He met you in the courtyard of Ubuyashiki estate.

A faint smell of wisteria remained in the air, brought by the soft wind that whispered through the trees. The great house loomed quiet and sacrosanct.

You were a new sword in the service of the Demon Slayer Corps, a warrior. The faint calluses on your hands told stories of endless training.

The wind swept across the garden, lifting the petals and sending them swirling in shades of pale hues. For a moment, Giyu felt like they were water droplets suspended in the air, vanishing in a flash, so transient, delicate, and gone before one could apprehend them.

Then he turned to you. No words, just a brief nod.

Was that really his greeting?

Perhaps it was. Giyu Tomioka was a man of few words, not out of arrogance, but because silence was the only language that never betrayed him.

Oyakata-sama had decided to assign you to him for a mission concerning recent reports from a remote village. Entire families had vanished over the past few weeks. The signs were unmistakable: demon attacks, swift and merciless.

Even so, it was clear that Tomioka was far from pleased with the arrangement.

He had always shunned company. To him, company meant vulnerability. and vulnerability in his experience meant loss.

But as the Master's words continued to resound in his mind, he only let out a soft sigh, readjusting the hilt of his blade. Duty came before comfort, after all.

Without another word, he turned toward the path leading away from the estate.