Muzan: My daughter can't be that weak!

"Zheng~"

With the sound of a pipa string, Yukina bid farewell to Nakime and stood outside the door of the room from yesterday.

Before going in, she lowered her head, carefully straightened her clothes, and smoothed her slightly messy hair.

After doing all that, she raised her little hand and gently knocked on the closed paper sliding door.

"Teacher, teacher~~ It's Yukina," her voice came through the door. "May I come in?"

A response came from inside the door: "...Come in."

With permission granted, Xue Nai opened the paper door and stepped inside.

The interior furnishings remain simple, with calm lighting.

Kokushibo was already sitting upright in his original spot, just like a steadfast ancient pine tree.

He was dressed in a deep purple kimono today, and his six eyes calmly watched the small figure walk in.

"Teacher, teacher~~" Xue Nai walked to her seat, knelt down properly, and smiled broadly, eagerly asking, "What are we learning today?"

Kokushibo did not answer, but pointed to the low table between the two of them.

New paper had already been laid out there, and pens and ink were neatly arranged next to it.

"...No rush...Let's review...yesterday's material first."

Should we read it again?

"Okay, okay!"

Xue Nai readily agreed, immediately straightening her back, her gaze fixed on the table, taking a deep breath, and then reading it fluently.

She read it very carefully, and although a day had passed, she not only did not forget it, but also read it more fluently and smoothly than yesterday.

Kokushibo listened quietly, his six eyes fixed on her small face, revealing no emotion, but his aura was peaceful.

After she recited it completely, he nodded slightly.

"……good."

Then, Kokushibo continued, "Today, I will teach you... how... to write them."

Yukina blinked, her gaze falling on the kana, which were still just phonetic symbols to her.

Writing?

It shouldn't be that difficult...

Looking at the pens and paper the teacher had placed beside her, she felt a surge of eagerness to try it out.

"good!"

She readily agreed, full of confidence.

Kokushibo paused for a moment, then added, "That's all for today... When you get back, remember... how to write these kana. Next time... we'll not only test your reading... but also your writing."

"Yes, yes! Yukina got it!"

Seeing her enthusiasm, Kokushibo said no more and took a custom-made small brush from the side, which was obviously a size smaller than a normal brush and more suitable for a child to hold, and handed it to Yukina.

He then took another normal-sized pen, dipped it in ink, and wrote the first hiragana character あ on a corner of the spread-out paper.

His strokes are fluid and powerful, and his calligraphy carries a unique style.

"Wow--"

Yukina immediately exclaimed in surprise, leaning closer and staring intently at the word.

"Teacher, your handwriting is wonderful—beautiful! You're so amazing!"

Kokushibo did not respond to her praise, but silently continued to write the second "i".

"This one is pretty too! It looks like a little twig!"

The third one is う.

"It's curved, like a little moon!"

Almost every time she wrote one, Xue Nai would try her best to praise it with her meager but sincere vocabulary, and the admiration in her tone was genuine.

Kokushibo remained silent throughout, but his hand holding the pen paused for a moment amidst Yukina's exaggerated metaphor.

This child...is very enthusiastic...

He's quite different from Muzan-sama...

He didn't know how to evaluate it.

After demonstrating a line of kana, Kokushibo put down his pen and looked at Yukina: "...Your turn."

"yes!"

Yukina couldn't wait any longer.

She immediately picked up her own little pen, dipped it in ink like her teacher, and with confidence on her face, solemnly made her first stroke on the blank page.

She wants to write as beautifully as her teacher!

However, the ideal is full, and the reality is very skinny.

It was her first time holding a pen, and she couldn't control her strength at all.

The pen tip fell too hard, and the ink spread out immediately, leaving a round black dot on the white paper.

꩜ᯅ꩜꧞

This... doesn't seem right.

Shouldn't I amaze my teacher by writing incredibly beautiful characters?

As Xue Nai stared at the glaring black dot, the confidence on her face instantly froze.

She looked up at Kokushibo across from her, as if seeking help: "Teacher... I... I think I soiled the paper..."

Kokushibo's six eyes swept over the ink dot, then looked at Yukina's anxious face, his tone remaining calm:

"...It's nothing. It's your first time writing...it's normal...just move to another spot...and continue."

Hearing the teacher's words, Xue Na breathed a sigh of relief, carefully moved her seat, and started again on another part of the paper.

However, being unskilled is being unskilled.

She either writes too lightly, making the strokes so thin they are almost invisible.

Either your wrist is unsteady, or the kana you write are crooked and messy, like foxtail grass blown about by the wind...

In short, it was far from the beautiful image she had in mind, like flower petals or the moon.

Kokushibo stared silently at the characters that looked like drunken insects crawling across the paper, remaining silent for even longer than before.

Then, he put down his pen and stood up.

The tall figure cast a shadow, enveloping the small ghost.

Xue Na looked up at him nervously.

However, Kokushibo simply walked around to her side and knelt down as well.

He reached out his large, well-defined hand and gently grasped Xue Nai's small hand, which was still holding the pen.

The large hand completely enveloped the small hand.

"...Look here."

Kokushibo's voice rang out above them, slower than usual, with a guiding quality.

He held Xue Nai's hand and guided the pen tip to move slowly across the paper.

"First, do it like this... move it horizontally... the force needs to be even... here's a turn... lift the brush slightly... don't press too hard..."

Under his guidance, the pen tip seemed to be infused with a soul.

The previously crooked strokes have now become smooth, and a clear kana character is gradually emerging on the paper.

Although it cannot compare to the style and spirit of Kokushibo's own writing, it is far superior to Yukina's own dog-like work.

Yukina's eyes widened as she looked at the beautifully renovated handwriting under her hands.

She suddenly raised her head and looked at the profile of Kokushibo so close to her, her small face filled with admiration:

"The teacher is amazing! Super—super amazing!"

Kokushibo released his grip, leaving only the words: "...Try again yourself."

Yukina nodded vigorously, eagerly picked up her pen, and, recalling the feeling of being guided to write, carefully wrote another one.

Although it's still a bit rough around the edges, it's much, much better than the previous ink blots and scrawled characters; at least it's clearly legible now.

Wow! You really look better!

She cheered quietly with delight.

Teaching continues.

Kokushibo would first demonstrate, and then when Yukina's writing was really bad, he would go up and hold her hand to write it again, and then let her practice on her own.

However, the number of characters in the Japanese syllabary (hiragana and katakana) is not small for a young child.

When she was more than halfway through writing, Xue Nai's small hand holding the pen began to tremble slightly, and her attention began to wander.

She secretly shook her hand and forced herself to concentrate.

The little body slowly leaned to the side without the child realizing it.

As she wrote the last few kana, her upper body was almost leaning against Kokushibo's arm, her head was tilted to the side, and her long eyelashes drooped slightly due to fatigue.

Kokushibo had already noticed the child's condition.

After she finished writing another pseudonym, he put down his pen.

"...Take a short rest."