Teiichi raced toward the cabin with the little girl on his back.
Before long, the cabin came into view.
When he was still a few meters away, Teiichi stopped and carefully set the little girl down.
Teiichi took a few steps forward, but soon sensed something was wrong and turned to look.
The little girl stood rooted to the spot, her body trembling uncontrollably, as though shrouded in an invisible fear. Her eyes were filled with confusion and helplessness, a heartbreaking sight.
Teiichi fell silent for a moment, then slowly walked back to her side and gently took her little hand.
He led her into the cabin step by step, feeling the faint trembling of her hand with every step.
As soon as they entered, a thick, nauseating stench of blood hit them. The little girl, whose body had been trembling nonstop, miraculously stopped shaking, as though numbed by the pungent smell. Her eyes widened as she stared straight into the room, her gaze vacant and dull.
Only after a long while did the little girl seem to awaken from a dream. With heavy steps, she slowly approached her mother's head. Every step seemed so difficult, as though her legs weighed a thousand pounds. At last, she reached her mother's side, sank to her knees, and slowly reached out with her tender little hands to gently stroke her mother's cold cheeks.
"Drip..."
Suddenly, a faint sound reached Teiichi's ears as he stood in the doorway. He looked toward its source and saw a single crystal-clear drop of water on the floor that had not been there before. Before he could think it over, another drop fell, landing squarely on the floor at the little girl's feet.
Looking closely, Teiichi realized they were tears sliding down the little girl's cheeks. Her face was already drenched in tears, but though her mouth hung wide open, she could not make the slightest sound.
After a moment of silence, Teiichi slowly walked over and crouched beside her. He raised his hand to gently stroke the top of her head and said softly, "Cry if you want to. There's nothing wrong with crying."
Before he had even finished, it was as though a fuse had been lit, and the little girl burst into loud sobs.
"Wuh... woo... waaah... aaah..."
Her cries grew louder and more piercing, sobbing out her sorrow. Tears poured endlessly from her eyes like floodwaters bursting through a dam, running down her tender face. Like beads from a broken string, they spilled from her eyes and slid down her cheeks. Her cries were heart-wrenching, filled with boundless grief and desolation.
The little girl's body trembled slightly, her hands clutching the hem of her mother's clothes as though trying to hold on to one last trace of warmth. Her throat had already grown hoarse, yet she still cried out with all her strength, as though this were the only way to release the pain inside her.
Listening to her anguished cries beside him, the emotions Teiichi had calmed began churning once more: sympathy for the little girl, anger toward the demon, guilt over failing to save her mother-a whole tangle of conflicting feelings.
When he turned to comfort the little girl, he suddenly caught sight of her mother's face. Earlier, he had only hastily tidied things up without looking closely. Now that he did, her expression struck him hard.
Clearly visible tear tracks remained on her cheeks, but that was not what caught Teiichi's attention. What truly drew his gaze was the expression on the mother's face-that moving expression, radiant with maternal love.
Teiichi could almost see what this mother had experienced tonight: suppressing her fear upon encountering the demon and telling her child to run; refusing to struggle for fear that the demon would chase her child, enduring the pain as she watched it devour her; and the love for her child that rose to her face when she saw her child in the memories flashing before her eyes as she died.
The little girl's anguished cries still echoed in his ears.
Teiichi took a deep breath, slowly rose, and walked toward the door.
He looked at the bright moon hanging high overhead and slowly exhaled a stale breath.
"Creatures like demons really shouldn't exist in this world!"
Inside the cabin, the little girl's sorrowful cries continued to echo.
Early morning.
The faint light after dawn filtered through the dense branches and leaves, scattering like flecks of gold into every corner of the forest. The vast, boundless woodland seemed shrouded in a mysterious yet warm veil, shimmering with light.
Teiichi emerged from the dense woods and reached the cabin door.
The cabin was unusually quiet. The little girl's heart-wrenching wails that had once echoed here had faded. She was human, after all; however heartbroken she was, she could not cry and shed tears endlessly.
Yet when Teiichi entered the room, he saw the little girl still kneeling beside her mother, motionless, as though she had lost her soul.
Teiichi spoke softly. "The dead can't come back to life. I dug a grave not far from here. Let's bury your mother."
At his words, the little girl's taut body gave a slight shudder. Her hands involuntarily clenched, then slowly relaxed again. Keeping her head lowered, she remained silent for a moment before replying in a voice so faint it was almost inaudible, "O... okay."
