Kobe Hikaru was a dead man.
In the most literal sense.
But at the same time, he was also a transmigrator.
He wasn’t from this world, and before this, he had been a perfectly ordinary, painfully unlucky person.
A transmigrator who died on the spot after crossing worlds.
Three months ago, his soul had left the bed of his modern rented apartment without the slightest warning.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself lying in a pile of corpses on the remains of a battlefield.
Around him were samurai bodies scattered in every direction, severed limbs everywhere, and blood flowing like a river.
The air was thick with the smell of blood and gunpowder.
In the distance, crows circled overhead.
When he looked down, he discovered that he was still himself.
It was unquestionably a physical transmigration, except at some point, a broken spear had been stabbed through his chest.
Then he died.
It was not a metaphor.
He truly died.
The joy of transmigration had not even had time to rise in his heart before the cold grip of death snuffed it out.
In the final moment before his consciousness sank into darkness, Hikaru had only one thought.
‘This is way too much of a scam, isn’t it?’
Then he woke up again.
He did not know how long had passed.
Maybe a few hours, maybe several days.
When he opened his eyes once more, he realized his vision had become strange.
The whites of his eyes had turned pitch-black, while his pupils were crimson.
The corpses around him had already begun to rot, but he could not smell the stench at all.
Because he no longer needed to breathe.
His chest did not rise or fall.
His heart did not beat.
The blood in his veins had congealed.
He had become a moving corpse.
More accurately, he had become an oni samurai.
A yokai.
Perhaps because he had become a yokai, even though his body was dead, the thoughts in his mind had not vanished.
And the reason he had “risen from the dead” was that a translucent panel had suddenly appeared in his mind.
A system called [Affection Points].
The explanation on it was written very clearly.
[The host may pursue affection with any non-sentient target within visible and contact range.]
[Affection may be increased through conversation, touch, feeding, maintenance, and similar methods.]
[When affection reaches certain thresholds, bond scenarios and special bonuses may be unlocked.]
[When affection reaches 100, the host may choose to fully absorb the target’s abilities into himself.
Only the basic bonus and dialogue function will remain.]
Hikaru stared at that panel for a long time.
An affection conquest system?
Wasn’t this the kind of golden finger commonly seen in harem stories?
Win over beautiful girls, collect affection points, and walk straight to the peak of life?
He had just been about to cheer when he noticed one important phrase.
Non-sentient?
Is it non-living targets.
What counted as non-sentient?
Rocks?
Trees?
Houses?
Could those even be conquered?
He tried to begin a “conquest” on a stone beside him.
[Clump of Muddy Gravel: Cannot be conquered.
Quality too low.
Conditions not met.]
No good.
He tried again with a broken spear nearby.
[Broken Spear: Cannot be conquered.
Damage too severe.
Conditions not met.]
Still no good.
His gaze swept across the battlefield before finally landing on the tachi at the waist of a samurai corpse not far away.
It was a black tachi that had been preserved relatively well.
He crawled over and removed the blade from the corpse.
[Eligible conquest target detected.]
[Samurai Sword (Mass-Produced Model)]
[Quality: Low]
[Current Affection: 0 (Stranger)]
[Unlock Condition: Feed it with blood.]
It seemed to have worked.
Looking at the prompt on the panel, Hikaru finally understood how the system functioned.
It was indeed an affection system, but the targets were not people, not yokai, and not any living creature.
Only “objects” such as blades, swords, bows, armor, barriers, divine artifacts, and other intact things with a certain foundation fell within its conquest range.
At first glance, it seemed rather useless.
But after thinking it over carefully, it was not completely unusable.
After all, back then, he did not know what kind of world this was.
However, since he had turned into something as obviously bizarre as an “oni samurai,” this world was most likely one with supernatural forces.
There had to be other yokai similar to him.
In that case, there should also be items with unbelievable abilities, right?
For example, legendary blades, divine artifacts, magical treasures, and the like.
If he could max out the affection points of those things…
Then wouldn’t he be able to claim all of those legendary weapons’ abilities for himself?
However, he soon discovered another problem.
Different objects seemed to require different methods to raise affection.
For example, the samurai sword in his hand required him to “feed it with blood.”
