Night had fallen, yet Nezuko's heart was anything but calm.
In the past, she had often gone to visit Soma after dark. Nearly every evening, she would carefully prepare sweet red bean porridge and bring it to him herself.
But tonight was different.
If she stepped into his room now, their relationship might truly change… move one step further than before.
The thought filled her with anticipation, but even more than that, nervousness.
There was longing for the future, of course—but also emotions she could neither describe nor fully understand.
She had never experienced anything like this before.
And now, she stood at what might become the most important moment of her life.
A young girl's thoughts were hopelessly tangled.
After bathing and changing into clean clothes, Nezuko carried the freshly made red bean porridge down the hallway. Yet the closer she drew to that familiar room, the more anxious she became.
The small house before her suddenly felt like a terrifying beast lying in wait, while she herself was walking willingly into its jaws—a sweet offering delivered straight to the monster.
And yet…
Though such thoughts crossed her mind, she felt no fear.
If anything, some part of her welcomed it.
"Knock, knock…"
Standing outside the door, the girl hesitantly raised her hand and knocked softly.
"Come in. The door isn't locked."
The familiar gentle voice came from inside, and Nezuko's heartbeat instantly quickened.
Taking a deep breath, her chest rising and falling with tension, she slowly pushed open the door.
Inside, Soma sat beside the table.
At that moment, he was reading through a report delivered by a Kasugai Crow—a letter from the Ubuyashiki Family.
The handwriting was elegant and refined at first glance, clearly written by a woman.
The contents concerned a recent demon attack.
Truthfully, demon attacks had become increasingly common lately. Incidents involving demons attacking humans were occurring all across the country.
But this incident was different.
Because the attack had taken place inside the Imperial Palace.
Though the imperial family's political authority had long since become little more than a symbol, their status remained the highest in the nation—at least on the surface.
And now, demons had attacked even there.
It was the first incident of its kind in many years.
The impact was enormous.
The upper echelons of society had always known about demons. However, demons had never been particularly active in the public eye. Even when attacks occurred, they usually happened in remote regions. And even in cities where man-eating demons lurked, they hid themselves carefully, rarely causing disturbances large enough to draw widespread attention.
Besides, the Demon Slayer Corps—supported from the shadows by the Ubuyashiki Family—had always handled demon extermination in secret. Most people believed leaving such matters to the Corps was sufficient.
More importantly, the authorities had no desire to expose the existence of man-eating demons to the public. Doing so would trigger mass panic and potentially lead to chaos beyond their control.
But this attack shattered many people's illusions.
The horrific aftermath forced even more of those in power to truly understand what demons were.
To understand just how terrifying they could be.
The letter briefly described the incident. Although the Demon Slayer Corps had arrived in time to respond, the casualties were still devastating, and the consequences severe.
Yet the fact that this information had been sent specifically to Soma was, in itself, highly intriguing.
After all, not long ago, he had proposed a certain suggestion to the Ubuyashiki Family.
And now, a place that almost never saw demon activity had suddenly suffered a demon attack.
A demon appearing within the Imperial Palace grounds…
That alone spoke volumes.
Clearly, the purpose of the letter was not merely to inform Soma about the attack itself.
It was the Ubuyashiki Family's way of telling him they had already acted on his suggestion.
Of course, such matters could never be written plainly in ink. Things done in the shadows were never meant to see the light.
"I honestly didn't expect the Ubuyashiki Family to go this far."
Soma held the letter over the candle flame, watching silently as the paper slowly burned to ash.
Because no matter how one looked at it, this crossed a line into wrongdoing.
It fundamentally contradicted the original purpose of the Demon Slayer Corps.
Perhaps it was because he had witnessed so many swordsmen of the Corps willingly throw away their lives to protect humanity…
But Soma had never thought they would resort to something like this.
Soma thought about it more carefully and realized he had simply been overthinking things.
For the sake of killing Muzan Kibutsuji, the Demon Slayer Corps was willing to sacrifice almost anything.
Not only the lives of its swordsmen.
Even the master of the Ubuyashiki Family, Kagaya Ubuyashiki himself, was prepared to sacrifice his own life.
If that was the case…
Then sacrificing a few ordinary civilians was no exception.
"Sir…" A soft voice suddenly sounded beside him.
Soma lifted his head.
At some point, Nezuko had already walked over and placed a bowl of red bean porridge onto the table. She looked at him curiously, watching as he burned the letter in the candle flame.
Tonight, Nezuko had clearly taken extra care with her appearance.
Her long hair flowed loosely down her back, tied only at the ends with a simple ribbon. A few strands rested naturally beside her cheeks, making her fair, delicate face appear even softer.
