"Two days… it'll take that long?"
"Nii-san, I don't need new clothes. Better save the money and buy food for the little ones," Nezuko said with a smile, her eyes curving just like Kie's—gentle and thoughtful.
"We still need to buy clothes, and we're not short on food for now."
They'd just butchered a boar yesterday; there'd be meat for half a month.
"That's still so long…" Kie looked at Roy, worried. "Why are you going to Mt. Sagiri?"
For selling charcoal, the town at the foot of the mountain was enough to take two days' worth of the Kamados' stock.
"To learn something." Roy peeled a dumpling and took a small bite. "Tanjiro's older now—he can help. The family doesn't need two coal-diggers. I'll go down the mountain and see if I can pick up a trade and help with expenses."
He couldn't bring up demons, and the Demon Slayer Corps even less. With Takeo, Shigeru, and Hanako at the table, he didn't want to scare anyone.
But after so many years under one roof and with the same blood, Roy's story didn't satisfy Kie or Tanjuro—least of all Tanjiro, who'd just seen a demon.
Nii-san is lying, Tanjiro thought, sneaking glances at Roy. A glare sent him ducking his head to "sip" his soup.
"We don't need you to cover expenses," Kie said. "Nezuko and I can weave baskets. We can sell them in town for pin money—enough for new clothes."
"Yes, Nii-san… I've learned to braid rattan," Nezuko added, pulling a handbasket from under the table—the neat weave held needles and thread. The patch on her sleeve was clearly her own handiwork.
"Nezuko is capable," Roy said, not stinging on praise. His gaze lifted to Tanjuro, who'd been silent, then he told Kie with quiet resolve, "No—I'm going.
"Maybe I can find a way to cure Father."
Kie opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Tanjuro's illness weighed on all of them. If there really was a treatment, it would be the family's blessing.
Nezuko and Tanjiro glanced at their father. In silence, Tanjuro pinched a needle from the basket, held it in his palm, and stood.
"Rōichirō—come with me," he said gently.
Heavy snow bowed the pines.
Tanjuro, in a thick coat, led off the veranda, Roy following in silence. Two lines of fresh prints behind the house blurred and vanished under wind and snow.
"Show me your ear. Bear it—don't complain," Tanjuro said, lifting the fine needle. Roy bared his lobe, and Tanjuro pricked it.
A brief sting, like a mosquito bite—gone in an instant. Then—
Roy watched Tanjuro take off the Hanafuda earrings inherited from Yoriichi Tsugikuni and fasten them on him, adjusting them as he said, "Your father is useless—I can't give you much.
"These heirloom earrings—I entrust them to you.
"May the Fire God keep my child healthy and safe."
The earrings dangled and swayed in the wind. Tanjuro smiled, just as his own father had once smiled at him. "Good. You look spirited."
Roy's throat tightened; he wanted to say something… and in the end it came out as a dry promise: "I'll find a cure for you."
Tanjuro patted his shoulder and smiled. "Let's go."
He turned, leaving a thin back to the wind.
Roy lingered a moment, then felt a chill at his nape—snow had slipped down his collar. He drew a long breath and followed.
It was 6:55 a.m. The two foolish pheasants in the basket hadn't learned to crow, but the brothers were already packed: baskets on their backs, tea filled, dumplings stowed, two sharp axes at their belts.
Since Yubashiri couldn't be brought in by "reverse conjuration," they'd rely on axes for defense—and for hacking through brambles when the path got rough.
Kie fussed over them—tucking Tanjiro's hem, snugging Roy's scarf—and rattled off her cautions:
"Go slow on the road… If there's danger, don't play the hero—and don't stare where crowds gather… If it's late, pay for an inn—don't go back into the mountains…"
Hot-headed as ever, Tanjiro blurted, "Mother, it's not like we won't come back. No need to worry." First time going down the mountain, he slapped the axe, brimming with confidence. "If there's danger, I'll protect Nii-san first!"
"It'll be enough if you don't drag your brother down," Kie shot back, then looked hard at Roy. "Take care of your brother."
Roy murmured assent, his eyes passing over Kie, Tanjuro, and Nezuko, finally settling on Grandma as she came out with Hanako in her arms.
"Abba… abba…" Hanako stretched her arms toward Roy. Freshly woken, unwashed, with little crusts in the corners of her eyes.
Roy didn't mind. He stepped up, kissed her soft cheek, and told Grandma with a smile, "I'll be back."
Grandma nodded and sat on the veranda with Hanako, watching Roy lead Tanjiro away until her eyes grew hot and two lines of tears slid down.
Left home young, return old; the accent unchanged, hair gone gray.
"Kie," she murmured, "I feel like once he leaves today… we won't see him again."
Standing in the snow, Kie wiped her tears with the back of her hand. "I'll go check on Takeo and Shigeru. Once those two little rascals learn their big brother left without calling them, who knows what a scene they'll make."
She didn't answer the question. Turning away, she vanished into the yard.
The snow fell harder, faster. In the wide courtyard that opened onto the forest, only Tanjuro remained, standing in the snow, staring a very long time…
Until the two small figures disappeared from sight—
Tanjuro lifted his hands and began the Hinokami Kagura:
"Dance," "Clear Blue Sky," "Raging Sun," "Fake Rainbow"…
His steps floated; he was like a spirit of flame, raising flurries of snow with every turn.
Only this time, the earrings no longer hung at his side. The heirloom that symbolized a thousand-year bond between Yoriichi Tsugikuni and the Kamado line now followed a new master, setting out on a new journey—
a new life, one so brilliant even Yoriichi, knowing it from the afterlife, could never have imagined.
~~~
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