Phenomenon Breathing (Mitsuri Kanroji x Male Reader)

[Chapter Eighteen]: False Smiles

"This warm fuzzy feeling in my chest. I feel so... free. And so happy. Nothing can stop me. I can do whatever I want, I can achieve anything I set my mind on. What's a Demon, anyway? What's evil? There's no such thing. I'm not in danger anymore. I'm at eternal peace."

Walker grinned as he floated around in an empty, white void.

"I'm at eternal peace."

A few days ago...

"You appear to have made a full recovery," Lady Shinobu stated a few days after Y/N's departure from the Butterfly Mansion. She was standing in front of a blue-haired man, who remained sat on his bed.

Walker's calm expression was only matched by the woman's in front of him. "What does that mean for what comes next?"

"During your recovery, the Master granted both you and Wyatt the privilege of becoming Demon Slayers without having to pass the required test known as Final Selection," Lady Shinobu began. "In short, you two are obligated to slay Demons, therefore you require a Nichirin Sword."

"I already have many of them," Walker interrupted in a polite, yet somewhat forceful, manner.

"My apologies, I should have been more specific. I meant a Nichirin Sword that truly belongs to you," Lady Shinobu said. "The blades you already have in your possession simply won't do. Though, it certainly raises the question of how you came to be in possession of those swords, doesn't it?" she added with the most passive-aggressive smile Walker had ever seen from someone that wasn't himself.

"That's irrelevant. If the Master had concerns about it, he would have done something," Walker answered swiftly, appearing unfazed by the look she was giving him. "That being said, when am I to expect the sword?"

"The Master was quite quick to have a swordsmith create you one, though you unfortunately were unable to choose one for yourself like most Demon Slayers. This is your Nichirin Sword," she said as she pulled out a sheath, which certainly had a blade in it.

"...I have a question," Walker abruptly spoke up, not even sparing a glance at the sheath and instead focusing his eyes straight at Lady Shinobu's. "If Wyatt was forced to become a Demon Slayer, then why hasn't he been on a mission yet? He never suffered any injuries at all, unlike me, so by now he should have gone on one."

"Whilst I can see that you have exceptional powers and can definitely be a great Demon Slayer, I'm afraid that Wyatt requires much more training before he can embark on his own mission," Lady Shinobu sighed. "His physical state is superior to yours, yet he lacks much more."

Walker's face didn't falter, but his mind drifted to Wyatt's 'alter ego', if you could call it that. His other half, the darkness within him, was powerful enough to take down a Lower Rank without breaking a sweat. And yet Lady Shinobu, and the other Hashira, were oblivious to all of that, which was honestly the best case scenario possible. If they found out, then there was a risk of Wyatt being beheaded, because unlike Nezuko, his Demon half would not hesitate at all to devour a human if given the chance.

"...I see."

...

"Hey!" Wyatt called out to Walker, and he came to a stop on the path just outside the Butterfly Mansion, having just departed to head to his first mission as a Demon Slayer. "Where are you going?"

"To a town somewhere south," Walker answered promptly, turning to his childhood friend, who had stepped towards him.

"You didn't even say a goodbye," Wyatt complained, frowning at him. "At least tell me when you're going to leave."

"No," he responded simply. "What you should be focusing on is actually being able to fight."

"But I want to come with you!" Wyatt replied in protest. "I don't know anyone here! Y/N's left, and everyone else are in separate rooms, so I don't have anyone to talk to."