John Newman, a man of culture

“As I understand it, this is your first time placing an order with our company, as such I would like to ensure that you’re familiar with the process,” Akihiko paused and smiled gently.

John gestured for the boy to continue. “Fine by me.”

Akihiko nodded and produced a folder which he placed on the table facing John. “Inside you will find an outline of the process as well as contact information and a link to our official website should you have any further questions. However, I will go over the process with you now. Today you may try several prototype weapons to find the kind that best suits you; knowing this and after sorting out other details such as colour, materials — I believe you have already requested arcane silver? — etcetera, we will be able to determine the price.”

“Simple enough,” John nodded glancing over the document before passing it on to Red, who seemed interested in reading it herself.

“You will have the choice of two payment plans: either pay the full price today or an upfront fee of $6,000 and the remaining figure upon completion. If the latter option is your preference, please be aware that the delivery will not be made until the remaining payment is received in full — as you can imagine, we do not like arming customers that are unwilling to pay. We accept payments made via cash, card, or in soul stones. This in mind, what is your choice?”

John didn’t have to think on it long. Circumstances meant he really only had one option. “The upfront fee of $6,000,” he said. “Payment via card.”

“Very good,” Akihiko said warmly before scribbling something down on a document. “Then, why don’t we put discussions of payment on hold, for now, and get to the fun part,” he continued enthusiastically, inviting John to stand up with a gesture of his hand. “Do you have a particular weapon in mind?”

“Not really, no,” John shrugged. “I’m more interested in seeing what’s on offer before I make a decision.”

“Not a problem,” Akihiko assured him.

The twin, Makoto, indicated for John to follow him to the weapon racks. They paused in front of a set of katanas and, after producing a cloth, Makoto took one of them from the rack. The younger twin unsheathed the weapon, revealing an elegant silver blade that radiated dimly with blue light, before holding it flat before him, using the cloth to separate the metal from his otherwise bare skin.

“As you might have guessed, this katana was forged from arcane silver,” Akihiko said. “You’re welcome to hold it — just mind that you don’t touch the blade, it will sting.”

John picked up the sword from Makoto’s hands and, after making sure his surroundings were clear, gave it a few test swings.

“Feel how it balances in your hand, where its weight lies, and how it feels to cut through air. Hmm… you have a decent grip, but it does not seem comfortable in your hands. Try a two handed grip, you’ll be able to produce a greater amount of cutting power. Yes, that’s right… but, hmm… you manage the blade easily enough with two hands,” Akihiko hummed. “You may make good use of an ōdachi…”

The talkative twin paused as his brother said something quickly in Japanese. The two conversed for a short moment before Akihiko turned back to John. “My brother wishes to know why your first instinct was to wield the blade with one hand when it is clear you can use it more dexterously with two.”

“I guess I’m just used to one-handed weapons, and I like to leave my left hand open for spell casting,” John explained.

“Ah, a spellblade? I see,” Akihiko said. “Yes. You are like Makoto-chan; he also uses spell and blade.”

“Really?” John said, looking at the younger twin with curiosity.

The boy simply nodded, gestured for the katana in John’s hands, and sheathed the blade before assuming a stance where it was held at his waist, where they were traditionally carried.

“You may not have known this, but arcane silver is useful for more than just slaying vampires and wolves,” Akihiko explained with a clear passion. “It also makes for a strong conduit for spells. Show him, Makoto-chan,” he urged his brother.

In a single, fluid movement, Makoto unsheathed the sword with a slash, leaving a trail of green light as it arched through the air in the blink of an eye. An astounding crack resounded through the room as the green arc seemed to rend the room in two, splitting the seams in the tatami-mat flooring and slicing cleanly through the paper wall, exposing an empty void behind it.

John blinked and checked his ringing ears. “Damn, that’s impressive.”

Makoto resheathed the blade before turning to John and bowing deeply. “I’m sorry to have disturbed you,” he said quietly, before turning to Red and Saccharine and doing the same.

“As you can see, my brother specialises in wind magic,” Akihiko beamed, proudly patting his brother on the back.

“Do you mind if I give it a try?” John asked, keen to put it to the test, himself.

“Not at all,” Akihiko replied warmly as Makoto passed the katana back to John. “But if you have not tried Channelling before, you may be disappointed with the result.”

“We’ll see,” John smirked as he focused on recreating the skill he’d just seen.

New Active Skill: Spell Channelling level 1
The process of charging a mana conductive object with spells. A weaker version of a spell’s effect may be imbued into the desired object, and some may even be charged to be unleashed as a projectile. MP cost equals that of the channelled spell. Current channelled spell damage: -50%.

‘Interesting, so I can cast weaker versions of my spells through an arcane silver sword. A 50% reduction is quite a lot, but that will improve as I raise the skill level,’ John thought, before trialling his new skill by charging a mana attack.

He could not boast the mastery that Makoto had displayed, but he did successfully pull off the spell. As he swung the blade in a downward strike, a blue slash cut through the air, slicing a section of the wall adjacent to the fissure the twin had left behind.

“Splendid! Well done!” Akihiko applauded. “I really didn’t expect you to get it first try. You must be a very talented mage, John.”

“Thanks for showing me that trick,” John told the twins sincerely.

“It was our pleasure,” Akihiko replied. “But what are your thoughts on that katana now?”

“I like it,” John admitted, slashing it through the air twice more.

“Then why don’t we try and find what blade length would be best for you?” the twin suggested. “Using two hands, as you are now, you could likely wield a longer blade just as effectively.”

