Harvesting the spider lily doesn't require this many people, and since the flowers only bloom during the day, there is virtually no need to worry about demon attacks.
Furthermore, unless Muzan or multiple Upper Ranks show up, this group is more than capable.
Watching Tanjirou and the others enter the woods, Mizuki went to Tanjirou's house.
No one had lived here for over two years, the house had long lost its vibrancy, and much of the wooden structure had decayed.
The weather was nice today, but the air already felt hot, even in the morning.
The spider lily blooms at two in the afternoon, which is the hottest time of the day.
Having nothing to do, Mizuki cleared the weeds from Yoriichi and Shi's grave again.
After slightly rearranging the pile of rocks that barely resembled a grave, Mizuki put her hands together in prayer: "My apologies, my apologies. After we defeat Muzan, I will definitely rebuild you a beautiful new one."
"Since I'm being so sincere, please lend some of your talent to Tanjirou, Yoriichi."
She actually didn't believe in gods or Buddhas, even though she had personally seen the souls of the dead linger.
For Mizuki, the reason for not believing in gods or Buddhas was simple: these so-called deities did not grant good endings to kind people, as they did in the stories.
Allowing the good to be rewarded and the evil to be punished.
But this did not prevent Mizuki from mourning her loved ones.
"Ha..." Mizuki sighed deeply, looking at the pile of stones before her.
Tanjirou was truly hardworking; Mizuki had seen it all.
He got up early every day and devoted almost all his time to training, except for meals.
But the reality was that some things didn't necessarily pay off just because you worked hard.
Two of the Upper Ranks had been defeated, but Mizuki felt no significant emotional fluctuation.
Because no one could yet stand against Muzan, the strongest and most dangerous Demon King.
If the final confrontation truly came down to the Demon Slayer Corps against Muzan and the Upper Ranks, then she would be the only one capable of holding Muzan back.
Although she had defeated Muzan in a dream without much effort, the dream was merely based on her understanding of Muzan and was false.
Regarding the true Muzan, whether it was his stats panel or his abilities, they had a severe lack of information.
Yoriichi certainly had experience fighting Muzan, but he instantly killed him with one strike. Besides learning that Muzan possessed seven hearts and five brains, the only other piece of information was that his arm could transform into a whip.
Sometimes, being too powerful really isn't a good thing.
She needed to stall Muzan while others fought the Upper Ranks, ensuring she wasn't consumed by him while waiting for reinforcements.
Originally, this action was very dangerous; if she lost to Muzan, the situation would instantly collapse.
But besides her, no one else could stop Muzan.
However, if this happened, Kokushibou would be completely unleashed.
Given the Demon Slayer Corps' current combat strength, could anyone truly stop a fully powered Kokushibou?
If they were to rely on numbers to build a chance of victory, they would need at least the Stone Hashira, the strongest Hashira, present to have a chance against Kokushibou.
The physique of that blind monk left a deep impression on Mizuki. Judging by his human form, Kokushibou probably wouldn't have been his match before awakening the Demon Slayer Mark.
But the current situation is that Kokushibou became a demon and underwent hundreds of years of refinement, possessing the advantages of the Demon Slayer Mark and the Transparent World, creating a vast gap.
Although Mizuki had previously comforted Tanjirou, telling him not to be anxious, she was, in fact, the most anxious one.
Because... she truly had not yet seen any hope of defeating Muzan.
The gap between humans and demons is too vast.
Unless Muzan was foolish enough to send the Upper Ranks out one by one, allowing the entire Demon Slayer Corps to solo the boss. In that scenario, with her absorbing Muzan's attacks, the theoretical chance of victory would be highest.
But... could Muzan really be that foolish?
Leaving Yoriichi's grave while she was sighing, the time had quietly reached noon.
When she returned to Tanjirou's house, everyone else was returning from the woods, carrying bundles of firewood on their backs.
Zenitsu looked around the house, his face covered in sweat: "So this is Tanjirou's house?"
"Miss Mizuki." Tanjirou first greeted Mizuki, wiping the sweat from his face. "Okay, everyone, put the firewood in the empty space and come inside to rest for a bit."
The weather was very hot today, causing the group to sweat profusely.
Mizuki didn't feel much, perhaps because she was a cold-blooded creature; the hot weather only felt pleasantly warm to her.
The wooden house had been abandoned for over two years, cobwebs covered the corners, and dust lay thick on the floor.
It seemed the Kamado Family had not returned since then.
So much so that no one knew where to sit.
Mizuki felt a little awkward; she hadn't done anything but sit by Yoriichi's grave and complain.
Everyone could only briefly tidy up the room.
After lunch, Tanjirou and the others went out to chop firewood again without stopping.
The burden on the Kamado Family now rested entirely on the two young men, Takeo and Shigeru. Although Kie Kamado also found odd jobs in town, it was still difficult raising four children.
Tanjirou probably wanted to do as much of the hardest work as possible while he was home.
In fact, the salary of a Demon Slayer Corps Swordsman was considerable, but Kie Kamado refused it, claiming that he and Nezuko needed it more.
This whole family was too polite.
In the afternoon, Mizuki, thinking she hadn't done anything, honestly cleaned Tanjirou's house, wiping away the dust from the floor and ceiling.
She didn't know why she was doing this, as she wouldn't be living here later.
She just felt embarrassed resting while everyone else was busy, so she had to find something to do.
After a quick cleaning, the time reached two in the afternoon.
Mizuki came to Yoriichi's grave, and three blue spider lilies swaying in the wind and blooming on the pile of rocks instantly caught her attention.
That was close! They had already bloomed.
Mizuki quickly harvested the spider lilies.
The blue spider lily's blooming time is very short; it will wither if you aren't careful.
But after harvesting, it behaves like a normal plant, possessing a considerable shelf life and not instantly wilting or dying.
After harvesting the spider lilies, Mizuki returned to Tanjirou's house to wait for them to finish work... It was so slow; the sun was almost setting.
Mizuki looked at the sunset in front of the house. She had been sitting idle all afternoon, and even though she was skilled at Zazen, she felt bored.
Just as Mizuki was wondering if they had forgotten about her, a rustling sound echoed from the woods.
The glow of the setting sun poured down, and sunlight pierced through the dim woods, looking like the merging of water and light.
When Tanjirou walked out of the woods carrying a large bundle of firewood, the scene before him suddenly opened up. The crimson sunlight hit the front of the house, and Tanjirou looked at Mizuki by the doorway, his slightly tired pupils contracting slightly.
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