25 The Mountain

Seven days later.

A young boy with raven-black hair was sitting quietly within a small clearing that was surrounded by trees. His chest rising and falling with the motion of the trees. He looked very serene as though he belonged there in the first place.

There were no small animals surrounding him, but one could still feel that the boy gave off a gentle aura, one that was very natural.

*Crunch*

A few meters from the boy was a familiar tengu-masked figure. He came up to the boy before handing him a katana.

"Here, you have passed my test."

Fey opened his eyes, evidently not as absorbed in meditation as one would think. One of the few things he had been practicing these past few days, is the ability to divide your focus enough to concentrate on one task but not enough to lose sight of your surroundings.

Even now as he tried his hardest to empty his mind and match his breathing to that of the trees, he didn't forget to pay attention to any new and strange sounds.

He opened his eyes and took his katana back from Urokodaki. Fey slightly drew it from its sheath and he could see that the bloodstains that he had left behind were no more, evidently, someone had cleaned it for him.

"Thank you Urokodaki sensei, but the day is not over yet. If it is alright with you I'd like to finish my other tasks."

Urokodaki paused and looked at Fey closely. The boy that was easily frightened and impatient had changed. His thirst for power is still present, but unlike before it is not overwhelmingly so.

'The boy has learned to be patient, that's good. It seems that these few days have calmed his spirit.'

"Very well, but don't do practice swings today, tomorrow we will climb up the mountain at dawn. You will need all of your energy."

"Yes sensei!"

Having said that Urokodaki walked away and Fey continued to meditate.

----------------

"Hey Nezuko, guess what. Starting tomorrow I'll be able to learn some real demon slayer techniques."

This was the real reason Fey had wanted to wait until tomorrow. He had come to enjoy coming near the end of the day and telling her stories about him or ones that he could still remember. He had also come to learn that her name was Nezuko Kamado, and she was Tanjiro's little sister, which would explain the resemblance in their hair color.

Now that his training was about to begin, Fey feared that he wouldn't have the time to come over and tell her stories. This is why he decided to delay his training for one more day, he wanted to say goodbye and tell her the reason why he wouldn't be able to come as often anymore.

It might've seemed silly, but Fey really did feel bad for this young girl. He could see how helpless she was and it reminded him a little of himself when he first came to this world as well as that time he fought against the demon.

There also weren't many forms of entertainment that one could use to spend their time here aside from training and chores, and since both of those were physically or mentally exhausting, Fey valued his time spent taking care of Nezuko.

He also enjoyed the time he spent meditating and walking through the woods. He had learned a couple of things from which plants are edible and which ones are used to cure wounds, to different ways in which one can track an animal. Overall his walks were very effective towards teaching him survival tricks.

Fey looked over at Nezuko and her sleeping face. He could swear that these past few days she looked more relaxed and the amount of times she had nightmares had decreased, however he wasn't fully sure. He had also only been taking care of her for seven days, so he didn't know if she was simply going through a tough time.

One thing he could say for sure was that seeing her like this would reignite his passion for training. He didn't necessarily know her, but he felt he could imagine what her life might've been like if she hadn't gone through what she did.

"I'll become a great demon slayer and I'll help you get revenge against the demon who did this to you. Maybe then you and however many other victims will wake up and be able to live out their lives as normal. So until that day just hang on, ok."

Now that he was done, Fey walked outside where there laid a very small wooden house, although upon a close look it might be more fitting to simply call it a wooden box.

Urokodaki had kept true to his words and helped Fey make his house, however as his interest was more geared towards training, Fey barely worked on it. To say that the abomination came about as a product of Urokodaki's guidance would be an insult to him, or at least that's what Urokodaki had said at that time.

At least Fey's house was able to shield him from the wind and rain if only just barely.

---------------

The next day at dawn.

Urokodaki had kept true to his word and waited until the next day, before calling out to Fey so that they could climb the mountain that was next to their house. At first, Fey was curious about what type of training he would be doing, especially when he had learned that Tanjiro had already completed it.

He could still recall the ease at which his blow was parried and he yearned to be able to do that. However, as they kept on climbing Fey noticed that the air was getting colder and thinner. Training in these conditions would certainly be grueling, and this made Fey serious for once.

Once they had reached the peak of the mountain they stopped, and Urokodaki turned to face Fey.

"Your goal for today is to climb down this mountain."

'That sounds... surprisingly simple.'

"Is that it?"

"That's it. Try to make it back before the evening, otherwise training will stop there until you are able to do so. I will not teach you anything new until you are able to do this, is that clear?"

"Yes, Urokodaki-sensei!"

"Good, I shall wait for you at the bottom."

Having left behind those words, Urokodaki quickly disappeared as though he had never been there in the first place.

'What great speed!'

The ease in which Urokodaki left Fey's vision left him speechless and yearning to learn all that he could. At this point, he was glad to have come upon the demon slayers when he first transmigrated over to this world. He might not even have known they existed if not for a lucky (or unlucky depending on how you view it) series of coincidences.

'The way up was fairly easy, the way back down should also be the same. I wonder what he is trying to teach me by having set up such simple training.'

Little did Fey know how soon he would come to regret those words.