The first light of a breakthrough had dawned, followed by a sunrise of progress, until finally, the entire research project was bathed in the radiant glow of success.
Since that fateful dinner, the development process for Horitake and Shinobu had been remarkably smooth. Every day brought a new discovery; every hour yielded a fresh advancement. Their spirits soared, and with their improved moods, the heavy, suffocating atmosphere that had plagued the Butterfly Estate for weeks finally evaporated.
Laughter returned to the halls. The younger girls breathed sighs of relief as the tension vanished, and life at the estate regained its comfortable, lively rhythm.
A week later, the research reached its definitive climax.
Utilizing the properties found within the humble bean, Horitake and Shinobu had successfully isolated and synthesized specific compounds into the Wisteria poison. The result was nothing short of a total transformation—an evolution of their craft.
The new poison was more potent, more volatile, and infinitely more lethal than its predecessor. They had successfully birthed a new generation of Wisteria toxin.
Confetti and cheers would have been appropriate, but the two creators were far too exhausted for such theatrics.
Inside the laboratory, Horitake and Shinobu—who hadn't bothered with personal grooming for days—looked slightly disheveled. Their lab coats were wrinkled, and their hair was a mess, but their eyes shone with triumph as they stared at the small vial sitting on the workbench.
Inside the transparent glass was a liquid of such deep, mesmerizing violet that it seemed to glow with its own ethereal light. It was magnificent, beautiful, and hauntingly alluring.
There is a saying that the more beautiful something is, the more dangerous it becomes. In this case, the adage was an understatement. Only Horitake and Shinobu truly understood the terror contained within that exquisite liquid.
While it was still technically a Wisteria-based poison, its toxicity had been magnified several times over.
Exactly how much stronger was it?
Well... that was where things became a bit awkward.
According to their calculations, the new formula was at least five times more toxic than the old version, and even that "five times" was a very conservative estimate.
Why was the data so imprecise? Why were the results so vague?
Because the data was purely theoretical. It was based on calculations, not combat.
During this intense period, the two had been so immersed in the chemistry and synthesis that they hadn't actually performed a field test. It made sense—the Butterfly Estate was located deep within the Demon Slayer Corps headquarters. There weren't exactly any stray demons wandering around for them to use as test subjects. Without a live target, they couldn't visually confirm the toxin's efficacy.
Thus, they were left in a strange predicament: they knew they had created a masterpiece of death, but they didn't know the exact scale of its lethality.
Realizing this, Horitake and Shinobu shared a sheepish, knowing look. Their minds were perfectly in sync, and they spoke simultaneously:
"Should we go out and test it?"
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