Even Kanae was not allowed in.
And so another three days passed!
On the morning of the third day, Koizumi Reiko came to Kanae with a troubled look on her face.
After a brief exchange, Kanae took a deep breath and went to Tetsu no Sosuke's door. She knocked, and he opened it with his hair disheveled and dark circles under his eyes.
"The Serpent Pillar..."
Kanae fell silent for a moment before continuing. "The Serpent Pillar was ambushed. He's gravely wounded!"
Tetsu no Sosuke said nothing. Kanae handed him a letter.
He opened it and read it carefully. It described everything that had happened to the Serpent Pillar.
What had happened was simple enough: a report had come in, and the Serpent Pillar had gone to investigate.
He had been prepared to face one of the Twelve Demon Moons. What he had not expected was to face three.
Three of the Twelve Demon Moons had fought him.
Despite his formidable strength, they had beaten him to the brink of death.
He had survived only because the battle lasted through the night, forcing them to retreat at dawn.
The Hidden had arrived in time and rushed him straight to Tamayo. With both her and Shinobu Kocho there, they had managed to save his life.
Otherwise, he would have died!
"They spoke before the fight," Kanae said. "It was clear they had set the ambush deliberately."
Kanae added, "That's a dangerous sign."
In a thousand years of conflict, it was exceedingly rare for demons to gather the Twelve Demon Moons to ambush Demon Hunters.
On the bright side, it meant the Demon Hunters had grown strong enough that Kibutsuji Muzan could no longer afford to take them lightly.
On the other hand... it might mean the war had begun!
A war