"Hmm… okay, this place and my mission aren't a coincidence," he muttered, watching Kaori and her friend in the street.
Gorou's mission was simple, yet delicate.
He had to capture and eliminate a trio of serial rapists who often streamed their acts on the dark net.
'I'd already noticed my targets looked familiar, but…' he thought, cutting off his reflection after nearly being spotted by Kaori's friend (Satsuki).
(Image)
Gorou's targets were "protagonists" from the same manga as Kaori Miyama.
They formed a trio of rapists who preyed on women deemed beautiful and easy to approach. Once they closed the distance with their victims, they sexually assaulted them and blackmailed them into silence.
In short, a pack of NTR scum.
'If Rasputin brought me to this region, it was to make this mission easier,' he thought, leaving his hiding spot and heading toward the inn.
It was now the next morning.
Gorou had stayed at a different motel from Rasputin's and had already conducted a small investigation into his targets.
That was also how he'd stumbled upon Kaori and her friend in the streets of the rural village.
As for Miki? Gorou had lied to her.
The woman of the Hyoudou household thought he'd stayed late at work to finish an urgent file and was running behind.
An odd move to some, but it wasn't uncommon in the Japanese professional world to stay late at the office.
There were even cases of suicide linked to overwork.
It was also one of the many reasons contributing to the country's declining birth rate.
Thus, Gorou had been able to ease his wife's worries and carry out his investigation in peace.
He had a solid excuse.
"Yeah, looks like we've got more women worth knocking up…" muttered a gray-haired man after Kaori and Satsuki had walked away.
(Image)
Gorou kept a proper distance from his target and analyzed his build and overall strength.
A skill he'd picked up from Kai from the start.
'Indeed, a trash protagonist is still a protagonist,' he concluded mentally, observing the depraved, lustful man.
The man's physique was impressive, by human standards.
The martial artist could easily rank him at athlete level, based on his analysis.
Still, he wasn't a threat.
"If Issei isn't a coward right now, he could probably beat him without too much trouble," he told himself, before continuing the investigation.
Issei Hyoudou wasn't ordinary at the start of the High School DxD light novel plot.
He'd even temporarily escaped an experienced fallen angel after sensing his ill intent toward him.
The young man didn't understand the concept of "killing intent," but he judged the other party as dangerous.
If Donaseeker hadn't had flight capability, Gorou figured Issei could've escaped with enough luck.
"Hmm, he's stopped following Kaori-san," he said under his breath.
The NTR protagonist had stopped tailing his targets after they entered an inn famous for its hot springs in the region.
Did Gorou attack him afterward? No.
Why the hell would he attack now? He had accomplices in his videos, and they were absent.
Gorou didn't want to waste time hunting down individuals with more experience in illegality than him.
"Rasputin gave me a week, but I want to wrap this up in 24 hours," he told himself, leaving the alley.
…
For the rest of the day, Gorou took a look at the local specialties.
The middle-aged man didn't have much time to relax, so he made the most of it.
"Haha, Gorou-san is funny," declared an elderly woman in traditional attire.
She ran a small stall offering various local foods and tea.
"Not at all, Nanako-san, but aside from that little joke… Do you know where I can find a skilled blacksmith?" he asked in a serious tone.
Gorou had already looked for traditional blacksmiths but hadn't found any in Kuoh City.
The small town once had a metallurgy factory, but it was currently abandoned and in ruins.
The old lady took a thoughtful pause before a look of realization crossed her aged face.
"Go toward the hill; you'll find an old farmer named Tengen Kanemoto. If you say you come from me, you might get a discount," she said in a calm voice.
Gorou finished his tea and thanked the old woman who had kept him company during his meal.
He didn't delay in heading to the farmer's location, who was supposedly a "part-time" blacksmith.
A funny situation, but logical.
Normally, people practicing old forging techniques weren't common.
This was due to the capitalist system, as these artisans were slowly replaced by machines and modern metallurgy methods.
