On a lonely hillside stood a solitary gravestone, inscribed with four characters: Chitoshi's Tomb.
Ren stumbled and fell before the grave, clutching his chest, gasping for breath.
"Chitoshi, I'm useless…"
Ren gave a bitter smile. "I faced that bastard today, but I couldn't avenge you. I'm such a failure. Having a brother like me must make you feel ashamed."
Caw! Caw! Caw!
A black crow swooped down, landing before Ren, its beak clutching gauze and hemostatic tools. "Ren, treat your wounds, or you'll die from blood loss."
"Rōyu, what's the point of living?" Ren murmured.
"I'm not human—how would I know? But don't you want to avenge Chitoshi? If you don't care for your body, you won't last long."
"What's the point of trying?"
Ren said, despair in his voice. "The Sound Hashira said those with the Demon Slayer Mark can't live past twenty-five. Rōyu, I'm out of time."
Ren turned to the companion who'd been with him for years. "You knew, didn't you?"
Rōyu fell silent, turning its head aside.
Silence was answer enough.
"I'm sorry. I didn't want to see you give up," Rōyu said.
Ren clenched his fists, nails digging into his flesh, drawing blood.
He was going to die.
Nothing was sadder than death—except knowing exactly when it would come.
He had less than a year left.
What could he do in a year?
So fleeting, gone in a blink.
He wanted to avenge Chitoshi, to make the Demon Slayer Corps pay for his death. But with less than a year, could he?
Ren was consumed by despair.
He'd never hated himself more—hated his weakness, his failure to protect his brother, his inability to even avenge him.
His life felt like a string of failures.
Letting Muzan escape, powerless against the future—he was a loser, through and through.
What right did someone like him have to live?
He might as well die.
Caw! Caw! Caw!
Rōyu, sensing danger, flapped its wings and took to the sky.
Ren lay by Chitoshi's grave, staring blankly upward.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Crisp footsteps approached.
A man with delicate features stopped a short distance from Ren.
Perhaps haunted by past fears, the man hesitated before stepping closer.
Only when a chilling presence hit him did Ren stiffly turn his head.
He saw a face he'd never forget.
A face he'd dreamed of killing.
The progenitor of demons, Muzan Kibutsuji!
But the tension in his eyes lasted only a moment, replaced by despair and loneliness. Ren turned his head back, his voice hoarse. "Are you here to kill me, Muzan?"
"Hmph."
A cold snort, tinged—perhaps mistakenly—with a hint of smugness.
"You've made quite a name for yourself lately, haven't you? A swordsman hunting demon hunters. Your reputation echoes even among demons. I didn't come all this way for nothing."
Muzan's crimson eyes gleamed with cunning. No one knew what risks this cautious Demon King had taken, what fears he'd overcome, to appear again.
He stood over Ren, gazing down like a god. "I sense the desire in your soul. Do you want to grow stronger? To gain power?"
Ren stirred, his bloodshot eyes locking onto Muzan. "What are you saying?"
"I hear the cries of your heart, the yearnings of your soul. That's why I'm here."
Muzan smiled. "Beg me, and I'll grant you the power you seek. Shed this frail human body and evolve into something greater!"
He crouched, barely a foot from Ren, his icy breath brushing Ren's face. His lips curled, like a devil toying with humanity. "Make those who hurt you pay, Ren."
Ren's mind stirred. He stared at Muzan, the root of all his suffering. In the past, he'd have drawn his blade and fought to the death.
But now, with Chitoshi dead and after all he'd endured, the urge to kill Muzan had faded.
Instead, Muzan's words awakened a long-buried impulse deep within him…
"Beg you… and I'll gain power?"
Ren was bargaining with the devil.
He knew how dangerous this man was, knew what path he'd tread if he spoke these words.
But he had no choice.
He wanted to live, to gain power, to avenge Chitoshi. And this man was the only one who could make it happen.
The demon smiled, satisfied, as if a fish had taken the bait.
"Come, child. I forgive all your past sins. From now on, I grant you a new life!"
Ren didn't resist as the power surged into his body.
Agony engulfed him, but he clenched his teeth, silent.
Muzan's eyes sparkled with excitement. Ren endured more than expected—perhaps he could handle even more.
This trip had been worth it.
Above, Rōyu, sensing Ren's pain, dove from the sky.
"Hm?"
Muzan glanced sidelong, his terrifying aura freezing the crow mid-flight. It plummeted, landing beside Ren.
Dark red blood oozed from Ren's body, pooling where Rōyu fell. The blood mingled with the crow, which twitched briefly before going still.
"Argh!"
Unable to bear the pain, Ren roared and passed out.
Muzan's lips curved into a faint smile as he watched the unconscious Ren.
"For centuries, the Demon Slayer Corps has hounded me like pests. Now, I offer you a gift in return."