The world had once again returned to its proper state, and Nezuko was back to looking like an ordinary young girl.
The Hashira who hadn't had the chance to take part slowly made their way over to Ryuji.
Golden motes drifted through the air as everything in the land began to heal. The scalding magma, once raging beneath their gaze, gradually lost its fury and began to cool and solidify.
But Ryuji could feel it—this place had become another wound in the earth, one that would erupt again and again over the coming years until the upheaval finally ceased.
All of Japan would have to pay the price for this attack, but there was no helping it. The monsters had chosen this land, and there was nothing to be done about that.
The seven-branched sword in his hand slowly faded away. It had only taken that form because that great being had willed it so, in order to better channel the power of this place. A god on a cosmic scale had no reason to care about "Three Sacred Treasures" or other such relics—only about harnessing the faith that surrounded them.
"It all feels… unreal," Ryuji sighed. "But I guess that's to be expected. Our enemy was a being that could erode the world itself."
There was a faint sense of defeat in him. The earlier monsters had given him the illusion that he could stand tall in any battlefield. But that last creature… was in a completely different league.
A colossal body, overwhelming strength, and perhaps even more abilities they hadn't seen.
If it had been just him alone, Ryuji would almost certainly have died.
But with the monster's death, and the golden fragment now in his possession, the World's Flame within him flared up once more, sending him a message:
If he handed over this fragment, it could take him back to his original world and, from there, more easily guide him to other fragments scattered across countless realms.
For now, it couldn't give him much compensation—it needed to repair itself—but it could grant him ten points of World Power every month.
And there would be other rewards.
So Ryuji didn't hesitate to hand over the fragment. He had no idea what use it could possibly have for him; the World Power within it was already completely solidified, and in his hands it did nothing.
Golden light flared, and in his palm appeared a golden pocket watch.
He flipped it open—inside were two dials.
One was a standard clock face. The other was a compass.
The moment he touched it, Ryuji understood how it worked.
It was simple.
While holding the watch, he could rewind the time of a single object he touched by ten seconds.
A bullet mid-flight could snap back into its gun's chamber; a falling shell could return to its barrel; even make something that was already burning, returning to whatever state they had been in ten seconds earlier.
But—only ten seconds, and only one object at a time. Using it drained his stamina in proportion to the effort required to rewind that object's motion and mass. The cost doubled each time it was used, though it would reset every 24 hours.
The compass served a different purpose—and it was almost exactly like the one held by a certain pirate captain in Pirates of the Caribbean.
It would point to whatever he desired most.
But only what he truly, deeply desired.
The pocket watch could never be destroyed. It would only exist in physical form when in Ryuji's possession. Even if shattered, it would restore itself when he needed it. Even if lost, it would reappear in his hand at his call.
No one else could use it without his permission. If he lent it out, it would still return to him unless he truly gave it away.
The gems and gold on its casing were real—and could be pried off. But once the watch restored itself, those removed jewels would simply vanish.
It could be used in most worlds, unless that world had extremely strict rules or control over time.
More than an item, it was an extra ability—a trump card that didn't require practice to master.
It was more than enough reward for this journey.
"Hm? The thing I want most…"
Ryuji focused, thinking of ways to grow stronger—only to notice the compass needle twitching, swaying between the chests and hips of Mai, Shinobu, Mitsuri, Nezuko, and Kanae.
"…Gold? Treasure, maybe?"
He tried picturing mountains of treasure, but the needle stubbornly kept pointing back to those… assets.
Apparently, the compass had decided—what Ryuji wanted most right now was not gold, but the breasts and butt cheeks of these women.
"Really? This function's broken, right?"
He narrowed his eyes. There was absolutely more to his desires in his mind not just breasts and butts okay!
To test the watch, he drew his katana and activated its time-rewind ability on the blade.
Instantly, he felt his stamina drain—twice the effort it had taken to draw the blade in the first place.
That meant rewinding an enemy's attack wouldn't just require rewinding their weapon—it would also cost the energy equivalent of the weapon's entire movement toward him.
And only the targeted object rewound—its surroundings didn't reset.
To confirm, he slightly shifted the blade's position before rewinding, and when it returned, the tip had cut into the scabbard—proof that the rewound blade could still physically interact with the present.
"So even rewound objects still cause physical effects? Fascinating."
Which meant, until he could move planets with his bare hands, he wasn't going to rewind Earth by ten seconds anytime soon.
"Ten seconds… the object's own mass, plus the energy it's spent moving… Yeah, this isn't something I can just throw around casually."
Until his internal energy was abundant enough for him to act without restraint, this would stay a trump card—a finishing move.
But still…
What a broken ability.
For example—if he were to cross swords with Yoriichi Tsugikuni, the instant their blades met, he could "rewind" Yoriichi's sword by ten seconds. During that span, Yoriichi wouldn't be able to use his weapon, his body naturally thrown off balance by the sudden absence of its weight—and that single, fleeting moment would be more than enough for Ryuji to deliver a killing blow.
In other words, in a battle between equals, unless he faced someone with an even stranger ability, Ryuji would be untouchable.
"A pretty broken power, I'd say."
Although he'd only tested his new toy briefly, not even a few seconds had passed—so the Hashira hadn't noticed anything unusual.
