Stone Cold | Tanjirou Kamado (old version)

2. A Heart's Whisper

Ayaka 's brown eyes watched carefully the Sun over the window. It started to hide over the horizon. 

It was the Moon’s turn to go out, and with her, came the demons. 

Her time of rest ended with their arrival. 

She thanked the man for the takoyaki with a smile out of pure courtesy, left a pair of coins on the counter and got up from the stool. 

She was thankful her crow wasn’t there, having sent him to get a letter to Himejima-shishou. Partly because she wanted to inform about her progress and also because she wanted to get rid of him.

Relief flowed through her because of not having to listen to his yells, her mind was clearer that way. Her thoughts weren’t interrupted because of his constant shrieks and that put her in a good mood. 

As soon as the Sun set, everyone wandering around the streets disappeared. 

The shops closed, the people from the port rushed to leave the boats prepared for the next morning, the girls who chatted cheerily with their friends said their goodbyes on a whim and locked themselves in their houses. 

In just a moment, what had been a city full of energy and happiness turned into a ghost city.

Even one could feel how the somber atmosphere took hold of streets in a matter of seconds.

This was what demons did. They ingrained fear in the hearts of people.

And her job was to exterminate them.

“You should go home, a lot of girls have disappeared lately,” warned the shopkeeper, as he started to close his stall. 

She merely raised her eyebrows, not expecting that comment. 

“Are you scared of losing your clients?” she calmly asked, looking at him over her shoulder. 

The shopkeeper looked at her, it seemed she had hurt his pride. Although she couldn’t know for sure. It didn’t matter either way if she did or not, she would probably never see him again. 

If her mother looked at her now, she’d tell her to be kinder, but she wasn’t there to scold her. Ayaka was free to say whatever she wanted. It didn’t matter if she hurt other people’s feelings, they’d end up being hurt one way or another, so why bother?

“I was just worried about you,” the shopkeeper said with a huff, closing his stall completely. “Don’t you dare accuse me of such vile motives.” 

Ayaka threw a questioning glance his way, feeling curiosity for that peculiar man. It was strange. 

“Why would you worry about an stranger?” she questioned. Her eyebrows furrowed in a grimace. The man simply smiled gently, and Ayaka saw how his eyes filled with a sad but calmed melancholy.  

“Do you have any parents?” he asked in response, avoiding her question. She affirmed with a nod, her confusion ever growing.

“And if you died, they’d be sad, right?” the man said. Ayaka blinked, and for a moment that man left her speechless. 

“Of course,” she answered.

Of course they would. She was an only child and they had poured blood and tears to see her grow. 

Kaori and Makoto Iwamoto had desired with all their hearts to have a child. 

They were just a humble and hard working family, peasants in a mere rice field. They wouldn’t be able to give their child the best life, but even then, they were eager to do it.