How exactly do demons kill other demons? How would Hantengu kill demons? This was a question that absolutely had to be clarified!
Truth be told, Horitake wasn't entirely sure about the answer himself.
He only vaguely remembered from the original story that demons could devour other demons, and the effects of cannibalism seemed far superior to merely feeding on humans.
However, Muzan Kibutsuji had strictly forbidden it—demons were not allowed to eat one another. Cannibalism among their kind was prohibited!
There was one exception: the replacement blood battles among the Twelve Kizuki!
A lower-ranked demon could challenge a higher-ranked one to a blood battle for their position. Once initiated, the fight could not be stopped at will—it continued until one side was dead!
In such a battle, regardless of whether the challenger or the defender emerged victorious, the winner was allowed to devour the loser as a reward.
Consuming a powerful demon was an immense boon to the victor, significantly boosting their strength.
This appeared to be the only sanctioned case of cannibalism.
Beyond that, Muzan had decreed that demons must never feed on demons!
So, if demons couldn't eat each other, how were they supposed to kill their own kind? If he were in Hantengu's place, how would he eliminate this bat demon and black dog demon?
Moreover, how was he supposed to disguise himself as Hantengu?
Or rather, what method could he use to kill the bat demon and black dog demon in such a way that, when Muzan later examined their memories, he would believe it was Hantengu who had done it?
This was the tricky part!
Horitake maintained a careful distance while pursuing the two demons, his mind racing. It wasn't long before a solid plan formed.
He explained his idea to Shinobu Kocho, who had been following close beside him, without leaving out a single detail.
After listening carefully and mulling it over, Shinobu sincerely exclaimed, "That's a very solid plan. I can't spot any flaws in it, at least not right now.
However, to pull it off, we'll need perfect concealment, and everything has to happen extremely quickly."
Horitake grinned with confidence. "Don't worry about speed—I have absolute faith in that department. As long as you handle the concealment perfectly and we stick to the plan, Shinobu-nee, there won't be any problems!"
Shinobu nodded, feeling optimistic that this could work.
Truthfully, even if the plan failed in the worst case, it wouldn't be a disaster. They could simply let the two demons escape and allow Muzan to grow suspicious on his own!
With that settled, Horitake and Shinobu kept a safe distance, trailing far behind the pair.
The black dog demon and bat demon fled without pause, putting considerable distance between themselves and the inn. They didn't stop until they had left the town entirely and plunged deep into the nearby mountains.
Clearly, the intimidation from the "Hantengu" Horitake had impersonated earlier had left a deep impression on them.
They ran until the town was no longer visible, surrounded only by endless forested mountains. Only then did the two demons begin to relax.
Leaning against trees and panting heavily, they confirmed that Lord Hantengu wasn't pursuing them. Only then did the tension in their hearts ease slightly.
Once their breathing steadied, the black dog demon let out a sigh of lingering fear. "That scared the hell out of me…
Back at the inn, Lord Hantengu's presence was absolutely terrifying! So that's the aura of an Upper Rank demon!? I felt like if I stayed even a moment longer, I'd be dead!
Thank goodness Lord Hantengu let us go and didn't chase us.
And you, you damn bat! Why didn't we just escape earlier? Why did you have to linger in front of Lord Hantengu's door and provoke him until you were satisfied!?"
The bat demon, equally shaken after surviving the ordeal, no longer harbored any doubts. He was now certain that the one in the room earlier had truly been Lord Hantengu!
Clutching his chest in lingering terror, he replied, "Yeah, I was scared out of my mind—I really thought I was done for just now!
I don't know what got into me. Why was I so obsessed with going inside to check?
Looking back, I was an absolute idiot! Why go in at all? Was I trying to get myself killed!?
Thank goodness we're just nobodies who didn't catch Lord Hantengu's attention. If he had decided to hunt us down, the way I was acting earlier would've gotten me killed for sure!"
Having caught their breath, the fear in their hearts gradually subsided.
Yet soon enough, worry crept back in.
The bat demon slumped to the ground with a troubled frown. "Sigh… We didn't even get to properly see Lord Hantengu—we were scared off and chased away by him.
What are we supposed to do now? Lord Muzan's order was 'bring him back alive, or at least his corpse'!
And Lord Hantengu is suspected of desertion.
Once we report this to Lord Muzan, he'll be furious. If we're not careful, we might get caught in the crossfire and lose our lives!"
The black dog demon also sat down heavily, his brow furrowed with worry. "Yeah, if we report it just like this, Lord Muzan will almost certainly fly into a rage.
But…"
"But what?"
"But I don't think Lord Muzan would kill us so easily, even if he's angry."
"Why do you think that? What makes you so sure? We're not strong—what value or leverage do we have that would stop Lord Muzan from killing us?"
"Our Blood Demon Arts! Don't forget, we may not be powerful, but our arts are special. When combined, we're the perfect duo for tracking and searching!
That makes us useful to Lord Muzan.
He wouldn't dispose of us so casually."
The black dog demon's words reignited hope in the bat demon. "You're right, old dog—I didn't expect you to have such insight!
Exactly! We might not be strong, but our Blood Demon Arts are unique and excel at tracking. That alone makes us valuable to Lord Muzan!
If nothing else, if Lord Muzan wants to continue hunting Lord Hantengu in the future, won't he still need our help!?"
The black dog demon nodded vigorously in agreement. "Exactly, exactly! If he wants to find Lord Hantengu again, he'll still need the two of us!"
The bat demon's mood lifted.
In this world, anyone could die—except those who still held value.
And fortunately, the two of them were valuable to Muzan, so the chances of being killed were low.
Realizing this, both demons relaxed considerably.
Sitting together on the ground, they began to rest and encourage each other.
"After searching for so many days, we finally found Lord Hantengu. That wasn't easy."
"Yeah. So when should we report this to Lord Muzan?"
"Well, we can't contact Lord Muzan on our own, but his cells and power are inside us—he can reach us anytime, anywhere.
The next time Lord Muzan contacts us, we'll report everything right away."
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