Chapter 179: Welcome Home, Master
"Master, this... I was just saying it to say something..."
"To say something?"
"Yeah, just talking, don’t take it to heart..."
Urokodaki brings the sweet to his mouth. "Tanjiro, take Nezuko inside!"
Then he moved his hand back to his sword.
Immediately, Marcus took off running.
"Nezuko, you betrayed me!"
"Jiji..."
A flash of mischief sparkled in Nezuko’s eyes, and taking her brother’s hand, she walked toward the house.
"Onii-chan... eat fish soup..."
"Okay, let’s go have fish soup."
Right now Tanjiro’s face reflected absolute happiness, and he had not the slightest intention of helping Marcus.
Let him cut him up — Sensei isn’t going to kill him anyway.
Outside the courtyard, Zenitsu and Inosuke, who had been waiting at the entrance without butting into family matters, finally came in.
Carefully dodging the master and disciple who were circling the courtyard like madmen, they made their way toward the Western-style house.
Seeing them arrive, Ivy set aside what she was working on and went back to keeping busy in the kitchen.
Pearl, for her part, accompanied Tamayo and Yushiro to the experiment room to help with Hakuji and Ume’s preparations before getting to work.
Time slipped by little by little amid that rowdy atmosphere.
After nearly an hour of chasing, when the sun was beginning to dip toward the west, Urokodaki was still after him.
Urokodaki, who at first had only wanted to test his disciple’s strength, now couldn’t catch Marcus no matter what he did.
"Good! How fast you’ve gotten, brat. Taking advantage of the fact that this old man can’t catch you anymore! Very good, very good!"
Panting hard, Urokodaki, unable to straighten his back, braced his hands on his knees.
Marcus stopped and turned to look at his gray hair and his sweat-soaked clothes...
The mischievous smile on his face slowly faded.
"Master."
His voice took on a special solemnity.
"You... you won’t accept growing old?"
Urokodaki’s breath caught. He raised his head and stared hard at him.
"What are you trying to say?"
"We don’t eat humans! We only buy blood every now and then, and we pay a very high price for it. Not only do we not harm anyone’s health, we even help them improve their lives and get through their hardships."
"We’re not demons! We’re no different from humans!"
"Shut up!" A violent roar tore out of Urokodaki.
In a single instant, countless emotions crossed his face.
There was regret, reflection, doubt...
But in the end, it all settled back into calm.
"Shut up..." This time, his voice was very low.
"I know you mean well, but..."
Urokodaki drew himself up, looked toward the sunset on the horizon, and his eyes showed a trace of nostalgia.
"But I made a promise with others..."
"My comrades-in-arms, my old friends, my... children..."
"I can’t make them... wait for me in vain..."
"Oh, is that so...?" Marcus was a little disappointed. "So you’ve already made your decision?"
Urokodaki steadied his breathing.
"As for this matter, don’t try to talk me into it anymore — I won’t change my mind either."
"Being born, growing old, getting sick, and dying is human nature. That’s just fine."
"I’ve protected my principles my whole life and kept my oath for years. I don’t want to throw all that away just because I’ve gotten old."
Urokodaki looked solemnly at his disciple.
"Even though I have my regrets too, the life I’ve lived leaves me... quite satisfied."
Hearing this, Marcus smiled.
"All right, then I won’t push it anymore. Either way, in the future, I’ll take care of you in your old age!"
Urokodaki was stunned. The corner of his mouth curved slightly, but he quickly reined the smile back in and waved his hand.
"Forget it, the thought alone is enough for me. I’m still more used to life in the mountains."
"Heh, used to it or not, we’ll have to try it first to find out."
With that, Marcus stepped forward and threw an arm around his shoulders.
Not caring whether it bothered the old man or not, he steered him into the house, half-shoving and half-hugging him along.
"Come on, let’s go in, the fish soup should be ready by now."
"I can walk on my own! Let go of me!" Urokodaki struggled twice but couldn’t break free, so he shot him an angry look.
Marcus laughed and, far from letting go, squeezed him even tighter.
"It’s rare for you to visit, so no matter what, you’ve got to taste the home cooking here. And not to brag, but Ivy’s skills in the kitchen are quite a bit better than yours."
"What did you say?" Urokodaki’s hand went searching for the sword at his waist again.
"I said your sword hasn’t aged a day! That it’s in its prime! Happy?"
When they reached the dining room, Marcus hurried him into the seat of honor at the table.
On the way, he took away the sword and handed it to Tanjiro, who was standing beside him.
"Keep it safe, don’t let the master get his hands on it."
Tanjiro held the sword, watching Urokodaki with a worried look on his face.
Urokodaki snorted and didn’t try to grab it. His gaze swept over the people seated at the table.
The table was full.
Tamayo sat to Marcus’s right, tilting her head slightly toward Urokodaki with a smile.
"Hello, Urokodaki-san."
Ivy and Pearl were off to one side, one pouring the wine and the other arranging the bowls.
Hakuji stood up, bowed deeply, and sat back down.
Gyutaro, reclined in his chair with his eyelids half-lowered, nodded his head in greeting.
Daki crossed her arms and lifted her chin up high, but after taking a kick from Marcus under the table, she muttered grudgingly, "Hey, old man."
Zenitsu and Inosuke sat down next to Tanjiro, waiting obediently for the meal to begin.
