I'm a demon in Tokyo!

Chapter 165 The Mighty Craftsman of Mikawa Province, This...this is Okabe Motonobu?! (6.5k)

Uesugi Tetsu's gaze was drawn to the clear, cold blade that quietly reflected everything around it, his eyes following the graceful, wave-like patterns that rose and fell across its surface.

This katana is undoubtedly epic!

Blacksmiths in the Warring States period were actually able to forge epic weapons and equipment by hand?!
Although this katana is far inferior to that of Kaga Kiyomitsu, it also lacks any sense of its own spirit.

However, Kaga Kiyomitsu was forged by hand by the old blacksmith of Arakawa Kiyomizu, a master craftsman, who put a lot of effort into it.

The two are naturally not comparable.

But that's enough!
Previously, when he was in the Special Affairs Department, Uesugi Tetsu had specifically asked Aoyama Yoshiki if he could forge an epic-level weapon—that is, a weapon of similar quality to Kaga Kiyomitsu.

The answer he received at the time was that it was impossible.

The highest quality equipment that Aoyama Yoshi forges is roughly of the Rare grade. Perhaps some lucky ones might get Rare+, but that's about it.

Uesugi Tetsu had no idea that Imagawa Yoshimoto's casual whim of bringing him here to buy a katana would lead to such a skilled blacksmith.

—And if it's a blacksmith who can forge epic-level equipment, he might be able to use qualified spirit metal to forge and upgrade Kaga Kiyomitsu again!
With this thought in mind, Uesugi Tetsuya, still standing at the shop entrance, maintained his calm demeanor and asked Imagawa Yoshimoto beside him,
"If they're expensive, how much money would it cost to buy one of these ordinary finished wakizashi or tachi?"

Imagawa Yoshimoto crossed his arms.

"I remember... any wakizashi here would cost sixty or seventy kan."

Seeing that the young apprentice minding the shop had his eyes half-closed and seemed not to have noticed them yet, Imagawa Yoshimoto whispered, "This is ridiculously expensive. This amount of money could buy a dozen fully armed foot soldiers."

During the Warring States period, the market price of a typical tachi was around five kan, while tachi and wakizashi were even lower, with two or three kan being the highest price.

Even if you buy spears and armor for the foot soldiers, each one will still only cost less than ten kan.

"Not to mention katana and tachi, which are at least three figures in price. If you want to buy the best ones, five hundred kan is quite normal."

In other words, a weapon of excellent quality would cost at least 60 or 70 strings of cash.

If you want to buy rare knives in this shop, you'd need to prepare at least three or four hundred strings of cash before you feel confident enough to enter.

Upon hearing this price, even Uesugi Tetsuya, who was not particularly sensitive to prices during the Warring States period, couldn't help but gasp.

It should be noted that in that era, a matchlock gun, or arquebus, cost only about a hundred strings of cash.

This knife is so much more expensive than a cannon; it's practically defying the natural order.

With prices like these... no wonder there are so few customers in front of the blacksmith shop.

Most normal people would probably turn around and leave without saying a word after hearing the price, and then decide never to come back.

"However, this knife is expensive, but there is a reason for its high price."

Imagawa Yoshimoto continued speaking, his voice finally catching the attention of the young apprentice in the shop.

"It can cut through iron like mud and easily sever ordinary heavy armor and shoulder armor, so it's definitely worth the price. Yuan Xin has come here to spend money several times."

"Ah, welcome!"

The young apprentice, dressed in plain clothes, first glanced at the most conspicuous two-foot-tall man, Kaga Kiyomitsu, who was holding the crimson robes.

The apprentice then realized she was just a child and shifted her gaze to the tall Uesugi Tetsuya.

But before he could even utter another word, he realized who the woman who had spoken was.

The young head of the Imagawa family!

She's here again!

The apprentice quickly went to the side of Imagawa Yoshimoto, led her in, and whispered, "Please wait here for a moment, sir, and I will call my master immediately."

The apprentice's attitude changed from confused to extremely respectful in just three or four seconds, which naturally did not escape Uesugi Tetsu's eyes.

He was puzzled as to how this seemingly indifferent apprentice could instantly recognize Imagawa Yoshimoto under the straw hat.

Imagawa Yoshimoto seemed used to this; he nodded and knelt down on the large, spotless cushion in the shop.

"No rush. If your master is still working, then let's wait for him to finish this step."

