.

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"You can't finish him off with that."

'What?! Where did this guy come from?!' Rimuru thought, staring at the old man that had just appeared. He was wearing an ominous tengu mask along with a white hood while a beautiful blue haori with cloud patterns rested upon his shoulders.

"H-How can I finish him off?" Tanjiro said, turning around to face the strange man. "Don't ask me!" The man responded. "Can't you use your own head to figure that out?!" This man had a serious aura around him. It was like he was on-guard at all times.

'If stabbing's no good...' Tanjiro thought. 'I'll have to crush his head!' He turned towards the demon's head. It was unconscious and showed no signs of life. Completely defenseless. The man only stared as Tanjiro picked up a small rock. He trudged over to the head. 'To crush his skull and smash it completely, I guess I'm going to have to pound him with this rock many times.'

'I bet he's going to suffer.'

Just then, Tanjiro felt something that he didn't expect to feel for a demon.

Resentment? Fear?

No.

Remorse.

'Isn't there anything I can use to kill him in one blow?' He didn't want the demon to suffer. In this world, nobody deserved to suffer. The old man just sighed. 'This kid's not going cut it.' The old man thought. 'He's too kind and can't make decisions.'

'He's facing a demon, yet the scent of kindness remains.' The old man thought.

'He has empathy for even a demon.'

The old man had essentially given up on the poor boy at this point. 'Giyuu...' He thought. 'He's never going to make it.'

Rimuru thought about helping with the execution but then realized, 'This is a test.' This old man was testing Tanjiro to see if he had the determination and resolve to be able to slay the demons. Rimuru smiled. 'Come on! You got this Tanjiro.' He silently cheered.

Just then, the demon had awoken. His eyes shot open as he started observing his surroundings. 'I blacked out...' He thought. 'Is my body dead, then?' The demon looked down. His current situation looked dismal. Stuck to a tree. No arms. No legs. He was just there to inevitably be killed.

'I feel sick!' The demon grimaced. The demon looked up to see a young boy with burgundy colored hair. His eyes widened before he was fueled with rage. "You bastard, I'll kill you! I swear I'll devour you. Get over here! Dammit!" The demon yelled in a fit of rage. "I can't go to you, so come to me!"

Just then, a slither of orange started to peek over the trees. 'I faltered too long. Now the sun's coming up!' Tanjiro thought, staring at the rising sun. "Hey, come here, you!" The demon continued shouting at Tanjiro before the first stroke of sunlight eventually met him. The demon screamed in agony as he started disintegrating. Eventually, fading away into nothingness with no voice to cry suffering.

The rock Tanjiro was holding landed with a small thud as he dropped it. He backed away, traumatized. 'He's gone with that much sunlight?!' Tanjiro thought. 'No wonder Nezuko shrinks from it!' Rimuru stared in interest at the display that had just occurred in front of him. It was cruel, but it was valuable information.

'So just the slightest bit of sunlight will work on a demon, huh?' Rimuru thought. 'What would happen if I tried to use [Meggido]?' Rimuru shook his head. 'No. There would be no way to use it without the sun in the first place.' It was an interesting concept, but one that was not possible.

Rimuru suddenly flinched as he noticed the lack of a presence. Just then, Tanjiro started looking around frantically. "Nezuko?" He called. "Nezuko?!" Tanjiro started running towards the temple, Rimuru tailing him. They both reached the temple and stared into the dark interior. Nezuko was there, huddled in the basket with a blanket over her head. A look that could only be described as uncomfortable on her face.

Both Tanjiro and Rimuru let out a sigh of relief. "Nezuko..." Tanjiro said in a worried tone. "O-Oh, that's right. Where's that man?" Tanjiro questioned.

Walking along the edge of the house, the old man could be seen offering prayers to the people who died that night. In front him lied several graves. 'He buried the people who get killed...' Rimuru thought. He then nodded in recognition.

'I respect him.'

"Um..." Tanjiro approached the man. The man stood up, now finished with the burial.

"I'm Sakonji Urokodaki."

He had a monotone voice. He barely expressed any emotion at all. Of course, it was kind of hard to tell with the tengu mask that he was wearing. "I'm guessing you're the one Giyu Tomioka sent my way." The man now known as Urokodaki continued. "Yes! My name is Tanjiro Kamado." Tanjiro introduced. He motioned for Rimuru to come forward. "And this is my companion, Rimuru."

Rimuru raised his hand. "Nice to meet you! I'm Rimuru. I'm not a bad sli-" Rimuru quickly coughed covering over his mistake. 'Yikes! That was close.' Rimuru thought, sweating slightly. Urokodaki could only stare at Rimuru. 'What's with this guy? He's weird.' Rimuru thought, laughing awkwardly.

Urokodaki averted his gaze to the sun and back at Rimuru. He then looked back up at the sun and back at Rimuru. This repeated itself a couple times before his gaze just seemed to have settled on Rimuru. The stare almost burned right through him. 'I knew it! This guy is weird!'

"My sister's name is Nezuko-" Tanjiro tried to continue before Urokodaki interrupted him. "Tanjiro." He said. "What will you do when your sister or your companion devours a human?"

"Eh?"

'AHHH! He totally thinks that I eat humans! I mean, I technically do, but not because I want to!' Rimuru was having a mini panic attack as the interaction continued. Tanjiro's eyes widened at the question.

Urokodaki walked forward quickly and slapped Tanjiro across the face.

The sound rang throughout the temple.

Rimuru froze. Everything was silent. Tanjiro raised his hand to his cheek. "Too slow!" Urokodaki shouted.

"You're just too slow at making decisions!"

"You failed to finish off that demon before daybreak!"

"Do you know why you couldn't answer my question right away?" Urokodaki said.

"It's because your resolve is too weak!"

"There are two things to do if one of them devours a human."

"Kill them! And slit your own belly and die!"

"That's what it means to travel with demons!"

"But that must never happen no matter what. And you'd best not forget. Your friends, family, taking the life of an innocent person..."

"That's the one thing that must never happen. Ever!"

"Do you understand what I'm saying?" Urokodaki concluded. "Yes!" Tanjiro responded quickly. "All right, now I'm going to test you..."

"To see if you're fit to become a member of the Demon Slayer Corps." He then turned towards Rimuru. "You..." He said. "I don't understand you. But Giyuu mentioned you, so you're coming along as well." Rimuru responded quickly. "Yes." Urokodaki gave a small nod as he turned towards Tanjiro.

"Carry your sister on your back and follow me!"

~

Heavy footsteps could be heard hitting the smooth dirt of a path. The light panting of a boy running.

Three people could be seen running down a path.

'He's so fast! Just how old is he anyway?' Tanjiro thought. They had been running since morning and he was already tired. His legs felt sore and they ached painfully but he had to endure... If he wanted to avenge his family. Protect Nezuko. He had to do this. 'And, like earlier...' Tanjiro stared at Urokodaki. 'I'm not hearing any footsteps at all!'

'Nezuko, I know it must be jarring, but please be patient!'

Rimuru stared back at Tanjiro. He looked like he was having a rough time. 'Hang in there, Tanjiro...' Rimuru thought. Right now, he was deep in thought.

'Tempest...'

It feels like an eternity since he's been there but in actuality, it has only been a couple months. 'I wonder how everyone's been...' Rimuru remembered all of the friendly faces that he would usually see. They were short-lived but they were precious.

'I promise. Once I get done here, I'll go right back and spend my time laughing with all of you.'

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