Things turned out completely differently from what Kazami Kōgi had initially feared.
Whether Xia Xi or the other Northern Borderlands Swordsmen, everyone accepted Shinazugawa quite naturally.
He had worried that this child with his unlikable temper would be neglected or ostracized here.
Kurumaji and the people he had trained were all good kids...
The old man felt reassured as he thought this.
As for Sanemi Shinazugawa,
he really had trouble adjusting to his life in the Northern Region these past two days.
Ever since he had killed his mother after she turned into a demon, and his younger brother Genya had come to resent him,
he had begun wandering the streets, slaying demons alone.
To protect himself, and because he wanted no further ties with anyone else,
he had grown accustomed to wrapping his lifeless heart in an irritable, thorny shell.
He might not even have realized it himself.
Without knowing it, he had already developed some clear self-destructive tendencies.
Yet here, in the territory managed by the King of the Northern Region, Grand Commander Xia Xi,
everything was completely different from anywhere else he had stayed.
All Swordsmen were treated equally, regardless of their backgrounds or personalities.
Nobody in the dojo looked at him strangely, either.
As long as you're a Swordsman, you're alive, and you want to slay demons, you deserve to be treated well.
That was what his experiences here had made him feel.
The Northern Borderlands Swordsmen were very accepting of newcomers.
In fact, besides the sweat-drenched training and atmosphere of mutual support that filled the dojo,
everyone took even greater care of him.
Partly because he was younger.
And partly because the dedication Shinazugawa showed in his daily training had earned everyone's recognition.
Of course, being Xia Xi's junior brother was another important reason.
This