Reborn in Type-Moon: Starting by Adopting Sakura - Chapter 27

They made their way into Taitō ward, where the temple complex sprawled across a hillside thick with old trees and traditional buildings. The approach to Kaminarimon gate was packed with tourists, their voices creating a constant buzz of chatter and excitement.

After passing through the gate and making their way down the busy shopping street, Yuu started steering them through the thickest parts of the crowd. Irisviel found herself grabbing onto his coat sleeve to avoid getting separated.

“Where is your friend?”

Yuu nodded toward something up ahead. "See that area where people are staying away? That's where we're going."

"You mean there's a bounded field here?" Irisviel squinted in that direction, trying to sense any magical barriers. Crowd-warding spells were pretty basic magecraft, but making them completely undetectable took serious skill. She couldn't feel anything at all.

They approached a smaller building near the temple's main treasure hall. Eight men in identical black suits and dark sunglasses stood around the entrance like statues, all sporting either buzz cuts or completely shaved heads. One look and you knew they were trained to keep people out, and even the most oblivious sightseers seemed to instinctively give them a wide berth.

"This is the place," he said.

She was still trying to detect any trace of magical energy. "I don't understand—where's the bounded field you mentioned?"

He gestured toward the intimidating wall of bodyguards. "Right there. Sometimes the most effective barrier is just having eight very large men in suits standing around looking unfriendly."

It took her a moment to process what he'd just said. When it finally sank in, she didn't know whether to laugh or feel embarrassed for overthinking the situation.

A man in a sharp business suit came down the steps quickly when he spotted Yuu approaching. He gave a formal bow. "Master Yuu, my lord has been expecting you."

"Thanks, Akitaka. Lead the way."

"Of course, right this way."

Akitaka guided them down a long corridor while more bodyguards in identical suits stood at attention along the walls.

Irisviel leaned closer to Yuu and lowered her voice. "Your contact isn't from the magical world, is he?"

"He's connected to it, in a way." Yuu shifted the long silver case he was carrying to his other hand. "What do you know about demons?"

“You mean the entities that twist the laws of the world just by existing? Their presence distorts reality, bending natural order around them.” she had studied this during her education at the castle. "They can't do much against trained magi, so the Association mostly ignores them. The Church is different though, they actively hunt them down."

He said. "Here in Japan, there are families besides the Church that specialize in dealing with demons. Though most of them have lost a lot of their influence over the years."

"Really?"

"The demon hunting families—Fujou, Ryougi, Asakami, Nanaya. They used to be known as the Four Demon Hunter Houses." Yuu glanced at her as they walked. "Today we're meeting with the head of the Ryougi family. I promised to help them restore an old family heirloom about five months ago."

The names didn't mean anything to Irisviel. Ancient Japanese families like these wouldn't have had much contact with European magical nobility like the Einzberns—they probably saw foreign mage families as irrelevant outsiders. She kept quiet and followed along, curious to see what kind of person they were about to meet.

The interior of the traditional building was a world away from the bustling temple grounds outside. A middle-aged man in an elegant black kimono sat in perfect seiza position on the tatami mats, a low wooden table in front of him holding a beautiful purple clay teapot.

Yuu glanced around the otherwise empty room. "Where's Shiki? She’s not here?” He was clearly referring to the family's heir, though Irisviel had no idea who this person was.

The family head's serious expression softened into something that might have been amusement. "She's at home working on her training. You know, she's genuinely fond of you—I don't think I've ever seen her actually enjoy talking to another person the way she does with you." He shook his head slightly. "If she finds out I had this meeting without letting her know you were coming, I'm going to hear about it for weeks."

"Well then, I suppose I'll have to make it up to her. Next time I'm in the area, I'll stop by the house and visit her properly."

"She'd love that. And frankly, so would we. You're always welcome in our home."

The current Ryougi head was the sort of man who filled a room just by entering it. Even now, sitting casually and making pleasant conversation, there was something about his bearing that suggested he was used to people listening when he spoke. After they'd exchanged the usual pleasantries, his attention drifted to the silver-haired woman sitting quietly beside him. "And may I ask who this is?"

"This is Irisviel," Yuu said easily. "She's my secretary."

"Ah, I see."

