades..."

"Examiner, I have a question. Can we make our own requests about the weapon forging?"

Xia Xi interrupted the examiner.

Several swordsmen could not help shrinking back.

In the East, interrupting a senior was very rude.

Let alone doing so without using an honorific.

Even Seiko sighed helplessly.

That was certainly something he would do.

Shenli Yanshou looked at him, considered for a moment, then asked, "Are you dissatisfied with the Nichirin Blades produced by the Swordsmith Village? If you have any requests concerning a weapon you are accustomed to

using, I can consider conveying them to Oyakata-sama."

Not everyone in the Demon Slayer Corps used a Nichirin Blade.

But those qualified to make requests, and capable of wielding other types of weapons, were undoubtedly high-level combatants within the organization.

A newcomer who had just passed the selection requesting a custom weapon...

Truthfully, this was his first such encounter.

"Do you need a longer sword, or perhaps a weapon like a spear or lance?"

"However, a custom weapon may require a longer wait."

Xia Xi raised the Nichirin Blade in his hand.

It was the one he had picked up from a teammate whose name he had not known. He had not even cleaned the blood from the handle wrapping.

"That's fine. Main weapons drop everywhere. Can I get a custom secondary weapon?"

The priest sighed softly, seemingly beginning to understand the looks in the other children's eyes.

This boy couldn't read the room at all.

"If you need one, then please explain."

Xia Xi barely had to think. "Katanas look cool, but their practicality and durability leave something to be desired. Their edges chip pretty quickly, too."

"I'd like a secondary weapon other than a katana."

"Something like fist blades or gauntlets. A weapon that lets you really pound flesh with every punch."

"Something that can both slash and strike, and protect my hands while it's at it. You get me? If that's too difficult, you could give me a pair of specially made boxing gloves. Worst case, I'll finish them off with the Nichirin Blade."

Perhaps worried that the priest would not understand...

Xia Xi gestured in the air a few times.

"Preferably something thick and solid. I don't mind if it's heavy; I can get used to it... of course, if you can make something like a Super Amped Element Discharge Charge Blade or a Gauss Gatling, that works too. I've played shooters and hunting games as well."

He was choosing class-specific equipment.

Of course he had to go with the classes he was used to playing.

Faced with Xia Xi's somewhat excited gaze, the priest helplessly pressed a hand to his forehead.

Weapons he had never even heard of.

He should leave this headache to the masters of the Swordsmith Village.

"I will convey your request to Oyakata-sama."

Next time a newcomer makes such a difficult request, I should refuse.

Looking at the boy's expectant gaze...

The priest silently added another thought.

Just this once. Only once.

(Image above: fist blades, switch axes, and boxing gloves from other games. I figured a Gatling probably didn't need a picture.)