From Tanjiro's perspective, seeing Nezuko, who was already younger than him, become even smaller would only surprise him a little. But if it was the more mature Nezuko from after her demon transformation, he would gasp in amazement.
Chinatsu was the exact opposite. She had originally been older than Tanjiro, so seeing her suddenly shrink delivered a visual shock on a completely different level.
When Nezuko arrived and saw that Chinatsu was now even smaller than her, her eyes lit up, and she could barely contain her excitement.
Chinatsu felt a little awkward about it. Just as Nezuko was about to treat her like a doll, a summons from Oyakata-sama saved her.
Nezuko's eyes immediately filled with tears, and she looked ready to cry. Alarmed, Chinatsu hurried to reassure her that she would shrink again and play with her another time. Only then did Nezuko force back her tears and ask, "Really?"
"Really. Of course I will. Don't you trust me anymore?" Chinatsu reached out to pat Nezuko's head, only to realize that she apparently couldn't reach it.
After finally managing to comfort Nezuko, Chinatsu left the house. As she jogged toward Oyakata-sama's residence, she gradually returned to her original size.
This time, Oyakata-sama had summoned only Chinatsu. She entered the room where he was staying and saw how frail he looked.
"I'm sorry to call you over when you've only just woken up," Oyakata-sama said weakly. Chinatsu quickly waved her hands. "It's no trouble at all. Besides, after sleeping for so long, I definitely need to stretch my legs."
A faint smile rested on Oyakata-sama's frail face. By now, he had completely lost his sight, and his body was considerably weaker than before. Lately, he had even been coughing up blood from time to time.
This was the curse