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Blades of the scarlet Dusk

SheWritesSilence
28
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Synopsis
He was called The Crimson Ghost. A legendary assassin feared across the war-torn lands. But one day, he vanished. Now, years later, Kaito walks the world again — not as a killer, but as a wanderer with a vow never to take another life. Haunted by guilt. Hunted by his past. In a world that still thirsts for blood, can a man with a sword truly protect without killing? Or must the ghost rise again
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Chapter 1 - Chapter 1:The Man Who Carries The Wind

The town of Shizuoka was quiet under the pale gold of early evening. Shops closed early these days — ever since the government soldiers came and went as they pleased, dragging men into the dirt and calling it justice.

At the end of a narrow dirt path, a traveler stepped into town.

Worn sandals.

Dust-covered kimono.

A straw hat low over his face.

A sword hung at his waist — curved, like a katana, but the blade was reversed. Blunt side outward.

A weapon not meant to kill.

He paused at the edge of the well, lifting his face to drink. The breeze caught his ponytail, revealing a faint scar slashed across his left cheek — one that curved like a question mark. Like a past that wouldn't answer.

"Stranger," a voice called.

A girl stood behind a cart of broken wood, sweat on her brow and defiance in her eyes. She held a training bokken like it was a real blade.

"You're carrying a sword. Are you with the Shogunate?"

The man didn't flinch.

"No," he said softly. "I go where the wind lets me."

She eyed the blade at his waist. "That's no traveler's weapon."

"It's not a killer's either," he replied, tilting it just enough for her to see the dull edge. "I don't kill anymore."

"Anymore?" she asked, stepping closer.

He nodded.

"My name is Kaito.

That night, the village trembled.

A group of former warband rebels rode in on horseback, demanding food, money, and the girl's father — a former soldier who had refused to kneel to them.

Kaito stood outside the inn, watching the torches flicker in the night.

He didn't want to draw the blade.

He never wanted to again.

But when the girl was dragged screaming from her home, he stepped into the light.

The rebels laughed. "You again? That sword even real?"

Kaito didn't answer.

He didn't need to.

The first strike came so fast, it looked like wind had done it.

Then the second. Then the third.

None of them died — but none of them stood either.

The girl stood stunned. "How did you…"

Kaito's voice was quiet.

"A sword can protect, too."