Horitake's words finally managed to temporarily placate Shinobu.
Held in Horitake's arms, Shinobu stopped struggling and looked at him suspiciously.
"Is what you said true? Oyakata-sama is on good terms with her too?"
Horitake continued to hold Shinobu, just in case she decided to lash out.
"Of course it's true. Didn't you hear the Kasugai Crow when it delivered the message this morning? Oyakata-sama personally gave us this address! That means Oyakata-sama is aware of her situation!"
Shinobu thought about it and felt that made sense.
Even if she couldn't trust this scoundrel Horitake, she could at least trust the Master.
Feeling the resistance from Shinobu in his arms weaken, Horitake breathed a sigh of relief.
However, immediately following that relief came a wave of annoyance.
Unhappy, Horitake leaned in close to Shinobu's ear and began to whisper intently:
"I say, Shinobu-neesan, am I really that unreliable in your heart? Do I absolutely have to bring up Oyakata-sama before you're willing to believe me? I'm feeling quite displeased right now!"
Because they were so close, when Horitake spoke, his hot breath brushed against Shinobu's ear and even trickled down her neck.
Earlier, when she was angry, Shinobu hadn't noticed it. But now that she had calmed down slightly, she was suddenly startled to realize just how compromising her and Horitake's current posture was!
Feeling Horitake's sizzling breath at such close range, Shinobu's legs went a little soft.
When had she ever encountered this? This was the second time they had been in such close, intimate contact!
The last time was in Shinobu's bedroom. That time, because Horitake had gone too far, Shinobu had kicked him straight out.
But now they were on the street. People were hurrying by all around them. Shinobu was too embarrassed to lose her temper, so she could only grit her teeth and glare indignantly at Horitake.
"Fine, I get it. I'm not agitated anymore. Hurry up and let me go!"
"I won't," Horitake acted a bit unreasonable. "Unless you make me a promise first, Shinobu-neesan."
"Promise what?"
"When you see her later, even if you can't stand her, you absolutely cannot fly into a rage. Even if you don't get along, you absolutely must not start a fight with her!"
After struggling vigorously a couple of times, Shinobu realized that her small frame truly couldn't compete with Horitake's strength. She could only agree dejectedly.
"Fine, I promise you. As long as she doesn't actively provoke me, as long as she isn't some heinous demon, and as long as she can control her nature, I won't raise a hand against her."
"On that point, you can rest assured, Shinobu-neesan. She is even gentler and kinder than you are."
"What did you say!?"
"Nothing!"
Horitake loosened his arms and released Shinobu.
Shinobu moved her body, rubbing the spots where she had been held too tightly, and looked at Horitake with dissatisfaction.
"After saying all that, you still haven't told me who she is or what her name is."
Horitake said with a beaming smile:
"She is a beautiful female demon, a woman like a Yamato Nadeshiko, named Tamayo.
She also has a follower with a twisted personality who has strictly never eaten humans. He is also a demon, named Yushiro."
After a brief explanation, Horitake naturally took Shinobu's hand and walked toward Tamayo's hidden residence ahead.
"It's just up ahead. Although it looks unremarkable on the surface, there's a whole other world inside. The exterior is a special camouflage created by their Blood Demon Art. You can only see its true face by walking inside."
Holding Shinobu's hand, Horitake relied on his memory to locate Tamayo's dwelling.
"Hmm... this is the place!"
Horitake confirmed it was the wall in front of them. He pulled Shinobu forward and crashed headfirst into the wall!
Shinobu was just about to be shocked by Horitake's behavior when she saw him slip into the wall as if passing through a phantom. Before she could protest, he pulled her in with him!
In a trance, Shinobu passed through the wall and saw a completely different scene inside.
Unlike the ordinary houses she had seen just a moment ago, the true face of this place was a sizable garden and a large, Western-style mansion!
Hand in hand with Horitake, Shinobu blinked blankly. She looked at the surrounding environment and then looked back at the way they came.
"This... is this an illusion? Is it their Blood Demon Art?"
Horitake nodded in answer.
"Yes, it is a Blood Demon Art barrier created by them.
To prevent disturbance from outsiders and to avoid being discovered by other demons, Tamayo and Yushiro inevitably need to hide. This is their method of evasion."
Still holding Shinobu's hand, Horitake pulled her along, walking straight ahead and casually opening the door to the Western-style house.
Shinobu felt this was very rude and hurriedly tugged Horitake back.
"Horitake, opening someone else's door like this and barging straight in—isn't that too impolite!"
"Please, Shinobu-neesan, the ones living here aren't humans, they're two demons. It's broad daylight right now; do you expect them to come out and welcome us?"
"Uh... true."
After entering the mansion, Horitake found the stairs to the basement with practiced ease and led Shinobu down.
The lights were on in the stairwell leading to the basement, clearly indicating someone was living there.
After walking down the stairs, what Horitake didn't expect was that the brat, Yushiro, was actually standing at the entrance of the basement, seemingly waiting to welcome him.
Thinking about it, it made sense. He hadn't hidden his presence this time, and he and Shinobu had barged directly into the Blood Demon Art barrier. Tamayo and Yushiro definitely would have detected them, so an early welcome wasn't strange.
Horitake waved cheerfully and greeted him:
"Yo! Yushiro, long time no see!"
Yushiro's twisted personality revealed itself in that instant. He gave an expressionless acknowledgment, looked at Horitake, and then looked at Shinobu.
Shinobu also looked at Yushiro. She could sense it too; the person in front of her was indeed a demon.
However, he was distinctly different from other demons. He didn't have that manic aura of a demon, but rather a calmness like a human.
Unfortunately, whatever shred of goodwill Shinobu had just mustered for Yushiro vanished into thin air because of the very next sentence this guy spoke.
Yushiro said:
"Lady Tamayo has been waiting a long time. Horitake, and this ugly woman, follow me."
Although Shinobu maintained a polite smile, several vein marks popped out on her forehead uncontrollably.
Horitake was also dumbfounded.
This scene, this plot... it felt déjà vu!
Dammit, how similar was this to the scene in the original story where Tanjiro and Nezuko met Yushiro for the first time?!
Several veins also popped out on Horitake's forehead; he was so angry he almost laughed.
Reaching out to grab Yushiro's shoulder and yanking the guy over, Horitake pointed at Shinobu beside him and spoke to him with a face that was dark and terrifying:
"Yushiro, what did you just call her?"
Shinobu looked at Yushiro with a smile.
Yushiro remained as stubborn as iron, expressionlessly spitting out two words:
"Ugly woman!"
Horitake nearly exploded on the spot!
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