A crow flew down and landed on the veranda of a massive estate.
“I see...”
A voice as warm as a single shaft of sunlight in the cold season rang out.
“So the Final Selection has begun again...”
The owner of that voice was Ubuyashiki Kagaya.
Through his crow, he had learned that the latest Final Selection had begun—and that Tatsuo was among the participants.
“So Tatsuo is taking part in this selection too.”
Kagaya looked out over the estate’s pond with a bitter expression.
“Now that I think about it, Kuwajima’s disciple is participating as well. Her name was... Kakuro Sana, if I remember correctly. Both of them are exceptional talents. They’ll surely become pillars supporting the Demon Slayers in the future.”
“It would be nice if they could at least get acquainted at the selection grounds...”
Kagaya spoke to the sky.
By then, the sun had already set and darkness had fallen.
*
“What is that strange look for...?”
Kakuro Sana said as she looked at Tsunokake Tatsuo staring at her.
What a strange man. Tsunokake Tatsuo, was it? With a face like that, I’ve never even seen him as an extra.
No, wait... judging by how he didn’t even notice that demon’s attack earlier, his skill must be pretty poor. He was probably dead by the time of the original story, or if he was still alive, he wouldn’t have had the strength to interfere.
Those were the sorts of thoughts Sana kept to herself—thoughts that would have made Tatsuo’s brow furrow if he had heard them.
“Anyway, you should give up on the selection already. I only needed a moment to gauge your ability. If someone with that level of skill became a Demon Slayer, it would be far too dangerous.”
When she finished speaking, Sana turned away.
I need to leave quickly. There’s no time. I have to deal with that hand demon as soon as possible. Kuwajima told me. Right now, Urokodaki’s only disciple is Makomo.
Which means...
Sana clenched her fist hard. Thin veins stood out faintly on her arm and hand.
Sabito no longer exists in this world.
Should I defeat the hand demon? Has he already met Makomo? But if I do that, what about Tanjiro?
Why had things turned out this way? Sana searched through the memories of her past life.
*
Kakuro Sana had originally been an ordinary person in 21st-century Japan.
But for an ordinary person, her life had never been ordinary.
That was because, around the time she entered middle school, she fell ill.
The disease had no known name, and naturally no cure was ever found. As time passed, it slowly began to eat away at Sana’s body.
By the time other people were entering high school, Sana was in such bad shape that even getting out of bed was difficult.
Lying in a hospital bed and looking at her smartphone was the only joy left in her life.
“Demon Slayer...?”
One day, Sana came across an anime. It was an adaptation of a manga titled Demon Slayer.
For some reason, after that she found herself watching Demon Slayer as if she were possessed.
In less than two weeks, she had finished the entire first season, all 26 episodes, and then watched the movie Mugen Train, along with the second and third seasons.
“So there are only three movies left now?”
What remained were the three films subtitled Final Battle.
Watching them wasn’t difficult. She had spent one day and watched two of the three movies.
“So now all that’s left is to bring down Muzan for real. But this is too much. This manga. Just stop killing everyone already... They’re all so pitiful.”
After grumbling, Sana looked at the calendar. The 12th had been circled in red.
“Tomorrow... surgery...”
The next day was Sana’s surgery date. In a sense, it was her final surgery.
She had undergone major and minor surgeries up to that point, but nothing had changed much for her. She was barely staying alive.
As time went on, her condition deteriorated further, and she knew it. So after hearing the doctor say that any more surgery would be pointless, Sana and her parents had decided this would be the last one.
“I’ll worry about the end... after the surgery. Okay! Let’s do this!”
Cheering herself on left her body feeling weak all at once.
“Ugh... seriously, this pathetic stamina... I should just sleep for now.”
Sana leaned her head back against the bed and closed her eyes.
The next day, Sana opened her eyes.
...?
What she saw was an unfamiliar ceiling.
Where am I...?
She wanted to speak, but no words came out.
All that escaped her was a cry.
After that, a great deal of time passed.
Sana learned that she had died and been reborn. She also learned that this place was Japan in the past.
She didn’t know why she had the memories of a previous life, but she didn’t dwell on it too much.
She simply gave thanks for being reborn, for having a healthy body, and lived each day.
Coincidentally—or perhaps by fate—her name was the same as in her previous life.
Her face and build also grew up without being very different from before.
Maybe because she hadn’t been able to run freely in her previous life, she loved running.
The me from my previous life is probably dead by now, Mom and Dad. Sorry... Don’t worry about me. I’m doing well!
My current parents have the same surname as my old ones? From what I can tell, this looks like Japan in the past, so are they our ancestors? Haha...
...Mom, Dad, thank you for taking care of me all this time while I was sick. I really... really... loved you...
As she approached the age at which she had fallen ill in her previous life, Sana swallowed her tears and cut off the lingering attachment of her former self.
She thought she could live happily in her second life.
That was, until that day came.
That day was no different from any other.
She went about her usual routine and went to bed.
Then she woke to a tremendous noise.
“Mom, why? What’s going on?”
Rubbing her eyes, she stepped out of her room.
“...Huh?”
What spread before her eyes was blood and corpses.
“Mom...?”
Her mother, who had smiled at her every day while raising her, lay on the floor with her head severed from her neck.
“Dad...?”
Her father, who had always stood firmly behind her, was spewing blood with his chest torn open.
Her head creaked as it turned. Something caught her eye.
Something was eating her father’s arm.
“Kehk...?”
The thing turned its head and looked at Sana.
!!!
It had a horn on its human face, about the size of a fist.
Blood dripped from its sharp teeth, and its eyes were bloodshot red, filling the air with terror.
“That’s... a demon... Why...?”
Sana knew what that thing was. It resembled the demons from the work she had watched in her previous life, Demon Slayer.
“Don’t joke around... We’re in the middle of town, right? Even if this is that place, why is there a demon here...?”
Overcome by fear, she trembled violently as she spoke.
The demon staring at Sana suddenly leaped at her.
“Kyaaah!!”
Sana screamed with her eyes shut tight. But as time passed, she felt nothing. She opened her eyes.
The demon, already beheaded, was turning to ash and disappearing, and in front of her stood an old man.
“I’m sorry, child... If only I’d been a little faster...”
The old man said, looking down at his leg. One of his legs was fitted with a prosthetic.
“You’re Zenitsu’s...?”
Sana spoke, then immediately covered her mouth, realizing her mistake.
“Hm? Zen what?”
“Ah... no... I was just talking to myself...”
“...”
“Sob... sob...”
Inside the room where the tragedy had unfolded, only the old man’s silence and Sana’s muffled crying remained.
“I’ll wait outside. If you calm down, come find me. I can offer you some help.”
The old man was the first to speak. After finishing, he left the room.
Several hours later, Sana approached the old man, who was waiting outside the house.
“Please take me in as your disciple.”
Those were Sana’s first words.
“...”
The old man remained silent.
“I know you’re an incredibly strong man. There are still plenty of those things left, aren’t there? I don’t think I can ever forgive them. Please take me as your disciple. You won’t regret it.”
The old man looked at Sana.
In Sana’s eyes, her resolve was plain to see.
Whether or not she understood why demons existed in greater numbers was irrelevant.
Even if he refused her here, she would become a demon hunter. Whether she joined the Demon Slayers or not.
“Hah... Very well... But you’d better be prepared...”
That day, Kakuro Sana became Kuwajima Jigoro’s disciple.
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