Fetching Kie's basket first from Nezuko's room, Tanjiro then made his way out to the balcony.
He still hadn't claimed the reward from earlier, so the panel remained visible beside him.
Looking at Kanae nearby, who was floating upside down without a care in the world, he chuckled inwardly.
'What a carefree life…'
Not minding her presence, he pressed the Claim option swiftly.
The next moment, a wooden gourd materialized out of nowhere. He caught it instantly with his unnatural senses.
'Oh, there's plenty…'
Opening the lid, he checked the quantity.
'Thirty, huh… Good enough. I'll need to use them carefully…'
Kanae noticed the gourd in his hand, which clearly hadn't been there moments ago. "What's that, Tanjiro-kun?" she asked.
He smiled and responded casually. "Good stuff."
Storing the gourd inside his clothes, he jumped down from the balcony.
With precise control over his body and tempered bones, he landed perfectly. Kie's basket was tightly shut. Because of the basket's small size, she had been adjusting her form all this time.
'I'll feed her some blood later… That way, I can also test Self-healing's effects.' He decided.
"Ho… I've been watching and analyzing you for quite some time, but you've exceeded my expectations every single time. From what I can tell, you're far too strong for someone your age. Way stronger than I was when I was alive, to be honest…" Kanae said with an observant look.
Tanjiro showed a smirk upon seeing her amazed expression. "Ah, did I forget to mention I single-handedly destroyed Lower Moon 2 yesterday?"
Kanae's eyes went wide.
"What!? Are you kidding me?"
Tanjiro just smiled and began dashing toward the Ubuyashiki Mansion.
As for her, she was too shocked to follow him at first. 'He defeated one of the Twelve Kizuki at thirteen? Is he a sword prodigy? No, he definitely is! Otherwise how could he have defeated such a powerful demon…'
She was pondering deeply by herself. However, once Tanjiro moved away from the mansion, a strong force suddenly tugged at her ghostly body, dragging her behind him.
"KYAAA!! WHAT'S GOING ON~!"
It wasn't painful, but experiencing something like that out of nowhere—completely outside her imagination—freaked her out despite being a ghost.
Tanjiro smiled wryly.
'I fucking knew it. She was summoned as the reward, so she's bound to me, not the damn mansion…'
Kanae realized the situation in a few seconds.
'Him… It's him!'
She quickly righted herself and flew toward him fast. Once she entered a certain perimeter, the pulling force vanished instantly. She kept pace beside him, maintaining a safe distance.
"Tanjiro! What's this? I'm being pulled toward you forcefully, what's happening…?" she questioned with a confused and astonished face.
Hearing her questions and seeing her baffled look, the corner of his lips twitched secretly.
Without slowing his pace, he answered in his calm voice, "Kanae-san, how would I know? I'm not some ghost expert… And if you can't get away, then all you have to do is stay close. No?"
She puffed her cheeks like a Jigglypuff and mumbled, "Boo, fine… I wanted to roam around by myself anyway…"
She fell quiet afterward, busy enjoying the lush scenery.
Tanjiro sighed inwardly.
'So she's stuck with me after all, huh… Hm, if it's possible to recreate her body through the system's help, this situation could be solved… Though the chances are slim…'
Shortly after, he returned to the Ubuyashiki Manor, though he now had a ghost companion.
"It's still the same…" Kanae mumbled.
Tanjiro entered the manor and soon came upon five children: four white-haired girls and a…
'What the fuck… Right, right, he's dressed like a girl to hide his identity… Though why in their own house? Whatever, man. Their family, their rules…'
The last child was a black-haired boy dressed as a girl. Of course, it was Kiriya. He remembered.
"Yo, kids." He greeted them with a warm smile.
All five bowed lightly in response. "Hashira-sama."
'Hmm…? Amane's doing, I guess… I've already proven myself, so they've started treating me like the other Hashira. I see, I see… This feels great, heh.'
Kanae stared at him strangely. 'So it's true… He really defeated a Lower Moon demon… Unbelievable.'
Tanjiro patted their heads with a gentle smile, and they enjoyed it genuinely. They were only five years old. Being pampered like that would obviously make them happy.
"Is Mitsuri-san awake?" he asked.
Kiriya was the one to answer. "Yes, Kanroji-san is in the dining room."
'… Hah. Let's accompany her.'
"Alright, thanks." He nodded and left with a wave.
The quintuplets glanced at the basket strapped on his back with slight discomfort before hurrying off to their mother's room. Their parents had been their only educators; their father was gentle and caring, explaining things with a warm smile, while their mother was very traditional and strict in her own way.
Kanae simply followed him quietly.
Tanjiro sniffed casually and located Mitsuri's presence.
His unnatural senses were truly giving him an edge above others. It felt like he had already transcended human-level perception.
'I have an idea how to train my senses even more… Hmm, I should just do it since I'm stuck before a high wall from the start…' While moving, he decided on his future training.
As he passed a few servants, Tanjiro arrived at the dining room.
"Uwahh, it's so delicious. Yumm~ I love your cooking, Koyuki-san~!"
Before even entering the room, her voice brimming with joy reached his ears.
'… This girl, she's so adorable when she eats, keke…'
Kanae's torso poked through the wall as her lower half remained beside him. "Mm, is she the Mitsuri girl you're looking for? Hehe, no wonder you hurried here—she's so cute… WAIT, how many plates are even there!?"
Tanjiro shook his head with a chuckle.
Next, he strode inside and found the hamster he needed to train, eating alone next to the small footed traditional table while sitting on the ground.
Mitsuri, with her mouth full of food, and a mature woman with emerald eyes preparing the food at the corner immediately fixed their gazes on him.
"Argh-! Tanjiro-kun, where were you? I was looking for you everywhere, mmmh…" She choked and quickly gulped water to wash it down.
"Don't shout while eating, Mitsuri…" He bowed politely to Koyuki-san before turning to the feasting girl.
"She sure can eat~" Kanae chuckled.
Mitsuri blushed lightly before inviting him over. "Come on, join. The food is really, really good~!"
Even though he had already eaten, he had a hunch it would come to this, so he hadn't eaten much with the others and had only focused on feeding Hanako while taking a few bites for himself.
Smelling the tasty-looking food, he simply nodded and sat down. Koyuki-san instantly began to serve the dishes without saying anything.
"Hey, we have our first training to do after this, so don't throw up later… Heh." He smirked as he began to eat.
Kanae could only stare at the food with deep longing.
Despite his warning, Mitsuri grinned and said confidently, "Fufu, you'll be surprised if you take me for a weak girl…"
'Ohh, we'll see…'
....
Patreon.com/ lordazathoth