Sent back to Momoyama by the Kakushi, Rika hugged Ryosuke and started crying immediately.
Shota was still hiding in the shadow of the door frame, peeping.
Grind grind grind—
The harsh sound of teeth grinding was incessant.
The resentment radiating from him had materialized so thickly it could probably feed three Evil Sword Immortals!
Tsk, incompetent older brother~
Ryosuke couldn't be bothered with him and rubbed Rika's head.
"What are you crying for? I didn't die."
"Wh-what if something really happened!" Rika's eyes were brimming with tears.
"It won't. Your brother here has great luck and a tough fate. I won't die."
Hopefully...
The last three words were stuck in Ryosuke's throat.
"Great luck my ass!"
Jigoro hurried over with his cane. He wanted to knock Ryosuke on the head, but seeing his injuries, he couldn't bear to do it.
"You clearly completed the mission, so why did you actively put yourself in danger?"
"Grandpa, if I don't kill that demon, someone else will."
Ryosuke's meaning was that he was afraid someone else would steal his kill.
To him, those demons weren't demons at all!
They were adorable EXP babies!
"You child!"
Jigoro sighed.
Obviously, he misunderstood Ryosuke's meaning.
He thought Ryosuke was thinking of others.
This kind of nature wasn't bad, but it was also very easy to lose one's life.
...
Breathing Styles had a miraculous effect on healing injuries. Within half a month, Ryosuke's wounds had fully recovered.
During this period, Shota also went on his first mission.
There was no helping it; too many people passed the Final Selection, and there were too few demons suitable for rookies to practice on.
Ryosuke sat at the edge of the training ground, deliberately elongating the rhythm of every breath.
The airflow seemed to condense into a substance, moving the turbid air accumulated in his body, accompanied by a subtle stinging pain.
Total Concentration · Constant.
This was the technique Ryosuke had been mainly studying during this time.
In layman's terms, it meant making Total Concentration Breathing a habit.
Whether eating, sleeping, using the toilet, or playing poker... one would be using Total Concentration Breathing at all times.
This was the foundation of Breathing Styles, the key to unlocking the body's limits, and was incredibly important.
Simply put, Total Concentration Breathing is like activating a "Musou" (Warrior) mode.
After learning Constant, you can ignore the skill cooldown and keep Musou mode on forever, turning an active skill into a passive skill.
"Breathing is not about using force, but blending in."
Jigoro instructed from the side: "Lightning does not only exist when it explodes. It is constantly brewing deep within the clouds, accumulating without releasing, its potential even more intense."
Ryosuke tried again, but still failed.
This part of training couldn't be rushed.
Apart from technique, it was mostly about habit.
After all, even someone as strong as the protagonist Tanzi... Tanjiro, was tortured to death while learning Total Concentration · Constant.
[Hehe~ Host, for just a tiny one year of lifespan, you can instantly learn Constant~]
The System's seductive voice rang in his ears.
"One year, huh..."
Ryosuke raised an eyebrow.
[Yes, yes! Very cost-effective~]
Hearing the System's sleazy voice, Ryosuke had reason to suspect it was taking kickbacks from him.
[Dear Host~ Have you thought about it?]
"It is quite convenient."
Ryosuke smiled, then spoke: "Dakara kotowaru (But I refuse)!"
You refused?!
System: (゜д゜)
Bad!
How do I scam... no, convince him!
Ryosuke massaged his shoulder. On one hand, he needed to save ten years to cure his liver.
On the other hand...
Forget one year; Ryosuke could learn Constant on his own within six months.
The number of demons he killed now was limited, and missions weren't available every day. The lifespan points he could gain were extremely limited.
As a hoarder and a gaming otaku in his previous life, Ryosuke knew deeply how important it was to budget carefully and "turtle up" to farm in the early game.
If he spent recklessly and encountered a Lower Moon with insufficient lifespan points to add, he would likely "pick up a bento" (die).
Furthermore, combat experience, reaction speed, physical stamina...
These factors, which were crucial in battle, could not be obtained by adding points with the System.
To forge iron, one must be strong oneself.
If a peerless sword is held by a baby, failing to utilize its power to the max is a naked waste.
For Ryosuke now, the System was his biggest reliance and trump card. He had to save where he could.
Later, when he became a Hashira and had his own district, he could start "mowing the lawn" (killing mobs) to harvest lifespan points, and adding points then wouldn't hurt so much.
For now, he needed to be steady.
At this moment, a familiar dark blue figure swooped down and landed on Ryosuke's shoulder.
"Caw! Yasui Ryosuke! Mission!"
"Kanagawa Prefecture! Young girls disappearing continuously late at night! Go investigate immediately!"
Before Ryosuke could digest the information, the hummingbird spoke again.
