[At the Frost Estate....]
As Kano perform his sword swings, Ringo kept on watching him. Ringo's standing under a shaded tree with her arms crossed keeping an eye to Kano.
"One thousand!!!" Kano shouted as he swung down his wooden sword the last time.
"Swing five hundred more!" Ringo ordered.
Kano stiffened upon hearing this and slowly turned to Ringo.
"Ri-Ringo-san..."
"Do it!!!"
"YES MA'AM!!!"
Kano continued his sword swings. A kakushi suddenly walked towards her.
"Excuse me, Ringo-san." The kakushi said standing beside Ringo.
"Satoshi, what is it?" Ringo asked turning to the kakushi.
"Well.... someone's outside, he said he's a Pillar and that he would like to see Kazumi-cha— I mean, Kazumi-sama." Satoshi answered.
"Did you tell him that the Master's not here?"
"We did but, he said he would like to talk to someone who directly serves Kazumi-sama. I went to call Mei-san but she told me that it's best to call you instead."
Ringo slowly stood up to meet the said Pillar. She's walking behind the kakushi as they arrive at the first living room if you're from the entrance of the estate but second if you're from the back or the garden. As they arrive closer, Ringo saw the so called Pillar. He has a raven colored hair, white with black stripes haori over his demon slayer uniform, and a white snake around his neck. Ringo went in front of him and sat down.
"I'm Ringo, one of the servants here at the Frost Estate." She introduced herself.
"I'm Iguro Obanai, the Serpent Pillar." Obanai introduced his self.
Iguro Obanai, the Serpent Pillar, the lower part of his face is covered with bandages and his eyes are heterochromatic just like Kazumi's. He always have with him his friend snake, Kaburamaru.
"May I ask, what's the matter you're here Serpent Pillar?" Ringo asked.
"Well.... I planned on paying Azakura-san a visit but, the kakushis told me that she's not here. And so I asked for someone who's close to her serving here in the estate."
"Why?"
"Here." Obanai answered pulling out a small box from his haori and putting it on the table in front of them.
"Kanroji-san told me that Azakura-san gave her a cat as a gift. So I decided to come here to at least give her a small gift too. Well not only that, I also have another reason. That's all."
"I'll make sure to give this to Kazumi-sama right away once she comes back from her mission." Ringo picked up the small box from the table and carefully held it with both her hands.
"Thank you, I'll go now." Obanai slowly stood up from his sitting psition.
Ringo accompanied Obanai out of the estate. As he vanish after getting out of the estate, Ringo looked at the box she's holding. She then slowly smiled.
'Kazumi-sama, I'm glad to see you having friends.'
Ringo thought before getting in and back to the garden.
As Kano finished his sword swings, he noticed that Ringo's not watching him anymore. He looked around until Ringo came back and he noticed that she's holding something. He ran towards her and looked at it.
"Ringo-san, what's that?" Kano asked pointing at the small box Ringo's holding.
"A gift for Kazumi-sama from a visitor." Ringo answered.
"A.... visitor? Who is it?"
"None of your business kid, now go back to training."
Kano sweatdropped at this as he quickly ran back to his position and continued to train. He ran around the estate as he control his breathing. Ringo just watched him following his movements with her eyes.
"HEY! RUN FASTER OR I WON'T GIVE YOU ANY DINNER!" Ringo yelled.
'Please.... I don't wanna end up not eating a delicious dinner after a hellish day of training!!!'
Kano thought as he run faster.
At the end of the day, Kano managed to receive Ringo's approval to give him dinner.
"Thank you for the food!"
Everyone started eating and serving each other. They were all happy.
"How's your training today, Kano nii-chan?" Otaru asked to Kano beside him.
"Well.... as you can see, it's fine but hellish." Kano replied before putting tons of food inside his mouth making his cheeks look like a chipmunk.
"Well, you still have a long way to go kid. So you better do your best." Ringo said looking at him before putting a spoonful of food in her mouth.
"Slack off and I'll kill you." She continued threatening the boy with a glare.
Kano gulped as he just look back at his food and continue eating. He felt Ringo's glare down to his spine.
'She might get real to her words. I could feel it.'
Kano thought chewing his food while sweating.
"Please don't scare him too much like that Ringo. He's doing very well." Mei said as she give Ringo another bowl of soup.
"Alright." Ringo replied as she sigh and drink the soup.
They're already finish with dinner. Mei and her children are now washing the dishes, the other children are cleaning the dining room. Ringo went to check Kano in his room just to see him already fast asleep, fully exhausted from his training. She smiled softly as she slowly close the door and went in to her own. She sat down as she put the gift for Kazumi in her drawer. She then went out of the garden and sat on the edge of the veranda looking up the night sky.
'I wonder how's Kazumi-sama doing.'
Ringo thought as the expression of sadness can clearly be seen on her face.
Despite of Kazumi being a slayer and often out on missions, she still can't stop getting worried at her everytime she's out. She's in deep thoughts until she snapped back of reality as she felt someone sat beside her.
"Looks like you're dozing off again Ringo." Mei said smiling at her.
"M-Mei-san, well.... just getting worried all over again."