She wore a pale cherry-colored yukata patterned with scattered sakura blossoms. Fine silver-thread embroidery decorated the cuffs and collar in elegant vine motifs. Her obi had been tied slightly tighter than usual, accentuating the slender curve of her waist.
Her chest rose and fell faintly with nervous breaths, the collar trembling lightly with each inhale and revealing a glimpse of smooth, pale collarbone.
The moment she noticed his gaze on her, Nezuko's face flushed bright red, the color spreading all the way from the tips of her ears down to her neck.
The flickering candlelight danced across her skin, giving it a soft, almost velvety glow. Her face was not only beautiful, but naturally adorable as well, and the faint trace of baby fat in her cheeks only added to her charm.
"Nezuko, you look beautiful tonight." Soma praised her sincerely.
A certain impulse stirred within him, but sensing how nervous she was, he forcibly restrained himself.
Nezuko's cheeks reddened even further.
"Sit here." Soma pointed toward the chair beside him.
Obediently, Nezuko moved over and sat down.
Normally, people here sat formally on the floor, but Soma had never been accustomed to that custom and preferred chairs whenever possible. Nezuko already understood his habits well.
Once she had settled down, Soma picked up the bowl and slowly began eating the red bean porridge.
Meanwhile, Nezuko remained tense the entire time.
Her heart pounded uncontrollably in her chest.
On the way here, her thoughts had been filled with one expectation after another—imagining Soma suddenly pulling her into his arms the very next second.
Before coming tonight, she had even quietly sought advice from her mother.
Because of that, she already understood many things.
And the moment she thought about what might happen afterward, her entire body tightened instinctively. Every inch of skin felt taut with tension, as though she were a bowstring drawn to its limit.
Yet the things she had imagined never happened.
Soma simply sat there quietly eating the porridge she had made, seemingly without any particular intentions beyond that.
But…
He was the one who had asked her to come tonight.
And she had already prepared herself.
For some reason, disappointment slowly welled up inside her chest.
"How have things been at Sagiri Mountain while I was away these past few days?"
Soma asked casually while continuing to eat.
"Everything's been good. Everyone's been training very hard, and quite a few injured people have arrived recently too. They were all taken in and treated properly…"
Suppressing the faint disappointment in her heart, Nezuko answered softly.
"How long did you simmer the porridge today?"
"Two hours."
"You made it yourself, didn't you?"
"Mhm."
"You've worked hard."
"It wasn't hard at all… As long as sir likes it."
The night breeze drifted through the open window, carrying with it a cool, refreshing touch.
Soma and Nezuko chatted idly together.
At first, Nezuko had been unable to relax, but little by little, the easy atmosphere eased the tension in her body.
At some point, Soma had moved beside her.
The two sat so close that they occasionally brushed against one another without realizing it.
The instant their skin touched, Nezuko's heart began racing again.
Unable to stop herself, she looked up at him.
Soma was still speaking casually, not even looking her way. From her angle, all she could see was his profile illuminated by the candlelight.
And somehow…
It made her feel incredibly safe.
"Nezuko, stay here tonight." Soma suddenly spoke.
The abrupt words made Nezuko's eyes widen instantly.
Even though she had already prepared herself before coming here tonight, hearing those words aloud still made her breathing quicken.
Her heart hammered wildly in her chest, utterly refusing to calm down.
A wave of bashfulness surged through Nezuko's heart, and in an instant, crimson spread from the tips of her ears all the way down to her toes.
How was she supposed to answer him?
As a girl, how could she possibly respond to something like that?
"I'm going to wash up," Soma said gently, seeing Nezuko sitting there with her head lowered and her small hands tightly twisted together, before picking up a towel and heading outside.
Soon, the room was left with only Nezuko alone.
Even though he had left, the girl's heart only grew more flustered and restless. Noticing the window was still open, she hurried over with quick little steps and shut it in a panic, her face burning red the entire time.
At that moment, her legs felt so weak she could barely stand.
It took considerable effort just to make her way over to Soma's bedding.
She was already very familiar with this bed.
After all, she came every morning to clean the room.
In truth, she had been learning how to fulfill the role of a wife for a very long time now.
Ever since Soma's second visit to the Kamado household—ever since she and her mother mistakenly believed he had taken an interest in her—Nezuko had quietly tried to convince herself to become his future wife.
At first, however, she had been unwilling.
Afraid, too.
After all…
He had been a terrifying demon.
But the longer she spent with him, the more she realized he wasn't anything like the monster she had imagined.
He wasn't frightening at all.
If anything…
He was actually very kind.
