Tanjiro's First Battle X The Price of Arrogance

Father Tanjuro had always cherished a long-held wish to build a shrine for the Fire God.

However, due to a lack of funds and a large family to feed, he was never able to see it through.

He would often hold young Roy and Tanjiro, sighing that he was not a worthy believer, and place his hopes on the two brothers, urging them that if they ever had the means, they must find a place to shelter the Fire God from the wind and rain.

It didn't need to be grand or luxurious; as long as it wasn't dilapidated and didn't slight the Fire God, it would suffice.

Tanjiro stood before a shrine, looking up along the moss-covered stone steps, and felt that this place was just right.

It was neither luxurious nor too large, tucked away in a deep, quiet silence; he believed the Fire God would surely be pleased to see it.

The boy tightened the straps of the basket on his back, turned his head to look at Roy, and said, "Nii-san, let's go inside and pay our respects."

When encountering a shrine on the road, if one intends to stay the night, one must offer three sticks of incense and ask for permission... if there is no incense, one must kneel piously to thank the deity for the shelter.

Roy did not believe in gods, nor did he believe in ghosts, so he naturally had no intention of offering any worship.

He pointed to the stone steps beneath his feet and asked Tanjiro in return, "The snow is so heavy, why is there no snow on these steps?"

"This temple has an owner, so there must be a temple keeper," Tanjiro said happily. "The keeper is still clearing the snow this late at night, which shows they are a diligent person. Nii-san... perhaps we might even have a hot meal to eat tonight."

"We are the hot meal," Roy said, a mocking curve touching his lips.

"?"

Tanjiro's expression shifted, and before he could ask what Roy meant, he suddenly caught the scent of pungent blood.

Though the smell was faint, it was hauntingly familiar—the exact same scent he had caught the day he accompanied Roy into the mountains to dig for coal.

In other words...

A demon!

"There's a demon in this temple!"

The hair on Tanjiro's arms stood on end instantly.

Roy glanced at him; the child wasn't entirely foolish after all. He began to ascend the steps, saying calmly, "Let's go."

"If we go in too late, we won't catch the hot meal."

Tanjiro's face flushed red, and with a sharp shing, he pulled the axe from his waist and gripped it in his hand.

He was a hot-headed youth by nature; in the original story, even after smelling blood outside the temple, he still dared to charge in while carrying Nezuko, which showed just how bold he was.

"Don't worry, Nii-san, this time I'll be the one to protect you!"

The gleaming axe gave Tanjiro a sense of confidence. The foolish little brother swallowed hard, vowing that this time he would never hide behind a tree again!

"Alright then~" Roy stepped aside, simply clearing a path for him.

Tanjiro: "..."

He didn't know whether to cry or laugh.

Since he had been backed into a corner, he could only steel himself and charge in.

Human history is, in fact, a film about overcoming fear.

Roy followed behind him at a leisurely pace, his eyes coated with a thin layer of "Nen," having already seen the situation inside the temple and identified the demon's appearance before Tanjiro even reached the door.

It was the very same evil demon from the original story that used the shrine as a lure to hunt traveling merchants and overnight guests.

Many people had reportedly gone missing in the vicinity, and clearly, this evil demon was the culprit.

Its own strength was not particularly high—it hadn't awakened a Blood Demon Art like Sato Takeichiro—but relying on a demon's powerful regenerative abilities and superior physical constitution, it found it quite easy to wreak havoc and dominate the local area.

"Crunch... crunch..." The evil demon was currently enjoying its dinner.

The cold season was the peak time for hunting.

Having a shrine to block the wind and snow was clearly much better than sleeping out in the wilderness.

Fortunately, a passing merchant had "caught a hot meal"...

The merchant was drenched in blood, his head lolling to the side as he sat against a broken statue. His internal organs had been torn out, and bloody entrails hung near the demon's mouth as it chewed with relish.

"What do you want, my friends?"

"This is my dining hall. It's not very polite to interrupt my meal."

The evil demon whipped its head around, its bloodshot eyes staring straight at them.

Tanjiro froze at the entrance with his axe raised, watching with dull eyes as it ate its "meal" bite by bite. His stomach churned, and the rice ball he had eaten at noon nearly came back up!

"Swallow it down; don't waste Mother's hard work from this morning."

"Step... step..." Roy trod upon the mottled stone steps and came to a halt beside Tanjiro.

The evil demon stood up, wiped its bloody mouth, and was overjoyed. When it opened its maw, a set of jagged, uneven fangs were revealed!

"Two humans?"

"How wonderful... I love winter the most; there's an endless supply of food..."

"You seem to have a lot to say..." Roy reached out a hand with an expressionless face and gave Tanjiro a shove on the back: "Go."

Caught off guard, Tanjiro nearly stumbled, and with a cry of "Ah... ah...", he charged forward, and then—

With a loud "bang," he was sent flying by a knee strike!

Bolstered by demon blood, even the most ordinary demon possessed strength and speed that a normal person could hardly withstand.

Tanjiro had witnessed the battle between Roy and Sato Takeichiro, which had looked effortless at the time... but now, he realized he had severely misjudged the demon, and even more severely misjudged his older brother!

This is not a creature that a human can possibly fight!

Tanjiro felt as if he had been rammed by a charging bear; not only did he feel like his entire body was falling apart... but seeing the demon closing in on him again, he forced a breath in mid-air and swung his axe toward the creature's neck.

It had to be said that his intuition was remarkably sharp, which was exactly why Giyu Tomioka had recommended him to Urokodaki Sakonji.

"Sshhh..."

Fresh blood sprayed out!

The demon landed while clutching his wound, his neck nearly severed in two, and stared at Tanjiro in disbelief. "An axe? Not bad."

"But a minor wound like this will heal in an instant."

No sooner had he spoken than the bleeding visibly stopped, and the wound began to knit together as if someone had instantly stitched it shut with needle and thread.

The scene of Sato Takeichiro regrowing his severed arm flashed before his eyes.

Tanjiro understood that as long as the demon wasn't killed, no matter what injuries he sustained, he would recover in the blink of an eye.

He gritted his teeth against the throbbing pain in his head, scrambled up from the ground, gripped the axe handle tightly with both hands, and locked his gaze onto the demon, bracing for the next strike.

"Whoosh—"

The demon moved, vanishing from Tanjiro's field of vision in a blur.

Giving him no time to react, the demon lunged from his blind spot, grabbed him by the throat, and slammed him to the ground!

Too fast... he's too fast... I can't track his movements at all. Tanjiro barely managed to use the axe handle to block the demon's sharp claws, but the monstrous strength surging from the creature's arm made his eyes roll back in his head, leaving him completely powerless to resist.

"Heh heh heh... I won't let you cut me a second time!"

"Come on, let's see me snap your neck!"

The demon exerted force, and Tanjiro nearly lost consciousness on the spot...

In that instant, his mind felt like it had been electrocuted, with countless thoughts flashing through his head...

What do I do?

Should I call for my brother's help?

No... I promised to protect him... how can I go back on my word?

But I'm going to die... if I die, everything will be gone...

I don't want to die, I don't want to die, I don't want to die...

Brother! Save me!