Fran didn't move. She looked at her reflection in the flat of his blade. A year ago, she was a slave with broken spirit and matted fur. Now, she was a Black Cat who had evolved through fire and steel.
Teacher felt a surge of protective mana ripple through his crystalline core. He wasn't just a weapon; he was her guardian, her mentor, and her only family in a world that saw her as a monster. He recalled the moment of his reincarnation—the confusion of being a sword stuck in a pedestal, waiting for someone to claim him. He had expected a legendary hero. Instead, he got a starving girl with a heart of tempered glass. It was the best bargain he’d ever made.
Inside the sword, the soul of the man once known only as a salaryman shifted. He couldn't feel the wind, but through Fran, he felt everything. He felt her resolve, her lingering hunger, and the way her pulse slowed as she polished his edge with a scrap of monster-hide.