The crimson fire tornado slammed violently into the blood-colored spiderweb!
But this time, there was no repetitive clinking of metal striking the threads.
Only the furious crackling of flames and the sharp hiss of moisture evaporating instantly against the blood.
Wherever the sword's edge passed, the threads no longer got cut: they burned like dry grass, crumbling into ashes!
The tornado of flames tore the web apart from one side to the other and, without losing an ounce of momentum, hurled itself straight at Rui!
"WHAT?!"
His pupils contracted sharply.
Without thinking twice, he retreated at full speed, flailing his hands in desperation, and from every direction new threads sprouted and shot toward the figure wrapped in fire!
But against that blazing torrent they were nothing: at the first contact they unraveled, vanishing silently among the flames.
"...!"
Rui gritted his teeth. For the first time, a flicker of genuine surprise shone in his eyes.
Suddenly, he extended his fingers and pointed at the sky.
'A Thousand Killing Needles'
Countless red needles, sharp as pins, rained down from above, blanketing every inch around Tanjiro!
There were too many, and the area they covered was far too wide.
Amid the dancing flames, Tanjiro couldn't dodge them all, and blood began to spray into the air. Arms, cheeks, shoulders, back… In an instant, dozens of thin wounds opened across his whole body.
But he didn't slow his pace by a single step!
"AAAAAH!!"
With a deafening roar, he took the final step.
The flames concentrated, all his strength channeled into the edge of the blade, transforming into a single horizontal slash.
!
In Rui's eyes, the flaming tip of the sword was reflected, growing at tremendous speed, and behind the fire, the determined face of the young hunter.
Swish!
The sword passed through…
And Rui's head went flying through the air, a deep expression of astonishment frozen upon it.
Tanjiro barely spared him a glance. Without a trace of joy, without stopping for an instant, he immediately turned to look for Nezuko.
And when he saw her sitting obediently in the same spot, clutching her head, even shrunken down into her Small form, he finally let out a sigh of relief from the deepest part of his chest.
But then, in the most unexpected way, those pink eyes filled with reproach.
"Boooo!"
Grumbling with displeasure, little Nezuko pulled away the tiny hands that were covering her head, revealing underneath them a round lump.
She pointed with one hand at the lump and with the other at Tanjiro… the meaning was obvious.
You pushed me, look how hard I hit my head!
Tanjiro blushed instantly and pressed his palms together in a pleading gesture: "Sorry, okay?"
"Hmph!"
With a huff, Nezuko put her hands on her hips and turned her head away in a fit of anger. And just in case it wasn't clear enough how annoyed she was, she turned her whole body too, presenting her back to him completely.
It was obvious she had no intention of accepting such a halfhearted apology.
"…"
Tanjiro really didn't know what to do anymore. Of course he knew his sister wasn't angry about the lump.
She was angry about what he had done a moment earlier, about that irrational impulse.
After all, facing that attack, Nezuko wouldn't have died… but he would have.
That was why, when he threw himself between her and the danger, it made sense that, on top of being moved, she'd also be mad at him.
And just as he was wracking his brain trying to figure out how to make it up to Nezuko so she wouldn't go running to Marcus with the story…
The smell of blood hit him from behind!
The moment he caught that scent, a chill ran through his body from head to toe. He turned his head slowly, in disbelief.
Not far away, Rui's decapitated body… at some point… had gotten back on its feet.
And now it was walking toward him.
Tanjiro watched the scene completely stunned. "B-But… I cut your head off!"
He couldn't understand any of what was happening. Wasn't a demon supposed to die when beheaded by a Nichirin sword?
Master… did you lie to me…?
"You thought you'd killed me?"
Rui's voice emerged from within the forest, in a strangely ethereal tone.
"How pathetic. Comforting yourself, living in a pitiful fantasy."
Tanjiro's eyes went wide as saucers. "W-Why?"
"Why, you ask?"
Rui reached out his hand and pulled on something invisible. Several threads emerged from the air and slowly suspended his head, leaving it floating beside his body.
"Before you cut off my head… I cut it off myself first, with my own threads."
!!
Tanjiro's pupils trembled.
But however much he wanted to keep lamenting, clearly now wasn't the time. The battle wasn't over.
And just as he was gripping his sword again, bracing for the next clash…
His sharp gaze… began to color with confusion…
Until it bordered on comical.
Because, however much there was nothing to be done about it, the scene in front of him was simply too absurd.
The demon who had pushed him to the brink of death, the one who had made his whole life flash before his eyes… Rui…
Had started playing tag with his own head.
The head was clearly floating to the right of his body. He stretched out his right hand to grab it, but the head gave a little hop… and hid to his left.
