Rengoku Mansion
Giyu Tomioka stood at the bottom of the steps, glanced down at the small, white hand wrapped around his right arm, and frowned almost imperceptibly.
"Butterfly."
Giyu turned his head away expressionlessly.
"This is the residence of the Flame Hashira. As Pillars of the Demon Slayer Corps, maintaining a dignified demeanor during visits is a basic matter of etiquette."
He looked at Kanae's stunningly beautiful face and continued speaking in a serious tone.
"Allah?"
However,
Kanae didn't let go; instead, she clung almost her entire body to Giyu's arm, her voice soft and sweet.
"If Mr. Rengoku saw this, he would only think that Mr. Giyu is a very good man who knows how to take care of a delicate girl."
She furrowed her beautiful brows slightly, looking as if she were very troubled.
"Besides, I twisted my leg on the way here, and it still hurts!"
"Mr. Giyu, as my companion, how could you bear to watch me limp in like this?"
Did you twist it?
Giyu's deep blue eyes froze instantly.
He instinctively focused his mind.
[Transparent World], instantly activated.
His gaze pierced through Kanae's casual clothes, sweeping directly over her lower body structure.
A second later, Giyu spoke with a resolute tone:
You're lying.
Kanae's smile froze for a moment.
She took a deep breath, so angry that her back teeth started to itch.
She never imagined in her life that someone would use a "Transparent World" to verify whether a girl had really sprained her ankle!
This blockhead is utterly oblivious to romance!
Just as Kanae was about to use even more forceful "physical methods" to shut this straight man up~
"Squeak--!"
The door was suddenly pulled open from the inside.
"Ugh--!"
A powerful voice boomed out from behind the door without warning!
"Are they Mr. Tomioka and Ms. Butterfly?!"
"Father said that if magpies called from the branches this morning, it meant a distinguished guest would arrive! And he was right!!"
A boy with long, golden-red hair and eyes as wide as copper bells appeared before the two.
It was none other than Shinjuro Rengoku, the eldest son of Rengoku Kyojuro, a young man full of passion and energy!
He stood ramrod straight, hands on his hips, his smile brighter than the midday sun.
Giyu was so shocked by the sudden sonic attack that he instinctively took half a step back, and his brows finally furrowed noticeably.
Kyojuro glanced back and forth between Giyu and Kanae.
Then, his gaze settled on their tightly clasped arms.
Hmm!
Kyojuro's eyes widened even more, as if two balls of fire were burning in his pupils.
"Mr. Tomioka! Ms. Butterfly!"
"The two of you have such a great relationship! Holding hands in broad daylight! So youthful and passionate!!"
"I understand!"
Kyojuro clenched his right fist and slammed it heavily into his left palm, giving him an "I see" look.
"This must be a completely new method of cultivation!!"
"That's awesome! I really want to find someone to try this kind of intense, close-quarters training with!!"
Kyojuro's incredibly imaginative interpretation almost made Kanae, who was standing to the side, burst out laughing.
Giyu Tomioka looked intently at the hot-blooded young man before him and solemnly corrected him:
"No, you've misunderstood. This is not spiritual practice."
However, this straightforward, straight-laced explanation instantly became a waste of time in the face of Kanae's subsequent actions.
"Oh dear, Lord Rengoku is such a straightforward and good boy."
Kanae gently rested her cheek on Giyu's shoulder.
She lowered her head slightly, adopting a shy yet sweet demeanor, her voice so soft it could melt water:
"Although we're not in a formal relationship yet, being with Mr. Giyu... I really think it would be a wonderful kind of 'training'."
After she finished speaking, she slightly raised her eyes and gave Giyu a watery look.
Kyojuro, moved by the sight, nodded vigorously.
"Wow! That's so touching! Mr. Tomioka is truly a responsible man!"
"Please come in quickly! Father has been waiting in the courtyard for quite some time!!"
Kyojuro enthusiastically stepped aside, making an exaggerated "please" gesture.
Giyu felt that communicating with them was a bit tiring.
But he didn't explain further, because based on his past experience, the more he talked at this point, the more chaotic things would become.
He could only remain expressionless as Kanae led him into the Rengoku Family's courtyard.
I had just passed the screen in the entryway.
A strong smell of alcohol mixed with the aroma of burning charcoal wafted towards me.
"Ha ha!"
"I could hear that Kyojuro yelling and shouting at the door from far away!"
Under the wooden veranda in the courtyard.
The former Flame Hashira, Shinjuro Rengoku, who had lost his left arm, was sitting cross-legged in front of a brazier.
He was wearing a loose bathrobe, carrying a large red gourd in his right hand, and his face was flushed, clearly indicating that he was quite drunk.
Despite losing an arm, this burly man showed no signs of despondency or gloom.
He saw Kanae walking in, his arm tightly held by Giyu Tomioka.
Shinjuro was taken aback at first, then put down his sake gourd and burst into a hearty laugh.
"Haha! Good lad!"
