Many days had passed since the battle in the Yoshiwara Pleasure District.
The severely damaged streets and buildings had been restored and rebuilt. Compared to before, the new buildings were designed more scientifically and fashionably, and their style was more unified.
However, the business of the original red-light district here had shifted direction, becoming a combination of entertainment and commerce.
This would undoubtedly affect the interests of many parties.
One must know that, historically, the yellow and black sectors were inseparable, and there were originally a large number of yakuza forces in Yoshiwara.
However, after the Sakuragi Group's signboard was hung on the Yoshiwara street signs, these yakuza forces all vanished.
Compared to yakuza forces, the 'black' of a capital consortium is not just ordinary 'black'; it's a vibrant, colorful 'black.' The two are completely on different levels.
As for future developments, there's no need to elaborate. Kael just wanted to give every oiran sister a warm home.
No choice, he's been this kind-hearted since childhood... Sakuragi Hospital's underground research lab welcomed a distinguished guest.
Compared to the standard canned setup for other ordinary demons, Gyutaro's was undoubtedly much more advanced. He could even stick out his dead demon head and breathe fresh air.
"That cross-dressing, dead, perverted bastard! Get out here!"
Although Gyutaro was confined to the can and had lost his mobility due to various Inhibitors.
The adaptability of an Upper Rank demon is extraordinary. Before, he could only stay in a dazed state, but now he could shout loudly.
"Yo, good morning, Seaweed Head."
Kael heard Gyutaro's shouts from afar and didn't mind. Wearing a white coat, he raised his hand to greet him.
"Bastard, I have a name!"
Gyutaro couldn't help but lose his composure upon hearing that title.
"Gyutaro isn't a good name."
Kael said, observing the other party's various indicators, and incidentally drew a few barrels of blood. The blood of an Upper Rank demon was extremely helpful for his research.
Moreover, where else could he find such a perfect experimental subject as a demon, one he could repeatedly torment to death without any humanitarian concerns?
"You bastard pervert, what did you inject me with yesterday? My body is so itchy I could die!"
Gyutaro cursed and spat at Kael.
Even if he couldn't hurt the other party, he wanted to disgust him thoroughly.
Kael had tormented him quite a bit these past few days. With various different agents reacting in his body, there were times he truly wanted to die.
And he didn't know what this guy had done, but it completely severed his sensory link with Kibutsuji Muzan.
Presumably, the latter had already judged the former to be dead.
"Trust me, you wouldn't be happy knowing too much."
Kael had an expression as if he was thinking for him.
"As if I could be happy right now! What did you do to Daki?!"
Gyutaro still couldn't hold back, asking the question he cared about most. He dared not imagine what kind of torment Daki would suffer in Kael's hands.
This guy truly could lay hands on demons; he wasn't like the pillars, who had a grand and righteous persona.
When he was residing within Daki, he could clearly feel that Kael wanted to sleep with his own younger sister, and that was with the knowledge that she was a demon.
As a demon, Gyutaro even found Kael a bit perverted.
"Daki? There is no Daki anymore."
Kael sighed softly, his expression slightly regretful.
Hearing this, Gyutaro's heart shattered.
But the powerlessness in his body prevented him from doing anything, so he could only glare furiously at Kael, as if he wanted to vomit out his heart.
Just then, a girl's voice came from above the basement.
"Mr. Sakuragi, are you in there?"
With Kael and Gyutaro's senses of hearing, even across more than ten meters of floors, they could naturally hear it clearly.
The voice was both strange and familiar, making Gyutaro's consciousness freeze there, his memories unconsciously returning to a hundred years ago.
Kael directly ignored Gyutaro, turned, and left the room.
"Wait! Come back here, what's going on, what was that voice?!"
Gyutaro roared frantically.
A moment later, Kael's voice came from upstairs.
"Mr. Sakuragi, I think I heard someone shouting downstairs..."
"An irrelevant fellow, just ignore him."
"Oh..."
"Bastard! Come back here!"
