Legion and the Eight Sins Inside Masumi’s Blades

Legion and the Eight Sins Inside Masumi’s Blades A sword that argues with its owner is already a problem. Masumi's swords have a worse one. The thing inside them keeps recommending that she kill people, and every time she does, she can feel it trying to move into her. Spoilers for Masumi: Blades of Sin #1–4. That's Legion. In Masumi: Blades of Sin, he's both the power she needs and a will she has to keep contained. Being trapped hasn't made him obedient in any comfortable sense. He can warn her about an enemy, recognize dangerous magic, or tell her something useful while still wanting an outcome she would never choose for herself. There are eight sins here, not seven. The comic names Sloth, Gluttony, Lust, Greed, Pride, Envy, Wrath, and Despondency. Masumi explains that her ancestor divided Legion, releasing seven parts while the last remained in the blades. She eventually brought them back together there. What she's carrying is the reunited problem, not an ordinary pair of swords with a little extra power added. The distinction matters when she faces possessed people. Early in the series, she refuses to kill humans who might be saved. She commands Legion, and the demons are forced out of their hosts. His first response isn't some reassuring promise to help. He dismisses the enemies as weaker and doesn't want to assist. Then the warehouse fight puts that arrangement under pressure. Shinobu binds demons to five followers, and Legion tells Masumi their spirits are entwined with the human souls. According to him, she cannot exorcise those demons while the humans remain alive. She doesn't just accept that without question. She asks whether he's telling the truth or misleading her. He says he could be tempted to lie, but that this time he's being truthful. It's a nasty position for a demon hunter: the source explaining why people must die is also the voice that already wanted her to kill them. Masumi kills the possessed attackers, but her narration makes clear she doesn't enjoy it. She knows what grief costs. And with each death, she feels Legion trying to break out of the blades and into her. The danger isn't finished when she wins the fight. Winning creates another moment when she has to hold him back. He's useful enough that ignoring him isn't a simple solution. He's also dangerous enough that usefulness can't become trust. When he recognizes the warehouse artifacts, he warns her that they contain demons more powerful than she is. When she goes in, he needles her about planning. Afterward, he has advice about scattering the broken remains. He stays involved in her decisions even while confined. Shinobu sees something to acquire instead. By the end of the second issue, he wants to take the blades and join with Legion. He describes the combined strength of the eight sins as a route to becoming unstoppable. That ambition ends badly for Shinobu. During the final fight, an explosion throws Masumi into him and her blade goes through his chest. Legion calls it “the innocent blood of a guilty man.” Her blade turns red. When Ryujin attacks with the other, blue blade and she blocks him, the swords shatter. Legion is suddenly standing in the room, free. He thanks Masumi and tells her he's looking forward to walking among humans again. After all the effort she put into keeping him contained, he's able to leave her alive and make that feel like a threat. The last turn I found particularly nasty comes with Ryujin. He's preparing to kill himself over his master's death when Legion visits. Ryujin wants nothing more to do with demons. Legion tells him the problem was following a human who thought he could control them, then puts a hand to his chest and begins with Pride. That gives the earlier conversations a different weight for me. Masumi spent so much time answering this voice, deciding when to listen and when to fight it. Now it has its own body again and somebody else within reach. I'd be very interested to see how much of the damage she can undo after this, because escaping the swords clearly hasn't satisfied him.