Five days later...
Glug, glug, glug.
Clear sake flowed from the gourd's mouth, filling an elegant porcelain bottle, a liquid promise of warmth and a brief respite from the cold.
"Remember, drink it within twelve hours. It turns back into normal sake after that," Aoki said, his voice a quiet reminder of the fleeting nature of pleasure, the ephemeral nature of life itself.
Once it left the Demon Brew Gourd, the demon sake would lose its potency after twelve hours, a fragile magic that couldn't last, a fleeting glimpse of a world beyond human comprehension.
"Twelve hours? I understand," Tamayo said, nodding, her eyes holding a spark of anticipation, a quiet hope for a moment of peace.
Aoki secured the Demon Brew Gourd, a silent promise to protect this fragile gift. He turned to face them. "I'll be going now."
"Please, be careful," Tamayo said, her voice soft, her brow furrowed with concern.
She bowed slightly, a gesture of respect and gratitude, a silent plea for his safety.
Yushiro stood beside her, his face stiff, his eyes fixed on Aoki with a possessive protectiveness. "Don't die. I want more sake!" His words were gruff, a clumsy attempt to hide his worry, a fragile shield against the fear that gnawed at his edges.
"Don't worry," Aoki said, a hint of a smile touching his lips, a silent promise he intended to keep.
He waved, turned, walked towards the door, a solitary figure stepping back into the darkness.
He'd thought about telling Tamayo about the Blue Spider Lily, the fragile flower that held the key to conquering the sun, the whispered hope for a future free from the tyranny of Muzan.
Tamayo was one of the best doctors in the world. She could research it, make the medicine, unlock its secrets.
Then, he'd changed his mind, a pragmatic decision born of hard experience.
He couldn't burden her with a phantom hope. He had to protect her, to shield her from the darkness that hunted them all.
Besides, he didn't have a Blue Spider Lily. Not yet.
He'd find one. He'd conquer the sun.
But he couldn't make promises he couldn't keep.
He'd walk his own path, in the darkness, by the light of the moon, until the time was right.
The streets of Asakusa were quiet, the festive crowds gone, the city holding its breath, waiting for the dawn. Most shops were closed, their windows dark, their warmth extinguished, a silent testament to the night's dangers.
"But I can't get lost in the future. I need to focus on the present"
Aoki thought.
He needed to find Kyogai.
He needed to complete his task.
He needed to grow stronger.
He needed to survive.
"I should try to find Tanjiro's family next time," Aoki thought, his mind already racing, planning his next move, a constant calculation of risk and reward.
Not just for the Blue Spider Lily. Tanjiro's blood was worth studying, too.
He was a demon prodigy, a natural talent that Muzan couldn't match, a beacon of hope in the darkness.
Muzan had spent centuries searching for a way to conquer the sun. Tanjiro had done it by accident, a miracle born of human will, a testament to the power of the human spirit.
Aoki left Asakusa, walked southeast, a solitary figure swallowed by the night, a predator drawn to the scent of blood.
...
In a dimly lit room, candlelight flickered, casting dancing shadows on the walls, a fragile haven against the encroaching night.
Kamiizumi Etsuo peeked out from the covers, his eyes wide with concern, his face pale in the flickering light. He tugged the blanket tighter around his younger siblings, a silent promise of protection, a fragile shield against the darkness. Then, he looked at his mother, sitting at the table, a weary sentinel guarding their dreams, a silent guardian against the night. "Mom, aren't you sleeping?"
"Etsuo, you should sleep. I'll finish this mending, then I'll sleep," Kamiizumi said, her voice soft, her tone soothing.
She blew on her frozen fingers, trying to restore feeling, a small ritual against the biting cold.
The nights were so long, so cold. Winter had a cruel grip on the land, a harsh reminder of their vulnerability.
She had to work during the day. These chores had to wait until night, a burden she carried with a quiet strength, a weight she bore for her children.
