Chapter 4
"Ah! Someone's dead..."
The terrified voice instantly spread throughout the entire village.
"What happened?"
"It seems to be in the direction of Daichi's house..."
"Hurry, let's go take a look..."
...
The cries also reached Akito, who frowned and said, "Could it be that a Demon is eating people..."
"I hope not. We currently have no ability to resist the attack of Demons, and we don't know if this demon is a regular one or one with demonic abilities..."
With a restless heart, he quickly ran towards the scene.
When he arrived, he saw that the area was already crowded with people, and the oldest elder in the village was trying to manage the situation, calming the crowd.
"Quiet! From the looks of it, that man-eating demon from the neighboring village has set its sights on us. What we need to do now is quickly notify the Hunters..."
The village chief said, trembling as he leaned on his cane.
"In order to prevent a tragedy from happening again, everyone must tightly close their doors at night until the Hunters arrive, and also..."
Akito didn't continue to listen to the old village chief's words; instead, his eyes were fixed on the rotten corpse left behind by the malevolent spirit.
"Ha..."
Akito sighed.
"It's strange. If I had seen a scene like this in my previous life, I might have vomited or started trembling, but now I feel nothing at all..."
"This won't do. After dark, the malevolent spirit will definitely hunt again; I just don't know who the unlucky one will be..."
"However, in most anime from my previous life, Demons particularly like to..."
"And judging by this situation, it seems that this village and the neighboring one have become hunting grounds for Demons..."
"What to do? Ordinary weapons can't kill Demons at all, and I don't know if the Demon Slayer Corps is aware of the attacks happening here..."
The thought that he was a primary target for most Demons sent a chill down Akito's spine.
"Hey, Akito."
Akito turned to see Haruno's father.
"You little brat, before the Hunters arrive, you should move to my house. If something happens while you're alone at home, you won't know it in time."
Haruno's father said as he pulled Akito away from the scene.
"Go back and prepare your toiletries for tonight, then come directly over."
Haruno's father said in a deep voice.
Akito sensed that Haruno's father seemed to know something...
Akito didn't say much; after all, one more person meant more strength. He had no ability to deal with Demons, and Haruno's father was in his prime, a stronger force than himself.
"Maybe I should prepare more ropes..."
...
Soon, night fell, and the village became quiet, though this tranquility concealed hidden dangers.
"Hahaha, what are you doing with all those ropes? You don't really think they can catch a man-eating beast, do you?"
"Uncle, do you really think it was a beast that caused the injuries?"
Akito stared at him.
Haruno's father suddenly calmed down.
"You mean... that's impossible. Those are just fictional things..."
Haruno's father quickly shook his head, as he still believed that a large beast was the culprit.
"The reason legends are legends is that someone experienced and witnessed them firsthand. It's better to believe in their existence than to dismiss them. Uncle, if it really is that kind of thing, I don't think these knives and axes can kill it, and as far as I know, only sunlight can kill that kind of thing..."
"Where did you hear that only sunlight can kill it?"
Haruno's father asked, puzzled.
"I don't think I ever said that only sunlight can kill that thing..."
Akito: "..."
Haruno and her mother watched the two of them discuss the matter without knowing what they were talking about.
They could only pray in their hearts.
"Alright, you two, it's late. Hurry up and go to sleep..."
Akito and Haruno's father exchanged glances and stopped discussing, both sighing inwardly.
The rural night was eerily quiet, and Akito couldn't sleep at all, staring at the dark beams of the house, hearing his own heartbeat.
Time passed slowly, and Akito's eyelids began to feel heavy.
At this point, Haruno's father was already snoring.
Suddenly,
Akito seemed to hear something.
Footsteps, and the sound of a door opening!
In an instant, Akito's drowsiness vanished, and his heartbeat quickened.
"Uncle, wake up, something's happening..."
Akito carefully got up and went over to shake the sleeping Haruno's father.
"Um... what's wrong, Akito..."
Haruno's father said quietly while yawning.
"It seems like there's someone outside..."
Akito whispered.
Upon hearing this, Haruno's father lost his sleepiness, got up, and grabbed the axe and knife nearby for protection. Akito also held a knife and some rope.
"I leave my precious daughter to you. You two hide in the cabinet and don't make a sound..."
At this moment, Haruno's mother had also woken up. Without saying much, she picked up Haruno and hid her in the cabinet.
Before leaving, she reminded them to be careful.
The "clattering" sound grew closer. Akito and Haruno's father stood on either side of the door, ready to strike down with their weapons as soon as the Demon opened the door.
"Crack"
The door seemed to open slightly.
In an instant, a strong, foul odor rushed in, and a black-green hand with sharp claws reached inside.
At the same time, it muttered: "Delicious, here I come... Hehe."
"Make your move, Akito!"
Haruno's father shouted, and the two swung their weapons down instantly.
"Ah!"
"Bang!"
The door was forcefully slammed open.
What came into view was a demon with blood-red eyes and sharp teeth.
"Damned humans, you actually made me feel pain. Unforgivable, I must eat you."
The evil, greedy gaze fixated on Akito and Haruno's father, then it picked up its severed hand from the ground right in front of them.
