Late at night.
The Kamado household.
In the darkness, the youngest child of the Kamado family, Rokuta Kamado, was suddenly awakened from his sleep by the urge to pee.
Sitting up in bed, he rubbed his eyes. Once his vision cleared, he looked at his two older brothers, Takeo Kamado and Shigeru Kamado, who were fast asleep.
Without overthinking it, he decisively reached out and shook his older brother, Takeo. "Takeo, wake up."
"Mmh?" Takeo Kamado was roused by Rokuta. He looked at his younger brother with groggy eyes. "Is it morning already?"
"I need to pee," Rokuta said anxiously, his voice tight.
"Alright, alright, let's go. I'll go with you."
Hearing this, Takeo was instantly jolted awake by his brother's words.
Although it was a bit of a hassle, his brother was still young, and it was perfectly normal for him to be afraid of getting up to use the outhouse alone in the middle of the night.
Moreover, with their eldest brother Tanjiro away, Takeo, as the second oldest son, naturally had to shoulder this responsibility.
He definitely couldn't let Rokuta wet the bed.
Otherwise, the girls in the family would definitely tease him the next day.
With that thought in mind, Takeo led Rokuta toward the outhouse.
They didn't light a lamp.
The Kamado family was by no means wealthy.
On the contrary, they were a poor family that made a living by chopping wood and selling charcoal.
Their daily life truly followed the rhythm of working at sunrise and resting at sunset.
Therefore, Takeo could only rely on the faint moonlight to guide his brother through the dark toward the outhouse.
*Knock, knock, knock.*
"Rokuta, are you done yet?" Takeo knocked gently on the outhouse door, calling out to his brother inside with a hint of impatience.
"A-Almost," Rokuta replied shakily. "Takeo, stop rushing me, I can't pee..."
Outside the door, Takeo looked completely speechless.
However, as the two conversed, neither noticed two flashes of crimson light gleaming in the nearby darkness.
Suddenly, a hand shot out from the shadows and clamped tightly over Takeo's mouth.
*'Who is it?'*
Takeo's eyes widened. Muffled sounds of struggle escaped his throat as his hands instinctively tried to pry the hand away from his face.
But the assailant's strength was simply too overwhelming.
It was so immense that he was completely powerless.
Finally, seeing that his struggles were futile, a flash of clarity crossed Takeo's eyes.
He frantically slapped his hands against the outhouse door in front of him.
*'At least... at least I have to protect my brother...'*
*Bang! Bang! Bang!*
Startled by the sudden, violent knocking, Rokuta assumed his brother had grown impatient waiting.
Terrified that Takeo might abandon him and return to the house alone, he hurriedly called out, "Takeo, stop rushing me! I'm really almost done!"
After a long moment, there was no response from outside.
Rokuta asked meekly, "Takeo, are you still there?"
"Takeo, don't scare me, I'm frightened."
Still, silence answered him.
Rokuta gently pulled the door open and stepped outside.
Not far away, a dark silhouette crouched on the ground. A mouthful of white teeth reflected a sickening crimson glow under the moonlight.
And lying in front of the dark figure was a small, bloodstained body.
It was the brother he had just been calling for.
Uncontrollable terror flooded Rokuta's eyes.
But in that split second, his love for his family overpowered the fear in his heart.
"You monster, what are you doing to my brother?!"
Rokuta charged at the dark figure, his tiny fists raining blows upon it.
Unfortunately, such an attack was as weak as falling raindrops, completely devoid of any lethality.
With a casual flick of its hand, the dark figure sent Rokuta flying backward.
The figure then turned around. Looking at Rokuta, who had collapsed on the ground with blood gushing from his mouth, the monster revealed a set of blood-stained teeth and said coldly, "I was planning to eat this kid first before eating you."
"But since you're in such a hurry, I won't hold back."
Wiping the blood from the corner of its mouth, the dark figure slowly approached the fallen Rokuta.
Right at that moment, their mother, Kie Kamado, jolted awake inside the house, as if sensing something terrible.
"Mother? Did you hear a noise too?" Nezuko Kamado, who had also woken up, looked at her mother and asked.
"Yes." Kie nodded.
Although she didn't want to admit it, her heart was aching with a dull throb, a premonition that something unbearable was happening.
"Nezuko, look after Hanako. I'm going outside to check. I'll be right back."
After comforting the startled Nezuko, Kie hurriedly got up and walked out of the house.
When she saw the front door left ajar, the unease in her heart deepened.
*'Please, let everyone be safe!'*
Quickening her pace, Kie prayed for her children in her heart.
Soon, stepping outside, Kie witnessed a scene that made her heart bleed.
Two of her children lay in pools of blood, while a faceless monster crouched on the ground, greedily devouring their flesh.
The cruel reality bombarded her mind like a relentless artillery shell.
"You bastard, what have you done to my children?!"
Grabbing a wooden stick nearby, Kie charged at the dark figure brutalizing her children, letting out a furious roar.
*Crack!*
The wooden stick struck the dark figure's back and snapped in half upon impact.
Kie stood frozen in place, staring at the broken stick in her hands.
"A woman?" The dark figure turned its head. Looking at the stunned Kie, it muttered in a hoarse voice, "I'll save you for later. Don't worry, I'll grant you demon blood in a moment."
Seeing the dark figure ignore her and prepare to continue its vicious assault on her children, fury erupted from the depths of Kie's heart.
Gripping the splintered half of the wooden stick, she immediately thrust it toward the dark figure.
"Every single one of you is so eager to throw your lives away."
The dark figure turned back and grabbed Kie by the throat, saying impatiently, "Why are you in such a rush to die?"
"...Let my children go."
The intense suffocation caused blood to rush to Kie's head, turning her face a swollen red, but even now, her only thought was of her children.
A trace of pleading appeared in her eyes as she looked at the dark figure.
"What an interesting look in your eyes."
But the dark figure showed no intention of pity. With a flick of its wrist, it tossed Kie through the air.
"Now, no one can interrupt my meal."
The dark figure nodded in satisfaction and was about to crouch down to feast once more.
Just then, a silver chain shot out from the darkness, tightly binding the creature.
At the other end of the chain, a figure slowly emerged from the shadows.
Looking at the bloody scene around him, the figure uttered a baffling sentence: "Am I still a step too late?"
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]