?
A look of genuine bewilderment appeared on Rui's face. He even blushed a little.
After all, he was trying to look menacing… and his opponent was staring right at him!
He quickly reached out his left hand to grab it, but the head slipped away and escaped to the right again.
Rui's expression completely fell apart.
He no longer cared in the slightest about looking cool.
Refusing to accept such rotten luck, he turned his body to face the head head-on, extended both hands, one on each side, and lunged to grab it right in the middle.
This time you're not getting away!
But…
The head shot off… upward. Way, way up.
A vein throbbed on Rui's forehead.
At this point, however slow he might be, he'd already realized that something was off.
The head swaying from left to right could still be chalked up to coincidence, but… what the hell was this about it flying off into the sky?!
Enough.
He wasn't going to keep up with this clown show. With a sharp jerk of his five fingers, he instantly tightened the threads connected to his head, yanking it back toward his hand.
But that firm pull… barely managed to bring it down half a meter.
And after that, no matter how much he activated the rest of the threads, no matter how hard he pulled and strained with all his might…
His head remained there, suspended in the air, floating mysteriously, as if the sky itself refused to give it back.
Rui looked down, at his own headless body, with an expression of utter astonishment.
For a moment, the scene fell completely silent.
Tanjiro opened his mouth, but no words came out. After a long while, he lowered his sword and sighed.
Nezuko blinked a couple of times and relaxed without trying to hide it. She stuck her hand in her pocket, rummaged for a moment, and pulled out a cookie, a demon supplement that Tamayo had given her, and started nibbling on it calmly.
"…"
Rui, hanging up high, could see the two of them perfectly from above. The muscles in his face twitched.
Finally, he couldn't take it anymore.
"COME OUT ALREADY!!"
"Tch."
A clear click of the tongue came from the shadows, among the trees of the forest.
"You're so boring… Shouldn't kids your age be playing hide-and-seek? How can you be so impatient?"
From the thicket, a figure slowly emerged.
He wore a Demon Slayer uniform that hung a little loose on him. A pair of golden eyes, with arrows engraved in the pupils, stood out in the gloom.
"Y-You?!"
The rage and shock intensified in Rui's eyes. "You're the one who did all this?!"
He sensed it clearly: that man gave off the breath of a human being.
But… Rui inhaled deeply, and the doubt in his eyes grew deeper.
Mixed in with that human breath, he also caught something that shouldn't be there: the unmistakable scent of Blood Demon Art.
How is that possible?!
Stopping at the edge of the clearing, Marcus gave a slight smile and blinked.
In an instant, Rui's head shot toward him without any control, until it came to a stop suspended right in front of his face.
His body was pulling with all its strength, straining the threads, but it was completely useless.
He could only watch, helpless, as the distance closed inch by inch toward that being.
Rui, for the first time, felt genuine panic.
What the hell is this man?
Calm demeanor. Unknown power. A sword technique he'd never seen. And on top of that… he could use Blood Demon Art?!
Nothing made sense.
"W-What… what are you?"
Marcus arched an eyebrow.
"How rude. I am… Your mama's daddy!" He paused theatrically and added in an offended tone, "And calling me 'what'… didn't anyone teach you manners?"
"STOP LYING!!!" Rui's eyes flew wide open, erupting in violent fury.
"Mmm…"
Marcus contemplated the head in front of him. "That tone… reminds me a little of your sister's. Seems bad manners run in the family."
Rui was finally left dumbfounded. "What the hell are you talking about?! What does my family have to do with this?!"
Without answering, Marcus simply snapped his fingers.
From the darkness behind him, two figures emerged with timid, shuffling steps: one of mature charm, the other of delicate beauty.
Both wore Demon Slayer uniforms that they had clearly gotten from who knows where and which fit them a little big. Their faces were tinged with a blush and they kept their gazes lowered, submissive.
"Greet me," Marcus said, without even bothering to turn around.
EH?!
In front of… in front of Rui… we have to call him that?
Both their bodies shuddered.
Ivy was the first to timidly raise her head. She glanced at Marcus out of the corner of her eye, then shot a fleeting look at that head suspended in the air, which looked about to burst with rage, and swallowed hard.
"M…" Her voice came out as faint as the buzz of a mosquito. "…Master."
Daughter Spider bit her lower lip. Something inside her resisted, but a single sidelong glance from Marcus was enough to make her cave. "…Master."
Marcus nodded, satisfied, and turned back once again toward Rui's head, which floated in front of him completely paralyzed.
And he gave him the most radiant of his smiles.
"Now you get it, don't you?"
____
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