Chapter 36: I Think... I Can Still Be Saved
"Hoo, I've really been looked down upon..."
Ryuji lowered his head and spoke softly, "Who do you think I am?"
He snapped his head up, his eyes glowing with a red light.
"I am a human being!"
"A being that will absolutely never become a demon!"
The moment his words fell, a powerful aura of sovereign dominance erupted from the depths of his consciousness!
The darkness was torn asunder, and the illusion was shattered.
For the first time, Muzan's blood-colored vertical pupils flickered with a hint of astonishment before being completely dispelled by this domineering, peerless will!
In the real world.
"Lord Ryuji... he... he..."
A Demon Slayer Corps Member pointed at Ryuji, his voice trembling and filled with terror.
Veins began to bulge on Ryuji's forehead, his canines were slowly lengthening, and his fingernails were becoming sharp.
This was... the sign of demonization!
"How could this happen..."
Sorrowful weeping began to spread among the members.
They would rather Lord Ryuji die in battle than see him turn into an ugly, man-eating demon.
Arai Daisuke looked at Ryuji in disbelief, but noticed that the signs of demonization on Ryuji's body didn't seem to be progressing very fast.
He hasn't given up!
Lord Ryuji hasn't given up yet!
Just as he was about to tell everyone about this discovery, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a swordsman swinging a nichirin blade toward Ryuji's neck.
Arai Daisuke's pupils shrank, and he violently knocked the swordsman aside, shouting, "What are you doing!"
The swordsman said through tears, "I'm helping Lord Ryuji end his pain! I'd rather Lord Ryuji die in battle than see him turn into an ugly, man-eating demon."
Thud!
A tall, burly figure descended from the sky, landing heavily in front of everyone, causing the ground to crack.
The newcomer had no wounds on his body, only a bit of dust.
It was Himejima Gyomei.
After dealing with the two demons to the south, he had immediately rushed over at full speed using his Breathing Technique, never stopping for a moment.
When he saw Ryuji lying on the ground, his body undergoing a mutation, two lines of hot tears instantly welled up in his blind eyes.
He felt that faint but incredibly pure aura.
The aura of a demon.
"namu amida butsu."
Gyomei wept, and without a moment's hesitation, he raised the broadaxe in his hand and swung it straight toward the neck of the lying Ryuji.
"What a tragic child..."
As a Hashira, it was his responsibility to grant release to a Demon Slayer Corps Member before they completely turned into a demon.
"No! Lord Himejima!"
Arai Daisuke, drawing strength from who knows where, lunged forward and spread his arms, blocking the way in front of Ryuji. The broadaxe stopped right before his eyes, only half an inch from striking his face!
"Lord Ryuji... he's still fighting! Can't you feel it?!"
With reddened eyes, he stared intensely at Himejima Gyomei.
"The signs of demonization... they're abnormally slow! He is taking back his body! Look, Lord Stone Hashira, the speed of demonization is very slow!"
Arai Daisuke knelt directly on the ground, pleading, "Lord Stone Hashira, with you here, even if Lord Ryuji fails, you can still slay him then, so..."
Himejima Gyomei was silent for a moment and lowered his broadaxe. He also felt very distressed by such a situation.
Having a companion turn into a demon and then having to kill them personally was indeed hard to accept, but the rules... never mind.
"namu amida butsu."
He began to chant sutras, which served as a silent consent.
Arai Daisuke said no more. He turned around to look at Ryuji, his remaining left hand clenched into a tight fist, nails digging deep into his palm until blood seeped out.
His voice was hoarse, yet he repeated it over and over like the most stubborn prayer:
"Don't give up! Hang in there!"
This voice was faint at first, but it was like a stone cast into stagnant water.
The surrounding swordsmen looked at Arai's burning gaze, then at the figure on the ground entwined with frost and purple patterns.
They joined in the prayer together:
"Hang in there!"
"Don't be defeated by the demon!"
