Chapter 63: Makomo's Request

Following the conclusion of the Final Selection, Kagaya Ubuyashiki, the master of the Demon Slayer Corps, received the news immediately. At this time, his eyes were not yet completely blinded, and the scars on his face were still not very prominent.

The curse's corrosion upon his body was not yet severe.

"An interesting young man has emerged from this selection, possessing such strength at such a tender age."

Hearing the continuous reports spewed by his Kasugai Crow, Kagaya Ubuyashiki sat in the courtyard corridor and said with a comforted smile, "So he is Gyomei's Tsuguko. Has his Stone Breathing finally found a successor? That is truly wonderful..."

"I can only hope the appearance of this young man will bring a slight turning point to this war that has spanned a thousand years."

In the empty courtyard, no one responded to Kagaya Ubuyashiki's earnest expectations. Every time the Final Selection concluded, he would utter similar remarks.

Having officially become a swordsman, Chuyang made a detour to the Butterfly Mansion before returning to his temple.

He intended to share this news with Kanae Butterfly and Shinobu Butterfly, who had saved his life.

However, Makomo, having arrived at the Butterfly Mansion ahead of him, had already recounted everything she could, leaving Kanae marveling at the entire process of the Final Selection.

"We are going to be quite busy next. That boy practically exterminated all the demons in Mount Fujikasane, and we'll have to capture another batch to replenish them." A hint of admiration laced Kanae's tone, though mingled with helplessness, as the Butterfly Mansion was overwhelmed with wounded patients and she could not possibly leave.

"To think that such terrifying demons would appear in the trial grounds of the Final Selection—no wonder the survival rate in the past was always so low. If we had realized this sooner, many people might have survived," the youthful Shinobu could not help complaining to her elder sister.

"Shinobu, such a situation may be cruel, but it is something every Demon Slayer must experience. Once you become an official member, you will frequently face such cruelty, whether the targets are ordinary people or ourselves."

Kanae admonished her earnestly, saying, "Although you are also an official member, you have always lived with me in the Butterfly Mansion and have yet to experience these things. But that does not mean you can always remain so naive."

"Understood, Sister." Shinobu, who had yet to experience the sorrow of life and death, remained lively and cheerful, playfully sticking her tongue out at her sister.

Seeing that her words had not truly registered, Kanae could only shake her head with a helpless sigh.

As the two sisters were talking, Chuyang pushed open the gates of the Butterfly Mansion.

Just as he wanted to greet them, an angry Kanae chased him off to the bathroom to wash away the filth on his body.

This was a place for treating the wounded, and nothing was more taboo than Chuyang barging in covered in blood, grime, and dirt. If luck was bad, it could cause infections among the patients.

Accustomed to the stench of blood, Chuyang had not realized this.

In the past, he would have been the very first person unable to stand being dirty.

By the time Chuyang emerged from the bathroom, thoroughly cleaned up, the sun had already slipped away quietly. At dusk, the fragrance of dinner drifted through the Butterfly Mansion.

"A familiar dinnertime."

Having lived here for a week, Chuyang was intimately familiar with every blade of grass and tree in the Butterfly Mansion, and he found the dining hall without needing anyone to guide him.

Makomo sat alone at the dining table, both of her legs encased in plaster casts.

Upon seeing Chuyang, a sudden light flashed in her eyes.

"Are you sitting here?" Makomo stared at him with wide, pleading eyes.

Chuyang smacked his lips and walked over with obvious reluctance. Even after spending seven days together on Mount Fujikasane, his anger had not entirely dissipated from being treated like a pervert by the young girl.

In truth, the two of them had not really spent seven days together in the true sense of the word.

Rather, Makomo had drifted between waking and sleeping on Chuyang's back, spending seven hazy days in a daze.

Chuyang had not even spoken a single word to her, entirely preoccupied with hunting demons everywhere, while Makomo had been too embarrassed to initiate a conversation due to her earlier misunderstanding that had cast him as a villain. Thus, the two eccentric youths had literally gone seven whole days without exchanging a single word.

It was only after the selection ended that Makomo was brought to the Butterfly Mansion by the Kakushi.

"How are you holding up?" Chuyang sat down brazenly beside her, glancing at her leg injuries, which looked rather severe.

"Not too bad. Lady Kanae says that if I undergo proper treatment, my mobility won't be permanently affected." Having escaped the jaws of death, Makomo was delighted, her eyes curving into crescent moons. "If you had arrived any later, I might truly have ended up crippled."

"That's not bad at all." Chuyang nodded, feeling a weight lift from his heart, and then asked:

"When will you recover approximately?"

The smile on Makomo's face dimmed slightly, though she still tried hard to maintain it as she replied, "The casts can be removed after three months, but to fully regain mobility, I'll need another month of rehabilitation training."

"I never imagined the first four months of officially becoming a swordsman would be spent right here in the Butterfly Mansion..."

At this point, Makomo paused, looking at Chuyang with a hesitant expression.

"You don't expect me to do some troublesome chore for you, do you?" Chuyang looked at her with guarded suspicion.

Her thoughts guessed correctly, Makomo's face flushed a deep crimson, the blush spreading from the tips of her ears all the way down her neck. She hurriedly waved her hands in shyness and stammered, "I'm sorry, if you're unwilling, then never mind."

And Chuyang, who had always despised trouble, nodded and said, "Indeed, I am unwilling."

Makomo's face burned as red as blood, her voice growing softer and softer until it hummed like a mosquito, and finally, she buried her head away in shame.

"Bullying a young girl is hardly something a real man should do!"

Kanae suddenly appeared beside them.

Gazing at Chuyang with disdain, she gave him a sharp rap on the head with the spoon she was holding.

The sound was quite crisp, but Chuyang didn't feel any pain at all, presumably because his skin and thick skull were too tough.

Shinobu wanted to follow her sister's example and knock Chuyang on the head as well.

Instead, Chuyang snatched the spoon right out of her hand and casually tapped her on the head, raising a large bump.

"Ow!" Crying out in pain, Shinobu clutched her head and buried herself against her sister, tears welling in her eyes as she glared fiercely at Chuyang.

Their childish antics left Kanae feeling both exasperated and amused.

"What harm is there in listening to a request? You won't lose a piece of flesh," Shinobu said angrily, clutching her forehead.

"Go ahead, let's hear it." Chuyang raised the corners of his lips, feeling thoroughly refreshed.

"I just wanted to ask you to deliver a message to Mr. Urokodaki, so he can set his mind at ease, and also..." Makomo bit her lower lip and said softly, "About the Hand Demon, I don't know whether I should tell him or not."

Hearing this, Chuyang's expression turned solemn as well.

Those children who had perished were likely to remain an unhealed wound in Sakonji Urokodaki's heart.

Kanae let out a soft, melancholy sigh. What she feared most was not facing powerful demons, but rather the current plight of Sakonji Urokodaki.

If he were to discover that the warding masks he had so kindly bestowed upon his disciples had ultimately become their death warrants, anyone in his position would suffer a complete breakdown.

"He has the right to know. As for whether he can find peace with it, that is his own affair." Chuyang decided to make the trip on Makomo's behalf; in any case, he was in no rush to return to the temple, and demon-hunting assignments would arrive in due time.

Ultimately, Makomo told Chuyang the location of Mount Sagiri, and the moment he finished dinner, he resolved to travel there through the night, regardless of Kanae's attempts to stop him.

"Why is this man as stubborn as an ox?" Kanae complained.

Shinobu nodded repeatedly at her side, plotting to bounce that exact same blow back onto his head the next time they met.