As Kiyokawa Izumi fled, his heart was not at ease at all.
That was the Hand Demon!!
A Hand Demon that even someone as strong as Sabito couldn't deal with.
Can I?
If an ordinary person like me is targeted by it, is there really any possibility of survival?
Fear surged like a tide; the moment he chose to turn and run, not much courage remained.
Go down the mountain!
Such a thought suddenly appeared in his mind.
Demons cannot leave this mountain because there are wisteria flowers blooming from the foot to the mountainside.
They hate the scent of wisteria flowers.
But humans are different.
He can go down the mountain!
He hadn't thought of this before, subconsciously treating this place as a dead end.
Suddenly, feeling a twitch in his heart, Kiyokawa Izumi abruptly fell to the ground, his nichirin blade skidding a short distance away.
His right hand tightly clutched the clothes over his chest.
A feeling of unwillingness emerged.
The lingering emotions of the original owner were affecting him.
Rather than emotions, it was more like an obsession.
Unwilling to leave, unwilling to give up just like this.
He wanted to participate in this Selection!
It wasn't that the original owner was fighting him for control of the body, but he was more or less affected.
That unwillingness, the emotion of wanting to prove something to someone, Kiyokawa Izumi could clearly feel it.
'It's not that I'm afraid, it's not that I'm scared.'
'That's the Hand Demon!'
'It has survived here for so many years; perhaps even the Demon Slayer Corps doesn't know of its existence... Do you think it will let me go so easily?'
'If I don't leave here, I'll die!'
Kiyokawa Izumi never felt like he was a savior; he didn't have the strength, nor did he have that responsibility on his shoulders.
In just three short days, after several battles, he was already exhausted.
His body wasn't made of iron; the moment he fled, the breath he had been holding to force himself to fight had slackened.
Countless reasons to give up appeared, yet they were imprisoned by this inexplicable obsession.
He seemed to always hear those heavy footsteps in his ears, and the voice of the Hand Demon always echoed nearby.
Perhaps in the next second, that terrifying voice would appear.
"Found you, brat!"
Combat requires a reason to support it.
"Izumi, give up. You don't have the talent to become a Swordsman."
Countless fragments of memories appeared in his mind.
Although the original owner was just a youth and didn't have much life experience, his memories had only been hastily received before.
'Why?'
'Just because someone says you have no talent, do you have to prove something?'
'Is this all people live for?'
More and more memories.
Becoming an orphan and being adopted... training desperately just because he didn't want to disappoint that old man.
Coming to participate in this Selection wasn't to spite those who looked down on him, but simply to tell that old man: I can become a Demon Slayer, I can slay more demons for you, and I can help more people.
'A simple-minded fool.'
Kiyokawa Izumi exhaled a breath of turbid air, evaluating him thus in his heart.
In his past life, such people were rare.
'This body belongs to you after all, so let's try. I will do my best to pass the Selection, and then, the body will be mine.
I will live my own life; perhaps I'll leave here, leave this country, or refuse to join the Demon Slayer Corps. Everything will be as I wish, how about it?'
The sharp pain in his heart gradually vanished, and Kiyokawa Izumi slowly stood up. It was also the first time he realized that the lingering obsession of the original body could affect him.
Well, it was his first time transmigrating after all; it's normal to have no experience.
His body in his past life was truly inferior to this one; with an irregular schedule, poor diet, and lack of exercise, it really wasn't as healthy as he was now.
'Then let's try!'
'Recall the memories about the Breathing Technique; without mastering a Breathing Technique, there won't be a qualitative change in strength.'
His mind made up, Kiyokawa Izumi continued to flee, heading away from the Hand Demon.
He was willing to try, but that didn't mean he was willing to face the Hand Demon now.
If possible, he would be more than happy never to encounter this guy again in the future.
'Breathe! Breathing will guide you! No matter the situation, never forget to breathe!'
'Feel it! Experience it with your heart! Remember this kind of breathing, and let your body adapt to it!'
Mysterious voices seemed to ring in his ears, and fragments of practicing the Breathing Technique occasionally flashed through his mind.
Potential is often stimulated under heavy pressure.
Kiyokawa Izumi used to believe this quite a bit.
For example, during his student days, he could always finish all his homework in the last few days of the holidays.
But for some reason, he just couldn't do it now.
He just couldn't learn this damn Breathing Technique!!
Was it because he wasn't from this world, and there was an invisible barrier blocking him?
Why couldn't he learn it?
Or was it that this body truly had no talent for mastering the Breathing Technique?
Damn it!
His mind a mess of frustration, Kiyokawa Izumi abruptly drew his sword and slashed at the air over a dozen times. Only after venting fiercely did he gradually calm down.
At times like this, the last thing one needs is impatience.
'Breathing guides you!'
'Let the body adapt to this kind of breathing!'
The moment the sun rose, Kiyokawa Izumi was lost in thought.