[Rui] was "Lower Moon Five — the Spider Demon."
Among the six Lower Moons, he was the only one Muzan truly favored and allowed to form a "family," even going so far as to call him "son."
People naturally sympathize with those whose tragedies resemble their own. Rui and Muzan shared similarly fragile lives: one's original form was cancer, the other leukemia—both bedridden, unable to live or even care for themselves like normal humans. Perhaps it was precisely this shared past that made Muzan personally visit Rui, turn him into a demon and give him new life… while at the same time cutting off his only true bond.
Because they couldn't accept their son becoming a demon who had to eat people to live, Rui's parents wanted to end it. In the end, Rui was forced to kill them himself.
That night, his father had raised the blade not to exact revenge, but to kill Rui in his sleep, take the sin of "eating humans" onto himself, and die together with his son.
That night, his mother lay in a pool of blood, apologizing with her last breath for not giving him a healthy body.
In that haze, Rui finally realized how important family truly was to him. Thus, on Mount Natagumo, all those demons were forced into "playing house" with him, acting out his twisted fantasy of a perfect family.
But some things, once done, can never be undone.
Roy cut down "Elder Sister Spider," two slashes to kill "Little Sister Spider," three, four slashes to send Rui's "parents" on their way, and a fifth to pierce his "big brother's" heart. When he looked up again, though, the real core—Rui himself—was nowhere to be seen.
[Notice: Life Energy +11 +12 +11 +13 +15…]
[Monster Encyclopedia… updated…]
[Spider Demon Family: D-class lifeforms]
[Physique: 187→321]
[Innate Blood Demon Arts: "Thread Manipulation"… "Spider Poison"… "Skin Hardening"… extracted]
Note 1 – Thread Manipulation:
The user can turn nen threads into "spider silk" and control others to move according to their will.
Note 2 – Spider Poison:
The user can mix venom into their nen so that those struck gradually "spiderize."
Note 3 – Skin Hardening:
The user can concentrate nen into their skin, hardening the surface and boosting defense.
…
As the familiar chime rang in his head, several streams of information poured into Roy's mind. He tasted them carefully: "Thread Manipulation" and "Skin Hardening" were basically just Shape Transformation of Nen plus Ken.
Sure enough, one glance at the panel showed Nen Shape Transformation +10.
"Spider Poison," though, would be quite handy for interrogations, torture, or just blindsiding someone at the right moment.
Roy hooked his thumb against his middle finger and flicked.
A "nen thread" snapped out with a whoosh, and with a thought he infused it with Spider Poison. The thread struck a tall cypress nearby. Before his eyes…
The bark began to rot in blotches, turning pale. A breeze passed; leaves fell, the branches sagged, and the tree withered in seconds.
Along with it, an "Eye Demon" that had been spying from the branches let out a shriek as it dropped to the ground, body twisting into a spider-form before—
Pop.
Its body exploded. Sickly green blood splattered across the dirt, inching toward Roy's boots.
"Like the view?" he asked flatly.
The sun-and-mountain earrings swung as he tilted his head, looking into the distance.
In the Infinity Castle,
Muzan, currently in his madam's kimono, had just turned the throne room into a slaughterhouse, personally wiping out four of the Lower Moons—Two, Three, Four, and Six—and grooming Lower One, Enmu, into evolution. He suddenly sensed Rui's abnormal state.
The "Spider Boy" stood hunched over, shoulders trembling as he desperately tried not to lose control before his "master." The veins around his blood-red eyes bulged as the news hit him: his nest and "family" had been wiped out.
"It's that swordsman…"
As the Eye Demon died, Muzan saw once more that pair of hanafuda earrings—and the boy's indifferent gaze stabbing straight into his chest, making cold sweat bead down his back.
His face darkened. Forcing himself to stay calm, he placed a hand on Rui's shoulder and asked, "Are you angry? Go. You and Enmu—kill that swordsman."
"Yes." Lower One Enmu and Rui knelt at his feet. As soon as Nakime plucked her shamisen strings, opening a portal, the two vanished from Infinity Castle.
After they left, Muzan stood in place for a long, long time.
Softly, he called, "Akaza. You know what to do."
"Kill."
Barefoot in green-striped shorts and a short crimson vest, green belt at his waist, red hair and golden eyes, the martial artist knelt on one knee. He spoke just one word, then Nakime flicked another note. A new passage opened, and he stepped through, racing after Enmu and Rui.
"Upper Moon plus two Lower Moons… that should be enough…"
His whisper echoed through the twisting hallways of Infinity Castle. Nakime closed the realm behind him; Muzan pressed a hand over his heart, finally feeling a little safer.
"Caw~ Kamado Roy, a letter from Tomioka Giyu!"
"Caw~ Kamado Roy, a letter from Tomioka Giyu!"
Outside Mount Natagumo,
Roy had just cleared out the spider demons and scooped up a wave of Life Energy when a raspy caw sounded. He raised his arm, letting the crow clutching a folded letter land on his sleeve. One glance at its feathers and face, and he recognized it—
Giyu's tsugai crow.
The boy already had a guess. He opened the letter and read. On the small slip of paper, in typical Giyu fashion, were only two lines:
"Roy, the Master summons you. There will be a Pillar Meeting at noon the day after tomorrow. Please be there to discuss…"
"The Upper Moons are on the move."
A storm was coming. Roy could smell the killing intent on the wind.
He twisted the paper between his fingers and brushed it lightly with the True Meaning of Heat. The letter turned to ash and scattered. Lifting his eyes, he gauged the sky—night peeling away, the sun about to rise, a slice of red dawn spilling over the horizon—perfect weather for burying demons.
"…Alright."
The crow got its answer, squawked once, and took off, dropping a black feather that drifted down to settle on Roy's shoulder.
He rested his hand on his blade, watching the sunrise for a moment longer. Then he stepped out of the Demon Slayer world and slipped back into the Hunter world.
The familiar falling sensation hit.
Hunter World. Republic of Padokea. Zoldyck Estate, Kukuroo Mountain.
He'd napped for two hours. It worked wonders—by the time Roy opened his eyes and rolled off the bed, his mind felt sharp again, and most of his drained nen had returned.
He hadn't forgotten Zeno's reminder. Before heading up to pay respects to Zigg, he opened his drawer, took out the Journal of the Western Continent, and began reading.
The very first line on the title page stopped him cold:
["We are nothing but cockroaches despised by the gods—
not worth eating, disgusting to look at,
and so they simply cast us down to the lower world."]
~~~
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