It was early morning under a dim sky. The sun that could drive away the darkness had not yet risen.
Tanjirō said goodbye to old man Saburō, picked up his charcoal basket, and jogged toward his home in the mountains.
For some reason, he felt an urgent desire to return home.
Last night, he had dreamed of Kie and Hanako.
Kie's face was as gentle as always. Hanako and the three little brothers were all smiling cheerfully at Tanjirō.
None of the others spoke, but Kie's voice, soft like feathers, said to him, "Tanjirō… Tanjirō… Mother is taking Hanako and the others to leave you now. We're going to a new world, one without sorrow or burdens."
"Tanjirō, don't be sad, and don't grieve. Seeing you live happily is what we all truly wish for."
"Goodbye… Tanjirō…"
With that, Kie turned away with the other children and walked into a world of endless white light.
An inexplicable sadness welled up inside him, and Tanjirō felt a sudden urge to cry.
"Don't go…"
He desperately ran toward the direction Kie was leaving, reaching out for the fluttering edge of her sleeve as he chased her.
But no matter how hard he tried, even as he pushed himself to exhaustion, Tanjirō couldn't catch up.
He could only watch helplessly as Kie and the others disappeared into the white light.
"Don't go! Please!"
Tanjirō suddenly jolted awake from the dream. When he realized it had just been a dream, he felt a wave of relief.
He truly couldn't imagine what life would be like without Kie and the others.
After escaping the sadness of the dream, Tanjirō noticed that his cheeks were wet. He reached up in confusion.
At some point, two streams of tears had silently run down his face.
Looking out the window, the sky was still dark, but the wind and snow had lightened. It was possible to move around now.
Tanjirō quietly scooped up a handful of snow from the window ledge and wiped his face with it to wake himself up.
Then, he quickly put on his outer coat, slung his basket over his back, and prepared to leave.
He didn't want to disturb old man Saburō's sleep, so he moved quietly. He left a note. Saburō would see it when he woke up.
However, as he slowly opened the door, the old, poorly maintained wood let out loud creaking noises.
Tanjirō froze. That probably woke him.
Sure enough, Saburō awoke and saw Tanjirō, packed and ready at the door.
The old man yawned and asked, "Heading home already, Tanjirō? It's still dark out. Not going to wait for daylight?"
"There are man-eating demons wandering before sunrise, you know."
Tanjirō scratched his head, a little embarrassed. "I don't know why, but I feel empty inside… kind of worried about my family's safety. I just want to get home quickly."
Saburō nodded in understanding. "So that's it. No need to mind me, Tanjirō. Hurry home."
"Many people don't believe in this, but I'm certain—there's some mysterious connection between family members. Even if they're thousands of miles apart, sometimes they'll suddenly feel something."
Hearing that made Tanjirō even more uneasy. Could something really have happened to Kie and the others? Was that why he had that dream?
At that moment, Saburō seemed to remember something and sighed.
"Sigh. When my son had an accident far from home, I kept having nightmares for days before it happened. If only I had acted sooner, maybe I could've prevented it all."
"Hurry, Tanjirō. In this life, family is the only thing that truly matters."
Tanjirō quickly responded. Even though he was anxious, he still gently shut the door behind him as he left.
Noticing Tanjirō's thoughtful gesture, the old man smiled faintly from inside the house. "Such a kind and gentle boy… surely fate will treat him kindly."
But fate does not treat the kind kindly.
On the contrary, fate loves to push people to the edge of despair, then watch them struggle to survive—and delights in it.
After a while, Tanjirō had already jogged halfway up the mountain. He was almost home.
But his nose twitched slightly. He smelled something.
"This… smells like blood?"
Suppressing the dread in his heart, Tanjirō sped up. He could only hope he was wrong.
Amidst the swirling snow, a small figure staggered against the wind. Battling the snow, it ran across the white-covered path, desperately and without care for life.
The scent of blood grew stronger and stronger, now thick and choking in his nose.
Tanjirō didn't want to believe it—but his instincts told him the scent was coming from his home.
"Nezuko, Hanako… Rokuta, please be okay…"
Clinging to a sliver of hope, Tanjirō panicked as he ran with everything he had.
Until he finally saw it with his own eyes—his home, the warm wooden cabin that had shielded them from the cold, was now in ruins. The door was shattered into scattered planks. Blood was faintly visible in the snow…
In his panic, Tanjirō tripped on a rock and fell face-first into the snow.
Ignoring the pain in his body, he scrambled and crawled into the cabin.
But the bloody scene that met his eyes was like a blade, cleaving his entire world apart.
"Ah! Ah! Ah!"
"Mother… Nezuko, Hanako, Takeo, Shigeru, Rokuta…"
Fighting back tears, Tanjirō checked them one by one—only to find that all six had no signs of life.
He collapsed to his knees.
Tears poured down in waves.
The grief and pain crushed his chest like a boulder, making it hard to breathe.
Just as he was about to faint from sorrow, he suddenly saw Nezuko's shoulder twitch.
"Nezuko!"
Like light in the darkness, like grabbing a lifeline, Tanjirō ignored the blood on her clothes and pulled her into his arms.
"Nezuko… thank goodness. Big brother will save you. Hang in there."
There was no time.
Just now, he had nearly thought Nezuko was dead. She must be severely wounded, but there was still hope.
"Mother… everyone else… I'll save Nezuko first. Please wait for me."
Time was critical. Tanjirō could only take Nezuko down the mountain to find a doctor and return later to care for the others' remains.
At that moment, out of the corner of his eye, Tanjirō noticed something written on the wall. The writing was messy and rushed, but he recognized it.
It was his older brother Kamado Asaki's handwriting.
"Tanjirō, don't lose hope. You must live. Live on. Wait for me to find you."
So… big brother Asaki was still alive. But why had he abandoned everyone and left?
Tanjirō didn't dwell on it. He was too worried about Nezuko's injuries.
He only wanted to get her to a doctor as fast as possible.
With one last reluctant glance at the others' bodies, Tanjirō hoisted Nezuko onto his back and rushed out the door.
Ignoring the exhaustion in his body, he ran with everything he had down the mountain.
But he didn't see it.
Behind him, Nezuko's eyes were still shut, but her small face was slowly contorting.
Bluish veins crept beneath her pale skin…
(End of Chapter)