In front stood Muzan, and behind me, a man with six eyes who looked exactly like me.
Based on his appearance, he was no human—he was closer to a demon.
Was this Muzan's doing?
Yet, looking at Muzan's face, he wore the expression of one staring at a complete stranger.
"And who might you be?"
I directed the question to the doppelganger.
"I wished to ask the questions first... but it seems now is not the time..."
The man glanced briefly between Muzan and me before opening his mouth and drawing the katana at his waist.
The blade, radiating a purple hue, was covered in vein-like patterns and embedded with eyeballs that shifted as if the weapon itself were alive.
Now that I look closely, the hilt is studded with eyes as well.
This is maddening.
Does this mean I must face Muzan and this doppelganger at the same time?
Is this some sort of trial of fighting myself?
However, contrary to my concerns, he moved to block Muzan and pointed his blade at her.
At that sight, Muzan's expression twisted in displeasure as he further increased the number of his tentacles.
"What kind of wretch are you?"
"There is something... I must ask this boy..."
Saying so, he stole a glance at me.
"Our conversation is not yet over, Michikatsu... Finish what you have started... My questions shall follow..."
"One after another, you insolent curs..."
Veins bulged on Muzan's forehead as he unleashed his tentacles.
**Moon Breathing**
**Sixth Form: Perpetual Night, Lonely Moon - Incessant**
The doppelganger parried the tentacles, shredding the surroundings with countless vertical crescent-shaped slashes.
What he used was undeniably that.
Moon Breathing.
Not only did he share my face, but he could use Moon Breathing as well?
More startling than that was the sword aura he generated.
With every swing, irregular, miniature blades followed the primary slash.
Substantial slashes that changed in length and size, lacking any fixed form.
Was that his Blood Demon Art?
"I... shall hold this place..."
Therefore, stand up.
And go to the side of the one who awaits you.
His eyes seemed to convey those words.
The moment I saw that, my consciousness began to drift upward.
A book detailing seventeen years of someone's life.
Beside it lay another book containing twenty years, but to know myself, these seventeen years would be more than enough.
I could afford to read slowly and savor it, for time here must flow differently from the world outside.
I turned the pages one by one.
The story written in this book was as follows:
Born as the eldest son of a prestigious samurai family, leaving the clan at age seven with a decoy, joining the Demon Slayer Corps at fourteen, becoming a Hashira within four months, and reaching the present age of seventeen—this was the tale of a single Demon Slayer.
The story of a Grandmaster who discovered Breathing Styles, the Slayer Mark, the Transparent World, and the Crimson Blade, bequeathing it all to the Corps.
Truly the tale of a remarkable individual, yet what drew my attention was not the protagonist of this life.
As I flipped the pages, my eyes kept returning to the existence of the twin who stood beside this life.
Born with ominous markings and plagued by rumors that twins bring calamity to a house, he suffered discrimination in stark contrast to the protagonist. He remained silent, showing no emotion, clinging only to his mother, and was disregarded even by servants despite being the son of the Clan Head.
The only ones who saw him as family were his mother, the story's protagonist, and the decoy who supported him.
However, from the age of seven, he could floor a seasoned samurai with four strikes and possessed the extraordinary ability to manifest a Crimson Blade merely by gripping a hilt.
A monster who possessed from birth the Breathing, the Mark, and the Transparent World that the protagonist had to 'discover.'
An enigma in human skin who displayed an absolute gap that the protagonist could never bridge, even after acquiring everything he had.
The one who seemed destined to be the lowliest was, in fact, the most superior of all.
A flaw in divine creation, a god descended into the mortal world, a monster that distorted the laws of nature.
No one could ever hope to reach him.
They could only dwell in the delusion that he was reachable, reaching upward from the depths below.
It should have been that way.
Yet, the protagonist of this story, while fearing him, saw him as a human. He saw him as a path to follow, but not as the final destination.
He simply acknowledged his existence without ever wanting to become him.
To be precise, he never harbored the desire to be him from the very beginning.
I
could not
understand it.
Why did he give up?
Why did he harbor no lingering regrets?
Why did he not reach out further, and why did he not hate him?
How could he look at him and not feel such things?
Such questions bloomed in my mind.
As a reader absorbing this life, I felt no anger, resentment, or frustration at the protagonist's actions.
It was mere, pure curiosity.
Because these were not emotions I truly held.
Nor were they the emotions of the one writing this story.
They likely weren't the emotions of the one who had woken me, either.
This was a sort of 'what if' scenario, a path unwritten because the author destined to write it had changed.
One of the cells that compose me, an emotion carved deep within that cell.
Another story that this cell was originally meant to harbor.
The name for this is inferiority—it could likely be expressed as such.
Why do you not feel inferior to him?
You possess talent surpassing any other human, yet you cannot surpass that single one.
You were running ahead of all other humans, yet you cannot reach that solitary star.
Why, having gazed upon that Sun, are you satisfied with having reached the Moon?
Why do you not despair at a distance that remains absolute despite being closer than anyone else?
Even after closing the book and pondering the tale repeatedly, that was all that remained.
What were you thinking when you wrote these lines, Tsugikuni Michikatsu?
Was it simply because you were a coward?
Or because you were devoid of desire?
If not that, then...
No matter how much I chewed on it here, no answer would come.
In that case, I should simply ask the man himself.
I slid the book back into the shelf, turned, and walked forward into the darkness.
With every step, color was painted into the black shadows.
My hair grew long, and a red flame-like mark was etched onto my brow.
Black clothing draped over my body once more, and a katana grew at my side, sheathed and ready.
And when my eyes opened for the sixth time, I found myself standing before a door.
