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The sun was just rising over the horizon. It was definitely a beautiful sight. I couldn't sleep as a slime so I just ended up lying in the futon with my eyes closed, pondering over how Tempest is doing, how my allies are doing, how my friends doing.

I just let out a small sigh as I watched the sun rise slowly and pulled out the journal that I had been keeping to track my experience in this world so I could remember the family and friends I made here when I eventually returned to Tempest.

Day 85:

Me and Tanjiro ended up staying at Mr. Saburo's house after selling all of our charcoal. With the money we have now, we should be able to provide for the Kamado family for a while. Still no progress on regaining my abilities and returning to Tempest. I still believe I'll figure it out in the future, but that future is very far from now. All I can do is pray that everybody in Tempest is safe. As for this world, it's peaceful. I'm aware that there will always be threats in this world. Once again, if there is something to be gained, there are people that will use cruel methods to obtain that goal. But for now, no issues. Maybe that demon I encountered wasn't re-

I stopped.

Deep down, I knew.

That demon was real and it certainly wasn't the last one.

I let out a sigh and scribbled out the last sentence.

'Mr. Saburo even said it himself. Demons are real.' I thought as I closed my journal and stored it. "They are dangerous and vicious creatures. They can enter your houses and devour to stay alive.' I shuddered at the thought.

Suddenly I felt an uneasy feeling, something was off.

When I thought this I heard the door behind me open. Standing in the door was Mr. Saburo.

"Oh, Rimuru. You're awake." He said while making his way to sit down next to me. He was holding his cigarette and took another whiff. "That's weird, usually I'm the first one to get up this early." He said while he gazed at the sun rising.

I couldn't make direct eye contact with him. I had to ask him an important question.

"Mr. Saburo?" I said in a questioning voice. "What is it?" He said responding. "How strong are the demons?" I asked.

He took a moment to answer this question.

"They have superhuman abilities. They're much faster and stronger than us humans." He said. "That's why the Demon Slayers are here for us, they can match up to the strength of the demons using their special breathing." He answered while taking another whiff of his cigarette.

I was about to question him on the "special breathing" but then, once again, I heard the shuffling noise behind me.

Once again, the door opened revealing Tanjiro still in his night clothes.

"Ah, Rimuru, Mr. Saburo." He said as he smiled.

I smiled back and stood up and walked back into the small shack to grab our stuff and set off back to the Kamado household.

"Sorry for being a burden to you. Thank you for your hospitality." I heard Tanjiro say as I heard footsteps following me as I hurried to grab my belonging.

Tanjiro quickly grabbed his haori and scraf while I finished putting on my dark blue kimono and dark green scarf. We made our way back to the entrance of the house. Tanjiro grabbed the empty basket that once held the charcoal that we had worked hard to obtain and put on his boots.

As we were heading out, I saw Mr. Saburo cleaning up our futons.

'I should probably help him.' I thought as I took off my shoes again.

"Tanjiro, I'll catch up with you later." I said. "I need to help Mr. Saburo put away our futons." I said while running back into the house.

"I you're doing that, shouldn't I help too?" He said while checking if his boots were on properly. "No, it's fine. Just go on ahead and I'll meet you back at the house." I said as I picked up the futon and helped Mr. Saburo put it back into his shelf.

"Alright then, meet you back at the house." He said as I heard the crunching of the snow under his boots. I listened until the crunching finally disappeared.

.

"You be careful now." Mr. Saburo said as I finished putting my boots on.

"Thank you for your hospitality." I said as I gave one last bow and started walking down the path.

It was a peaceful morning. I could hear the birds chirping. I extended my magic sense to the town. People were just starting to get up and prepare for the busy day ahead of them. It was a type of morning that makes me enjoy being alive.

"I wonder if Tanjiro made it back safely." I thought out loud. "Well, he's probably really busy right now. We did promise to help Takeo and Haneko when we got back." I said with a smile.

'I wonder if we're going to get scolded for arriving late. They were probably worried about us all last night.' I thought while staring up at the sky, listening to the crunching of the snow underneath my feet.

' I guess I just have to do more things to make up for it.'