The Ryougi head nodded and politely looked away. Anyone who traveled alongside a magus was almost certainly a magus themselves, and in their world—where bloodlines and family histories carried enormous weight—the deliberate omission of a family name in the introduction sent a clear message. Some questions were better left unasked.

The truth was, the Einzberns were already deep in their preparations for the Holy Grail War. Even this far from Fuyuki, there was no point in revealing more than necessary.

Yuu reached for the long silver case he'd brought with him and slid it across the table toward his host. "Kujikiri Kanesada is completely restored. I've also re-engraved the original mantra, so it should be every bit as powerful as it was before the break—maybe even a little more so."

Kujikiri Kanesada. A blade forged five centuries ago, its steel etched with the nine sacred syllables: "Rin, Pyou, Tou, Sha, Kai, Jin, Retsu, Zai, Zen." In the world of mystical weapons, age and legend were currencies unto themselves. A sword with that kind of history behind it could resist magecraft in ways that modern replicas never could.

With a five-century history, Kujikiri Kanesada was more than worthy of being one of Ryougi family heirloom. But three years ago, in a battle at Tokyo Bay, the blade was broken.

The Ryougi family later commissioned Yuu to restore it.

Besides artifact authentication, Yuu also possessed the skill to restore ancient items. In fact, he could even fabricate forgeries that were indistinguishable from the real thing—but he refused to do so.

Not out of any moral conviction. Simply because being caught even once would destroy the reputation he'd painstakingly built.

The Ryougi head reached to open the case, but Yuu stopped him.

"Wait."

Raising his right hand, he traced a sigil through the air, his fingers leaving faint traces of light that solidified into a translucent barrier between them and the case.

"Now, go ahead," he said, gesturing again.

The Ryougi head placed his hand on the case. Even through the thick metal, he could feel the sharp aura emanating from the blade.

Just from that, he could tell—the sword had regained its former might.

No… perhaps it had become even stronger.

Click. The case unlocked. The Ryougi head carefully drew the sheath while it was still resting atop white silk. As the blade slid free—shing!—a brilliant flash arced across the room, slicing clean through the barrier Yuu had constructed moments ago.

The sword had become so perfectly honed that the simple act of partially unsheathing it could cut through spellwork itself.

"Well?" Yuu asked, watching the man's reaction. "Are you satisfied with the work?"

The Ryougi head stood there staring at the restored sword, his mouth slightly open. For a long moment, he seemed unable to find words. "I... truly, I don't know how to thank you."

There was something almost reverent in the way he looked at the blade, like a collector who'd just been handed a lost masterpiece. But then his expression shifted, and he leaned closer, studying the inscription that ran along the tang.

"The characters seem a little different from what I remember," he said, his brow furrowing slightly.

"I mentioned I'd be making a small modification," Yuu replied. "The old version of the nine-syllable mantra that was originally inscribed had been passed down incorrectly over the centuries."

He gestured toward the blade. "The old inscription read 'Rin, Pyou, Tou, Sha, Kai, Jin, Retsu, Zai, Zen.' I corrected it based on the original Daoist text—the Baopuzi, specifically the Inner Chapters, volume seventeen on climbing and traversing. The proper ending should be 'Zen, Kou,' not 'Zai, Zen.'"

Yuu could see the confusion in the man's eyes, so he continued. "The complete incantation is 'Rin, Pyou, Tou, Sha, Kai, Jin, Retsu, Zen, Kou.' When recited with proper intent, these nine syllables are said to dispel all manner of evil spirits and malevolent forces."

The Ryougi head nodded slowly, though Yuu suspected the theological details were going over his head. What the man could understand, however, was the unmistakable increase in the blade's spiritual presence.

"Your talents are remarkable," the family head said, finally closing the case gently. "I honestly don't know how to properly express my gratitude."

"Haven't you already paid me?" Yuu asked with a slight smile.

They were sitting in a private room within Asakusa Temple, surrounded by centuries-old wooden beams and the faint scent of incense. The temple's ancient texts couldn't be removed from the premises, so Yuu had arranged to rent space here for his research. Most people wouldn't have been able to pull off such an arrangement, but the Ryougi family had enough pull in Taito’s underworld to make things happen. When they made a request, no one said no.