Hiroshi Furukawa picked up his teacup and took a sip. Watching the man lead the girl away, he found himself reflecting on how differently people's lives could turn out.
If a demon had not destroyed his happiness, he would probably have been surrounded by happiness just like that cherished little girl. His father would have worked in the fields every day, and his mother would have woven clothes. Perhaps life would have brought its share of hardships, but their family would have worked together for a better tomorrow, moving toward happiness together...
A breeze swept past, and Hiroshi Furukawa's eyes inexplicably grew damp.
Suddenly, he wanted a drink. He wanted to get utterly drunk so he would stop yearning for so much.
But he was on a demon-hunting mission now, and he could not drink. Alcohol dulled the will and clouded the mind. It would slow the movements of his blade... and when fighting demons, any of those things could spell his death.
A gentle breeze brushed his face. Hiroshi Furukawa watched the man walk away with the girl's hand in his, then raised his head toward the full moon in the dark night sky. His expression grew resolute.
Perhaps he could choose to leave the Demon Slayer Corps now and give up hunting demons. Then, with the money he had earned from his missions over the years, he could find somewhere no one knew him, marry a girl he might or might not love, and enjoy an ordinary person's happiness...
But such thoughts...
Had never crossed his mind.
Ever since a demon had brutally destroyed his happiness amid the stench of blood, he had never been able to forget that blood-soaked night. He could not forget the horrifying sight of the demon killing his father and devouring his mother...
For him, the moment his happiness had been destroyed that night, there had been no going back.
He would kill every demon in this world, one by one. He would never again let demons destroy people's happiness at will.
Silently tightening his grip on the hilt at his waist, Hiroshi Furukawa watched the figures walking hand in hand toward the city gates, watched their backs as they departed in such happiness.
Wasn't this the very reason he had joined the Demon Slayer Corps?
Wasn't it to protect happiness like the kind before him-simple and ordinary, yet precious?
Wasn't it to keep that happiness from being destroyed?
Wasn't this why not a single swordsman shrank back in fear, even knowing they might die on the path of hunting demons? Wasn't this the very reason the Demon Slayer Corps existed?
Su Mu held Kanao's hand as they walked toward the city gates. He could clearly feel the gaze fixed on him from behind, and it kept his nerves stretched taut. For a moment, he even thought the Demon Slayer Corps swordsman had discovered what he was. He nearly scooped Kanao into his arms and bolted.
But...
He forced himself to suppress that urge and kept walking like any ordinary passerby.
Until he passed through the city gates.
Only when he stood outside the gates and could no longer feel the swordsman's gaze did Su Mu let out a long sigh of relief.
Avoiding discovery-and a bloody battle that might threaten his life-was always a good thing.
"I have you to thank too, Kanao."
Su Mu looked down to find the girl gazing up at him, and he lightly brushed a finger over the tip of her nose. It was precisely because Kanao was with him that people instinctively overlooked him. After all, how could a human and a demon possibly walk together so peacefully?
Kanao looked at her uncle and blinked, not quite understanding how she had helped him.
But...
If I could help Uncle, then that's just... wonderful.
"The rest of our journey will be quite long. Let me carry you."
Su Mu smiled, feeling somewhat more relaxed now. As he spoke, he crouched down in front of Kanao.
Kanao obediently climbed onto her uncle's back, gently looping her arms around his neck and resting her little head against a back that felt broad and warm to her.
Once Kanao had settled securely onto his back, Su Mu stood up, ready to leave.
They were still close to town, and he feared running too fast would draw the Demon Slayer Corps' attention, so he started out walking at an ordinary person's pace. To anyone watching, it looked as unremarkable as a father carrying his daughter home after nightfall.
As he carried Kanao at a normal walking pace, Su Mu kept an eye on his surroundings. Quite a few people were leaving the city, and none seemed to be paying attention to him.
That allowed his vigilance to ease a little. All he needed to do next was find where Tanjiro Kamado lived.
I hope I can find it soon, then start searching for the Blue Spider Lily.
He thought this silently to himself. Besides, now that Kanao was with him, even if the Blue Spider Lily bloomed during the day, he could have her pick it for him.
As long as he ate the Blue Spider Lily, he could overcome a demon's only weakness. Even bathing in sunlight would no longer harm him.
It was something Muzan Kibutsuji had sought for a thousand years without success. If Muzan Kibutsuji learned that Su Mu had eaten the very thing he had craved for a millennium, how would he feel?
Would he explode with rage?
Imagining Muzan Kibutsuji's furious expression, Su Mu, who had lately been tormented by his craving for flesh and blood, felt a rare surge of happiness.
He even laughed despite himself.
Suddenly, a breeze swept in, cool against his cheeks. It carried a faint, sweet floral fragrance to his nose, with a warmth like sunlight falling on his skin.
"Urgh..."
Just smelling it made Su Mu want to retch. An indescribable discomfort spread through his entire body.
The floral fragrance was clearly pleasant, yet to him, it was like a deadly poison.
"The scent of wisteria."
Almost instinctively, Su Mu knew what the fragrance was.
To demons, this scent was extremely deadly. On Mount Fujikasane, the Demon Slayer Corps used wisteria trees to trap a group of demons at the summit, turning it into a testing ground for new swordsmen.
Su Mu could not help looking ahead.
He saw two sticks of Incense planted in the ground on either side of the road ahead. They were burning, and the wisteria fragrance was coming from them.
Because tales of demons often circulated, some places commonly used incense and candles scented with wisteria to ward off evil and drive away demons.
Driven by a demon's instinctive loathing and fear of wisteria's scent, Su Mu almost reflexively veered off the road and headed to the side.
"Stop."
He had barely taken two steps off the road when someone suddenly came running up behind him, panting, with a wisteria
emblem on his clothes. He carried no Nichirin Blade and appeared to be one of the Hidden Ones who handled logistics for the Demon Slayer Corps.
Su Mu stopped. Beneath his slightly bowed head, his eyes were scarlet.
"Turn around. Let me have a look at you."
The man huffed softly as he jogged over, muttering, "Why aren't you taking the perfectly good main road?"
He did not suspect that Su Mu was a demon. After all, a swordsman specifically tasked with fighting demons was keeping watch at the city gates, and this man was carrying a child on his back. He was unlikely to be a demon.
But his superiors had instructed him to check anyone who deliberately avoided this stretch of road. Who knew why this man had left the main road?
Several people earlier had only gone into the fields nearby because they urgently needed to relieve themselves. When he had approached to question them, he had received a thorough scolding.
Surely I couldn't be so unlucky... as to run into a demon?
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