"Lord Ryuji! Hang in there! You can do it!"
One shout after another.
What began as choked whispers gradually converged into a clear and fervent call.
Following these tireless cries, Ryuji's curled fingers suddenly twitched.
Immediately after, the hideous, throbbing veins on his face subsided like a receding tide.
The fangs protruding from the corners of his mouth and his fingernails slowly retracted.
The purple color spreading beneath his skin also froze in place, then began to fade and vanish!
His eyelids fluttered and opened a sliver with extreme slowness.
In his eyes was the clarity belonging to a human.
"...Heh."
A laugh that was almost just a breath escaped his throat, raspy like grinding sand: "You guys are... so noisy..."
Silence.
"He... he succeeded?!"
Arai Daisuke's eyes widened to their limit, his voice cracking.
A massive wave of joy swept over everyone like a tsunami.
"He succeeded!"
The swordsmen also began to shout, laughing and crying at the same time.
Himejima Gyomei, who was reciting sutras nearby, was filled with surprise upon hearing the success, but his eyes were immediately covered by a thick layer of sorrow.
Shedding clear tears, he walked to Ryuji's side, leaned down, and spoke with a voice full of regret and sadness:
"Ryuji, do you... have anything else you want to say?"
Even if he didn't become a demon, Ryuji, with such severe injuries, would not survive... Ryuji's vision had already begun to blur.
With his last shred of consciousness, he focused his blurred vision toward the direction of the Stone Hashira's voice. His lips twitched with extreme effort, squeezing out a smile that looked worse than crying:
"I think... I can still be saved... Go find Kocho Jiro..."
After saying that, his head tilted to the side, and he completely lost consciousness.
"The problem is, where is the way..."
Himejima Gyomei said helplessly. He didn't know where Kocho Jiro lived, so how was he to find him?
"Follow this King!"
Little Red descended from the sky, landing on Ryuji's body and saying to Himejima Gyomei, "This King knows, it's this way!"
Himejima Gyomei recognized this as Ryuji's crows. Without a word, he scooped up Ryuji and slung him over his shoulder.
"Stone Breathing, Total Concentration!"
Boom!
He left only a group of dumbfounded swordsmen standing bewildered in the dust and sand.
Soon, under Little Red's guidance, Himejima Gyomei arrived at the Kochou residence. Just as he stepped into the small courtyard, he saw Kocho Jiro about to head out.
"And you are?"
Kocho Jiro looked at the tall Himejima Gyomei, but before he could speak further, he noticed Ryuji slung over the man's shoulder like a piece of cured meat.
His pupils shrank, and he immediately turned back and shouted, "Wawakoko, prepare the medical kit! And the Chinese Red Ginseng we keep for emergencies!"
Then, he had Himejima Gyomei bring Ryuji into the house. Kocho Kanae turned pale with shock upon seeing the severely poisoned Ryuji.
But it was only for an instant, then she rushed into the washroom to start cleaning her hands.
Shinobu Kocho, meanwhile, stopped Himejima Gyomei outside the study that was serving as a temporary emergency room: "Would you like some tea?"
"Amida Butsu, thank you."
Himejima Gyomei waited calmly outside. Shinobu Kocho tilted her head curiously:
"Aren't you worried?"
She had seen many family members of patients who were extremely anxious, yet this sturdy giant didn't seem anxious, though tears kept flowing from his eyes. It was truly strange... "Well, one becomes numb after seeing it so much. It is truly tragic."
More tears fell.
Shinobu Kocho rolled her eyes. So he was just a weeping rock. Forget it, she didn't want to talk anymore.
The two waited quietly outside. After an unknown amount of time, Kocho Jiro walked out of the study with an exhausted face, letting out a sigh of relief: "Fortunately he arrived in time, the poisoning wasn't too deep..."
He raised a hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead:
"If he had come any later, we'd have just had to find a nice place to bury him."
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