#09 – The End That Will Come One Day
It was more of a workshop than a store.
Several swords hung decoratively on the walls, but there were no price tags. It seemed like they had little interest in selling things.
A single woman with glasses was behind the counter. She was resting on her elbow as she yawned before registering the return of the owner.
“Boss. You broke the door again! Madame will not be pleased! I will not be defending you this time. Really!”
“Shuty, visitors. Maybe a cup of tea for them.”
“Huh?”
She adjusted her glasses in surprise. After staring at Yukito and the others for a moment, she broke into a smile with a ‘Welcooooome!’ And then she ran to the back of the store.
In the meantime, the owner, Tougoro walked forward, and the others had to follow.
He then pulled out some folding chairs and sat down.
“Welcome to my smithy and workshop.”
He said with a smile, and then some cups of tea were placed on the wooden table. Shuty had returned.
“Welcome to the store. We have the best blacksmith in the town. You won’t find swords of better quality anywhere else!”
“Hey, Shuty. No need for any of that.”
“Don’t be stupid, boss. We’ve only had two customers in the past month! We are going to have to close at this rate!”
She fumed before turning back to the guests with a smile. And then she noticed Sumia.
“Huh? Su-chan. Oh! It’s been a while!”
“Yes, it has. Ms. Shuty.”
“…Are you friends?”
Sumia nodded and waved awkwardly at Shuty.
“In fact, Su is very famous around here!”
“That’s not true.”
Sumia shook her head quickly.
Well, she was certainly pretty enough to attract a lot of attention.
“Hey, Shuty, that’s enough.”
Said Tougoro. She quickly took a step back and put on her customer service smile.
Tougoro turned back to Yukito.
“So, young man. What business do you have with us… No, first of all. Mind if I look at your sword?”
Yukito stared at him for a moment and then detached the blade from his belt.
Tougoro accepted it carefully with both hands and removed it from its sheath.
As he pointed it towards the ceiling, the light reflected on the blade, and he sighed as if impressed.
“…What a fine blade. Who made it?”
“I don’t know. I got it from my grandfather.”
Tougoro scratched his chin thoughtfully.
“Mind if I take it apart?”
“Not at all. I wanted you to take a look at it.”
And so he took the blade and walked over to the back of the workshop. Without turning back, he gestured for Yukito to follow.
“Will you two…”
“I’ll stay here. It’s been a while since I last talked to you, Ms. Shuty.”
“Then I’ll stay as well. …Um, could you show me the swords, Ms. Shuty?”
She nodded with a smile.
“Look.”
Tougoro used a hammer to remove the handle.
But there was no signature on the exposed metal. Of course, Yukito knew this, as he did maintenance on it himself.
“It’s a good blade. So if there is no signature, it must be a shadowstrike.”
“Shadowstrike…?”
“You craft two identical swords, and give away the one that turned out better. The one you keep is the shadowstrike. Of course, you would only do this when making something for someone special.”
After all, it would be quite expensive. Tougoro chuckled.
“Well, for something like this, it must have been made back home.”
“You mean…Wakoku?”
“Yes. And it would be quite a master as well. So, the problem is… You know it, don’t you?”
“Uh…I guess.”
Tougoro traced the blade with his finger.
“It’s nearing the end of its life.”
Yukito’s heart skipped a beat.
His grandfather had given it to him. He had been with it for half of his life.
It was a part of him, in a way. And now it was going to die.
“You’ve taken good care of it. I can see how much it means to you. And so, I don’t want to say this, but…”
“No, I understand.”
Of course, he did.
The blade had been screaming. And in the last few years, the screams had gotten louder.
He had talked to a few people in the old capital. But there had been no smiths that made katanas.
And most of all…
“Can you repair it?”
“No. As I said. It’s life is up.”
…Yes. He knew it.
“It can no longer withstand your power. It’s not a matter of a blacksmith’s skill now. It has a year…or half a year left…”
“I see…”
The declaration of death. Yukito felt as if something in his chest was being gouged out.