Chapter 100: Let Sunlight Bathe the Earth × Let Demons Have Nowhere to Hide
"Master, I think we can begin the next stage of training."
The crimson glow faded. The short-sleeved uniform returned to normal. With a crisp, practiced motion, Roy slid the Nichirin Blade into its sheath.
[Notice: Swordsmanship +70]
The flames dispersed. Scorched ground and a burning birch stood before them. Sakonji Urokodaki stared blankly at the boy, the strike that tore the mist to welcome the light replaying in his mind. He would likely never forget it until the day he died.
"Have you reached your limit?" The master had not forgotten what his disciple said: once he hit his limit, he would learn a Breathing Style. Sakonji respected that wish and had been waiting. Sabito and Makomo leapt down, taking their places to Urokodaki's left and right. The boy and girl snapped back to themselves, eyes bright on Roy. Even after being shocked again and again, their gazes could not hide their awe.
Geniuses could not be judged by common sense. The strange satisfaction of having one's understanding constantly overturned filled their hearts.
"I agree with you, Eiichiro," Sabito said, gaze burning.
The fox-masked youth looked toward the gathering fog, which once again barred sunlight from the woods, and spoke softly. "Mount Sagiri can no longer hold you. You deserve a wider world."
"Whether you pick up the sword to slay demons or travel down the mountain, when you go to Mount Fujikasane someday and avenge us, please carry our share with you, and live brilliantly."
"And me too," Makomo said with a smile, her pretty eyes bending into crescents. "That thing chewed me up so painfully. When the time comes, do not let it go. Slice it up for me, cut by cut."
Sabito shot her a look. Since when was Makomo this ruthless? In his heart, though, he agreed completely.
A demon is a demon. It does not deserve sympathy.
"Alright," Roy answered simply, silently committing it all to heart. After the round of "Sun-Refined Heart," he looked at Sakonji Urokodaki again with a touch more ease and openness in his eyes. "Master, forgive me. Before this, your disciple harbored selfish thoughts, always thinking about surpassing myself, or at least not being inferior to certain people…"
Netero's figure flashed through his mind.
"Now I want to go out," Roy said. "I want to take my body and my heart and stride into the wider world together."
"Do more. Learn more. Save more people. It is always a good thing to leave fewer demons in this world."
"Of course," Roy grinned, white teeth flashing. "If I get the chance to kill the Demon King, so that nowhere the sun shines will any demon dare to stir, I think when that time comes and I return to pay respects to my seniors, I will have at least a little face and will not be gossiped about."
"Oh, Eiichiro, so you sneak around filing little reports on us when we are not here, huh…"
"When that day comes, you will not need to say it. I will have Fukuda perform a 'suicide' for everyone to celebrate."
"That works too. I will kill you along with him!"
A chill wind swept through, shaking the branches. Shinsuke and Fukuda spiraled in, landing to Roy's left and right. Each slung an arm over the boy's shoulders. Behind them came Kiyomizu, Watanabe, Kudo, and the rest of the seniors.
By then, the sun was falling west. Through the heavy fog, a red glow rolled across the horizon.
Sakonji Urokodaki listened quietly to the boy's words. Even without Nen to aid him, he knew everyone was here. They were all here. That was enough.
The old man fixed the boy with a deep look. "Meet me beneath the waterfall at first light."
Hands behind his back, he crunched away across the snow.
The tengu mask remained among the trees. He had a feeling that soon, whether he or the many retired friends, or the countless ordinary people of the world, they would no longer need to hide and cower under the shadow of demons.
Just as his disciple said:
"Sunlight will disperse the darkness, in the end."
Tap, tap.
Footsteps faded into the distance.
Night fell, dark as ink.
Three days' travel from Mount Sagiri,
A boy gripped his sword hilt and sprinted beneath the moonlight, racing homeward.
He had ocean-blue eyes and black hair tied in a low ponytail. His black Demon Slayer Corps uniform was belted simply with a white sash. A two-toned haori of red on one side and yellow-green on the other streamed behind him as he ran, billowing in the wind. Giyu Tomioka pressed forward.
He had accepted the order. He would carry it out to the end. That was his duty.
A new junior entering his view. That was curiosity.
Testing the boy's talent, quietly forming expectations. That was hope. Beneath Giyu's cool, taciturn face, he looked forward to the journey, yet he fretted as well, afraid of disappointment and anxious about missing the New Year at home and facing Master's rebuke. In short, his heart would not calm.
Meanwhile, the one he anticipated quietly kept company with the one he worried about. After a sumptuous feast of wild boar, with clear wind and bright moon for company, he lay down fully clothed on the heated bed and slipped into sweet sleep.
The familiar sensation of falling returned.
When Roy left the Demon Slayer world, stepped upon the sea of cognition, passed through the corridor of dreams, and returned to the Hunter world,
The sky outside the airship window was already brightening.
From the heights, he could clearly see the red sun leaping up from the horizon.
For once, Roy slept in until 6:00 a.m. That was rare.
He rolled out of bed. As usual, he washed up and went for a morning run. Toothpaste and a cup had already been set out by Gotoh.
"Young Master is in a good mood today," the young butler observed with a glance.
Even without anyone waking him, his body clock usually pulled him up at four.
Perhaps it was the lingering negative emotions being purged from his heart, but Roy felt an unprecedented lightness and ease, and so, for once, he slept a bit longer.
"Not bad." The boy's lips quirked as he jogged around the airship, up and down, then burst onto the deck. He threw his arms wide to embrace the sunlight, eyes closed to savor a rare, peaceful moment.
A phone call shattered the quiet.
"It is from home. Young Master Illumi slipped out without reporting to the family. Destination: the Hunter Exam."
Gotoh hung up and studied Roy carefully. "The master says to keep an eye on Young Master Illumi so he does not end up killed."
"Do you mean someone else kills him, or he kills someone else?" Roy sneered.
Gotoh:
"Thinking of Young Master Illumi's temperament, it is hard to say."
When he looked up again, the young master's figure was already gone.
He hurried a few quick steps to follow.
Ring ring… ring ring…
"Attention, passengers. This flight will soon arrive at Narita Airport in the Saherta Republic. Please check your belongings and prepare to disembark."
At eight in the morning, the airship reached the Saherta Republic.
From the airport, they took a ferry. On the deck, master and servant stood one behind the other. In under an hour, a whale-shaped island came into view.
It was an "entrance" to the Hunter Exam, and the place where the story of Hunters unfolds.
Roy let the sea breeze tousle his bangs, thinking of Gon, Killua, Kurapika, and Leorio. A moment later, ten years ahead of schedule, he set foot upon the land where the dream begins.