"Yes, yes! Thank you for your generosity, sir!"

The apprentice memorized these words perfectly, bowed respectfully once more, and quickly and lightly lifted the curtain to walk into the inner room.

As the apprentice's figure disappeared from sight, Uesugi Tetsu approached to admire the epic-level katana, and casually asked, "Yoshimoto-kun, how come this apprentice, who can fall asleep while standing at the door and minding the shop, has been working for so long without being fired?"

Uesugi Tetsu asked this question because he could tell from the familiarity between the two that Imagawa Yoshimoto must have met this young apprentice quite a few times.

That's why he found it a bit strange.

The two-foot-tall man holding the sword followed silently behind her, his eyes fixed straight ahead, pretending not to see Imagawa Yoshimoto gently patting another empty cushion at her.

"This is just a blacksmith shop, not some important place or Imagawa-kan."

Imagawa Yoshimoto put his legs together, rested his hands on his knees, and said lazily, "On a normal day, he might not have a single guest visiting all day, so it's normal for him to take a nap."

"Anyway, in Junfu City, being able to come to this blacksmith shop a second time means there are no other options."

What made this young apprentice so remarkable was his ability to remember the name, characteristics, personality, and preferences of every returning customer perfectly, even if a year or two had passed between them.

Uesugi Tetsuya finally understood.

Customers who have no other choice when shopping at this blacksmith shop don't really value the service.

The apprentice can remember every guest who has come, so when the blacksmith in the inner room is called out, the blacksmith can be mentally or verbally prepared for the guest.

For a moment, Uesugi Tetsuya actually felt a little envious of this young apprentice.

On weekdays, life is leisurely and boring; you can take a nap or slack off whenever you want. The only thing you need to do is "call out to the homeowner to welcome home" when customers arrive.

And because of his "super memory" talent, he probably earns a good salary.

It's like avoiding thirty years of detours.

During the brief wait, Uesugi Tetsu looked around the "doma" area facing the road, which was used for business and customer service, and found that the interior decoration was unusually clean and simple.

It wasn't exactly magnificent, but it was certainly bare-bones.

Apart from the neatly arranged swords of varying lengths, various spear tips, and simple armor, there were only bare wooden walls and floors.

At most, there's a small table that's similar to a cashier's counter... but calling it a table isn't quite accurate; it's basically just another surface for holding items.

—In contrast, the blacksmith's tools and environment inside must be top-of-the-line, and even a seemingly insignificant prop would probably cost tens or hundreds of strings of cash.

Uesugi Tetsu thought to himself.

A moment later, the apprentice emerged from behind the thick curtain again and stood to the side, using his hands to keep the curtain open.

Before the people arrive, the sound comes first.

"Haha! What a rare guest! What brings you here, sir!"

A cheerful and hearty laugh suddenly burst from the passageway into the entire earthen room.

The next moment, a tall, muscular young man with a half-wet burlap sack draped over his shoulder, but looking somewhat unkempt due to his unshaven beard, appeared and strode toward Imagawa Yoshimoto, who was wearing a straw hat.

He was still emitting faint steam from his body, his sleeves were rolled up, and his forearms were red, clearly indicating that he had just been hammering away in the inner room.

Imagawa Yoshimoto immediately stood up and exchanged a few pleasantries with the young blacksmith.

Uesugi Tetsu blinked and realized that the young blacksmith was much younger than Aoyama Yoshi.

And this is the Warring States period...

That's truly remarkable for someone so young.

"I have come here to purchase a katana for this gentleman."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Imagawa Yoshimoto made his request without hesitation, pausing before continuing, "If you have any in stock, please also take out a plain spear."

Upon hearing this, the young blacksmith looked at Uesugi Tetsuya, sized him up for a moment, and said, "Sir, may I ask your name?"

Uesugi Tetsu: "No need for honorifics, I'll just use the single character 'Tetsu' in my name."

"So it's Mr. Che."

The young blacksmith gave a formulaic reply at first, then seemed to find the name somewhat familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before.

He pondered for a moment, scratched his chin, but couldn't come up with a solution.

After all, he spent most of his time holed up in the inner room for forging and blacksmithing, focusing all his attention on how to improve his forging skills.

In his daily life, only his apprentices and the owners of the nearby food stalls would exchange a few words with him, but he never took these words to heart.

