The sound of birds chirping woke Y/N up. She stretched her arms, relieving any stiff muscles. Her eyes gazed outside the window, taking in the new environment. She hops into her private hot spring, a fresh way to start her job as the 'protector' of the Swordsmith village. After dressing in her usual uniform, with a floral robe draped across her shoulders, she heads out to do her patrolling. There she saw were people with Hyottokos, of all ages and sizes. Kotetsu comes running towards her with a spare Hyottoko in hand. He hands it to her,

"Here. Wear this. Since you'll be living in this village, it'll be useful to hide your identity."

Y/N observes the pink Hyottoko in her hands, feeling the smooth texture from the new product.

"Why does everyone need to hide their identity?"

"Well, the location of the village is supposed to be confidential. In case we get tracked, our real identity is at risk. It's best we keep out faces a secret. But, family members are the only ones who know our faces!"

"Ahh... I see..."

She places the Hyottoko on and pats his head to thank him. Y/N strolls the streets, looking out for any signs of demon activity. Her body stops in front of a store, specifically selling aromatic Mitarashi Dango. She heads towards the store, curious at how the Dango was made. A lady was cooking, flinching at the sudden appearance of one of Ubuyashiki's trusted person.

"O-Oh my! From that uniform...Are you by any chance, L/N Y/N?"

"Ah yes. Nice to meet you."

"My pleasure! I wouldn't have expected to meet you so soon! The news went around pretty quickly when you were appointed to protect us. Oh, yes. Would you like anything?"

Y/N nods and points at the stack of Dango.

"Could I buy 10 sticks?"

"10? My, you sure love Dango... really reminds me of Haganezuka-san! He buys so many Dango that my business is alive because of him!"

"O-Oh, really..."

The lady packs the Dango into a bag, receives the payment, and hands Y/N her purchase. Even behind the mask, she could easily tell that the lady was smiling.

"Thank you!"

Y/N bows and walks along the streets to do her patrol. Then, she came back to where she had started—her house. With a Dango in her mouth, she knocks onto Haganezuka's door. She waited for 2 minutes and there was no sound. Her fingers grab onto the door, sliding it to the side to enter.

"Excuse me!"

Though no one heard her say those words. She walked to the left and saw his back hunched over as his hand holds onto a hammer that kept clashing with the blade he was making. From behind, he had such a muscular build that Y/N could swear that no demon slayer had such physic. Just one more step would allow her to see his face, curiosity getting ahold of her. Her foot accidentally steps on scrap metal and he quickly throws on his Hyottoko. He stood quiet for a couple of seconds, unsure about who the person was but the robe gave it away.

"Y-Y/N?! Knock before entering!"

"I did."

"What do you need?"

"Here."

She passes him the Dango she had purchased, looking away in embarrassment.

"Sorry for shouting at you yesterday. Thank you very much for throwing me into the hot spring or else I probably wouldn't have made it."

He snatches the Dango, looking at how many she bought.

"This is not a month's worth."

"H-Huh?! I'll buy it for you every day for the entire month! If I buy that many at once, it will rot away."

"Deal."

He was already holding two empty sticks and her eyes widened.

"You ate two already?"

"Three."

He pulls out three sticks. The way he ate was like magic. She could not even see his mouth when he bit on the Dango. By the time she was nearly at a concentration to see even a bit of his face, he had finished the Dango.

"Done."

"S-So fast!"

Haganezuka throws the rubbish away and signals her to leave.

"You may leave. I have to finish these blades for some stupid bunch of kids that broke their swords."

"Ahh... alright."

Her body turns towards the door, still a bit curious about the male that was around her age.

"Oh yeah, Y/N?"

"Yes?"

"Try not to wear such thin undergarments. It makes it easier to see through when water gets soaked up-OUCH!"

Y/N hit his head with the blunt of her sword, face red from embarrassment.

"You're disgusting! A pervert!"

"HEY! I WASN'T THE ONE THAT WAS STARING AT YOU WHEN YOU WERE SOAKED!"

"Urgh... Just forget it..."

She sighs and leaves his house, still frustrated at his comment.