Those were faster and more easily mass-produced, the opposite of traditional artisan products.
The poor folks were too efficient for their own good, since their goods were too durable.
Maintenance didn't require very regular visits, leading to a slow trickle of loyal customers toward them.
Result? They had satisfied customers with the quality, but unable to return to buy the same product regularly.
Worse, they rarely maintained their product because of its high quality.
This aspect stemmed from meticulous manual work, which factories abandoned in favor of standardizing their products.
An act that weakened their quality.
All this to say that the old blacksmith would probably be the last to practice her art and forging method in her family.
The younger generations weren't interested in perpetuating the tradition, but in money.
'A sad observation, and that's also why I didn't order my weapons online,' he thought, before arriving at a workshop surrounded by a field.
"Hello, are you Tengen-san?" he asked, watching the elderly woman hammer steel.
Tengen Kanemoto.
(Image)
The woman was old, but she had an imposing stature and a striking appearance despite her age and white hair.
She stopped her actions and looked at Gorou without hiding the suspicion in her ice-blue eyes.
"I was directed here by Nanako-san," he said in a polite tone.
At the mention of the old woman, the stern face showed a touch of softness.
Something anyone would have thought impossible because of the woman's distant aura.
"You came to buy my harvest? Sorry, but it hasn't been good this year," she declared in a firm, neutral voice.
"Haha, no, Tengen-san," he said after chuckling a bit at the older woman's assumption.
"I'm here to order a product, which I assume requires an experienced hand with steel," he explained, before pulling out his phone to show his notes.
Tengen was first a bit annoyed by Gorou's laugh, but the middle-aged man's descriptions and notes piqued her curiosity.
"Tell me, are you some kind of ninja?" At the old woman's question, Gorou instinctively wanted to deny it immediately.
That was a mistake, as it aroused Tengen's suspicion, who immediately tested her assumptions.
She flung an unfinished blade from her workshop toward Gorou's face, who jumped backward.
The vital energy within him ignited, as his instinct warned him of the old woman's abnormal nature.
"No, you're not a shinobi or a true martial arts master. I'd say you're just learning to breathe and walk properly," she said in a half-monologue.
"Me? Not a true martial arts master?" Gorou felt a bit offended by the old blacksmith's words, but he quickly remembered two important things.
First, he was in a fictional world. Second, Tengen was an old woman living in isolation without difficulty.
This all smelled like the cliché of the hidden master.
"No, she's not aware of the supernatural, but…" he analyzed, noting Tengen's lack of interest as he moved at inhuman speed thanks to chi.
She was strong, but unaware of the supernatural world.
That was the conclusion Kai's experience sent to his mind while observing the old woman's gestures.
If Gorou tried to imitate a grand master like Kai, then Kotetsu was a former master who had already passed his prime.
"Sorry for attacking you. I thought you were part of an annoying gang I was trying to avoid," she said nonchalantly before sitting down.
"It must also be said, in my defense, that it's not common to see shurikens, chain-attached blades, and flexible armor in an order," she continued, shrugging.
Gorou was at a loss for words after listening to the seated old woman, who stared at him with her blue eyes.
'Indeed, I was a bit careless,' he thought, heading back inside the workshop.
"So? When can you finish the order? Can you even do it?"
Faced with Gorou's questions, the elderly woman thought for a moment and shook her head.
"I can do it, but ordinary steel won't suit your strength," she said before pointing to the footprints Gorou had left during his backward jump.
The concrete floor had been dented due to the inhuman force he'd applied in his leap.
Gorou had revealed too much.
'So she is indeed aware of the supernatural, but judges it harmless, just as she finds her pursuers annoying,' he thought after better gauging the woman named Tengen Kanemoto.
Author's note: now you know why the old woman lives in isolation.
She's a hermit who also practices senjutsu.
Is she powerful? No. The ultimate level doesn't grow on trees lol, but she's stronger than the current Gorou.
PS: I caught the flu (and these two chapters are stock stuff I'd forgotten to edit).