NOVEL FROG [4] : Demon Slayer Corps, Training of Pain and Growth
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In the small house at the foot of Mt. Sagiri.
Urokodaki Sakonji's silhouette could be seen on the wall in the dim light of the oil lamp at night.
At that moment, he was kneeling quietly in the room, silently watching Nezuko as she slept peacefully.
At the same time, he was also waiting for the final result of the exam on the mountain.
With his face hidden behind a Tengu mask, he kept wondering if Tanjiro would be able to return in time and if Mika would be able to hold out.
He had no answers to these questions.
Until the sound of disorderly footsteps echoed outside, his originally steady figure wavered slightly.
With the sound of the wooden door opening, Kamado Tanjiro, tattered and with scratches on his face, appeared before him.
With a simple "I'm back," Tanjiro knelt on the ground, leaning on the door frame.
Seeing this, Urokodaki Sakonji's heart couldn't help but waver.
He changed his mind.
This child has the qualities to become a member of the Demon Slayer Corps.
He stood up and looked at Kamado Tanjiro, and just as he was about to make an announcement, Tanjiro's voice suddenly rang out.
"Please wait, Mr. Urokodaki, wait for Mika, he's right behind me."
Tanjiro's face was filled with pleading.
Mika?
Will he be back before sunrise?
According to Urokodaki Sakonji's understanding of Mika's physical condition, he wouldn't be able to return in time.
In Urokodaki Sakonji's opinion, Mika's potential was even higher than Kamado Tanjiro's, but due to different living conditions, his physical condition was temporarily inferior to Tanjiro's.
In fact, he had already passed Urokodaki Sakonji's test.
Allowing him to participate in this test was just to give him a taste of the challenges of the upcoming training.
He had no expectation that Mika would return in time.
After all, Urokodaki Sakonji had seen Mika's physical limitations.
But in the face of Kamado Tanjiro's pleading expression, he finally fell silent and waited for Mika's return.
And so, after waiting in silence for more than ten minutes, Urokodaki Sakonji suddenly said, "The sun is about to rise.
As someone who had lived in these mountains for decades, Urokodaki Sakonji was well aware of the sunrise times for different periods.
Upon hearing Urokodaki Sakonji's words, Tanjiro's expression became increasingly anxious.
Previously, when faced with the difficult situation on the mountain, he had been too busy to help Mika, which filled him with regret.
After all, in his heart, Mika had always helped him.
Even when they didn't know each other, Mika was willing to shoot arrows at a powerful swordsman to help him and his sister, even risking his own life.
This made him very remorseful, which led to the conversation on the mountain.
Then Mika's roar made him realize that Mika didn't need his remorse; Mika could endure.
With his trust in Mika, Tanjiro stopped looking back and concentrated on the test.
Finally, before dawn, he returned to the small house.
But Mika was no longer with him.
When he heard Urokodaki Sakonji's message, he suddenly realized that Mika might be eliminated.
Not knowing that Mika had already passed in Urokodaki Sakonji's mind, he became very frightened.
Just as he was about to perform a dogeza to beg Urokodaki Sakonji to give Mika another chance, a scraping sound suddenly came from outside the door.
This sound was distinctly different from Tanjiro's previous footsteps.
But still, this sound made the two people inside tremble.
"Mika!"
Tanjiro quickly turned to look outside and what he saw was Mika crawling on the ground with great difficulty.
At this moment, Mika didn't even have the strength to walk.
Moreover, his injuries were much worse than Tanjiro's.
Seeing this, Tanjiro couldn't help but burst into tears and hurriedly went to support Mika.
Looking at Tanjiro's excited face, Mika proudly said, "Didn't I tell you? I won't be left behind by you. I successfully crawled back."
"Yes!"
Tanjiro nodded heavily.
The next moment, both Mika and Tanjiro looked at Urokodaki Sakonji, who had left the house.
The Tengu mask covered his face, making it impossible to read his expression.
Feeling their expectant gaze, Urokodaki Sakonji solemnly replied, "Mika, Kamado Tanjiro, I acknowledge both of you.
With Urokodaki Sakonji's recognition, the sun slowly rose and shed its glorious light on the three of them.
