The demon had already regretted it the moment he saw Lin Yoriichi draw his sword.
He did not understand why this man's presence was even weaker than that fellow with the center-parted black hair.
But when he saw the blade turn dark red the instant it was drawn, the demon felt something like an instinct in his blood frantically warning him-
Danger!
The demon instantly fell into a panic.
Just then, a supreme will that he absolutely could not defy descended into his mind.
Joy immediately filled the demon's heart.
Such a supreme will-it had to be that lord watching him!
My lord, save me!
The hope in the demon's heart was extinguished in an instant.
To fully express his respect, Lin Yoriichi used the one with the longest name among Sun Breathing's thirteen sword forms.
[Sun Breathing · Eleventh Form · Dragon Sun Halo · Head Dance]
The dark-red blade, wreathed in fiery light, tore through the night in an instant.
The demon felt as though flames were dismembering him, while everything before his eyes spun wildly.
By the time he realized what had happened, all that remained was his head rolling to the ground.
His scarlet demonic eyes were filled with disbelief.
That lord had clearly been watching him.
But why had that will withdrawn instantly upon seeing the sword form, as though it had been burned?
Beside them, Giyu Tomioka had just swung his sword to sever the demon's "tongue spear," and caught Lin Yoriichi's movements out of the corner of his eye.
Even someone as calm and composed as him showed a measure of surprise.
Swordsmanship and effects like that-it had to be a Breathing Style.
But this Breathing Style, with its fiery glow, was quite different from the Flame Breathing he had seen from Kyojuro Rengoku.
Could it be a self-created Breathing Style...?
Giyu Tomioka was certain he had never seen this Yoriichi in the Demon Slayer Corps before.
But the scene before him made him understand why Oyakata-sama wanted to meet him.
And Giyu Tomioka also seemed to understand why the demon on Mount Kumotori's summit had screamed loudly enough to echo across the entire mountain, then fled in such a sorry state that he had not even had time to take his clothes.
Giyu Tomioka thought about a great deal in that moment, but Murata's thoughts were much simpler.
When that severed tongue wrapped around him, his first reaction was that he was done for.
The densely packed barbs and fleshy spikes on it would probably inflict unimaginable injuries just by wrapping around him.
But before the severed tongue could tighten, Mr. Tomioka's companion had already dealt with the demon.
So now, apart from some damage to my clothes, I was actually... still fine!
Inside the Infinity Castle.
Muzan Kibutsuji had now changed out of Nakime's clothes into an ornate black kimono embroidered with gold patterns.
Her black hair was no longer simply pinned behind her head, but adorned with gold and red ornaments.
Elsewhere, Nakime had returned to her usual form and was huddling in a corner of the platform, clutching her biwa.
She was doing her best to empty her mind, terrified that even the slightest unnecessary thought might anger Muzan Kibutsuji.
Yet Muzan Kibutsuji, whose expression had been relatively calm, suddenly stiffened.
As though she had seen something in empty space, her pupils instantly contracted to pinpoints.
The next moment, Muzan Kibutsuji raised her hands to cover her eyes, as though she had seen something foul.
Bulging, earthworm-like blood vessels actually covered the area around her eyes.
"Damn it!"
"You incompetent fool, you actually thought you could order me to save you!"
"So you were chopped to pieces-why don't you look at your own problems?!"
"And..."
Muzan Kibutsuji covered his eyes more tightly. The scarlet scorch marks he had seen through that demon seemed to have seared his eyes as well.
"Almost identical wounds!"
"That man was only human. Could he really have crawled out of his grave?"
"Kokushibo! Why hasn't that fellow replied to me yet!"
Terror and resentment gnawed at Muzan Kibutsuji's reason like countless insects.
He turned toward Nakime and suddenly let out a furious shout:
"Nakime!"
Early the next morning, Giyu Tomioka and Lin Yoriichi set out again after resting at a nearby Wisteria Family House.
Murata walked with them, occasionally stealing glances at Lin Yoriichi.
Lin Yoriichi's Breathing Style and astonishing swordsmanship the previous night had left an exceptionally deep impression on him, and had also given rise to a new question.
Was this swordsman, who wasn't wearing a Demon Slayer Corps uniform, a new Hashira?
It was not as though Murata had never considered asking directly.
But this swordsman named Yoriichi seemed to be on very good terms with Mr. Tomioka.
To be on very good terms with Mr. Tomioka... Lin Yoriichi probably had a very strange personality too.
Lin Yoriichi had no idea what Murata was thinking beside him.
He was currently checking his Restoration Rate.
Last night's battle had raised his Restoration Rate by another 3%, bringing it straight to 20%.
The size of the increase surprised Lin Yoriichi somewhat.
After all, landing two slashes on Muzan Kibutsuji had only increased his Restoration Rate by 7%.
Yet using Sun Breathing's Eleventh Form just once to eliminate an ordinary demon who was not even a Lower Rank had raised it by another 3%.
So was the difference between the two whether I actually killed the demon?
At that thought, Lin Yoriichi could not help showing a somewhat strange expression.
I remembered some leads on demons.
If I went knocking on their doors and cut them down one by one, would my Restoration Rate skyrocket?
And with the information gap, I could even invite those Hashira along, specifically choose daytime, and drag these demons out one by one to sunbathe!
As he thought about this, Lin Yoriichi's expression grew stranger.
This gave Murata, who kept glancing at him, quite a fright, and sent a chill through him.
He kept feeling that this Mr. Yoriichi seemed to be planning something rather outrageous...
He noticed that his reaction seemed to have drawn Lin Yoriichi's attention.
Murata immediately shuddered and forced himself to strike up a conversation with Giyu Tomioka, trying to change the subject:
"Mr. Tomioka, I really wasn't hurt."
"I could just rest at the Wisteria Family House. Is it necessary for me to go to headquarters and the Butterfly Mansion with you?"
Giyu Tomioka said seriously:
"Demons generally don't gather together. It's extremely rare for two demons to appear in the same area."
"I suspect there's another secret hidden there."
"Having you go to the Butterfly Mansion is just a precaution against any other hidden injuries."
"More importantly, you need to go to headquarters and report this to Oyakata-sama."
Murata's eyes immediately widened at those words.
As expected of a Hashira! He considered more than an ordinary swordsman like me, and looked further ahead too!
But wait!
Wasn't Mr. Tomioka famously bad at communicating?
Why was he speaking... so normally now?
Just as Murata was puzzling over this, Giyu Tomioka suddenly quickened his pace:
"Headquarters is just ahead."
Before you continue