One day of rest meant an empty stomach for her four children, a constant pressure that drove her onward.
"I'll help you, Mom!" Kamiizumi Etsuo spoke quickly, his voice eager, his eyes shining with a fierce devotion.
"No, Etsuo. You need to rest," Kamiizumi said, her voice gentle, her heart aching with love.
She smiled, a fleeting warmth in the dim room. She stroked his hair, a silent blessing, a whispered promise of a better future.
Her children were good. They understood. They shared her burden. In a few years, things would be easier. They would be strong, independent. They would survive.
Then, Kamiizumi Etsuo's face went white, a sudden fear that chilled the air, a premonition of the terror to come. He stared at the window, his eyes wide, his body rigid, a frozen statue in the flickering candlelight.
Kamiizumi turned, a protective instinct surging through her, a mother's fierce love rising against the darkness.
Crack!
The window shattered, glass flying like shards of ice, a brutal intrusion into their fragile sanctuary, a violation of their quiet world. A huge hand reached in, a grotesque claw that snatched at her, a promise of pain and oblivion. It closed around Kamiizumi, a brutal grip that stole her breath, a silent scream trapped in her throat.
"No! A demon!"
Kamiizumi's voice was a choked gasp, a desperate prayer lost in the wind, a final plea swallowed by the night.
She recognized the hand. She knew the demon.
Months ago, her husband had died protecting them from this creature, a sacrifice made in vain.
It had come back.
She knew she was doomed.
Humans couldn't fight demons. She'd learned that lesson in blood, a brutal truth etched on her soul.
Her only hope was her children.
"Etsuo, protect your brother and sisters!" she cried, her voice breaking, her tears flowing freely.
She knew how strong the demon was. She'd seen his power.
Humans couldn't fight him. She couldn't fight him.
She was ready to die.
She only prayed the demon would spare her children, to let them live, to let them have a chance at the life that had been stolen from her.
Kamiizumi Etsuo held his younger siblings, huddled in the corner, their small bodies trembling with terror, their faces blank with shock. He looked at his mother, his mind a swirl of confusion and fear, a desperate struggle to understand the nightmare unfolding before him.
Thump, thump, thump.
Under the moonlight, a tall figure ran through the forest, his steps heavy, his breath ragged, a solitary hunter driven by a twisted purpose. Six drums were embedded in his body, grotesque ornaments of his power, a symphony of death waiting to be unleashed. He carried two humans on his shoulders, their bodies limp, their lives hanging by a thread, sacrifices offered to his hunger.
Kyogai's face was twisted with anticipation, a hunger that gnawed at his soul, a desperate need to feed the beast within.
Home.
He had to get home.
He could eat them there, in the familiar confines of his twisted sanctuary.
He'd been restless lately, a storm brewing within him, a nagging fear that threatened to consume him.
Then, the Master had come, a fleeting visit that left him trembling with a strange mix of awe and fear, a brush with a power beyond his comprehension. He'd been chosen, elevated.
He was a Twelve Kizuki now, a member of the elite, a god among demons.
"I'm a Twelve Kizuki! One of the strongest! I'm a Twelve Kizuki..." Kyogai muttered, a desperate mantra to ward off the darkness, a fragile shield against the emptiness within.
He had to silence the whispers of doubt, the fear that he wasn't worthy, the terror of falling from grace.
Lately, his power had grown slower. The thrill of the kill, the surge of strength... It was fading, a fleeting pleasure that slipped through his fingers.
He knew what it meant. He was reaching his limit.
If he stopped growing, the Master might take it all away, a brutal punishment for failure.
"No! Never!"
Kyogai's nostrils flared, a beast scenting prey, a desperate hunger driving him onward.
He wouldn't let it happen.
He had to eat more.
He had to grow stronger.
He had to survive.
Kyogai ran faster, his bare feet pounding the frozen ground, a desperate race against time, a frantic flight from his own demons.
