At first light, Sui packed her things and set out.
Before leaving, she changed out of that striking, finely tailored deep-red kimono and put on a plain, subdued outer robe instead. The master of the Wisteria Crest House had even prepared a sedge hat to help conceal her appearance, along with a wisteria sachet to ward off demon attacks.
The owner had warned her that her looks were far too eye-catching. By the time she walked from here to Mount Momoyama, night would surely have fallen, so she needed to be careful.
Not just because of demons.
Because of bandits, too.
"At nightfall..." Sui murmured, lifting her head to look at the sun as it slowly, reluctantly climbed into the eastern sky.
It was early spring, and the sun carried almost no warmth. The few morning rays that slipped through the clouds and fell across Sui's face felt cold and clear.
Behind her, the gates of the Wisteria Crest House gradually disappeared from view. Ahead lay a narrow path carved through dense woodland.
At that point, Sui put on the hat. White gauze hung down from the brim, leaving only the smooth line of her chin exposed.
Carrying the long sword she had taken from the estate, she wandered farther and farther down the road.
Mount Momoyama, Momoki Town.
By the time evening approached, the people dining at the inn had all gradually left. In the spacious wooden building, only the uncollected bowls and chopsticks remained, along with the sunset spilling in through the doorway and the innkeeper keeping watch over it all.
Then several coins landed on the counter with a clear, ringing clink.
The guest had arrived at some point without his noticing. They wore a sedge hat and plain hemp clothes that drew no attention. From the slender figure, the innkeeper could tell the guest was a woman. As for anything else, his gaze fell on the expensive long sword hanging from her left hand, and he decided not to ask questions.
"Will you be dining, or staying the night?"
"Staying." A voice came from beneath the hat. As expected, it was a very pleasant female voice. "Is this enough?"
The innkeeper gave it a glance. "More than enough. There's extra."
The guest had placed two silver coins on the counter herself—two yen.
At his inn, that amount wouldn't just cover one night; it would be enough to stay for a whole month. This was the first time in all his years of business that he had met such a wealthy customer, someone who seemed not to care about money in the slightest. Still, he quietly kept the matter in mind and began calculating the change.
"This way, please."
He extended a hand and led her upstairs to the guest rooms. Only when he got closer did he realize that, even with the hat on, the guest was a full head shorter than him.
"Oh, right, innkeeper, let me ask you something."
"Go ahead."
"How long would it take to get from this town to the deep interior of Mount Momoyama?"
"The deep interior of Mount Momoyama?" The innkeeper was startled. "You're planning to go that far in?"
"Yes." Sui nodded.
She had overestimated how fast she could travel on foot. She had thought she would at least reach the mountain's midsection before nightfall, but in reality, she had only managed to reach the town at the foot of Mount Momoyama. Once she headed up the mountain tomorrow and went deeper into the forest, who knew how long that would take. She had heard this inn had been here for many years, so she decided to ask the innkeeper and get at least a rough idea.
"I absolutely would not recommend going into Mount Momoyama," the innkeeper said at once, giving an answer she had not expected.
"Why?"
"There's a man-eating monster deep in Mount Momoyama!" The innkeeper's face turned serious, and his voice dropped unconsciously. "There used to be a temple up in the mountain. During festivals, folks from around here would go up to pay respects—it had become one of our local customs. But three years ago, some of my friends went up with the others for the festival and never came back. We sent people to search for them during the day, and all they found at the temple were torn pieces of clothing, and..."
Sui tilted her head slightly, signaling for him to go on.
The innkeeper lowered his voice even further, as if he were afraid something might overhear.
"Fingernails. And hair."
"That mysterious, huh?" the girl's voice drifted lightly.
"I can only tell you this much." Seeing that Sui clearly did not believe him, the innkeeper did not bother saying more. He pushed open one of the doors, stepped inside, and lit the candle.
The warm orange glow illuminated the room. There was a table, chairs, and a bed, and through the window one could see clouds blazing red like fire. Faintly, Sui caught the scent of fresh wood lacquer.
"This is your room. If you need anything, just call for me."
"Thank you."
"It's nothing. I just can't help worrying when I see a young girl like you refusing to listen. Even if you don't believe in man-eating demons, Mount Momoyama is still deep mountain forest. There could be wild boars, venomous creatures, all kinds of things. Either way, it's not safe."
The innkeeper waved his hand dismissively, picked up his ring of keys, and walked away.
"A man-eating demon..."
Closing the door, Sui took off her hat and sat down on the wooden chair in the room. A whole day of walking had left her bones feeling soft and loose. When she had still been standing, it had not felt so bad, but the moment she touched the chair it was as if her whole body were falling apart.
"Haaah—"
Sui stretched lazily, and once her body settled, she began to think.
According to Rengoku Shinjuro's letter, Mount Momoyama was the retreat of one of the highest-ranking swordsmen in the Demon Slayer Corps—the former Thunder Hashira.
There was an old saying: Even an aged lion is still a lion; it will never allow hyenas to live beside it.
So how could a retired Hashira tolerate a man-eating demon preying so close to where he lived?
Maybe it was only wolves, or wild boars, Sui thought. That explanation made far more sense than the idea that a demon could be lurking right beside a Hashira.
She gently drew her long sword. The blade, clear as spring water, reflected the last of the sunset before quietly falling dark again.
Knock, knock, knock—
Someone knocked at the door.
"Who is it?" Sui frowned.
"The innkeeper." The familiar voice of the middle-aged man came from outside. "I made you a bowl of noodles. And I brought the rest of your change."
Sui slid her sword back into its sheath and unlatched the door.
The moment it opened a crack, the smell of soy sauce and scallions poured into the room and into her nose. It reminded her that she really had not eaten much at all along the way.
When she looked up, she saw that the innkeeper had clearly frozen for a moment.
She had taken off her hat now, revealing her original appearance.
The streak of scarlet at the corners of her eyes ripened under the lamplight like well-aged wine. Paired with a face so beautiful it hardly seemed real, it was enough to make people dizzy after a single glance. There was something almost inhumanly uncanny about her beauty.
For a moment, the innkeeper suddenly thought that this must be what the soul-stealing demon spirits of legend looked like.
Otherwise, why would a girl this breathtakingly beautiful come all the way to a remote place like Mount Momoyama?
"Innkeeper?" Sui spoke, and only then did he snap back to himself.
"Oh—ah... sorry, sorry. Here are your noodles, and your change."
The innkeeper shoved both the bowl and the loose coins into Sui's hands, then turned and hurried off at once, stiff and nervous beyond belief.
Sui did not care about that.
She was hungry.
She set down the bowl. Steam rose from it in curling waves.
Knock knock knock—
The knocking interrupted Sui just as she was about to take her first bite of noodles.
What did the innkeeper want again? Had he forgotten something?
Puzzled, Sui went over and opened the door.
No one was there.
"Huuuuu—"
Instead, a long, heavy breath struck her full in the face. A stench like rotting fish engulfed the girl from all sides. The heat and reek were so overwhelming they nearly made her vomit.
Sui lifted her head.
In the darkness, a pair of enormous, twisted eyes stared back at her.
The thing's fangs clacked together as it spoke in sounds that could barely be called human speech.
"Chchchchch—chchch—rare blood rare blood rare blood—!"
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 135)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 110)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter67)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter85)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 60
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 65
From Junkman to Wasteland 50
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 35
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 40
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 37
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 27
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 26
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 26
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