Want to read ahead? Join my Patreon for just $7 to get early access to all upcoming chapters!
> Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations
─────
Chapter 178: Kanroji Mitsuri Finally Makes a Move
Judging purely by the unbelievably soft, highly elastic sensation pressing against his face, and the sheer, overwhelming volume of the assets involved...
Suyan didn't even need to see the person's face.
He already had a pretty accurate guess as to her identity.
It had to be Kanroji Mitsuri, didn't it?
"Thank goodness, I finally stopped."
Mitsuri blinked, letting out a massive sigh of relief.
Because of the sheer size of the slimes attached to her chest, her center of gravity was notoriously unstable. When she sprinted, it wasn't uncommon for her to nearly tip over forward.
Managing to stop without face-planting into the dirt was a huge win in her book.
Having caught her breath, Mitsuri swiveled her head, looking left and right. Her clear, bright green eyes were filled with absolute confusion as she muttered to herself, "Huh? Where did Suyan-san go?"
"How did Suyan-san just disappear? Suyan-san Suyan-san, where are you?"
Mitsuri cupped her small hands around her mouth like a megaphone, her face flashing with genuine panic as she called out into the courtyard.
She was completely baffled. It had only been the blink of an eye.
Suyan was literally standing right in front of her! How did he just vanish into thin air?
She had something incredibly important she needed to tell him!
"Mmph~!"
Listening to Mitsuri's completely oblivious antics, Suyan was honestly at a loss for words.
However, he didn't actively push her away. Instead, he simply wiggled his nose against her chest, forcing out a muffled grunt so she would finally realize where he was.
Feeling the distinct friction against her skin through the fabric of her uniform, Mitsuri let out an involuntary gasp.
She quickly looked down, finally noticing Suyan's head completely buried beneath the massive slimes she had used to brake.
Mitsuri panicked, immediately pulling the assets she had spent over a decade nurturing away from his face. She stared at him in utter astonishment. "Eh? Suyan-san, why did you hide in a place like that?"
"Hide?"
Suyan was flabbergasted.
He had to admit, Mitsuri's use of the word "hide" was an absolute stroke of genius.
So I deliberately dove underneath your slimes to hide?
He had lived a long time, but this was the very first time he'd ever heard of someone using breasts as a stealth camouflage point.
In a way, Mitsuri truly was an unparalleled genius.
Suyan didn't even bother correcting her. He simply gave her a deadpan look and said lightly, "Whatever makes you happy."
Mitsuri entirely missed the sarcasm on his face. Giving his shoulder a playful shove, she completely convinced herself of her own absurd theory. "You're so mean~ Suyan-san, purposely hiding in a place like that."
If this were the old Mitsuri, just holding Suyan's hand would have sent her into a blushing, stuttering mess.
But she had been living and training alongside him for nearly two full months now.
She had grown completely accustomed to this level of physical contact.
Suyan looked up at her and asked, "Little Mitsuri, did you need me for something?"
How should he describe it?
Kanroji Mitsuri was a girl who inherently possessed the ultimate "airhead" attribute.
But her brand of being an airhead was a bit different from the standard trope.
Take Makomo, for instance. Makomo was also an airhead, but because she loved tranquility, she rarely spoke.
When she did, her voice was soft, airy, and floaty.
Strictly speaking, Makomo fell into the "quiet and aloof" category of the airhead spectrum.
Then there was Marikawa Shizuka.
Her airhead attribute directly stemmed from sheer, unadulterated laziness.
She was constantly lethargic, entirely unwilling to lift a finger if she didn't have to.
She acted a lot like a sloth, and even her speech patterns felt like they were lagging a half-second behind everyone else.
But Mitsuri? She was on a whole other level.
Because her airhead attribute was fueled entirely by hyperactive cheerfulness.
He honestly had no idea how the concepts of "airhead" and "hyperactive" even managed to coexist in a single human being.
But after spending time with her, Suyan realized she truly embodied the contradiction.
In her daily life, she was incredibly passionate and outgoing. Whether she was interacting with Nezuko, the Butterfly Estate Trio, Kanae, or her senior Contract partners like Saeko...
She effortlessly got along with absolutely everyone.
Her airhead nature mostly manifested in the way she spoke and acted.
She was impulsive, completely lacking a mental filter. She simply blurted out whatever popped into her head. By the time she realized what she was saying, she had usually already confessed both what she wanted to say and the embarrassing secrets she definitely meant to hide.
"Ah? Oh right! I remember now."
Thanks to Suyan's reminder, Mitsuri finally recalled why she had sprinted across the courtyard in the first place.
