Ren's laughter in his room after the battle was an odd mix of emotions—pain, happiness from the victory, and perhaps a touch of madness. Ayako worked diligently to stop the bleeding from his shoulder, but the deeper wounds proved stubborn.

Satoru had rushed to get Hayashi Hiroshi, a true doctor, to tend to Ren's injuries. As they waited, Ayako did her best to staunch the bleeding. She pressed a bloody cloth against his shoulder, but Ren's chuckling continued unabated. Frustrated, she eventually resorted to covering his mouth with her hand to stifle the sound. This odd struggle between them continued until Satoru and Hiroshi arrived.

"I'll take it from here," the doctor said, pushing past Satoru. Ayako released her hold on Ren's mouth and the cloth, and then quickly exited the room. She was completely covered in blood – a testament to her efforts.

A substantial puddle of crimson had formed on the floor by this point. Hiroshi placed a bag on the floor and knelt beside Ren. He discarded the bloodied fabric that had been covering the shoulder wound and held his hands just above the deep claw marks left by the ape. Closing his eyes, a faint green light emanated from his palms.

A comforting warmth spread from the shoulder throughout Ren's body. It was soothing and alleviated the pain, nearly making it disappear entirely. Ren couldn't help but smile and closed his eyes, drifting into slumber.

While he rested, Hiroshi diligently worked, using his Shinryoku to treat the deepest wounds. He, with Satoru's assistance, turned Ren onto his belly to properly address the wounds on his back. Hiroshi carefully closed and bandaged them, applying ointment as needed.

Once the doctor finished his work, they moved Ren back to his futon. Hiroshi had a brief conversation with Ayako, leaving some medication in her care. Satoru then undertook the task of cleaning the room of the bloodstains.

The next morning, Ren was awakened by a gentle, wet sensation on his face. He opened his eyes to find Tsukiko standing on top of him, licking his face.

‘Good morning,’ she greeted him in his mind.

‘Good morning,’ he replied, surprised to find that his shoulder, while still slightly painful, wasn't as bad as he expected. The discomfort in his back was also manageable.

‘You are fine. Your body heals very quickly, and the doctor did a great job. In two days you probably won't have even a trace of yesterday’s fight,’ the goddess informed him. Then she jumped off his chest, landing gracefully on the floor, and began licking her paw.

Ren picked himself up to a sitting position, which only confirmed her words, as he could barely feel his injuries despite the rapid movement.

‘I won,’ he stated, then smiled.

‘I know. I saw it. It was a good idea to poison the monster, but you didn’t calculate well. You should have used a bit more and hidden your traces well,’ she nagged.

‘It worked,’ he argued.

This earned him an eye roll from the cat. He responded with an even wider grin to this and got to his feet to leave the room.

A bit of noise reached him from the dining room. A hushed conversation. As he approached, he saw Ayako and Satoru speaking quietly about his condition. From their words, he understood they were worried.

"You should lay down!" the wife exclaimed upon noticing his presence. She seemed outraged.

"I feel fine. I’m hungry,” he responded, approaching to join them at the table.

Satoru gave him a stern look. "Your injuries were deep. You should be careful.”

"I’m telling you the truth. I feel fine. If it would hurt, I would have stayed in bed,” he argued.

His words caused both the husband and the wife to look at one another. This exchange of confused looks earned them a chuckle from him.

"Well… If you feel fine, then we should go to Isamu. He owes you a sword,” the old man pointed out. As he spoke, his lips gradually curved into a smile.

"Yes,” Ren agreed, grinning at him.

"Eat first, then we go,” Satoru added.

"He should rest more,” Ayako pointed out with a frowned eyebrow.

"I’ll be with him. If anything happens, I’ll bring him straight back, and he won't leave the bed until the doctor says he is fully cured,” the husband assured.

Ren allowed them to argue, focusing on filling his belly. When he cleaned most of the table just by himself, breakfast came to an end, and he and the old man stepped outside. Satoru offered him a shoulder to lean on, but he shook his head, not accepting the offer.

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"I can walk. I really feel fine,” he added.

"Then let’s go,” was Satoru's response, before he started leading them on the proper path to Isamu’s house. "You did great yesterday. I thought you were foolish, but you came up with a really good plan. The poison was brilliant, but the fools from Tachibana won't understand it, so you should avoid them for a while until their outrage goes away.”

"I’ll keep that in mind,” Ren nodded.

In silence, both smiling, they walked through the district, eventually reaching the secluded abode. They passed through the iron gate and then climbed their way up the path until the shutters of the house burst open.

"Stop right there!" the old man shouted, but as soon as he realized who his guests were, he vanished inside, closing the window. Satoru and Ren exchanged worried looks.

"You think he is going to back down from the deal?" the adopted son asked.

"I hope not," the old man responded, but there was plenty of worry hidden in his gaze.

All their worries dissipated when the door to the house opened, and Isamu came out. He was hunched over, which made him even shorter than he really was, but the aura that surrounded him was that of a giant.

