"Caw!"
A Kasugai Crow circled above a mansion and called out:
"Hashira-level swordsman Kyojuro Rengoku and Mr. Yoriichi have slain..."
The moment the Kasugai Crow's cry rang out, a hand grabbed the stopper from a sake flask and hurled it straight at the crow.
"Stop bothering me!"
The stopper flew extremely fast, but the Kasugai Crow seemed accustomed to this. It abruptly spiraled upward, deftly dodging the stopper.
At the same time, the Kasugai Crow delivered the rest of its message:
"Slain Upper Rank Two!"
The Kasugai Crow loudly repeated the news twice as it circled, then flapped its wings and flew away.
Beneath the mansion's eaves, a disheveled middle-aged man who closely resembled Kyojuro Rengoku rubbed his stubbled chin, wiping away the sake on it.
This man was Kyojuro Rengoku's father, Shinjuro Rengoku.
"Pointless news. It has... no meaning at all!"
His son, the Demon Slayer Corps' current Flame Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku, had just visited and told him about his battle against Upper Rank Two, Akaza.
Although Kyojuro Rengoku had defeated an Upper Rank, his father, Shinjuro Rengoku, had merely kept his back turned to his son as usual, without so much as a word, let alone any praise.
Shinjuro Rengoku had thought today's "disturbance" was over, only for the Kasugai Crow to deliver the news again.
This worsened his mood. He drained the remaining sake in his flask in one gulp, then hurled it into the courtyard, smashing it to pieces.
"Useless! Completely useless!"
"So what if you become a Hashira? So what if you kill an Upper Rank?"
"You still can't solve the root of the problem!"
"People's abilities are determined at birth. Those with talent are destined to be the minority."
"Besides, even if you have talent, so what?"
Shinjuro Rengoku's expression grew darker as he