Ryuji casually tucked the pocket watch into his belt, then looked toward the silent people staring at the ravaged land. He gave them a small smile.
"Everyone—the reign of the demons is over."
A cool breeze swept past, carrying with it the heavy scent of sulfur. The Hashira, their expressions a mix of shame and relief, all exhaled together.
"Yes… it's over."
Their eyes roamed the ruined ground. Just by standing here, feeling the pulse beneath their feet, they could tell—this land would not know peace any time soon. Disaster would likely linger over these islands. But where there was hope, life could still go on for most.
The calamity was over, but the road ahead remained harsh. They would keep walking forward.
For now, though…
"Shall we go back and tell the others the good news?"
Shinobu tugged at Ryuji's hand. Beside him, Mitsuri joyfully wrapped herself around his other arm, pressing it into her warm, plump bosom.
"The disaster is over!"
Looking at their smiling faces, and at the joy slowly returning to the other Hashira, Ryuji hesitated. Should he tell them now about the future—that this island country would face one natural disaster after another? But as he watched their smiles, he decided to wait. People needed a moment of happiness before they could face the next storm.
Besides, after the rampage of these creatures from another world… how many survivors could really be left here?
"Let's celebrate!"
Ryuji joined in their cheer.
――――――――**********――――――――
When Ryuji and the others returned to the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters, they found the once-bustling grounds strangely quiet. Blood still stained the earth in many places. But the moment the returning warriors stepped through the gates, the entire Corps became excited again.
"We won!"
"It's finally over!!"
"Brother! Mom! The world's back to normal!"
Cheers rang out from all sides. At first, the Corps had been hesitant to believe it—but once they confirmed that all the monsters across the regions had vanished, and saw Ryuji's group return unharmed, they understood. The nightmare was truly over.
Lady Amane Ubuyashiki, dressed in pure white, stood at the gate. She looked over the Hashira—every one of them accounted for—and smiled warmly.
"Welcome home, all of you."
Ryuji returned her smile with a nod and accepted the waves of applause.
The cheers soon gave way to a celebration. Supplies were scarce, and the sake ran dry halfway through, but the laughter never stopped. Messengers who had gone to deliver the good news returned with their arms overflowing with food and small gifts—the most the grateful townsfolk could offer.
But all celebrations end eventually. By the time most had drunk themselves into a warm haze, Ryuji was still clear-headed.
With his current abilities, getting drunk was impossible—as long as his bladder could handle it, he could use his Life Return and blood-qi arts to stay sober indefinitely, without harming his liver, stomach, or nervous system.
At his side, Amane —sitting with the quiet poise of a wife pouring drinks for her husband—was also untouched by alcohol. She glanced at the Hashira who had collapsed on the floor, and at the girls leaning together in tipsy companionship, a soft smile on her face as she refilled Ryuji's cup.
But as she watched him quietly eating and drinking, a feeling stirred in her heart.
"Lord Ryuji," she said softly, "you're leaving soon, aren't you?"
Ryuji didn't deny it. The moment they had obtained the World Fragment, they'd gained the ability to leave. All it took was the thought, and they would vanish from this world in an instant.
"Yes," he admitted, "but I'll be back. For you, it'll feel as if I never left at all."
He sipped his drink, his gaze drifting to Mitsuri's breasts where she sat leaning against a pillar, a skewer of dumplings in hand. Nezuko, having sneaked some alcohol, had reverted to her child form—now pinned under the slumbering Kocho sisters, their ample bosoms smothering her tiny face in a way that made Ryuji itch to trade places.
Damn it, I haven't even had them both at once yet!
"I truly don't know how to thank you," Amane said after a pause, her eyes warm as they followed his gaze.
"If you don't mind… allow me to serve you in some small way."
She smoothed a strand of her silver-white hair behind her ear, her smile gentle. Ryuji nodded, taking it as a polite gesture of hospitality.
Ryuji assumed she meant singing or pouring drinks—until she shifted closer, her movements deliberate. With the low tea table shielding them from view, she knelt between his legs, her posture poised yet unmistakable in intent.
Then—
Warmth. Wetness.
His already half-hard cock, stirred by the sight of the drunken posture of Shinobu and the other women, was suddenly enveloped in slick, velvety heat. A tongue traced slow, practiced circles around the tip, and Ryuji's grip tightened around his sake cup.
Ah. So that's her idea of "service."
The loose drape of his yukata made it laughably easy—no fundoshi meant no barriers. Not that he was complaining.
With a quiet exhale, Ryuji set down his drink and let his hand drift to Amane's hair, fingers tangling in silver strands before sliding lower. Over the curve of her spine, down to the swell of her hips—
This was a woman who'd borne multiple children, and it showed. Her butt was perfectly sculpted for it—plush yet firm, yielding under his grip like ripe fruit. The way she arched into his touch, the subtle shiver she couldn't suppress—it was a masterclass in mature allure, a far cry from Shinobu or Kanae's inexperienced responsiveness.
Well. When life offered such gifts, only a fool refused.
Tipping his head back, Ryuji watched the moon glow overhead, Amane's devoted ministrations stoking his pleasure higher. A lazy grin tugged at his lips as he murmured to the night:
"When life offers its moments of triumph... one should savor them to the fullest."
~~~~~~~~~~
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