"I'm sorry." It is the first words that immediately flew out of my mouth. I know that it wasn't sufficient, judging from the way Kanae is looking at me, so I elaborated further. "I know what I did was foolish but I assure you, dear wife of mine, that what I did was safe and wasn't worth mentioning at all." Oh crap, I said that wrong. To be fair to myself, I was still tired from the journey and the brief respite of me gaining sleep hasn't fully settled in yet.
"Hikigaya Hachiman," Oh no, she said my full name. "Is sacrificing your life worth losing? What about the kids? Tokito? Shinobu? What would happen if you went ahead and committed harakiri? Is your life worth that much compared to what you have in this world? What about me and your child?"
I gritted my teeth as I shifted my glare towards the ceiling. Hearing her words is like receiving a stab wound every minute. I know what I did was foolish. Hell, before I met Kanae, I saw just a walking corpse: one that has no meaning in life. Being transported into a world full of Demons and Demon Slayers is something that I only wanted to see happen in a manga or a light novel. To experience one is something out of a nightmare, one that you can't fully recover from. The world that I lived in was bleak but it was meaningful and peaceful; no Demons and Demon Slayers roaming around.
Here, many people die due to the Demons that were roaming at night. Even if we have Demon Slayer doing missions to eradicate them, it wasn't enough. And most of the Demon Slayers are teens. It's rare to find someone fully living their life to the fullest like Sakonji and Kuwajima.
That's why I've been doing my best to save them, or at least, mitigate the losses that the Demon Slayers take every mission. It's also one of the reasons as to why I didn't accept the role of the Pillar two years ago and decided to hand it to Tokito. But then Ubuyashiki decided to expand the Pillars and gave me a region to defend. That was a year ago. Of course, as usual, I was against it. I stated that it would limit my capabilities as a Demon Slayer and my ability to roam the countryside, looking for Demons to kill. And Ubuyashiki countered all of my reasonings.
As such, I accepted my fate and became a Pillar. Ever since then, I made a promise to limit my 'self-destructive altruism' to Kanae. But due to my recent action, I feel like I've destroyed that promise.
My monologue was interrupted when I felt Kanae's hand rubbing my head. Oi, I'm not a dog that you can pet, you know? "You're cute when you brood, Hachiman." Can you please stop with the rubbing, dear wife of mine? "I know that you didn't mean anything bad. If anything, I support your action. It's just that think about the consequence first before you do it, okay?" After that, she rested her head on my chest. I could feel the heat of her cheeks but I didn't let that deter me.
"I don't want to lose you again, Hachiman. If anything, I don't want you to go out again but I know that you're too stubborn to agree with me." Kanae murmured. I sighed but I can't do anything due to the handcuffs. I remember that day. The one where me and Kanae almost died. That was six months ago.
I don't want to reminiscence but suffice to say, it led to Shinobu becoming a Pillar and Doma almost being killed.
"I know. And again, I'm sorry." I murmured back. It's all I can do to comfort her. I could break the handcuffs but to be honest, that would be disrespectful to her. Besides, I eventually got used to the handcuffs. We stayed silent, enjoying each other's warmth.
"You're not getting out of those handcuffs."
"What about my meeting with Pillars?"
Kanae smacked her lips. "I think they can wait."
"Goddamn it, woman."
"Nii-san, why are you wearing a scarf?" Tokito innocently asked as he pointed at the rather large scarf that is enveloping my neck. Why did you have to ignite the flame, Tokito?! It's bad enough that Shinobu is glaring at me with such intense hatred that for a second, I almost thought that I was looking at Muzan himself, there's also the fact that Kanae has left me with so many 'love taps' that I decided to wear a ridiculously large scarf that almost covered the entirety of my face.
"It's rather cold today, so I wore a large scarf to compensate for it." There, that should cover my bases.
"But Nii-san, it's the middle of July and why are you bothered by the cold? Aren't you the one that said that you aren't bothered by the cold any longer?" Damn, for Tokito to be inquisitive of all times! And Shinobu's glare isn't helping with the conversation!
"Don't think much about it, Tokito." Deflecting the answer, I ruffled his hair, much to his irritation before I looked over at Shinobu. "And you, it's not my fault your sister is like that. If you want her to stop, then be my guest." Shinobu didn't deign me with an answer, focusing her glare at the garden instead. You also inherited her traits are the words left unsaid as we continue trudging on the room where the Pillars are currently waiting. As much as I love Shinobu's attempt at killing me through the use of her glare, it still wasn't enough as I was treated to the same glare for the past five years. I've gained immunity!
Reaching our destination, I coughed for them to stay silent, "We've arrived." As soon as the words left out of my lips, the doors were silently opened by the Twins. Giving them a nod and a head pat, I slowly walked to my designated post. Fun fact about the Pillars, if you're placed in the front row, then you are counted as one of Ubuyashiki's closest advisors. This translates to me and Gyomei being Ubuyashiki's right-hand men. Well, it's more like Gyomei's the Right Hand while I tend to stick to the shadows; doing the boring things like managing the finance of an entire corps or finding ways to make better weapons for the Demon Slayer Corps.
I'd prefer not to be saddled with many responsibilities but since I know that Kanae is going to 'punish' me severely if I even dared to attempt intentionally sabotaging myself, I tend to avoid doing it, part out of fear from Kanae and part my promise that I've made to Ubuyashiki.
