No wonder 'D' said that no one would dare bully me once I mentioned her name; she truly has a notorious reputation.
Furthermore, letting someone I've only known for a week use her name so casually doesn't seem to be entirely due to trust; perhaps she simply has no reputation left to ruin—she is utterly fearless.
However, in this situation, forming a team for mutual aid will likely be difficult to achieve.
To be honest, I'm not sure if I've been played, but given the current disparity in strength, having someone to rely on might be more important.
Regardless, Jean's mind raced as she analyzed the pros and cons of the current situation. Since no one dared to speak while she stood there, she eventually stepped back and walked over to the Hooligan.
"S-sister, I never expected you to be one of the Evil God 'D's people," the Hooligan stammered, not even daring to look in her direction.
"Hmm? What's wrong with 'D'?"
"N-nothing, it's just that you're much more approachable than the rumors suggest."
Things remained awkward for a while longer, but nothing else happened as the countdown neared its end. After 3, 2, 1, a flash of white light blinded her, and then she found herself standing in an open clearing.
---
Jean carefully looked around. It appeared to be a clearing surrounded by dense forest, with no signs of human life or roads.
The group from earlier was nowhere to be seen; it seemed they had been teleported to different locations.
Still, this definitely felt like being stranded. It was just like a wilderness survival show; she could hear the sound of running water nearby. Following the water would eventually lead her out of the forest—a survival trick she'd learned from Bear Grylls.
However, the trial didn't force Jean to worry about such things for long. A crow flew over and began repeating in a human voice, "Miss Jean, please go this way. Miss Jean, please go this way."
Then, it flew off toward the depths of the forest.
Jean naturally chose to follow closely while analyzing the situation. She vaguely recalled that the Second Industrial Revolution occurred in the late 19th century, and with the mention of vampire-like creatures, she had initially been excited, thinking it might be the world of JOJO.
But after seeing these crows that spoke human language and delivered messages, Jean considered another possibility: the Taisho era, the time of Demon Slayer—a world where demons devoured humans and humans fought back.
Of course, it could also be a world she knew nothing about, but the mission system provided the answer directly:
[Mission Objectives: 1. Join the special organization fighting demons and obtain support in the form of a nichirin blade. (Reward: 100 T-Points, 1 custom nichirin blade, can be taken out of the trial.) 2. Slay demons, no limit. (Reward: Variable T-Points, calculated based on the target's strength and contribution to the kill.)]
The ■ had turned into the word for Demon, and the three ■ had become one character. Perhaps the Rome pronunciation for Demon (Oni) was three letters long, Jean reasoned, comforting herself after spending so long guessing based on the character count.
[Temporary Identity Updated: A practitioner of Wind Breathing from the Western Kingdom, who arrived in this land after receiving a plea for help from an old acquaintance of your ancestor. Your elemental power is considered equivalent to a Breathing Technique.]
The temporary identity popped up, and Jean was quite satisfied with it. First, coming from abroad allowed her to inquire about current intelligence in detail without seeming out of place. Furthermore, having arrived in response to a plea for help, she was considered a benefactor, which would correspondingly reduce the restrictions and constraints placed upon her.
And so, she followed the crow through the forest until they reached the source of a stream, which flowed out from a cave. Passing through the narrow cave, the path suddenly opened up, revealing a hidden village surrounded by wisteria flowers.
The whole scene felt like something out of "The Peach Blossom Spring," only with wisteria instead of peach blossoms.
Passing through a curtain made of hanging wisteria, she entered the village, where a woman wearing a kimono was already waiting.
"Oh my, what a beautiful guest. Might you be Lady Jean from the Western Kingdom?"
Jean nodded. "That's right, I am Jean. And you are?"
"My name is Sayo. I will be your guide as you tour this Swordsmith Village. But before that, please, follow me to the village head's residence; the leader has been waiting for you for quite some time."
And so, led by the young lady named Sayo, she walked through the village.
Along the way, people greeted her from time to time, and children would shout, "Lady Sayo!" while offering her garlands woven from various wildflowers.
"Please forgive the commotion," Sayo said to Jean apologetically.
"It's fine. It seems you are quite popular with the people here, Miss Sayo."
"I just know a little medicine and can help everyone with some simple treatments, that's all."
She didn't know if she was just being paranoid, but Jean couldn't shake the feeling that she had seen this Miss Sayo somewhere before.
They continued walking, crossing almost the entire village, until they finally arrived at a large residence located on high ground.
Sayo arranged for Jean to wait in a reception room. Fortunately, the room featured a structure similar to Chinese-style architecture rather than tatami mats, so there was no need to sit on her knees.
Before long, a tall woman with an imposing presence walked in.
She had short, silver-white hair, a massive steel prosthetic arm, and an eyepatch that made her look like a pirate. With a half-smoked cigarette dangling from her mouth, she spoke casually.
"I am the person in charge of this village, and the leader of the assassination organization 'Demon Slayer'—Najenda."
"I am Jean. I came here after receiving a plea for help." While she introduced herself with a calm facade, her heart was in turmoil.
'I never expected the so-called mid-magic world A to be "Akame ga Kill!". But Najenda, what about Night Raid? Are you not doing that anymore? And what on earth is Demon Slayer?'
"Thank you very much for coming. However, given the current circumstances, I must ask you to demonstrate your Wind Breathing."
Jean nodded. She formed a small whirlwind in her palm, which then transformed into a wind blade and flew out the window.
Seeing this, Najenda smiled happily. "That's wonderful. We are extremely welcoming of talented individuals like yourself."
"Um, I just arrived here, and I'm not quite clear on what exactly has happened to this country. Could you explain it to me?"
"Of course, of course." Najenda found a place to sit and began to explain the problems currently plaguing the Empire.
"Just two years ago, the Empire was a nation in its twilight years—crumbling under internal and external strife. The Emperor was young, treacherous officials held power, and neighboring countries took advantage of the crisis to invade."
"Years of war, combined with exorbitant taxes, had made life unbearable for the common people."
"Thus, many enlightened individuals, myself included, formed an insurgent army to resist the tyranny, intending to overthrow the Empire's rule and save the nation from its plight."
"However, just as we were preparing to divert the Empire's attention by assassinating corrupt officials to buy time for the main insurgent army, an accident occurred."
"The Regent, Kibutsuji Muzan, publicly devoured the young Emperor in the imperial court and subsequently seized control of the entire Imperial Capital."
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