Chapter 78: Little Zashiki, Big Dreams
Shangshan Che was somewhat unexpectedly stunned for a moment.
In his view, the Zashiki Warashi who was staying alone in this Arakawa Village townhouse blacksmithing should have been impatient upon hearing his invitation.
After all, her Master Blacksmith had already left Arakawa Village, and the Zashiki Warashi’s strength was not particularly powerful either.
He stared at the girl’s head—【Zashiki Warashi（One-Star）】.
One-Star strength could at most handle minibosses in this remote village of Arakawa Village; running into any visiting demon or hidden elite miniboss would spell trouble.
Not to mention that Zashiki had put all her skill points into blacksmithing and forging.
In a real fight, Shangshan Che figured she could even go back and forth with a sturdy farmer, with the outcome undecided.
But Shangshan Che withdrew his Universal Familiar and simply asked, “Is there any reason?”
Zashiki held the scorching yet icy forging hammer, mustering her courage as she stared into Mr. Hannya’s eyes and said, “If I became Mr. Hannya’s shikigami, you would surely do everything to shield me from wind and rain.”
“My future life might be tumultuous and dangerous, but it surely wouldn’t involve living in constant fear every day of being abducted or killed by strangers I’ve never met.”
She didn’t use a question, but a declarative tone.
“Of course.”
Shangshan Che nodded; he was reluctant to let such a rare and valuable talent like Zashiki come to harm.
“I’m touched that Mr. Hannya has such thoughts.”
Though she said this, Zashiki shook her head: “But this won’t do.”
“Master told me that if I want to reach the pinnacle of blacksmithing and become a true Master Craftsman, it’s not enough to just read a thousand books—I must also travel a thousand miles.”
Zashiki spoke with longing in her eyes: “I will learn Heian Period forging techniques in the bustling Heian-kyo, search for legendary meteorite iron in Mount Oe, and measure this Eternal World Land with my own feet, visiting master craftsmen from different eras…”
“I will exchange ideas with craftsmen more skilled than me, learn from them, take the essence and discard the dross, and listen to the thoughts and suggestions of every talented eccentric…”
Zashiki recounted her dreams—or rather, things she was certain she would accomplish in the future.
“But Zashiki.” Shangshan Che couldn’t help asking after hearing this, “The Eternal World is far more dangerous than you imagine.”
“That’s obvious, Mr. Hannya.”
Zashiki nodded matter-of-factly: “Precisely because the Eternal World road is full of hardships and obstacles, and there are vast differences in customs and cognition between eras, so many exquisitely crafted techniques cannot circulate.”
Shangshan Che looked at the girl silently.
The girl’s eyes were resolute; she had experienced it and already knew from books just how perilous and bizarre the Eternal World was.
But Zashiki had made up her mind; she knew she might die unnoticed on this long journey.
She was willing.
“But I’m not reckless enough to set off without any preparation.”
Zashiki smiled, fetched a small stool, and placed the kimono from behind along with various strange items and accessories on it.
She spread her hands, gesturing for Shangshan Che to take a look.
“What’s so interesting about these odds and ends…”
Just as Shangshan Che was thinking this, the clothes, items, and accessories on the small stool seemed to unseal something, bursting forth with a deep purple glow that nearly blinded him!
Epic! Epic! And more Epic!
The dozen or so items on the small stool were all of Epic quality or higher!
Shangshan Che’s mouth went dry at the sight, but he soon noticed that all these items shared one effect.
—【For Zashiki Warashi Use Only】.
This locked the equipment to the wearer, turning public goods private.
Blacksmiths could even do this… No wonder they were called Master Craftsmen.
He looked up, about to speak, when he saw Zashiki Warashi pointing an exquisite small handguns at him.
And on the surface of that handgun shone a dazzling golden light!
Seeing this light for the first time, Shangshan Che shifted his gaze to the quality field and discovered that this unassuming small handgun was actually a Legendary Grade weapon, higher than Epic quality.
Shangshan Che was dumbfounded.
Turns out this was a super-rich lady traveling; no wonder he didn’t need to worry.
With this set of equipment, not to mention facing a Ghost God, but handling an ordinary Three-Star demon would be more than enough.
However, Shangshan Che thought that, to make these high-quality equipment usable by One-Star Zashiki, they must have been weakened in various aspects.
Even so, it was still terrifying.
Legendary Grade weapon… Shangshan Che feared that if Zashiki’s little hand trembled and pulled the trigger, one shot could blow him away.
“I knew I wasn’t wrong about Mr. Hannya!” Zashiki scratched her cheek with a finger, chuckling, “If it were any other demon, they definitely wouldn’t be able to resist snatching them.”
And then get blown away by one shot from you, right.
Shangshan Che shook his head: “Looks like I was overthinking it.”
“In that case, Mr. Hannya.”
Zashiki removed the hair tie binding her braid, letting her messy bangs fall down: “As payment for reinforcing Kaga Kiyomitsu, could you help me put on this kimono?”
The girl handed over the black-and-red kimono: “After all, I’m about to leave Arakawa Village anyway.”
Leaving Arakawa Village…
Meaning she’d been waiting for him to come so she wouldn’t leave without a word.
Shangshan Che silently took the kimono, thinking its wearing method was similar to the dojo’s dōgi, and after Lili Zi had helped him twice, he remembered this somewhat complex way.
Squatting down, he draped the large black-and-red kimono over Zashiki, hearing the girl sigh somewhat sadly: “After parting today, who knows when I’ll see you again, Mr. Hannya.”
The Eternal World was vast, divided among dozens of eras, with countless influences, demons, and supernatural phenomena rampant everywhere.
Zashiki leaving Arakawa Village and entering the Eternal World Land was truly like a drop of water into the ocean.
After Shangshan Che carefully tied the butterfly knot at her waist: “We will meet again.”
“Yeah, we will meet again.”
Zashiki clenched her little fist, cheering herself on.
Next, Shangshan Che watched as she took out charcoal, shut down the furnace, sealed the three large vats with special wooden lids, then went to the small field by the passageway where Spirit Grass was planted, uprooting each stalk and putting them into a small backpack that seemed forever unable to be filled.
Finally, she left one and handed it to Shangshan Che: “Though the gift isn’t valuable, this special Spirit Grass isn’t available elsewhere.”
After solemnly accepting this ordinary Spirit Grass, Shangshan Che followed her silently out of the blacksmith shop, then saw her laboriously close the large door with both hands.
Zashiki turned away from the locked door without lingering, because she feared that even one more glance would make her reluctant to leave this home she’d stayed in for so very long.
That would be a pity.
“Mr. Hannya.”
Zashiki, now with her back to him, turned her head, timidly saying somewhat embarrassedly: “Could you make me red bean rice every year from now on?”
“That way, even if I die unknown in the future, someone will remember me.”
