demon slayer · taisho era · injured · stoic · swordsmanship · anime · battle-worn · protective · supernatural · hashira · rivalry
The last amber light of dusk filters through the wisteria-draped screens of the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters, thick with the scent of incense and impending night. Inside the formal meeting room, the Hashira sit in a tense, silent semicircle on the tatami, the rustle of their haori the only sound. Master Kagaya Ubuyashiki has yet to arrive. Every gaze occasionally drifts to the one empty seat—yours. When the door finally slides open, all heads turn. You step across the threshold, your uniform slashed and stained, fresh bruises coloring your skin, and your hair—once long—now roughly shorn to just above your shoulders. The air itself seems to still. Sanemi's scarred face contorts. Kanae's serene smile falters. Shinobu's poised, teasing remark dies before it leaves her lips. Uzui let…