Demon Slayer: After raising Shinobu, I died in front of her.

Ren seemed to sense something, turned around, and met his deep eyes.

"What's wrong?" she asked softly.

Ling Chuanche didn't speak, but simply curved the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a very shallow yet extremely gentle smile.

In the distance, another firework burst open in the night sky, enveloping the two figures in a dazzling display of light and shadow.

The two sat side by side, and Ren suddenly turned slightly to the side, leaning his head towards Ling Chuanche's shoulder.

"Don't move, these are Kanao's conditions."

A girl's coquettish voice reached his ears.

The girl rested her head on his shoulder, and Ling Chuanche's body stiffened, becoming as rigid as a statue, even his breathing unconsciously becoming softer.

He dared not move, afraid that even the slightest adjustment of his posture would startle the butterfly that had finally managed to land on his shoulder.

Ren leaned on his shoulder, a smile playing on her lips: "Why were you staring at me when we were watching the fireworks?"

"thorough."

A night breeze carried the faint scent of wisteria blossoms emanating from the girl.

Ling Chuanche's heart skipped a beat.

Ren didn't wait for his answer, but continued talking to herself:

"I really like that recent art book, especially the female protagonist. She's passionate and dares to express her feelings to her master; she's truly brave."

Lingchuan Che's body trembled slightly. He suddenly knew what Kocho Shinobu was about to say, and suddenly seemed to understand why Kocho Shinobu had called him out today, and why she had changed her usual behavior and did not address him as master and disciple.

At this moment, he could no longer deceive himself.

His throat tightened, and he suddenly had the urge to push her away and escape from here immediately.

He knew exactly what was going to happen, but he was completely unprepared and dared not accept it.

"Are you trying to run away?"

The girl didn't even move; she simply felt his heartbeat and his breathing, and she understood his thoughts.

Ling Chuanche took a deep breath: "Let's go back now that we've watched the fireworks."

She didn't refute as usual, nor did she use a flippant tone to cover it up.

She simply leaned quietly on his shoulder, listening to the clearly erratic heartbeat in his chest.

"Che, you're always like this."

Ren spoke softly, his tone carrying a hint of helplessness, but more so a resolute determination.

"You always shoulder everything alone, always thinking about how to protect me and how not to hurt me. You treat me like a fledgling bird that needs to be sheltered under your wings, but you never treat me as someone who can stand shoulder to shoulder with you."

Ling Chuanche's heart clenched suddenly.

He wanted to explain, but Ren interrupted him first.

“I know what you want to say. You want to say that you are my master, that you are twelve years older than me, that you are afraid of what others will gossip about, that you are afraid that I don’t understand what true love is, that you are afraid that I only mistook kinship for love because I have relied on you since I was a child.”

"But, Tetsu, you underestimate me."

Ren slightly raised her head and turned her face to the side. Her wisteria-colored eyes shone brightly in the light of the fireworks.

"I am Shinobu Kocho. I know what I want better than anyone else. It took me so long to climb out of that quagmire of despair, and I understand better than anyone what 'determination' means."

I understand everything, and I know everything.

"I don't like you because I depend on you. I like you because you are Ling Chuanche."

"You gave me the confidence to live and the courage to wield my sword. You made me realize that in this world, besides hatred and revenge, there is someone who is willing to use all his gentleness and strength to hold up a sky for me."

“I don’t need you to treat me like a child, nor do I need you to make decisions for me as my ‘master.’ I just want you to look at me in your own right.”

Ren took a deep breath, as if using all her strength, and uttered the words that had echoed countless times in her heart:

“Ling Chuanche, I like you. Not the kind of liking a disciple has for his master,”

“You can refuse me. You can continue to be your Cangzhu, continue to protect me as ‘Master’. I won’t blame you, nor will I back down because of this.”

“But please stop using excuses like ‘you’re too young’ or ‘you don’t understand’ to push me away. I’m all grown up now, and I can take charge of my own life.”

"So, Che..."

Her voice trembled slightly, yet carried an unprecedented firmness.

