"Eiichiro, that guy, can he hear us talking?"
The group of demons was startled. When they realized that Roy was speaking to Urokodaki Sakonji, Shinsuke and Fukuda breathed a sigh of relief, thinking it was a false alarm, but they couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed...
"Yes." Urokodaki Sakonji, with his back to Roy, brought out the food he'd prepared.
It was still miso soup with a small bowl of rice, but this time there was an additional small plate of leftover boar meat from yesterday, sliced and arranged on a dish.
"Eat first." The old man, wearing a Celestial Dog Mask, picked up a slice of boar meat and tossed it into his mouth.
Roy took a sip of miso soup to warm his stomach, ate a few bites, then accepted the hot tea handed to him by Urokodaki Sakonji.
"Briefly describe the battle process." Tea steam curled as Urokodaki Sakonji knelt by the brazier, listening carefully to Roy's recount.
The summary matched what Roy had reviewed the night before...
"Your idea of using the sleeve to tie up the sword hilt is quite clever, but it's still a trick."
"Tricks are the helpless method of the weak when there's no way out..."
Urokodaki Sakonji recalled clashes with powerful Evil Ghosts in the past, grateful the opponent was Eiichiro's father, otherwise, against the strong Upper Moon, it would be difficult to survive, tricks or not.
"So, you must train more...double the training, double the eating, until the sun rises and sets, that's when you make your move."
"That's what I think too." Roy smiled, drained his cup, and without further words, grabbed the jacket hanging on the wall, pushed open the door, and headed towards the depths of Sagiri yama against the wind and snow.
The young man walked through the snow...Urokodaki Sakonji silently watched him from behind, and after a moment, took carving tools and wood, starting to carve masks.
"Master is going to carve a mask for Eiichiro."
"That means Eiichiro has earned his recognition."
Makomo noticed Urokodaki Sakonji's actions, murmuring softly...by her side, Sabito silently grasped the sword hilt.
...
"Twenty-three thousand one hundred twenty-eight..."
"Twenty-three thousand one hundred twenty-nine..."
Sunday, twenty-four thousand swings, Monday twenty-six thousand, Tuesday twenty-eight thousand, on the eve of seeking a doctor...
Roy swung a sword, producing a crescent-shaped strike, successfully completing three "Ten Thousand Basic Swings!"
"Shhhh~" The strike detached from the jacket sword, embedded into a wooden stake three meters away, slicing it cleanly in two,
Panel prompt...[Swordsmanship+18]
[Current Swordsmanship Level: lv1:88/100 (Entry Level) → lv2:6/1000 (Mastery)]
"Monster!"
"How did he manage to achieve 'Severing Strike' after just half a month's training?"
Shinsuke cried out, floating up from the broken stake that Roy's sword almost split...
The "Air Slash" created by the sword wind, equivalent to "Severing Strike", was an achievement he dreamed of accomplishing when he was alive!
"At this rate, he's not far from graduating by slicing the boulder." Fukuda Hisashige watched carefully, capturing how the strike detached, flying nearly four meters before splitting the stake...a distance that meets Urokodaki Sakonji's "final test."
In the original story, the "final test" Urokodaki Sakonji set for Tanjiro...was to slice through a spherical boulder with a radius of three meters.
Roy's recent strike clearly exceeded this radius.
"He won't." Sabito, standing on a birch tree, his eyes brighter than ever, looked further than Fukuda...
He took a deep breath: "Master won't let Eiichiro leave the mountain so soon."
"He's not like us, not nearly at his limit."
"His potential must be fully utilized, only then will his extraordinary talent not be wasted."
Eiichiro is truly amazing; if anyone can change this terrible world, it's you...Sabito silently thought, his sleeve being tugged by Makomo...
The girl looked up, her pretty eyes shining brightly: "Hey~ was Giyu as amazing back then?"
Tomioka Giyu, the current Water Hashira, is the pride of Urokodaki Sakonji and Sabito, Makomo, and other lingering souls. Before meeting Roy, Sabito firmly believed he was the most gifted disciple under Master.
But now..."Giyu isn't as good as Eiichiro," Sabito shook his head, sure: "Before learning Breathing Technique, he couldn't achieve 'Severing Strike', let alone once severing four meters away..."
"I knew Eiichiro was unique..."
"Yes, he is." Sabito chuckled: "I'm now very curious, what test will Master set for him when he graduates?"
A boulder with a ten-meter radius...or a thirty-meter waterfall...or perhaps just a hillock?
Sabito's eyes stared intensely at Roy, as the young man exhaled deeply, took out a prepared handkerchief, and began wiping the jacket sword.
Yubashiri is a sword, the jacket sword is also a sword, yet they are non-human, so he needn't be sentimental...Roy, wholly absorbed in wiping, silently cultivating a bond with the sword, soon received the training plan for tomorrow, unsurprisingly.....
"Add another two thousand tomorrow."
Urokodaki Sakonji emerged from the dense woods, speaking as usual...the snow piled on his shoulders revealed the fact he had been quietly watching from behind for a long time....
"Alright." Roy succinctly replied.
After finishing with the sword, he turned back, returning to the warm cabin with Urokodaki Sakonji.
Dinner was several wild chickens he had hunted in the woods yesterday.
This time, Roy didn't just eat a few bites; alone, he voraciously devoured three, lay back on the bed, satisfied, and fell asleep, with Makomo resentfully glaring up at him from his foot....
Watching without eating is too cruel for a lingering soul. Makomo really wished she could once again experience what "fragrance" tasted like, as she had truly died long ago...almost forgetting what it felt like...
"Sss~ah~" Soft snoring echoed...
Under Makomo's gaze, Roy fell asleep quickly and deeply this night, perhaps relieved from worrying about passing Silva's test, or perhaps because he's about to travel...his mind relaxed....
Anyway, when he opened his eyes the next day, leaving the Demon Slayer world and returning to Kukuroo Mountain, the familiar fatigue was noticeably reduced, even his "lingering in bed" time was cut by two minutes.
"Dong..." A familiar clock chime sounded.
Daily run initiated.
Descending from the castle atop the mountain, past the butler's villa, reaching the foot of the mountain.
Roy's gaze sharpened as he unexpectedly saw two familiar faces...
Grandpa Zeno and Butler Tsubone.
"Good morning, young master." Zebro has sharp eyes, otherwise wouldn't be a veteran gatekeeper for so many years.
He raised his hat in greeting from afar as Zeno and Tsubone simultaneously turned to glance at him.
Tsubone placed his right hand on his chest, saluting.
His body transformed into a small sedan.
The door opened, Zeno threw him a glance, then expressionlessly got inside, revving the engine...speeding away down the mountain...
"The Wallflower," indeed...a rather handy ability...
Roy stood looking out, deciding to ask Wutong to make one for him when he got back!