He stopped right before the two, and his eyes focused on Ren, practically piercing through him, but he didn’t say a word.

"I killed the ape. I passed the trial," the young man stated.

"I heard. I heard that you poisoned the ape, and that allowed you to win," Isamu said, his look remaining stern.

"There was no condition of how I should win," Ren argued. "You said only to defeat one of the apes, and I did."

"I also never said I will give you a sword if you finish the trial. I said I will consider it," his eyebrows climbed slightly up his forehead, as a sly smirk graced his lips.

"That’s unfair!" Ren complained, raising his voice.

"Tachibana is furious at you. I heard that yesterday they kicked out every Noroi from their district when the news about you spread," the blacksmith said, ignoring him completely. "Those fools, so stuck to their honor, that they fail to recognize what reality is," he chuckled. "In the real world, you need to be cunning, and vicious, and use every opportunity. You either win, or you die; there is no room for pride. I would have made you pay for the sword if you were to win this fight square, or forget you even existed if you were to fail," Isamu informed. "But you won with your head, and you made fun of Tachibana in the process. That’s enough for me to grant you one of my Jujins."

Ren's eyes and mouth went wide; a choked, faint chuckle of disbelief escaped his lungs. He went from full-on anger to ecstasy. Even Satoru smirked, nodding in agreement with the blacksmith’s words.

"Follow me, both of you," Isamu said as he passed right between them, heading out of the area surrounding his house, straight to the district of the Noroi clan. Without a word, they followed, and he guided them through the industrial part of the district. He was recognized by many, who showed deep respect with equally deep bows, but he dismissed them all with a wave of his hand as if he was chasing away annoying flies.

Soon, it was obvious where their destination lay: the base of the mountain. Their approach was audible in the growing sound of metal clanging against metal, which got louder and louder, coming from a dark tunnel leading into the solid rock, guarded by eight men in full, black armor. They patted themselves on the chest as Isamu got closer, showing their respect.

"They are with me," the blacksmith said in response, allowing for an undisturbed entrance.

The three of them vanished into the thick shadows upon entering. It was strange, mysterious even, but despite the lack of light, Ren could see his path, as if he knew where he was going. The sound only increased, turning into something so deafening that he couldn’t hear anything else.

Suddenly, completely unannounced, they emerged in a large, round chamber, illuminated with a single flame burning in a massive iron bowl in the very center of the space. The tunnel continued on the other side of it, but there were also numerous doors on the side. Each closed. Each equally dark and grim.

Isamu took them to one of those doors, which he then opened with the keys he pulled out from under his kimono.

On the other side awaited them a round chamber, very similar to the grand one they were in currently, but much smaller. There was an identical bowl in the middle of it, providing light due to the flames dancing within. The walls were adorned with racks full of blades.

The blacksmith entered, waving at them to follow, which they did, and then he closed the door behind them. This finally put a stop to the deafening sound coming from the depths of the mountain.

"All of those swords came from under my hand," he informed. "But not all of them are Jujins," he explained, approaching a certain rack, which was much different from the others. It was made out of gold, and the number of swords within was much smaller than on the others.

He traced his hand on the handles of many of them. They all varied in length, some even in shape, but he ended up stopping on one that looked quite regular. "Yes," the word left his lips, as they curved into a smile. "This is the one. I can feel it," he whispered, grabbing the weapon.

He turned to face them, holding it in his hands. The saya was completely black, dull, as if it refused to reflect anything, and was absolute darkness. The hilt was very similar in this manner, except the kashira-gane, which was made out of gold. The tsuba was also peculiar. It resembled a dragon, tangled around the weapon. It also had traces of gold on its black body.

"This is your sword," Isamu presented the blade to Ren.

"D-does it have a name?"

The question confused the blacksmith, and his gaze shifted to Satoru.

"He was hurt and lost his memories, so he does sometimes ask foolish questions," the old man explained. "Jujins don’t have a name. Makens do. It’s given by the ghost or a spirit that lingers within."

"Oh… Right," Ren awkwardly chuckled. "How could I forget."

This earned him an eye roll from Satoru, but he ignored it, taking the weapon from Isamu. It also made him realize a small detail, which he failed to notice before. His old weapon was gone. Only the saya remained behind his obi.

Undisturbed by that, he pushed the new sword behind the belt, right next to the empty sheath.

"Now get out," Isamu growled at them, pushing Ren toward the door. His demeanor changed drastically, from quite composed, with a hint of confusion caused by the strange question, straight into anger.

Saturu swiftly moved forward, grabbing his adopted son’s arm and pulling him out of the chamber. They closed the door behind them, immediately getting deafened by the clang, but the old man was not disturbed by it and continued pulling Ren away until they came out of the mountain. The guards immediately blocked the path inside, right behind them.

"Let’s go home," Satoru raised his voice slightly, so it could be heard despite the noise.

The whole situation made Ren slightly confused, but he didn't complain since he got what he wanted.