Hunter x Hunter: The Sun Breathing Zoldyck - 141

Chapter 141: Time Conjecture × Parting Sorrow

Click.

Separated by a single window.

Roy ignored him and simply turned off the bedside lamp.

Darkness swallowed the room.

He told Sol to wake him if anything happened, then prepared to fall asleep and run an experiment at the same time.

The curse had reminded him of something. Ever since awakening his Nen ability, the Gate of Cognition, Roy had ignored one issue.

Time.

On the surface, a day in the Hunter world and a day in the Demon Slayer world seemed to turn over together. But was it possible that one Hunter day equaled two Demon Slayer days? Three? Maybe even four?

If so, he could race against the clock, speeding up his progress in the Demon Slayer world without sacrificing time in reality, and further accelerate his growth.

Carrying that thought, Roy folded his hands over his lower abdomen and closed his eyes.

Demon Slayer world.

Giyu Tomioka had left during the night.

Urokodaki lay on his futon. On one side was Roy, sleeping soundly.

The small wooden house finally grew still. Perhaps sensing something, Urokodaki felt the absence of that familiar presence. A loneliness he had thought long gone crept back in. The piece missing was Sabito and Makomo.

Tonight on Mount Sagiri, the sea of mist had parted to open a hole in the sky, letting the moon pour down silver light.

Sabito and Makomo, for once, were not holed up inside. They had climbed onto the roof instead. Sabito stood, hand resting on his sword hilt, back straight as he took in the moon. Makomo curled up with her knees hugged to her chest, head tilted back to watch the stars.

Silently, neither spoke.

A mountain wind swept past. It was no longer as harsh as in the depths of winter.

Makomo’s amber eyes reflected the moon. Inside, Roy’s soft snores drifted faintly through the walls. She spoke quietly. "Do you think… if we asked Eiichiro not to kill that demon, he would agree?"

What if he did? What if he did not?

Sabito opened his right hand and pinched a sliver of moonlight between his fingers. Of course, he understood what she was thinking.

Giyu was gone. Eiichiro would leave soon. The Demon Slayer Corps’ Final Selection was almost here. Even if Eiichiro really held back and did not kill that one demon, others like Eijiro, Sanjiro, and Yonjiro would come after him to finish the job.

The Corps did not tolerate sand in its eyes. If they had not been using the demons on Fujikasane Mountain to train future Demon Slayers, that demon and all the others there would have been wiped out long ago.

"The world belongs to the living. We should be ready to disappear."

The fox-masked boy’s words were cruel, but he understood that short, sharp pain was better than slow torture. For a naive girl like Makomo, one wound was kinder than an endless ache.

Makomo buried her face between her knees. "Do not worry. I will not say anything that stupid."

"We all died because of that demon. I will not selfishly ask Eiichiro to spare it."

"You are wrong."

The wind spiraled up and leapt onto the roof.

Makomo looked up at the sound. Shinsuke, Fukuda, and the others drifted up one by one and silently took places at her side.

"It is all of us who do not want to leave," someone said.

"Eiichiro is the one who gave everyone hope. If we get to choose who ends it in the end…"

Sabito released the moonlight and let it fade back into the night. "I choose Eiichiro."

"I choose him too," Shinsuke said easily. "If we all go together, the road will not be lonely."

"Who wants to go anywhere with you?" Fukuda clicked his tongue. "Stay away from me."

"No chance. I am sticking to you."

"That so? Maybe we should not wait for Eiichiro. I will kill you myself."

"Try it."

They grappled and rolled, stirring up gusts of cold wind. Their bickering and scuffling finally broke the heavy mood.

Color returned to Makomo’s face. She looked up at the moon and prayed in silence. She hoped it would hang there just a little longer. Even one more minute would do. Just a little more time in this world. A little more time with her teacher, with Eiichiro, with this beautiful, vivid life.

Inside the house.

Urokodaki turned over and stared at the rafters, unable to sleep.

He held out until the sky paled with the first light of dawn. When a faint glow crept over the horizon, he rose, dressed, and went to the river to catch a few fish. On his way back, he spoke aloud as if someone were walking beside him. "There is no need to cling."

"This old man only has a few years left anyway. When the time comes, I will come down to find you."

Makomo had seen him leave and floated down from the roof, trailing behind him step for step. She pressed her small feet into each of his larger footprints, drawing closer to the little wooden house she knew so well.

At some point, she stopped. Tears fell before she realized it. She forced out a smile. "All right, Sensei."

She drew a deep breath and walked on. Just then, the red sun leapt over the horizon. Dawn light flooded the sky and slipped through a corner of the paper window to fall across Roy’s peaceful face.

Through deep sleep, Roy’s consciousness withdrew from the Hunter world and slipped into the Demon Slayer world. He blinked awake, dazed, and immediately checked the back of his hand.

Smooth skin. No mark.

He exhaled lightly.

It seemed the curse only targeted his lifespan. It did not interfere with his use of Nen. That was, undeniably, good news.

"You are up. We are having sashimi this morning," Urokodaki called from the kitchen, just as he always did.

"Okay." Roy took a quick look around and did not see Giyu. Sabito leaned against a pillar with his arms crossed. Noticing his confusion, he said, "Giyu left last night. Once you leave today, you will probably see him again soon."

"He knew I was going today?"

Roy glanced around. Everyone was here. Even Shinsuke and Fukuda, usually quick to start a fight, were quietly perched on their own beams, none of their usual racket in sight.

"Sensei said there is nothing left he can teach you," Sabito said with a smile. "Once you go down the mountain, it is all on you."

"What about the final test?"

"Giyu already lost to you. What test is there?" Makomo, seemingly back to herself, rolled her eyes. "Eiichiro, do you plan on splitting Mount Sagiri in half for a 'final test'?"

"Maybe," Shinsuke said, dropping lightly to the floor and slinging an arm around Roy’s shoulders. "If this guy keeps training, his cleaving Mount Sagiri in one stroke is not out of the question."

Laughter rose.

Roy laughed with them. "If that day comes, I hope you will all be there to see it."

"Us?" Shinsuke’s grin faltered. "We probably will not."

His words were like someone had hit mute. The laughter cut off mid-breath. Even Urokodaki’s knife paused over the river fish.

The old man sighed, low and long.

Then Roy said, "Why not?"

"If I told you I had a way to make sure you could all see that day…"

"Would you be willing to try?"