Slayers... today I'm not here with goals or challenges. Today I just want to say something simple:
THANK YOU.
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Tanjiro was left slack-jawed and his eyes wide as two full moons.
He blinked. Then he blinked again. And, little by little, the corners of his lips began to curl upward in a smile of pure excitement.
"Senpai! If the Master finds out about this news, he'll be so happy!"
"Happy?"
Giyū, standing right there, kept his expression of absolute nothing.
"You mean the Master is going to commit harakiri with a smile?"
"SENPAI!"
Tanjiro's smile froze in an instant, and he furrowed his brow with genuine indignation.
"What the heck are you saying?! Marcus has become a Pillar. Why would the Master have to commit harakiri? He's trained two Pillars! Isn't that something to be proud of?!"
Giyū slowly turned his head, and his emotion-empty eyes fixed on Tanjiro, hinting at a trace of… pity? Sorrow? Condolences?
"I see you still haven't realized."
"Realized what?"
Giyū fixed his eyes on Marcus again.
"The title of every Hashira always carries the name of the Breathing Style they use."
"…They're named after the breathing and… what… is… wrong… with… that…?"
Tanjiro's voice trailed off until it became a trembling thread.
Breath of Desire…
At first it sounded a little strange, but after hearing it a couple of times it didn't seem like a big deal either.
But… DESIRE PILLAR!
Pillar… of Desire?
Pillar… Desire…
Pil… lar… De… si… re…
Why was it that the more he repeated it in his head, that word "Desire" started sounding less and less like a noun… and more and more like an adjective… extremely compromising?
A scene suddenly appeared, vivid, in his mind.
A cool, clear autumn afternoon.
Two Slayers in the Corps' uniform were chatting casually by the side of the road. And one of them suddenly pointed off into the distance, at Marcus, who was returning victorious, and spoke in a voice loaded with absolute admiration.
"Look, look! That guy over there is the new tenth Pillar! THE DESIRE PILLAR!"
The other swordsman was stunned. And, on pure reflex, he replied:
"Desire Pillar? Wait, wait… Does that mean… he's a pervert who abuses his power on the women of the Corps?"
The first swordsman went pale, until he was the color of paper.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU SAYING?! You wanna die slandering the Desire Pillar?!"
And the second, now ACTUALLY terrified for real, covered his ass with both hands.
"W-what are you implying with that? Could it be that the Lustful Pillar… goes for EVERYTHING?! IS HE BI?! IS NOBODY SAFE?!"
Not far from there, hearing those words floating on the autumn wind…
Urokodaki was kneeling, in silence, on an immaculate white cloth.
With a smile of acceptance drawn on his face, he slowly raised his short sword…
SLASH!
And drove it into his abdomen without hesitation!
"NOOOOOOOO!!!"
Tanjiro leapt up with a colossal jump, propelled by pure horror.
"MARCUS! YOU CAN'T BE THE DESIRE PILLAR! THE MASTER IS GOING TO DIE!!!"
The shriek that came out of nowhere abruptly drew the attention of everyone present.
The Pillars turned their heads in unison.
And there was Tanjiro. On his feet. With his face as red as a festival lantern. Hands still up in the air, frozen mid-frantic-flailing.
It was only then that he became fully aware of what he had just shouted… in front of all the Pillars.
His soul momentarily left his body.
"Um… I… uh…"
Practically nobody in the courtyard was capable of deciphering those abrupt words.
But there were several who could.
Kanao kept her head down, her shoulders shaking with a suspicious tremor.
Shinobu, on the other hand, was much more direct and was already laughing her head off.
Faced with the looks of absolute bewilderment from those present, Shinobu covered her mouth and, between poorly held back giggles, deigned to explain:
"The Breathing Technique that Marcus uses is of his own creation… the Breath of Desire…"
"Breath of Desire…?"
Obanai stood petrified for an instant. And, right after, his eyes began to gleam with a strange light.
"THE DESIRE PILLAR!"
He shot his arm up, with an emotion he didn't even bother to hide.
"I'm in agreement! Let Marcus become the tenth Pillar!"
"Pfff~!"
Mitsuri couldn't hold back her laughter. "S-sumimasen~"
Giyū also raised his hand.
"I'm NOT in agreement!"
For once in his life, his voice let a recognizable emotion show through.
"This is putting our master's dignity on the line!"
Tengen tilted his head, intrigued.
"And who's supposed to be your master?"
"Sakonji Urokodaki."
"Oooh…"
All the Pillars exclaimed in unison, like a synchronized chorus.
"So you're disciples of the previous Water Pillar…"
"Senpai, you're pushing Master straight into a dead end!" Tanjiro covered his head with his hands.
