"How about this, can I just call you Nameless for now?"
The kid didn't say anything. She just stared blankly at Itsuki.
…Was that a yes or a no? is she in the phase of not speaking much until to not speaking at all? damn
"Ahm, haha… it's fine if no one gave you a name. From your voice, you sounded like a girl. You've probably been through a lot, huh? Getting left behind by your parents at such a young age. I get it. I'm an orphan now too."
Trying to find something in common, Itsuki figured maybe that would help the girl open up a little. he didn't really know what to say in this type of situation
But she shook her head.
"ah …You're not a girl?"
She shook her head even harder, then mumbled, "I-I am a girl… but I'm not an orphan. I still live with my parents."
"…Oh."
Wait I thought her parents abandoned or sold her right? Shit im tripping I haven't watched demon slayer in a big minute
So much for the emotional angle. That got awkward fast.
Itsuki looked at the little girl again. She didn't look like someone being taken care of by her parents. Honestly, she looked more like a stray than he did.
"Okay… then what are you doing out here on such a cold day? And why'd you run into a place this dangerous? Your parents are probably worried. I'll take you home."
Shivering, Itsuki pulled his thin top tighter and stood up. Whether he wanted info or just to thank her, none of it mattered if she wasn't safe. well at least its better with her parents instead of out here alone with those demons, maybe she can use them as distractions or something
"I… I can't go back home."
"Huh?"
"There's no food at home right now. I came out to look for something to eat and somewhere to stay."
She said it so plainly, like it was just normal.
Itsuki didn't say anything for a second. So, the food he'd just eaten came from this girl… and she probably had to work hard to find it too. That hit pretty hard.
And he remembered it now. Her parents weren't just poor—they were the kind of people who left their kid to fend for herself. She was basically an orphan. Just… worse. way worse.
"…Alright. Then I'll help you find food, and anything we find is yours."
The girl's blank face twitched a little, surprised. No one had ever offered to help her before. She didn't really know what to say.
"C'mon, lead the way. And tell me what's edible, where to look for it."
She gave a little nod and walked in front, and the two of them started scavenging together.
The whole way, she answered his questions, but barely. Just short, dry replies. Whenever he asked something that needed a decision or opinion, she'd just go quiet. Definitely not great at conversation—but she was good at showing how things were done.
Itsuki noticed she had sharp eyes. She knew exactly where behind Flower Street's shops to look for scraps. Not much food, but it was edible. Sometimes they ran into other beggars, but no fights broke out.
Even after all that, she still split her finds with him.
Itsuki tried to turn it down, but his stomach growled too loudly to argue. So… yeah. He definitely owed her again.
"Ding! Host has consumed low-quality coarse grains. Skill point progress: +0.003%."
Itsuki sighed. This system was made for someone who loved eating. If he'd gotten it two years ago—back when he was still rich and pampered—he probably would've powered up fast, found the Demon Slayer Corps, and learned a Breathing Style because there's no way someone can survive here without one. But now? He was broke. Starving. Just another beggar.
Off in the distance, Flower Street was lit up, noisy, full of people. It felt like a whole different world. Itsuki sat in the shadows, watching quietly.
The girl walked up and dropped the pieces of charcoal she'd gathered into a dry spot. Itsuki helped her pile them up, and it took a while, but they finally got a small fire going.
"Hey, Nameless. You know any place where we could cut wood?"
She blinked, surprised.
"We keep eating junk like this, we're gonna get sick. I gotta figure out a way to make money so we can eat clean food."
There was a bit of fire in his eyes as he spoke.
"We'll start by selling firewood. Once we've saved up a little, I've got plenty of ideas to make real money. Trust me. Once one of them works, we'll be eating meat and fish every day."
The girl's eyes lit up just a bit at the thought.
"East… there's a grove that way. But it's far."
"Doesn't matter if it's far. You know where we can get an axe?"
"…No."
"Anything sharp will do."
"There's… something behind a shop…"
After a whole bunch of back-and-forth, they had a rough idea of what to do next. Itsuki invited her to join him.
The next morning, after they warmed up by the fire, they started their new plan.
and so
Three years passed in a blink.
Itsuki was now standing in a dojo, practicing sword swings.
He had grown up. No longer skinny and sick-looking, now he was a strong 15-year-old. You could tell by the way he moved—he'd been through a lot. And yeah, their plan to make money had actually worked out.
Back then, they found two busted knives in the trash it was nothing but at least they were decently sharp, then hiked to the grove and started chopping firewood it took a while, but he kept doing it you just had to do it right. Carrying it back was hell, and they didn't make much money selling it.
Half a month later, other firewood sellers found out and kicked them out of the area. If Itsuki hadn't kept one of the knives ready, they might've gotten beat up. people in this period were not really nice most of them had their own problems to deal with
Still, he was ready for setbacks. He came up with a new plan fast.
They froze their butts off bathing in the river, then used what little money they had to buy clean clothes. Looking halfway decent, they started job-hunting on Flower Street and finally landed work at a ramen shop.
The pay sucked. The hours were long. But the food was clean, and their health slowly got better.
That was only step one.
Next, Itsuki started writing stories. He bought paper and ink, and with what little free time he had, he started plagiarizing books he remembered from his old life after all it wasn't so hard to just work with what he remembered. After a bunch of failed attempts, one of the publishers finally accepted one. He started earning royalties—not a ton, but enough to matter.
Then came step three.
He picked a well-known martial arts dojo—Ren Martial Hall. After making sure it wasn't a scam, he dragged the girl with him, they both had to get stronger. They quit their jobs, used their savings to pay tuition, and signed up.
They ate and slept there, training during the day and working odd jobs whenever they could.
Itsuki never forgot how dangerous this world was. Making money was never the end goal—getting stronger was, well money was still important but first he had to get stronger to protect it.
And kendo wasn't just about swords. It was the first step toward mastering a Breathing Style, and maybe, one day, taking on demons head-on, if it ever came to it.