In other words, he had to nourish the blade with blood.
And judging by the system’s prompts, some objects might require “conversation” to raise affection.
Some needed “maintenance.”
Some needed “companionship.”
Some might even need…
A birthday celebration?
Hikaru was not sure, but he vaguely felt that conquering legendary divine artifacts definitely would not be as simple as feeding a sword.
But those were matters for the future.
At that time, he had been penniless and empty-handed.
The only thing he needed to consider was surviving and finding a way out.
That was all.
…
The night wind in the forest gradually calmed.
Hikaru walked out of the woods, carrying the Muramasa that had already been “fed.”
Naturally, this blade was not the original samurai sword.
That had only been an ordinary weapon, and after three months since his transmigration, it had long since been used up.
Once its affection had been maxed out, its ability had become his own, and its final fate was to break.
Not because of the absorption itself, since only its ability had been transferred to him, but simply because its ordinary materials could not withstand repeated battles.
Although Hikaru still kept its fragments, it was obvious that the sword could no longer be used.
The blade he carried now was a trophy he had obtained afterward.
And at this moment, after finishing the feeding of this mass-produced Muramasa that also required him to “feed it with blood,” he did not linger where he was.
Those five blue-skinned oni were only outer members of some yokai gang.
The true core members were definitely still holed up in the mountain.
With his current strength, poking that hornet’s nest would not be wise.
After passing through a bamboo grove, Hikaru arrived at a low hill.
The view here was wide open.
He could see the rolling mountains in the distance and the ruined village at the foot of the mountain.
He sat down on a piece of bluestone and laid Muramasa across his knees.
Moonlight spilled down, and the blade gleamed with a cold, dim light.
“You ate five blue-skinned oni today.
You should be in a better mood now, right?”
Hikaru spoke to the blade in a tone like he was coaxing a picky child.
“I know you want to eat an exorcist more, but those things are too much trouble.
If we get killed instead, that won’t be funny.
Let’s level up first and talk about it once we’re strong enough.”
[Demon Blade Muramasa: Mood: “Calm.” Current Affection: 15.]
The prompt on the panel did not change.
It seemed this blade was not particularly convinced by his explanation.
Hikaru sighed and pulled a small piece of oiled cloth from the pouch at his waist.
It was a maintenance tool he had picked up from a battlefield.
Although it was a little crude, it was barely usable.
He dipped the cloth in a small amount of oil and began carefully wiping the blade.
“See?
I treat you so well.
You even get a spa treatment after dinner.
What other sword gets this kind of service?”
[Demon Blade Muramasa: Feels “comfortable” from maintenance.]
[Affection +1.]
[Current Affection: 16.]
The corner of Hikaru’s mouth rose slightly.
It was only one point, but even a mosquito leg was still meat.
He continued wiping the blade while murmuring to it.
This was also the “communication” mentioned by the affection system.
Although weapons could not speak, the system could interpret their “mood.”
As long as he kept interacting with them, their affection would slowly rise.
“Once your affection reaches 30, we’ll unlock your first special ability.
Then we can fight stronger yokai and drink better blood.
A positive cycle, understand?”
As Hikaru spoke, his hand suddenly stopped.
He raised his head, and his crimson pupils narrowed slightly.
On the distant horizon, a vast mass of demonic energy was rapidly approaching.
That demonic energy was not strong.
Taken individually, each presence was not even comparable to the leading blue-skinned oni from earlier.
The problem was—
There were too many.
Densely packed, blotting out the sky.
Like a swarm of locusts passing through, they almost dyed the entire night sky a murky gray-green.
And within that mass of demonic energy, there was also a completely different aura mixed in.
Bright, scorching, and carrying a certain sacred quality.
That was human spiritual power.
Bzzzz—
The Muramasa in Hikaru’s hand suddenly trembled, and the temper line along the blade glowed with a faint purple light.
[Demon Blade Muramasa: Detected a large number of prey.
Mood changed to “Excited.”]
[It has conveyed a message to you: “I want to eat.”]
Hikaru stared at the approaching tide of demonic energy in the distance, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
“I know you want to eat, but that depends on whether we can actually beat them.”
He stood up and gripped Muramasa in his hand.
“Let’s check the situation first.”
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