Nezuko had already settled in beside Urokodaki, gripping the edge of the table with her little hands while looking at him with a smile.
Seeing everyone gathered together, the corners of Urokodaki’s mouth twitched and his expression shifted a little; it wasn’t exactly cheerful, but at least it was no longer so grim.
"You certainly do have... a very lively life." He snorted. "But I prefer peace and quiet."
Marcus smiled and raised his cup.
"Master, don’t be so quick to jump to conclusions. Stay a few days and give it a try, and if you can’t get used to it, I’ll take you back to the mountain myself."
"Though..." he winked, "I’ll bet that once you’ve settled in, you won’t want to leave."
"Hmph." Urokodaki picked up his cup and drained it in one gulp.
"I don’t think that’ll be the case."
"Bring out the food!" Marcus shouted.
Ivy and Pearl came out in a line with the trays, filling the table with steaming dishes.
Nezuko tugged at Urokodaki’s sleeve, pointing at the fish on the table.
"Grandpa, little fishie... I caught it..."
"You caught it?"
"Yeah! Marcus... took me..."
Urokodaki looked at Marcus, who smiled at him and raised his cup.
"Master, welcome home."
Urokodaki stayed silent for a moment, then lifted his cup and clinked it against Marcus’s.
"...let’s eat."
That off-hours meal was mainly to welcome Urokodaki and the kids.
Since Marcus and the others had eaten not long ago, they barely had a single bowl of soup.
While they waited for the chemical reaction, Tamayo took Yushiro and Pearl to the police station to deal with the matters concerning Yoshiwara.
Hakuji and the other two, given their particular condition, were sent off from the table early by Marcus to stay in the laboratory.
For the moment, the only ones left at the table were Inosuke and Zenitsu, who were eating heartily, along with Urokodaki, his disciples, and a Nezuko in excellent spirits.
Ivy poured wine while Marcus and Urokodaki drank with gusto.
Already loosened up by the alcohol, the old man patted his student on the shoulder with pride.
"I never imagined that one day my disciple would cut off Muzan’s head. You did well, brat! When I see Oyakata-sama, I’ll put in a good word for you! Hic!"
Hearing him slur his words from the drink and insist that he stay in the Demon Slayer Corps, a flash went through Marcus’s mind.
Suddenly he had an idea...
He poured himself another cup, took a sip, and the flush of the alcohol spread across his face.
Working up his liquid courage, he asked with feigned sorrow:
"Master... how much longer do you think I have to live?"
Urokodaki’s raised cup froze in midair. The three kids’ chopsticks stopped dead, and even Ivy was stunned.
’No way — the master was perfectly healthy this morning... so why is he suddenly going to die now?’
Urokodaki stared hard at Marcus, whose face was etched with deep sorrow, and furrowed his brow tightly.
"Your words... what do they mean? Didn’t you already..."
Marcus smiled bitterly. "You know it too — I wounded Muzan and got hold of the very thing he wanted most."
"Do you think Muzan is going to leave me alone now? Right now I’m serving the Demon Slayer Corps to draw all of Muzan’s attention away."
"But didn’t you make him run?"
"Muzan still has four Upper Ranks under his command: One, Two, Four, and Five. All I have are the former Upper Ranks Three and Six."
"We’re short on fighting power, and he has an endless supply of lesser demons. On top of that, I’m out in the light while he’s hidden in the dark." Marcus looked Urokodaki dead in the eyes. "Do you think that if he concentrates his forces and hits me with everything, I’ll have any chance of surviving?"
Urokodaki was stunned, and Tanjiro grew anxious.
"Senpai! In that case, get out of here — don’t leave yourself exposed to him!"
Marcus looked at him. "If I leave Yoshiwara, I won’t even be able to put up a fight. I’ve got so many people with me that the moment we’re found out, it’s certain death... at least here I can fight."
Urokodaki was about to suggest he return to headquarters, but he held his tongue.
Marcus could no longer go there: it was all but impossible for the Demon Slayer Corps to take him in.
"...Look at the mess you’ve gotten yourself into!"
He looked at him with helplessness and rage, and downed all his wine in one gulp.
"Fine! I won’t leave!"
"By staying here I can at least be some help to you. If we really do face an attack from Muzan, even if it costs me my life, I can hold off one Upper Rank."
"...And if things get really tough, I’ll write a letter to Giyū so he comes too."
Tanjiro shot to his feet. "I’m not leaving either — I’ll stay here to help you!"
Zenitsu and Inosuke stood up too.
Marcus shook his head. "Hakuji can’t beat the Second Upper Rank. You and Giyū-Senpai together, I’m afraid you could barely hold off the First Upper Rank. And you three..."
He looked at the kids. "I’m not even sure the three of you together could beat the Fifth Upper Rank."
"This won’t work, that won’t work either..." Urokodaki grumbled, standing up abruptly. "Do you mean to just sit here and wait for death?"
Marcus suddenly laughed, and a strange gleam surfaced in his eyes. "Actually, what I need most right now isn’t for you to stay here..."
"Then what do you need?"
"I need... money!"
"Money?!" Urokodaki had imagined a thousand scenarios, but never that answer.
"Yes, money!"
"I need you to go to Kagaya’s residence and ask for what’s rightfully yours..." Marcus watched him like he was eyeing an untapped gold mine. "Your retirement pension!"
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