In the end, Ren dug a small pit beside Black Water Lake and, together with Chinatsu, buried Keiko's body.
Keiko's wish before she died was to be reunited with her family. Since Ryoichi's body could no longer be found, this was the only way they could ensure the brother and sister were laid to rest as close to each other as possible.
While Ren was digging the grave, news of Keiko's death spread throughout the village. Everyone felt deep regret and pity for the little girl who hadn't even reached ten years of age.
After burying Keiko, it was already noon. The old woman had prepared lunch.
Today's lunch was very sumptuous, featuring fragrant grilled fish and stewed chicken. To help Shinobu recover from her injuries quickly, the old woman had specially slaughtered an old hen to stew a pot of aromatic chicken soup.
However, despite the rich meal, Ren couldn't bring himself to eat when he thought of Keiko's death.
His wallet still held the six hundred coins he had earned from selling the fish. He had originally intended to give it to Keiko to fulfill her brother's dying wish and help her live a good life. But in the end, the siblings were reunited in this tragic manner. It was truly a pity.
After hastily eating a few mouthfuls of rice, Ren left the dining room. He had intended to go for a walk, but heavy snow began to fall from the sky, dyeing the village pure white with goose-feather flakes.
It was as if the heavens were sighing in grief over Keiko's passing.
With no other choice, Ren sat on the corridor, staring blankly at the silver-wrapped scenery outside the courtyard.
"This isn't your mistake. Don't shoulder responsibilities that don't belong to you!"
After an unknown amount of time, Shinobu suddenly appeared behind Ren. Looking at his desolate silhouette, she offered quiet comfort.
She had seen this look countless times. Almost every Demon Slayer Corps member, after experiencing such an event, would feel lost. In severe cases, they would question their life, wondering what the point of slaying demons was.
They swung their blades to prevent tragedies, yet in the end, nothing changed, and they could only watch helplessly as tragedies unfolded.
"These are the words you said to me last night. Little Keiko's death is not your fault and has nothing to do with you. Don't hurt yourself by taking on burdens that aren't yours..."
Although he hadn't passed the Final Selection yet, seeing Ren feel sorrow and anger over the death of another made Shinobu consider him a qualified member of the Demon Slayer Corps.
The Demon Slayer Corps fought regardless of their own safety, carrying exactly these feelings in their hearts.
Hearing this, Ren deliberately put on an indifferent expression and said softly, "I wouldn't get depressed over something like this!"
"Eh? Is that so?"
Seeing him putting on a brave front, Shinobu couldn't help but smile mischievously. "Then what are you doing here? Don't tell me you came out to admire the snow!"
"I was just comparing which is whiter: this snow or Miss Shinobu's legs. Unfortunately, you're dressed too tightly, so I can only rely on my memories from last night to compare."
As soon as these words came out, Shinobu's small face turned completely red. She immediately raised her fist in shame and anger, delivering an iron fist to Ren's head.
"You pervert! I was an idiot for worrying that you took a hit and coming over to comfort you!"
As soon as her voice fell, Shinobu's small fist slammed into Ren's head with a thud. However, Ren was completely fine; instead, Shinobu cried out in pain.
"Ah! That hurts! What is your head made of? Why is it so hard?"
"Hahaha, Miss Shinobu, that's what you call trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice!"
Seeing Shinobu clutching her hand and crying out, Ren couldn't hold it back anymore and burst into laughter.
The hardness of his forehead was probably only surpassed by Tanjiro and Kamado Kie, right?
After staying at Chinatsu's house for another night, by the next morning, Shinobu's injuries had basically healed, and the heavy snow outside had stopped. The two bid farewell to Chinatsu and the old woman and returned to the Butterfly Estate.
Two days passed in a flash, and they successfully returned to the Butterfly Estate, where they saw Kanao and Kanzaki Aoi.
Upon learning of Ren's battle record—slaying Upper Rank Three and forcing back Upper Rank Two—Kanzaki Aoi's admiration for Ren reached its peak!
If everyone had power as strong as Ren's, dragging Muzan out to sunbathe would be as easy as flipping a hand!
However, Shinobu didn't rush to celebrate. Instead, she put on a white coat, dressed as a doctor, and smiled mischievously. "Ren, come with me. I need to give you a physical examination!"
"Okay."
Ren agreed. He knew Shinobu wanted to check if the mark would cause any negative side effects.
Though, Shinobu dressed as a doctor was quite beautiful; it gave off a bit of a uniform temptation vibe.
After arriving at the consultation room, Shinobu murmured, "Ren, can you activate that red cloud mark at will now?"
"No problem!"
Ren clenched his fist, used all his strength, and punched toward the ceiling.
A fierce gust of wind whistled past. Immediately, the red cloud-shaped mark appeared on his forehead, and his pupils turned a blood-red color like an evil demon.
This was his method of activating the mark. Since he didn't know Breathing Styles, he could only use this method to accelerate his blood flow and raise his body temperature.
Looking at the bright red mark on his face, Shinobu marveled at the mysteries of the human body while her hands moved quickly. She immediately took out a thermometer to measure his temperature.
When Ren had carried her back to the House of Wisteria, she had noticed it: after activating the mark, Ren's body temperature was ridiculously high.
While measuring his temperature, Shinobu took out a stethoscope and placed it on Ren's chest to listen to his heartbeat.
However, after hearing that powerful pounding sound, the smile faded from Shinobu's face, replaced by a wave of shock.
"How is this possible? Why is your heart rate so fast? I can't even count it..."
Shinobu estimated that Ren's heart rate was at least over three hundred beats per minute, and it was still rising. This was not something a normal person could withstand.
Bang!
Just then, the thermometer shattered completely because Ren's body temperature was too high. Even by a conservative estimate, his temperature at this moment exceeded forty-five degrees.
"No way, the thermometer actually broke? Just how high is your temperature right now?"
Shinobu scratched her head helplessly. The structure of Ren's body had already exceeded her understanding.
"Are you an alien? This isn't power a normal human can possess."
"Heh, maybe I really am."
Ren gave a bitter laugh, involuntarily thinking of his 'family'—Hanma Yujiro and Hanma Baki. Those two really weren't pure humans.
As for himself, he had merely used the system's power to raise his physical capabilities far beyond the norm.
"Don't be cheeky!"
Shinobu's expression turned solemn. "Although I don't understand why you can still unleash such powerful strength under this kind of body temperature, there is no doubt that such high heat places a massive burden on your body! So, if you don't want to die, try not to use the power of that red cloud mark in the future unless absolutely necessary!"
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]