Ichigo dragged the wolves through the city gates just before dusk.
The guards barely glanced at her, only at the bodies. After all, she'd been doing this for a while now. She handed them over to the Beast Assessment and Allocation Hall, where a broad-shouldered man in a stained apron inspected the carcasses with practiced efficiency.
"Clean kills," he said, pressing a thumb into the hide. "Minimal waste. Good work, as always, Ichigo."
She nodded and waited as he stamped her Beast Subjugation Slip, an official parchment marked with the hunt registry seal, the number of confirmed targets, and her name. There was no ceremony or praise, just procedure.
That was fine. She preferred it that way.
Before reporting in, she stopped by the bathhouse.
The water was hot enough to sting, loosening dried blood and sweat from her skin. Wolf hair floated briefly before sinking. She scrubbed until the ache in her arms dulled and the smell of iron finally faded. When she stepped out, her long red hair glistened before she was wrapped in rough cloth, she felt lighter, if only a little.
Truthfully, this was her favorite part of the day.
However, it was back to work.
The clan tavern was crowded, as always. Adventurers, martial apprentices, quest givers. Everyone chasing points, favors, or recognition. Ichigo queued patiently and submitted her slip.
The clerk checked the seal, marked the ledger, and slid her contribution tally across the counter.
1,902 points.
She stared at the number longer than she meant to.
It hadn't been easy to build. Most of it vanished the moment it came in, sent back to her family in Owari in careful portions. Coin for food and medicine. Letters describing the places she'd seen. Techniques copied painstakingly onto silk-paper.
Techniques were the worst expense.
Even the most basic ones cost more than they should. Still, she paid without hesitation. If her siblings could grow stronger, if they could protect themselves even a little better, it was worth it.
Her goal was close now.
To enter the noble martial academy, she only lacked one thing.
A recommendation from a noble student.
Her hand drifted to her sword as she stepped away from the counter.
Since the forgemaster had finished with it, the blade felt different. Not unfamiliar, never that, but sharper and more responsive. The edge itself hadn't been reforged, only honed and cleansed of years of beast blood. The handle, however, had been replaced with esoteric wood dense with latent resonance, warm against her palm.
It was still her partner.
Just far deadlier.
She swallowed. If she'd carried this blade back then, the boar would never have reached her.
Still, it had no name. Nothing fit quite right.
Wrapped around the hilt hung the gray token, plain and unadorned. Proof of her status as a non-noble martial apprentice. Neither shame nor pride. Just fact.
She ate a simple meal afterward: salted fish, grains, something green. For a brief moment, she allowed herself gratitude. Unlike her old life in Owari, things were moving. Slowly and painfully, but forward.
Still, complacency was a silent killer.
She returned to the administration office and approached the task board, scanning notices until she found what she needed.
"Noble-affiliated requests," she said to the clerk. "Anyone requiring assistance?"
The man hesitated, then nodded. "One arrived this afternoon. Noble martial apprentice. Requested capable escort and support."
Her eyes widened at the rare opportunity.
"I'll take it."
——————
She met him in the outer hall.
Honda Tadakatsu stood alone, a thick, black and silver staff resting upright at his side. No entourage. No servants. He wore a beautiful silver breastplate over his neat white robes and a dragon-shaped helmet, his posture precise, his expression serious to the point of stiffness.
He was a unit of a man, standing tall at around 6'5ft.
When he saw her, he bowed.
Deeply.
"I am Honda Tadakatsu," he said. "Martial apprentice of the noble academies, House Honda. Thank you for answering the request."
Ichigo blinked.
That wasn't what she expected.
"You're welcome?," she said carefully.
He explained his mission with exacting clarity. Reports from the north. A small fishing village in the Asakura region. Abuse by passing merchants: beatings, forced labor, disappearances. He believed Kinzoku martial artists were responsible.
"As nobles," Honda said, his deep voice firm, "it is our duty to ensure peace. Martial artists who exploit the powerless must be apprehended and returned for punishment."
Ichigo studied him as he spoke.
Besides his obviously freakish height; he was well-built, and strangely devoid of arrogance. No dismissal. No condescension. Just law, duty, and belief.
For months now, nobles she encountered either ignored her, talked down to her, or tried to force her home "for her own benefit." Duels had solved most of those problems. She'd won every one.
There seemed to be an unspoken rule about dishonoring duels. Nobles tended to leave her alone after losing once.
Seeing someone like this, so clean about it, felt strange.
Refreshing.
"…Alright," she said. "I'll help."
Honda's shoulders eased slightly. "Thank you."
——————
The road north was long enough to breathe.
They rode in a shared cart pulled by a stubborn mule that clearly didn't respect nobility. Honda sat straight-backed despite the jolting path, staff resting across his knees, hands folded neatly atop it.
For a while, neither spoke.
"How long have you been in the clan?" Honda said eventually. His tone was careful, not probing. Just curious.
"A few months," Ichigo replied. "Long enough to stop counting."
