Don't use Type-Moon references in Oregairu!

As he strode forward, Edmund lowered his voice and said something to him:

Edmund said, "My Master, please don't misunderstand, don't grieve, and don't blame yourself. It's not that you couldn't stop Senko Muramasa because you had to face Hakuhime, but that Senko Muramasa's obsession was unstoppable."

Fujimaru Ritsuka paused almost imperceptibly for a moment, but then strode over to Muramasa's side.

Is Edmund correct?

It sounded reasonable, but Fujimaru Ritsuka also understood that she was unable to sincerely dissuade Senji Muramasa from what he was about to do because she had to face Shirahime.

Even if you know you can't do it, you still can't do it.

Therefore, Fujimaru Ritsuka would not let go of his little grudge because of what the count said. Instead, he would choose to carry this feeling on his shoulders and move forward with the weight of others on his shoulders.

I am too weak, I do not have enough power to refuse Muramasa and allow him to stay in this magnificent world a little longer.

That's what Fujimaru Ritsuka was thinking at that moment.

Edmond Dantès shook his head slightly. He was well aware of Fujimaru Ritsuka's thoughts and had long anticipated his possible reaction, but he still wanted to give it a try; after all, he could plant a seed.

The rest is up to you, Muramasa.

Senjimura seemed oblivious to the gazes of the two men. He had already entered a state of focus, placing all the materials in his hands on the table one by one: other extraordinary materials suitable for forging auxiliary materials, horned crown crystals, and artificial spirit bases.

"The time for forging has come; this is the moment for the divine sword to appear in the world."

207. Forging a Blade with One's Own Body

"Before we start forging, let's have a drink." Fujimaru Ritsuka forced a smile and took out a small, palm-sized gift that she had been carrying in her bosom.

It was a precious brew symbolizing harvest and submission, used to pay homage to the gods. The white bottle was adorned with golden decorations.

"【Kiki Divine Sake】, a gift I received from an old friend." Fujimaru Ritsuka recalled Shuten-dōji's last words, "The gods who once enjoyed the divine sake have long since departed this land. Promises and vows are always troublesome, so let's drink before saying goodbye."

He uncorked the golden lid, took a sip, and handed it to Edmund, who followed Fujimaru Ritsuka's example, took a sip, and then passed it to Senko Muramasa.

"This is... Shuten-dōji's work..." Senji Muramasa poured the golden sake into his mouth, and the aroma, as if containing the essence of mountains and rivers, spread from his stomach into his whole body.

The longing, the agreed-upon farewell, and the conflicting feelings of reluctance and nonchalance all dissolved in this wine.

He shook the ornate bottle, feeling that it was still half full, and suddenly laughed.

Shuten-dōji? It's more accurate to say he's closer to the son of Ibuki Daimyojin.

This is fate; everything begins to converge at this moment, and it is all accomplished because of Fujimaru Ritsuka.

Senjimura was in a strange state; his spirit was cold, his body was burning hot, and everything seemed to be driving him to carry out his mission.

Senji Muramasa put the Qiqi Divine Wine aside, and in his slightly tipsy state, he spoke: "Fujimaru, actually I've always been very sorry."

"Ah? What's there to apologize for, Master Muramasa? You are the most responsible teacher I have ever met."

The boy, Fujimaru, was caught off guard.

"Ah, because I can't give you the best. You know, the power you possess now is that of me, the Saber class. Actually, I've been holding back a secret."

Senji Muramasa took a deep breath, gripped the hammer, and the almost non-existent weak spiritual origin reaction that Fujimaru Ritsuka sensed expanded infinitely.

Was it a final burst of energy before death? Fujimaru Ritsuka seemed to see a faint flame encountering oil, burning its last remaining embers.

But the next moment, Fujimaru Ritsuka sensed something was different.

An overwhelming sense of vastness, filling the entire sword mound and even the entire dreamscape, burst forth from Senji Muramasa's body. He began to feel his vision blur and his breathing become labored. This feeling was like facing that great red dragon once again, or even more so.

When facing the Great Red Dragon, he had a state similar to Dragon Defense protecting him, but at this moment, he truly felt the pressure from those higher beings.

Hold on! No, don't back down here. I'm here to witness my master's final forging.