But the young apprentice standing to the side had already changed his expression drastically, dramatically, and violently.

If it weren't for the fact that the head of the Imagawa family disliked being interrupted while speaking, he would have already run to his master's ear and told him that this was the most popular Onmyoji, Che, and urged his master to quickly get on good terms with him!

The apprentice muttered to himself, puzzled, "Why do Onmyoji need to wield swords and spears?"

The young blacksmith had no idea what his apprentice was thinking.

He didn't think Uesugi Tetsuya looked like a very capable fighter; he was probably the son of one of the old retainers of the Imagawa family.

As for this name, it's naturally an alias...

So the young blacksmith went back to the inner room and found several very slender and thin katanas, more for show than for practical use. He laid them out one by one on the table and said...
"Mr. Che, how do you feel handling these katanas?"

Uesugi Tetsuya stared silently at the several katanas that emitted a faint green light, which were probably of good quality.

Before he could speak, Kaga Kiyomitsu, who was in the arms of the two-foot-tall man, suddenly sprang out, emitting a faint but high-frequency buzzing sound to express his dissatisfaction.

It's as if they're saying, "Do you expect me to work with these third-rate people from now on? No way, absolutely not!"

The young blacksmith immediately turned his head, his eyes wide open, staring intently at Kaga Kiyomitsu.

His eyes were green with envy, as if Bai Shi, who hadn't had a full meal in over a decade, were drooling over the sight of a Manchu Han Imperial Feast.

"Mr. Che!" The young blacksmith stammered, not wanting to blink for a moment, "This katana, is it a spiritual weapon?"

"indeed so."

Uesugi Tetsu said, "Jia, we're still in someone else's shop, stop fooling around."

He earnestly advised, "Be more sensible when you're out there, and don't always make your parents worry about you."

Upon hearing Uesugi Tetsu's words, Kaga Kiyomitsu trembled slightly in displeasure, but still obediently sheathed his sword.

This amazing scene captivated everyone's attention.

The blacksmith's eyes brightened. He swallowed hard, but suppressed the urge to touch Kaga Kiyomitsu.
“If that’s the case, then Mr. Che would naturally look down on these pieces of junk.”

"Please wait."

The blacksmith rushed into the inner room and brought out several more katanas, carefully placing them on the table.

This time, they're all rare items, including one that emits a deep blue light, presumably of "rare+" quality, just like the Five Thunder Pearl.

"Mr. Che, what do you think?" The blacksmith smiled proudly, then continued to stare at Kaga Kiyomitsu, who had already retreated. "These are my masterpieces. Although they can't compare to your katana, they are still quite usable."

Uesugi Tetsuya pretended to observe carefully and echoed, but in reality, he didn't pay much attention.

Compared to rare or even potentially epic-grade katanas, he was more concerned about whether the young blacksmith could infuse the appropriate spirit gold into Kaga Kiyomitsu.

Kaga Kiyomitsu's scalability alone makes him rarer than most epic weapons.

Not to mention it even developed sentience and possessed a truly absurd characteristic: "The Sorrow of Separation." So, after touching it and roughly determining which katana suited him best, Uesugi Tetsu changed the subject and asked...

"Do you have anything similar to that katana displayed in the center of the shop?"

First, it is necessary to determine the level of the young blacksmith's forging skills.

—If the young blacksmith could forge epic weapons at will, then Uesugi Tetsuya would immediately take out the appropriate spirit metal and ask him to forge one for him.

Having received permission from the two-foot-tall man to lightly touch Kaga Kiyomitsu, the blacksmith paused, then shook his head with some regret.
"This katana can only be considered a rare accident in this lifetime."

The blacksmith recalled for a while and said with some emotion, "It was a weapon that I boldly forged in a thunderstorm one day by chance. It is a miracle that I can never replicate again."

"but."

The blacksmith removed his meticulously cleaned fingers from the hilt of Kaga Kiyomitsu's sword and spoke earnestly, enunciating each word clearly.
“In the future, I will definitely forge a weapon that is more perfect than this, or even more perfect than Mr. Che’s spiritual sword.”

Wow, I can even hear some hardcore, ruthless stories.

Uesugi Tetsu sighed, but he couldn't help feeling a little disappointed.

This blacksmith is indeed very skilled, being able to consistently forge rare-grade weapons at such a young age.

