When Kiyokawa Izumi woke up in the morning, he cleared his mind and stared blankly at the ceiling. In just a few short days, he hadn't fought any less.
He didn't know when it started, but the Butterfly Mansion was practically becoming the Pillars' daily training ground.
Here, you could always see different Pillars showing up.
Kiyokawa Izumi, who had few missions during this time, was either on his way to a fight or already fighting.
The intensity was absolutely maxed out!
They would fight all afternoon, sometimes even continuing into the evening.
His opponents were also Pillars, and their Breathing Techniques and swordsmanship Ranks were all superior to his. He would suffer a disadvantage if he wasn't careful.
If he showed even a hint of slackness, he would get injured.
Kiyokawa Izumi was definitely the one who suffered the most setbacks.
It wasn't because he was too weak; he was the only one who fought the entire time, only resting once in between.
"Inosuke, my boy, that's excellent! You have great Aura!"
He could hear Big Brother's hearty laughter early in the morning. This person truly had a wonderful personality. Even Senior Brother Giyuu couldn't be bothered to respond to Piggy's challenges, finding him annoying enough to tie him to a tree.
Only Big Brother enthusiastically accepted, and he even remembered to point out Piggy's shortcomings.
Piggy had been genuinely withdrawn lately.
Having seen too many Pillars and being unable to defeat a single one, he inevitably started doubting life—while broadening his horizons, he also felt his own insignificance.
But Piggy's personality was easy to manage. Seeing him a bit withdrawn, Kiyokawa Izumi said, slightly provocatively, "Piggy, is this all you've got?
You want to become stronger? Impossible! Just give up, you definitely can't do it."
Stung by this provocation, Piggy instantly recovered his spirit and began training even more desperately.
One day, he would become stronger, and then he would soundly defeat this guy in front of him and prove that what he said was wrong.
"Is there something you can't figure out?"
Kiyokawa Izumi looked at Kanzaki Aoi, who was hanging clothes out to dry, and suddenly asked.
"Wh-what?"
"You've been watching Inosuke, watching those hardworking Team Members, and you seem distracted."
Kiyokawa Izumi, who was quite perceptive, recalled the original plot briefly and already guessed the girl's inner turmoil.
"It's nothing... I just feel like someone like me is truly useless."
Kanzaki Aoi, having snapped out of her daze, silently lowered her head and continued working.
She was actually very, very envious of Kiyokawa Izumi, envious of his talent, his strength, and the fact that he could become a Pillar at such a young age.
Unlike herself, she didn't even have the courage to grip a nichirin blade. Although her family had been cruelly murdered by demons, and she had initially resolved to join the Demon Slayer Corps, now she didn't even have the courage to face a demon.
During real combat missions, she was even afraid to attack due to the fear of death. Such a worthless person like herself was truly utterly useless.
Seeing those diligently training Team Members, she felt very inferior, believing she was far beneath them.
Kiyokawa Izumi, who was already a Pillar, probably couldn't understand these feelings. If she confessed, he would probably think she was cowardly and weak, right?
"Do you remember my question from a long, long time ago?"
"What?"
Kanzaki Aoi looked confused, unsure what Kiyokawa Izumi was talking about.
"I asked you if you knew the Hand Demon, and you said no... Everyone feels fear. When I first saw the Hand Demon, guess what I did: drew my sword, or ran away?"
Kiyokawa Izumi smiled carelessly. "I naturally turned around and ran without hesitation. After all, it had eaten so many people and possessed such terrifying Blood Demon Art."
At that time, I even felt it was an existence I couldn't defeat. If I didn't run, I would die!"
Kanzaki Aoi, who had never heard these things, looked at Kiyokawa Izumi in surprise.
"Even a Pillar like me has a very shameful, very disgraceful past."
So what if you were too afraid to attack during a real combat mission because you feared death?
Even I have retreated out of fear before.
"It's no exaggeration to say that your fighting talent is far inferior to mine. Even ten of you couldn't slay as many demons as I can.
By the same logic, when it comes to helping the injured, ten or even twenty of me wouldn't be as useful as one Kanzaki Aoi.
Kanao has a quiet, taciturn personality, and Shinobu is usually busy with many things. If the Butterfly Mansion didn't have you, it would probably be very chaotic right now, wouldn't it?
Injured Team Members need care, food needs to be prepared in advance. Too many things rely on you... These are all the contributions you make."
Seeing Kanzaki Aoi frozen in place, showing an expression of disbelief due to his words, Kiyokawa Izumi tried to make his tone gentle and said with a smile.
"If you don't believe me, how about we let those Team Members go hungry for a day, and don't prepare any ointments for them... then see if they can continue training tomorrow."
"How can we do that?"
Kanzaki Aoi said subconsciously, but quickly realized that the guy was just joking.
"Just do what you're good at. Everyone is important.
We need Pillars to deal with powerful demons, ordinary Team Members to deal with regular demons, support personnel like the Kakushi to clean up afterwards, and we also need you here at the Butterfly Mansion to treat injured Team Members.
And now, I should go do what I'm good at."
As his voice fell, the Kasugai Crow landing on his shoulder delivered the latest command: Children are disappearing, hurry!
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Only a few energy stones remain for the bonus chapter.