In the charcoal kiln, the flames were burning fiercely, accompanied by crackling sounds, and sparks were flying in the kiln.
There is still some charcoal stored at home. If it were not for the continuous heavy snow in the past few days, there would be more.
But this is enough.
Tanjuro stood alone in front of the charcoal kiln, looking at the katana wedge deep in the charcoal kiln.
The firelight shone on his face.
The burning temperature of charcoal can reach 1000 degrees Celsius or even higher in the charcoal kiln.
That was enough to make the Kusabimaru glow red.
That is the so-called Kakuto.
The blade heated to a red-hot state that remained red for nearly 20 minutes under ideal conditions.
It takes an hour to cool down completely.
That's enough.
The sky gradually darkened.
The light around the mountain slowly dimmed, and the sun is setting.
Standing in front of the charcoal kiln, the firelight illuminated Tanjuro, who was standing with his arms crossed, and it stretched his shadow very long.
There was no one else around except for Tanjuro.
"Caw! Caw!" A few crows darted out of the dense forest beside them, the branches swayed, and the birds began to return to their nests, chirping.
In the darkening environment, only the snow that was slightly illuminated by the fire could be seen, and there were some messy footprints.
And two clear sets of axle tracks.
The messy footprints finally converged in the same direction and went straight down the mountain from that direction.
The snow, carried by the north wind, slowly covered the traces on the ground.
---
---
On the other side of the mountain.
Walking across an empty paddy field covered by snow.
The sky darkened, and the temperature slowly dropped.
~Whoosh~
The cold wind, mixed with flying snow, swept across the paddy fields.
The group walking on the small path in the field also subconsciously tightened the clothes on their bodies.
"Takeo, can you still hold on?"
Kie led Shigeru at the front.
Behind her was a wooden four-wheeled coal cart.
Nezuko walked in front of the charcoal cart, holding the hemp rope in her hand, pulling the charcoal cart.
Hanako was sitting on the coal cart, holding the young Rokuta and taking a rest.
~Creak...creak~
The wooden wheels rolled over the ground, causing the snow to sink and making a crunching sound.
With Tanjiro gone, the oldest male in the family was now Takeo, who was walking at the back of the group with an ax in his hand.
And he exerted his strength, pushing the coal cart slowly forward from behind.
"Takeo?"
Kie was turning around and calling out to Takeo, her breath coming out in a white cloud.
Takeo wrapped his scarf around his neck and raised his hand to wave.
"I'm fine!"
Hearing this, Kei slightly frowned; she stopped, went around the coal cart, and turned to take a walk toward Takeo.
"Mom." Takeo watched his mother walk toward him and subconsciously shrank his neck.
"Haaa..."
Kie walked up to Takeo, held out her hand, and breathed on it.
Then she squatted down and held Takeo's hands, which were red and trembling from the cold as he pushed the coal cart forward.
She raised her head and said to Takeo seriously,
"Don't be a show-off. If you're tired, we'll ask people to let us stay the night and rest."
"...I know." Takeo clenched his frozen hands and gripped the ax tightly.
Seeing this, Kie nodded and stood up.
"Mom, why..." Shigeru raised his head and looked at his mother.
He wanted to ask why the whole family was suddenly leaving, except for their father.
But seeing his mother's somewhat nervous and tired face, Shigeru stopped his words.
Kie heard Shigeru's question. She continued to walk along the street. Even when she reached the town, she did not dare to relax her vigilance. She lowered her head and said in a low voice,
"What's wrong, Shigeru?"
Shigeru shook his head, held his mother's hand, and changed his previous questions:
"Mom, where are we going?"
They left home around 1 p.m. and walked quickly.
Now, it was past dusk, and the sun was about to set.
The sky was dark.
~Squeak~
Kei frowned.
She recalled the conversation she had with Kamado Tanjuro at noon.
---
---
"Tanjuro, do you mean..."
Kie sat next to Tanjuro, looking a little puzzled.
"Kie." Tanjuro raised his eyes and looked at his wife. His tone leaves no room for argument.
"Trust me."
"It's going to be dangerous on this mountain from now on."
