[Kakunodate, Eastern District, Year 1839, January]
Two months.
In the demon-haunted landscape of pre-modern Japan, it was a small leap in time. From Scale's spying, Hitoku had learned the death of the Night Hashira against Kokushibo. He had been surprised at first. He knew that he was a little early compared to the canon events. Something between 70 and 80 years early.
Yet, he had run into a familiar name. Upper moon one, Kokushibo.
He knew that they had not changed over time, proof of their longevity and more importantly, strength. Also, the Night Hashira was using a breathing style that was not mentioned at all. Just like the Crow Breathing Style, it seemed like there were plenty of things he did not know about this world, hence the importance of a spy like Scale.
While two months had been enough for the world balance to shift slightly with the death of a Hashira, for the Eastern District of Kakunodate, it was the beginning of an era.
Under Hitoku's silent, calculating rule, "The Crimson Pavilion" ceased to be merely a den of chance. It became an institution. The 3-floor pavilion expanded to a 5-floor palace of debauchery. Well, all except the top floor, which Hitoku turned into his sanctuary of shogi. There, shogi masters played travelers from all Japan who were coming to the establishment to challenge him.
As his reputation grew, many doubted his skills. Unlike Bando and his so-called 'master', those who came all the way to Kakunodate were the real deal. True masters who dedicated years, sometimes even decades to the game. He first lost more than he won. But after a few weeks, he became stronger. His style did not change. He refined his defenses and waited for his opponents' mistakes. He was a fortress who was now undefeated in the past 26 matches he had disputed.
With more traffic, the Crimson Pavilion became wealthier. The profits, as Bando reported with a mixture of terror and glee, had quadrupled. They did not expand their territory. They renovated the Crimson Pavilion, added green torches and purchased custom shogi sets from wood crafters. Under Hitoku's orders, the Crimson Pavilion had been turned into an impenetrable bastion of controlled vice.
Hitoku's method was not one of demonic terror, but of systemic pressure. He observed, analyzed, and optimized. First-time visitors were given a bonus to entice them into the pavilion. Those who lost too much had the opportunity to go into debt to play one more game, one more roll. Simple card games had been improved, optimized to give the illusion that it was possible to 'win' the odds when you were good at the game.
As the popularity grew, the Crimson Pavilion was innovating.
His central eye saw the gambling den not as a mere social experiment. It saw it as a system. A sanctuary for his growth. Scale and Hitoku were hiding right under the nose of the Demon Slayer outpost. Yet, they only seldomly patrolled in the area. The disappearance of corpses was associated with crime, not demon activity.
Of course, the Crimson Pavilion was just a facade. A hobby of Hitoku, who had grown fond of Shogi. Behind the scene, he needed to upscale the quality of his subordinates. The thugs, though mere humans with little potential, could act as deterrent for the weaker investigators. He needed them to be strong enough to beat town guards who might hold a grudge.
He did not teach them the Breath of the Crow. That was a art too profound, too distinctive, which might give him away. Instead, he taught them foundations of swordsmanship. Not Breathing Techniques, but how to thrust, how to hold a guard, how to slash.
He gathered the thugs in the packed-earth yard behind the Pavilion at the dead of night. A weekly training, with Bando standing to the side, arms crossed, watching with a scowl that hid intense curiosity.
"Strength is not how hard you hit", Hitoku stated, his voice flat, his bandaged form still, "It is how efficiently you channel force. Agility is not speed. It is the shortest path to your opponent's weakness. You are not mere brawlers. You are now Crimson Pavilion swordsmen. Use the swordsmanship I taught you, not something that would tire you in combat"
He drilled them in stances. Simple, stable postures that maximized balance and minimized exposure. To his Perceiving Eye, their growth was quantifiable, visible in the tightening of their movements, the reduction of wasteful tremors.
[Lv. 4 (↑3) Crimson Pavilion Guard]
[Lv. 5 (↑4) Crimson Pavilion Guard]
[Lv. 3 (↑2) Crimson Pavilion Guard]
They were insects compared to a Demon Slayer or a Demon, but they were becoming dangerous insects. A unified swarm, acting on silent signals. A crow needed a swarm to truly blossom. And he was doing just that. Gathering one.
