Sakumura's blade was no ordinary weapon. It was a blade that had reached the pinnacle of mortal craftsmanship—a Cloud-Pattern Blade forged from Ten-Thousand-Forged Jade Steel by the hand of Third-generation Suishinshi Masahide. Almost no other swordsmith could have achieved such a feat.
Moreover, this blade had tasted the blood of evil demons.
In the end, the Day-Hiding Demon had taken her own life, turning to a wisp of ash alongside the bear demon that had occupied Black River Mountain, dispersing beneath the clear moonlit sky—together with the suffering they had endured and the sins they had committed.
Even so, before she had faced her own sins, Sakumura had beheaded her twice.
Just as "heroes" like Sakumura, who had exterminated evil demons, were especially sensitive to them, evil demons also harbored hatred toward demon hunters who slaughtered their kind.
Much less Ibaraki Douji, an evil demon who had once governed Mount Ooe and served as one of its pillars in life.
"You can't."
Pheasant Feather returned to its sheath. Sakumura drew in a breath of scorching air, his voice still cold and clear.
"I don't know how you people lived during the Heian period. But this is no longer the Heian period."
"As long as you don't give up on yourself, as long as you don't become too depraved, you can live peacefully. In an era like this, there is no need for killers, much less evil demons."
He curled his left arm, clamped the spine of Crane Feather beneath it, and gave it a sharp pull. Ibaraki Douji's blood was wiped clean from the blade, its gleaming edge reflecting Sakumura's icy gaze.
"My reason for killing you isn't merely the Holy Grail War. You have damaged the very foundations of this era's world."
"I will cut off your head. Just