"The Master has arrived," I swear, Ubuyashiki is intentionally doing it at this point. It's like he's attempting to be one of those anime characters that I used to read on my precious light novel collection. Say what you want about Zaimokusa but the man has some very good taste in literature even if all of them are light novels.
"It's nice to meet you again, my children. I hope that you're all adequately refreshed?" Ubuyashiki's calming voice started.
I nodded at Ubuyashiki's words. "Thanks for that. I needed it since I almost felt myself falling to the ground." And wasn't that a terrific moment? That would be an embarrassing sight to see. I bet Shinobu would be laughing at how comical it would be.
"Oh? Isn't this a rare sight? Hikigaya wearing a scarf? That's a rare sight, indeed!" Kyojuro needlessly pointed out. Oh, you think you're funny, huh? I'm going to enjoy beating you to the ground so much, Kyojuro.
"Hmph. If I were to be flamboyantly honest, Hikigaya wearing a scarf is like seeing Obanai wearing without one for the first time." Uzui, I know that we have each other's back but just because you have three wives patiently waiting at your house that doesn't want to chain you into your bed, means that you can tease me.
"Hehehe... Hikigaya-san, as the Pillar of Love, you can't hide what you're currently feeling!" Kanroji, staph. Please.
Giyuu stayed silent, because why wouldn't he, Sanemi is ignoring me as per usual, Obanai and Shinobu are working together to somehow kill me through their glares. Gyomei is busy muttering his routine prayer. I swear, it's like handling a bunch of children. At least Tokito is still a child but I don't dare say that to his face.
Ubuyashiki chucked. I don't know if it's just me but I feel like he's laughing at my predicament. "Now, now, I know it's fun to make fun of our Pillar," I can feel my eyebrow twitching at his words, "But we shall not let our minds wander." Here, Ubuyashiki's voice sharpens, "From what you've all reported, the Demons have escalated in their carnage. This means that the threat to human life is greater than it's even been. I dare say that the threat has grown larger than anticipated. We'll need to bolster the rank of the Demon Slayers Corps. What do you all think?"
"The incident at Mt. Natagumo made it very clear. The caliber of the Demon Slayers has nose-dived into an unbelievable level." Sanemi started before scoffing, "The trainers must be blind to past many of these Demon Slayers. You'd think that they could notice if someone is incompetent or not."
"What's his name again? Tanjiro, right? From the reports that I've received, he did pretty good at Mt. Natagumo. Giyuu can even confirm it. Not only that, he seems ready to land a blow on you if Hachiman wasn't there to stop him. In my flamboyant opinion, Kamado Tanjiro has the potential. Don't you agree, Shinazugawa?" Uzui commented. Sanemi scoffed and glaredTg but he didn't deny Uzui's words. To be honest, I can see Tanjiro's potential. Heck, he may even surpass Tokito if he's given enough time.
"The more the human population grows, the harder it becomes for them to unify against a common enemy. We're lucky enough that Muzan isn't moving anywhere in the world, instead he isolates himself in the country. Not to mention, the Great War has recently finished and with it; the era has irreconcilably changed." Shinobu stated. Her words ring true; not only weapons of mass destruction have been introduced to the world like the Mustard Gas and Tear Gas, but the country has also shifted into a more aggressive stance. It's been two years since the Great War and the nation is celebrating its victory in the war by aggressively expanding it's colonial ambitions. It's a good thing that the Demon Slayer Corps weren't forcibly conscripted into the Great War. We already have enough problems on our plate as it is. I resisted the shiver at the thought of the Imperial Army using the Breathing Techniques.
"Other than those who've had their loved ones brutally massacred, and joined the Corps, or those of distinguished pedigree who have hunted demons for generations, to ask anyone to harness as much or even greater resolve and drive to produce results would be cruel." I get you, Gyomei, considering that I have people to take care of.
"Still, considering that boy ran into a Twelve Demon Moon so soon after joining the Demon Slayer Corps is something short of amazing! Even we, the Pillars, rarely got the chance to confront one! It makes me envious!" You don't need to be, Kyojuro. Just be glad that we are given the chance to live.
"Agreed. Except for Tanjiro and Hachiman, it's rare for a Demon Slayer, much less a Hashira, to encounter a Twelve Demon Moon, much less Muzan himself. But the fact remains that the Lower Five to made such a drastic move means that Muzan is nowhere near Mt. Natagamo." Yeah, Muzan isn't that stupid. With his ability to shapeshift, there's no way in hell that he would casually wander about in a forest, much less a mountain. "After all, in the case of Asakusa and Tokyo, whenever Muzan tries to hide something, he would make a clever distraction to throw us off. It's quite frustrating." To say those words with such conviction is something amazing.
"For the sake of the fallen, there's only one thing for us to do. I strongly believe that among you Hashira's who are present today, I've assembled the finest unit since the First Breathing swordsmen of the Feudal Era. My children, I look forward to your success."
I bowed and so the rest of the Pillars.
Author's Note: Agh... I'm spent. Last week has been a harsh mistress on me: Three days of intense studying (cramming), two days of stressful exams, two days of playing Destiny 2 and experiencing a rough muscle cramp and I still managed to find time to publish this.
Thank god.
If you notice some mistakes, feel free to remind me. I'm also looking for a beta-reader since I can't trust Grammarly and I can't afford one.
Enjoy the chapter.