Patrolling the district, they no longer lurched and swaggered. As they grew muscles, the success rate of collecting debts increased. As they wielded the sword with more intensity, the town guard's investigations diminished considerably. And as they beat thugs, the popularity of the Crimson Pavilion increased dramatically.
They had become a force of Kakunodate itself. Not law-makers, or town guards. But they were respected. They were only 22, including Bando. But they had changed the Eastern District.
Bando was the greatest transformation.
The mountain of a man initially chafed under the precise drills, his brute strength ill-suited to finesse.
He gave Bando a massive, unsharpened practice sword: a slab of oak. His training was simple: hit the same mark on a post, over and over, until the post splintered, while controlling his breathing. Then, do it while moving. Then, do it while Hitoku flicked pebbles at his unprotected sides.
It was brutal, simplistic, and perfectly tailored. Bando learned to focus his rage, to channel his immense power into singular, devastating blows without leaving himself utterly open. His "Furious Bull Charge" became a legend in the district: a short, explosive dash that could flatten a door or break a man's guard with sheer, concussive force.
[Bando - Lv. 12 (↑6) Crimson Pavilion Guard Captain]
Perk: Unrefined Might - Strength checks against weaker opponents have a high chance to stun or break guard
Bando's loyalty, born of fear and sealed by the tangible increase in his own power and status, became ironclad. He was the blunt instrument, the public face of the Pavilion's strength, while Hitoku remained the shadow on the platform, the unseen hand moving the pieces. Surprisingly, he had become stronger than a regular Mizunoto, without learning a proper breathing style, only a diminished version of its fundamentals.
And then there was Scale.
The little demon thrived in his role. A shadow. His camouflage allowed him to move through the district's rafters and alleys unseen, reporting whispers of rival gangs, disgruntled patrons, or, most importantly, any hint of Demon Slayer curiosity.
His primary duty, however, was disposal. The gambling den, even a well-run one, had its casualties. Drunks who choked, debtors who succumbed to despair, the rare unfortunate who tried to cheat the house, or the others, too brazenly.
These bodies did not end up in the river to be found. Under cover of darkness, Scale would spirit them away to a hidden cellar Hitoku had prepared. There, with clinical detachment, Hitoku would take what he needed, a minimal amount of blood, just enough to sustain him without frenzied hunger. The rest was Scale's.
It was a clean, silent system. No widespread disappearances. No blood-soaked crime scenes. Just a slow, careful drip of sustenance that left no trace for slayers to follow.
[Scale - Lv. 22 (↑3) Demon (Scout/Sanitation)]
Blood Demon Art: Chameleonic Shroud - Mastery improved. Can now maintain near-perfect stillness and camouflage for extended periods, even while moving slowly.
Hitoku's reputation in the human world was a curious thing. He was not loved. He was not even known by name. People called him the 'Shogi King', or the 'Silent Master'. Some loathed the changes happening in Kakunodate's eastern district. Others approved of it.
But in the end, it was meaningless to him.
Only his growth, powered by this sanctuary, provided him satisfaction.
[Name: Hitoku (Cyclop) | Lv. 42 (↑4) Demon (55 / 120 EXP)
HP: 830 / 830 (Reg: 8.3/s)
Stats:
Strength: 48 (↑6) | Agility: 52 (↑6) | Dexterity: 53 (+15) (↑8)
Vitality: 53 (+30) (↑5) | Perception: 151 (↑13)
Perk: Demon Curse (+30 Vitality, 1% HP Reg.)
Blood Demon Art: Path of the Perceiving Eye (+3 Perception every level)
Breath Style: Breath of the Crow
First Form: Sharp Feather Draw (105) (Intermediate)
Second Form: Murder's Fleet-Step (58) (Apprentice)
Third Form: Shifting Flock Barrage (52) (Apprentice)
Fourth Form: Omen's Illusive Guard (60) (Apprentice)
Fifth Form: Black Wing Omen (60) (Apprentice)
Skills: Shogi (170) (Expert)
Item: Blood-soaked Bandages (+5 Dexterity, Minor Fear ailment), White Crow School Nichirin (+10 Dexterity), Shogi Master Ring (+20 Proficiency in 'Shogi')]
Growth. He needed to grow even more.