Seeing this, Teiichi stepped forward and, with gentle, careful movements, wrapped her mother's remains tightly in a white cloth. He carefully lifted them and slowly headed toward the grave he had dug beforehand. The little girl followed silently behind, every step seeming difficult and heavy.
Before long, they reached the grave Teiichi had dug at daybreak. He carefully lowered her mother's remains into it, then began meticulously filling it with soil.
The little girl began sobbing faintly again, her cries like fallen leaves drifting in the wind, carrying endless sorrow.
Yet she still bravely rose to her feet and stepped forward through her sobs. With her tender little hands, she scooped up handful after handful of soil, helping Teiichi fill the pit that would soon become a fresh grave. Through their efforts, a small mound gradually rose before them, like the earth's embrace gently accepting the life that had passed.
After filling in the grave, Teiichi picked up the stone marker beside it, which he had carved using Wind Breathing. The little girl's mother's name was engraved on it.
Teiichi had asked the little girl for it before digging the grave. He should also have carved the dates of her birth and death, but unfortunately, the little girl did not know when her mother had been born. The grooves in the stone varied in depth, but every stroke looked firm and strong.
After the marker was set in place, the little girl silently walked before it, knelt, and gently kowtowed several times, expressing her longing and respect for her mother. Beside her, Teiichi also bowed, offering his condolences to this unfamiliar yet respectable mother.
After the memorial rites ended, the little girl remained kneeling there, gazing blankly at the newly erected gravestone, as though her mother were there, quietly watching her. Teiichi stood a short distance away, silently watching over her, letting time stand still in that moment.
Only after a long while did Teiichi softly break the silence. "What's your name?" His voice was gentle and resonant, like a spring breeze brushing across a lake.
Roused by Teiichi's voice, the little girl lifted her head and looked into his deep, bright eyes. "Ko... Kobayashi Kanon," she answered. Her voice was slightly hoarse from crying for so long.
Teiichi continued, "Do you have any other family?"
"No." Kobayashi Kanon gently shook her head, her voice filled with helplessness and sorrow.
Hearing Kobayashi Kanon's answer, Teiichi fell silent.
None? The government of Japan doesn't seem to deal with this sort of thing right now, either. Am I going to have to take her back to the Demon Slayer Corps? But becoming a Demon Slayer is far too dangerous.
Oh, no, there's also the Butterfly Mansion.
At that thought, Teiichi felt reassured and said to Kanon, "I'll take you home with me first. My master is away for a couple of days. Once he returns, I'll ask him to arrange for you to live at the Butterfly Mansion."
After speaking, Teiichi realized the little girl probably did not know what the Butterfly Mansion did, so he continued explaining. "We're with the Demon Slayer Corps. We hunt evil demons to protect humans. The one you encountered yesterday was a demon. The Butterfly Mansion supports our Demon Slayer Corps, treating members injured while hunting demons."
"Don't worry. It's very safe there, and there are more girls there, too. It'll be a better place for you to live."
However, Kobayashi Kanon did not answer him immediately. Instead, she asked, "Big brother, what's your name?"
"My name is Kato Teiichi," he answered with a smile.
Kobayashi Kanon turned to look at Teiichi, then said firmly, "Big Brother Teiichi, can I learn how to hunt demons like you?"
Hearing Kanon's words, Teiichi fell silent. He now understood a little of why his master had not been very happy when he had first asked to become his disciple. Slowly, he said, "Hunting demons is very dangerous..."
Kanon gazed intently at Teiichi and answered with determination in her eyes, "I'm not afraid."
Teiichi remained silent for a while, meeting Kanon's gaze. After a long time, he said, "Then come home with me first. Once my master returns, I'll talk to him, and then we'll teach you Wind Breathing."
"Okay. Thank you, Big Brother Teiichi." A brilliant smile appeared on Kobayashi Kanon's face, warm and bright as the spring sunshine.
Teiichi and Kanon stayed before the grave for a long while longer. Looking up at the sun, which was already high overhead, Teiichi said to Kobayashi Kanon, "It's getting late. We'll still have to cook after we get up the mountain. Let's go back and pack what you'll need first."
At his words, Kanon slowly rose. Having knelt for so long, she stumbled a little as she stood.
The two returned to the cabin together. Kanon went inside to pack her belongings and soon came out carrying a small bundle. Worried that her strength would give out, Teiichi took it from her.
Gently pulling the door shut, Kanon stood blankly outside the cabin for a while longer, as though bidding farewell to the past.
After a long while, the two headed up the mountain together.