…
On Mount Sagiri.
Inside a little wooden cabin.
Urokodaki was hunched over the desk, writing carefully.
Ever since he had received Giyū's letter, he had been spending a good while drafting this missive to protect Nezuko. He wrote, corrected, rewrote, corrected again… It had taken him more time than he had expected.
Finally…
"It's ready."
Letting out a sigh of relief, he set the brush aside and stretched. Then he leaned over to reach for his personal seal in a corner of the desk.
Clang
The short sword he always carried fastened to the back of his waist suddenly dropped onto the tatami.
Urokodaki stood petrified.
He lowered his gaze to the weapon. And lifted it back up to reread the last line of the letter:
"Should Nezuko ever come to devour a human, I, Sakonji Urokodaki, together with my disciple Giyū Tomioka, will commit Harakiri!"
The dagger now lay on the tatami, in an unsettling silence, with the sheath reflecting the golden light of the afternoon sun.
"Is it an omen?"
He kept staring at the sword, and suddenly, a chill ran down his entire back.
"Why do I have… this bad feeling…?"
After a moment, he shook his head hard, picked up the dagger, put it back in its place, and stamped his seal onto the signature.
"Even if it is an omen, so be it. I'd rather die by Harakiri than tarnish my name after spending half my life hunting demons!"
…
In the back courtyard of the headquarters. Beneath the eaves.
Marcus's face was switching between colors back and forth.
Hearing Obanai's poorly held back laughter, he furrowed his brow deeply and turned his head toward Kagaya.
The latter returned his gaze with an expression that said quite clearly: 'I warned you.'
"Haaa…"
After a few seconds of contemplation, Marcus sighed with resignation.
"Fine… we'll do it your way."
Even though he was blind, Kagaya perfectly picked up on that defeated sigh. Leaning on his two daughters, he stepped forward and stood in front of the Pillars.
In an instant, an absolute silence fell over the courtyard.
"You have all guessed correctly. The new Tenth Pillar is Marcus."
"As for his strength, I imagine nobody has the slightest objection."
And so it was. Marcus had faced the Water Pillar all by himself. Then, against the Water Pillar and the Insect Pillar at the same time. And, on top of that, he had displayed overwhelming power fighting the Wind Pillar and the Serpent Pillar simultaneously.
Faced with such a demonstration, none of those present dared open their mouths to refute anything.
Kagaya nodded and went on.
"On Mount Natagumo, he beheaded the Lower Moon Five. There are no problems regarding the regulations either."
To become a Hashira, one had to have taken down a certain number of demons or finished off one of the Twelve Demon Moons. Although the Upper Six Moons hadn't fallen at the hands of the Corps in a century, the vast majority of the current Pillars had risen up after eliminating one of the Lower Six Moons.
So, when it came to the conditions for promotion, Marcus also more than met the standard.
Confirming that everyone was still silent, Kagaya delivered the final verdict.
"Given that he meets all the requirements, it is now officially decided. He will occupy the position of Tenth Pillar."
"UNDERSTOOD!"
The Pillars responded in unison.
"However…" Kagaya continued with a mysterious smile. "Marcus's functions as the Tenth Pillar will be a little different from those of the rest."
"From now on, the Corps will provide the funding and he will provide the technology, and together we'll found a laboratory specialized in the study of demons. Said laboratory will fall entirely under Marcus's responsibility."
"Shinobu."
"Yes, Master!"
Shinobu stepped forward and bowed her head.
"From this day forward, you will be in charge of the liaison between the Corps and the laboratory."
"Huh?" Shinobu lifted her head, bewildered. "Me?"
"That's right. Even though the proposal came from him, I consider you to be the most suitable person for the position."
Kagaya looked at her with a warm expression.
"In the entire Corps, you are the only one who possesses real experience with experiments. If we were to send anyone else… I'm afraid they wouldn't even be capable of understanding the reports."
"Understood!"
This time Shinobu didn't hesitate. She nodded firmly and returned to her position.
"And lastly…"
Kagaya's lips curved slightly. It was clear from a glance that this part was amusing him.
"Lastly, let us confirm what Marcus's title as the Tenth Pillar will be."
'HERE IT COMES! HERE IT COMES!'
Obanai's eyes gleamed with excitement.
Tanjiro, on the other hand, was nervously biting his nails. In his mind, the image of his master committing harakiri with a serene smile kept reappearing over and over… and the color drained completely from his face.
"The title of the Tenth Pillar is…"
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And if PS aren't your thing but you still want more chapters...
P-a-t-r-e-o-n → Athome790