Then I felt something. Something that me want to run. It was only there for a second. It was a familiar feeling.

Fear.

It was gone as quickly as it arrived. I have no clue where and why the feeling was there. It just felt like something as wrong. I didn't waste any time. I steadily picked up my pace. Starting from a steady jog to a full on run.

'That feeling wouldn't have been there without a reason. Something has to be wrong.' I thought as I ran through the trees. 'A premonition?' I questioned. "Please be safe. I still have so many things I have to do. I need to thank you for th-'

My thoughts were cut off as I finally arrived at the Kamado household.

...

It was horrible.

I felt my knees give way as I dropped down into the snow.The door was wide open, displaying the murder scene behind it. The scent of blood filled the air.

Kei, Takeo, Hanako, Shigeru, Rokuta

All of them

Dead.

Who could've done this? Bears, Wolves, People, no...

Demons.

I felt my hands ball up into knuckles. I couldn't cry, even if I wanted to. My anger was the only thing that was left.

'I'll kill them, I'll kill them, I'll kill them, I'll kill them.'

My thoughts were roaring in my head. I had to control my anger or there would be nothing left but rage.

'Right, I have to calm down.'

I slowly breathed in and out. I still had things to do. I couldn't fall into an endless pit of rage. I couldn't get engulfed by it.

I slowly got up and started walking towards the massacre. I had to make sure if everybody was dead or not, despite already knowing the answer. I slowly checked everyone's bodies, all of them were cold.

Then I came to a realization.

'Where's Tanjiro and Nezuko?'

I quickly ran out of the house, the realization that those two could still be alive taking control over my body.

'If those two are still alive, I can protect them.' I thought as I quickly jumped up to a really tall tree.

I started jumping from the branches of the trees to make sure I get to them as soon aspossible. I used magic sense and quickly found their location. I jumped down from the tree down to the snow and continued through the forest on foot.

I saw Tanjiro carrying Nezuko through the forest. She was definitely injured. They were walking right next to a steep cliff, a fall from that height would definitely be dangerous.

Tanjiro was clearly in a hurry. Suddenly, Nezuko started behaving strangely. She let out a loud growl. Her eyes rolled back then,

They fell off the cliff.

I quickly dove to try and catch them but just barely grazed their hands. They fell down all the way. Tanjiro getting saved by the snow and landing fairly comfortably.

I quickly jumped down right next to Tanjiro.

"Tanjiro, what happened? Are you okay? What are you trying to do?" The questions shot out of my mouth immediately. "Rimuru." He responded. "Where's Nezuko?" He asked as his eyes started darting around the forest.

His eyes then locked in between a couple of trees. I followed his gaze and then there she was, Nezuko standing there. "Nezuko, are you all right?" Tanjiro asked as he got up from his spot and quickly ran over to where Nezuko was. "You don't have to walk. I'll carry you to the town, alright?" He said as he stopped in front of her.

I was about to follow him but then I realized, something was wrong.

Nezuko had an ominous aura. Something strange. Something unfamiliar. Something not human.

Nezuko quickly jumped on Tanjiro, showcasing physical strength unlike anything that she had before. Tanjiro tried to defend himself. He quickly took out his hatchet and managed to jam it in her mouth.

'She's a demon.' I thought as I stood there watching the situation.

'How? I wasn't told that people can transform into demons. Why?'

I quickly realized that I had to do something. Tanjiro was about to be devoured and I was just standing there doing nothing. I quickly ran over to where Nezuko as and pulled her off Tanjiro. She fell ontop of me and quickly jumped back to Tanjiro.

Then, something else happened. Nezuko started growing in size. She was quickly much larger than Tanjiro and I. I didn't know what to do in this situation. I didn't want to hurt Nezuko. Even if she's a demon now, she's still the same person, right?

"Nezuko!" I heard Tanjiro yell. "Nezuko, hang in there, Nezuko!" He said. He was wearing a pained expression on his face. "Don't give in! You gotta hang in there!" Quiet footsteps could be heard in the distance, but they were unnoticed by any of us. "Don't turn into a Demon! You gotta stay strong! Hang in there! Hang in there!"

