Chapter 59: New Year's Memorial x The Eager Challengers
A pot of tea was warming on the heated table, its steam curling lazily into the air and adding a touch of life to the small wooden cabin.
Sakonji Urokodaki knelt in silence. He opened the letter from home and began to read the familiar chicken-scratch handwriting.
Giyu was a sentimental child, cold on the outside but warm on the inside. He had a great talent for the sword, but his penmanship left much to be desired.
"Master Urokodaki, I hope this letter finds you well."
"The end of the year is a busy time, with many missions, so it is inconvenient for me to return home. Please, pay respects to Sabito, Makomo, and all of our brothers and sisters in my stead."
"Tell them that Giyu has never stopped striving to improve. I have now slain one hundred and thirty-seven demons. May their souls find peace in the heavens."
A simple hundred or so words conveyed his recent situation. Sakonji Urokodaki read to the end.
"Please, take care of your health as well, and I wish you continued excellence... I must close this letter in haste. Giyu Tomioka."
He folded the letter and sat in silence for a long time.
Shinsuke, Fukuda, and the others had followed Roy deep into Sagiri Mountain. Sabito and Makomo, having seen the crow arrive, had remained behind, silently keeping the old man company.
"Giyu is a good man. He is worthy of the title 'Water Hashira'," Sabito said, having read the letter. Watching the crybaby he once knew grow into a pillar of the Demon Slayer Corps filled him with a boundless sense of pride.
"One hundred and thirty-seven demons, one hundred and thirty-seven letters. Giyu-senpai really misses Master, doesn't he..." Makomo nodded in agreement, then suddenly said, "Hey~ Do you think Master will tell Giyu-senpai about Eiichiro?"
The little girl's eyes sparkled as she looked at Sabito. "I'd love to see his jaw drop when he finds out about Eiichiro!"
Three sessions of 'Ten Thousand Swings' a day... that Eiichiro guy isn't human at all.
Sabito knew what Makomo was thinking; she just wanted to see Giyu lose his composure. But knowing Giyu's cool demeanor, he would probably just put on an icy expression and pretend he didn't know a thing.
"He won't."
"He'll give him a couple of glances, at most."
"Besides..." Sabito noticed Sakonji Urokodaki staring blankly at the letter. "Master won't tell Giyu," he said softly. "The Demon Slayers live on a knife's edge. One wrong step, and they lose their lives. Master doesn't want to put any more pressure on him."
As expected, Sakonji Urokodaki said nothing, just as he always did. He didn't write a reply, but simply and carefully placed the letter in the wooden box he kept by his pillow. The box was open just a crack, revealing the thick stack of letters already inside.
Whoosh... The cold wind howled, whipping up a flurry of snow.
After closing the wooden box, Sakonji Urokodaki's back seemed to stoop a little more. He stood in place for a long while before pushing the door open and stepping outside.
"Eiichiro, come with me."
It was just after four in the afternoon. Having completed his three daily sessions of 'Ten Thousand Swings', Roy was still feeling energetic and was preparing to do another two thousand when he heard Sakonji's call. He sheathed his sword and followed him through the dense forest to a wide-open space.
Before him were more than a dozen small, snow-covered mounds of earth. Sakonji Urokodaki stood before them, lighting the oil lamp in a small shrine. With his back to Roy, he offered a prayer. "The year is ending. Come and pay your respects to your senior brothers and sisters."
The dead were gone, now nothing but a handful of dust. With the sky as their blanket and the earth as their bed, perhaps this was its own form of freedom.
But...
Seeing the figures of Sabito, Makomo, and all the others standing silently behind Sakonji, Roy was quiet for a long moment. Then, he smiled. "I think I'll pass."
The boy gave his training sword a flourish with an air of indescribable freedom.
"I prefer to celebrate the new year with joy. When the time comes that I've avenged my brothers and sisters, I'll bring a cask of sake to their graves and drink with them. I'm sure... they wouldn't hold it against me."
Whoosh~ A ghostly wind swirled. The dozens of spirits all turned to look at him. For some reason, Shinsuke and Fukuda felt their eyes burn, and hot tears streamed down their faces.
"Eiichiro, you..."
Who would hold it against you? Who would dare?
Makomo sniffled, tugging at the hem of Sabito's clothes.
The boy beneath the fox mask looked deeply at Roy, his gaze passing over his shoulder and toward the sky. He was silent for a long time. In the vast, drifting snow, only the old man and his disciple stood opposite each other. Finally, the old man nodded in the silence.
"Then it's settled. You still have two thousand swings to go..."
Roy raised his hand and shouldered his sword. Under the watchful eyes of the many spirits, he walked back into the depths of the forest, his feet crunching in the snow.
A short while later...
A single slash sent a four-meter-long blade of energy flying, instantly splitting the wooden post before him in two.
[Swordsmanship +30...]
Today's 'Ten Thousand Swings' were complete.
Hah... He exhaled a cloud of white mist that froze in the air.
Back in the cabin, after dinner, he took off his shoes and climbed into bed. Tonight, a few more ghosts had squeezed into the room to sleep beside him, joining Makomo. Roy saw this and a faint smile touched his lips. He closed his eyes and slept until dawn.
The familiar sensation of falling...
A single "Young Master" broke through the dream, pulling him back to reality.
Away from the snowy world and without a chiming clock to wake him, Roy blearily opened his eyes. Gotoh had already prepared breakfast and placed it on the table beside him.
"This is not like home. The selection of fresh ingredients is too limited. You will have to make do, Young Master."
Gotoh seemed very dissatisfied with the food at the Heavens Arena. He didn't mind putting up with it himself, but for the Young Master to be inconvenienced... when he was picking up the meal that morning, he had nearly slit the chef's throat.
"What time is it?"
"Five-thirty in the morning."
I slept that long? Roy frowned as he got out of bed, pulled on his tracksuit, and started his run.
The food could wait; it wasn't going anywhere. If it got cold, he could just microwave it. The morning run, however, could not be skipped.
He took the elevator straight down and began to circle the Heavens Arena. On the floors above, several shadowy figures appeared, their eyes following his movements, their expressions varied.
In Room 1981, a certain little ghost with a deathly pale face and empty eyes, who slept in a large vat, suddenly opened his eyes, his hands gripping the rim.
Across from him, in Room 1989, a young man with long, grayish-white hair that fell to his waist stood by a floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at him. Two flames of divine fire ignited in his pupils, his fighting spirit condensing.
On the 200th floor, the "residence" of Nen users, Wing was doing one-handed handstand push-ups, trying to gather Ren in his palm to launch himself into the air. On the sofa nearby, a certain flat-chested loli with twin pigtails was愜意地 enjoying a massage.
In this city that had not yet woken, some were already hard at work. Roy didn't use 'Shadow Step', running ten kilometers at a normal pace. He went upstairs, ate his breakfast, and received several challenge notifications.
"Young Master, we've just received a message from the arena. That fighter, Kastro, has issued you a challenge."
Gotoh served Roy his meal while organizing the information. "Besides him, there is also Harrison 'The Meat Grinder', Guy 'The Divine Shot', and Kikuta 'The Ninja'... it seems they are all waiting to ambush you."
"No Wing?"
"No."
"Then accept them all. Start by killing the ones with the worst crimes."