A full moon hung high overhead as Su Mu walked through the pitch-black night. Before long, he reached a small town near Mount Sagiri.
Few people were out at night, and every household had its doors firmly shut. Finding someone to ask for information was far too difficult.
As a demon who moved through the darkness, he could only knock on doors late at night, which was undoubtedly frightening for the households he visited.
The man of the house shielded his wife and children behind him, gripping a hoe with both hands as he warily watched Su Mu, who had broken into their home.
"What exactly do you want?"
"Some information. Tell me what I need to know, and I'll leave."
"You broke into our home in the middle of the night just to ask questions? Who do you think you're fooling? Get out now, or else..."
The man holding the hoe stared fixedly at Su Mu.
"I just want some information. Answer my questions, and I'll leave."
Seeing the man's wariness and the terror on his wife and children's faces behind him, Su Mu sighed softly, though he understood. Anyone would be on guard if a stranger slipped into their home in the middle of the night. They might even attack outright.
The man had attacked the instant he noticed Su Mu. Unfortunately for him, Su Mu had knocked him down with a single punch. Only then had he recognized the gap in their strength and stopped daring to attack.
Su Mu paid no attention to whether the man believed him and simply asked, "Are there any families around here who sell charcoal?"
The man gripped his hoe tightly and stared at Su Mu without a word. Clearly, he did not believe someone would break into his home in the middle of the night just to ask about charcoal sellers. He suspected Su Mu wanted him to lower his guard, and then...
His younger daughter, however, was still little and naively believed that the stranger really only wanted some information. She answered quietly, "The Machida family at the eastern end of town sells charcoal, and Uncle Kimura's family sells it too..."
"Oh, think about the charcoal sellers around here. Are any of them named Kamado?"
Su Mu's voice softened.
The man still held his hoe tightly, but he did not stop his younger daughter from answering. Though he did not believe this violent intruder had come merely to ask questions... what if he had?
"No."
The little girl thought for a moment, then shook her head.
"Think again..."
Su Mu frowned slightly, tapping his fingers lightly against the table.
"N-no."
The little girl shook her head, then looked at her father. Perhaps he knew.
The man clearly did not trust Su Mu. He did not believe the stranger had broken into his home late at night just to ask such simple questions. If he really wanted that information, couldn't he ask during the day? Breaking in at night could only mean he was up to no good.
"None of the charcoal sellers around here are named Kamado." The man tightened his grip on the hoe. "If you try to hurt my family, I'll fight you with everything I've got. Even if I die, I... I'll..."
"None?"
Su Mu sighed softly. Looking at the man, who was clearly terrified but had summoned his courage for the wife and children behind him, he gave an apologetic look. "I'm sorry for disturbing you so late at night."
With that, Su Mu turned and left.
"He... he left?"
Even after Su Mu had vanished completely from sight, the man still found it hard to believe. Had that violent intruder really broken into his home in the middle of the night just to ask a few questions?
Similar incidents began occurring throughout the surrounding area, with Mount Sagiri at their center.
Most of the towns had small populations, so these strange incidents soon became a subject of discussion. People wondered why this odd stranger insisted on breaking into homes late at night to ask about someone. He could easily have asked during the day, yet he chose to break in at night. What sort of bizarre habit was that?
After visiting five towns in succession, Su Mu stopped and looked up at the sky.
The full moon overhead was slowly sinking, and unease gradually rose within him.
"The sun will rise soon."
He murmured under his breath. His demonic instincts were clearly keenly sensitive to this.
By now, he was a long way from where he had been living. There was no time to return, so he needed to find somewhere nearby to hide from the coming sunlight.
For a demon, this was a matter of life and death.
After searching for a while, he found a basement in an abandoned courtyard in town. Without the slightest hesitation, he ducked inside.
Before he knew it, dawn spilled through the thin mist onto the earth. The darkness of night faded, and sunlight filled every corner.
Su Mu hid in the darkness deep within the basement, silently watching the world outside fill with light.
Outside a house marked with a wisteria emblem in town.
A man with a Nichirin Blade hanging at his waist appeared at the entrance.
His still-young face bore a forbidding chill. Deep within his sharp eyes lay not only exhaustion, but profound grief.
He wore a close-fitting black uniform with the character for "destroy" emblazoned on its back.
"Come inside and rest. Your companions are all here."
An elderly woman came out and welcomed the young man inside.
His name was Hiroshi Furukawa, a swordsman of the Demon Slayer Corps who practiced Flame Breathing. Not long ago, he had said goodbye to the Flame Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku, after accepting a mission to slay demons.
His demon-hunting squad had then begun searching the surrounding area, hoping to find signs of demons.
For the Demon Slayer Corps' hunters, daytime was undoubtedly the best time to kill demons. If they could expose a demon to sunlight, even a powerful member of the Twelve Kizuki would vanish into smoke beneath its rays.
But through centuries of struggle, demons had always hidden themselves thoroughly during the day. By now, finding a hidden demon in daylight was all but impossible. Even if one was found, its hiding place would be a mountain cavern or a sewer deep underground... somewhere sunlight could never reach.
As things stood, demons could generally only be slain at night.
Hiroshi Furukawa entered the room, and several men wearing the same close-fitting black uniforms stood up, traces of grief on their faces.
"Have you still not found Murayama?"
Hiroshi Furukawa looked at his companions with a hint of hope in his eyes.
Murayama belonged to their squad, but he had disappeared several days earlier while searching the area for signs of demons. There had been no word of him since.
His companions all shook their heads.
At the sight, Hiroshi Furukawa involuntarily clenched his fists. They all knew what it meant to disappear while searching for demons.
Although they had understood when they became demon hunters that they would sooner or later die on this path, when it actually happened, grief still welled up uncontrollably in their hearts.
"Where was Murayama last searching?"
Suppressing his grief, Hiroshi Furukawa questioned his companions. The possibility that his comrade had fallen did not break him. Instead, it strengthened his resolve to slay demons.
"Taro Town."
One of his companions gritted his teeth.
"We'll head to Taro Town and search immediately. The demon must be hiding somewhere nearby."
Hiroshi Furukawa rested his hand on his sword hilt, his gaze fierce. Boundless rage built within him, and the only way to quell it was to sever that demon's neck with his Nichirin Blade.