When her swirling thoughts were dragged deeper into that labyrinth, Rin Tsugikuni suddenly realized one dark detail she had overlooked all this time.
A terrifying premise that instantly made every hair on her arms stand on end.
If Big Brother Yoriichi had truly been born into this mortal world purely as the gods’ instrument to slaughter the Demon King, didn’t that mean that no matter what life choices, pure dreams, or independent paths her brother tried to walk…
In the end, the invisible fingers of the heavenly rulers would always twist his fate, forcing him back onto the blood-soaked road?
Yoriichi was a vessel deliberately forged to destroy demons.
Just like the package of supernatural blessings crammed into his body since infancy, this was a rigid script written by the gods—a locked destiny curse from the moment his first cry split the earth.
Therefore, no matter how great Yoriichi’s desire to live as an ordinary human—whether he dreamed of becoming a great samurai protecting the clan, or simply longed for quiet warmth with his wife and child in a remote hut—he was cursed to achieve colossal greatness.
Through systematic tragedy and situational manipulation, he would ultimately always be led to draw his Nichirin sword, join the Demon Slayer Corps, and drive his steps along the path of night creature extermination that had been laid out for him.
Realizing this absolute conspiracy, an extremely thick chill suddenly crawled down Rin’s spine.
If even the life script of a great genius like Yoriichi had been suppressed and dictated by the gods from the beginning…
Didn’t that become naked proof that the heavenly rulers truly held full authority to toy with and determine the end of other humans’ lives in this world?
With faintly trembling pupils, Rin turned her stiff-as-wood neck and slowly shifted her gaze to her own left arm.
Her kimono sleeve was rolled up, revealing strands of silver needles embedded beneath the skin—a flesh shell that had now almost completely lost its motor function.
*Then… what destiny script did they write for me?*
*What rotten path have the heavenly rulers up there prepared to end my breath?*
Driven by the increasingly chaotic storm in her chest, Rin finally voiced a crucial question she had kept tightly locked away from her friend for over a dozen months.
“Shinobu… can this illness in my body truly be cured completely?”
The hand that had been grinding medicine suddenly froze.
Every muscle in Doctor Shinobu’s body tensed for several beats.
She slowly turned her neck, displaying an extremely forced, stiff smile, then answered in the lightest tone she could manage.
“Why are you suddenly asking such a silly question, huh?”
While saying those words, the young doctor’s eyes moved restlessly, her gaze deliberately unfocused and shifted to the corner of the wooden floor, refusing to meet Rin’s eyes directly.
Namun, Rin—yang jiwanya diselimuti oleh kegelapan batin—gagal menangkap detail mikro dari bahasa tubuh sahabatnya itu.
Seeing Doctor Shinobu turn toward her, Rin was instead struck by guilt for feeling she had asked an “inappropriate question” that pressured a physician’s morals.
The girl lowered her face, avoiding the awkward eye contact between them.
“I’m sorry… that sentence just slipped out of my mouth.”
“This child really…”
While letting out a long sigh heavy with resignation, Doctor Shinobu quickly shifted her knees to kneel right in front of Rin.
She lifted her chin, showing a bright, confident expression like she always did.
“I’ve told you repeatedly, Rin Tsugikuni! Just put all your trust in me and leave that body shell of yours to my fingers! Who exactly is the creature standing before your eyes right now, huh?!”
She patted her own chest with a clenched fist, her expression turning extremely proud.
“You are facing the extremely genius, magnificent, and wise Dr. Shinobu! A self-taught medical practitioner who has traveled across dozens of provinces to conquer various incurable cursed diseases! The creature capable of kicking down the gates of hell to snatch human lives back from the god of death—the ‘Miracle Healer’!”
After bombarding Rin with an extremely long string of made-up titles in one breath, Doctor Shinobu put her hands on her hips full of pride.
“There is not a single type of disease under this sky that I can’t wipe clean if my ego desires it!”
“So, Rin, never once adopt the narrow-minded thought that your body can’t be saved just because you feel your condition worsening in the past few weeks. The herbal healing process always requires constant time intervals, and it’s very normal for the graph to experience ups and downs along the way!”