Upon opening that door, two entities were locked in confrontation.
The one who appeared female must be Muzan, the one who woke me.
And the one standing before her was likely Tsugikuni Michikatsu.
I should have questioned Michikatsu, but there was no time.
Outside was pandemonium.
The Hashira were buying time, but they would soon be annihilated.
First, I would send this boy outside.
The answers could come later.
**Moon Breathing**
**Sixth Form: Perpetual Night, Lonely Moon - Incessant**
Blocking Muzan's attack, I threw him out to the surface.
Watching him ascend, I turned to face Muzan once more.
Well, if he dies out there, I won't get my answer, but if time drags on, we all die anyway, so the result is the same.
And I judged that he would be capable.
Therefore, I shall hold this monster back until that boy completes his duty.
"Tearing a kimono... wouldn't even kill an infant... you wraith."
Suddenly, the cry of a Kasugai Crow rang out.
"Emergency news—!! Emergency news—!! The Demon King, Kibutsuji Muzan, has appeared—!!"
The news that their arch-nemesis, Kibutsuji Muzan, had shown himself.
Followed immediately by a piece of devastating information.
"The only one engaged is—!! The Moon Hashira, Tsugikuni Michikatsu, alone—!!"
After hearing those words, no other thoughts could form.
I simply gripped my Nichirin Blade and ran with all my might toward the location indicated by the crow.
Lord Tsugikuni is strong. If it is him, who even defeated Upper Rank Zero... Lord Tsugikuni has always overcome every brush with death as if it were nothing...
Soothing my pounding heart, I continued to sprint through the forest.
Please...! Please...!
Gradually joining the other Hashira, at the end of the dash...
Ah.
Lord Tsugikuni was standing there.
Drenched in blood, with gore spurting from every wound imaginable.
Though his Crimson Blade was still active, his condition was so grave he could have been mistaken for a corpse.
The man unleashing tentacles before him must be Kibutsuji Muzan.
Was I too late...?
It's not true, right...? Please tell me it's not true.
Gritting my teeth, I synchronized my Breathing and manifested the Mark.
Together with the other Hashira, we blocked the tentacles pouring toward Lord Tsugikuni and faced Muzan.
The result was disastrous.
We dealt damage, but this man regenerated the wounds from our Crimson Blades as if they were nothing.
The shockwaves he emitted and his intake of breath made approaching him impossible.
The speed at which his tentacles extended and contracted was difficult to parry even with the Transparent World fully active.
A single hit meant lethal poison spreading through the body, so every single attack required absolute focus.
I had heard the strategy from Mikazuki, who was hovering nearby, but even with the Transparent World, merely blocking his attacks was the limit.
I couldn't get close.
How had Lord Tsugikuni endured against this monster?
Get a grip, Amano Ruka. Do not let his sacrifice be in vain.
Steadying my breath, I applied grip strength to reignite the fading Crimson Blade.
Flame Breathing
Wind Breathing
Thunder Breathing
Mist Breathing
Water Breathing
Stone Breathing
The other Hashira and I decided to unleash the strongest techniques we could muster.
We held the advantage in numbers.
We judged that an opening would appear if we pushed back with a relentless offensive.
Esoteric Art, Ninth Form: Purgatory—!!!
Ninth Form: Idaten Typhoon!
First Form: Thunderclap and Flash—Godspeed!
Second Form: Eight-Layered Mist!
Tenth Form: Constant Flux!
Second Form: Heaven-Shattering Strike!
Attacks that could be called the ultimate arts of the Hashira shredded Muzan's body.
Lord Rengoku's flame dragon gouged out Muzan's flesh, destroying two brains and one heart. Lord Shimotsuki leaped high, grinding through tentacles and destroying two hearts with a massive typhoon.
A single bolt of lightning from Lord Minase severed Muzan's neck, while layers of mist shredded his tentacles to assist her attack, simultaneously destroying two more hearts.
As Lord Sakata swung his blade, a water dragon manifested to bite into Muzan, destroying one heart and one brain. Anji brought his naginata down in a single blow, splitting Muzan's body and destroying one brain in the severed head and another within the torso.
Through the Transparent World, we had glimpsed and destroyed every single one of Muzan's brains and hearts, even severing his head.
However.
"Insignificant."
Mouths manifested across Muzan's body, and a shockwave hit us.
■■■■■■—!!!!
Everything was swept away from the center where Muzan stood. Exposed to the shockwave, my brain rattled, and I vomited blood.
I can't move...!
Brains, hearts... even the head was taken. How is he still standing?
"Truly weak compared to that man's Crimson Blade. This is lukewarm at best."
Muzan transformed his arm into a dark-red monstrous limb.
Ah, so this is the end.
....
I'm sorry, Lord Tsugikuni. I couldn't properly avenge you.
So, next time...
It was then.
Squelch—!!!
Muzan's arm, which had been closing in on me, was shredded into lumps of meat. Someone now stood before me.
The near-dead state from moments ago was nowhere to be seen. The aura felt different, but...
"Lord... Tsugikuni?"
It was Lord Tsugikuni.
"I apologize. I overslept a bit.".
The manner of speech, the face—it was indeed Lord Tsugikuni.
"Please... don't scare me like that..."
Seeing his face brought such relief that I complained without realizing it.
He looked at me and chuckled before turning back to face Muzan.
The other Hashira were either unconscious from the shockwave or unable to move.
Only Lord Tsugikuni was left to fight...
Can he win? Against that monster...
"Just what are you? How could you escape my control?"
"Enough, Muzan... I've grown weary of your tentacles..."
Lord Tsugikuni?
His atmosphere began to shift drastically.
"I shall show you. This is the final... Moon Breathing."
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