"Also! After evaluation by Oyakata-sama, Yasui Ryosuke is promoted to Kanoe (Rank 7) swordsman! Caw!"
What the hell?!
Kanoe Rank?!
Not only Ryosuke, but even Jigoro was stunned for a moment.
Rika blinked her eyes, looking at Ryosuke with a face full of adoration.
"Wow! Ryosuke-nii is so amazing! Kanoe Rank already!"
The corner of Ryosuke's mouth twitched.
The Demon Slayer Corps had a strict hierarchy; high-ranking swordsmen had the authority to command low-ranking ones.
Every promotion required completing missions and accumulating merit.
He had only killed a few small fries and one tricky Rokurokubi, yet he jumped from Mizunoto (Rank 10) straight to Kanoe (Rank 7)...
Skipping four ranks!
This speed was simply ridiculously fast!
Similarly, the higher the rank, the more dangerous the missions, and the stronger the demons.
This meant Ryosuke had to face greater pressure and danger with this broken body!
Damn it!
Ubuyashiki Kagaya, that brat!
Ryosuke roared internally.
At the same time, he was glad Shota hadn't returned from his mission yet.
If he knew Ryosuke was Kanoe Rank...
That boy's sensitive, competitive heart would probably explode on the spot.
Just imagining Shota's twisted expression of "Why are you faster than me," Ryosuke felt a headache coming on.
"Understood."
Ryosuke suppressed his internal complaints and immediately began packing to leave.
On the way, he pondered the mission location.
Kanagawa...
That wasn't very far from Asakusa.
Thinking of this, Ryosuke's heart stirred.
Asakusa was a place with a lot of significance!
That was where the beautiful married woman lived!
In the original work, Tanzi met Tamayo and Yushiro in Asakusa.
At that point in time, Tamayo had been lurking in Asakusa for a long time.
Since the mission location was relatively close, he could try his luck after finishing it.
After all, to kill Scum Boss Muzan, Tamayo's drug was essential.
Forming an alliance earlier meant advancing progress earlier.
Thinking of this, Ryosuke's steps quickened.
Several days later, Ryosuke disguised himself in plain traveler's clothes and blended into Kanagawa Prefecture.
He gathered information in tea houses, docks, and markets.
"Sigh, gone again... Miss O-Kiku from the West Street tofu shop. Such a good child. The night before last, she said she was bringing a bowl of hot soup to her sick grandmother, and she never came back..."
"Yeah, that's the sixth one already! No person found alive, no corpse found dead. It's like they were swallowed by the night!"
"The officials investigated again and again, but it was useless! Didn't find even a footprint!"
"It's very ominous! Some say they heard strange singing in the middle of the night..."
"Yeah, yeah! I heard it too! It was creepy!"
...
A few days later,
An old man selling fish lowered his voice.
"Some say that before those girls disappeared, they all seemed to have received a seashell."
"A seashell?"
Ryosuke was puzzled.
"Yeah, just the small kind common by the seaside, nothing valuable."
The old man leaned closer, his voice still holding some fear. "Heard they appeared mysteriously on their windowsills. At first, no one paid attention, but then..."
Ryosuke nodded and bought a few salted fish from the old man's stall.
The difficulty of this mission was indeed not just ordinarily high.
Obviously, this demon was completely different from the ones Ryosuke had killed before.
It had relatively clear intelligence and chose its prey with purpose.
The seashell and the singing were likely related to its Blood Demon Art.
He could only investigate further at night.
Night fell, enveloping Kanagawa. The prefecture was wrapped in a dead silence of fear; every household had their doors and windows tightly shut.
Only two figures appeared on the street, seemingly out of place.
A young girl tightly clutched the sleeve of the young man beside her. Her delicate body trembled, and she couldn't control herself from looking around.
"Ken-chan, let's go back. So many girls have disappeared recently, it's too scary..."
The young man puffed out his chest forcefully and smiled.
"What are you afraid of! Those are just baseless rumors. The officials said it's just wandering kidnappers. With me here, no one dares to touch you. Don't scare yourself!"
He patted the girl's cold hand firmly, his tone softening.
"Besides, the moonlight is so nice tonight. It'd be a pity not to come out and see it."
As soon as his words fell, an extremely faint humming sound, like a spider's thread, drifted into their ears without warning.
The tune was weird and ethereal, neither male nor female, drilling deep into the skull with a sticky temptation, hovering in the brain marrow.
"The... the singing?"
The girl exclaimed.
Ken turned his head violently to find the source of the sound, but his vision blurred rapidly.
He tried to call out to the girl beside him, but his throat couldn't make a sound no matter what. His body fell heavily, losing consciousness.
Meanwhile, the girl, who was originally terrified to death, gradually calmed down amidst the singing, becoming hollow and numb.
She stared into the depths of the street and began to walk, moving forward in a posture akin to sleepwalking.