Bouncing on her heels, her eyes sparkled with immense excitement. "Hey, hey, Suyan-san! I did it! I finally mastered Total Concentration: Constant!"
"You mastered it already?"
Suyan was genuinely taken aback.
Constant wasn't a flashy magical ability; it was a grueling physical and mental discipline.
It was the ultimate technique that forced a swordsman to maintain the rhythmic breathing of their specific Breathing Style 24 hours a day, 7 days a week—whether they were eating, bathing, or even sleeping.
It was also the absolute baseline requirement for becoming a Hashira in the Demon Slayer Corps.
When maintained constantly, the swordsman's body would unconsciously restrict the natural leakage of their aura.
It acted as an incredibly crude, basic form of the Nen technique, Ten.
This allowed the swordsman's physical attributes to undergo a slow, continuous, full-body enhancement over time.
It was exactly why the retired elderly Hashira still fought like absolute monsters.
Take Tanjiro and Giyuu's master, the former Water Hashira, Urokodaki Sakonji.
Despite being retired and living a reclusive life on Mt. Sagiri, he still occasionally descended the mountain to slaughter demons.
Aside from his snow-white hair, he didn't display a single sign of physical deterioration.
The same went for Zenitsu and Kaigaku's master, the former Roaring Hashira. Though perhaps not as physically absurd as Urokodaki, he was incredibly robust and completely lacked the frail lethargy associated with old age.
But Mitsuri had only been exposed to Breathing Styles for a little over a month. To master such an intensely difficult bodily discipline in such a short window...
It truly exceeded Suyan's expectations.
As expected of the prodigy who managed to become the Love Hashira just one year after picking up a blade.
"You don't believe me, Suyan-san? I really did master it! Really, I'm not lying to you!"
Seeing Suyan space out, Mitsuri immediately assumed he doubted her.
Panic flashed across her face as she wildly gestured with her hands, desperately trying to convey her sincerity.
After a few frantic seconds, she finally remembered how she was supposed to prove it. "Suyan-san, wait right here! I'll go grab a gourd and blow it up for you right now!"
Saying that, Mitsuri clumsily spun around, intent on running back to her room to grab one of the specially hardened training gourds.
But before she could take even two steps, she felt a sudden, iron grip clamp around her wrist.
A massive surge of force yanked her backward, pulling her directly off-balance and straight toward Suyan.
In the next second.
Mitsuri violently crashed her slimes into Suyan's face for the second time that day.
This time, however, it was entirely Suyan's fault.
For a split second, he had completely forgotten that Mitsuri possessed an abnormal muscle density eight times that of a regular human.
When he reached out to grab her, he applied the amount of force required to stop an average girl.
Caught off guard by her sheer momentum, Suyan reflexively yanked back with a burst of strength that far exceeded her physical limits.
The end result was exactly as expected.
"Ugh?"
Pressing her entire body weight against Suyan, Mitsuri blinked blankly. "Why do I feel like I've seen this exact scene before?"
"And the next part is..."
Mitsuri took a step back, her gaze dropping downward. Feigning dramatic astonishment, she pointed at Suyan. "Suyan-san, you really did hide in this spot again! You're amazing!"
Having delivered her punchline, she instantly looped back to her original thought. "Hey, hey, Suyan-san! I did it! I finally mastered..."
Suyan waved a hand, cutting her off before she could finish the loop. "I know, I know. You don't need to repeat yourself, little Mitsuri."
Honestly, Suyan couldn't comprehend why a discipline based entirely on altering subconscious breathing habits was trained by blowing into progressively harder gourds until they exploded.
But regardless of the training method, the results were undeniable.
Constant was the act of keeping the breathing rhythm active 24/7.
By simply applying Gyo to his eyes, Suyan easily saw the incredibly faint, thin layer of retained aura clinging to Mitsuri's body.
It was absolute proof that she wasn't lying.
"Eh? So you already knew, Suyan-san?"
Mitsuri stared at him with stars of pure admiration in her eyes, completely failing to realize that she was the one who had just told him.
Or perhaps her brain simply refused to accept that Suyan's raw physical strength vastly eclipsed her own monstrous muscles, and assumed he just knew?
But Mitsuri wasn't the type to get bogged down by complex logic.
Since Suyan already knew she had mastered Total Concentration: Constant...
Then it was finally time to get down to the main event.
Mitsuri clenched her fists, her eyes burning with fierce determination.
However, having the resolve to ask was one thing; actually speaking the words aloud was another entirely.
Her lips trembled, and she nervously fidgeted in front of him. "Um, Suyan-san... um... about that..."
"What is it?"
