"Do you think you're useless?" Kazuma Satou looked at Genya Shinazugawa and said, "But we think that, especially right now, you could play a very special role… including in the upcoming fight against Muzan."
"Me…?"
Genya pointed to himself with a hint of self-doubt.
"But I can't even use any Breathing Techniques… all I can do is devour demons…"
As he spoke with his head down, he glanced longingly toward his older brother, who was still fighting on the battlefield.
Meanwhile, Kazuma chugged down two more Potions and said,
"Who said you have to fight head-on?! Don't assume everyone's a frontliner like them, you bastard!"
"And hey—being able to eat demons is already enough!"
While his recovery buff was still active, Kazuma quickly pulled several chunks of something out of his bag and laid them out in front of Genya.
"People in our role—we have our own ways to fight… Let those maniacs handle all the frontlining!"
Kazuma said it breezily:
"I, for one, will absolutely not risk my life in combat! That's why I feel so damn happy living in a world without skills but still being able to Sneak around!"
He punctuated his words with another Potion chug.
Laid out before Genya now were… several chunks of raw, unidentifiable flesh Kazuma had just pulled from his backpack.
"What… are these?"
Genya stared blankly at the meat.
He had a guess—but also doubts.
"Don't you dare underestimate the Luck stat of Kazuma the Great!!"
Kazuma struck a dramatic pose.
"This time I wasn't out stealing panties from female adventurers—these are materials I gathered using my Steal skill!"
He looked very proud of himself.
Sure, in his own opinion, he was always unlucky—never once matched with normal teammates.
But when it came to Luck? He feared no one!
Ever since entering the Infinity Castle, Kazuma had been using Steal nonstop—gathering tons of "materials."
Among them was, admittedly, a pair of panties from one of the Eternal Bliss cult girls…
But probably because they were too terrified, no one noticed.
So if no one noticed—no problem!
Kazuma, slightly guilty but acting righteously, reassured himself.
"Upper Rank Three: Akaza. Upper Rank Two: Doma. These are leftover materials from them."
He pointed at the meat.
"And also…"
Genya watched Kazuma stretch his arm toward the distant battlefield in confusion.
"Steal!!"
A faint white glow flashed across Kazuma's hand—
In the next instant, a severed hunk of bloody flesh and blade material from Kokushibo appeared in his grip.
Genya had clearly seen Kazuma's hand go from empty to holding Kokushibo's severed flesh and sword. He was utterly stunned.
Kazuma, on the other hand, felt ecstatic.
He'd been in this isekai world for so long, and finally—finally—he'd gotten the chance to show off how awesome he was in front of someone else!
"Even if you can't fight up front," Kazuma said sagely after drinking another Potion,
"There's still a way for you to contribute. Because—this is how we do battle!"
"I am the greatest trap hunter!!"
Kazuma turned his back to Genya, staring off into the distance dramatically.
"I… I understand!"
Genya looked at the chunks of flesh from three Upper Ranks in front of him and realized—
Now was not the time to hesitate.
He grabbed the demonic meat and shoved it into his mouth.
"Good! Now—pick one and eat it, then go help them out! This is my gift to—"
Kazuma turned around mid-sentence, only to see that Genya had already devoured everything.
"YOU ATE IT ALL?!"
Kazuma's eyes bulged.
"I can't…"
Genya's veins bulged across his neck, his entire body beginning to show signs of demonic transformation.
The searing pain contorted his face as he clawed at his throat, forcing out his words:
"I can't… be a burden to everyone anymore!!"
"Don't actually die here, man!! If you die, it'll look like I'm the one who killed you!!"
Kazuma screamed, terrified.
He sprinted to Genya's side, shoving Potions down his throat and feeding him Nullberries to counteract the negative effects.
Meanwhile—
Over on the other side of the battlefield, the scene was completely different.
Everyone engaged in a life-or-death fight with Kokushibo was now experiencing rapid growth.
The immense pressure Kokushibo exerted had become a catalyst for their improvement, forcing everyone to push past their limits.
And the most obvious growth was among the younger fighters:
Fourteen-year-old Muichiro Tokito.
Fifteen-year-old Tanjiro Kamado.
Nineteen-year-old Joseph Joestar.
What they had previously lacked was experience in high-stakes combat.
Now, that lack was being rapidly transformed into real, tangible power.
Following them in growth were Sanemi Shinazugawa, Tengen Uzui, and Gyomei Himejima.
While not as fast as the younger fighters, they too were breaking their own limits.
In fact, both the Wind Hashira and Tengen had already started to manifest the Demon Slayer Marks on their bodies.
Among the frenzied attackers, the only one who wasn't getting any stronger…
Was the weakest link: Kairo Retsu.
Watching everyone around him become stronger, Kairo felt deeply saddened to realize—
He just wasn't a combat prodigy.
Heartbroken and frustrated, Kairo unleashed all that emotion into his sword swings against Kokushibo.
And Kokushibo could clearly feel it—
The pressure on him was mounting.
Everyone besides Kairo was becoming stronger…
That rate of growth sparked memories from when he was still human—
Faint, long-forgotten memories.
That feeling…
It was enough to drive Kokushibo insane.
"YOU THINK THIS IS ENOUGH TO OUTLAST ME?!"
He swung his massive flesh-sword and roared:
"I've trained my swordsmanship for hundreds of years! What makes you think you can defeat me!!"
Kokushibo unleashed another wave of wide-range sword techniques.
He had already begun analyzing the attack patterns of each of his enemies—
If he could adapt to them, he could use the Transparent World to pinpoint their weaknesses and destroy their brains directly.
Then, no matter how strong their healing—
It would be impossible to revive them from a brain death.
But…
Just as he was preparing to do exactly that—
Kokushibo suddenly felt a wave of danger.
He couldn't tell where it came from.
Even that tall foreign hunter's strange power—he could see its traces in the Transparent World.
But this…
This wasn't the same.
"Kazuma Satou!! Will now have his shining moment!!!!"