A hoarse crow echoed through the silent, pitch-black forest. Several birds fluttered their wings and flew out from the woods, their shadows flashing across the full moon as the leaves rustled.
Taking advantage of the darkness, Muzan returned to his residence. The moment he entered, he caught sight of the still-wet bloodstains at the corner of his mouth in a mirror to one side, then took out a handkerchief and wiped them clean.
Five days ago, he had accidentally died suddenly from overwork and transmigrated here. Because the "kinetic energy" of his soul had been too great when it arrived in this world, it had scattered Muzan's soul, causing Muzan to faint...
He had successfully taken over the body, and along the way absorbed Scum Boss's soul as well, gaining his memories.
The process had been bizarre, but that was not important. What mattered was that staying up late really could kill you.
Before he transmigrated here, Scum Boss had turned a doctor unwilling to die into a demon, then temporarily stayed in his home.
Noticing Muzan's return, the doctor—Yanagisawa Noriyuki—quickly bowed and respectfully addressed him as my lord. Only after Muzan returned to his room did he continue what he had been doing.
The reason Yanagisawa Noriyuki had been chosen by the original Muzan to become a demon was also because of his medical skill.
But his character was clearly countless times better than the original Scum Boss's. Though he had become a demon, he did not eat people often. He only targeted those guilty of heinous crimes, and he even continued saving people as he had when he was human.
This had made the original Scum Boss very displeased. If not for his medical skill, he would have killed him long ago. But the current Muzan found him far more agreeable.
Back in his room, Muzan pulled another book from the shelf and sat cross-legged on the floor to read.
Even he had not expected that after transmigrating, he could sit down and calmly read books—medical theory books, no less, which he had once found incredibly boring.
Perhaps it was the influence of the original Muzan's memories. Or perhaps this era was simply too boring.
It was still the year 1467, during the Warring States period of the island nation. There was nothing fun to do. If he wanted to slowly endure until cell phones appeared, he would die of boredom without something to read.
The sky gradually brightened. Morning sunlight streamed through the paper windows and spilled across the floor, making Muzan feel a burning sensation. He found a piece of black cloth to block the sunlight and continued reading.
Fortunately, he was a demon, so he could see the words clearly in the dark.
As for Yanagisawa Noriyuki, he still waited for patients to come to him as he had when he was human, treating them while studying Muzan's blood in hopes of finding a way to overcome sunlight.
But the current Muzan could already "see" his thoughts: I can't do it. I really can't!
He was just an ordinary doctor, at most one with somewhat exceptional medical skills. Helping demons overcome sunlight was something he truly could not accomplish!
When Muzan reached the final page of the book in his hands, which was over five centimeters thick, the white paper beside him had also been filled with dense, tiny writing. He closed the book, returned it to the shelf, put away his notes, and stood up.
The door to the outer room was half-open. When Muzan pushed it open, he saw Yanagisawa Noriyuki flipping through a thick tome, with the white paper beside him equally covered in dense notes. Yet his face was full of agony, nearly identical to Xu Ming's expression when he had desperately wrestled with the final math problem during the college entrance exams.
He was still racking his brains to fulfill Scum Boss's demand, even though it had already exceeded the limits of his ability.
But to avoid being killed for having no value, he could only force himself to continue.
Noticing his cruel and merciless boss approaching, his body stiffened involuntarily. He swallowed, hurriedly stood up, and lowered his head without daring to speak.
Muzan had long grown used to his subordinate demons acting like this. Picking up the thick book on the table, he said, "If you can't do it, don't waste your effort."
Yanagisawa Noriyuki's already pale face turned even whiter at those words. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he trembled, "M-My lord! I can do it!"
Muzan closed the book and looked at him speechlessly. He was afraid Muzan would kill him once he had outlived his usefulness. "I won't kill you. Just improve your medical skills slowly."
With that, he turned and left with the thick tome.
His main goal had been the book. Telling Yanagisawa Noriyuki not to waste his effort had merely been incidental.
If you can't find it by searching the book title, try searching the author instead. It may have simply been renamed!
Knock, knock...
A soft sound came from the wooden door outside. Muzan turned around, dragged over a small stool with interest, and sat to one side.
Yanagisawa Noriyuki checked his boss's expression before calling toward the door, "Come in."
Three people wearing Demon Slayer Corps uniforms hurried in, swords hanging at their waists. Two of them supported the person in the middle from either side.
Seeing what they were wearing, Yanagisawa Noriyuki's face stiffened, and he instinctively wanted to run.
But Muzan's voice sounded in his mind. "Steady yourself. They came to ask you to save someone."
To be honest, Muzan had been startled as well when he first saw them. But they had knocked and only entered after receiving permission, and they did not seem particularly strong, so they probably could not tell that they were demons. He relaxed.
Moreover, blood from the waist of the person being supported had soaked through his clothes. The other two also had many tears in their clothing, with injuries hanging from their arms.
Interesting. Demon Slayer Corps members had actually come to a demon for treatment.
Muzan Kibutsuji possessed five brains and seven hearts. The five brains granted not only powerful memory and intelligence, but also the ability to monitor his subordinate demons at any time.
But after transmigrating here, he had become too lazy to monitor them.
Seeing their condition, he checked on the demons under his command.
The nearby demons had not encountered the Demon Slayer Corps, though?
Only after receiving Muzan's prompt did Yanagisawa Noriyuki feel at ease enough to let them place the patient on a bed to one side and examine his injuries.
At the same time, his expression grew troubled.
He did not dare save him!
Though a healer should have a compassionate heart, it was better to live badly than die well.
How could he dare treat a Demon Slayer Corps member in front of the Demon King?
"Treat him."
Just as he hesitated, his boss's voice appeared in his mind again. Yanagisawa Noriyuki immediately relaxed. Following Muzan's wishes, he casually asked as he treated the wound, "How did you get so badly injured?"
During the Warring States era, Maneating Demons were essentially like gods and ghosts. It could be said that everyone knew of them.
The youngest-looking Demon Slayer Corps member leaned his Nichirin Blade against the bedside, sat to one side, and said angrily, "We ran into bandits! Damn it! What a bunch of trash!"
The other person was also resentful. "And we let them get away! Tch!"
As Yanagisawa Noriyuki treated the wound, he agreed, "Ah, this chaotic world..."
"Oh, right. Try not to go out at night. Someone nearby was taken by a demon again."
Yanagisawa Noriyuki agreed while considering whether he should move elsewhere. Even though things were chaotic now, with bandits rampant and war breaking out everywhere, staying in one place for too long would eventually lead to discovery. It seemed he was about to be discovered as well.
After seeing the three of them off, Muzan looked at Yanagisawa Noriyuki. "Don't worry. They were talking about another demon."
Though Muzan had not created many demons, they were all within Edo's territory, so their density was not low.
There really were several other demons nearby.
"Also, go deal with those bandits tonight. Bring one back for me."
If you can't find it by searching the book title, try searching the author instead. It may have simply been renamed!
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