Yukigakure, named for being completely snow-white.
Years ago, Zeno had seized it as a trophy from a swordsman.
Roy took the sword in his hand and weighed it—slightly light. Then he made a diagonal forward slash, drawing an arc.
The effect was immediate. His status panel directly jumped out to notify him: "Constitution +0.05."
Indeed, he had made a directional error, ignoring the essence of Sun Breathing—it was a breathing technique specifically tailored for swordsmen. This could be seen from unlocking a new skill column on his status panel.
[Congratulations, host has unlocked "Swordsmanship."]
[Current "Swordsmanship" level: lv1 (1/100)]
'Hmm... is this a pleasant surprise within expectations, or beyond expectations?'
Roy sheathed the sword.
At the same time, "Crack"—the dining table split in half along his axis.
Fortunately, Gotoh was quick to react and caught it, preventing the meal from spilling onto the floor.
"Young master, this sword is extremely sharp. It's best not to use it in the bedroom," Gotoh warned.
Roy nodded in agreement. It was indeed a good sword, though a bit light. He wondered if he could bring it into the Demon Slayer world through "reverse materialization."
'Why not... try it tonight?'
Acting on the thought, at ten o'clock that evening when the grandfather clock chimed, Roy bathed, changed into pajamas, and lay on the bed holding Yukigakure.
After a day of "electric shock," "poison training," and practicing Sun Breathing, his body was extremely fatigued, making this night's sleep quite smooth.
Soon, he saw that familiar tunnel again.
However, this time before passing through the tunnel, Roy specifically checked his right hand.
Unfortunately, his right hand was empty without any trace of Yukigakure. Roy couldn't help but smile self-deprecatingly, knowing he'd been overthinking.
According to the series' established rules, Conjurer-type Nen users all had tendencies toward wild imagination, creating quite a few neurotics.
Like Shizuku, like Kortopi, like Kite, who was gender-swapped after being killed by Neferpitou with his slot machine Nen ability "Crazy Slots."
Since he no longer had Yukigakure with him, Roy felt lighthearted and stepped into the tunnel, floating toward the ocean of subconsciousness. As for the sword—the Demon Slayer world had Swordsmith Village, where he could have one forged, or worst case, he could make do with the black Nichirin blade Yoriichi left inside the battle doll.
With a plan in mind, Roy soon saw the familiar wooden door with the demon head ornament. Without hesitation, he pushed it open and entered.
The familiar sensation of falling struck again.
When Roy opened his eyes once more, unsurprisingly, he was back in the familiar little wooden house.
Beside him, Takeo and Shigeru were sleeping soundly.
Children don't sleep properly—starting at one end at night and ending up at the other by morning, feet in each other's mouths, hands in each other's arms, and blankets scattered on the floor without their knowledge.
Seeing this, Roy got up to tuck in their blanket corners, the movement awakening Tanjiro.
"Nii-san..." Tanjiro stared at him with bright, wide eyes: "Take me into the mountains with you today, okay?"
'Can I say no?' Roy estimated this child had barely slept well all night, waking at the slightest touch.
He really had it rough—suddenly witnessing scenes beyond his comprehension. Even Roy himself would find it hard to remain completely calm.
He simply glared at him: "Then get up already. Are you waiting for me to put on your shoes?"
"Sorry... sorry..." Tanjiro scrambled out of bed, excited like a hen that had just laid an egg, clucking around Roy.
Roy ignored him, pushed open the door, and walked out. Before his eyes spread a snow-white world and his mother Kie emerging from the kitchen, lifting the curtain.
Kie had her head wrapped and wore a scarf, holding a bundle containing several steaming hot dumplings, stuffing them all into Roy's arms.
"Eat these on the road. Don't wait until they're cold to remember."
Also...
"Tanjiro, what are you doing with that basket?!"
"I want to go into the mountains with Nii-san."
"You're not allowed to go."
"I'm going anyway."
"Anata, won't you handle this?"
"If he wants to go, let him follow Eiichiro." At some point, Tanjuro had appeared on the veranda.
"You..."
Kie looked at Tanjuro, then at Tanjiro, who was stubborn as a mule, then helplessly turned to Roy. She reached out to tighten the scarf around his neck: "Take care of your brother. Come back before dark."
At this time, Grandmother came out holding Hanako. Tanjiro opened his mouth, wanting to say: "I can protect myself and Big Brother too."
But thinking of Roy's ghostly figure weaving through the forest and the large tree that was easily pierced through, he wisely shut his mouth and just stole glances at Roy.
Roy completely ignored his gaze. His eyes swept over Mother Kie, Father Tanjuro, Grandmother, and Hanako one by one, smiling gently: "Wait for my return."
With that, he picked up the hoe, shouldered the basket, and turned toward the dense forest.
"Nii-san, wait for me!" The clumsy Tanjiro chased after him.
Kie, Tanjuro, and Grandmother watched them off from behind.
The familiar little house grew more distant, but warmth lingered in his heart—something Roy had never felt in the Zoldyck family.
He enjoyed it, treasured it, and was even greedy for it, generating for the first time the thought that... perhaps staying in this world wouldn't be so bad.
"Huff~ huff~" Tanjiro quickened his pace and finally caught up.
Before he could open his mouth, Roy knew what he wanted to ask and took the initiative: "Tanjiro, do you believe there are other worlds beyond the earth we stand on?"
"Really, Nii-san?" Tanjiro was shocked.
Roy led him through the white snow, leaving two lines of footprints in the forest.
He said unhurriedly: "I once had a dream where I went to another world..."
"In that world, I had a new family, new parents, new brothers..."
"Our family made a living by killing people..."
"I was raised as an assassin from childhood..."
"That day, when I woke up, I found I had somehow learned many killing techniques without any teacher..."
"That's when I realized the dream I had was so real..."
"..." Tanjiro's mouth fell open as cold wind blew snow from the birch trees onto his head.
After a long moment, the child finally reacted foolishly, exclaiming: "That's truly amazing... just like when Grandpa Saburo said there are demons in this world."
"No, that's real." Roy suddenly stopped.
Tanjiro couldn't brake in time and stumbled into his lower back.
The boy winced in pain, rubbing his head, then his nostrils twitched and his expression changed dramatically!
"Blood... Nii-san, there's a strong smell of blood ahead!"
"I see it."
Roy set down his basket and stood quietly in front of Tanjiro, leaning on his hoe, his narrow eyes narrowing to slits.