Are You Messing with Me?

She only wanted to ask one question: Were you messing with me?!

But how could she possibly dare?

Kneeling on the ground, terrified that this evil demon would eat her, she trembled and said, "Th-then, I'll help you lure other people over."

"I see," Muzan said with a meaningful look. "That was a lie. I'm with the Demon Slayer Corps."

You really are messing with me, aren't you?!

The little girl was about to break down!

Muzan looked at her expression. Though he really wanted to laugh, he kept a stern face. "I originally wanted to give you a chance, but you're so indecisive..."

"My lord! My lord! Give me another chance! Please!" Frightened by his words, the little girl scrambled over and hugged Muzan's leg. Tears streamed down her face, and she looked so pitiful that anyone would feel sorry for her.

Muzan sighed, wearing an expression of boundless compassion. "Sigh... Fine. Actually, I'm a demon."

The little girl choked back a sob. "I-I won't cooperate with demons!"

"Heh." Muzan smiled and patted her head in satisfaction, then looked at Jikou, who was stifling laughter in the corner. "You don't like eating women, right?"

Jikou figured that if Muzan said he did not like them, then he did not like them.

"Mm."

Upon hearing that, the little girl raised her head to look at Muzan in disbelief. This time, she truly cried from the bottom of her heart. "M-My lord, are you human or a demon?"

〒▽〒

Muzan stroked her fluffy, soft head and smiled. "A demon."

Little girl: Just let me die, thanks.

"Enough," Muzan said, lifting her up. "I'm done teasing you."

The little girl's eyes lit up. "My lord, you're not a demon?!"

"No, I'm a demon."

Just let me die already.

Her face was ashen. Is it really okay to toy with me like this before I die?

"Alright, I won't eat you. Help me with something."

The little girl instinctively looked up, and a hint of a smile appeared on her face again. "My lord, what do you need!"

"Get at least two people from this town to come here every day."

The little girl's expression froze again. "M-My lord, isn't that a bit..."

Luring outsiders was one thing, but everyone in town knew that the "Lord Deity" lived here. She might be able to fool them once or twice, but if she did it too often, they would definitely catch on!

"This is going to be difficult..."

"I don't care. If you can't bring anyone here, I'll have no choice but to eat you to fill my stomach. Eat you or eat someone else—you choose."

In the end, the little girl left in tears.

As long as she stayed alive, there was no shame in it!

After working for half the day, Jikou finally cleaned up two rooms and cleared out a clean space. He spread Muzan's books open one by one in the courtyard and weighed them down with stones.

Seeing that dawn was approaching, Jikou was about to return to his room when Muzan called him over.

Muzan sat on the tatami, idly playing with a Nichirin Blade that had come from who knew where. "Jikou, let's go take the Demon Slayer Corps exam!"

Yanagisawa Noriyuki: "???"

Demon King, what did you just say?

Why has the Demon King been getting more and more strange lately?

He was no longer like before, wearing a gloomy face all day as if everyone else was worthless trash and he would eventually become the ultimate life-form and kill them all. He had more expressions now, but... you were the Demon King!

Making him tend to the Demon Slayer Corps' wounds was one thing, but what the hell was the point of joining the Demon Slayer Corps himself?

And Mount Fujikasane was covered in Wisteria Flowers! He would not even be able to get in!

Muzan threw the Nichirin Blade aside in disappointment. "Right. Wisteria Flowers are practically a bug. Fine, just bring the books in once they're dry."

With that, Muzan lay down and went to sleep.

Jikou's expression turned a little awkward. Muzan had heard his inner complaints...

The next night, Muzan saw two young men sneaking in, seemingly searching for something.

But after taking only a few steps, they ran into Jikou. Startled, they turned to flee, only to be lifted up, one in each hand.

The two screamed in terror. When they saw by the moonlight that the one holding them was a person, they immediately regained some confidence. "Put me down! Are you trying to steal the Lord Deity's treasure too?!"

Seeing that he did not react, one of them changed tactics.

"Brother, don't be too greedy. How about we split it fifty-fifty?"

But Jikou did not care about their words at all. Carrying them along, he entered Muzan's room, leaving the two men uncertain and uneasy.

Jikou threw them both to the floor. "My lord, it seems that girl kept her word."

Muzan set down the book in his hand. "She wouldn't dare not to."

As the two men were still confused, Muzan's fingernails suddenly lengthened. Before their horrified eyes, he slashed off their heads in one swift motion.

"They're all mine. If you want to eat, go catch someone outside."

Jikou: "..."

Under the moonlight, on the pale streets, the little girl busily spread rumors:

Want the Lord Deity's treasure?

Then go look for it!

He hid it all there!

She had even spent money to hire people to stir things up.

She really was quite talented.

At last, after finishing her work and preparing to rest, she turned into an alley and saw one of the two demons stuffing a person into his mouth.

The scene was horrifyingly bloody. The man who had looked no different from an ordinary person that day now had scarlet pupils, two sharp fangs bared, and flesh stuffed in his mouth. The corpse remaining on the ground had been mangled beyond recognition.

"Bleurgh—"

Unable to hold it in, the girl braced herself against the wall and dry-heaved. Luckily, she had not eaten dinner!

Jikou glanced over expressionlessly. Under the little girl's gaze, the corners of his mouth lifted, his smile slowly widening as blood clung to his sharp teeth.

At the sight, the little girl staggered back a step.

"AAAAAAAHHHH!!!!"

A scream piercing the night sky rang out as she shrieked in terror and fled madly.

Jikou chuckled twice.

The next day, the little girl successfully lured in two more people. That night, she once again saw that terrifying demon feeding on humans.

But she also realized that because she was now "working" for them, that man would not lay a hand on her. That put her slightly at ease.

A week later, the people of Shigeru finally realized that a new evil demon had appeared in town.

Fewer and fewer people came out at night, and the little girl took advantage of the situation:

Only by going to the Lord Deity's residence could one possibly avoid being preyed upon by the evil demon.

With her and Jikou's efforts, over the next dozen or so days, the town's population dwindled while panic grew more and more severe.

As a result, more and more people walked willingly into the tiger's maw every day.

An old tree in the courtyard grew increasingly lush, with "fertilizer" all beneath the ground.

One day, a father carrying his young daughter fled into the house at the center of town. Though he knew perfectly well that the Lord Deity ate people, he had at least made offerings to the Lord Deity.

Surely he would not be killed, right?

If they stayed outside, they would sooner or later be eaten by the evil demon!

Hearing movement outside, Muzan put down his book and opened the door. Seeing the confused father and daughter at the gate, the young child made it difficult for him to act for a moment.

"You came here to take refuge, didn't you?"

The man found Muzan somewhat unfamiliar, but assumed he had also come seeking refuge. Just as he was about to speak, he heard Muzan ask:

"Have you ever made offerings to the deity here?"

The man hurriedly nodded. "I have! And I've sacrificed eighteen people!"

"What about this child?" Muzan looked at the little girl in his arms. She appeared to be only five or six years old.

The man looked confident. "This child has helped out quite a lot whenever we made offerings to the deity!"

"Come in."