"Father, Mother, Takeo, Hanako, Shigeru, Rokkuta."
"We are home."
Tanjirou stood at the foot of Mount Kumotori, looking at everything around him, and for a moment, he actually felt a sense of trance.
Mount Kumotori was still Mount Kumotori, and everything around it was so familiar; the ground beneath his feet, the air he breathed in, everything was the same as before, without any changes.
The only thing that had changed was that on this mountain, there would no longer be family waiting for him to return from selling charcoal...
With mixed feelings, he looked around; every part of this place was familiar to him.
He grew up here.
He lived a happy life with his family here.
Yet, on that snowy night...
All the beauty was destroyed by a creature that shouldn't have existed.
How long had it been since that day?
Tanjirou lowered his eyes, staring at his palms covered in thick calluses; the hands that once held an axe had to become hands that held a sword.
He took up the sword to turn his brother and sister back into humans.
He took up the sword to avenge his departed family.
He took up the sword so that such things would never happen in the world again.
Four years had passed...
Tanjirou turned his head to look at his brother and sister beside him, revealing a bright smile. The bleak autumn wind brushed across Tanjirou's youthful face, stirring his black and red hair.
They could finally go home.
No longer as demons, but as humans...
The sun pierced through the clouds. Tanjirou lifted his head without shielding himself from the sunlight, his crimson eyes glowing. Tanjirou couldn't help but think.
"It's a beautiful day today..."
"Brother? What's wrong?" Nezuko's voice came from the front. Seeing Tanjirou stop in his tracks, she asked in confusion.
Coming back to his senses, Tanjirou shook his head, looked ahead, and walked quickly in that direction.
Yoizumi and Nezuko were waiting for him up ahead.
"Coming!"
...
Yoizumi looked at everything along the way; it was all so familiar...
Whenever he saw certain things, unforgettable memories would automatically surface in his mind.
The sour, aching feeling in his chest was something Yoizumi couldn't ignore.
The last time he came, he was still a demon and hadn't even recovered his memories.
But this time... he was stepping foot here once again as a human.
Because of the sadness, even his breathing was disordered. The numbness in his chest spread throughout his entire body, and even his eyes felt stinging.
"Hah..." Stopping his steps and looking at the silent wooden house, Yoizumi let out a soft sigh.
"It's so... quiet..."
"We clearly came to clean it once a few months ago, but there's still so much dust," Tanjirou walked to Yoizumi's side and said softly.
"Yoizumi-nii, let's clean our home."
"Okay," Yoizumi lowered his eyelashes and replied in a low voice.
"I'll leave the rooms to Nezuko and Yoizumi-nii," Tanjirou said, holding a sickle; he intended to clear the weeds in the yard.
"Yoizumi-nii, we're home..." Nezuko's voice trembled slightly. The three of them had finally returned to their home together.
The furnishings in the room were the same as in his memories, but things had changed, and people were gone.
Yoizumi raised his hand and gently patted his sister's head, his tone softening.
"Yes, let's work hard to make the house look like it used to."
To return it to that once lively, warm, and happy home.
"..." Looking at the height marks on the door frame that he had carved for Tanjirou nearly two years ago, Yoizumi raised his hand and gently stroked them with his fingertips, his eyes dimming, making it impossible for anyone to tell what he was thinking.
Turning his head to look at Tanjirou beside him, Yoizumi softly called out to his younger brother.
"Hm? What is it?"
Yoizumi looked at Tanjirou, his blue eyes softening a bit, and patted his brother's head.
"Let me carve a new one for you, Tanjirou."
Tanjirou was stunned for a moment, then revealed a bright smile, nodded, his tone filled with joy.
"Okay!"
Tanjirou looked at the marks above, sighing with emotion, his slightly rough fingertips moving back and forth over the scratches.
Looking behind him, various memories of his family flooded his heart, but what remained in the end was only loneliness.
His crimson eyes flickered, and tears faintly welled up. Tanjirou looked at his family members smiling brilliantly in the photo frame, his head bowed slightly. After a long while, he lifted his head again, revealing a smile exactly the same as the one in the photo.
"Everyone... don't worry..."
"We..."
"Will continue the happiness we once had."
Yoizumi stood in the distance, his keen eyesight easily catching Tanjirou's expression. He turned slightly, looking at the few small mounds of earth near his feet.
"..."
He half-knelt, his palms brushing over the mounds of earth one by one, as if afraid to disturb them, his eyes somewhat dim.
Nezuko came to her brother's side, knelt on both knees, and clasped her hands together with her eyes closed.
"Mother, Takeo, Shigeru, Hanako, Rokkuta..."
"Are you all doing well over there?"
"Yoizumi-nii and I are back."
"I'm sorry... we must have made you worry."
Yoizumi listened silently to Nezuko's words, placed down the flowers that Mother Kie liked, and the toys and food that his younger siblings liked, and also closed his eyes.
In the pitch-black world, the figures of his family became even clearer...
It was as if they were truly right by his side, never having left...
"Everyone, you don't need to be afraid that I will be alone and lonely for the rest of my life..."
Yoizumi thought silently in his heart.
"I have found the person I want to be with for the rest of my life."
"She is very good... very good..."
"Next time, I will bring Shinobu to see you..."
"You will definitely like Shinobu too..."
"Because..."
"Shinobu is the best person in this world..."
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