Snow Walk had earned its name from its pure-white blade.
Years ago, Zeno had seized it from a swordsman as spoils of war.
Roy took the sword in hand and gave it a few test swings. It was a little light. Then he slashed diagonally forward, tracing an arc.
The effect was immediate. The status panel popped up and notified him: "Constitution +0.05"...
Sure enough, he had been heading in the wrong direction and had overlooked the essence of Sun Breathing—
It was a Breathing Style specially tailored for [swordsmen]... The fact that a new skill slot had appeared on his status panel made that clear.
[Congratulations, host. You have unlocked "Swordsmanship."] [Current "Swordsmanship" level: Lv. 1 (1/100)]
"Hmm... Was this an expected surprise or an unexpected one?"
Roy sheathed the sword.
At the same time, with a "crack"... the dining table split in two, right down the middle.
Fortunately, Gotoh was quick to steady it, keeping the food from tumbling onto the floor.
"Young Master, this sword is extremely sharp. You'd best not swing it around in your bedroom," Gotoh warned him.
Roy nodded in agreement. It was a fine sword, all right... though a little light. And he had no idea if he could bring it into the Demon Slayer world through "reverse Conjuration."
"Maybe... I'll give it a try tonight."
He put the plan into action. At ten that night, the clock chimed. After taking a bath and changing into his pajamas, Roy hugged Snow Walk and climbed into bed.
After a day of "electroshock," "poison training," and practicing Sun Breathing, his body was utterly exhausted... This time, he fell asleep with ease.
Before long, he found himself in that familiar passage again.
But before entering it, Roy paid special attention to his right hand.
Unfortunately, his right hand was empty. There was no sign of Snow Walk... Roy couldn't help but laugh at himself, realizing he'd been overthinking things.
According to the old author's setting in the original story, Nen users in the Conjuration category tended to be prone to wild imaginings, which had made quite a few of them neurotic.
Shizuku, for example. Kortopi, too. And Kite, who had been killed by Neferpitou and turned into a woman, along with his rocking-horse Nen Ability, "Jester."
Now that he didn't have Snow Walk at his side, Roy felt unburdened. He stepped into the passage and drifted toward the sea of his subconscious... As for a sword—
There was a Swordsmith Village in Demon Slayer. He could find a swordsmith to make one. Failing that... he could make do with the black Nichirin Sword Tsugikuni Yoriichi had left inside the Zero Hand doll.
With a plan in mind, Roy soon found the wooden door with a demon-head ornament hanging above it. Without hesitation, he pushed it open and stepped inside.
That familiar sensation of falling swept over him again...
When Roy opened his eyes once more, he was back in the familiar Small Wooden Cabin.
Nearby, Takeo and Shigeru were fast asleep.
Little kids never stayed put in their sleep. At night, they were at one end of the bed; by morning, they were at the other. One stuck his feet in the other's mouth, the other tucked his hands against his brother's chest, and the blanket ended up on the floor. They never even noticed.
Seeing this, Roy got up and tucked them in. His movements woke Tanjiro.
"Nii-san..." Tanjiro stared straight at him with bright eyes. "Will you take me into the mountains with you today?"
"Could I even say no?" The boy woke at the slightest sound. Roy figured he hadn't slept well all night.
It was no wonder. He'd suddenly seen things beyond his understanding. Even Roy would have struggled to stay calm.
Roy gave him a glare. "Then why aren't you out of bed yet? Are you waiting for me to put your shoes on?"
"Sorry... Sorry..." Tanjiro scrambled out of bed, excited as a hen that had just laid an egg, circling Roy and clucking away.
Roy paid him no mind, opened the door, and stepped outside. Before him stretched the snow-white landscape of Snow Country. His mother, Kie, was coming out of the kitchen after lifting the curtain.
Kie had wrapped a cloth around her head and tied a scarf around her neck. She carried a bundle stuffed with several piping-hot rice dumplings and promptly pressed it into Roy's arms.
"Eat these on the way. Don't wait until they've gone cold before you remember them."
"And another thing..."
"Tanjiro, why are you carrying a basket?"
"I'm going into the mountains with Nii-san."
"You're not going."
"I am."
"Honey, aren't you going to do something?"
"Let him go with Eiichiro if he wants to," Tanjuro said. Somehow, he had appeared in the hallway.
"You..."
Kie looked at Tanjuro, then at Tanjiro, who was as stubborn as a mule. With a helpless sigh, she turned to Roy and tightened the scarf around his neck. "Look after your brother. Be back before dark."
Just then, Grandma came out carrying Delia... Tanjiro opened his mouth to say, "I can protect myself, and I can protect Big Brother, too."
But then he remembered Roy darting through the woods like a ghost, and the tree Roy had pierced with ease.
Wisely, he shut his mouth and stole a glance at Roy instead.
Roy ignored him completely. His gaze moved from his mother, Kie, to his father, Tanjuro, then to Grandma and Delia. He smiled warmly. "I'll be back."
With that, he picked up the hoe, shouldered the basket, and headed for the woods.
"Nii-san, wait for me!" Tanjiro clumsily hurried after him.
Kie, Tanjuro, and Grandma watched them go...
The familiar cabin grew smaller and smaller behind him. Only its warmth lingered in his heart, something he had never felt in the Zoldyck family.
He enjoyed it, cherished it, and even longed for more. For the first time, he thought... Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to stay in this world.
"Huff... huff..." Tanjiro hurried to catch up.
Roy could tell what he was about to ask as soon as he opened his mouth, so he beat him to it. "Tanjiro, do you believe there are other worlds beyond the one beneath our feet?"
"Really, Nii-san?" Tanjiro stared at him in astonishment.
Roy led him through the endless snow, leaving two lines of footprints in the woods...
He spoke at an unhurried pace. "I once had a dream. In it, I went to another world..."
"In that world, I had a new family, new parents, and new siblings..."
"Our family made a living by killing people..."
"I was raised to be an assassin from the time I was little..."
"One day, when I woke up, I found that I'd somehow mastered all kinds of techniques for killing people..."
"That was when I realized how real that dream had been..."
"..." Tanjiro's mouth fell open. A gust of wind shook the snow loose from a birch tree, and it landed on his head.
It took the boy a while to come to his senses. "That's incredible... Just like how Grandpa Saburo said there were demons in this world."
"No. It's real." Roy suddenly stopped.
Tanjiro couldn't brake in time and stumbled into his lower back.
The boy winced and rubbed his head. Then his nostrils twitched, and his expression changed dramatically!
"Blood... Nii-san, there's a strong smell of blood up ahead!"
"I see it."
Roy took off the basket and leaned on his hoe, standing motionless in front of Tanjiro. His narrow eyes narrowed to slits.
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