Again, the younger twin intervened, speaking to his brother in Japanese.

“Makoto-chan would first like to see you wield a shorter, one-handed weapon,” Akihiko translated for John’s benefit.

John nodded in agreement. “Sounds good.”

Makato returned the katana to the rack, trading it for a much shorter blade, and handing it to John. It was much lighter in John’s hand but still felt nicely weighted when he gave it a few test swings.

“Yes, you have good form with one hand,” the talkative twin noted. “Better than with two. It seems my brother was correct.”

“I definitely like this one more,” John added.

Akihiko nodded and gestured where many similarly sized blades lay on the rack. “They are called wakizashi. In an open field, the katana is superior, so they are often reserved as a secondary blade for indoor fighting. However, you can make up for the blade’s short reach with magic. Still, the blade seems a bit short for you.”

“What about that one, then?” John asked, pointing to a blade several centimetres longer than the wakizashi, but still shorter than the katana he had first tried.

“Ah, that is a special blade, a type of kō-katana that may be paired with a wakizashi like the one you’re holding now,” Akihiko explained as his twin took the sword off the rack. “Holding the wakizashi in your left and the kō-katana in your right allows a skilled practitioner to attack in multiple vectors at once. Fantastic if you wish to overwhelm an opponent or fight off several enemies at once. Of course, dual wielding also has clear downsides.”

John nodded and practiced a bit with both swords, getting a feel for what it was like to hold one in either hand. He hadn’t considered dual wielding as an option before, since he wanted to keep his left hand free for magic. But now that he had the Channelling skill, it seemed like it was a genuinely viable option. He would likely have to invest more points into Agility, but the way his stats were now, he was heading in that direction anyway, and the more he got used to the feeling of two blades, the more it appealed to him.

New Passive Skill: Dual Wielding level 1
The art of trading defence for total offence. Increases efficiency when dual wielding by 1%.

“Wow, you really do pick up skills fast,” Akihiko remarked, evidently unaware of the exact nature of John’s powers. “Is this to your liking, then?”

“It is,” John replied; “But how much extra will the second blade cost me?”

“Considering the relatively small sizes of the blades, not too much more than the katana would be alone. An arcane silver katana of the length we were looking at before sits in the region of $12,000. The blades you’re holding now would together cost $14,500, including the oils and a whetstone required for upkeep.”

That was only about 4k more than John had; he figured he could to grind the difference, even without access to the lucrative goblin dungeon. “Alright, let’s go with that then.”

Akihiko nodded and smiled widely. “Taking after Musashi himself. Excellent.”

Taking the swords from John, Makoto made note of the blade type, size, and weight, while Akihiko went over a few more details, including payment, with John after they rejoined Red and Saccha at the table.

“Your weapons will be ready for delivery by noon tomorrow,” the twin informed him after receiving the 6k. “But they will only be delivered when the full payment is made. Delivery should only take an hour, however.”

“That all seems awfully fast,” John observed, not that he minded. The sooner he got the swords, the sooner he could could start training with them.

“The success of Kami allows us to maintain several time dilated barriers,” Akihiko assured him. “I promise you that your weapons will not be rushed; it is an honour to work under Lady Oinari, and our smiths would never let her reputation be tarnished,” there was a clear note of affection in the boy’s voice as he mentioned Inari’s name.

“I don’t doubt it,” John replied, thinking fondly of the mild mannered fox goddess. As far as first impressions went, she had left an outstanding one in John’s mind, so it wasn’t hard to see why she was adored amongst her own followers.

“I’m glad,” Akihiko said genuinely, before shifting back into business mode. “Now, there is one more matter I wish to inform you of before we depart: membership. Normally, this is offered upon a customer’s third purchase from any affiliated company of the Fushimi Association for the price of $500 a year. However, Lady Oinari has expressed her desire to count you among our number. As such, we are pleased to offer you membership now and at no cost.”

John blinked in the face of the unexpected offer. “What’s involved?” he asked cautiously.

“Oh, don’t worry about obligations or commitments,” Akihiko assured him quickly. “You would be making no commitment to the Fushimi Association; rather, you will simply be counted among our loyal customers and, as such, will be entitled to a 15% discount on any future purchases or services from a child-company of the Fushimi Association.”

“Oh, well, thank you,” John said, as Akihiko offered him a small, black and silver card.

Item Added - Fushimi Association Membership Card
Owner: John Newman
Member Rank: Customer

“With that, I believe our business is concluded,” Akihiko said, bowing his head at John. “It was a pleasure meeting you, John. I hope to do business again some other time.” His brother, Makoto, followed suit.

“Yeah, it was nice meeting you too,” John replied, bowing to the twins in turn.

Akihiko then closed the barrier, and they all reappeared in the dining room. Not wanting to intrude any longer, the twins thanked John one last time, before he saw them out.

“Well, that seemed to go well,” Red commented as John closed the front door.

“It did,” John agreed.

“You looked like a dork with those two swords,” Saccha voiced.

“Yeah, nobody asked you,” John replied quickly, flipping the dessert fae off with his middle finger. But his attention was quickly drawn away from the fae and to the latest notification that appeared on his HUD.

Achievement Unlocked: “I have the power of Gaia and anime on my side!”
Transcend the boundaries of the mere mortal and become a man of ‘true’ culture by purchasing a katana like the weeb you are.
+500 EXP
+1 Stat Point
+A special present. Find it under your bed at home.