"Let go of me!"
"We're both demons, why are you killing us?!"
"I won't let you get away with this! Never!"
Two demons were tied to a tree, their arms broken, unable to even untie the ropes.
Yōsen stood not far away, coldly watching them struggle. He turned his head to the east, where a faint light appeared in the distant sky.
He took a few steps back and retreated into the shade of the trees.
Seeing the sun about to rise, the two demons on the tree struggled even more frantically. One of them, with pale gray eyes, shrieked hysterically at the other demon,
"It's all your fault! If it weren't for those few bites, I wouldn't be here! If you're going to die, then you die! I don't want to die, I don't!"
The demon who was yelled at froze, looking at him in disbelief. They were brothers, both turned into demons together.
The older brother had always taken good care of him. When they first became demons, they ate their loving parents. The two were so scared that they didn't even go out at night, consumed by the trauma of killing their parents.
They were even more afraid of being discovered as monsters and went without food for several days, so hungry that they couldn't even move, and the older brother was the same.
Until one day, a neighbor who hadn't seen their parents for a long time felt something was wrong and came to check.
When he opened the house and saw blood everywhere, he was so scared that his leg become a noodle.
The two starving brothers pounced on opportunity and devoured him completely.
When they ate their parents, they do it out of instinct. This was the first time they felt the taste of human as a demon.
When he reached for that last arm, another hand also reached out. He looked up at his older brother, who still gave him that arm.
"From now on, it's just the two of us. I will definitely protect you."
Several years passed. The two of them, while avoiding the pursuit of the Demon Slayer Corps, supported each other until now.
But now, his nii-chan was actually blaming him.
Recalling the scene from last night, they found three humans returning late in the forest.
After killing them, they began to festing.
After a hearty meal, the older brother stood up and looked at his younger brother, who was still eating, and sighed.
His little brother had always been very greedy, always wanting to eat everything until nothing was left, even if he was already full.
But just as they were about to leave, a figure appeared not far away.
Those eyes stared at them like an abyss.
Before the two could react, their limbs were broken.
They had no chance to fight back, but ironically, the one who did this was also a demon...
They couldn't even run away and were slowly worn down until now.
"I don't want to die! Save me, Nii-sama!"
At this moment, the sun had already shone down. The younger brother was the first to be hit by the sunlight, his whole body burning from the sun, howling in pain.
"..!"
The older brother still couldn't bear to see his younger brother die in front of him and struggled to save him.
Yōsen watched all of this quietly, without a trace of sympathy.
'Let them atone their sins in hell...'
The sun fully rose, and Yōsen turned and walked deeper into the forest. The two evil demons were burned to ashes.
He had been away from the Butterfly Mansion for five days. While traveling at night, he would check for the presence of demons.
His reconnaissance skills were quite good. Within five days, he had already killed 5 demons using sunlight, including the ones just now.
But it was still too troublesome. He should have asked Shinobu for a nichirin blade. Using sunlight was still too slow and would delay everything.
...
"Caw~ Demon in the southwest, southwest! Please go and slay it as soon as possible!" Shinobu's Kasugai Crow, "Yan," cried out.
"I hope I can see a demon this time~" For some reason, she hadn't encountered a single demon during her missions for three consecutive days.
Shinobu wouldn't question the intelligence-gathering capabilities of the Demon Slayer Corps, and no other members had reported any kills, yet the demons had indeed simply vanished.
Shuttling through the forest, Shinobu arrived at the destination and searched around, but still found nothing.
"West! West! There are traces of a demon on Mount Lin to the west!"
Mount Lin in the west was still quite a distance away. Today's mission had come late; by the time she reached Mount Lin, it would likely be dawn.
To be safe, Shinobu could only pick up her pace. Regardless, she had to go and see.
...
A bloody scent permeated the air.
Was she too late? Following the scent, Shinobu came to closer to it.
There were large patches of blood, still fresh. She looked around and saw a few mounds of earth not far away.
She walked closer to take a look.
"Did someone bury them?"
But looking at the blood, the people had likely just died. Who could have buried them right under a demon's nose?
Noticing bloodstains on the ground extending out of the forest, Shinobu hurried forward to investigate. The bloodstains stopped at a tree, and two pieces of clothing and a rope were scattered on the ground.
Shinobu clearly sensed that these were a demon's clothes. Had someone tied them up and used sunlight to kill them?
Out of the corner of her eye, in the shade of a tree, a piece of blue cloth lay on the ground.
Shinobu picked it up. She recognized it; it belonged to Yōsen. She had personally chosen those clothes, and they suited him surprisingly well.
Everything became clear—why the demons had disappeared these past few days without a trace.
The corners of Shinobu's mouth curled up slightly. For some reason, she suddenly really wanted to see Yōsen.
She knew his speed, yet he hadn't left her territory for five whole days, just to help lighten her burden. Recalling Yōsen's words of concern when he came to say goodbye, Shinobu looked at the fabric in her hand and sighed softly.
"He is really something. Making face like he doesn't care about anything, but quite meticulous in what he does..."
Tucking the blue fragment into her sleeve, she looked toward the dazzling sunlight. Shinobu felt a bit worried.
"I wonder if he's hidden well. He probably just left. Yōsen-san, I am a Hashira; I'm not that fragile."
Shinobu felt inexplicably pleased. Even though Yōsen was often cold and detached, he still had a soft heart~
...
By now, the sun had fully risen, and Yōsen could no longer move quickly. He could only hide in the shadows while avoiding the sunlight, waiting for night to fall.
For now, he didn't plan to leave Shinobu's territory. In his view, if he was going to repay her kindness, he should do it thoroughly.
Shinobu was a good person, but she carried too much. She was like a delicate rose, fragile just like any other human but also has her own thorns.
There were just too many burdens on that small shoulders.
He hoped she could have it a bit easier.
Through these few days of demon hunting, Yōsen witness how fragile human is.
Their injuries are irreversible, while demons can recover in a short time.
If those harmed by demons join the Demon Slayer Corps to seek justice and revenge, then why do demons become demons?
What about me? Why did I become a demon?