"Take Nezuko and Takeo and the others and get away from here as far as possible." Tanjuro said,
His eyes look through the open door at children who were playing in the snow.
"Don't worry about Tanjiro; he will be fine."
Hearing this, Kie opened her mouth slightly, her purple eyes were a little touched, and she didn't know what kind of judgment she should make now.
"What do you mean by danger?"
After being in a coma for a year, her husband suddenly woke up and said such words.
Kie felt confused and strange at the same time.
Tanjuro turned around and gently took Kie's hand. The two looked at each other.
"I'll explain it to you properly when this is all over, I promise."
Tanjuro held Kie's hand, his eyes firm. He slowly reached into the bedding beside him.
"Trust me."
Click!
Until a crisp sound of the collision between the knife guard and the scabbard rang out.
It's Kusabimaru, the mysteriously appearing katana in his futon.
Kie's pupils contracted slightly, and she looked up at her husband.
In the past year of taking care of her husband every day, Kie never found the existence of this blade.
Tanjuro was smiling, reassuring her.
"I woke up this time to avoid this danger."
"There's no time left, Kie."
"Think of the children."
Kie's hand on the bedding gripped the blanket tightly.
"...and you?" she asked.
"I have to stay here." Tanjuro answered decisively.
Kie stared blankly at Tanjuro.
Although Kie was very eager to ask her husband this question, she gradually realized the seriousness of the matter when she saw the anxiety in his eyes.
"I understand." Kie took a deep breath, nodded slightly, and then stood up.
Releasing the hand she had been holding with Tanjuro, Kie walked around the bed and slowly went to the door of the room.
Standing at the door of the house, Kie stopped.
She turned her head away from Tanjuro, pursed her lips, lowered her purple eyes, and said in a slightly trembling voice.
"Don't leave us again."
Tanjiuro stared straight ahead, nodding his head as his quiet, low voice rang out.
"Don't worry... I don't intend to die."
---
Kie came back to her senses.
Kie heard Shigeru's voice, and she remembered that her husband had told her to head toward a place called Mt. Sagiri.
The journey is about half a day's walk.
Kie rubbed Shigeru's head casually, then looked up to observe the surroundings.
They asked for directions along the way, and although they were delayed for some time, they reached their destination just in time for the sun to disappear from the horizon.
All around, there were only paddy fields.
Even the villages are a little further away.
The sun had set, the sky was pitch black, the moon hung low in the corner of the sky, and the clear moonlight illuminated some clouds.
They were already in the range of Mt. Sagiri, close to the foothills.
~Whoosh!~
"Gah!"
Tap, tap
Hearing a strange sound, Kie stopped.
Nezuko and the others who were following behind also stopped.
"...Mom?" Hanako, who was on the coal cart, slowly woke up. Feeling that they were no longer moving forward, she turned her head and asked, "Have we arrived yet?"
"...Yes."
Kie, who was standing in front of the charcoal cart, looked ahead and nodded slightly.
~Whoosh! Clatter!~
A light, almost inaudible sound of landing came from in front of them.
"Are you lost?"
An old and low voice sounded from the front:
"The nearest village is not in this direction."
Everyone quickly looked up.
—The person who came was wearing a red tengu mask.
The small sleeves embroidered with water ripples were worn on the body, and the short white hair was exposed from both sides of the mask under the moonlight.
The katana carried at the waist indicated the other party's identity.
"The sun has already set. It's very dangerous to be out at night with so many children," the old man wearing the mask of the celestial dog said in a low voice.
When he said this, he looked at Kie.
He had smelled a lot of strange odors from the foothills of his mountain, so he had come over to take a look.
Kie looked at the old man in front of her. Although the other party had suddenly appeared in front of her just now, she quickly stabilized her tone.
"Are you... Urokodaki-san?"
Urokodaki Sakonji seemed a little surprised, and he took a special look at Kamado Kie.
---
The final destination of the Kamado family.
It is at the foot of Mt. Sagiri.
Find an old man wearing a red tengu mask named Urokodaki Sakonji.
Stay at his house for one night.
If the other party asks,
Just say that a swordsman named Giyu Tomioka sent you.
——Tanjuro had said.