Seeing the normally loud and boisterous Mitsuri acting so bashful and shy, Suyan instantly realized what was going on.
He'd have to be brain-dead not to notice the shift in atmosphere.
And he was certainly no idiot.
He immediately remembered the promise he had made to her.
He had arranged a competition between her and Nezuko.
Whoever fully mastered their Breathing Style first would be granted a very special reward.
Watching her squirm in absolute embarrassment, a wicked urge to playfully bully her began to rise in Suyan's chest.
Maybe this was the true allure of the airhead attribute?
It ignited an intense desire to protect them, while simultaneously making them so incredibly adorkable that you couldn't resist teasing them just to see their flustered reactions.
"It's Constant! Total Concentration: Constant! Suyan-san, I already mastered it!"
Seeing Suyan stare at her blankly, seemingly having completely forgotten his promise, Mitsuri panicked.
But too embarrassed to demand her "reward" directly, she could only frantically emphasize her achievement, hoping he would connect the dots.
"I know, little Mitsuri is incredible."
Suyan reached out and patted her on the head, pasting a blatantly perfunctory smile of praise onto his face.
While Mitsuri definitely wanted to be praised...
What she truly wanted right now was the reward Suyan had promised her.
But looking at him, it seemed he had genuinely, entirely forgotten all about it.
Did he really just forget something that important? Was Suyan-san never taking it seriously in the first place?
Mitsuri's head drooped in profound disappointment. The vibrant, boundless energy that constantly radiated from her seemed to instantly evaporate, and the bright emerald hue of her eyes dulled to a lifeless gray.
A moment later, she aggressively slapped both of her cheeks, forcefully snapping herself out of her depressive spiral.
How could I think something like that?!
Suyan-san definitely didn't do it on purpose. He's just been incredibly busy lately!
Besides, when I ran over here, he was clearly deep in thought about something extremely important.
So I absolutely can't blame him for this.
If anything, it's my fault! I knew he was busy, and instead of helping him, I came over here just to selfishly bother him. I'm the worst!
Despite successfully convincing herself with her flawless mental gymnastics, the deep trace of disappointment in her eyes refused to completely fade.
Mitsuri forced a weak smile. "No, it's nothing. Please go back to your work, Suyan-san. I won't bother you anymore."
Seeing the raw, unconcealable dejection on her face, Suyan knew he had pushed it far enough.
If he kept teasing her, she was actually going to cry.
Suyan wrapped his arm around her slender waist and smoothly pulled her directly into his embrace.
Curving his index finger, he gently tapped the bridge of her nose. His voice softened, rich with affection. "I was just teasing you. Considering how incredibly hard little Mitsuri has been training every single day, I've been watching your progress very closely."
"How could I ever forget the promise I made to you?"
"Really?!"
In a flash, the gray clouds vanished, and Mitsuri broke into a breathtaking, radiant smile. A blinding explosion of color and emotion returned to her emerald eyes.
The sudden rush of joy was so overwhelming it made her dizzy.
She stared up at Suyan, trembling with excitement.
Suyan didn't offer any more flowery explanations. He simply conjured a Contract parchment and held it up in front of the girl. He looked her directly in the eyes and asked bluntly, "Little Mitsuri. Are you willing to walk by my side for the rest of your life?"
"The rest... the rest of my life?!!"
Mitsuri covered her mouth, her heart hammering against her ribs.
A deep flush rapidly spread across her cheeks, burning all the way down to her neck.
Even though Suyan hadn't actually done anything yet, and even though she was fully accustomed to his casual touches...
Hearing those words made her brain completely short-circuit.
She felt lightheaded, almost like she was suffocating from pure happiness.
In her daze, driven entirely by her raw instincts and deepest desires, she blurted out, "I am!!"
Suyan chuckled softly, placing the Contract parchment gently into her trembling hands.
He leaned in close, his lips hovering mere millimeters from her ear, and whispered, "That's wonderful. So, little Mitsuri, make sure you don't lock your door when you go to sleep tonight~"
"I'll come collect on our promise, and give you your reward."
His hot breath brushed against her sensitive earlobe. Mitsuri felt her ears instantly catch fire.
Even without a mirror, she knew her ears must be glowing bright red.
But even hotter than his breath were the words he had just spoken.
Every time she processed the meaning behind his words, an intense, pooling heat surged through her entire body.
Completely lost in her euphoric daze, Mitsuri unintentionally voiced her innermost thoughts aloud right in front of him. "Father... Mother... did you see?"
"Your daughter... finally made it. I'm finally giving myself away..."
----
─────
Support this fanfict by leaving Positive Review, Comments, and Power Stones.
For Advance Chapters:
> Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations