Nezuko expressionlessly took out some silver coins from her pocket, handing three of them to Roa, saying, "Well, Brother Roa, please head to the town first. My brother will be back for lunch, so there's no need to look for him now."
Roa: …
This time, Roa didn't say anything further. He took the three silver coins from Nezuko's hand and said, "Well, I'll use these for now. When I estimate my meal costs, I'll convert it into currency to give to your mother."
Nezuko lightly acknowledged and prepared to leave.
Roa thought for a moment and asked Nezuko, "Do you want any nice clothes? Should I buy you something? It looks like your current outfit is a bit small."
Nezuko paused her steps, glanced back at Roa, and then said, "You should worry about yourself first. Don't worry, I'll spend the money you gave me secretly to try to improve life for my mother and the others."
Roa nodded and set off directly toward the market.
This was already the path down the mountain.
Passing through a dense green forest, he followed the small path straight ahead.
Roa's pace was good. Although he didn't deliberately quicken his steps, he had walked for about half an hour and had exited the forest.
The town was a small one. In a small island nation like Japan, surrounded by mountains, most people gathered in small towns.
Of course, there were also luxurious places, like the entertainment districts, which were extremely opulent and could be called Japan's sleepless city.
This was also why Roa always wanted to visit the entertainment districts.
Ahem, this is definitely not to see beautiful women; he guarantees with his character that he absolutely has no worldly desires.
Arriving at the market, he looked around but didn't know what to buy after wandering for a while.
He was afraid of buying too much meat; it wasn't winter now, and meat would spoil if not eaten quickly. With the rising temperatures, who knew how long it would last?
In fact, the safest option was to buy rice and noodles. After picking for a while, he finally bought a bamboo basket, stuffing everything inside. The basket was packed full, and he bought a rope to tie it up, slinging it on his back before starting his return journey up the mountain.
When he returned to Nezuko's home, he was greeted by a delicious aroma wafting from inside.
A slightly mature voice came from within, and Roa immediately recognized who it was—none other than Tanjiro.
Roa stepped forward, placing the bamboo basket on the ground at the entrance, and walked inside, just in time to see Tanjiro playing with a girl named Hanako. Hanako seemed very attached to Tanjiro, following him quietly wherever he went.
When Tanjiro saw Roa, his hand that was teasing Hanako paused slightly. He looked up at Roa and smiled, saying, "You must be Roa?"
Roa examined Tanjiro's attire. He had deep red hair and red eyes, with a scar on his left forehead. His earlobes were adorned with the family heirloom, the Nichirin earrings.
The earrings made a crisp sound as Tanjiro moved.
For some reason, upon hearing that sound, Roa felt a strange sensation.
But the next moment, that odd feeling vanished.
Seeing that Roa didn't speak at first but was staring at his earrings in a daze, Tanjiro curiously touched his earrings and asked, "Have you seen this earring before?"
Roa snapped back to reality, but before he could respond, Tanjiro continued, "Well, this earring was always worn by my father. You might have heard about it from your father."
Then he turned his gaze to Roa, seemingly waiting for him to nod.
Roa was a bit confused; it seemed that Tanjiro had taken his words seriously, but that was fine as it saved him unnecessary trouble.
But what was with this assumption?
Roa remained silent for a moment, wanting to say: You said it yourself, what else can I say?
He could only smile and nod.
At this point, Tanjiro had time to examine the boy in front of him.
The first impression that Roa gave Tanjiro was one of nobility.
Although he wasn't adorned with any expensive accessories, that air of nobility was impossible to hide.
Just looking at his fair skin and hands that were more delicate than a woman's, anyone would assume he was a rich kid.
His face was strikingly handsome, with features that approached perfection. His golden eyes gave a gentle feeling, and Roa's presence felt like that of a big brother from the neighborhood.
Tanjiro gently sniffed the air. He had a unique and keen sense of smell, able to discern people's emotions and differentiate between humans and demons.
Thus, Tanjiro could basically judge a person's goodwill and malice through scent.
