"You still came down the mountain in weather like this—you're really diligent."
"Be careful not to catch a cold."
The elderly woman sweeping snow in front of her house greeted him with concern.
"It's fine in this kind of weather. Would you like to buy some charcoal?" The scarred boy exhaled white breath into the cold air. "Do you still have enough at home?"
A door by the roadside opened, and a middle-aged man inside called out, "Hey, Tanjiro, I want to buy some charcoal. Thanks again for helping me paste the paper door the other day!"
"I want some too!" a passerby farther down the road called out.
A smile couldn't help but rise on Tanjiro's face.
"Ah—Tanjiro, you came at just the right time!" Another door was yanked open nearby. A young man appeared at the doorway, his mouth and nose still stained with blood. He held something wrapped in cloth in his hands, while behind him a woman glared fiercely, gripping the back of his collar.
"I got accused of breaking a plate! Come help me out—smell it for me!" He shook free from the woman and staggered toward Tanjiro, pulling open the cloth to reveal broken pieces of a plate inside.
Tanjiro bent down and sniffed. "It smells like a cat."
The woman covered her mouth. "Oh my—so it was the cat that did it…"
The young man instantly regained his confidence. "See? I told you it wasn't me!"
"Tanjiro, can you come help me carry these things?" A middle-aged man beside a pile of crates waved at him.
With Tanjiro's arrival, the entire street seemed to liven up—enough to show just how well-liked the boy usually was.
At the end of the road, inside the grand estate, a pair of wine-red, double-layered pupils watched closely from the attic.
Today was the day.
It matched.
Yuko's fingers tightened unconsciously on the corner of her small notebook.
She had already forgotten this scene—but before forgetting it, she had written it down, especially the incident that highlighted Tanjiro's keen sense of smell.
After Tanjuro's death, Tanjiro, as the eldest son, had taken on half the burden of the family with his small shoulders, coming down the mountain regularly to sell charcoal.
This wasn't the first time Yuko had seen him. Because of Tanjiro's kindness and his constant help to others, the townspeople deeply trusted and liked the charcoal-selling boy.
Tanjiro cheerfully helped everyone and successfully sold all the charcoal from his basket.
He continued walking forward with his basket on his back, and when he passed the grand estate, he hesitated slightly.
But he soon continued on his way.
"Forget it… a house that big probably doesn't even need charcoal."
Besides, he always felt this house was strange. Every time he passed by, it felt as though something was watching him through the cracks of the door, sending chills down his spine.
Tanjiro quickened his pace.
Creak—
The heavy gate, which hadn't been opened for nearly two years, let out a mournful sound after Tanjiro had walked far away.
A color that didn't belong to this season emerged from behind the door. For the first time in centuries, Yuko appeared in the outside world without any disguise. Her wine-red long hair stood in stark contrast to the surrounding world of silver and snow.
Those strange eyes quietly watched Tanjiro's retreating figure.
Plap—
Snow from the rooftop fell onto Yuko's head due to the movement of the door, sending icy cold straight to the top of her skull.
After a moment of silence, Yuko lowered her head, brushed the snow off, obediently put on her hat, wrapped her face in white cloth again, gently closed the door, and walked in the direction Tanjiro had come from.
Today, Muzan would arrive on this mountain.
She had to temporarily relocate Tanjiro's family.
It was a fine early morning. People filled the streets, all stopping to look curiously toward the center as if time itself had paused.
Yuko discreetly tugged at her straw cloak to keep the Nichirin blade at her waist from being exposed.
After she passed, the play button was silently pressed again.
"Eh, wasn't that just now—"
"Yes, that young lady!"
"Why did she come out?"
"Judging by her direction, she's heading into the mountains."
"No way, in this heavy snowstorm?"
"Didn't Tanjiro brave the snow to sell charcoal too?"
"Huh? How can that kind of young lady be compared to Tanjiro—"
Yuko no longer heard the whispered discussions that followed.
She followed the mountain path to Tanjiro's home. Two children, one boy and one girl, were playing in the snow.
Nezuko was sitting on the porch, carrying a small child with a bowl cut on her back. Watching the two run around in the snow, she smiled.
"Don't play too wildly—you'll catch a cold."
As she spoke, her gaze happened to land on a figure behind the trees.
"Hanako, Shigeru!" Nezuko subconsciously stood up and called out to them, then quickly walked over herself.
So, she was being seen as suspicious.
Yuko thought this as she stepped out from behind the tree and approached them, removing her hat and the white cloth covering her face.
As Yuko approached, Nezuko remained slightly tense, shielding her younger siblings behind her. But when Yuko removed her hat and uncovered her face, Nezuko immediately relaxed.
Seeing her sister staring blankly past her shoulder, Hanako turned around curiously.
The next moment, her eyes widened.
"What a beautiful big sister."
Shigeru turned around as well, wearing the same expression.
Yuko gently pressed her lips together and smiled. "Hello."
Nezuko withdrew her gaze from those strange eyes and nodded slightly. "Hello."
It had to be said—this world really judged by appearances.
When someone looked kind and gentle, it was hard for others to associate them with evil.
Nezuko took the initiative to ask, "Did you lose your way in the mountains?"
Yuko shook her head and asked gently, "Is your mother… at home?"
Nezuko froze for a moment. She didn't recall having such a beautiful relative.
While she hesitated, the two innocent children had already run toward the house, shouting loudly:
"Mom, there's a guest!"
Before long, a mature woman appeared at the doorway. She wore a purple checkered kimono and a white outer garment with square lapels.
Kamado Kie.
The mother of Tanjiro and Nezuko. She had purple eyes, a beauty mark at the corner of her mouth, and a white headscarf tied over her hair. She looked gentle, radiating a warm maternal glow.
Seeing Yuko outside, Kie rubbed her hands against her clothes a few times before stepping forward.
"Hello."
As she greeted her, Kie also examined Yuko closely.
She had never seen her before.
The strange red markings on her cheeks didn't diminish her beauty—if anything, they made her look even more bewitching.
With such a striking appearance and such unusual eyes, Kie would surely remember her if they had met before.
"Madam, please forgive my rudeness. I am a demon hunter." Yuko nodded slightly, revealing the Nichirin sword at her waist, its hilt wrapped in white cloth.
The moment the blade was revealed, Yuko could sense the other woman's heart tighten.
In this era, not just anyone was allowed to carry a sword.
The sword prohibition decree had been in effect for decades.
Yuko covered the long blade again and continued, "I've received information that a powerful demon will attack this place tonight. I would like to ask that you take your children down the mountain to take shelter temporarily."
Any ordinary person would think such words were pure nonsense.
Leaving aside the fact that she wasn't even an official like the police, the very reason given for evacuation was bewildering.
A demon?
Wasn't that just a folk tale?
---
Currently at chapter 312 for advance chapters
https:// ko-fi.com/rabi08