She didn't know how much time had passed, perhaps only a few breaths, but Fujimaru Ritsuka struggled to come back to her senses from that long period of sensory blankness and regained focus.

At that moment, Senjimura, radiating an imposing aura, gazed at him and slowly nodded: "I've remembered. Remember this feeling. This is the power of the gods."

"Although we are all just wandering souls in this world, we unexpectedly possess a variety of possibilities. You can ponder the specific secrets yourself. I just want to tell you—I am not Saber." A terrifying aura began to emanate from Senji Muramasa.

The dim darkness spread out like flowing water, lamenting its misfortune and foreshadowing its end.

An endless ocean illusion engulfed the entire wasteland; the earth trembled, storms howled, and a violent, frenzied fighting spirit swept over everyone.

Fujimaru Ritsuka gritted his teeth and stood rooted to the spot. He could still see that even in the almost completely dark depths of the sea, flames were still burning tenaciously and stubbornly.

He finally understood what Senji Muramasa meant—the strange being known as the Alien God had once recruited three of its most prized subordinates. Senji Muramasa, as a mercenary, had served under it.

The alien god then generously transformed Senji Muramasa's Spirit Origin Class into AE and bestowed upon him the power of several gods.

One god is Hodr, the god of blindness and darkness, who initiated Ragnarok.

One of the gods is Susanoo-no-Mikoto, the berserk war god who slew the great serpent and the god of battle and the sea.

"clang!"

The violent clanging of the hammer resounded, shaking the darkness and the sea, while the crimson lotus fire began to ignite from the abyss, illuminating everything and revealing the face of the forger.

Senjimura was wielding a massive iron hammer, striking the hard horned crystal fiercely. At the same time, he placed all the materials and artificial spirit cores into the furnace and began to smelt them.

The flames within the furnace encountered countless extraordinary materials and began to burn wildly, serving as the only light at this moment.

Hammer after hammer, sparks flying, the horns and crown of the dragon, symbolizing the great red dragon, were mercilessly deformed and then shattered under the hammer.

At that moment, Fujimaru Ritsuka heard the furious roar of the great red dragon. Something seemed to be trying to fly out of the crystal, but it was completely shattered by the iron hammer.

"So, you see... fate." Senji Muramasa stared intently at the object on the anvil, then swiftly took the bottle of kiki-sake brewed by Shuten-dōji, who had revealed a glimpse of Ibuki Daimyo, and generously poured it onto the embryo on the anvil.

And so, the enormous dragon-serpent manifested itself. With eight heads and eight tails, it appeared like a cloud hanging from the sky on this wasteland, its lantern-sized serpentine eyes staring at the swordsmith before it.

Even Fujimaru Ritsuka, who was watching from the sidelines, felt a strong sense of unease from the corner of her eye, but Senko Muramasa seemed oblivious to it.

He casually uttered unrelated words: "The Kusanagi Sword, the Tachi of the Heavenly Clouds, the Kusanagi Sword, the Tachi of the Mitsukari... there are so many names praising that divine sword. In a sense, it can be said to be the initial divine sword that opened up the rule of the gods of Takamagahara. But, although I admire it so much, I still presumptuously had a fantasy."

"I dream of one day being able to forge a sword, a Muramasa Demon Sword that can rival it."

"The Primordial Divine Sword, not for the creation of the world, but for generating countless causes and effects."

"It is a sword that severs all ties, cuts off all past karma, and understands the ultimate end of all causes and effects!"

"Let me reenact the myth in the way of paying homage to the gods, but I get the exact opposite result!"

"O dragon of calamity awakened by the karma of Ibuki, be slain once again!"

Ignoring the dragon of disaster in the standoff, Senji Muramasa plunged his bare hands into the still-burning furnace.

Fujimaru Ritsuka's pupils contracted. He clearly saw that the various materials, which had been continuously forged and purified by the Crimson Lotus Fire, were being altered under the will of Senji Muramasa.

Rare materials from various fantasy species were attached to a man-made spirit core, which was kneaded together. The universally adaptable blank spirit core was forged into a fantasy weapon in a special way, beginning to take shape as a crude blade.

Even Senji Muramasa, who once wielded flames with unparalleled skill, was not spared in this process. Both the scorching hot blade and the raging crimson flames mercilessly burned his arms.

