Doom & Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba Xover

Chapter 61: Epilogue Part 1

"Tanjiro! Where's Tanjiro?!"

Valen raised his hand towards Kanao and said to the girl, "I'll take care of it. You stay here." Just as Valen stormed out of the room to search for Tanjiro, Kanao, ignorantly, got up out of her bed as well and began chasing after the King, despite her weakened state.

Valen noticed tiny drops of blood on the floor which he followed to lead him towards Tanjiro. That's when he found himself at the entrance of the ship's observatory which was left vacant for the time being. He peeked inside to see Tanjiro leaning against the hand-rails of the observatory while staring out into space with the lights of the room turned off. While Tanjiro was unconscious, Valen took it upon himself to return the remaining members of the Demon Slayer Corps back to their home. They portaled their way to Tanjiro's Earth and were, currently, in orbit.

Never forget by Martin O'Donnell & Michael Salvatori

Valen inhaled to mentally prepare himself before stepping into the observatory and began making his way next to Tanjiro. Valen stood next to Tanjiro, crossing his arms as he stared at the Earth, alongside the boy. He turned his head and noticed the boy didn't bat an eye towards the King, dismissing his presence while continuing to stare blankly in front of him. The boy's eyes were baggy and he looked half-conscious. Valen prepared to say something until Tanjiro spoke first, "...Do you know what I had to do...?..."

Valen bit his lip, surmising, "Well, based off the gaping stab-wound in the Praetor Suit-"

Tanjiro raised his voice in a furious outburst, "I didn't ask you to describe it! I was asking a rhetorical fucking question!" Tanjiro backed off the hand railing, standing tall to the best of his ability.

Valen looked to the ground, shamefully, before apologizing and turning towards the door to see Kanao peeking inside the room. This time, Kanao had wrapped Tanjiro's haori around her like a gestured for the girl to stay-put before returning his attention towards Tanjiro who still refused to look at the man. Valen pondered on what to say before opening his mouth to speak, "...Look, Tanjiro... You can't blame yourself for what happened, you had no other choice..."

"That's the problem! Why was that the only option?!" Tanjiro finally turned towards Valen, his eyes watery as if he was about to cry once more before continuing with his rant, "Why was I tasked with killing the Dark Lord and, subsequently, getting the man, that I considered a father-figure, killed?!"

"Because you were the only one he could trust, you know this. If he couldn't take out the Dark Lord, he entrusted you with the responsibility because, either way, he knew he was going to die!"

"Oh yeah, like that makes it any better!"

"I understand you're upset about what happened-"

"UPSET?! Try traumatized! I had to literally plunge the Crucible through the Dark Lord and Mister Flint and watch them both crumble to dust while Mister Flint was in my arms, then proceed to carry his empty suit of armor while barely clinging to consciousness and still-processing what just happened!

"I understand how you feel, I had to live with a similar guilt in my consciousness for many years. But, Tanjiro, you need to understand that none of it was your fault, this is what he wanted because, either way, he had accepted his fate and passed everything onto you. That's why he made you the Doom Slayer."

Tanjiro looked towards the Mark of the Slayer which was painted onto his metallic left arm before exclaiming, "But why me?! Is it because of this suit of armor? I bet that's it, I'm only special because of this armor bestowed upon me by the Ancient Gods."

Valen shook his head before answering, "Kid, you were his successor way before you put on that suit of armor. He chose you because of who you are, not what you have. He would've never made the choices that he made or be as reckless as he was if he didn't know that you would still be around to make sure everything was okay. When you were getting your upgraded prosthetics, Flynn did nothing but sing his praises about you. He trusts you to a shocking degree. That's why I don't want you, ever, questioning his judgment towards you again. He chose you for a reason, so don't disappoint him. You're the Doom Slayer now."