The first night was actually the most dangerous for most people; after all, it was the first time the vast majority of participants truly faced a demon head-on.
That night, many paid for their choices with their lives.
Some were lucky enough to be saved by Kanzaki Kumo, though most of those chose to withdraw from the selection.
As for the few stubborn ones, Kanzaki Kumo could only wish them the best of luck.
Afterward, the number of humans on Fujikasane Mountain decreased significantly, and the frequency of encountering demons increased.
Kanzaki Kumo slayed three demons in a row on the second night before dawn finally broke.
On the third night, just after Kanzaki Kumo casually dealt with a demon attempting to ambush him, he looked toward Makomo’s direction, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.
The Hand Demon trap had worked.
Seeing that bloated, hill-like figure wrapped in countless arms, Kanzaki Kumo ran over quickly.
Over there, Makomo and the Hand Demon were already locked in combat.
Relying on her extraordinary agility, Makomo dodged the Hand Demon’s attacks with ease and managed to counterattack from time to time.
She even closed in on its neck once, nearly succeeding in a decapitation.
Facing such a troublesome opponent, the Hand Demon couldn’t gain the upper hand in direct combat.
Unwilling to give up any chance to take revenge on Urokodaki Sakonji, it shifted its tactics to psychological warfare.
“Oh my, Urokodaki has sent me another little fox, hahaha—”
“What do you mean?!” Makomo’s dodging steps faltered immediately, and she was nearly hit by the Hand Demon’s attack.
“You, and that fellow Urokodaki Sakonji—isn’t it strange?
Not a single person he sent in here before has ever made it out.”
Seeing that its words were working, the Hand Demon immediately intensified its taunting.
“It’s because they were all eaten by me!
Ahahaha—”
“Urokodaki Sakonji was the one who captured me and brought me here.
I’ve suffered here for decades, all thanks to him.
Two years ago, I found someone among those entering the mountain wearing the same fox mask as him.”
“Those must have been his disciples, right?”
“To ‘repay’ him, I ate every single one of them!
How about it?
Are you angry?
Do you want to kill me?
Hahaha—”
“You—” Makomo was completely enraged.
Her footwork was no longer steady as she stopped dodging cautiously, becoming more aggressive and risking being hit to close in on the Hand Demon’s neck.
The Hand Demon cooperatively slowed its offensive rhythm slightly, waiting for Makomo to get a bit closer until it was certain of a kill shot to catch her off guard.
But in the next instant, a flash of incandescent lightning vanished as quickly as it appeared.
“Thunder Breathing, First Form: Thunderclap and Flash.”
The Hand Demon’s neck, wrapped in layers of many arms, was severed in a single strike along with the arms protecting it.
Stunned, Makomo didn’t even notice the demon’s body beneath her was disintegrating; she suddenly felt the ground disappear beneath her and began to fall. Read this novel at novelping . com for the best experience.
Just as she snapped out of it and began to adjust her posture to lessen the impact of the fall, a strong pair of arms caught her.
“Are you alright?” A somewhat familiar voice reached her ears.
Makomo turned her head and realized the person before her was the boy whose offer to team up she had previously rejected.
“I didn’t expect his strength to be this great…” Looking at that handsome face which still held a hint of youthfulness, Makomo was momentarily dazed.
However, she quickly noticed their current intimate posture.
Snapping back to reality, Makomo immediately pulled away from Kanzaki Kumo’s embrace, her face turning slightly red under her mask.
“I’m fine.”
Soon, the grief and indignation that had been suppressed by the sudden surprise and embarrassment surged back into her heart.
The girl’s eyes grew moist with tears, and when she thanked Kanzaki Kumo, her voice was already choked with sobs.
“Thank you…”
“You’re welcome.”
The atmosphere fell into silence.
Makomo was immersed in sorrow, and Kanzaki Kumo didn’t know what to say at the moment, so he could only stay alert to their surroundings for the grieving girl.
“That commotion just now wasn’t small.
Some demons will likely be attracted here.
