Ubuyashiki Kagaya clearly noticed Kanzaki Kumo approaching, but he said nothing.
In any case, he would definitely take away any child who had faced a demon, so there was no need to worry about additional information leaking out.
“Kumo-kun?” Gyoumei also sensed Kanzaki Kumo’s approach.
Gyoumei had a deep impression of this child, who had told him how to kill the demon last night and had been a great help; he could tell who it was just by the sound of the footsteps.
Kanzaki Kumo wasn’t surprised at all by Gyoumei’s extraordinary hearing.
After all, because Gyoumei’s other senses were so overdeveloped, his daily life wasn’t affected by his blindness at all, leading some to once believe he wasn’t actually blind.
“If it’s about that monster from last night, I want to hear it too.” Seeing the two focus their gaze on him, Kanzaki Kumo raised his head to meet their eyes.
Ubuyashiki was fine; his current real age wasn’t much older than Kanzaki Kumo’s, and he wasn’t much taller either.
However, Gyoumei’s height of nearly two meters made Kanzaki Kumo’s neck feel sore once he got close.
Kanzaki Kumo: Who would have thought that someone with such an absurd height, who can beat a demon so badly the demon thinks it’s seen a ghost, actually hasn’t had a full meal since childhood and is even somewhat malnourished?
“If you want to listen, little friend, then of course it’s no problem.
Since you’ve already faced such a monster, learning more is the only way to better protect yourself,” Ubuyashiki Kagaya said with a smile.
He reached out his hand to pat Kanzaki Kumo’s head, but the boy took a small step back to avoid it.
Ubuyashiki Kagaya: Are you serious about that half-step back?
Kanzaki Kumo: Do you have the copyright to be singing that?
Ubuyashiki Kagaya:…
Having already become the master of the Ubuyashiki family and leader of the Demon Slayer Corps, Ubuyashiki Kagaya naturally wouldn’t feel embarrassed over such a small matter.
He simply withdrew his hand inconspicuously and turned around, while Gyoumei continued to lead the way.
Ubuyashiki Kagaya: It’s fine, nobody saw it anyway, it’s fine…
Although he appeared fine on the surface, Kanzaki Kumo, with his extraordinary powers of observation, still noticed a very slight stiffness in Ubuyashiki Kagaya’s steps.
Regardless, at this time, Kagaya was only a boy a little over ten years old.
In Kanzaki Kumo’s previous world, he wouldn’t even have graduated from middle school yet.
However, after just a few steps, Ubuyashiki Kagaya adjusted his state.
That hint of unnaturalness in his movements completely vanished, causing Kanzaki Kumo’s gaze to falter for a moment.
At the same time, Ubuyashiki Kagaya made a preliminary judgment of Kanzaki Kumo in his heart: “Terrifying observation skills, and a somewhat precocious temperament.”
Kagaya himself naturally knew there was a trace of unnaturalness in his movements just now, but he was confident that even his wife, Amane, wouldn’t have noticed that almost negligible stiffness immediately.
Yet Kanzaki Kumo saw it at a glance, which was why the boy’s gaze faltered when his movements returned to normal.
In this way, the three of them entered the only quiet room in the temple in silence.
Kanzaki Kumo and Gyoumei sat on one side of the low table, while Ubuyashiki Kagaya sat on the other.
After both sides gave brief self-introductions, Ubuyashiki Kagaya first asked about the specific details of last night.
Upon learning that Kanzaki Kumo had also been a great help, he placed even more importance on this child who seemed a bit younger than himself.
Afterward, it was time for Ubuyashiki Kagaya’s explanation.
“Regarding demons, I do indeed know a bit more information.”
“The demons in the world today all originate from the same demon—the Demon King, Kibutsuji Muzan.
He is a monster born a thousand years ago, the Progenitor of Demons.
And hundreds of years after Muzan’s birth, an organization dedicated to fighting against evil demons—the Demon Slayer Corps—was established.”
“It has gathered people who have tried to eliminate evil demons for centuries.
They found methods to kill demons other than sunlight, and some gifted individuals even created Breathing Techniques that can significantly enhance various physical qualities of the human body, allowing humans to better contend with demons.”
“I, Ubuyashiki Kagaya, am the current master of the Demon Slayer Corps.
I have come here to invite Himejima-san to join the Demon Slayer Corps.
Your powerful combat talent will surely make a huge contribution to the cause of slaying demons…”
“It started off fine, so why did he suddenly start making grand promises?” Kanzaki Kumo muttered to himself as he watched the impassioned Ubuyashiki Kagaya.
