"Good morning, Yōsen-san!"
"Good morning, Yōsen-san" x3
Kanzaki Aoi was hanging bedding in the yard, with three little girls helping her: Terai Kiyo, Nakahara Sumi, and Takada Saho.
Seeing Yōsen come out of his room, they all greeted him.
"Good... morning"
Yōsen had been staying at the Butterfly Mansion for three weeks, but he rarely left his room. The others had learned from Shinobu that she had rescued him by chance, and he suffered from a severe, incurable illness.
Sunlight would cause red rashes all over his body, leaving him weak and listless. Combined with Yōsen's thin frame and unhealthy pale skin, the little girls believed it and usually took care of him a bit.
Noticing that Yōsen really liked sweets, Aoi would occasionally make some and leave them at his door.
When she went to collect the bowls at night, the food was always completely eaten—the highest praise for a cook. Aoi became even more motivated.
The three little girls often kept Yōsen company. They thought that since he was too unwell to go out, he probably had no friends to play with. The three of them would often stay in Yōsen's room, asking him to play Cat's cradle with them. Seeing his clumsy movements only confirmed their belief.
One night, when Yōsen was lying in bed, the three insisted on reading him a bedtime story.
He was wide awake and couldn't sleep at all.
Instead, the three of them ended up dozing off and falling asleep on the floor while reading.
He had no choice but to carry them to bed to sleep, while he spent the night watching the stars by the window.
"Do you... know where Kochou... Shinobu is?"
"If you mean Shinobu-sama, she's in her room." Aoi finished hanging the bedding, picked up her bamboo basket, and came over to Yōsen.
Looking at his increasingly pale face, she asked with concern.
"Are you okay, Yōsen-san? Your skin looks terrible."
"Yeah" x3. The three little girls stared with their beady eyes, worriedly looking at him.
"I'm... fine."
Aoi thought about how Yōsen usually stayed in his room, sleeping during the day and only having energy at night.
When they first met, his condition wasn't this bad.
'He must be pushing himself now.'
With this in mind, Aoi looked at him with sympathy.
"?"
Yōsen touched his face. Was there something strange about it? Why was she looking at him like that?
Today, he had promised Shinobu to give her his blood. At night, Shinobu was usually out on missions, and during the day, Yōsen needed to sleep to regain strength, so they could only meet in the morning.
As for his pale skin, it was because Yōsen had been drained of five syringes the size of his arm over the past three weeks.
He was clearly struggling to keep up. Relying solely on sleep for recovery was too slow.
Fortunately, Shinobu had noticed it, and today would be the last time she needed his blood.
"I'll go find... her."
Just as he was about to leave, his sleeve was tugged. The three little girls were all staring at him with their beady eyes.
Feeling uncomfortable under their gaze, he asked.
"What's... wrong?"
"Aren't you going to say goodbye to us, Yōsen-san?"
The three little girls, seeing Yōsen's worsening condition, were afraid he might die like this.
They really liked him — because he would play with them without any impatience, sometimes even gently patting their heads.
"Then, Terai..."
Before Yōsen could finish, he was interrupted.
"It's Kiyoharu!"
"It's Sumi!"
"It's Saho-chan!"
The three were very insistent on how Yōsen addressed them, but after hesitating for a moment, he still couldn't bring himself to say it.
He wasn't used to calling people by such familiar names. Under their expectant gazes, Yōsen spoke.
"Um... goodbye."
With that, Yōsen walked along the shaded corridor toward Shinobu's room. The three were a bit disappointed but quickly rallied. Kiyoharu clenched her hands into two small fists and said to Sumi and Saho-chan.
"Yōsen-san must be shy. We need to keep trying! Until he call us Kiyoharu, Sumi, and Saho-chan!"
The three were filled with fighting spirit, but Aoi was puzzled and asked.
"Why did you want him to say goodbye?"
"Saying goodbye is good! That way, we'll definitely meet again next time!"
"Huh~"
...
He lightly knocked on the door a few times. After receiving Shinobu's response, Yōsen opened the door and entered.
Inside, Shinobu was yawning, kneeling on the tatami. He noticed the faint dark circles under her eyes and sat down opposite her.
"Are you... okay?"
"Ara~ Is Yōsen-san worried about me?"
Shinobu returned to her usual demeanor. Recently, she had been going on back-to-back missions, and even as a Hashira, she was a bit tired.
On top of that, she had to find time to study Yōsen's blood.
Something about his blood was just different, but despite studying it for a long time, Shinobu hadn't been able to figure it out.
But she had enough supplies by now.