What I was hearing, were the final desperate calls of a brother to his sister. Then something unexpected happened. Something wet started dripping onto Tanjiro's face.

Tears.

Nezuko was crying. She was fighting back. She didn't want any of this. She just wanted a peaceful life.

Then, my magic sense caught something.

Above.

I quickly jumped over to Tanjiro and Nezuko pulling both of them into the snow. The blade slashed Tanjiro's hair as we were going down and the mere slash alone caused heavy wind pressure. All three of us, started rolling and hit a tree. I quickly got up and faced the mysterious man that had just tried to attack us.

The man quickly turned over to us and simply stared. He was wearing a mismatched haori with a plain red color on one side and a green and yellow pattern on the other. He had raven black hair and was wielding a katana that shimmered under the light.

'Who is he?' I questioned as I stared at him straight in the eye.

'He's wielding a katana. The power behind that slash shows that he's experienced. I have to be careful.' I thought as I got into a battle stance. I didn't have a weapon so I would have to make due with my skills and abilities.

He simply stared before he finally said something.

"A Demon protecting others. How strange." He said as he switched his focus from me to Tanjiro.

"Why are you protecting them?" He questioned, wearing a face lacking any emotion.

Tanjiro was holding Nezuko in a protective manner as he answered. "She's my sister. She's my younger sister! Rimuru is someone that I care deeply about as well!" Tanjiro said desperately. Nezuko immediately started acting up. Continuing to growl. "Nezuko!" Tanjiro called.

'Did he know that I wasn't human?' I thought. 'I'll ask him about it later.'

"You call that thing your sister." The man in the strange haori said once again.

The man quickly dashed forward with incredible speed and quickly snatched away Nezuko. To the normal human eye, you wouldn't have even been able to see what happened. The man was now holding Nezuko at his side, he was holding her effortlessly.

He then switched his gaze from seemingly nothing to me. Immediately, he tried the same trick that he did on Nezuko but it wasn't going to work that easily.

Before he could reach me, I grabbed his wrist and his shoulder and threw him behind my back into the snow. He quickly recovered and went for the same trick. I dodged and then gave him a kick to the stomach. He flipped in the air and managed to land in a crouching posi

tion near Nezuko. He immediately got himself and Nezuko into the same positions they were in before the confrontation between him and me.

"Nezuko! Rimuru!" I heard Tanjiro say as he stood up quickly. "Don't move." The man said in a monotone voice. The wind suddenly caught up and snow gathered in the wind creating a strange fog that obscured your vision. That could be used strategically. "My job is to slay Demons." The man followed up. "Needless to say, I'm going to decapitate both your sister and your friend." He said way too casually.

'He's a Demon Slayer?' I thought, still shocked at this current situation. We three and the rest of the Kamado family were all laughing together and having dinner together just yesterday.

"Hold on!" Tanjiro said interrupting my thoughts. "Nezuko and Rimuru haven't killed anyone!" He said in a desperate voice. "Back at my house, there was another scent that I had never smelled before! That's probably the one who killed my family! It wasn't Nezuko or Rimuru!" He said.

"I don't know how she turned into something like that, but..." He said. "But still..." The man quickly interrupted him. "It's quite simple." He said in a monotone voice that never seemed to change. "Because her wounds were exposed to demon blood, she turned into a demon." He said as if it was obvious. "That's how man-eating Demons multiply." He said in a tone of voice that would make any normal person feel fear.

"Nezuko would never eat humans! I've known Rimuru for a long time now and I know that she would never do anything like that as well!" Tanjiro said while stepping forward. "You've gotta be kidding me." The man said. "Just now, you were about to be devoured." He said. "You're wrong!" Tanjiro responded. "I'm sure she knows who I am!" Tanjiro quickly said in a tone of voice that sounded desperate yet determined. "I won't let them hurt anyone. I'm going to turn them both back into humans! I swear I'll heal them!" Tanjiro said.

'Tanjiro, I'm sorry, but I can't be turned back into a human.' I thought while I was watching the conversation play out. The confrontation was really tense. It was a matter of life and death.