"Uncle, it has strong self-healing abilities. Our knives and axes aren't causing it any harm. I suggest we try to separate its head from its body and then bind it up to wait for sunlight to kill it..."
"Will it not die even if its head is chopped off? We won't know until we try..."
Haruno's father tightened his grip and charged forward with the axe, while Akito followed closely behind.
"Bang!"
A huge sound echoed.
Haruno's father and Akito missed their target as the demon's speed was incredibly fast, evading them in an instant.
However, soon Akito and Haruno's father gained the upper hand because the small space of the room greatly limited the demon's movements.
Although the demon was not afraid of the weapons in Akito and Haruno's father's hands, it still felt pain, so it kept targeting the younger Akito.
While Akito may not have been as strong as Haruno's father, the daily practice of drawing his knife over the past six months gave him a certain proficiency, and the demon frequently suffered cuts from Akito's blade.
Both Akito and Haruno's father had some injuries, and they had spent a lot of energy dealing with the demon. The demon sensed that dawn was approaching and felt anxious, wanting to escape, but Akito and Haruno's father blocked the door.
The two sides faced off like this until suddenly, the demon seemed to sense something, its blood-red eyes turned, and it quickly headed toward the cabinet where Haruno was hiding.
"Not good, Akito! The demon's target has shifted to Haruno and her mother!"
"Damn it!"
Akito and Haruno's father felt a surge of urgency, but the demon was faster, and it was about to reach the cabinet.
An overwhelming sense of anger surged within him, and his familiarity with the knife intensified. Without thinking further, Akito swung his long knife with all his might, aiming for the demon's thigh.
Akito didn't even notice that, in that moment, a huge rush of air filled his lungs, and the blood in his body flowed faster, making him stronger than usual...
"Bang!"
The demon fell to the ground, dark red blood pooling on the floor, and Akito saw that the demon's body had separated from one of its thighs.
Akito and Haruno's father widened their eyes in disbelief; they had actually chopped off the demon's thigh.
But soon, they reacted joyfully and rushed toward the demon. The demon, having lost a leg, attempted to reach for it, but Akito and Haruno's father had already run up to hold down its body.
The demon was incredibly strong, and in an instant, it threw Haruno's father aside.
Seeing this, Akito quickly picked up the long knife and struck at the demon.
As the knife approached, the demon instinctively raised its hands to block.
"Crack!"
The demon's hands were severed.
Before the demon could react, Akito swung with all his strength, striking the demon's neck.
The sound of the knife sinking into flesh echoed, but this time it did not sever the neck.
Akito shouted, "Quick, help me with all your might!"
Injured all over, Haruno's father ignored the pain of his broken leg, realizing that one more moment of delay could mean death for everyone.
Gritting his teeth, he rushed to Akito's side and pressed down with all his strength.
"Thud!"
The demon's neck was severed.
The Demon's eyes were still moving, seemingly unable to comprehend that its neck had been severed by someone who was not a member of the Demon Slayer Corps.
Then came an overwhelming rage; it felt insulted that a mere human had managed to cut off its neck.
"Quick, uncle, hurry and tie up its separated limbs with rope..."
Seeing that the Demon's neck was truly severed and it was still alive, Haruno's father quickly grabbed some rope to bind the Demon's body.
Meanwhile, Akito noticed that the Demon seemed to be trying to control its separated body parts to merge them back together. Gritting his teeth, he swung the long knife in his hand and struck the Demon's face.
"Thud"
The sound of the knife sinking into flesh echoed again.
This also successfully bought time for Haruno's father, and seeing that he had managed to bind the Demon's limbs separately, Akito let out a sigh of relief.
The Demon, unable to move due to its body being bound, began to curse at Akito.
"Damn human, lowly creature, why can't you just obediently fulfill your role as food..."
Akito ignored the Demon's insults, pretending he couldn't hear, and locked its head inside a metal box.
After doing all this, Akito finally couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath, a wave of weakness flooding his body.
Haruno's father also sat on the floor, looking at the destroyed home and the struggling limbs of the bound Demon, his heart racing.
After all, everything had exceeded his understanding.
Who would have thought that a legendary creature would appear right in front of him?
Moreover, he had almost lost his life.
All of this was thanks to that kid, Akito.
After a while, he then remembered Haruno's mother and daughter, who were still hiding in the box.
So he called them out.
When the two came out and saw Akito lying on the ground and their husband covered in injuries, with his broken leg now swollen and red, tears streamed down their faces as they rummaged through boxes for herbs to bandage their wounds.
Looking at the still-struggling limbs of the Demon, Haruno's mother, suppressing her inner fear, asked, "What... what is this thing..."
Haruno's father didn't explain much, as dawn was approaching. Once the sun rose, the Demon would be reduced to ashes.
Saying too much would only frighten Haruno and her mother further.
"It's okay, everything has been resolved..."
Haruno's father raised his hands to gently stroke Haruno's mother's cheek, softly wiping away her tears and comforting her.
Meanwhile, as Akito and the others waited for the sun to rise, they were met by a latecomer...