Genshin Impact: The Origins

Friends

"So, basically, I'm doomed. This black, stupid rock isn't like anything I've used to craft before. It's lightweight, and yet it's so hard to break. I'm not sure about the temperature I should heat it to craft a sword, or if I don't think it will bend for crafting it. But after a few hours, I managed to separate a small piece for testing."

If you don't know, when crafting anything with metal or similar material, you need to heat it so you can bend it to the shape you want. If this were some regular metal, I could do some test runs, but this is a limited edition, last stock alien rock, so I only got one shot at this. Another thing was making a sheath. It looks like this thing has the power to drain every life source that touches it. The box is holding because of the talisman, but it's draining the talisman's power, so I need to renew the talisman every day.

Agggghhhhh...... I want to throw this out of my window. But it will make another commotion. Oh, I almost forgot. I have another problem too. I have a dragon claw I need to make a weapon from as well. Basically, I'm going to make dual-wielding Isshin swords for the first time. At first, I was thinking about making a sheath from it, but the same thing happened so I gave up. However, it was perfect for crafting a sword. My father's and uncle's swords were made from Narukami's claws, so it will not be a problem.

Okay, back to the experiment. There's good news and bad news. The good news is I managed to find the perfect temperature for melting the black rock. The bad news is I need to heat it up twice as much as regular metal. It means I will be melting alongside with the rock in the furnace. This is giving me a headache.

And after all of that, I have to craft a weapon for Makoto too. The ceremony will be held next week. I will manage it.

**********

Okay, today is the 'Forging ceremony' day. I didn't sleep well this past week. I went to the Mikage furnace several times last week to check on my furnace's situation, whether it is ready or not to face the high amount of heat. I checked my equipment several times, and it looks like I'm good to go.

After a few hours of travel, we arrived at our destination. Ei and Makoto were with me alongside my parents. Ei's condition was no better than mine; there were several small injuries on her hand. It looked like she had been practicing day and night swordsmithing. The polearm design I made for her wasn't quite simple. She was holding her Narukami's claw tightly. (Yes, our grandfather gave three of his claws to us. Looks like he went on a nail care spree recently.) Makoto was holding hers. I was going to use that to create her sword. Makoto tried to cheer up our mood, but it didn't work.

Well, this is a big ceremony. All Sword Clans of Inazuma is here. I can't describe how beautifully they decorated the place. It looks like everyone was waiting for us. Ei and I went to line up with the other participants.

"How are you doing?" Ei asked me.

"Not bad, I guess," I replied.

I looked around.

"Young master and Princess," a voice came from behind me. (I still don't get why everyone calls me young master.) I looked behind me, and there were a Tengu boy and girl standing there. Alongside them, there was an Oni girl and a kitsune.

"Saiguu, Sasayuri, and Chiyo. I was looking for you guys," Ei told them.

I know the Tengu siblings; the boy's name is Tenryou, and his sister's name is Sasayuri. I don't know the others, but from Ei's reaction, I think they are Ei's friends. Ei and the other girls started to talk nonstop, while Tenryou and I stood beside them.

"I never thought you were my age too," I told Tenryou.

"I'm sorry, young master. I would have loved to talk to you during our first meeting, but you were injured, so I couldn't do that," Tenryou replied apologetically.

"It's okay. I think we can do it now, right?"

"If you wish so, young master," Tenryou replied courteously.

"This guy is too formal, but all the Tengu are like this. They are loyal to their master and their family members," I thought to myself, noting the cultural norms of the Tengu.

"Mind if I join too?" a voice came from behind me. Why in the world does every voice come from behind me? I should bring a mirror with me next time. When I looked back, there was a boy holding a folding fan. He had light blue hair and a very diligent aura and charisma around him.

"Master Kamisato Yashiro," Tenryou greeted him. "You are here too."

"Long time no see, Tenryou," he greeted back before turning to me.

"Sorry, where are my manners. I think I should introduce myself first. My name is Kamisato Yashiro, son of the Kamisato clan head. Nice to meet you, young master. We were supposed to meet you at the banquet held at your castle, but unfortunately, I was ill back then, so I couldn't participate. I apologize for that." He spoke very calmly.

"But we met after all, so don't apologize. Being ill isn't your fault," I greeted back. Both of them were vision bearers despite their age. Tenryou has a Pyro vision, and Yashiro has a Hydro vision. We started to chat about various things, like what kind of weapons we prefer.

"I'm skilled at using a bow. So, I'm going to craft my bow here," Tenryou told us.

"I'm skilled at sword arts. Our clan has our own sword art style called Kamisato Arts," Yashiro replied.

"Wow, I'd like to learn them someday," I replied to Yashiro.

"It's not as powerful as the Isshin style or Musou Style, but if the young master wishes, I'd like to help. So, I'd like to know what you're going to craft today. I think it will be a sword, right? I heard you defeated Lord Shogun in the duel."

"It's true. I saw him parrying the Musou no Hitotachi all by himself. Not only that, after parrying, he landed a counter blow to Lord Shogun's head. It was a beautiful duel to watch," Tenryou nodded in agreement.

This is bad. I need to change the topic. I look around and see a boy who is all alone by himself, standing a little far from us. He has white hair.

"Who is that, and why is he all alone?" I asked the other two.

"Oh, I did see him before. I tried to talk to him, but he totally ignored me. All I got was his name. It was Takashi," Yashiro replied.

"Only called by name, no surname? That's weird. Is there any chance he is the son of a Ronin?" I asked, but Yashiro just shrugged.

If you don't know, there is a difference between Ronin and Samurai. If someone is a Samurai, it means he serves under a master. This is not slavery but respect. If someone is a Ronin, it means he had a master before, and due to some reason, that master died. After that, that Samurai will become a Ronin-a masterless Samurai. Basically, Ronin means former Samurai, and for Ronin, they don't have surnames.

The boy looked at me and then looked away again while muttering something to himself. Whatever. The drums started to play. My father and uncle got up on the stage that was prepared for them. So, this is going to start.