Faced with Muzan Kibutsuji, who held absolute control over every demon's life and death, even Upper Rank One, Kokushibo, felt a chill run through him.
As for the other mbers of the Twelve Kizuki, their fear was even greater.
Muzan's gaze slowly swept across the gathered demons while silently listening to the thoughts in their hearts.
After a long mont, his eyes settled on the figure seated at the front.
"Doma."
"My lord, I am here."
Doma raised his head with a smile on his face.
"From today onward, the Eternal Paradise Faith will no longer have restrictions on its number of followers."
A trace of surprise appeared in Doma's eyes.
For a very long ti, the size of his cult had always been strictly limited. Whenever he beca too high-profile, Muzan would reprimand him personally.
That was why, even until now, the Eternal Paradise Faith only had around two hundred and fifty followers.
"Understood, my lord."
Doma nodded calmly.
"I only require one thing from you," Muzan said coldly. "Expand your followers and target every location connected to the human Wisteria families."
The Ubuyashiki family was the Demon Slayer Corps' greatest supporter.
But the Wisteria families, who worked together to assist the Corps, were equally important.
If those Wisteria households were destroyed, Demon Slayers across the country would lose many of the safe places where they could recover and rest.
"No problem, my lord."
Doma opened his fan with a soft flick, his tone remaining calm as ever.
At that mont, Muzan shifted his gaze toward Upper Rank Five.
"Gyokko. Have you gathered any information about the Demon Slayer Corps recently?"
"My lord, I've discovered information about the Swordsmith Village. I've even located the hidden forging base used by the Demon Slayer Corps…" Gyokko spoke excitedly.
"Excellent."
Muzan nodded slightly.
"You and Hantengu will go there together and completely destroy the Swordsmith Village."
"Yes, my lord." Hantengu and Gyokko answered almost simultaneously.
"And the rest of you…"
Muzan looked toward the remaining demons and began assigning missions one by one.
Even Kokushibo, who usually remained secluded inside his room, was personally assigned the task of hunting Demon Slayer swordsn.
After the Twelve Kizuki departed, only Muzan and Naki, who controlled the Infinity Castle, remained in the room.
Naki slightly raised her head to look at her master.
It had been centuries since Muzan had personally launched a large-scale operation against the Demon Slayer Corps.
The last ti had also been several hundred years ago.
Although the Ubuyashiki family had not been completely eradicated, the Demon Slayer Corps had lost many of its inherited techniques back then, including the knowledge of Sun Breathing, Bright Red Nichirin Swords, and the Demon Slayer Mark.
But this ti…
What kind of disaster would the Demon Slayer Corps face?
Would they finally be destroyed completely?
…
Out in the wilderness, a man and a woman were fleeing in panic.
"Lady Tamayo, I will protect you! I won't let anyone harm you! Please, let go back and deal with the demon pursuing us!" The man spoke anxiously to the woman beside him.
"No, Yushiro," Tamayo replied, shaking her head. "It's no use. We cannot kill him easily. If we are pinned down and 'That Man' senses us, we won't be able to escape."
Hearing this, Yushiro could only bitterly suppress his urge to turn and fight. But as he looked back at the demon drawing closer and closer, he grew increasingly frantic. "But at this rate, we'll be caught! We'll be trapped regardless!"
Tamayo pressed her lips together. She did not understand it either. Recently, demons had begun moving far more aggressively than before. In the past, that man would never have acted so recklessly, yet this ti they had been terribly unlucky enough to run straight into one of his hunting parties.
"My lady, let go back," Yushirō pleaded once more. "I'll hold them off."
"You... won't escape!"
Before long, a demon caught up to them. Looking at the pair running ahead, a maniacal grin spread across his face. He hadn't expected to stumble upon Tamayo.
She was the traitor whose execution had been ordered by the Lord himself. If he could capture her, he would surely receive a massive amount of blood—he might even beco one of the Twelve Kizuki.
"Lady Tamayo, I'm going to block him!" Yushirō nearly spun around on the spot, fury and desperation boiling over.
"I have a way."
Seeing that Yushirō was about to ignore her orders entirely, Tamayo bit down lightly on her lip. She could never abandon him and flee alone.
"There's another way?" Yushirō looked at her in shock.
Tamayo did not answer imdiately. While continuing to run, she reached into her robes and pulled out a small bamboo tube. She opened it and fired its contents into the sky.
A burst of wisteria-colored fireworks exploded overhead.
Nearby Kasugai Crows spotted the signal at once and beat their wings as they flew off into the distance.
"Lady Tamayo… what was that?"
Even while running, Yushirō glanced upward. He could roughly guess it was a call for help, but after following Tamayo for so many years, he could not imagine who could possibly co to save them in a situation like this.
Still, the re knowledge that reinforcents might arrive rekindled a spark of hope within him.
Another half hour passed in frantic flight before a figure finally appeared in the distance.
A tall silhouette approached swiftly, haori fluttering in the wind.
"Moshi moshi~ Looks like there are two demons here."
Kanae Kocho landed gracefully, her purple eyes fixed on Tamayo and Yushiro.
"It's the Demon Slayer Corps…" Yushirō's expression instantly turned wary. The mont he noticed the haori she wore, despair surfaced in his eyes. "And a powerful Hashira, at that."
A swordsman on the level of a Hashira was no different from a nightmare to ordinary demons. Against soone like that, escape was nearly impossible.
Almost instinctively, Yushirō stepped in front of Tamayo, his voice filled with the resolve to die if necessary.
"Lady Tamayo, run! I'll hold her back. Even if it costs my life, I won't let her hurt you—"
Tamayo did not flee.
As Kanae's purple gaze shifted toward her, Tamayo gently reached out and pulled Yushirō aside. Then, from within her robes, she produced a token bearing the crest of the Ubuyashiki family.
Kanae's eyes widened slightly in surprise.
"Take to see your Master," Tamayo said softly, worry faintly visible in her eyes.
Her connection with the Ubuyashiki family had always been kept strictly secret. Even the Hashira might not know of it.
And for most mbers of the Demon Slayer Corps, hatred toward demons ran deep. They would never willingly believe a demon's words.
Kanae remained outwardly calm, but inwardly she was stunned.
The being before her was clearly a demon, and yet… she knew the Master?
It was almost unbelievable.
More than that, this demon felt different.
For a very long ti, Kanae had believed that not all demons were necessarily the sa. Sowhere, perhaps, there might exist demons who still clung to the last remnants of human morality.
She had simply never encountered one before.
Just as Gyōi had once told her:
"If your goal is to save demons… then I can only say your way of thinking is rather unusual."
...
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