When {{user}} became the Earth Pillar, she also discovered her life’s greatest curse: Giyuu Tomioka.
Quiet, broody, breathtakingly dense Tomioka.
He was beautiful in that “I probably haven’t eaten in two days but still look flawless” way, and she had it bad. So bad that Mitsuri had once walked in on her polishing her sword while sighing,
“I wonder if Giyuu-san ever… polishes his…”
Everyone knew {{user}} was hopeless. Everyone except Giyuu, who continued to exist like a melancholic cloud of blue silk and depression.
When Giyuu protected Nezuko, every Hashira went ballistic — swords drawn, words sharp. She, however, slammed her palms on the table.
“He’s right! I’d protect her too!”
Everyone turned. Shinobu raised an eyebrow. Mitsuri whispered, “Of course you would…”
And that was how {{user}} ended up being the only one to defend him — and somehow, the unlucky one chosen to go on a mission with him afterward.
The air inside was thick, humming. The smell of decay clung to the tatami mats.
{{user}} whispered, “Stay close, Tomioka-san. The demon’s Blood Art is—”
He was gone.
“…Oh for heaven’s sake.”
She stomped forward, muttering under her breath, “He moves like mist and thinks like a rock—”
Then, a voice behind her.
“{{user}}.”
She froze. He stood at the end of the hallway, eyes half-lidded, face strangely serene. And then—he smiled.
Oh.no He smiled.
Ria’s heart went supernova. “Tomioka-san? You—you smiled! At me! Are you feeling—oh my gods, you’re smiling—”
“You’re…beautiful,” he murmured.
{{user}} dropped her sword. “Wh—WHAT?! OH—OH KAMI—OKAY, okay, stay calm, {{user}}, this is it, the day has come, the heavens have opened—”
“I’ve always watched you,” he continued, stepping closer. “Do you love me?”
Her face turned redder than Kyojuro’s hair. “DO I—? DO I LOVE YOU?! Giyuu-san, that’s—YES, BUT WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT—WAIT—are you confessing right now?! Because this is so sudden!”
And that’s when she noticed the faint red glow in his eyes. Her excitement deflated like a punctured rice ball.
“Oh. He’s hypnotized. Of course.”
She sighed, gripping her sword again. “Of course the first time he calls me beautiful, he’s under a demon’s spell.”
The invisible threads around him pulsed. She slashed through them with a roar— Earth Breathing, Seventh Form: Stone Bloom Reversal!
The ground surged and cracked, snapping the control. Giyuu’s eyes cleared—then promptly rolled back as he fainted straight into her arms.
{{user}} blinked down at him. “Seriously?”
She patted his cheek. “Come on, Water Boy, wake up. I’ve dreamed about you falling into my arms, but not like this.”
The demon’s laughter echoed through the house. {{user}} groaned. “You really had to ruin my one romantic moment, huh?”
She laid Giyuu gently on the floor. “Stay. I’ll handle this.”
Then she stormed off, muttering, “If I kill this demon fast enough, maybe I can go back and pretend the confession part was real.”
By the time she returned, the demon was a fine paste on the tatami. Giyuu was sitting up, looking dazed but determined.
“{{user}},” he said, voice hoarse. “Where… is the demon?”
“Dead. Like my dignity.”
He nodded, trying to stand—and immediately swayed like a drunk crane.
“Tomioka-san!” she yelped, catching him again. “You can’t even stand!”
“I can fight,” he said seriously, despite the fact that his sword was currently being used as a walking stick.
{{user}} sighed, dragging him out of the wrecked house. “You’re fighting me right now, and you’re losing.”
“I don’t… lose.”
“You literally fainted into my arms ten minutes ago!”
“That was tactical.”
She stared at him. “Tactical. Right. You strategically collapsed.”
He blinked, slow and utterly unbothered. “Yes.”
She groaned and rubbed her temples. “Why am I in love with this man.”
Later, as they walked back under the moonlight.
They walked in silence for a while longer. Then, so faintly she almost missed it—
“Beautiful.”
Her brain short-circuited. She tripped. He barely caught himself from falling with her.