"Would you be willing to give me a chance, and give yourself a chance too?"

In the night sky, the last firework burst into bloom, illuminating the entire night sky as if it were daytime.

Chapter 108 Meeting the Parents

The moonlight was as clear as water, and the night breeze was gentle.

The girl closed her eyes slightly, her warm breath gently brushing against Ling Chuanche's face, carrying a faint fragrance of wisteria.

Her lips moved slightly forward, just as they were about to touch him—

A finger was gently placed on her lips.

The girl's body froze instantly.

A huge sense of loss surged into my heart like a tide, and my eyes instantly filled with grievance.

She had already mustered up the courage to take this step and revealed the most secret words in her heart, yet he still refused?

Have you thought it through?

A hoarse, almost broken voice suddenly rang out in the night.

The girl was startled and slowly opened her eyes.

She saw Ling Chuanche looking at her with a complicated expression. His usually calm and steady eyes were now filled with struggle and pain: "Have you thought it through? I'm so much older than you. You have a long youth ahead of you."

By the time you reach my age, I'll already be old. If we were together, people would definitely talk about us because of our age when we're out together.

Even if I were Cangzhu, I couldn't silence the gossip... Have you really thought all this through?

"So, that's what you're worried about?"

Lingchuan Tetsu noticed that the corners of Kocho Shinobu's mouth were slightly upturned.

He was somewhat taken aback; how could she still laugh?

Shouldn't those worldly prejudices and the gap of time be what she fears most?

Shinobu Kocho did not back down. She leaned forward slightly, bringing her lips close to Toru Ayakawa's ear, and spoke softly yet firmly in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"I don't care about any of what you're saying. I only care about whether you'll be in my future, and what your role will be with me in the future."

She paused, her warm breath brushing against his earlobe: "So, Che, don't be afraid."

Ling Chuanche was completely stunned.

At this moment, he suddenly didn't know how to react.

This little girl, whom he had been protecting under his wing, was actually comforting him and telling him not to be afraid?

Now that things have come to this point, if he were to back down now, he would never know how to face her again.

He closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.

Forget it.

What happens in the future is a matter for the future.

At least for this moment, he didn't want to think about those heavy shackles anymore.

He reached out, his palm touching the girl's soft hair, and gently supported the back of her head.

Then, he lowered his head slightly, getting closer and closer to her.

The girl's body trembled uncontrollably.

It wasn't fear, but rather the instinctive tension and pounding when you clearly know what's going to happen next.

She closed her eyes slightly, but instead of backing down, she followed his feelings and bravely went to meet him.

She dared not back down.

She was afraid that if she hid even slightly, her timid and stubborn master would be so frightened that he would shrink back into his thick shell.

Forget it.

He sighed helplessly, holding it all in his heart.

Who can blame them when their master is like this?

She knew his feelings better than anyone else.

His eyes, which always lingered on her, were never the same as the way he looked at his sister or Kanao.

She's not stupid; how could she not see the restraint and deep affection hidden within?

She had been waiting, waiting for him to take the initiative to express his feelings for her.

But he was like a dull block of wood. She waited and waited, giving hints again and again, but he always pretended not to understand.

She really didn't want to wait any longer today.

Because she was afraid. She was afraid that if she waited any longer, their future would become like the male and female protagonists in that picture book, clearly in love, but ending with a lifetime of regret.

She didn't want to wait until she was on her deathbed to tell each other that she liked each other.

So this time, it's her turn.

When their two soft lips finally gently touched, Ling Chuanche's breath suddenly stopped for a moment.

It was an extremely tender kiss.

There was no impatience, no plundering, only cautious probing and a long-suppressed sense of cherishing.

Ling Chuanche's fingers ran through the stray hairs by her ear, holding her firmly to his lips, as if she were the most fragile treasure in the world.

Ren tilted her head slightly, her hands unconsciously clenching the front of his shirt.

She felt the warmth of his lips, and the gentleness that gradually transformed his stiffness into a response.