"Mm, mm! You're doing great too, Shinobu. You've really grown,"
Kochou Kanae gently patted Shinobu's head, her smile as warm as the first sunlight of spring. "You're able to go on missions all by yourself now… You're such a good girl."
"Ugh… Onee-san, you always say that…"
Even with her sister's praise, Shinobu didn't quite feel happy.
Within the Demon Slayer Corps, members were ranked according to their abilities, so that everyone faced threats appropriate to their strength and needless deaths could be avoided.
Ranks went from "Mizunoto" up to "Mizunoe," and then to "Kinoe"—but above all that stood the "Hashira," the Pillars: the most powerful and respected swordsmen, the very backbone of the Corps.
Kanae was one of them—the Flower Hashira, Kochou Kanae.
As for Shinobu, though she'd joined the Demon Slayer Corps at the same time as her sister, she wasn't as tall or as strong. She couldn't decapitate demons with the same effortless swing.
Now, her sister Kanae was a Hashira, while Shinobu herself was still an ordinary Demon Slayer.
The sound of fluttering wings approached; a kasugai crow landed on Kanae's shoulder.
"Oh dear, looks like it's time for me to go. What a shame—I wanted to talk with you a little longer."
Kanae smiled and stroked the crow's feathers with easy affection. "I even had Kiyo make sakura mochi for us. Looks like we won't get to eat it together, after all. Well, I guess you'll just have to finish my share, Shinobu."
"Don't just assume things like that, onee-san! I can't eat that much. Sakura mochi's something you can have any time, right? After you finish your mission, have Kiyo make some more."
"Mm, mm! We'll eat it together next time. Let's invite Kanao, Kiyo, everyone—find a nice place, have a picnic, make it a big gathering. Wouldn't that be lively?"
Kanae covered her lips with a hand, beaming with anticipation just imagining the scene.
"Speaking of Kanao…"
She tapped her lips with her finger, then smiled at Shinobu. "While I'm gone, I'll leave Kanao in your and Kiyo's care. Make sure you get along."
"Taking care of her is no problem…"
Shinobu sighed, looking at her carefree sister. "But getting along… that's a little…"
"It'll be fine as long as you try your best."
Unlike Shinobu, who looked troubled, Kanae spoke gently. "One day, when Kanao meets someone destined for her, the lock around her heart will naturally open… Isn't that kind of romantic?"
"Onee-san, romance like that only happens in storybooks."
Shinobu frowned, countering, "Real life is much harsher than fairy tales. At least in books, there aren't any demons."
"But demons were human once, weren't they? Maybe they never wanted to eat people to begin with. They must've had ordinary human feelings once, and only turned to eating people because of the hunger in their demon blood… When I think of it like that, I can't help but feel sorry for them."
"..."
"If someday, demons didn't have to eat humans, could people and demons be friends?"
Shinobu didn't answer. This was the one thing about her sister she could never understand.
Yes, demons were human once—but so what? No matter what past they had, it didn't change the fact they ate people. How could her sister feel sympathy for such monsters? How could she believe demons and humans could ever be friends?
After all, both she and her sister… had seen their parents killed by demons with their own eyes.
After all, both she and her sister… had sworn to defeat demons, so that no one else would have to suffer as they had.
It wasn't just her—the vast majority of the Demon Slayer Corps couldn't understand Kanae's outlook either. Even Himejima Gyomei once said Kanae was "too gentle."
But even though Kanae sympathized with demons, she would never hesitate in a fight. She was gentle, not a saint; if she were, she could never have become a Hashira.
"Well then, it's time for me to go."
Kanae's eyes curved into crescent moons as she opened her arms to Shinobu. "So? Won't my adorable Shinobu give me a goodbye kiss before I leave?"
"Onee-san! You're treating me like a child again!"
"Hahaha!"
Shinobu, face flushed, raised her fist in mock outrage, but Kanae was already nimble enough to dodge away.
Shooting her sister an indignant glare, Shinobu hesitated for a moment.
"Onee-san."
"Hmm?"
"This time… can I come with you?"
Shinobu's words surprised Kanae for a moment. Meeting her sister's eyes, she understood, and shook her head.
"No, Shinobu. The Corps is very clear—Hashira can't take ordinary members on missions. Besides, this one is far too dangerous for you. Several Demon Slayers have already died to demons in that area. There's a good chance this time the opponent is one of the Twelve Kizuki. That's why they're sending a Hashira like me."
The Hashira were the Corps' strongest swordsmen, and among demons, the most fearsome were the Twelve Kizuki—the elite, meant to rival the Hashira themselves.
Normally, to become a Hashira, you had to slay fifty demons. But since demons were unpredictable, and travel could take years, that could mean spending half a lifetime just reaching that mark.
But the shortcut was to kill a Twelve Kizuki-level demon.
The ultimate goal of the Corps was to slay the progenitor of all demons. To the Demon King, ordinary demons were just disposable pawns. Only when a Twelve Kizuki fell did it truly hurt him.
So, the Corps never ignored even a rumor related to the Twelve Kizuki.
