"It's delicious..."
Shinobu sipped the miso soup with a conflicted expression, mumbling the words in a daze.
"It really is delicious!"
"If it tastes good, that's all that matters."
I nodded, watching the two of them eat heartily.
Shinobu pouted, her lower lip jutting out as if something were deeply bothering her.
"That's not fair! We're the ones who are demons, yet yours tastes better than mine!"
It was a childish complaint, born from a petty sense of defeat.
Though it was a trivial grumble, seeing them like this was preferable from my perspective.
It was far more comforting to watch them behave like children their own age than to have them pretend to be unfazed, putting on a bold front like grown-ups.
I had intended to feed them breakfast and send them home immediately...
But they absolutely refused to leave.
What a headache.
And just like that, three days had passed.
Kanae and Shinobu never left. While helping with odd jobs, they constantly pestered me about demon hunting, and I kept telling them it was impossible.
Before I knew it, my routine had shifted: come home from work, eat the dinner they prepared, and in the morning, set out breakfast to wake them up.
It was a strange yet somehow fitting arrangement.
A pair of sisters who had lost their family to demons and were left alone in the world.
And a demon who had been abandoned by the very bonds he once left behind.
In the sense of being cast adrift after a forced parting, we were all in the same boat.
It wasn’t surprising that I had grown attached to them under these circumstances.
Consequently, it didn't take long for me to realize they would never give up on their dream of hunting demons.
Any talk of protecting their peaceful future would only sound like I was telling them to run away from their past.
If I sent them home, they would only find a way to come back.
...
The longer I lived with them, the more my judgment seemed to erode.
I had clung to that fading sense of reason over the past three days.
Today, as I watched Shinobu cooking rice, I finally made my decision.
After all, their hearts were set on demon hunting.
Once that resolve had taken root so deeply, they would never abandon it.
So, I decided to entrust these children to the Demon Slayer Corps.
I wasn’t even sure if it was the right thing to do...
I had hoped that after being saved, they could live ordinary, quiet lives.
And yet...
It might be better for them to be with the Corps than to stay by the side of a demon like me.
Whether the Corps would accept the sisters was up to them.
In any case, if they couldn’t join, they wouldn’t be able to hunt demons.
Aside from sunlight and Wisteria flowers, the only weapon capable of killing demons was the Nichirin Sword, which only the Corps could produce.
At the very least, this would be better than them encountering a demon by chance later and being torn apart in a fit of rage.
It was an irresponsible thought, but still—better than staying by my side.
So...
"I give up, you brats."
I declared my surrender.
"What do you mean?"
"I’m saying I’ll help you become members of the Demon Slayer Corps."
I sighed as I answered.
"Really? You’ll really teach us?"
Shinobu’s face lit up with joy, the polar opposite of my own exhausted expression.
I nodded in response.
"There are only three things that can kill demons."
To fulfill my promise to teach the sisters, I stopped eating and held up three fingers.
"Three?"
I nodded at Kanae’s questioning look.
"Yes."
I folded down my fingers one by one as I began my explanation.
"As you both know, the first is the sun. Neither I nor Kibutsuji Muzan can overcome it. No matter how powerful a demon is, in the face of sunlight, all demons are equal."
"Muzan’s goal—the reason for a millennium of folly—has been to overcome the sun. That should tell you how absolute sunlight is to our kind."
"The second is Wisteria."
I ignored a small protest and folded my middle finger to continue.
Wisteria is indeed a poisonous plant. Its seeds and pods are particularly toxic, causing severe vomiting, diarrhea, and dizziness if ingested.
But the flower is different. Though it contains toxins, they are far less concentrated—to the point where people brew tea with Wisteria blossoms.
For demons, however, the poison in the blossom is lethal.
"So that’s why Grandpa used to burn Wisteria flowers at night..."
"Right. By burning Wisteria blossoms, you can effectively keep demons at bay."
The poison in the fragrance is strong enough to repel most lesser demons completely.
Of course, the Twelve Kizuki are a different story.
Finally, I folded my index finger.
"The third is the Nichirin Sword."
I pulled the blade halfway from its scabbard to show them.
The steel glowed a pale violet, reminiscent of Wisteria blossoms, exuding a sharp, cold aura.
"Wow... a pale violet sword..."
The sisters stared in wonder at the blade.
"So cool! No way I’m lending it to you!"
I slid the sword back into its scabbard, leaving a disappointed Kanae and a puffed-up Shinobu behind me.
Seeing Shinobu’s expressive face made me chuckle before I realized it.
That girl really is fun to tease.
Turning away from Shinobu’s catlike hiss, I continued.
"The Nichirin Sword is forged from special steel tempered in sunlight. Because it is infused with the sun’s power, it burns demons. Behead one with it, and the demon dies."
That concluded my lecture on the three methods of killing demons.
"Any questions?"
I brought a piece of smoked meat to my lips as I spoke.
Kanae shot her hand up eagerly.
"But demons are strong, right? If you swing the sword and don't manage to cut off the head, wouldn't it be useless?"
"Yes, and Mr. Himejima moved incredibly fast, too."
Mr. Himejima? Is that the name of the Stone Hashira?
Anyway.
"Exactly—that’s why what you need is Total Concentration Breathing."
"Total Concentration Breathing?"
"It’s a special breathing technique that pushes your body to superhuman levels. The Demon Slayer Corps uses this breathing while wielding the Nichirin Sword to decapitate demons."
"So that’s what you’re going to teach us—Total Concentration Breathing?"
I shook my head.
"No."
Shinobu voiced a faint complaint.
"But you said you'd teach us!"
"Because I don’t know which breathing style best suits either of you."
"Breathing... aptitude?"
There are five original schools of Breathing—Thunder, Flame, Water, Stone, and Wind—as well as derived styles like Mist, Flower, and Moon, and even the original Sun Breathing.
The effects vary wildly depending on one’s aptitude.
Usually, instructors teach Water Breathing since it’s the least taxing and easiest to learn, or they teach their own specific style.
But Moon Breathing is different. Like Sun Breathing, no one outside the chosen few has ever mastered it properly.
"So I can’t teach you that style. I know the theory, but it’s better learned from an authorized instructor."
"So there’s nothing we can learn here..."
Shinobu said, her voice dripping with disappointment.
I had told them: staying here won’t get you what you want.
I never lied.
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