"That Eiichiro guy can hear us talking?"
The ghosts were startled. Only when they discovered Roy's words were directed at Sakonji Urokodaki did Shinsuke, Fukuda, and the others breathe sighs of relief, thinking it was a false alarm. Yet their hearts also felt somewhat disappointed.
"Mm." Sakonji Urokodaki faced away from Roy, finishing the meal and bringing it out.
Still miso soup with a small bowl of rice. This time with a small plate of yesterday's leftover wild boar meat, sliced and arranged on a plate.
"Eat first." The old man wore his tengu mask, first picking up a slice of wild boar meat and tossing it in his mouth.
Roy followed by drinking a sip of miso soup to warm his stomach. After dealing with a few bites, he received the hot tea Sakonji Urokodaki passed over.
"Briefly describe the battle." Tea steam curled upward. Sakonji Urokodaki knelt by the brazier, carefully listening to Roy recount. The final summary was similar to Roy's review results last night.
"Your idea of using frayed sleeve threads to wrap the sword handle was quite good, but you're still taking shortcuts. Taking shortcuts is what the weak do when they're forced into a corner with no other options."
Sakonji Urokodaki recalled past clashes with powerful demons. Fortunately the opponent was Eiichiro's father. Otherwise, encountering those powerful Upper Moons, no matter how clever the tricks, surviving would be nearly impossible.
"So you must practice more, eat more. When you've grown strong enough, that's when you strike."
"I think so too." Roy smiled, draining his cup in one gulp. Without wasting words, he grabbed the training sword hanging on the wall, pushed open the door, and advanced into Mount Sagiri's depths through wind and snow.
The young man's uneven steps disappeared into wind and snow. Sakonji Urokodaki silently watched from behind. After a moment, he brought his carving knife and wood materials over, beginning to carve a mask.
"Master is going to carve a mask for Eiichiro. Meaning Eiichiro has proven himself worthy."
Makomo noticed Sakonji Urokodaki's actions, murmuring softly. Beside her, Sabito gripped his sword hilt, saying nothing.
"Twenty-three thousand one hundred twenty-eight, twenty-three thousand one hundred twenty-nine."
Sunday—twenty-four thousand strikes. Monday—twenty-six thousand strikes. Tuesday—twenty-eight thousand strikes. The night before departing to see the doctors, Roy swung one blade, bringing up a crescent-shaped slash, successfully completing three sessions of "ten thousand basic swings"!
The slash separated from the training sword, embedding itself in a wooden stake three meters away, cleanly severing it in two.
Status panel notification: [Swordsmanship +18]
[Current Swordsmanship Level: 88/100 (Beginner)→6/1000 (Proficient)]
"Monster! How did he achieve blade projection after just half a month of practice?"
Shinsuke cried out, floating up from the broken stake. Roy's slash just now had nearly cleaved him in half.
The air slash formed by sword wind tearing through air was blade projection—an achievement he'd dreamed of completing when alive!
"At this rate, his graduation and boulder cleaving aren't far off." Fukuda looked more carefully than Shinsuke. In his view, the slash separated from the training sword, flying a full four meters before dissipating after splitting the stake. This distance could easily pass the final test Sakonji Urokodaki set.
In the original story, Sakonji Urokodaki's final test for Tanjiro was cleaving a spherical boulder with a three-meter radius. Roy's slash just now clearly exceeded this radius.
"It won't happen." Sabito stood on the birch tree, eyes unprecedentedly bright, seeing deeper than Fukuda. He took a deep breath. "Master won't let Eiichiro leave the mountain so quickly. He's not us—far from reaching his own limits. Master must completely push him to his potential to not waste this exceptional talent."
Really amazing, Eiichiro. If it's you, you can definitely change this terrible world. Sabito spoke while thinking silently. His sleeve was pulled by Makomo.
The girl looked up, beautiful eyes sparkling as she gazed at him. "Hey, was Senior Brother Giyu this amazing back then?"
Giyu Tomioka, the current Water Pillar, was the pride of Sakonji Urokodaki and all the spirits like Sabito and Makomo. Before seeing Roy, Sabito firmly believed Giyu was the master's most talented and gifted disciple.
But now, "Giyu is far inferior to Eiichiro." Sabito shook his head, stating firmly. "Before learning breathing techniques, he couldn't achieve blade projection, let alone project four meters in one strike."
"I knew Eiichiro was unique."
"Yes, he is." Sabito chuckled. "I'm now quite curious—when he graduates, what will Master use to test him?"
A ten-meter boulder, or a waterfall dropping nearly thirty meters, or perhaps simply an earthen mound?
Sabito stared intently at Roy. The young man exhaled deeply, pulling out a pre-prepared handkerchief from his chest and beginning to wipe the training sword. Yukigakure was a sword; the training sword was also a sword. Not human, naturally no need for devotion. Roy focused intently on wiping, silently building a connection with the blade. Soon receiving tomorrow's training plan, unsurprisingly—
"Add two thousand more tomorrow."
Sakonji Urokodaki emerged from the dense forest, saying, as usual. Snow accumulated on his shoulders, exposing the fact he'd silently watched from behind for a long time.
"Alright." Roy was succinct.
After finishing wiping the blade, he turned again, following Sakonji Urokodaki back to the warm wooden house. Dinner was several wild chickens he'd hunted in the dense forest yesterday.
This time Roy didn't hold back. Alone, he devoured three chickens in minutes, collapsing on the warm bed with a full belly, sleeping contentedly. At his feet, Makomo stared at him resentfully.
Looking but unable to eat—too cruel for a spirit. Makomo really wanted to experience again what "flavor" tasted like. After all, she'd been dead for so long, almost forgetting that feeling.
Faint snoring echoed. Under Makomo's watch, Roy slept quickly and deeply tonight. Perhaps no longer anxious about passing Silva's test, or perhaps relaxing before the upcoming journey.
In any case, when he opened his eyes again the next day, leaving the Demon Slayer world and returning to Kukuroo Mountain, that familiar fatigue had clearly lightened considerably. Even his wake-up time improved by two minutes.
The familiar bell chimed. His daily mandatory run began. Following the path from the mountaintop castle downward, passing the butler's villa, arriving at the mountain base, Roy's gaze sharpened. He unexpectedly saw two acquaintances—Grandfather Zeno and butler Tsubone.
"Good morning, young master." Zebro was sharp-eyed. How else could he have been gatekeeper for so many years?
From afar, he removed his hat in salute to Roy. Then Zeno and Tsubone simultaneously turned to glance at him. Tsubone placed her right hand over her chest in acknowledgment. Her body transformed into a small sedan car. The car door opened. Zeno, after scanning him with an expressionless face, sat inside. She pressed the accelerator with a roar, speeding down the mountain.
"Baise's Seven Transformations"—a remarkably useful ability. Roy stood gazing into the distance, deciding that upon his return he'd have Gotoh transform for him too!