"Whose distinguished guest could it be but our Demon Slayer Corps's great hero, the Cold-Faced Water Hashira Giyu Tomioka!"
Shinjuro stood up and walked up to the two of them.
He stroked the stubble on his chin with his right hand, his eyes darting back and forth between the two of them, his gaze filled with the kind of schadenfreude that an elder would have when looking at a younger generation.
"Hey! You used to stand there like a wooden stake in the corner during every Hashira Meeting."
"I thought you'd be spending your whole life with your Nichirin Blade!"
Shinjuro gave a thumbs-up and winked at Giyu.
"I never expected this! You clueless iron tree not only blossomed, but you also quietly plucked the most beautiful flower from our Butterfly Mansion and took it home?!"
"Well done! That's the kind of efficiency a real man should have! I salute you, you're a true man!"
Giyu remained calm despite the former Flame Hashira's unrestrained teasing.
"Mr. Rengoku, you've misunderstood."
Giyu a deep breath and earnestly stated the facts:
I didn't pick any flowers!
He turned his head and glanced at Kanae, who was pressed tightly against him.
She wrapped it around my arm herself.
"Pfft--cough cough!"
Lady Rengoku — Rengoku Ruka— had just emerged from the inner room carrying a tea tray.
Upon hearing this unprecedentedly blunt statement from a straight man, he stumbled and nearly spilled the tea in his hand.
Meanwhile, Kanae, standing next to her, was biting her lower lip hard, her shoulders shaking as she tried to suppress her laughter.
"Entangled? Haha!"
Shinjuro laughed until tears almost streamed down his face, and he patted Giyu on the shoulder.
"You little rascal, I really don't know how you grew that mouth!"
"Alright, alright, stop explaining! Don't be shy around me!"
Shinjuro's smile faded, and a rare hint of elder-like warmth appeared on his face.
"Kanae is a girl one in a million. If you dare to bully her, even if I only have one hand left, I'll still hit you on the head with my gourd!"
Upon hearing this, Kanae finally obediently released Giyu's arm.
She placed her hands together in front of her and bowed to Shinjuro.
"Thank you for your praise and care, Mr. Rengoku."
Kanae raised her head, a perfect blush on her face, her voice gentle:
"Although Mr. Giyu doesn't talk much and his way of expressing himself is a bit... unusual, he's actually a very gentle and protective man."
"I feel very at ease being able to stay by Mr. Giyu's side."
This generous and appropriate answer immediately made Shinjuro nod repeatedly.
Giyu Tomioka just stood there.
He didn't think there was anything wrong with what he had just said, but he decided not to continue the topic because it seemed to have strayed from the original intention.
"Alright, my husband, stop teasing Mr. Tomioka."
The gentle and graceful Ruka Rengoku stepped forward and placed the tea tray on the low table in the wooden corridor.
Her gentle gaze swept lightly over Kanae and Giyu, a knowing smile playing on her lips.
"Men certainly have important things to talk about."
Ruka walked up to Kanae and naturally took her hand.
"Kanae, if you don't mind, come to the backyard and have a cup of tea with me!!"
"Perfect timing, I also have some insights I'd like to discuss with you privately."
Kanae's eyes lit up instantly, and she immediately grasped Ruka's hand in return.
"I couldn't be happier! I'm extremely grateful that Ruka, Kanae, are willing to teach me."
Before leaving, Kanae turned back and winked playfully at Giyu, then followed Ruka into the inner room.
The atmosphere in the courtyard changed instantly after the women left.
The wild laughter that had been plastered on Shinjuro's face just moments before slowly faded away.
He turned around, his one arm hanging at his side, but his eyes were fixed on Giyu Tomioka like an eagle's.
That's a top-tier intuition that only seasoned veterans, those who once stood at the pinnacle of human combat power, possess.
After the earlier commotion subsided, when Shinjuro calmed down and focused on his surroundings, he discovered something that sent chills down his spine.
Standing before him was Giyu Tomioka, a living, breathing human being with a terrifying record of defeating Upper Rank demons.
But...
"Giyu Tomioka."
"You little brat—just how far have you gotten?"
Shinjuro stared at Giyu's deep blue eyes, which remained completely unmoved.
"There is a description in the oldest book left by the successive Flame Hashira!"
"That's the legendary realm of gods, a realm only the Origin Breathing swordsman who cornered Muzan Kibutsuji can enter!"
In response to Shinjuro's astonishment, Giyu simply lowered his eyes slightly.
He was neither arrogant nor complacent.
In his logic, a fact is a fact.
"Senior Rengoku, this is not some divine domain."
Giyu's voice was soft, yet it carried a clear-headedness.
"If I had truly reached that level, Muzan Kibutsuji at Mount Sagiri."
Giyu raised his head, meeting Shinjuro's shocked gaze, his eyes filled with only one kind of absolute rationality—a rationality that existed solely to achieve his goal.
"My current strength isn't enough to kill him. My Breathing Style is missing the most crucial piece of the puzzle."
"Therefore, I must become stronger."