Let’s leave first.”
Kanzaki Kumo called out to her, and once he was sure Makomo had heard him, he turned to leave.
Makomo followed behind him without a word.
Soon, Kanzaki Kumo brought Makomo to the tree trunk where he had rested before.
“Alright, no demons should come here for the time being.”
Turning around, Kanzaki Kumo looked at the girl who had remained silent and didn’t know what to say.
After some thought, he could only come up with: “If you want to cry, you’ll probably feel better if you let it out.”
He could see that her eyes, hidden behind the mask, were already brimming with tears, yet this strong girl refused to let them fall.
To Kanzaki Kumo’s surprise, after he spoke, the tears didn’t fall; instead, they seemed to recede.
After a moment, she sat down on a branch of her own accord and spoke slowly: “My name is Makomo.
Urokodaki Makomo.”
“When I was very young, my parents were killed by demons.
master Urokodaki arrived just in time and saved me.”
“Later, master sent me to a shelter filled with children who had been displaced by demons.
I only found out later that the shelter was established by the family of the Demon Slayer Corps master.”
“A little over a year ago, I reached the age to choose a Cultivator.
At that time, I chose master Urokodaki without any hesitation.”
“Since then, I have lived under master Urokodaki’s care and guidance.”
“It wasn’t just master Urokodaki; those senior disciples were also very kind to me.”
“They were all very, very good people.”
In the end, not a single one returned.”
“I still remember the day the news arrived.
master Urokodaki hid in his room alone and was heartbroken for a long time.”
“After that, master Urokodaki raised the difficulty of the trial.
Only by passing his trial would one be allowed to participate in the Final Selection.”
“But even with the increased requirements, four senior brothers and sisters who were talented and had trained for nearly two years still passed the trial last year.”
“master thought that since they had passed such a rigorous trial, they would surely succeed in the Final Selection.”
“But the result was that not a single one of them came back.”
“This time, master raised the difficulty of the trial once again, to the point that the remaining two senior brothers gave up on becoming swordsmen and instead applied to join the Kakushi.”
“Only I was unwilling to give up.
I didn’t want to see such a gentle person like master looking so sad.
In the end, I gritted my teeth and completed master’s extremely rigorous training, passed the trial he set, and came here.”
“For the first two nights, I was thinking that if the demons on this mountain were all just those weak ones, how could none of my senior brothers and sisters have survived?”
“Until I met that guy…
if master knew that the demon he captured and put on Fujikasane Mountain had taken the lives of his disciples one by one, how much guilt and sorrow would he feel…”
Kanzaki Kumo listened to Makomo’s story in silence.
He knew that she was an exceptionally strong girl.
What she needed right now wasn’t words of comfort, but someone to talk to.
Whether it was having a good cry or confiding in someone, it was all just a way to vent emotions.
“Thank you…” Having finished her story, Makomo calmed down.
She stood up and thanked Kanzaki Kumo solemnly, but then realized with embarrassment that she had forgotten to ask for his name.
“Sorry, I don’t know your name yet…” At this moment, Makomo was so embarrassed she felt like she could dig a hole with her toes.
“My name is Kanzaki Kumo.”
“Kanzaki Kumo…
Yes, thank you, Kanzaki-kun.” Makomo’s gratitude was not only for Kanzaki Kumo saving her but also because he had killed the Hand Demon, avenging her deceased senior brothers and sisters.
Kanzaki Kumo was somewhat surprised by Makomo’s familiar way of addressing him.
“Hmm?”
“Is…
is it not okay to call you that?” Makomo turned her face away shyly.
“That’s not it.”
Since even a young girl didn’t mind, why would Kanzaki Kumo have an issue?
“Then can I just call you Makomo?”
“Of course, no problem.”
With the bond of a life saved and the earlier confiding, the relationship between Makomo and Kanzaki Kumo suddenly became much closer.
Although neither mentioned teaming up for the remaining days, they did indeed begin to move together.
It might not seem tempting right now but who knows what the future holds?
“And If you’re enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!”