Mika and Tanjiro smiled brightly in the light.
All their hard work had paid off.
They had both passed the test!
...
"The Demon Slayer Corps has about a hundred members, an organization not officially recognized by the government, but it has existed since ancient times and continues to hunt demons to this day."
"And as for the demons hunted by the Demon Slayer Corps, no one knows how they came to be. We only know that their main food is humans."
"In addition, their physical abilities are incredibly strong. Even if they are injured, they can heal quickly. Even if their bodies are severed by sharp weapons, they can reconnect, and they can even grow new limbs."
"In addition, some demons have extraordinary abilities, such as changing their body size or powerful blood demon arts. They can only be truly killed by direct sunlight or decapitation with special weapons."
Urokodaki Sakonji sat in front of Mika and Tanjiro and explained information about the Demon Slayer Corps and demons, helping them to understand how dangerous their world really was.
Listening to this more detailed knowledge compared to what Mika had explained, Tanjiro's expression changed constantly.
Seeing this, Mika nodded slightly.
To hide his identity, Mika had only told Tanjiro some basic knowledge about demons and the Demon Slayer Corps.
After all, talking too much could lead to mistakes.
Considering Tanjiro's extraordinary sense of smell, Mika hadn't even mentioned the false identity he had once told Giyu Tomioka.
After all, the future Tanjiro would be able to detect lies by smell.
In order to avoid lying and to hide some information, Mika had practically turned into a riddler.
With Mika's and Tanjiro's expressions noted, Urokodaki Sakonji continued, "Unlike demons, members of the Demon Slayer Corps have to fight demons with their flesh and blood.
"They are ordinary people, and once their limbs are cut off, they cannot grow back. But even so, they continue to fight demons to protect humanity."
"And I am a trainer, the one who will train you to become qualified swordsmen. In order to pass the test and join the Demon Slayer Corps, you must pass the final selection held on Mt. Fujikasane."
"Whether you can participate in the final selection will be determined by your strength as judged by me."
"To avoid being eaten by demons and becoming their food, you must train with the will to die. I will not hold back in any way."
"Yes, Mr. Urokodaki!"
Mika and Tanjiro answered in unison.
"Then rest well today and recuperate. Starting tomorrow, your good days are over."
After giving them some instructions, Urokodaki Sakonji left the house.
Inside, Mika and Tanjiro, both covered in wounds, looked at each other's sorry state and couldn't help but laugh out loud.
For those who had already passed the test, no matter how difficult the challenges ahead, nothing could stop them.
Their will had become as hard as steel through this trial.
Unbreakable!
The next day, around noon, Mika and Tanjiro followed Sakonji Urokodaki back up the mountain.
Feeling the thin air and thick fog in the area, Mika's mind immediately recalled the tragic experience of the night before. Due to his lack of physical strength, he couldn't avoid many of the traps even when he spotted them, and had to endure them with his body. As a result, when he returned yesterday, he was covered with wounds. Even after using the special medicine given by Urokodaki, he could still feel a slight pain in his body.
"From today and for a long time to come, your training will involve repeatedly going down and up this mountain. Only when you can descend without a scratch will you move on to the next stage," Urokodaki announced before disappearing into the mist again.
"Descend without a scratch, huh?" Even though Mika had expected this, he couldn't help but smile bitterly. The journey down the mountain had brought him some of his most painful memories so far. He really didn't want to experience such pain again, but he had no choice. If he wanted to learn the breathing techniques and swordsmanship, he had to pass this test.
"Let's go, Tanjiro!"
"Yes, be careful, Mika!"
"Don't worry!"
After a short exchange, Mika ran into the fog without hesitation. Unlike yesterday, Mika and Tanjiro were not on the same path down the mountain this time, which meant that Mika had no one to guide him.
This didn't surprise Mika. After all, Urokodaki had trained many swordsmen before and it wasn't unusual for him to train several students at the same time. It made sense to have different ways. Without Tanjiro to show him the way, Mika wasn't afraid. He came here to train and improve. He could not rely on Tanjiro's keen sense of smell. He had to develop his own sense of smell.
