"What happens next? What are we supposed to do now? Where are the swords?"
After hearing the children speak, a boy with a dark pompadour hairstyle and a long scar running from his right cheek to the bridge of his nose asked impatiently.
The two children ignored his tone and calmly continued addressing the surviving swordsmen.
"The organization will first prepare your uniforms. After your measurements are taken, your rank will be embroidered onto the uniform."
"There are ten ranks within the Corps: Kinoe, Kinoto, Hinoe, Hinoto, Tsuchinoe, Tsuchinoto, Kanoe, Kanoto, Mizunoe, and Mizunoto."
"All of you currently hold the lowest rank—Mizunoto."
"And the swords?" the pompadour-haired boy demanded again.
"The organization will allow each of you to personally select the steel for your sword today," the white-haired child replied calmly.
"After ten to fifteen days, your Nichirin Blade will be completed."
Then he continued speaking.
"In addition, we will now assign each of you your personal Kasugai Crow."
As soon as he finished speaking, a flock of crows descended from the sky, cawing loudly.
They landed one by one on the arms of the surviving swordsmen.
Chiba Yang also received his own Kasugai Crow.
However, there was one exception.
Zenitsu Agatsuma did not receive a crow.
Instead, he was given a tiny sparrow.
Looking at the small bird perched on his hand, Zenitsu stared at it in disbelief.
"Huh? You said crow, right? This is clearly a sparrow!"
The sparrow chirped loudly, as if offended by his complaint.
"Kasugai Crows are primarily used to deliver messages," the black-haired child explained to the group.
Chiba Yang looked at the crow perched on his arm and nodded in satisfaction.
During his training, he had seen Kyojuro Rengoku's Kasugai Crow before.
These birds could speak and were extremely intelligent. They were very useful for relaying information.
However, not everyone was satisfied.
The pompadour-haired boy suddenly slapped his crow away.
"Caw—!"
The crow cried out in pain as it was sent flying.
"I don't care about some stupid crow!" the boy shouted angrily.
"What I want is a sword! Do you understand? A sword!"
As he spoke, he suddenly threw a punch toward the white-haired child.
Chiba Yang noticed the movement instantly.
He grabbed the boy's wrist before the punch could land.
"They already explained it clearly," Chiba Yang said calmly.
"Your sword will be finished in ten to fifteen days."
He looked directly at the boy.
He could not stand people who bullied the weak.
"What does this have to do with you? Let go of me!" the boy shouted furiously.
Chiba Yang released his wrist with a forceful shove and stepped in front of the two children.
The boy stumbled back several steps from the strength of the push.
"You should calm down," Chiba Yang said.
He had not seen this person during the seven days of the Final Selection.
Since the boy had survived, he must possess some ability.
But that did not give him the right to behave so arrogantly.
If he insisted on causing trouble, Chiba Yang would not mind teaching him a lesson.
"Picking on children is pretty pathetic."
"Yeah. They already explained everything clearly."
Other swordsmen nearby gradually gathered around.
Most of them had been rescued by Chiba Yang, Tanjiro Kamado, or Zenitsu Agatsuma during the Final Selection.
Zenitsu, meanwhile, had caught the crow that had been slapped away and was gently calming it.
"Tch."
Seeing that almost everyone present was glaring at him, the pompadour-haired boy clicked his tongue and turned away, no longer speaking.
"Thank you," the white-haired child said politely to Chiba Yang.
Chiba Yang simply waved his hand.
"It's nothing."
"Everyone, please select the steel that will be used to forge your sword."
At that moment, the black-haired child spoke again.
Beside her stood a table covered with various pieces of steel in different shapes and sizes.
Chiba Yang stepped forward and examined the materials.
Within the steel, he could faintly sense a glow like sunlight.
So this must be the Scarlet Ore that Master Rengoku mentioned…
Steel that has absorbed the energy of sunlight after long exposure.
Thinking this, Chiba Yang picked up the piece that seemed to shine the brightest.
Before long, every swordsman had made their selection.
Although more than half had survived the Final Selection, there were still only a little over a dozen people in total.
The swordsmen gradually began leaving the mountain.
Before departing, many of them approached Chiba Yang, Tanjiro, and Zenitsu to thank them.
"Are you two leaving as well?" Chiba Yang asked, looking at Zenitsu and Tanjiro.
"Yes," Tanjiro Kamado replied with a smile. "I'm returning to Master Urokodaki."
During the past seven days, Chiba Yang had learned that Sakonji Urokodaki was Tanjiro's mentor.
"I'm heading back to Grandpa Jigoro too," Zenitsu said tearfully.
"After this, I'll probably have to go on missions alone to kill demons. I might die any day now!"
"That means this could be our final farewell!"
Zenitsu cried loudly, trembling with fear.
"That won't happen," Tanjiro said kindly.
"You're actually very strong, Zenitsu."
"That's not true!!!"
Zenitsu immediately screamed in response.
"I'm ridiculously weak! I only survived the Final Selection because I met Yang! Otherwise I would have died a long time ago!"
"If I have to fight demons alone later, I'll definitely be killed right away!"
Instead of calming down, Zenitsu began jumping around wildly in panic.
Watching him, Chiba Yang felt helpless.
From what he had observed, Zenitsu's ability easily ranked near the top among all the participants.
Yet for some reason, the boy was endlessly timid.
After chatting for a little while longer, the three of them finally said their goodbyes and went their separate ways.
So Kanao Tsuyuri already left…
Looks like I'll have to return alone.
After parting with Tanjiro and Zenitsu, Chiba Yang realized that Kanao Tsuyuri—who had arrived at the mountain with him—had already departed earlier.
So he began making his way back along the same path he had taken before.
At the Ubuyashiki Estate, Kagaya Ubuyashiki sat calmly on the veranda as he listened to a Kasugai Crow report on the Final Selection.
"Thirteen survivors…"
"Kyojuro Rengoku's successor is truly exceptional."
"It seems the Demon Slayer Corps may soon gain another Hashira."
"How exciting…"
After hearing the report, Kagaya Ubuyashiki quietly murmured to himself.
When Chiba Yang returned to the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters, the first thing he did was look for Kyojuro Rengoku to share the news.
Fortunately, Rengoku had not yet left for a mission.
"Master Rengoku! I passed the Final Selection!"
Chiba Yang excitedly pushed open the door to the dining hall and shouted.
Then he froze.
The table was piled high with empty bowls.
In the middle of them sat Kyojuro Rengoku, holding chopsticks and devouring bowl after bowl of rice.
While eating, he loudly exclaimed:
"Delicious! Delicious!"
Beside the table stood a girl with twin ponytails and a butterfly hairpin.
She was carrying plate after plate of food to the table.
Even with just that, she was already drenched in sweat from exhaustion.