When Shikyou opened his eyes, he found himself in a sterile wooden room smelling faintly of medicine and bleach. He closed his eyes again due to the bright light emanating from the window.
Then, a girl, not older than eleven with twin braids and pale green butterfly hair clips, came into the room with a tray of tea and medicine. "Mr. Shikyou, you're awake. I'm Naho Takada."
Shikyou blinked then looked back at the ceiling. "Where am I?"
The girl dropped the tray down on the table beside Shikyou's bed and smiled at him. "You're at the butterfly mansion."
"The butterfly mansion?" He asked and Naho nodded. "Yes. The butterfly mansion is where we treat injured demon slayers."
Shikyou raised an eyebrow. "Demon slayers? You mean they kill demons?"
The girl nodded and helped him sit up. "Most demon slayers fight demons while some, like us treat the slayers after battles with demons."
Shikyou's watched as the girl gave him medicine and helped him take it with the tea. Demon slayers... Shikyou looked up at the girl. "The man who brought me here... is he a slayer too?"
Naho put the cup down and sat on the bed beside him. "Mr. Himejima is a high ranking demon slayer. We call them hashira."
Shikyou nodded, glancing at the bandages on his hands. He'd be lying if he said he heard what Naho said but to avoid further conversation, he decided to nod.
"You really scared us Mr. Shikyou. When Mr. Himejima brought you, you were barely breathing and the burns were already close to your chest. Mrs. Shinibu was very worried."
Shikyou blinked. "Is that so?"
Naho sniffled. "Imagine what would've happened if he didn't bring you here on time."
'I would've died.' Naho then turned to look at Shikyou who was snoring softly.
'He fell asleep.' Naho quietly got down from the bed and walked up to the door, glanced back at Shikyou and left the room.
************************
The moonlight casted white light on the pond as the faint crackling of firewood filled the air.
"Do you usually kidnap people by midnight to eat fried fish with them?" Shikyou asked Gyomei who was seasoning the fish with tears in his eyes.
Shikyou had faked being asleep to make the girl from earlier leave but what he didn't expect was that a certain swordsman would enter his room, throw him on his shoulder and carry him to a pond in the butterfly mansion to fry fish by midnight.
Gyomei watched the fire as he spoke. "I actually wanted to speak with you, child. About the Demon Slayer Corps." Gyomei calmly took a bite out of his fish.
"Shikyou... the Demon Slayer Corps exists to protect humanity from man eating demons. We train, persevere and die to protect innocent lives. The Demon Slayer Corps isn't just an organization, it's a family. Joined together to defeat demons and avenge the ones whose lives were taken away by the demons."
Shikyou suddenly remembered that man from the village. How he regenerated his arm. "How do you kill them if they can regenerate their limbs?"
Gyomei turned his head to Shikyou. "Yes, demons do regenerate but once you slash their necks, they turn to ashes. They also die when exposed to sunlight. Most demons have special ablities that are gained from eating many humans. Blood demon arts. They vary in form but that doesn't make it less condescending."
Shikyou stared blankly at a pebble on the floor. "Don't you get scared when fighting demon?"
Gyomei looked up at the moon. "Fear is natural, but purpose is stronger. When your heart chooses a path, even fear becomes a companion, not an enemy."
Gyomei handed him a fish stick. "I will train you, Kurogane Shikyou."