With a wave goodbye to Shinobu at the Butterfly Estate, Kanae set off, guided by her kasugai crow.
---
A small wooden house—this was Afune and Tasuke's home.
But since Nightingale's arrival, it was no longer just their home.
"Your basic treatment is done. From now on, you'll need to come every day to have your bandages changed. Try not to get the bandages wet. Most important of all—don't use that arm for the next month."
"Thank you! Thank you so much, sensei, you're a goddess!"
Inside the little house, a young man with his left arm in a sling sat in front of Nightingale, showering her with gratitude.
"I'm not a doctor, and I'm certainly not a goddess. I'm just a nurse—don't get that wrong."
Nightingale didn't seem pleased by his enthusiasm. "Don't get complacent. Cutting out the bad parts isn't the end of it—health isn't that cheap. Your issue isn't severe, but it's complicated, a result of many small problems piling up over years. So you'll need a lot of time to recover."
"Yes, I'll be careful."
"You must! If you forget my instructions, I'll have to use a more… memorable method to make sure you don't. Anyone who hinders treatment is my enemy—even if the one getting in the way is the patient himself!"
Having finished her lecture, Nightingale raised her voice and barked, "All right! If you're done, move aside! Don't hold up the next patient's treatment! There are so many lives waiting for me to save! So many diseases waiting for me to destroy! This is an urgent situation where even a single second can't be wasted! Next!"
With Nightingale's presence, Afune's house had become the only hospital in the village… though "hospital" might be generous, given how bare-bones it was—there wasn't a single piece of proper medical equipment.
But at least, compared to her field tents in life, this place was an improvement. She didn't have to worry about shells falling from the sky, and as an Archer-class Servant, Nightingale could pull out any kind of medicine from her bag as long as she knew the ingredients—even things like syringes, no problem at all.
"Every time I see Nightingale onee-san like this, I just think she's amazing… Even the biggest guy in the village, Uncle Tai, turns into a total puppy in front of her."
In a corner, Afune watched Nightingale with wide, admiring eyes, Tasuke on her back.
She unconsciously lowered her voice out of respect for Nightingale's intimidating presence.
"Wouldn't you, after what happened?" Seiichirou, standing behind her, looked uneasy and couldn't help but mutter, "Three days ago, she planted him in the ground like a radish. Head first…"
This village wasn't exactly poor—at least nobody starved, thanks to everyone helping each other—but it was a far cry from wealthy. Unless a sickness was truly life-threatening, most people just toughed it out instead of trekking to a city doctor.
Over time, the villagers all built up chronic, hidden illnesses, but they were used to it. As long as you could work and eat, what was there to complain about?
But Nightingale couldn't accept that. In her eyes, everyone in the village was a patient.
Seiichirou was only the first. Nightingale had no concept of holding back; on her very first day, she forcibly treated five villagers, administering "iron-fisted justice" to anyone who resisted.
If not for Afune's testimony—and the fact Nightingale's treatments clearly worked—the whole village might have banded together to run her out as a lunatic… not that they'd have stood a chance against her.
But as more and more people were cured, suspicion and fear gradually turned into gratitude. Honest villagers wanted to repay Nightingale, but her response was always—
"I'm not doing this for your thanks or rewards! Out of the way! You're delaying my patients' treatment!"
Even ailments the villagers thought were impossible, Nightingale would solve with medical knowledge centuries ahead of theirs.
Most touching of all—Nightingale refused to take any payment!
Anyone who tried to slip her money would get tossed out, coins and all. Her reasoning? They were wasting her time for treatment.
But they didn't give up. Instead, they'd hand the money to Afune, since Nightingale was her "guest" and she was closest to her.
Compared to everything Nightingale had done for the village, her eccentricities hardly seemed worth mentioning. Some people even started calling her a goddess of mercy. If she was a goddess, of course she'd be different from regular folk.
It was funny—they didn't believe in demons, but they could believe Nightingale was a goddess.
"Sheesh, is that what you call treatment?"
Seiichirou patted his own bandaged leg, his expression complicated. "Honestly, I'd believe you if you told me she was trying to kill me. I didn't get any of that patient care you hear about—I felt like a wild boar about to be butchered! The most painful part wasn't the wound at all, it was the way she pinned me down—I thought she'd break all my bones…"
"But… Nightingale onee-san was only trying to help you, Uncle Seiichirou."
Afune's position was clear. "If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for not cooperating."
"I don't blame her at all, actually—I'm grateful! I never thought this leg would heal. I thought I'd be stuck with it until I died! I haven't felt this light on my feet in years—almost feels weird."
As they spoke, a sudden scream came from Nightingale's direction.
"Gyaaahhh!"
"Bear with it! You call yourself a man? Can't handle a little pain? This pain is for your own future health! You should be grateful you came early enough to be treated. If you'd waited a few more years, amputation would've been the only option!"
Listening to the intermittent howls, Afune and Seiichirou exchanged glances—then both broke into laughter.
---
T/N: AWWWW MY HEART IS SO WARM IM SMILINGGGGGG
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