Chapter 18: Return to Butterfly Mansion

Hatsune thought to himself, "As expected, that old man told her everything."

Mentioning this only made Hatsune angrier, but he knew he couldn't blame Shinobu Kocho for it. In the end, he had overcomplicated things himself.

"Turn around, I need to change."

Hatsune bent down to pick up the coarse cloth clothes on the stone slab and looked at Shinobu Kocho, his tone not as cold as before.

The faint scent of wisteria on Shinobu Kocho's body seemed to have a magical allure.

"Here, I brought these for you."

Shinobu Kocho handed a bag to Hatsune. Inside were the clothes he wore when he first came up the mountain, including his white haori, now cleaned.

Hatsune was taken aback. He looked at the coarse cloth clothes in his hand, then at the bag Shinobu Kocho was holding. He didn't take the bag and casually asked, "You went up the mountain? How did you bring these back?" He lowered his head and continued to put on the coarse cloth clothes.

"Why are you still wearing those coarse clothes?"

"I have training tonight; those clothes aren't convenient. Why are you here? You didn't just come to deliver clothes, did you?"

While tying the rope around his waist, Hatsune talked to Shinobu Kocho, now looking like a mountain farmer in his coarse cloth clothes.

Seeing Hatsune's appearance, Shinobu Kocho couldn't help but laugh, covering her mouth and giggling.

"Don't say, it looks quite fitting. You really are Mr. Seigen Ryoubei's disciple, looking more and more like him. The day after tomorrow is the selection at Fujikasane Mountain. I agreed with Mr. Seigen Ryoubei that I would take you back to the Butterfly Mansion tonight. You can rest tomorrow and prepare for the selection. I'll also help you remove the stitches."

So that's how it was. Hatsune looked up towards the mountaintop.

During his training at Falling Dragon Mountain, he was well taken care of by the old man. Especially in the first two weeks when he was weak, the old man helped with everything.

Now, finally about to leave, he felt a bit reluctant. Even though he knew the old man wouldn't mind, he thought he should at least say goodbye.

"You go ahead; I'll head to the Butterfly Mansion later." With that, Hatsune started walking towards the mountaintop.

Shinobu Kocho quickly called out from behind.

"If you're thinking of going up to say goodbye to Mr. Seigen Ryoubei, you don't need to. He asked me to pass a message to you."

Hatsune stopped. "What did he say?"

Shinobu Kocho cleared her throat, mimicking Seigen Ryoubei's haughty expression and voice, pointing to the ground disdainfully, "Little Butterfly, tell that rude guy there's no more rice on the mountain. If he passes the selection, he should bring a bag of rice up. If he doesn't pass, he shouldn't come up and waste food."

"Ha ha ha!" Shinobu Kocho couldn't help but laugh before she finished, bending over with laughter, tears almost coming out. She waved her hand.

"Oh dear, you men are so strange, even caring words have to be so indirect and subtle, it's really confusing."

Shinobu Kocho's laughter embarrassed Hatsune, making him wish he could find a hole to crawl into.

That old man, what nonsense!

"Stop talking nonsense! Who's going up the mountain to say goodbye? I was... I was..."

Hatsune stammered, not knowing how to explain.

But Shinobu Kocho didn't let him go, circling around him, persistently questioning him, seemingly wanting to see him flustered.

"What was it? What was it? I didn't expect our Hatsune to be cold on the outside but warm on the inside."

"Who's cold on the outside but warm on the inside? I really can't explain it to you."

Hatsune quickly walked down the mountain, wanting to get away from this strange woman.

"Oh my, feeling shy now."

The sound of their playful banter echoed through the forest.

On the mountaintop, Seigen Ryoubei stood alone in the cold wind, hands behind his back. Darkness crept up the sky, eventually enveloping the land.

In the darkness, one needs a guiding light, and for Hatsune, Seigen Ryoubei was that light.

A mentor is the guiding light for all newcomers.

It was midnight by the time they returned to the Butterfly Mansion. Everyone else was asleep, which suited Hatsune just fine, avoiding any awkward encounters.

Those chatty women didn't like him, and he didn't like them either, except for Kanao.

Hatsune was quite curious about how Kanao was doing. Had she found something else interesting while he was away?

To avoid the inconvenience of living with other girls, Shinobu Kocho led Hatsune to the backyard.

The backyard was where she usually conducted her experiments and was relatively quiet with only her living there.

Hatsune's room was next to Shinobu Kocho's. It had been cleaned earlier, with simple furniture and a set of new toiletries neatly arranged.

Shinobu Kocho placed the bag of clothes by the bedside, reminded him to rest early, and left the room.

Feeling the surroundings, Hatsune was unexpectedly moved. He didn't know if this woman was just like this with him or with all the Demon Slayer Corps members.

Without the wild winds of the mountaintop or the old man's thunderous snores, Hatsune felt a bit uncomfortable. He lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling for a while before practicing Total Concentration Breathing and soon fell asleep.

The next morning, Hatsune continued his routine from the mountaintop.

He woke up at 5 AM, put on his coarse cloth clothes, and went out for a run. Not having any weights, he found a stone in the yard of similar weight to carry on his back.

Luckily, it was still early, and there weren't many people on the road, but he still drew some curious looks, with people thinking he was some crazy person from the village.

By 6:30 AM, Hatsune returned to the Butterfly Mansion, opening the yard door just in time to see Kiyo sweeping the yard.

At first, Kiyo thought he was someone from the garbage disposal service. After calling out twice with no response, she realized the silver hair looked familiar.

When she got closer and saw Hatsune's sweaty, red face and the stone on his back, she stood there in shock.

Miss Shinobu had said a new resident would be coming to the Butterfly Mansion. Could this be him?

Under Kiyo's stunned gaze, Hatsune put the stone back where he found it, patted his hands out of habit, and walked towards the backyard.

Kiyo was left alone, holding her broom in the wind, feeling bewildered.

Soon, two other girls with tools joined her.

"What are you daydreaming about? Thinking about some handsome guy again?"

"Handsome guy? No, that person is back."

"That person? Who?"

"The one who called us idiots. I just saw him carrying a big stone into the yard."

"Carrying a stone? Why would he be carrying a stone?"

"Maybe he's really out of his mind, coming back for treatment?"

"Is this the time to discuss this? The point is, he's back!"

"…"

The three girls couldn't continue sweeping, bursting into a flurry of chatter.