Over the next six days, Tanjirou, now fully recovered, followed Karasuma Reiyu as they hunted the demons scattered across Fujikasane Mountain. Most of the time, Reiyu would finish the demons off in a single blow—or, if he felt generous, he'd leave one or two alive so Tanjirou could get some practice.
But the demons that didn't even reach a Rank 2 evaluation were too weak to offer Tanjirou any real growth. And for the sake of efficiency, Reiyu certainly wasn't going to let him deal with Rank 2 demons either.
So, for the most part, Tanjirou spent the days "coasting," though occasionally Reiyu would humor him with sparring sessions in the daylight. Those brief bouts offered him tiny slivers of improvement—almost negligible, but enough for him to start learning some combat tricks.
By the sixth night of the final selection, Reiyu noticed something odd: it had become strangely quiet on Fujikasane Mountain. Demons were scarce, far fewer than on the first day. That night, Tanjirou encountered maybe ten demons—completely incomparable to the swarm from day one.
It wasn't until the final night that Reiyu realized the truth: he had killed so many demons during the seven days that the mountain was nearly cleared of them.
As a result, Reiyu's combat power skyrocketed from the low 400s to over 900, and his evaluation jumped from Rank 3 to Earth Tier. Meanwhile, Tanjirou, whose combat power had barely reached the low 100s, only gained a measly 5 points. His face was the perfect picture of exasperation.
When the final selection ended, Reiyu and Tanjirou returned to the gathering place where the surviving demon slayers had assembled. There, aside from the two of them, a little over ten others had passed. Fewer than the twenty-some who had initially come, but still an impressive number.
Of course, most of them only passed because Reiyu had wiped out the majority of the mountain's demons. Without him, only six—including Reiyu and Tanjirou—would have made it.
"Reiyu-senpai, what are we supposed to do now?" Tanjirou asked, curious. The final selection was over, so why was everyone still lingering? Something else had to be happening.
"Don't know. Once all the paperwork's done, we'll head back to Urokodaki Old Man and let him know that Hand Demon's been dealt with," Reiyu said lazily, leaning against a large tree with his hands behind his head.
Tanjirou's smile faded slightly, tinged with sadness. Even though Reiyu had avenged their senior disciples by killing Hand Demon, they still couldn't return to Urokodaki Sakonji's side. Among the surviving students were two who had been particularly important mentors in Tanjirou's life—without their guidance, he wouldn't have been able to pass Urokodaki's final trial or participate in this final selection.
Sensing Tanjirou's thoughts, Reiyu patted his head.
"Don't be sad. Life and death are fate. As mere mortals, we can't change that. Look at all these people who passed—if I hadn't killed so many demons, they'd probably be dead by now."
Reiyu, as one of Urokodaki's disciples, couldn't pretend the deaths of their senior students didn't affect him—he just had a looser view of it than Tanjirou, so it didn't weigh on his mind.
"Yeah… if it weren't for you, Reiyu-senpai, I probably would've died on the mountain too," Tanjirou said, nodding. A bright, genuine smile spread across his face.
At that moment, a dazzling light appeared in the east. A massive golden sun slowly rose, illuminating the desolate land below.
"So… because most of the demons on the mountain were killed, most of the people passed the selection?"
Far away, in a small courtyard, a white figure spoke quietly from under an eave, a jet-black crow perched on their shoulder.
"Reiyu… like Giyuu, another of Urokodaki Sakonji's disciples… he's truly an outstanding child." The figure smiled faintly. "Once the selection is over, have him come see me immediately."
The crow on their shoulder spread its wings and flew off into the distance.
"My child… you've grown even stronger."
"Now, everyone will be issued the Demon Slayer Corps uniform, as well as communication crows called Kasugawas. Then each of you will choose a suitable hilt, and the swordsmiths will forge your Nichirin Blade—capable of killing demons."
Shortly after Reiyu finished talking with Tanjirou, two almost identical young girls appeared. The only obvious difference was their hair color.
"Hey! What's this about? I want my Nichirin Blade—right now!"
Just as everyone thought things would proceed smoothly, a shout rang out from the crowd. Turning to see, they spotted a boy in purple robes with a huge scar across his face stepping forward.
It was Genya Shinazugawa. Reiyu immediately recognized him as the same boy who had caused minor friction during their ascent of the mountain.
Shouting incessantly, Genya stormed toward one of the girls and yanked her hair.
Tanjirou, horrified, moved to intervene—but Reiyu was faster. He stepped in front of Genya, grabbing his arm with a single hand.
"Hey, she's a girl. Maybe try not doing that?" Reiyu said with a smile, though it was clear his expression was meant to warn Genya to stop.
"You… you…" Genya froze, realization dawning. He'd seen Reiyu before at the base of Fujikasane Mountain, but had dismissed him as weak.
Even now, he still considered Reiyu weak. Struggling to break free, he was shocked to find he couldn't.
"Crack!"
Sensing Genya's attempt to escape, Reiyu applied a little more force. Genya's wrist cracked audibly, and he let out a pained scream.