Roa had come here with good intentions, perhaps with some small selfish motives, but those were overshadowed by his pure goodwill.
Tanjiro smiled and nodded at Roa, saying, "I heard from my sister that a kind person is staying near our home, and I was quite surprised. But when I saw you for the first time, I could tell you were a good person."
At that moment, Roa didn't know what to say. It was the first time in his life that someone had given him a "good person card."
Looking into Tanjiro's clear eyes, he felt that deceiving such an innocent boy seemed a bit wrong.
Tanjiro looked behind Roa and asked, "Did you buy some ingredients?"
Roa nodded, and Tanjiro stepped forward, saying, "Then let me help you take the food to the kitchen."
Roa continued to nod, stepping out from the inner room and pointing to the bamboo basket on the ground, saying, "That's all. I was afraid of buying too much, so I only got a little."
Tanjiro, who had been smiling, froze when he saw the bamboo basket on the ground.
It was simply too much.
The basket was filled with various items: rice, flour, noodles, about five or six pounds of pork, and some vegetables. All of these combined probably weighed close to a hundred pounds, and he had carried it all back from the town by himself.
Tanjiro swallowed hard and said, "Brother Roa, you really are strong!"
Tanjiro could only attribute Roa's actions to natural strength, as he didn't look particularly muscular.
Roa smiled, raising his right hand in a show of strength, but unfortunately, there wasn't much muscle to show.
Roa raised an eyebrow and asked Tanjiro, "Do you want to learn?"
Roa was a bit taken aback, looking at Tanjiro with a confused expression. He asked curiously, "Can you really learn that?"
Roa raised an eyebrow and replied, "Of course! It's actually a breathing technique. But let's not get into that now; let's just get the ingredients inside first. Don't just stand there."
Tanjiro instinctively nodded and followed Roa as they sorted the items in the bamboo basket. Roa pointed out where each item should go, and with one hand, he lifted nearly seventy pounds of rice and headed in the direction Tanjiro indicated.
Tanjiro, who had initially wanted to help, paused and looked at the remaining lighter items with a somewhat defeated expression.
He picked up the not-so-heavy items and muttered as he walked, "I didn't expect that such a skinny boy would have more strength than me."
Behind him, Hanako, the younger sister, caught up, holding a vegetable in her hand. She ran to Tanjiro's side and comforted him, saying, "Don't be sad, big brother! In my eyes, you're really amazing!"
Tanjiro's face lit up with gratitude as he replied, "You're the best, Hanako. Boohoo."
Once everyone finished tidying up, Kie successfully prepared the meal.
With Roa being an outsider and, as he mentioned, having an impressive appetite, the meal was quite abundant. Tanjiro had also caught a large fish from the stream, resulting in five dishes and two soups—this kind of treatment was usually only reserved for New Year's celebrations.
Kie smiled at everyone and said, "It's time to eat."
Nezuko, who had just finished her tasks in the kitchen, walked out. Kie smiled at her and said, "Come and eat."
Nezuko nodded, took a cloth hanging nearby to wipe her hands, and walked toward the living room.
In the living room, Roa sat sideways. Although there are some dining customs in Japan, Roa didn't care much for such hierarchical rules and casually found a place to sit.
After Nezuko finished wiping her hands, she looked around. Since the children weren't particularly familiar with Roa, there was an empty spot next to him. After thinking for a moment, Nezuko decided to sit beside Roa.
Tanjiro came running over, his face filled with happiness as he saw the food on the table. He said to Roa, "Brother Roa, you must eat more! My mother's cooking is really delicious, I promise."
Hearing this, the other children smiled, while Kie showed a hint of embarrassment and pointed to the appealing dishes on the table, saying, "Roa, give it a try and see if it suits your taste."
Roa smiled at everyone and said, "Let's all eat together; don't be polite."
The youngest, Shigeru, immediately picked up his bowl and chopsticks, ready to dig in without thinking much.
However, he was met with a fierce glare from Kie, causing Shigeru to shrink his neck and quietly put his bowl back down.