Two more days had passed since Yami had regained his consciousness and Kanae Kocho had checked upon him.
In these past two days, Yami, though still overwhelmed by his emotions, had significantly calmed down. Yet, it was only that he had calmed down. The rage in his heart—the hatred for that demon, for all the demons, for their 'founder'—had settled in his heart. Every time he recalled the scene of his mother, father, and sister being killed, his blood would boil.
Yami had been leaning against the wall while sitting on his mattress when the man who had been with him for the past two days entered the house.
"How are you doing, Yami?" he questioned with a smile.
"Fine," Yami replied stiffly. He had not asked for the man's name, and neither had the man taken the initiative to introduce himself. Yami would keep to himself, and the man was also not intrusive—he would come only while bringing meals and medicines.
"Your body is really miraculous, Yami," the man said with a beaming smile.
"In a mere two days, your wound has healed to such a degree that it amazes me," he added with genuine happiness on his face.
Yami did not respond to this, but the man did not mind. He had gotten used to Yami's treatment, and it was not like he would expect something else from a 15-year-old boy who had lost his parents and sibling merely 5 days ago.
The man approached and sat near Yami. "Well, I have some news for you."
"Yami," he said slowly. The enthusiasm in his voice had reduced a bit.
"I would be leaving today," he informed. "But you need not worry. I have talked to your neighbours, and they have agreed to take care of your meals for a few days till you recover."
Yami remained silent for some moments, after which he said slowly, "Thank you."
The man was slightly taken aback at the sudden thanks from Yami, and a smile appeared on his face. "You are welcome, Yami."
"Can I ask you something?" Yami said.
"Hmm... go ahead," the man replied.
"Why would the demon slayers waste their time and resources in taking care of me?" Yami questioned bluntly.
He had felt it odd when he witnessed that the man had stayed with him for 5 days. It did not make any sense to Yami. Although he did not have a deep bond with his neighbours, he was sure that they would have definitely agreed to help.
"You know about the demon slayers?" the man asked in astonishment.
Yami stared at him dryly, "Well, you are always wearing their uniform."
"And when I was a child, my family had encountered a slayer and he had told us some stories," Yami lied, expressionlessly.
The man scratched his head. He was quite simple and straight-minded.
"Well, I would be honest," he answered. "When the Demon Slayer Corps arrived here, you were badly injured, and there were signs of an injury to your stomach which had been caused by that demon."
"And for some reason, your situation seemed a bit odd," he continued. "It felt like the demon had tried to inject some blood into you... and while you lay unconscious, we had no way of confirming if you had been affected by the demon's blood or not."
"So, I decided that I would stay and check on you for a few days," the man said.
Yami was speechless.
"You know, you could have placed me in the sun," he added after a moment of silence.
The man again scratched his head in embarrassment, "Lady Kanae also said the same thing."
"Now that you were awake, I decided that it would be better if I stay for a day or two," he continued. "And you know… we at the Demon Slayer Corps are not exactly heartless."
"If expenditure of some resources and manpower can save a life, we would be happily willing to invest it," he added with a proud smile.
Yami felt a slight gratitude in his heart, "Thank you."
"Do not mind, Yami," the man said with laughter. "And hearing 'thank you' from you two times consecutively makes me uneasy."
The duo remained in a few moments of silence until the man questioned, "What would you do now?"
Yami remained quiet, then sighed, "I do not know."
"Maybe chop some trees… work as a blacksmith," he added vaguely.
The man did not respond immediately.
"You know," he said, "I can see the rage and grief in your eyes."
"I will not tell you what to do and what not to do… just do not make reckless decisions," he added.
He then patted Yami's shoulder, "Take care, Yami."
Yami gave a nod, and the man got up and walked away.
The man was just about to step out of the door when Yami's voice came from behind, "What is your name?"
The man's footsteps paused, but he did not turn as he replied, "Ichigaro... I am Ichigaro Kasawa."
"We will meet soon," Yami added, and the man smiled as he left Yami's house.
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