But Senji Muramasa seemed to have lost all feeling; only his tightly furrowed brows and the large beads of sweat dripping down his face told Fujimaru Ritsuka that he was enduring immense pain.

At this very moment, Senjimura was pouring all his energy into his forging. He held the sword blank in the furnace in his right hand and grabbed the sword blank that had transformed into the body of the Yamata no Orochi in his left hand. Without pausing, he clashed the two swords together in front of his chest.

The eight-headed, eight-tailed, crimson-flaming deity in the sky let out a resentful roar, its head falling one after another onto Senji Muramasa's chest, just as it had been killed by the raging god wielding a sword years ago, thus perishing.

"Not enough! If it's still not enough, I'll make up the difference!"

The blades that the two hands were striking each other with began to crack, seemingly indicating failure, but Senji Muramasa only let out a joyful shout.

He used an alternating technique to deeply cut into his own body two blades that were about to shatter.

The illusion of darkness and the ocean began to crumble.

Centered on the point where the sword embryos clashed and pierced Senji Muramasa's body, all the illusions twisted into a huge vortex, constantly being compressed into that one point.

It's not just an illusion.

The broken swords scattered across the wasteland all emitted a joyful clang, shattering into countless fragments of light that flew into Senji Muramasa's hands like weary birds returning to their nests. Meanwhile, flames in the wasteland began to surge, transforming into eight fiery breaths that swept past Fujimaru Ritsuka, swirling and tempering the great thing about to be born.

Then, even the wasteland shattered into pieces, beginning to become provisions for unborn embryos.

Fujimaru Ritsuka stood still, unable to bear turning her head to look at Edmund standing side by side.

At this moment, he also began to transform into countless specks of light, drifting towards Senji Muramasa, his figure becoming increasingly illusory.

Fujimaru Ritsuka understood at that moment.

The artificial spirit base and other materials were only half of what Muramasa Tomokari had.

The crown crystal is the other half.

Using the essence of dragons and snakes crystallized from the horned crown, the form was altered and transformed. In addition, the divine power of the sake, given by the deeply connected Shuten-dōji and having a close relationship with Ibuki Daimyojin, was added, and the shadow of Yamata no Orochi was completely summoned in this secret ritual.

Meanwhile, Senji Muramasa, who possessed the divine nature of Susanoo, completely replicated the story of slaying the dragon and serpent, using the sword embryo made from spiritual materials to slay the Yamata no Orochi.

—But if you do that, you might only get a replica of the Ame-no-Murakumo sword, at best a decent high-performance replica.

This is not what Senji Muramasa is looking for.

He seeks the ultimate demon sword that can sever past karma and end karmic ties.

Therefore, by using Hoddle's act of god-slaying that brought about the end, he once again slew a god—that is, himself.

The simultaneous annihilation of Yamata no Orochi and Susanoo subtly aligns with the ending of Ragnarok.

That was the complete annihilation of all Norse pantheons, the death of the old world, and the birth of the new world.

That is the complete annihilation of past causes and conditions.

Ultimately, through two consecutive secret rituals, he completely forged his own unique Muramasa, a blade of destruction capable of severing all karmic ties and past lives.

But this also means an unimaginably huge drain on resources and the complete destruction of the inherent barrier. Even Edmond Dantès, who resides within this dream, is affected.

"You guys... always like to show off. I was actually hoping to chat some more. But all the gossip we were supposed to share is gone."

Edmund only had time to offer an apologetic smile.

Everything was drawn into the original location of Senko Village, and all the spiritual energy was merged into it. In the end, the two, who were both teachers and friends, parted ways without even saying goodbye.

The once desolate wasteland has been completely destroyed, leaving only a blank dreamscape and a slender demon sword left behind.

Fujimaru Ritsuka exhaled and stepped forward to grasp the unfinished end of the sword, which didn't even have a hilt.

The still-warm ends were like the heat of two heartless adults' hands.

He silently pulled it out, and then he saw it.

The man who silently hammered iron blocks before the furnace, diligently forging swords, all in search of a way to eradicate injustice from the world.

The man who struggled to escape from hell on earth, calmly searching for his enemies, all to repay past favors and settle scores with his hatred.