Chapter 134: New Career, Doctor
----
Aoki looked at Tamayo again. "So, there's no chance of success in the short term?"
Tamayo asked, unsure, "Mr. Aoki, what do you mean by 'short term'?"
"Within a year?"
"There is absolutely no chance"
Tamayo used three strong words to express her certainty.
"All right, then."
Aoki sighed, abandoning the idea of finding a breakthrough with her.
"What happened?" Tamayo asked, curious.
In her experience, it was rare to see Mr. Aoki so troubled.
Aoki briefly explained how he was being pressured to marry.
Tamayo found it amusing—the powerful warrior who had defeated seven Upper-Rank demons and Muzan Kibutsuji himself was worried about getting married. It struck her that Mr. Aoki was not even twenty years old yet—still, in many ways, just a "kid."
Thinking for a moment, Tamayo said seriously, "I think the most important thing is that two people are willing to be together. It doesn't necessarily have to involve a physical relationship."
As a doctor and a woman over 500 years old, she felt comfortable discussing such matters with him.
"A platonic relationship?" Aoki shook his head. He knew Takina wouldn't reject him, but he wanted to solve the problem completely. Besides, physical desire was only one issue; if left unresolved, more complications could arise over time.
"Ms. Tamayo, you still have the human transformation potion, right?"
During the final battle with Muzan Kibutsuji, the potion to turn demons back into humans hadn't been fully developed. It was only completed half a year later, but by then, it was no longer needed, so it remained with Tamayo.
Tamayo nodded and took out a small case containing five syringes.
"There are five doses in total. They're all here."
Aoki said, "Give them to me. If you have time, please make more."
Tamayo handed him the box. "Mr. Aoki, do you plan to turn back into a human?"
"I don't have any such plans at the moment." Aoki shook his head.
He wanted the transformation potion just in case he needed it one day, but he had no intention of giving up the power he had worked so hard to obtain. Besides, there was the question of whether the potion could even turn him back into a human.
In the original story, there were several conditions for Tanjiro to transform back from being a demon king. First, he had consumed Nezuko's blood, which had certain antibodies. Second, he had been a demon for only a short time. Finally, Tanjiro himself had a strong desire to return to his human form.
Aoki met none of these conditions.
Tamayo remained silent. She was willing to support whatever Mr. Aoki decided to do. For centuries, her primary motivation had been revenge. Now that her revenge was complete, she had no desires left except the desire to repay her debts.
Aoki continued, "By the way, Ms. Tamayo, I hope you can find a way to help demons regain their human consciousness as soon as possible. It would be even better if you could also solve the issue of their need for human flesh."
Tamayo sensed something in his words and was slightly surprised. "Mr. Aoki, can you turn people into demons?"
Aoki nodded. "I've inherited nearly all of Muzan Kibutsuji's abilities."
He had never revealed this to anyone before. This ability was too sensitive—sharing it would only cause trouble and create unnecessary concern. But Tamayo was one of the very few people he could trust with such information.
After a moment's hesitation, Tamayo asked, "Mr. Aoki, are you considering turning your loved ones into demons?"
Aoki nodded calmly. "Not right now, but what if one of them falls seriously ill or is on the verge of dying from old age? Shouldn't I be prepared for that possibility?"
"Although becoming a demon means losing a lot, at least you get to survive, and as long as you're alive, there's hope."
"Alright, I'll make this my priority," Tamayo replied.
She fully understood Mr. Aoki's reasoning. After all, she had chosen to become a demon just to be able to watch her children grow up. Unfortunately, she had been deceived by Muzan Kibutsuji. After becoming a demon, she lost her mind and ended up killing her husband and children with her own hands.
But Mr. Aoki would never do something like that.
With her help, he had managed to regain his sense of self after becoming a demon, no longer needing to consume humans. This was, in a way, the breakthrough he had always dreamed of.
"If necessary, I can capture some death row prisoners and turn them into demons for you to experiment on," Aoki offered.
It was best to entrust this matter to Miss Tamayo. It wasn't appropriate for anyone else, including Kanae Kocho, to know about it.
Tamayo nodded and did not refuse. After all, materials were essential for research.
Death row inmates, she thought, were a group of people who were already condemned to die. If their existence could help Mr. Aoki, they might, in some way, contribute positively. Perhaps they could even be reborn into a better life in their next incarnation.
Aoki glanced at the clock on the wall. "It's almost dawn. I'll help see the patients today!"
"Isn't it early for you?" Tamayo asked, surprised.
Aoki laughed at himself. "I've realized I've been too lazy lately. I plan to work harder from now on."
He grabbed a white coat and put it on. As he did, a deep blue screen appeared in front of him.
---
[Name: Aoki]
- Strength: 28
- Constitution: 28
- Intelligence: 28
- Agility: 28
[Occupation: Hunter, King of the White Walkers, Martial Artist, Doctor]
---
[King of the Others]
- Quality: ★★☆
- Level: lv20 (0/2000)
- Skills: Demon Blood VI, Space Shuttle II, Transparent World II, Demon Devour II, Soul Shock (not learned yet)
---
[Doctor]
- Quality: ☆
- Level: lv4 (158/400)
- Skills: Scalpel, Cure All Diseases with Medicine, Sharp Eyes
---
Aoki looked at his system panel.
After studying with Tamayo and Kanae for two months, he had finally acquired the "Doctor" profession, just as he had hoped. There were four skills listed. "Scalpel" enhanced his surgical talents, and "Cure All Diseases with Medicine" improved his skills in medicine preparation and manufacturing.
"Sharp Eyes" wasn't the legendary Monkey King's magical power, but rather a skill to boost his diagnostic intuition. None of these skills offered any advantage in combat.
To level up as a "Doctor," he needed to save lives and cure illnesses.
However, over the past year, without any real sense of urgency, he had been living more leisurely. Ten months had passed, and he still hadn't reached the maximum level.
Of course, another reason was that he had grown accustomed to the rapid level increases as "King of the White Walkers" and the surge in attribute points, so he was not as focused on his half-star profession as he had been when he first obtained "Hunter."
He had invested a lot of time in learning breathing techniques and developing his abilities as the "King of the White Walkers."
Yet, all these efforts had led to failure.
He hadn't mastered any breathing techniques and didn't gain any experience points from the "King of the White Walkers."
The only lesson he learned was that he could not gain any experience from killing newly turned demons.
This conclusion had been reached after the lives of ten death row prisoners were used for testing.
______
T/N: There is a patreon for this work, and any new work I add will be dropped there first. check it out for an early chapters.
Patreon link:- patreon.com/ANelite