Having struggled in society for several years in his previous life, Kanzaki Kumo was all too familiar with this kind of rhetoric about ideals and the future.
Even if Ubuyashiki Kagaya spoke with deep emotion, and even if he truly believed in his heart that having Himejima Gyomei join the Demon Slayer Corps would greatly help the cause, Kanzaki Kumo was truly unimpressed by this kind of talk.
However, Gyoumei was indeed somewhat susceptible to it.
As a monk, although he hadn’t shaved his head, he deeply identified with and practiced certain Buddhist doctrines.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have taken such diligent care of the children in the temple, nor would he have fought so desperately against the evil demon.
“Ahem.”
Just as Ubuyashiki Kagaya was still delivering his passionate speech and Gyoumei was starting to be moved by his words, Kanzaki Kumo couldn’t help but cough lightly, drawing both of their attention.
“I acknowledge that the ideals of Ubuyashiki-san and the Demon Slayer Corps to eliminate demons and save the world are very noble.
Your deeds of silently protecting countless commoners from the shadows are also admirable.
But for now, why don’t we talk about some practical things?”
“For example, what are the conditions for learning a Breathing Technique and becoming an official swordsman?
What is the salary and benefits package?
Is there a rank system and performance evaluations?”
Faced with these very practical questions raised by Kanzaki Kumo, both Gyoumei and Ubuyashiki Kagaya were stunned for a moment.
Kagaya silently changed his evaluation of “somewhat precocious” to “extremely precocious.”
“Those are certainly no problem.
First, as long as you are willing to join the Demon Slayer Corps, you can find specialized Cultivators to learn Breathing Techniques.
They are all retired swordsmen who left for various reasons, many of whom were once Hashira—the most outstanding among the Demon Slayer Corps swordsmen.”
“As for the test to become an official swordsman, you need to participate in a trial…”
This was information that should have been taught by their future Cultivators.
However, firstly, both of the people before him possessed extraordinary talent and were worth Ubuyashiki Kagaya’s extra effort.
Secondly, being in his early teens was when the desire to express oneself is strongest.
Usually, to maintain his image as the head of the Ubuyashiki family and master of the Demon Slayer Corps, he intentionally suppressed himself.
Now that he had a suitable reason, he naturally wanted to talk more.
Ubuyashiki Kagaya’s current explanation was almost identical to the content in Kanzaki Kumo’s memory, only with more detail regarding the classification of swordsman ranks and promotion requirements.
Kanzaki Kumo didn’t have much of an opinion on the other systems of the Demon Slayer Corps, but that so-called “Final Selection” made him unable to resist speaking up: “Isn’t there a problem with this Entrance Exam?”
“A group of people enters Fujikasane Mountain, where demons have been placed in advance, and must survive for seven days.
If a highly talented person appears in this group and kills most of the demons on the mountain alone, the other participants will become official swordsmen without having done anything.
Who knows if there are cannon fodder among them who can’t actually defeat a demon?”
“For people with such limited strength, logistics work should be more suitable for them.”
“Furthermore, the demons on that mountain are killed and then replenished.
Could there be a demon with a special ability or one that is smart enough to avoid the inspections of high-level swordsmen and hide away time and time again?”
“Even if it only eats two or three people during each exam, over time, it will inevitably grow into an existence that rookie swordsmen absolutely cannot contend with.
Continuing the exam at that point would just be feeding that demon.”
Actually, Kanzaki Kumo originally wanted to say that those with high talent shouldn’t have to start from the lowest rank of swordsman, as that wouldn’t be conducive to maximizing their talents.
But on second thought, he himself would be joining the Demon Slayer Corps later.
If he performed well and was promoted to a higher-ranking swordsman right away, the strength of the demons he’d have to face and the density of his missions would both increase.
That wouldn’t do.
He was still a child; how could he return to the life of a corporate slave from his previous world so early?
Thus, Kanzaki Kumo immediately suppressed that last suggestion.
As for Kanzaki Kumo’s reasons for deciding to join the Demon Slayer Corps, the first was to learn a Breathing Technique to have some self-preservation power in this world with demons; the second was that it would be more convenient to rewrite some tragedies only by joining the Demon Slayer Corps.
Of course, after hearing Ubuyashiki Kagaya’s description, there was one more reason—he simply gave too much.
Kanzaki Kumo: Ubuyashiki-san moved me with his sincerity.
The salary of even the lowest-ranking swordsman was already considered very generous in this era, and for the highest-ranking Hashira, it was simply two words—as much as needed.
After hearing the questions raised by Kanzaki Kumo, Ubuyashiki Kagaya fell into deep thought.