And gradually, the idea of becoming his wife no longer felt so unbearable.
As they continued spending time together, she eventually realized that some part of her had begun to genuinely want it.
But then, at some point, she discovered that the misunderstanding from that day might truly have been nothing more than a misunderstanding.
When Soma first came to the Kamado home, perhaps it had never been because of her at all.
Both she and her mother had misunderstood him.
Soma had never been that kind of person.
Yet the moment the possibility of becoming his wife seemed to disappear, Nezuko realized something unexpected—
She wasn't happy about it.
In fact, it made her feel terrible.
Only then did she finally understand that somewhere along the way, she had already begun seeing herself as Soma's future wife.
And now…
Perhaps, very soon…
Nezuko unconsciously pressed a hand against her chest. Her heart was pounding violently, her breathing uneven and hurried.
So she waited there, trapped within the frantic rhythm of her own heartbeat.
Before long, Soma returned after bathing, dressed in simple sleepwear.
Nezuko secretly lifted her eyes for a brief moment—
Only to immediately meet his burning gaze.
Her entire body stiffened with embarrassment, and she hurriedly lowered her head again.
At that moment, her face was flushed so deeply it resembled blooming peach blossoms. Her small hands nervously tugged at the edge of her clothing as panic consumed her thoughts.
Soon…
Very soon…
They would truly be together.
What should she do?
What was she supposed to do?
Soma slowly walked over, clearly sensing her nervousness. He lightly patted her wrist. "Move further inside."
Blushing furiously, Nezuko quickly slipped off her sandals and climbed deeper onto the bedding. Then she pulled the blanket tightly around herself until almost her entire body disappeared beneath it.
Soma chuckled softly and lay down beside her.
The room suddenly became quiet.
Only the faint crackling of the candle flame occasionally broke the silence.
Hidden beneath the blanket, Nezuko had fully expected herself to be "bullied" immediately.
Yet nothing happened.
Soma simply lay beside her quietly and honestly.
This was completely different from everything she had learned.
Shouldn't Soma suddenly pounce on her and then…
Could it be that she had misunderstood?
Or perhaps this was simply what married couples did at night?
And somehow, just sleeping together like this was enough to have children?
Second by second, time slowly passed.
At first, she had kept her eyes tightly shut, too nervous to breathe properly.
But as nothing continued to happen, Nezuko gradually relaxed a little. The small hands clutching the blanket loosened at last, and she cautiously lifted one tiny corner of the covers.
Then—
A large hand reached inside and gently took hold of hers.
Nezuko's heart instantly tightened to its limit.
But…
After waiting for quite some time, she realized Soma was simply holding her hand.
And so, the tension in her body slowly began to ease once more.
The two of them lay there quietly on the bedding, their hands clasped together.
"Nezuko…"
His voice suddenly broke the silence again, causing Nezuko's heart to leap into her throat once more. But after becoming tense over and over throughout the night, she was beginning to grow slightly accustomed to it.
"What is it, sir…?"
The girl answered softly, her voice so faint it was barely louder than the flutter of a mosquito's wings.
"What should I do if I want to tease you?"
Nezuko did not fully understand what he meant.
And yet…
Somehow, she understood enough.
Her face immediately turned scarlet.
At some point, the blanket had already been pulled aside, and Soma slipped beneath it as well. The instant Nezuko opened her eyes, she found his face right before her.
Their breaths nearly mingled together.
"To be honest… I've never really been at ease."
He spoke quietly.
Confusion flickered within Nezuko's bashful eyes.
"After all, you're human, and I'm a demon. I always feel that one day, the bond between us may not remain stable. Sometimes I wonder if, eventually, all of you might betray me… I can never completely trust humans."
"N-No… I would never betray you…"
Nezuko hurriedly responded, panic rising in her voice.
"But words alone aren't enough."
His voice remained low and gentle.
"I want our relationship to become something deeper."
At that moment, Nezuko finally understood what he meant.
Her heartbeat instantly accelerated.
Truthfully, from the moment she came here tonight, she had already prepared herself mentally.
Even so, now that the moment had truly arrived, her heart still raced uncontrollably.
Yet seeing Soma quietly gazing at her, Nezuko forced herself to endure the overwhelming embarrassment flooding her chest and softly whispered:
"F-From now on… from now on, I place myself in your care."
Soma looked at the sweet, lovely girl before him and finally stopped suppressing the feelings in his heart.
He wrapped an arm around Nezuko's slender waist.
"Mmn…"
At some point, the candle flame quietly went out, plunging the room into darkness.
Outside, drifting clouds slowly covered the moon.
As though even the moon itself had shyly hidden away at this moment.
...
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