"Understood."
Roy showed no expression, neither sorrow nor joy.
He leisurely finished his breakfast and left the table to Wutong, saying, "Don't forget to oil the Staff Blade."
Even with Yubashiri in hand, he couldn't forget the Staff Blade. The young man stepped out the door as Wutong wanted to speak but hesitated. In the end, he bit his lip and advised, "Young master, it'd be best to follow the master's wishes recently."
"Alright, I'll try to make him follow mine." Roy continued walking without stopping, leaving directly.
Wutong: "..."
What a mess... he tidied up the dishes and pushed the dining cart out as well.
In summer, the sky was already light by five in the morning. The young man strolled through the castle's corridors, paused for a moment as he passed a small room where the television was showing cartoons, and the old man lay sound asleep on a recliner.
As usual, he bowed slightly and stepped away...
Maha half-opened his eyes to watch him leave, turned over, and continued to laze around...
Thanks to Zeno being away on a mission, without his interference, the old man managed to get some rare additional sleep.
Roy's lips curled into a smile, faintly hearing the snores emanating from Maha. He stepped into the training room, pushing open the door.
With a clang, he unsheathed Yubashiri.
He first adjusted his breathing and posture, then completely calmed his mind. At a certain point, the young man slashed diagonally with both hands on the sword, commencing the daily practice of "Sun Breathing."
"Dance..."
Focused,
"Clear Blue Sky.... "
Unfocused,
"Raging Sun.... "
Focused,
"Fake Rainbow.... "
Unfocused,
Unknowingly, the time reached noon. With a swoosh, a scorching flame sliced through the air. Roy sheathed his sword and sure enough, received a notification sound from the panel.
[Notification: "Constitution +0.3" (Note: Your concentration time has increased by twenty minutes compared to before)]
This was because his hand had steadied... Roy recalled what Urokodaki Sakonji had said that day, "The steadier the hand, the fiercer the blade," gaining some insight...
"Sizzle~"
A red light flickered from the camera in the corner...
In the master bedroom on the second floor.
The man, sipping tea brewed with various herbs, quietly watched the TV; the screen showed the young man sweating profusely, his sword technique becoming increasingly sharp.
"I maintain the master's sword daily. Whenever you instruct, I can fetch it anytime," Silva remarked, having not stepped outside for days after feeding Killua, eagerly called Tsubone over to select a mission presented by Hall.
"No need."
Possessing only its form without understanding its essence, it ultimately amounted to nothing.
If he wouldn't tell, he wouldn't know.
With the cup of tea half-finished, leaving some herbs, Silva handed the cup to Tsubone: "You won't need to maintain it in the future. I have my own sword."
The hands themselves are the sword!
"Yes." Tsubone took the cup, refilled it, and handed it back, saying, "There's also a piece of news,"
"Speak."
"The ancestor has lifted the restrictions, permitting the eldest young master to worship Jager's master."
"Did Father tell you?"
"No." Tsubone gazed deeply at Silva, "It was Master Maha."
The old butler reported truthfully: "He asked me to relay this to you. If unsatisfied, you can find him and take his three lashes!"
Silva: "..."
After a long silence: "Understood."
Tsubone nodded, glancing at Killua, who seemed to be waking up on the bed, and bowed to take her leave...
The door creaked shut with a "squeak."
From inside came the words, "Calculate the time..."
Tsubone nodded and, looking through the glass window, fixed her gaze on the TV, where Roy lovingly polished his sword, and she felt a sense of reflection...
'The times they are a-changin'.'
....
Stewed pig head, steamed fish, braised chicken, freshly sliced sausages, vinegar-doused salad, plus a bottle of red wine. With help from the back kitchen, Roy finally added the pig head to the menu, following the chef's suggestion to stew it with seasoning packs and let it soak for two hours... He placed them all on the dining cart, called Wutong to push, and awaited great-grandfather's summons.
At six fifty in the evening, as the sunset dipped below the horizon and a faint moon rose, Tsubone, with her pink ponytail swinging, appeared...
She bowed courteously, took over from Wutong, and pushed the dining cart, saying, "Young master, please."
Roy did not see Maha and frowned, asked, "Isn't great-grandfather coming?"
"The master fears upsetting Master Jager, so he won't come."
If someone's dead, does it really matter if they're upset?
Roy followed Tsubone suspiciously, the two walking through the corridor toward the basement... The deeper they went, the eerier and colder it became...
Soon, a sturdy steel anti-theft door came into sight.
The two elderly butlers stationed at the door, one with a scarred face and yellow beard, the other one-eyed and one-handed, nodded to Tsubone and looked past her at Roy... The young man suddenly felt a dangerous aura.
This wasn't hostility, just the unintentionally revealed strength of a strong opponent...
"Scarface."
"One-eyed."
"Greetings, young master."
The two crossed their right hands over their chests and bowed to Roy.
Roy looked at them deeply and asked, "How come I've never seen you before?"
"Just pretend we're dead, young master." Scarface and One-eyed replied succinctly, straightened up, opened the anti-theft door, and gestured: "Please."
The movement was neat and without any intention to say more, they simply closed their mouths, waited quietly...
Seeing this, Roy stepped inside, followed by Tsubone pushing the cart behind him,
"This is as far as I can take you, young master. You'll have to go in yourself."
Ahead lay a dark, deep passageway. Two rows of ghost lamps flickered with an eerie greenish glow along the stone walls on either side...
Roy felt as if he had returned to the Demon Slayer World, and beneath him was the boundless Snow Country, sending chills up his spine without warning.
"Clang——" the anti-theft door pulled shut behind him.
He was left alone, with no choice but to bravely push the cart forward.
One step, two steps... The soles of his shoes scraped against the stone-paved path, producing soft sounds. Passing through the tunnel, Roy lifted his head to see a heavy, airtight door... The airtight door was spotless, shimmering with a faint metallic glow, clearly polished daily.
Thinking of Scarface and One-eyed, Roy glanced back, "click... click..."
Who knew, the airtight door made a sound and unexpectedly opened on its own. A massive tentacle reached out from inside, wrapped around the cart, dragging it into the room, only to throw it back out a second later. Upon closer inspection, most of the food was gone, leaving only a few vegetable leaves, seemingly deemed unworthy...
"Jager... grandfather?"
Is this supposed to be a memorial?
Roy was horrified, instinctively reaching for his sword, only to grab at empty air.
It was then he remembered that Yubashiri was on the sword stand.
In his panic, he saw the tentacle reach out again, faster than his father Silva's triple-lash, pulling him into the room in a swift move.
'Such powerful Ten, I can't even retaliate!'
As his consciousness drifted, the world seemed to spin, and with one last spark of spirituality, Roy looked over... A gigantic eye with dozens of tentacles was looking at him warmly.
"It's my grandson, [re: Game of the Deceased] is activated...."
Dazed and confused, Roy faintly heard an ancient voice... When he opened his eyes again, the world had changed.
He was staring at an enormous Sand Worm, rising from the ground, stirring up a storm, emitting a piercing howl!
"Roar——"