He liked to eat at home. It was his ritual, his twisted sanctuary.
In his house, he was strong. He was safe. He was in control.
It was a twisted ritual, a perversion of domesticity, a grotesque parody of belonging.
If he could, he'd keep them alive.
Fresh meat was better.
He believed fresh humans gave him more power, a twisted logic that justified his cruelty.
He reached a clearing. A building stood before him, a haven in the wilderness, a prison built from his own twisted desires.
The yard was overgrown, neglected. But a path led to the door, worn smooth by countless steps, a testament to his twisted rituals, a trail of blood leading home.
"Home!"
Kyogai's face twisted in a smile, a grotesque parody of joy, a fleeting glimpse of the monster within. He ran to the house, his heart pounding with anticipation, his hunger a roaring beast.
He stepped inside, dropped his burdens, reached for the one who was fading, her life force flickering like a dying candle, a fragile flame about to be extinguished.
His teeth closed.
Crunch, crunch.
The sound echoed in the small room, a brutal symphony of death and despair.
Kamiizumi pressed her hands to her mouth, a desperate attempt to stifle her screams, a futile effort to contain the terror that threatened to consume her. Tears streamed down her face, a torrent of grief and fear, a silent prayer for salvation. Her body trembled, a fragile vessel filled with a terror she could barely comprehend.
He was being eaten!
She would be next.
What about her children?
The thought was a jolt of adrenaline, a surge of fierce protectiveness, a mother's love rising against the darkness.
Four children. The oldest, Etsuo, was only ten.
Could they survive without her?
Kamiizumi found her strength, a desperate courage born of despair. Her legs, numb with fear, found their power.
She scrambled to her feet, a desperate act of defiance. She stumbled towards the window, a fragile hope flickering in her heart, a desperate prayer for a miracle.
But she'd barely taken two steps when a hand appeared, a grotesque claw that snatched at her head, a brutal grip that stole her breath, a promise of pain and oblivion.
Kyogai lifted Kamiizumi, his eyes burning with rage, a beast robbed of its kill. "You try to run? I'll eat you first!"
He dropped the gnawed leg, a discarded toy, and his other hand closed around Kamiizumi's neck, a vise of bone and sinew. He'd tear her head off, silence her screams, crush her fragile life.
Then, his hand was light. His prey was gone, snatched away by a phantom wind.
Kamiizumi stared at the young man who'd appeared, a stranger in her nightmare. Her mind was blank, a single thought echoing in her soul, a desperate mantra against the darkness.
"I'm alive! I'm alive!"
Aoki glanced at Kamiizumi, his face impassive, his golden eyes cold. "Can you move?"
Kamiizumi snapped out of her trance. She nodded quickly, desperate to prove herself worthy of salvation, to escape the monster's grasp. "Yes! Yes!"
Aoki pointed to a corner of the room, a small haven in a sea of terror. "Go there. Be careful."
"Okay!"
Kamiizumi obeyed, no questions asked. She scurried to the corner, her body trembling, her breath coming in ragged gasps. She glanced back, a silent plea in her eyes. "Please... Be careful. He's a demon!"
Kamiizumi couldn't see it, but Kyogai recognized the newcomer, his power, his threat. A growl rumbled in his throat, a beast robbed of its prize. He glared at Aoki, his eyes burning with hate.
"You... Why are you in my house? That was my food!"
Aoki saw the characters carved in Kyogai's eyes, "Lower Six," a confirmation of his suspicions, a justification for the violence to come.
"Lucky," Aoki thought.
He'd come here on a hunch, a desperate gamble in the dark. Now, he'd found his quarry. Kyogai had been elevated to a Lower Moon.
---
Hello there ShixT9 here, caught up already?
Extra Chapters in my patreon right now go check it out.
patreon.com/ShixT9
Don't forget to drop stones and a good review if you like the story so far ^-^