The forest was utterly quiet, with only the sound of a gentle breeze blowing through.
Crack!
The sound of something breaking rang out.
Muichiro Tokito's blade snapped clean in two. Although Lin Guang's blade did not break, a frightening crack had appeared in it.
"Ah, my blade broke. Let's continue tomorrow after I get another one."
With that, Muichiro Tokito returned his broken blade to its sheath, left the forest, and headed back to the Swordsmith Village.
Lin Guang glanced at the Nichirin Blade in his hand and sighed softly.
"Looks like it's time for this blade of mine to retire, too. With a crack like that, I can't use it in battle anymore."
Mitsuri Kanroji came up and hugged Lin Guang's arm. "Wow! You two were incredible! I was worried just now that you'd keep fighting even after your blades broke. Thankfully, you stopped."
"Of course. We were only sparring, after all, and we both gained quite a bit from it."
"Mm-hmm! Now that you're done sparring and have worked up a sweat, how about going to the hot springs together?" Mitsuri Kanroji suggested.
Lin Guang nodded. "Sure, let's go."
Mitsuri Kanroji followed behind Lin Guang, blushing as she silently cheered herself on.
Yes! I'll win Lin Guang over today! You can do it, Mitsuri!
But on their way to the hot springs, they happened to run into Tanjiro, who had arrived at the Swordsmith Village.
"Oh! Senior Lin Guang! What are you doing in the Swordsmith Village?" Tanjiro greeted Lin Guang with delighted surprise.
Mitsuri Kanroji also spotted Tanjiro and greeted him warmly. "Oh! It's Tanjiro! Hello!"
"Miss Kanroji, you're here in the Swordsmith Village, too!" Tanjiro greeted Mitsuri Kanroji with a smile.
Lin Guang told Tanjiro, "I came here to have a Nichirin Blade suited to me