"Bam!"
Struck by a flying log, Mika quickly got up and continued running. More and more traps followed. Unlike the traps from the previous night, these were more hidden and perfect, making them harder for Mika to detect quickly. His experience here was limited. He felt targeted.
Without Tanjiro's keen sense of smell, Mika could only detect the traps when they were close. The fog obscured his vision, and as an ordinary person who relied on sight, Mika felt like he was in complete darkness.
"No, I can't go on like this."
After falling into a pit for the umpteenth time, Mika lay there, looking at the darkening sky, deep in thought.
"This test of descending the trap-filled mountain is not only about training our physical strength, speed, and agility. It's also about training our perception of danger."
"Using fog to obscure our vision is to train us to develop other senses besides sight."
Remembering Tanjiro's training from the original story, Mika let his thoughts flow freely and quickly felt that he understood everything. Unlike him, Tanjiro, with his naturally strong sense of smell, didn't need to develop a new sensory ability. His sense of smell was already the perfect ability to perceive danger. All he had to do was to train it further.
But Mika was different. He was an ordinary person without Tanjiro's innate talent. He needed to develop a new danger perception ability.
"Among the five senses, hearing is the most sensitive after sight. Does this mean that I need to train my ability to locate by sound?"
"Can I develop the ability to locate by sound?"
Looking at the stars above, Mika suddenly sat up.
"It's not about if I can, it's about if I want to!"
Climbing out of the pit, he looked at the fog-covered path ahead, closed his eyes, and started running again. This time he fell harder.
...
"Mika!"
Seeing Mika crawling out of the forest, Tanjiro, who was standing in front of the house, quickly ran over to help him up.
"Mika, how did you get injured so badly?"
Tanjiro examined Mika's bruises and swelling. Even though there was no bleeding, it was still frightening. The injuries seemed worse than what Tanjiro had suffered the night before. This shouldn't be! In Tanjiro's mind, Mika's severe injuries the night before were due to his exhaustion from running. Today, after resting and with full energy, Mika should have had an easier time.
But that wasn't the case with Mika, which puzzled Tanjiro.
Sakonji Urokodaki was also puzzled. He thought that Mika should have had an easier time today as well.
"I'm fine!"
Despite his wounds, Mika had a smile on his face. While running down the trap-filled path, he had closed his eyes halfway and after countless falls and blows, he had finally dodged a flying log. Whether it was a coincidence or not, it showed that Mika's idea might work. Even though he was hit again immediately afterwards, his smile never faded.
At that moment, Mika felt an intense excitement.
"Urokodaki-sensei, I've found my way forward."
Seeing Mika's eager eyes, Urokodaki, although not knowing what had happened, knew from his years of teaching how to react.
"If you've found it, then continue on this path."
"Yes!"
Seeing Mika's beaming face and sensing something from Urokodaki, Tanjiro, though confused, smiled with Mika.
This scene only added to Urokodaki's confusion.
"It's getting late. Mika, go inside and eat your dinner. After dinner, have Tanjiro give you some medicine and get some rest. There's more training tomorrow."
With that, Urokodaki turned and walked into the darkness.
"Yes!"
Mika replied seriously and went back into the house with Tanjiro's help.
...
The next day, although he was still sore all over after waking up, Mika got up without hesitation, driven by his burning determination. After breakfast, he followed Urokodaki and Tanjiro to the mountain again. This time, he kept his eyes closed the whole way down. As a result, his injuries were worse than the day before. But that day, Mika successfully avoided three traps.
In the following days, Mika repeated this training and endured different traps. His physical strength, speed, and agility improved significantly. But the most significant improvement was in his hearing. After more than a month of constant injury, Mika's hearing had developed to the point where he could avoid most traps. Although he couldn't descend unharmed like Tanjiro, he had become very strong.
Tanjiro's naturally keen sense of smell had become even more formidable with training. Meanwhile, Tanjiro had moved on to the second phase of the mountain's descent, where he had to face even more cunning, faster, and more dangerous traps.
In a way, Mika had been left behind by Tanjiro. But Mika wasn't afraid. He, too, was improving from moment to moment.