A Sunny, Cheerful Arbiter, but a Wandering Honmaru

[Completed works: “The Master Is a Calico Cat” and “Does Playing Tennis with Superpowers Count as Cheating?”] What if the lord left behind not only his belongings, but also a child? The belongings and the child stared at each other. The plan to line up and jump into the sword-repair pool was put on hold, and the Honmaru child-rearing plan began. How many steps does it take for nonhumans to raise a human? First, don't panic. Human babies won't break if they take a tumble, so please don't get so worked up that you put one in the sword-repair pool. Second, human babies go through an oral stage, but whetstones aren't for you to hand over Tamahagane!! But why, despite all their hard work, did it still seem like… They read books to learn how to raise a child scientifically (Yagen's group), arranged traditional private-school tutoring with the whole family (the family sword group), taught tea appreciation, the art of conversation, and ruthless lessons (the Heian-kyo group), trained him in sword styles and techniques from every school (fighting over who got to teach him), horse manure xxx (crossed out), surprise pranks (crossed out), how to become a proper priest (crossed out)… Early days: the Honmaru's little devil arrives [Help thread: What do we do when the child wrecks the house and breaks the swords? How can we get him to study properly while keeping him happy? P.S. On day one he bit a sword in half, on day two he drove the other half to the brink of a breakdown, and on day three he nearly cosplayed as Tarzan…] Reply: Good grief, is your whole Honmaru made up of ninja swords who've raised ten beagles each? How are you all so awful? Poster: I didn't ask you to raise him. Who said you could judge us? Initial cultivation into a naturally spacey child Shizushi: Don't listen to those old geezers, whether they're from our clan or elsewhere. Just listen to your older cousin. Chitose: But I heard that people don't dare eat the snacks you give them, and you keep giving them more. Shizushi: … Chitose: Should I do that too? Shizushi: Get out. :) Chitose: Okay, Older Cousin! No problem, Older Cousin! Later on: a sunny, cheerful Master of the Swords tries hard to fit into the world After winning yet another championship, Chitose put his trophy in a milk tea bag and carried it home, walking along with his head down as he tapped furiously at his phone. Chitose: Help me! Help me! Chitose: My opponent suddenly shouted today and startled me, so I used one move from Yagyu Shinkage-ryu too many times! Why is everyone shouting the names of their moves these days? I'll have to take on the hellish challenge of keeping everyone happy when I get home again QAQ Red Bean Rice Cake: Yeah, I saw you on TV, idiot Chitose. You still didn't make any friends this time. Chitose: ?!! Why not?! I made a point of greeting every competitor really sincerely this time! Red Bean Rice Cake: After they talked it over, everyone thought you were trying to provoke them. Also, if you don't take your trophy out of that milk tea bag, you'll “ascend” again tonight, idiot Chitose. [Honmaru child-rearing horror story: 1. Everyone in the wandering Honmaru has shared life-or-death experiences and would risk their lives for one another. 2. There's genuine affection in the wandering Honmaru. 3. The half-yokai child, new to human society, is naive and easy to fool. 4. We promise not to start the Genji child-rearing plan. 5. Watch out for scams.] Works on sale: “The Master Is a Calico Cat” and “Does Playing Tennis with Superpowers Count as Cheating?” Round 1: [Cat. Just a cat. A calico cat. The Honmaru's emperor cat.] [*The point of view is decidedly nonhuman.] [Everyday life. Becoming a spirit isn't easy. A calico with tattooed paws works diligently to build a thriving Honmaru.] Since spirits weren't allowed to manifest in the old country after its founding, the cat came out here, hoping to make something of himself before going home. But just like the duvet scam people had warned him about, the moment the cat pressed his paw to the contract, it was snatched away. Then he found himself surrounded by sword tsukumogami. Important point: The tsukumogami here were different from the mountain lords among the spirits back home! Every single one of them really had a divine rank, meow!! (Even if they were small, unlike back home.) But the cat was a cat demon trying to become a spirit, so he was about to run home on the spot. His family had warned him: it was a duvet scam! They must be after his kidneys! Kitsunezuka: …Could you take another look at this initial sword warrior? Yamanbagiri Kunihiro has a legend about slaying yokai. He's a spirit sword! Cat: Meow!! Kunihiro: …So I'm disliked because I'm a copy, after all? (Pulls white cloak over himself.) Theme: Raising a child isn't about pouring everything you are into an empty vessel. It's about letting them grow up free to become themselves.