Muzan: I'm a Doctor

Muzan smiled politely. "I'm a doctor. I heard your wife was ill?"

At that, the man scrutinized Muzan suspiciously. He was simply too suspicious. Not only had the man never seen him before, but coming over in the middle of the night was strange in itself.

But watching his wife's condition grow worse and her body become frighteningly weak, he refused to give up even a seemingly impossible hope.

He hurriedly ushered Muzan inside with all due courtesy. "Please, come in."

Muzan was led to Tamayo's bedside. She lay there with a pained expression, her face pale and sweat trickling down her forehead. Her eyes moved weakly toward the two men, filled with reluctance and regret as she struggled to open her mouth to say something.

Her husband hurried over and took her hand, then looked toward Muzan, who had followed him in.

"Doctor, my wife..."

Muzan made a show of approaching Tamayo's bedside with a grave expression. After a moment, he turned to her husband, looking solemn and somber.

Tamayo's husband's heart sank, and he hurriedly asked:

"Doctor, can my wife still be saved?"

Muzan sighed. "She can, but it will be difficult. I'll need to use my own secret remedy, and that must remain confidential."

"Confidential?" he repeated instinctively. After a moment's hesitation, he nodded hurriedly. "I'll leave right away!"

He hastily stepped outside and shut the door, afraid of delaying the treatment.

Once he confirmed the man had left, Muzan looked back at Tamayo, who lay in bed too weak to speak. Her haggard condition had robbed her of her beauty and even seemed to have aged her considerably.

She looked at Muzan with hope in her eyes.

Muzan gazed down at the woman on the bed. "I can keep you alive, but it comes at a great cost."

Tamayo struggled to open her mouth, letting out a faint sound from her throat, as though telling him she was willing to pay any price.

"Don't rush. The way to stay alive is to become a demon. Are you sure?"

Muzan knew Tamayo would agree, just as she had in the original story. To watch her children grow up, she would willingly sacrifice anything.

Sure enough, Tamayo showed not a trace of hesitation at his words and looked at him eagerly.

"If you agree, close your eyes."

Tamayo slowly closed her eyes. Her weak, pale face held a hint of both worry and hope.

Muzan extended a long fingernail and plunged it into Tamayo's head.

"Urgh-" The sudden pain made Tamayo open her mouth wide in a hoarse cry, but she was so weak that her voice was barely audible.

Muzan withdrew his finger and watched Tamayo clutch her head and writhe violently, curling up on the bed like a mantis shrimp.

Muzan didn't know why, either, but whenever he gave someone his blood, he liked to stab a fingernail into their head. Either that, or he turned the tip of one of his whips into a blade and drove it into their head.

It must be the scumbag boss's habit!

Nothing to do with me!

At last, the pain caused by Muzan's blood slowly subsided. Tamayo lay on the bed drenched in sweat, her eyes turning toward him.

The moment she became a demon, she understood many things.

For instance, the man before her was the legendary Demon King, Muzan Kibutsuji, cruel and merciless, who had devoured countless people. Her life, her thoughts, and even her body were now under his control.

She was now one of the Demon King's minions...

Whether out of fear, reluctance, or relief at having survived, Tamayo slowly sat up in bed, as though she had already accepted the painful future awaiting her.

To watch her children and stay with her husband, she would become a rat in the gutter who survived by eating people, slaughtering innocents for the vile, cruel Demon King...

She didn't know whether her husband and children would despise her if they learned she was a man-eating demon. But at the thought of spending more time with her children, Tamayo accepted reality.

This was merely my choice. I had simply fallen from grace.

There was nothing to lament. No need to be so melodramatic.

Watching Tamayo's expression alternate between sorrow and resolve, Muzan was speechless.

I haven't even told you to do anything yet!

As someone from Japan's Sengoku period, where hierarchy was taken seriously, Tamayo climbed out of bed after accepting her new identity. She knelt before Muzan and bowed her head respectfully.

"My lord."

Muzan had noticed something: the people he turned into demons settled into their new roles ridiculously fast.

"All right, get up."

But Tamayo remained kneeling. She had just gathered the courage to speak when she heard the Demon King Muzan say impatiently:

"If you want to spend time with your children, go ahead. Do whatever you like. I'm not planning to force you to do anything."

What kind of person did they take me for?

I'm not that scumbag boss. On the contrary, I'm a boss who cares about his employees and treats people kindly.

"All right, hurry up and get on your feet. There's no need to kneel at every little thing. Also, don't go around eating random people. The bandits around here and the like are fair game."

Muzan's words delighted Tamayo. Although she was willing to throw away her conscience to survive, not being forced to commit evil was naturally preferable. And from the sound of it, the Demon King actually had some kindness in him?

He had specifically told me not to eat people indiscriminately?

Muzan glanced at her, and Tamayo hurriedly lay back down on the bed, pretending to look ill.

It would be best to hide her transformation into a demon from her children and husband.

Muzan walked over and opened the door. Outside, Tamayo's husband was pacing anxiously. The moment he saw Muzan open the door, he rushed over. "Doctor, how is my wife?"

"The root of her illness has been eliminated, but she's still very weak. Some rest and care will set her right."

Muzan adjusted his cuffs and walked past him to leave, but Tamayo's husband hurriedly called him back. "Your payment!"

"There's no need."

Muzan didn't even look back. He carried himself like a true master, looking every bit the highly skilled physician who cared nothing for fame or wealth and possessed a healer's compassionate heart.

Tamayo's husband watched Muzan's retreating figure, his eyes filled with admiration.

Once Muzan disappeared from sight, he hurried into the room, his face full of concern. "Tamayo, how are you feeling?"

After summoning his personal assistant, Jiyuki, Muzan once again set off in search of entertainment.

He wandered around at night. During the day, he stayed tucked away in inns or other people's homes, copying his subordinates' Blood Demon Arts one by one or quietly reading books.

Medical texts, novels, literature, books about gods and Buddhas, even arithmetic books-whatever the genre, anything that reached his hands would be read carefully several times.

There really wasn't anything fun to do. He was so bored that he could even stomach math books.

After all, books were precious in this era. Having anything to read was good enough. How could he afford to be picky?

As for finding the Blue Spider Lily, he wanted it badly, but there was no rushing it.

With the Transparent World, though, Muzan felt as if he had touched on something, yet it also seemed that he still couldn't do anything at all.

As time passed, this era grew increasingly chaotic, and wars became more frequent. His demon subordinates could be said to have lived up to his guidance-or rather, his smooth talk. Relying on their Blood Demon Arts and immense strength, they led their own followers into the turmoil.