"What is that thing?!"
The boar-headed boy, looking like a country bumpkin entering the city for the first time, stared at the gigantic train before him and shouted in shock.
"That thing must be the one… the so-called lord of the land…"
"The ruler of this place."
Sweat trickled down Inosuke's boar mask.
"This length and sense of pressure—there's no mistaking it. It seems to be asleep right now, but we can't let our guard down."
Zenitsu said flatly, "That's a train. You don't know that?"
"Shh! Calm down! I'll charge in first!"
Inosuke crouched low, eyeing the train like prey.
"No, you need to calm down!"
Tanjiro spoke seriously, "It might be the guardian deity of this land. Attacking suddenly wouldn't be right."
Zenitsu snapped, "You two country hicks! I can't talk sense into you!"
Noticing the strange looks from people nearby, Yuko silently moved away from the three of them.
"So the Flame Hashira has already boarded the Mugen Train."
Snowfinch, the Kasugai crow perched on Yuko's arm, replied,
"Yes, Lady Yuko."
(I change the name Snow Sparrow to Snowfinch.)
Yuko nodded slightly and released it.
"I understand."
"Boar Rush!"
Inosuke suddenly charged straight toward the train.
"That's enough! Miss Yuko, help!" Zenitsu cried out in despair.
"What are you doing?!"
A station guard maintaining order hurried over after hearing the commotion.
"Oh no!"
"Idiot! Hide your sword, quick!"
"..."
Yuko quietly left them behind and went to buy tickets at the platform.
When she returned, the three of them were squatting silently in a corner, looking exactly like abandoned puppies.
Seeing Yuko, they lifted their heads in unison.
They called weakly,
"Miss Yuko…"
Why do you look like stray dogs…?
Yuko sighed and handed the tickets to them one by one.
"Get on. The train's about to depart."
"Oh."
---
Once aboard, they looked around like country bumpkins, eyes darting everywhere. Inosuke especially wanted to touch everything.
"Oh! We've entered the monster's belly! The battle begins!"
"Shut up, idiot!"
It was extremely lively.
Yuko pondered for a moment, then narrowed her eyes at Inosuke. A barely perceptible aura seeped out.
Inosuke shuddered violently and spun around.
"What was that?! Who's there?!"
Yuko raised an eyebrow.
Such sharp senses.
Tanjiro's sense of smell, Zenitsu's hearing, Inosuke's tactile perception, and Kanao's vision.
All of them possessed outstanding sensory abilities.
Inosuke scanned the surroundings warily.
"I've got a bad feeling. It felt like some dangerous monster was watching us just now."
Yuko let out a quiet breath.
At least he wasn't shouting anymore.
"What?! A monster?!"
Zenitsu screamed in terror upon hearing that.
"Yah!"
Yuko: "..."
What was she even doing just now?
Yuko sighed and said to Tanjiro,
"Let's go. Ignore those two idiots."
"Hah…"
Tanjiro gave an awkward laugh.
The train at night was sparsely populated.
It was Yuko's first time riding a train. She must have done so in her previous life, but this was her first time in this one, giving her a strange sense of being out of sync with the surrounding time and space.
As Yuko walked forward, a loud, enthusiastic voice rang out ahead.
"So tasty! So tasty!"
Tanjiro lit up.
"It's Mr. Rengoku!"
They approached to see Flame Hashira Rengoku Kyōjurō eating his dinner in large bites.
Tanjiro stepped forward.
"Mr. Rengoku?"
"So tasty!"
Rengoku turned his head energetically.
His eyes widened.
"Oh! Isn't this Miss Yuko and… the Mizoguchi boy?"
Mizo… Mizoguchi…
Tanjiro broke down.
"My surname is Kamado!"
Rengoku crossed his arms.
"Mizoguchi boy, congratulations on becoming a Hashira!"
"Ah… thank you."
Another one who doesn't listen.
Yuko's lips twitched slightly.
She really wasn't good at dealing with people this energetic.
It wasn't that she disliked them—she simply preferred quiet over noise.
Yuko said calmly,
"Tanjiro, talk with Mr. Rengoku. I'll go check the front."
"Okay, I understand."
Leaving the two behind, Yuko headed toward the front of the train.
Upper Rank Three—'Akusa'.
A martial artist with tremendous combat ability. That much had already been confirmed through memories from her past life and from the daughter of the Shindō dojo master.
The question was whether he had arrived yet.
Yuko scanned the cars carefully but sensed nothing particularly unusual.
Come to think of it, the mission mentioned dozens of passengers disappearing.
That didn't sound like his style at all.
As she pondered this and moved forward, someone suddenly blocked her path.
A sallow, emaciated conductor stopped her.
"Miss, ahead is the driver's cabin. Entry is prohibited."
There was no longer any need to hide her identity. Tanjiro had grown enough, so Yuko only habitually covered her mouth and nose with a cloth.
Since she was about to face one of the strongest Upper Ranks, if possible, she wanted to kill him here.
Upper Rank elites weren't something Muzan could casually create.
Killing one would mean one more advantage in the final battle.
The conductor before her exuded an air of decay and despair.
Yuko narrowed her eyes.
"I understand."
She turned and left, her brows knitting slightly.
Something was definitely off.
There was a faint trace of demonic aura on him—proof that he had come into contact with demons.
But would that martial artist really interact with humans?
It felt like she was missing something.
Could it be that the enemy this time wasn't Upper Rank Three?
Or had the story changed?
Yuko returned to the original carriage, immediately greeted by renewed chaos.
Zenitsu was crying loudly.
"No! I want to get off the train!"
"Sigh."
Yuko sighed and sat down, crossing her long legs, resting her cheek on her palm, tilting her head as she quietly gazed out the window.
Before long, that strange conductor arrived in the carriage.
"Please show your tickets."
"Here."
Everyone handed theirs over.
Yuko watched expressionlessly as they nodded off the moment their tickets were clipped, looking exactly like students falling asleep in class.
The expressionless conductor stopped in front of her.
"Miss, your ticket please."
Yuko glanced at him calmly and handed it over.
He clipped a corner, and a strange wave surged instantly.
Yuko's vision blurred for a moment—then cleared immediately.
So it really was a Blood Demon Art.
But…
A Lower Rank?
The strength of the Blood Demon Art was clearly insufficient.
As the conductor walked past her toward the rear, he instinctively glanced back—only to see her standing up.
"Miss, you—"
"Hm?"
Yuko turned her head slightly, her crimson dual pupils fully revealed.
"Do you need something?"
The conductor's heart clenched, terror flooding his face.
"N-no… nothing."
Yuko withdrew her gaze, stepped past the already deeply sleeping Tanjiro and the others, and headed toward the front carriage.
---
Currently at chapter 489 for advance chapters
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