Gyutaro felt like he was about to cry... In the corridor, a white-haired, blue-eyed girl cautiously followed beside Kael. She looked only thirteen or fourteen years old, with an extremely pure and beautiful appearance.
Between her brows, one could still see Daki's shadow, but their temperaments were completely different.
The "Humanization Potion" developed by Kael and Lady Tamayo had succeeded.
Daki was the first test subject.
However, there seemed to be a slight error in the process. Daki, who had transformed back into a human, completely lost her memories as a demon, and even her body reverted to how it was before she became a demon.
Fortunately, her memories as a human were preserved, otherwise Kael would have to raise a daughter now.
This transformation still left Ume with some after-effects. She was now severely sensitive to light and had some resistance to ordinary food.
However, these could be improved with time and adaptation, so they weren't serious problems.
"Mr. Sakuragi, I've been listening to you carefully. When can I see my brother?"
Ume asked softly, looking up at Kael with kitten-like eyes.
This was a skill she learned while begging and surviving on the streets.
Most adults couldn't resist it; one glance and they'd obediently hand over their "offerings."
It was thanks to this trick that Ume and Gyutaro survived on the streets back then.
Ume was still very grateful to Kael. After all, in her memory, she had been severely burned, and now she was not only alive and well, but her skin was even more delicate and fair than before.
Ume was very concerned about her own beauty.
Because if she was ugly, she would starve and be beaten in the Yoshiwara district.
"He probably doesn't want to see you right now."
Kael replied.
"How could that be? My brother wouldn't be like that."
Ume was a little angry, feeling that even Mr. Sakuragi shouldn't say such things.
But as soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted it a little, cautiously looking at Kael's face. Noticing that he wasn't angry, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Ume, from the lowest social strata, had learned to read expressions and how to please adults since childhood.
"Your brother is sick right now, and he doesn't want to infect you."
Kael explained.
Hearing this, Ume nodded, half-believing it.
"Haven't you always wanted to go out for a walk? I happen to have time today, so I'll take you out for a stroll."
Kael continued.
"Really? I can see the sunlight?"
Ume couldn't hold back her excitement. Although the hospital environment was much better than where she used to live, the atmosphere here was a bit depressing.
"You can go out at night."
"Mr. Sakuragi, you are truly a good person. I will definitely repay you well."
Ume said earnestly.
Among this was the thought of finding herself a long-term meal ticket.
Based on her life experience and observation, Kael was definitely very rich, and not only was he handsome to her aesthetic, but his personality was also so gentle.
It would be wonderful if she could be his concubine.
That way, she and her brother would never have to worry about starving or being bullied again.
Ume's thoughts and values had long been formed.
She knew that good things had to be seized, and men were no exception.
However, before actually taking action, Ume still had to see her brother first; this was her only current concern.
Kael smiled, stroked Ume's hair, and led her back to the ward.
In this ward, besides Ume, there was another patient waiting for treatment.
Nezuko saw Kael and happily ran over.
Ume saw this and secretly pouted. Nezuko was the person she disliked most in the hospital.
There was no choice, they were both in the same ecological niche, prone to competition, which put a lot of pressure on Ume.
One must know that although Nezuko's beauty was not inferior to Ume's, her innocent and naive appearance was extremely lethal to men.
More importantly, Nezuko also had a brother who loved her very much.
Looking at Nezuko always gave Ume the illusion of looking in a mirror.
"Mr. Sakuragi, when can Nezuko's treatment begin?"
Tanjiro, who was standing by, asked anxiously.
After learning that the "Humanization Potion" had been successfully developed, he couldn't wait another moment.
"Don't worry, it'll be in a few days. Nezuko's physical condition is a bit special, as you know."
Kael said casually to Tanjiro, stroking Nezuko's head.
"Is that so?"
Tanjiro's mood was a bit low.
"Don't go out these next few days. Just stay in the hospital and accompany Nezuko. I imagine that when Nezuko gets well, the first thing she'll want is to see you by her side."
Kael added. Tanjiro immediately brightened up and nodded vigorously.