She leaned forward, staring intently at her friend’s face.
“Moreover, the damage in your blood vessels is far more complex than common people’s fever, which means the difficulty level is at the highest tier…”
“But cast away that fog of anxiety from your head! As long as I’m still breathing beside you, everything is guaranteed to end in absolute victory in the following breaths!”
“Throw all this medical business far away from your mind. Your only task right now is to think about how to let your soul taste happiness every day, understand?!”
Rin kept her gaze fixed on Doctor Shinobu in front of her, observing how the girl’s lips kept chattering nonstop while her right hand unconsciously moved up to scratch her temple and the strands of her black hair.
A thin, bitter smile etched itself on Rin’s gentle face.
In truth, Rin had read her friend’s secret a year ago.
Every time the traveling doctor was plagued by extreme psychological tension, wrapped in heavy nervousness, or when her lips were forced to utter a big lie, her fingers would instinctively always move up to scratch her own hair.
That reflexive movement always repeated in the same pattern, without a single exception.
There was no room for debate; Doctor Shinobu had just hidden the bitterest truth regarding the death sentence on her physical condition.
Namun, Rin memilih untuk mengatupkan bibirnya rapat-rapat, menolak keras untuk menelanjangi kebohongan manis tersebut.
Staring intently at the only creature in the entire country who truly squeezed out tears and energy to care about what remained of her life, Rin simply nodded slowly while displaying her usual perfect smile mask. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
“Yes… I completely trust you, Shinobu.”
***
Another year rolled by, splitting the axis of fate, and Rin was reunited with Yoriichi Tsugikuni.
The scenario played out exactly like the pattern of the past; the younger brother came with the excuse of happening to pass through the clan territory after completing a bloody mission, and his body once again secretly slipped in through the wooden window frame of her room in the middle of the night.
Of course, there was one more thing that remained consistently unchanged; tonight, only Yoriichi’s silhouette alone stepped into the room.
The sweet promise Yoriichi had uttered a year ago to bring Michikatsu along for another visit had ultimately evaporated into empty words that were never fulfilled.
“Did Big Brother Michikatsu choose to turn his face away and refuse to come?”
In the pitch-dark room without candlelight, Rin sat kneeling near a small clay stove, using a bamboo stick to slowly stir the bubbling black medicinal soup that emitted thick herbal steam.
The pungent, bitter scent of medicine immediately greeted Yoriichi’s arrival.
The young man in the blazing red haori stepped silently, dropping to his knees on a small wooden stool right beside Rin.
“I’m sorry, Rin.”
Yoriichi cast a faintly confused glance toward the boiling medicine pot over the fire before lowering his head and releasing a sentence full of guilt.
“I’ve tried several times to convey your invitation to Big Brother at the Corps headquarters… but every time this topic was raised, Big Brother’s expression was always filled with such great hesitation that in the end…”
“Big Brother Yoriichi, you don’t need to strain yourself to explain the reason any further. I understand everything very well,” Rin cut in gently, her eyes still fixed on the bubbling medicinal soup before her.
Rin knew exactly what was in her eldest brother’s head; a Michikatsu would never be willing to set foot back in the Tsugikuni throne.
Or more precisely, that young man’s samurai ego was tormented by an enormous sense of shame just to face her.
After all, the cowardly act of running away from blood responsibilities to the clan, abandoning his wife and child in the castle, and letting a frail little sister shoulder the entire political burden that should have been the eldest son’s duty… was an extremely disgusting moral disgrace by a knight’s standards.
Therefore, from the first moment that promise was spoken a year ago, Rin had never once included Michikatsu’s name in her calculations of hope.
Namun, skenario semacam ini sudah lebih dari cukup, asalkan Yoriichi masih sudi menepati janjinya untuk berkunjung.
Because Rin still clearly remembered the medical request Doctor Shinobu had entrusted to her a year ago.
“Rin, about the supply of medicinal herbs you keep consuming…” Yoriichi opened his mouth, trying to probe the anxiety that had returned to disturb him.
“Big Brother Yoriichi,” Rin cut in quickly, turning her gentle face to look directly into her brother’s clear eyes.
“Can I ask for one small favor from your hands tonight?”