Chapter 515

At the same time, a few lines of translucent text quietly appeared on the blade:

[Water Chant Kitchen Knife]

[Quality: Blue]

[Effect: Every fifteen seconds, you can release an invisible slash that follows your heart.]

[Introduction: One cut, two breaks—this is the bond between me and the kitchen knife!!]

Xia Xia Xia Mujun's heart jumped sharply!

Surprise instantly surged into his heart.

He didn't expect at all that in this seemingly ordinary kitchenware repair old shop, there would be a piece of "special equipment" hidden!

Moreover, judging from the quality and description, this seems to be a piece of equipment with active attack effects, which is completely different from all the equipment obtained before.

It is really the only one that is an attack type!

He quickly suppressed the excitement in his heart and forced himself to calm down.

The top priority is to handle the repair of the "soup spoon" first.

He restrained his gaze and walked toward the reception counter on one side of the shop without changing his expression.

Behind the counter, a gentle-looking beautiful woman was organizing tickets.

Xia Xia Xia Mujun walked up, placed the small cloth bag containing the broken spoon on the counter, and spoke politely:

"Hello, excuse me."

"I heard that your shop can repair kitchenware. May I ask, can a soup spoon like this... be repaired?"

The female clerk looked up when she heard the sound.

When she saw Xia Xia Xia Mujun's appearance, she was obviously stunned, and then a friendly and slightly shy smile appeared on her face, and she subconsciously raised her hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Hello."

She glanced at the broken iron handle exposed at the mouth of the cloth bag, nodded, and her voice was soft:

"Yes... yes. We take all kinds of kitchenware repairs here."

Xia Xia Xia Mujun continued to ask:

"Then, how much would it cost to repair such an item?"

The female clerk Ando Masako smiled apologetically and explained softly:

"This... the specific repair plan and cost need to be determined after the master in charge of repairs sees the actual object."

"I will invite my father to come and take a look for you. Please wait a moment."

Xia Xia Xia Mujun nodded slightly:

"Okay, thank you for your trouble."

Ando Masako turned and walked toward the room at the back of the shop with a curtain hanging "Workshop Restricted Area, No Entry."

Not long after, the curtain was lifted by a hand covered with calluses and subtle wounds.

An old man in his fifties with half-black and half-white hair, a thin figure, but eyes that were unusually bright and spirited, walked out.

He was wearing a dark blue work clothes, his sleeves rolled up, and he carried the smell of rust.

Ando Masako introduced:

"This is Master Ando Toshio, and also my father. This shop has been passed down to him, and it is already the third generation."

Ando Toshio's gaze was as sharp as a hawk, falling directly on Xia Xia Xia Mujun, and then sweeping toward the cloth bag on the counter.

He had no pleasantries and asked directly in a voice with a heavy Kanto accent:

"Are you the one who wants to repair the spoon?"

"Bring it here and let me see."

The tone was direct, even a bit stiff.

Xia Xia Xia Mujun took out the two broken spoon pieces and handed them over.

Ando Toshio took the broken spoon, his withered but steady fingers finely rubbing the texture and metal edging at the break.

His brows gradually furrowed, and his eyes became unusually focused.

For a long time, he suddenly looked up, staring at Xia Xia Xia Mujun with burning eyes, and questioned:

"This spoon... has been used for many years, right?"

"The iron handle has been polished into a patina, and there are signs of long-term wear."

"Since it's already broken, why not just buy a new one?"

"Running here to repair it is troublesome, and the cost is not much cheaper than buying a new one."

His question pointed directly to the core, carrying the persistence and scrutiny peculiar to craftsmen.

Xia Xia Xia Mujun had expected this, thought for a moment, and explained with a prepared statement:

"Your eyes are very accurate. This spoon has indeed been used for a long time, probably twenty or thirty years."

"It originally belonged to an old master who ran an Oden stall."

"He used this spoon to boil soup base and scoop up ingredients, almost accompanying him for most of his professional career."

"Later, because of an accident, the spoon broke inadvertently. The old master felt it was a pity, but felt it was destined with me, so he gave it to me."

Xia Xia Xia Mujun's tone became sincere.

"I personally... prefer to collect these old objects that carry stories and time."

"I always feel that discarding or replacing it directly is a bit of a letdown to the years and temperatures it has experienced."

"So, I wanted to see if it's possible to restore it, even if it's just to retain that feeling as much as possible."

Ando Toshio listened to his narrative, the serious expression on his face did not change, but the furrowed brows seemed to loosen slightly.

He lowered his head again, brought the broken spoon head close to his nose, closed his eyes, and sniffed deeply.

After a while, he opened his eyes, and a flash of imperceptible light flashed in his eyes.

It seemed... he really caught a trace of an extremely thin, mellow, and complex aroma belonging to the Oden broth day after day.

That is a "taste" that can only be soaked in through countless ingredients and a long time.

Ando Toshio hummed softly from his nostrils, the expression on his face still didn't change, but the tone was already different.

"Can repair."

He said concisely, carrying unquestionable certainty.

"The break is still neat, the structure can be restored, and the appearance will try to retain the original appearance."

"Repair fee, three thousand yen."

He paused and added.

"Come and pick it up tomorrow afternoon."

After speaking, he didn't say anything more, picked up the two broken spoon pieces, and turned back to the workshop, dropping the heavy door curtain.

The action was clean and neat, not even giving Xia Xia Xia Mujun a chance to ask for details.

The female clerk Ando Masako was long used to her father's style, smiled helplessly at Xia Xia Xia Mujun, and explained:

"My father is such a character, he doesn't talk much, but his craftsmanship is absolutely reliable."

"Since he promised to be able to repair it and gave a pick-up time, it will definitely be repaired, please rest assured."

"Then, according to the practice, please pay a deposit of one thousand yen first, is that okay?"

Xia Xia Xia Mujun nodded readily:

"Of course, no problem."

Three thousand yen is enough to buy several quite good new soup spoons on the market.

But for Xia Xia Xia Mujun, only the soup spoon in his hand that contains "special effects" is irreplaceable.

As long as it can be successfully repaired, or even restored to the complete state of the "Oden Immortal's soup spoon," he is willing to pay a higher price.

Of course, provided that it can really be repaired successfully...

After paying the deposit, Xia Xia Xia Mujun's mind returned to the "Water Chant Kitchen Knife" hanging high on the knife rack.

He weighed his words, pointed to the knife, and asked Ando Masako casually:

"Ando-san, may I ask... is that kitchen knife displayed above not for sale? Or..."

Ando Masako looked in the direction he pointed, and a look of surprise and shyness appeared on her face.

"Oh, Xia Xia Xia Mujun, you can just call me sister, you are too polite."

She covered her mouth and chuckled, obviously enjoying the title of "sister."

Immediately, she explained:

"That knife... it's not entirely 'not for sale'."