"Then I'll leave now. You all get along well."
Kael said, glancing at Ume, who responded with a bright smile.
However, after watching Kael leave and disappear, Ume's smile instantly vanished. She returned to her bed without looking back, where Kael had prepared picture stories for her to pass the time, with no intention of interacting or communicating with Tanjiro and the others.
Ume's personality carried a utilitarian and power-seeking undertone.
Clearly, in her opinion, Tanjiro, this unremarkable and foolish boy, was completely unnecessary to interact with.
Of course, a lack of security was also a factor.
Aside from her brother and Kael, there was truly no one else here who could make Ume slightly lower her defensive facade.
"Um... want some fruit?"
Tanjiro awkwardly tried to please her. He felt great sympathy for this girl who was about the same age as his sister.
"No need."
Ume's tone was a bit stiff. She turned to glance at the table beside her bed, which was filled with various fruits and snacks Kael had prepared for her.
If she were to eat, she would only eat what Mr. Sakuragi gave her.
"Tanjiro~."
A simpering voice came from outside the door.
Zenitsu Agatsuma squeezed half his head through the door crack, peering inside like a thief. After confirming that Kael was not there, he prepared to push the door open and enter.
However, Hashibira Inosuke kicked him in first, shouting boisterously with his boar's head on.
"Tanjiro, we've come to see you."
"In a hospital, you must remain quiet."
Nurse Manager Kogane's gloomy voice reached Zenitsu and the others, scaring them into instinctively clenching their sphincters and apologizing in a panic.
"Sorry! We were wrong."
"It's all Inosuke's fault. You can just take him to the Proctology Department."
"Bastard! If I go, I'll take both of you with me!"
...
After Nurse Manager Kogane's warning, the room immediately quieted down a lot.
However, when Zenitsu Agatsuma noticed Ume on the other bed, he couldn't help but relapse, wiggling his butt and sidling over with a fawning expression.
"This beautiful and charming maiden..."
"Get lost, ugly demon. You're making me nauseous."
Ume attacked unceremoniously, her words a critical hit.
She could maintain some patience with Tanjiro, but with Zenitsu Agatsuma, she had the urge to lash out.
The reason, as Ume said, was that ugliness was the original sin.
This instantly drained Zenitsu Agatsuma of his color. He knelt by the bed, buried his head on the floor, and mumbled hollowly, his voice as if devoid of soul.
"I'm so sorry for being ugly..."
"Huh? Zenitsu, why are you acting like a maggot?"
Hashibira Inosuke still didn't know what had happened.
"Please let me die in peace alone."
Zenitsu Agatsuma hugged his knees, curled up in a corner of the room, isolating himself from the world.
Tanjiro was already used to this situation. Although he didn't quite understand, he could show respect... That night, Kael took Ume out of the hospital as promised.
The world outside was no longer what she knew.
The changes of the past century made Ume feel both strange and frightened, and she couldn't help but hold Kael's hand tightly.
She vaguely realized that this era was no longer the one she knew.
However, she was just a little girl, and her self-regulation and adaptability were very strong. Ume quickly adapted to the prosperity and hustle of the modern city, pulling Kael from one end of the street to the other.
"Aren't you planning to buy anything?"
Kael asked, looking at Ume's empty hands.
"Mr. Sakuragi has already bought me a lot."
Ume counted the items by her bed on her fingers. She remembered these things very clearly.
"That's different."
Kael led Ume into a shop.
A moment later, they walked out again.
However, this time, Ume had a beautifully crafted hairpin in her hair.
Seeing the smile on Ume's lips, one could tell she was very happy about it, reaching up to touch it lovingly from time to time.
After returning to the hospital ward, Ume couldn't help but show off to Nezuko.
However, her little scheme fell flat. Nezuko's current state prevented her from understanding the meaning of this gesture; she could only blink her bewildered eyes.
However, her little scheme fell flat. Nezuko's current state prevented her from understanding the meaning of this gesture; she could only blink her bewildered eyes.