"I can't blame you at all, Kazumi-sama works so hard for us and for everyone. Even me myself is worried for her." Mei's smile suddenly disappeared as she looked up the night sky.
"I always think that everytime she steps out of the estate to take on a mission, what if that would be the last time I'll see her."
Ringo listened as she have the exact same thoughts as Mei. But their thoughts were always left as nothing but mere thoughts of worry, as Kazumi would always come back alive after finishing her missions.
"But Kazumi-sama would always come back safe and sound, smiling at us relieving our worried minds." Mei said as she turn to look at Ringo.
Ringo looked back at Mei as she was slowly hugged by her. Ringo just hugged her back.
'Mei-san's right. She would always come back safe and sound.'
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The next morning, while Ringo's sweeping outside, Kazumi's crow came to her with a letter. She untied the letter from its feet before it flew away. She opened the letter to read it.
"Hello there Ringo-san, I might not be home for two weeks straight since I'll be helping some slayers with their missions. I hope you and everyone are doing fine. This might be troublesome but, I'll leave Kano's training to you for a while. And also don't worry, I'm fine as always.
Kazumi"
Ringo just smiled and went inside to notify everyone about the letter she sent.
"What?! Two weeks?" Ai looked at Ringo with a frustrated expression.
"Come on sis, we have to understand that oka-sama's a slayer and that's her job." Togashi said as he taps his twin sister's shoulders.
"At least that's good to hear that she's fine." Nahori said putting the basket of newly washed clothes down.
"But that's quite long."
"Nee-chan's right, Kazumi-sama would be very exhausted." Kiori replied agreeing to her older sister.
"Let's just pray for her to come back home safe and sound." Mei said as she tap the shoulders of both her daughters.
"Mei-san's right, if we worry too much, we might just end up even more exhausted from overthinking than her." Chiyo said sitting on the floor while gently rubbing her tummy.
It's already noon, but Kano's still training. He has been training from morning until now, hearing that Kazumi won't be home for two weeks straight, he decided to train even harder to show her that he managed to improve a little. He's giving his all to his training for him to be able to get stronger and polish his skills. Despite of him being a male and way more older than Kazumi, he's only an inch taller than her and is even physically weaker than her. He could still remember how she easily catched his punches and redirected them. He even felt her strong grip around his fists.
'I will do my best and later on become a slayer no matter what!'
Kano thought motivating his self.
'Once I've become a slayer, I'll be able to help nii-sama!'
After his sword swings, he ran around the estate again. Ringo's watching him as he do it until he tripped on a pebble. As he slowly stood up, he felt a dark aura behind him. He slowly turned to see who it is then gulped.
"You...." Ringo said as she lifts up the wooden sword she's holding.
"Quickly stand up or I'll break your legs."
Kano stood up and sprinted away from her continuing his run around the estate.
'Ringo-san is a monster!'
Kano thought with animated tears coming out of his eyes.
'Damn it Kano! That's just a pebble yet you tripped from it!'
The next thing he did is to do some push-ups with a bucket of water on his back.
"If that bucket fell down from your back, start from counting one again." Ringo instructed looking at Kano.
Kano just nodded at this and did what he was told. When he's already in his one-hundredth push-up, the bucket fell down his back.
'NOOOOOOO!!!!'
Kano mentally shouted.
'I've counted a hundred already and now I have to go back!!!'
Ringo picked up the bucket and put another bucket filled with water on his back as she took away the empty one. He managed to count to a hundred again before the bucket fell from his back again. This happened again and again until he managed to count five hundred push-ups in all. He's so tired that he laid down the ground for a while to rest.
"Here." Ringo offered him a gourd filled with water.
"Thank you." Kano took the gourd and drank all the water quickly.
"I'm pretty surprised you managed to do five hundred push-ups without passing out."
"Well, I almost did."
"Be thankful you didn't cuz if you did, I'll pour a bucket of water on your face to wake you up." Ringo pointed a finger to Kano.
"Y-Yes."
As they continue to train after a short break, Kano has to ran around the estate this time with weights around his waist. This is his first time to use weights to run around so this obviously made him slow down. And he got tired faster than without the weights.
'This weights sure are making me slow down.'
Kano kept on running for an hour around the estate with the weights around his waste. When it's break time again, he instantly sat on the veranda and drank all the water Ringo gave him.
"I'm sure you'll get used to it if we keep on going with your training." Ringo took the weights from Kano's waist.
"Yes, and I really do hope so."
"Well you should. Pain, suffering, and learning are part of the training. Yes you're learning but at the same time, you're suffering. If you can't even get past this simple regiments, don't even think you'll be able to achieve anything." Ringo said looking at Kano with her arms cross.
'Ringo-san's right. If I can't even endure this things and overcome them, how am I even suppose to be a slayer?'
Kano thought as he plant Ringo's words in his mind.
Kano suddenly got up and bowed to Ringo. He then looked at her full of determination.
"I'll be continuing my training now Ringo-san! I apologize for slacking off!" Kano quickly grabbed the weights from Ringo and wrapped it around his waist.
He run around the estate as Ringo watch him do so, a smile showed on her face.