He nodded. "Your posture suggests real combat experience. Not just duels."
She shrugged. "I hunt mostly beasts."
Another nod, thoughtful.
Honda spoke about the academy next. About instructors who believed war mattered more than collateral damage. About laws and regulations he'd memorized not out of obligation, but belief. That nobles existed to restrain power, not wield it freely.
That one day, he'd change the way wars are done.
Ichigo listened. The law bored her, but the academy didn't. One day, she would go there too. His goal seemed a little too ambitious.
Somewhere along the road, an image formed without her noticing.
A noble like the heroes her mother used to whisper about by candlelight. Just, calm, strong enough that the world felt orderly around him.
She weirdly... felt safe.
——————
The cart crested a hill.
The village lay below.
Not a single person was outside. Fishing boats lay untouched. Nets rotted where they'd been dropped. The air felt heavy, wrong.
And when figures stepped from the huts, Ichigo's stomach sank.
They weren't Kinzoku.
Different markings. Red dougi bearing an oni mask crest. Another clan entirely.
Honda froze.
"…The Oni Clan," he murmured. "This is forbidden. Inter-clan occupation of protected territory is grounds for—"
"Civil war," Ichigo finished.
Even she'd been warned about crossing clan lands and doing exactly this.
Honda's jaw tightened.
"Which changes our directive," he said. "By law, extermination is permitted."
His voice was steady. Memorized. Certain.
Still, he stepped forward.
"Let's not jump to conclusions," he added. "Negotiation is required before force."
Ichigo glanced at him, surprised, but said nothing. She nodded once.
As they advanced into the village proper, figures emerged from the huts. Not peasants.
Martial artists.
They either were wearing grey robes or topless, but almost all of them wore a type of mask that covered some if not all of their face.
They watched openly, measuring. Weighing.
One man stepped forward.
He was huge... but Tadakatsu was a head taller.
His presence pressed down on the air itself. Black veins crept along his neck and arms, pulsing beneath scarred skin.
Seven of them in total.
"Ah," the man said, smiling slowly. "Kinzoku clansmen."
His gaze lingered on Tadakatsu's robes, then flicked to Ichigo, dismissive.
"How can we help you?"
"I'm Tadakatsu, a noble from House Honda. We were sent to investigate reports concerning this village," Tadakatsu said, declining his head. His tone was polite. Earnest.
The man chuckled.
"Bandits," he said easily. "A few moons back. We dealt with them. For the village's sake."
Ichigo's eyes swept the square.
No villagers.
Too clean. Too quiet.
"Where are they?" she asked.
The man's smile widened.
"Resting," he said. "They've been very cooperative every night."
Something cold crawled up Ichigo's spine.
She opened her mouth.
Tadakatsu raised a hand, subtle but firm.
"We appreciate your assistance," he said. "However, your presence here violates territorial law."
The Oni leader tilted his head, mock curiosity plain on his face.
"Oh? The law, you say?" he said. "Then let's settle it properly."
"We're all Martial Apprentices here, right?"
He spread his arms.
"A proper duel."
The others shifted, amused.
"Two of you," he continued, eyes locking on Tadakatsu, "against seven of us. Sequential combat."
A pause.
"If you win, we leave the village. We'll even submit ourselves for judgment."
"And if we lose?" Tadakatsu asked.
The man's grin sharpened.
"Then you leave. Quietly. No using your family to retaliate. No asking help from the clan either."
His gaze flicked to Ichigo.
"And the girl stays."
Silence.
Ichigo's jaw tightened.
Before she could speak—
"I accept," Tadakatsu said.
She turned sharply. "Honda—"
"This is the lawful path, Strength is Justice" he said quietly. "Trust me."
The Oni leader laughed.
"Very well," he said. "You first, noble."
They cleared a space.
Tadakatsu stepped forward, staff in hand. His aura flared, disciplined and unmistakably noble.
His silver armor set, aided by his tall figure made him look extremely imposing. His opponent was almost a whole torso smaller than himself. It was laughable. Did they sacrifice him just to know how Tadakatsu fights?
Ichigo eyed the opposing Apprentices, she wondered if she was gonna fight at all... but just incase one of them has a Martial Art that somehow whittled away at Tadakatsu, she had to be ready.
Hunts always needed preparation.
Then the duel began.
Tadakatsu inhaled then roared, making his opponent shiver as he charged straight toward him, his momentum seemingly devastating.
But it was bad.
Painfully so.
His footwork faltered as he tripped on his foot. His strikes had too long of a windup. Every opening he created, he failed to seize. His staff struck the ground more than half the time, then stopped.
His opponent went from fearing him to laughing at him.
Again.
And again.
The Oni Martial Apprentice barely tried.
After dodging a wide staff swing, he jumped and landed a solid right hook into his jaw.
THUD.
Tadakatsu hit the ground hard.
"..."
Silence.
Then laughter.
The Oni Martial Artists rolled on the ground laughing.
Ichigo stared at the useless oaf.
"…For real?" she muttered.