But since he couldn't even forge an epic-level weapon, it meant his forging skills weren't much better than Aoyama Yoshi's, and the latter even had the assistance of modern equipment...

Perhaps, there will be a surprise if we come back in two years.

So Uesugi Tetsuya picked up the katana he had already chosen, and at Imagawa Yoshimoto's urging, bought a plain spearhead of the same rare grade, waiting to pick up the fully assembled plain spear next time.

Seeing Imagawa Yoshimoto take out a handful of gold leaves from his pocket, the blacksmith shook his head.

"We don't need that number."

He only took a small portion: "It is a joy to see you again today, sir, and it is another joy to see Mr. Che broaden my horizons. This is a double blessing."

Imagawa Yoshimoto didn't refuse, but carefully took back the remaining gold leaves and tucked them back into the lining, saying softly,

"I'll have to trouble you again, blacksmith."

blacksmith?

Uesugi Tetsu noticed this strange title.

Imagawa Yoshimoto must have visited this blacksmith shop many times, so why does he still address him so formally?

The young blacksmith noticed Uesugi Tetsu's puzzled expression and smiled, "Until I fully accept myself, I am not worthy of getting rid of the word 'blacksmith' and having a unique name."

Why does this sound so familiar?

Uesugi Tetsu narrowed his eyes and pondered for a while before remembering that Zashiki-warashi had said something similar a long time ago.

The Zashiki-warashi is a celestial apprentice.

Is it possible...

Uesugi Tetsuya's heart skipped a beat. He tentatively asked, "Master blacksmith, have you ever heard of the Heavenly Craftsmanship?"

The blacksmith's smile vanished.

He asked rather seriously, "Where did you learn about this word?"

Uesugi Tetsu's eyes lit up. He took out the Qualified Spirit Gold from his storage backpack and started rambling on and on.
"After I accidentally obtained this piece of spirit gold, I sought out many blacksmiths to forge it together with Xiao Jia, but they all said it was impossible."

One of the blacksmiths told me, "The craftsmanship of nature can do such a thing."

The blacksmith remained silent, first taking the qualified spirit metal and examining it carefully for a long time before speaking.

"Mr. Che, would you be willing to part with it? Perhaps I can use it to forge a wakizashi of similar quality to that Thunder Blade..."

After saying that, the blacksmith immediately gave an extremely high number.

Without even thinking, Uesugi Tetsu shook his head: "This is for Jia."

"Is that so? What a pity."

The blacksmith carefully returned the spirit gold to Uesugi Tetsuya, adding, "Of course, but unfortunately it's only for me."

"However, it's a masterpiece..."

The blacksmith looked at the suitable spirit metal, hesitated for a moment, and then reluctantly spoke up.

"I may have met one before."

Even if he couldn't use this exceptionally precious spiritual gold for himself, he hoped it would end up in the right hands and be put to good use.

At this moment, Imagawa Yoshimoto, who had been listening quietly for a long time, spoke up: "Master blacksmith, if you can tell Yu Che the details of this 'master craftsmanship,' I can grant you a request."

Although she didn't quite understand the use of spirit gold or the meaning of the words "heavenly craftsmanship".

But Imagawa Yoshimoto knew one thing.

She noticed that Uesugi Tetsu's expression became more serious than ever after the words "Heavenly Craftsmanship" were mentioned.

This is important to him.

The blacksmith was delighted to hear this, as he was already prepared to recount the whole story in detail.

Now, to receive the goodwill of the head of the Imagawa family for nothing is such a good deal.

After pondering for a while, the blacksmith slowly began to speak.
"The location is in a deep mountain in Mikawa Province... There is a dilapidated temple in that mountain."

I was young then, so I can't remember all the more detailed things. I only remember getting lost in the mountains and ending up at the entrance of that dilapidated temple. After I fell asleep, she found me and took me into the temple.

According to her, there seemed to be a mountain whale demon king causing chaos in the mountains at that time, so I stayed in the temple for an exceptionally long time, more than ten days.

During that time, I heard her mention the Heavenly Craftsmanship many times.

At this point, the blacksmith smiled nostalgically: "In fact, many of the key forging techniques were taught to me by that person back then."

I still vividly remember her tirelessly forging iron day and night, as if she would never tire... Now I am focused on this too, perhaps thanks to her.

In the Three Rivers Kingdom, in the mountains, in a dilapidated temple, there once lived a demon king who caused chaos.