"They can't be healed." The man followed up. "Once you become a demon, you can never go back to being human." The man said. His eyes were empty, lacking light and showing nothing but disinterest. "I'll find a way no matter what!" Tanjiro quickly said. "So please... So please, don't kill them!" Tanjiro said in a pleading tone. "I'll hunt down the one who slaughtered my family! I'll make everything all right!" Tanjiro shouted as the man slowly raised his sword up to Nezuko's neck. "Please! Please! Don't do it!" Tanjiro shouted pleadingly in a pained voice. I didn't want to injure the man, he was just doing his job but now, I was fine with hurting him.

I quickly dashed towards the man, surprisingly he could still react and slashed his sword in front of him. I jumped up and used my hand to push myself off of his head and onto the trunk of the tree behind him. I quickly jumped off of the trunk ready to deliver a blow to the man's face but he quickly spun around and kicked me towards the same tree. I was going to recover but he quickly moved in front of me, his blade in front of my neck, Nezuko still in his grasp. I was of course unfazed and was going to quickly pull him away with universal thread but then I heard something.

"I'm begging you not to..." I heard Tanjiro say. I quickly looked over the man's shoulder to see Tanjiro in the dogeza position. "Please..." I heard him say in a soft but pained voice. "Don't kill them. Please don't do it." Tanjiro said sobbing. "I'm begging you..." He said softly.

I felt the man suddenly tense up and pull his sword away from my neck. "Don't ever give others a chance to murder you!" The man shouted. Tanjiro flinched at the tone of his voice. "Stop that pathetic groveling! If it was the least bit effective, your family wouldn't be dead!" The man said, each and every one of his words, laced with venom and rage. "Can a weakling who can't take the initiative in such a situation heal the people he cares about?! Hunt down the enemy?!" The man shouted. "Don't make me laugh!" He said.

"The weak have no rights or choices! Their only fate is to be relentlessly crushed by the strong! The demons might know how to cure your sister and your friend!" The man said. "But don't think that a demon would respect your will or wishes!" He said while shoving Nezuko forward but still keeping his hold on her. "Naturally, I have no respect for you, either! That's reality! Why did you throw yourself over your sister earlier? Was that your way of protecting them?" The man scolded. "Why didn't you swing your hatchet? Why did you show your back to me? All those blunders led to these Demon's capture." He said while pointing his katana at Tanjiro. "I could've skewered them along with you!" The man finished

'I could've easily escaped though.' I thought as I watched the full-on lecture the man had just given to Tanjiro. Tanjiro had a pained expression on his face. Tears apparent on his face. 'Tanjiro, you'll have to be strong for this. Both mentally and physically." I thought. 'This is an important time. I know myself, these experiences hurt but if you manage to push past them, you can become so much stronger because of them. That's what the rest of the Kamado family would want for you.' I thought as I stared at Tanjiro.

The man slowly raised his sword, threatening to stab Nezuko. "No!" Tanjiro said as he tensed up. Nezuko started growling and squirming but the man still managed to hold her down effortlessly. The man then brought his sword down and stabbed Nezuko through the shoulder. "Stop!" Tanjiro screamed as he threw a rock which the man easily deflected.

Tanjiro quickly ran towards his hatchet and grabbed it, using the sudden fog as a cover to make his way into the trees. He started running through the trees making sure to be under cover. He threw a rock in between the trees. Which the man dodged easily. Tanjiro then charged recklessly at the man.

'Tanjiro, no good is going to come out of that. Why?' I thought as I prepared to defend Tanjiro, then I noticed. The shimmer. Tanjiro had thrown the hatchet in the air. 'Smart.' I thought as I relaxed again. "You fool!" The man said as he brought his sword down on Tanjiro's back, effectively knocking him out.

The man then seemed to notice. His hatchet was missing.

The man quickly looked up and saw the hatchet coming straight towards him. Using his fast reaction time that you could only get from experience he managed to barely avoid it. The hatchet sticking to the tree behind him. The man simply stared at Tanjiro, undoubtedly deep in thought.