"Yes."
"Huh?"
Shinobu lightly covered her mouth, a bit surprised by his reply.
It caught her off guard.
In the time she had known him, she had gradually come to understand his personality: a bit slow but exceptionally earnest, not good at communication, and not one to say affectionate things.
What was up with him today?
"You... should still get some... proper rest."
Yōsen looked seriously at Shinobu.
In his eyes, she was small but seemed to be carrying something heavy, forcing herself.
Though they had only known each other for three weeks, he really thought she was a good person.
'Everyone at the Butterfly Mansion was good.'
He hoped they all would be safe.
"Yes, I understand. I feel like Yōsen-san is talking more these days~"
Shinobu smiled and agreed. Now, Yōsen seemed a bit more lively, unlike on their first meet, where he seemed completely hollow.
"You... are all good people."
Shinobu, who hadn't expected to receive a "good person card," slightly widened her purple eyes.
She saw a faint smile on Yōsen's usually indifferent face. This version of him made her momentarily think he was just an ordinary human, not a demon.
Yōsen felt this way because, during his three weeks at the Butterfly Mansion, he had roughly learned what demons were and what the Demon Slayer Corps was.
Most members of the Demon Slayer Corps had been harmed by demons in the past and joined out of hatred, hoping to prevent others from suffering like they did, or simply getting revenge.
Their mission was to eradicate demons.
The ranks, from highest to lowest, were Hashira-the pillar, followed by nine levels: Kinoe, Kinoto, Hinoe, Hinoto, Tsuchinoe, Tsuchinoto, Kanoe, Kanoto, and Mitsu.
To become a Hashira, one had to successfully kill fifty demons or one of the Twelve Kizuki. The ultimate goal of all Demon Slayer Corps members was a demon king named Muzan Kibutsuji.
For some reason, whenever Yōsen thought of this name, his whole body would grow hot, as if overcome by an uncontrollable impulse.
He wasn't sure what it was exactly. Perhaps he would only understand if he met this demon king.
Shinobu, as a Hashira, had brought a demon back with her. If discovered, she might face severe consequences, and even the people at the Butterfly Mansion could be implicated.
Yet, she still let Yōsen stay peacefully. Such a kind person—Yōsen didn't want her to get hurt. He should leave in a few days.
With this thought, Yōsen lifted his eyes to meet Shinobu's gaze.
"You are... good people. I can't let you... get punish because of me. I'll leave... within the next few days."
She hadn't expected him to leave.
Shinobu couldn't even bring herself to say anything to stop him. She knew his stubborn personality. Sighing softly, she placed her hands on her knees, straightened her back, and said back to him.
"I understand. Then, safe travels, Yōsen-san."
"Yes."
Yōsen reached out his hand toward Shinobu. She was taken aback but also extended her hand to shake his.
She hadn't expected him to want to shake hands.
Feeling the rough texture of his hand, she wondered.
'He was still a young man, so why did his hands feel like this?' Lost in thought, their handshake lasted a bit too long.
Yōsen moved his hand slightly, puzzled. Why was she holding it? Wasn't she supposed to draw blood?
"Um... aren't you going to draw... blood?"
"?"
"Draw blood?"
Wasn't this a farewell handshake? Shinobu quickly pulled her hand back, a faint blush on her face.
It was Yōsen's fault for silently extending his hand, making her Misunderstand it.
Then, Shinobu retaliated by drawing two syringes of blood.
As a result, Yōsen fell into a deep sleep for two days. During that time, Sumi, Kiyoharu, and Saho-chan came to visit.
If not for his breathing, they would have thought he had passed away.
By the time he was ready to leave, it was the third night after waking up. Unexpectedly, he ran into a stranger sitting under the eaves.
It was a girl he hadn't seen before. Was she also from the Butterfly Mansion?
The girl was Kanao.
This was her first time encountering him.
'He really was different from other demons...'
If anyone didn't look closely, they wouldn't even realize he was a demon.
Two pairs of calm, placid eyes met, neither saying a word.
'Should I greet him/her?'
That was what both were thinking.
Soon, Yōsen was the first to look away.
He wasn't good at talking to people, so it was better to leave and avoid causing trouble.
Just as he turned to go, a crisp sound came from behind. He looked back and saw a coin shining brightly in the night sky, flipping over and over.
Snap
Kanao pressed the coin onto the back of her hand. Heads meant she would talk to him; tails meant she wouldn't. Lifting her palm, it was heads. So, Kanao looked up at Yōsen, who was about to leave.
"Hello, I am Tsuyuri Kanao."