The past

After asking that question, Miss Tamayo gave a smile of relief without waiting for Lin Yoriichi to answer:

"That was presumptuous of me."

"Actually, whether you're him doesn't matter. But eliminating Muzan Kibutsuji matters very much!"

At her words, Lin Yoriichi felt a little moved.

Sure enough, like Kagaya Ubuyashiki, Miss Tamayo was both very gentle and very intelligent.

Moreover, they both had very clear goals.

As long as they could kill Muzan Kibutsuji, they would not care whether he was Yoriichi or Yoriichi Tsugikuni.

With that thought, Lin Yoriichi stopped dwelling on the question of his identity.

He looked into Miss Tamayo's eyes and asked with utmost seriousness:

"Miss Tamayo, do you know where Yoriichi Tsugikuni is buried?"

Although she had already learned the purpose of Lin Yoriichi's visit from Kagaya Ubuyashiki's letter and had made some guesses,

seeing someone who looked exactly like Yoriichi Tsugikuni ask whether she knew where Yoriichi Tsugikuni was buried still left Miss Tamayo somewhat dazed-

It was as though the deceased himself were asking in all seriousness, "Do you know where I was buried after I died?"

After collecting herself, Miss Tamayo nodded solemnly:

"Of course."

Having received Miss Tamayo's affirmative answer, Lin Yoriichi immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

Ever since he had frightened Muzan Kibutsuji away on the summit of Mount Kumotori, Lin Yoriichi had been repeatedly considering what else he could do next besides going to the Swordsmith Village to retrieve the Nichirin Sword Yoriichi Tsugikuni had left behind.

The answer he had arrived at was that he could find Yoriichi Tsugikuni's burial place ahead of time and give Muzan Kibutsuji and Kokushibo a "surprise."

That surprise would certainly bring another surge in his Restoration Rate, too.

But the original story had only explained how Yoriichi Tsugikuni's life ended, without making clear where he was buried.

He had thought Kagaya Ubuyashiki would have some information, but unexpectedly, Kagaya Ubuyashiki had recommended Miss Tamayo to him.

After thinking it over, however, Lin Yoriichi was not surprised that Miss Tamayo knew about this.

Sure enough, Miss Tamayo said in a low voice:

"I was there the day Muzan Kibutsuji encountered Yoriichi Tsugikuni."

"He spared me, and we made a promise to fight Muzan Kibutsuji together."

"Since then, I've been researching ways to deal with Muzan Kibutsuji. Whenever I made some progress, I would contact him."

"I only wanted him to know that I hadn't given up on fighting Muzan Kibutsuji. It was also a way to atone for my sins!"

Lin Yoriichi had remained silent throughout her account.

He knew exactly what Miss Tamayo meant by "atoning for her sins."

Hundreds of years ago, when Miss Tamayo was still human, she had suffered from a terminal illness.

Wanting to see her children grow up, she had believed Muzan Kibutsuji and become a demon.

Under those circumstances, Miss Tamayo had been unable to restrain her demonic instincts and had killed her husband and children.

After that, Miss Tamayo had continued killing people because of those same instincts.

At this point, Miss Tamayo suddenly clenched her fists, and her body began to tremble slightly:

"Mr. Yoriichi, do you know someone named Kokushibo?"

Lin Yoriichi nodded.

Not only did he know Kokushibo, but he also knew that before becoming a demon, Kokushibo's real name had been Tsugikuni Michikatsu, and that he was Yoriichi Tsugikuni's older twin brother.

In the original story, Yoriichi Tsugikuni had been driven out of the Demon Slayer Corps not only because he had spared Miss Tamayo, but also because Kokushibo had murdered the Corps' Oyakata-sama at the time.

Lin Yoriichi also remembered that when Yoriichi Tsugikuni reached the end of his life, he encountered Kokushibo again.

With just one slash, he had severely wounded Kokushibo.

Had he been able to deliver another, it would certainly have ended Kokushibo's life.

But that one slash had exhausted the last of Yoriichi Tsugikuni's life.

In the end, Kokushibo had cut Yoriichi Tsugikuni, who had died standing, in half at the waist to vent his anger.

That was precisely why Lin Yoriichi wanted to find Yoriichi Tsugikuni's burial place ahead of time and prepare something "potent" for Kokushibo and Muzan Kibutsuji-

After all, given what an utter coward Muzan Kibutsuji was, his first reaction after encountering him would be to check whether Yoriichi Tsugikuni was still lying in his grave or had truly come back to life.

Even though nearly three hundred years had passed, and Yoriichi Tsugikuni's remains had very likely already crumbled to dust, Muzan Kibutsuji would still need to see for himself before he could rest easy.

Yet, because of that same cowardice, Muzan Kibutsuji would never personally visit Yoriichi Tsugikuni's burial place to investigate.

He would only send Kokushibo to look into the matter.

Lin Yoriichi went over the entire plan in his head once more, then heard Miss Tamayo continue:

"When Yoriichi Tsugikuni grew old, our correspondence became much less frequent."

"But out of concern, I still secretly went to see him a few times. Then I saw..."

Miss Tamayo suddenly stopped. Only after a long while did she speak softly:

"I was very far away at the time, and Kokushibo was badly wounded and distraught, so he didn't notice me."

"He picked something up from Yoriichi Tsugikuni's body, then stood motionless for a long time."

"In the end, Kokushibo seemed afraid to look at Yoriichi Tsugikuni's body again and hurried away."

"After I was certain Kokushibo had left for good, I gathered up Yoriichi Tsugikuni's body and built him a grave."

At this point, Miss Tamayo lowered her eyes, a faint glimmer of tears shining in them:

"Hundreds of years have passed, and I've continued tending that grave."

"Because I thought that when my research bore fruit, I would have to go and tell Mr. Tsugikuni..."

Lin Yoriichi fell silent.

The original story had only mentioned that Kokushibo found the handmade flute he had once given Yoriichi Tsugikuni on his body.

Even though Kokushibo had already become a demon, seeing that flute, which had been cut in two along with Yoriichi Tsugikuni, had still brought tears to his eyes.

But he truly had not expected Kokushibo to leave because he dared not look at Yoriichi Tsugikuni's body again.

Still less had he expected that Miss Tamayo had ultimately been the one to gather and bury Yoriichi Tsugikuni's remains, and that she was still tending his grave.

Moreover, this information from Miss Tamayo gave Lin Yoriichi a deeper understanding of his own "portrayal."

Muzan Kibutsuji probably believed that Yoriichi Tsugikuni had crawled out of his grave and was coming for his life again.

Miss Tamayo and Kagaya Ubuyashiki, on the other hand, both regarded him as Yoriichi Tsugikuni's "reincarnation."

With that thought, Lin Yoriichi checked his Restoration Rate again.

After killing two Lower Ranks, his Restoration Rate had reached 30%.

But after his conversation with Miss Tamayo, his Restoration Rate had actually reached 32%.

So understanding Yoriichi Tsugikuni could also increase my Restoration Rate?

Something stirred in Lin Yoriichi's mind.

He suddenly recalled how he had posed three soul-searching questions to Muzan Kibutsuji on Mount Kumotori.

Was it because I hadn't fully "gotten into character" then that I only received the 7% reward for wounding Muzan Kibutsuji?

While he pondered this, Miss Tamayo had already written down the location of Yoriichi Tsugikuni's grave.

Lin Yoriichi glanced at the address, and an exceedingly strange expression suddenly appeared on his face...