The information provided by the young blacksmith was already quite clear.

But what is a "mountain whale"?
Whales in the mountains?
This is truly an unheard-of demon.

Uesugi Tetsuya pressed further, "What does that person look like?"

"Appearance..."

The blacksmith frowned and pondered for a long time before shaking his head: "I can't remember. I only remember that she was a forthright and robust woman."

"Apart from that, I can't remember anything else."

Uesugi Tetsu wrote down everything the blacksmith said: "This is more than enough. Thank you, blacksmith."

"You're welcome."

The blacksmith grinned at him: "If Mr. Che can find that person, please thank him for taking me in."

"Will do."

After asking the last question, Uesugi Tetsuya prepared to leave the blacksmith shop with Imagawa Yoshimoto.

Before leaving, Imagawa Yoshimoto suddenly stopped and turned to look at the apprentice in the corner, whose expression had changed countless times but who had remained silent.
"Master blacksmith, could you lend out your apprentice for a while? I'd like him to take Mr. Che to Yuan Xin's house."

"It's alright, it's alright! Please feel free to borrow it, sir!"

The blacksmith, who had already turned around, casually waved his hand behind him, and then disappeared back into the curtain, seemingly to continue focusing on his blacksmithing.

The apprentice, who had been unjustly assigned the task of leading the way, bowed and smiled without the slightest dissatisfaction: "I am willing to serve you, sir."

Imagawa Yoshimoto, however, took out several dozen coins' worth of loose silver from his inner lining and placed them in the apprentice's hand.
"Hard."

Upon seeing this, the apprentice quickly waved his hand: "Sir! This is not necessary!"

Imagawa Yoshimoto said calmly, "I'll give it to you, so just accept it."

The apprentice immediately shut his mouth, and after a moment said, "Sir, please leave with peace of mind."

"That's good."

Imagawa Yoshimoto walked up to Uesugi Tetsuya and whispered to him, "Then, Tetsuya-kun, we'll say goodbye for now. See you when we get back."

"Take care, Lord Yiyuan."

Uesugi Tetsu wanted to give Imagawa Yoshimoto some items for self-defense, but after searching around, he realized that both the bell and the bloodstained crown required spiritual power to operate.

Otherwise, they won't be of much use.

If she were to ask the Second Master to accompany her, it would seem somewhat presumptuous of her to do so.

He had no choice but to give up.

Within Sunpu Castle, there should be no need to be too concerned about Imagawa Yoshimoto's personal safety.

After watching Imagawa Yoshimoto slowly depart and merge into the crowd, Uesugi Tetsuya finally looked at his apprentice, whose face was beaming with satisfaction.

"Please lead the way, sir."

The apprentice pocketed the windfall and patted his chest heavily: "Don't worry, Mr. Che! I will definitely take you to Lord Okabe's residence. Just tell me if you need anything along the way!"

……

Even though it was on the way, Okabe Motonobu's residence was surprisingly far from the blacksmith's shop.

Uesugi Tetsu followed the apprentice for almost forty minutes, walking further and further away from the crowd until the crowds were so thin that they could hardly be seen, before he saw the apprentice stop.

He asked with some doubt, "Lord Okabe lives here?"

The apprentice replied unsurprised, "Because Lord Okabe prefers a quieter place."

He pointed to the only courtyard in the area that was enclosed by a wall.

"Mr. Che, that is Lord Okabe's house."

Uesugi Tetsu nodded, walked to the door, and gently knocked: "Excuse me, is Mr. Okabe home?"

No one responded.

Next, Uesugi Tetsuya waited for a while longer and repeated the process several times, but he still found that no one opened the door.

Does that mean no one is home?
To avoid flying into the air, Uesugi Tetsuya had Nisha-sama float up first, wanting her to observe the situation from mid-air.

The two-foot-tall man holding the sword slowly floated up, leaving the apprentices behind him speechless with astonishment.

A moment later, the two-foot-tall man's somewhat complicated voice came out.
"Lord Che, I think you should open the door and check... Hmm, nothing will happen."

Uesugi Tetsu blinked, not doubting what the man in the second row had said.

He tentatively raised his hand and slowly pushed open the unlocked wooden door.

Then, just like the two-foot-tall adult in mid-air, he stood frozen in place with a blank expression.

This...this...this...

You're telling me this is Motonobu Okabe?!
This is wrong!

(End of this chapter)