Kokushibo = A Good Brother

Muzan cut open a wound, letting his blood flow down his arm into the small bottle Tamayo had taken out.

Once it was full, Tamayo left contentedly with the bottle in hand.

Muzan ran toward the sun and into town to buy food.

He, Muzan, could stop eating people!

After taking the Blue Spider Lily, Muzan's "illness" had received a positive treatment. He no longer could only eat humans and could now digest other food.

But as a demon, the fact that eating humans increased his strength remained unchanged.

Whatever. Being able to eat ordinary food was enough!

The long-missed sunlight!

The small town where Muzan was staying was not particularly prosperous and did not have many residents, but plenty of little shops were open in the morning.

Under the rising sun, people began another busy day.

There were already quite a few people on the streets.

As Muzan smelled the scent of food wafting through the streets, that nauseated feeling was finally gone. He eagerly ran over to eat breakfast.

That day, Muzan tried sushi, sashimi, ramen, and more. Thanks to his powerful digestion, he ate all morning without feeling particularly full.

But his sense of satisfaction was completely maxed out.

After eating a pile of proper meals, Muzan began buying snacks.

To be honest, some desserts were quite delicious. Muzan ate as he bought.

It was not until late morning that Muzan returned fully laden. Thanks to the Blood Demon Art of Mirror Space, he tossed everything he bought into Mirror Space, where time did not pass. It was comparable to a refrigerator—absolutely useful!

Only upon returning to the courtyard did he notice Kokushibo waiting for him.

Seeing Kokushibo brought Muzan down from his excitement, and he remembered that Yoriichi's matter had yet to be resolved.

"How about I turn you into a demon? We can just outlive Yoriichi!"

Muzan leaned closer and said with a chuckle.

Kokushibo silently looked at him, seeming to say: Don't waste time.

Muzan immediately found it boring. "All right, all right, it was a joke. But are you really that eager to turn Yoriichi into a demon?"

Yoriichi had effectively become a chess piece in someone else's hand. How could a person live with false memories?

Besides, even if he became a demon now, he would not fear sunlight and would gain an unlimited lifespan. If not for worrying that he might have to rely on eating people in the future, even Kokushibo would have been tempted.

"You still need to eat people now?"

Muzan had no idea what Kokushibo was getting at with that out-of-the-blue question, but he answered anyway:

"Not really. I can eat ordinary food now. I can still eat people, but there's no need."

"Then hurry up and turn Yoriichi into a demon."

Kokushibo urged.

Muzan: "..."

You really were such a good brother!

Muzan grabbed Kokushibo and went straight to the vicinity of where Yoriichi lived. Yoriichi had already gone into the forest and was chopping wood with Tanki.

Yoriichi and Tanki were now just two good woodcutting brothers, chopping wood together, selling charcoal together, and dancing the Sun God dance together.

And now Uta was pregnant, so the two soon-to-be fathers happily talked about their wives and children.

But the two good brothers did not realize that two old schemers had already set their sights on Yoriichi from afar.

Muzan and Kokushibo hid in the forest. Through the gaps between the leaves, they could see Yoriichi chopping down a tree below. What a waste—was the mighty pinnacle really chopping trees?

Yoriichi vaguely sensed someone watching him and could not help looking around. Fortunately, Muzan was hidden far enough away and well enough that he was not discovered.

Muzan glanced at Kokushibo beside him. "Forget it. Go wait somewhere else first. Don't get accidentally killed by Yoriichi."

Kokushibo: "..."

The damage was low, but the insult was immense.

Even if I'm weak, you don't have to put it like that, do you?

But he also understood that there was truly no use in him staying here, so Nakime sent him away.

Muzan took a deep breath. Although he was already certain that Yoriichi could not cause him any substantial harm, he was still afraid!

Those previous battles were about to become the shadows of his entire life!

Suppressing the pounding of his nervous heart, Muzan's expression turned sharp. His fingernails silently lengthened, and several long whips lashed out from behind him.

He immediately entered his strongest form.

The next instant, Yoriichi suddenly felt a chill down his back. He violently swung the axe that had been halfway through the tree toward his back.

The whip-tubes behind Muzan snapped out and blocked Yoriichi's axe. At the same time, they did not slow down, and several whip-tubes stabbed toward Yoriichi together.

Yoriichi was not holding a sword at the moment. Though an axe was powerful, it still could not compare to a sword.

But honestly, Muzan still could not defeat Yoriichi.

Yoriichi simply swung his axe and, in an instant, chopped off several of Muzan's whip-tubes.

Muzan had come prepared to suffer a thousand points of damage in exchange for eight hundred inflicted on his enemy. Even though nearly all his whip-tubes were cut apart, he did not slow down in the slightest. He finally pounced. Yoriichi's expression darkened, but it was already too late to retreat.

Muzan jabbed a finger into Yoriichi's head. Pain struck in an instant, and Yoriichi violently smashed half of Muzan's head apart with his axe.

But Muzan had already succeeded and did not care about that. He pulled back his finger and retreated.

Muzan's blood had entered Yoriichi's body. That strike had been his final attack. He had now completely lost his ability to fight, his consciousness turning hazy and his entire body weak as unbearable pain spread throughout him.

"Urgh—"

A faintly familiar wave of dizziness washed over him. Yoriichi cried out in pain and finally could not hold on any longer. With a bang, the axe fell from his hand, followed by his entire body collapsing to the ground.

Muzan finally sighed in relief at the sight. With only half a head left, he looked particularly horrifying and miserable. His severed whip-tubes lay scattered across the ground, and he could only be described as utterly wretched.

Tiny flesh-and-blood tendrils extended from the edges of his head, rapidly spreading and weaving together to form flesh, blood vessels, bones, eyes...

In only a few seconds, his entire head had regenerated. Muzan went over and picked up the whip-tubes one by one. The moment he picked them up, they melted into his hand like ice.

"Ah, poor me..."

Muzan looked at the blood splattered on the ground. It was all his blood!

There was finally movement from Yoriichi's side. His body twitched slightly, and Muzan startled, first pulling back a little.

Only after sensing his control over Yoriichi did he relax. He had succeeded!

Yoriichi finally regained consciousness and struggled up from the ground. He looked at Muzan, then at the several slashes in Muzan's clothes, his expression somewhat complicated.

His memories had returned, but he also remembered the altered memories and the battle memories, leaving him with mixed feelings.

When he thought of bringing Uta back and how she had once mentioned Muzan, only for him to scold her, he felt even more at a loss.

Yoriichi looked at Muzan and finally said:

"I'm sorry."

Muzan relaxed. His demonized, sharp fingernails returned to normal. He walked over and raised a hand to pat Yoriichi's head, even though Yoriichi was taller than him.

"It's fine. It wasn't your fault either. Besides," Muzan said with an unserious smile, "I'm already your old man. It's perfectly normal for a father to forgive his son~"

Yoriichi: "..."

Although I should be moved, just how obsessed are you with this?