"If I catch him, I'll teach him a lesson!" Okahira said angrily.
"What's all the noise outside?" the village chief muttered.
The man sitting behind the village chief nodded and said:
"Yeah, Kotetsu is really something, he's such a grown man! When people tell him there are ghosts during the day, he actually believes them!"
While complaining, Okahira walked to the right rear of the village chief and sat down, the three seats forming a stable triangle.
"I even took Kotetsu around to look for him, but we couldn't find him. We don't know where he went!"
Listening to the complaints from the group, Teiichi silently raised his teacup and took a sip.
Soon, after they finished speaking, the village chief looked at Teiichi in front of him and asked in confusion:
Where were we?
The man who had been sitting behind the village chief said:
"As mentioned earlier, Lord Kato's broken sword was forged by Yan Shiyi or twelve years ago!"
Upon hearing this, the village chief turned and glared at him.
"I know, you don't need to remind me!"
The man straightened up but didn't reply.
Seeing this, the village chief turned back to Teiichi, his face filled with sorrow, and said:
"It's truly remarkable how long you've used your sword! If the Demon Slayer Corps were all like you, our Swordsmith Village Demon Slayer Corps be practically useless to them!"
Teiichi replied, "My situation is rare, after all. The importance of the Swordsmith Village to the Demon Slayer Corps is undeniable. Without you, the Demon Slayer Corps wouldn't even be able to kill demons!"
"Is that so? That's good! That's good!"
The village chief was initially pleased upon hearing this, but then seemed to remember something, his smile faded, and he looked at Teiichi and asked:
Are you planning to have Yan forge a new sword again this time?
"Yes! I felt the knife forged by Mr. Tetsumoto Homura before was very good, so I plan to ask him again this time!" Teiichi nodded.
Upon hearing this, the village chief hesitated for a moment, seemingly pondering something, before finally nodding and turning to look at the person who had been sitting behind him.
"Alright then, Tokichi, you can take Lord Kato to find En!"
"Alright!" Tokichi nodded, stood up, and said to Teiichi, " Lord Kato! This way, please!"
Teiichi nodded, said goodbye to the village chief, and followed him. The two quickly left the village chief's house.
After leaving the village chief's house, the two did not head towards the houses ahead, but instead went into the woods on the other side.
Teiichi asked with some confusion:
"Aren't we going to Mr. Tetsumoto Homura's house?"
Tokichi began to explain:
"Yan is very fond of forging. Even when he doesn't have any sword-making tasks, he'll still be in the workshop studying sword-making techniques."
"So if you go to his house during the day, you won't find him!"
"If you want to find it, you need to go to the workshop, which means you have to follow this road!"
Teiichi nodded in understanding upon hearing this.
Tokichi added, "Actually, most people in the village like blacksmithing, but very few are as obsessed as Yan!"
"Is it crazy..." Teiichi repeated.
Tokichi nodded, confirming, "Yes, crazy!"
"Everyone else knows to go back for meals and rest, but Yan is different; no one calls him and he just keeps researching!"
"At first, he was found to have fainted from hunger several times at the workshop, so every time food was delivered there, we had to go and call him out to eat!"
Ding nodded silently after hearing this.
The world certainly has no shortage of people who dedicate themselves to mastering a single skill.
While sometimes this kind of hard work can't match talent, it's enough to set them apart from the average person in this industry.
The two walked along the forest path, surrounded by trees.
About ten minutes later, a fork in the road appeared ahead.
As Tokichi continued walking forward with Teiichi, he looked at Teiichi and asked:
"Is Lord Kato here to discuss the casting requirements with En and then leave, or are you going to wait until the casting is complete?"
"I will stay until the casting is complete!" Teiichi replied.
Upon hearing this, Tokichi pointed to one of the directions at the fork in the road:
"Then you can go soak in the hot springs when you have time; this road leads to the hot springs."
"Let me tell you, besides Nichirin Blade, the best thing about our Swordsmith Village is this hot spring."
"It can treat not only cuts and burns, but also hemorrhoids, anal fissures, and constipation..."
"..."
"Why are there so many treatments for buttocks?" Teiichi thought to himself.
Tokichi continued, "Even if you're heartbroken, our hot springs can heal you!"
"..."
"See if I believe you or not..." Teiichi thought to himself, but nodded outwardly.
"Okay! I'll definitely go for a soak when I have time!"
Tokichi nodded in satisfaction upon hearing this.
It's clear he's very satisfied with the village's hot springs.
After all, if you talk to outsiders about knowledge related to sword forging, they are unlikely to be interested.
But speaking of hot springs, I wouldn't dare say everyone, but at least 80%, no, at least 90% of people should be interested in them, right?
The two continued along the mountain path, and soon, as the last tree disappeared from their sight, the view suddenly opened up before them.
A new, flat area appeared before them.
Just like at the village entrance, there are rows of houses on the flat land.
However, unlike the luxurious houses at the village entrance, the houses here are very simple.
At first glance, all the houses were made of wood, and none of them were more than one story high.
Although the houses aren't as nice as those at the village entrance, the area here feels noticeably more lively compared to the village entrance.
The sounds of knocking and banging came from the houses, and many chimneys were still spewing smoke out. Occasionally, someone could be seen walking on the street.
As Tokichi led Teiichi into the workshop, he explained:
"This is the workshop in our Swordsmith Village. The Nichirin Blade that our team members usually use are forged here!"
Teiichi, looked around curiously, and asked:
"Do all the people in the Swordsmith Village forge swords here?"
"Not entirely!" Tokichi replied, "Some people like to be different and will go to other places to have their swords forged!"
Teiichi glanced at him slightly upon hearing this, "Won't this have any impact?"
Tokichi nodded, then shook his head.
"It doesn't affect us much; the forged swords are no different."
"The only difference is the supplies; things like carbon and water will only be delivered here."
"If he goes to another place to forge metal, he'll have to carry his own materials there."
"As long as he doesn't mind the trouble, it's fine!"