"Big Brother!"
Seeing Gyutaro collapse, Ume let out an instinctive cry and rushed forward to catch him.
Blood trickled down her palms, and the warm, metallic sensation sent pangs of sharp pain through her heart.
Inside this cramped and dilapidated wooden shack lay the two most important people in her life: her brother, and a foolish boy who had nearly thrown away his life for the sake of half a rice ball.
Ume stood between them, watching the blood seep from their wounds and feeling their breathing grow shallower. The immense pressure of the situation felt as though it would crush her small, trembling frame.
A overwhelming sense of helplessness and despair filled her heart, but this time, Ume chose not to cry.
She bit her lower lip so hard that blood welled up and touched the tip of her tongue, bringing a sharp sting of iron. She looked up, her blue eyes flashing with a resolve and determination that didn't belong to a girl her age.
She had to do something.
First, she quickly cleaned the wounds on her brother's body to ensure they wouldn't worsen immediately.
Then, without hesitation, she reached into the inner pocket of Gyutaro's tunic and pulled out the wages he had spent the last several days desperately earning.
Glancing at her own tattered clothes, she made a swift decision. She stripped the outer garment from the unconscious Quan Qinghe and pulled it over her own body. The weather was still scorching; even if he remained partially unclothed for a while, he wouldn't freeze. To be safe, she draped a thin blanket over him.
She couldn't step outside dressed in rags. Yoshiwara was a place crawling with men who lacked the coin to visit courtesans; if they saw her in such a state, they would surely seize her.
Now that there was no one left to stand in front of her, she had to avoid all trouble and become the support those two needed.
Ume looked back at the two unconscious figures, her eyes momentarily misting over. She gritted her teeth and stepped out of the room.
However, she didn't notice that the moment the door clicked shut, Quan Qinghe's finger twitched.
The terrifying restorative power of Sun Breathing had allowed him to stir from his coma relatively quickly. Yet, because his body had no energy reserves and was profoundly weak, he could only watch Ume leave, unable to find the strength to sit up.
Looking at her departing back, Qinghe gritted his teeth. It was too dangerous for her to go out alone.
She was likely going out to buy food and medicine. But those thugs he had injured would almost certainly be seeking out the local clinics as well. If Ume ran into them, the consequences would be unthinkable.
Qinghe didn't know if Ume had considered this. If she hadn't, then everything he had done would be for nothing. He didn't want to gamble with her life. He pushed himself to the limit, activating Sun Breathing again in an attempt to wring one last drop of vitality from his exhausted body.
His lungs felt as if they were being scalded with boiling water, the pain so intense he nearly blacked out. Every breath sent spasms through his aching muscles.
It was only now that Qinghe truly understood the level of agony Tanjiro must have endured. This was the kind of pain the protagonist faced in nearly every battle.
The sheer torture of it caused Qinghe to let out a low groan. This unfamiliar sound roused Gyutaro, who had been sprawled on the floor.
Gyutaro's condition was even worse than Qinghe's. The gashes on his back were deep enough to reach his internal organs; through the mangled, bloodied flesh, Qinghe could actually see the pulsing of the organs within.
Yet, Gyutaro seemed completely indifferent to his own wounds. He stared at Qinghe with bloodshot eyes, his voice raspy and hollow.
"I don't care who you are... but please... before I wake up, help me look after Ume. For payment... I don't care if you take my life. She's different from me... her life... it needs to be better, so much better..."
By the time he finished, Gyutaro's eyes were red. He wasn't a weak child prone to tears, but he truly wasn't sure if he would survive this time. He knew exactly how severe his wounds were. Without a miracle, he would die here.
The money he had brought back wasn't nearly enough for Ume to buy decent medicine. And for a girl like Ume, there was no normal way to obtain enough coin for treatment.
He was going to die...
Damn it... damn it all!
The bitterness was overwhelming. He wanted so badly to stay—to see how beautiful Ume would become in the future.
Gyutaro pounded the floor weakly, his strength entirely spent. He couldn't even follow Ume to protect her.
In that moment, Qinghe's voice reached him, carrying a warmth Gyutaro had never heard before.
"If you want to live, breathe with me. Follow my rhythm. I don't know if this will help you, but she is your sister. If you want to take care of her, fight to stay alive."
Qinghe didn't give Gyutaro time to respond. He struggled to crawl over to the elder brother and placed Gyutaro's hand over his own heart, letting him feel the specific cadence of his breathing.
Qinghe didn't know how the original Gyutaro and Ume had survived such a crisis in the story, but Ume had saved him, and he would not allow that tragedy to repeat itself. He wasn't sure if Gyutaro could find a path to survival through this breathing technique, but given Gyutaro's innate combat talent and instinct, even a rudimentary grasp should help stabilize his wounds.
Gyutaro stared at Qinghe, feeling the warmth radiating from the stranger and the strange, rhythmic pulse of his breath. Suddenly, an image of a brilliant sun flashed in his mind.
Instinctively, his body began to mimic the pattern, shifting his own breath to match the heat.
As Gyutaro began his first tentative steps into the breathing style, Qinghe spoke again.
"Can you tell me where the food is? I need to recover some strength so I can go protect Ume."
"In the basket..." Gyutaro wheezed. "Ume was in such a hurry... she didn't see the rice balls I brought back for her..."
────────────────────────────────────────
Support me here: https://[email protected]/AuAuMon
Spring Sale Special – 20% OFF!
Demon Slayer: Starting by Snatching Daki
Join the journey and become part of the story!
────────────────────────────────────────