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Cold Cry woke Fukada, and the two of them left the bath, changed back into their clothes, and waited for Noe to finish in the women's bath. Once she joined them, the three quietly left the hot spring inn together.
Cold Cry couldn't understand what had happened the previous night.
Why hadn't those two demons attacked them?
What were they doing at the hot spring inn?
If they were truly responsible for all the disappearances, then why were he, Noe, and Fukada spared while the others had vanished without a trace?
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn't find an answer.
He chose not to tell Fukada or Noe that there had been two demons hiding in the baths the entire night.
As they passed through the inn's lobby, he once again sensed the two familiar presences concealed inside the building.
Since the baths were outdoors and sunrise was approaching, the demons had apparently retreated indoors to avoid the sunlight.
After the three left, two figures slowly emerged from the shadows.
One was a graceful woman wearing an elegant kimono embroidered with floral patterns. Her long dark hair framed her gentle features, and every movement radiated dignity and refinement.
Beside her stood a handsome young man with pale blue hair, dressed in a white haori. His expression was stern, though traces of irritation could be seen in his eyes as he watched the departing trio.
"What remarkably sharp senses..." the woman said with a gentle smile.
"And such extraordinary willpower."
"He discovered us despite our concealment."
The young man snorted.
"Hmph. He only managed to stay conscious because Lady Tamayo's Blood Demon Art wasn't intended to kill him."
The next moment, his stern expression instantly disappeared.
He hurried beside the woman with an admiring smile.
"Lady Tamayo is amazing."
Tamayo smiled faintly.
"Even while concealed, we were detected almost immediately."
"That young swordsman's perception is quite extraordinary."
"It seems the Demon Slayer Corps has produced another talented warrior."
Yushiro folded his arms.
"So what if he's talented? Once he's caught in Lady Tamayo's Blood Demon Art, he'll still be rendered helpless."
"Yushiro."
Tamayo's gentle voice interrupted him.
"Never underestimate your opponent."
"...Yes, Lady Tamayo."
Although somewhat unwilling, Yushiro obediently lowered his head.
Tamayo turned and quietly walked deeper into the darkness.
Yushiro immediately followed.
"Lady Tamayo," he asked softly, "our location has already been exposed. Are we still staying here?"
Tamayo nodded.
"We haven't collected the blood we came for."
"What if the demon never appears?"
"Then we'll continue waiting."
"It will come."
---
Since leaving the hot spring inn that morning, Noe had noticed that Cold Cry seemed unusually distracted.
Several times she wanted to ask what was bothering him.
Each time, however, she swallowed the question.
She understood his personality well.
If he wanted someone to know something, he would tell them himself.
If he chose to remain silent, no amount of questioning would make him speak.
Although she didn't know exactly what had happened, she remembered Cold Cry's reaction the moment they entered the bathhouse the previous night.
He had clearly sensed something.
That alone was enough to convince her that the situation was far more complicated than it appeared.
Her guess wasn't wrong.
Cold Cry had indeed reached an impasse.
However...
He had also thought of a solution.
From what he currently knew, the two demons possessed at least two abilities.
The first was concealment, allowing them to hide their presence from ordinary sight.
The second was a strange fragrance capable of inducing dizziness and sapping a person's strength.
The concealment itself wasn't a major problem.
As long as there was even the slightest temperature difference between the demons and their surroundings, Cold Cry's unique perception could still locate them.
The real threat was that mysterious scent.
After careful consideration, he made a decision.
He would suppress his sense of smell with the extreme cold generated by his Ice Breathing.
To prepare for any other unknown abilities, he also planned to ignore both his sight and hearing as much as possible, relying solely on his perception of temperature to fight.
This would be the first battle in which he entrusted everything to that single sense.
---
Night fell once again.
After dinner, Noe and Fukada naturally assumed they would be returning to the hot spring inn as usual.
Although bathing in hot springs sounded pleasant, spending every night there for several consecutive days had become mentally exhausting.
Fortunately, they soon received unexpected news.
Tonight...
Only Cold Cry intended to go.
At first, Noe felt relieved.
She thought she could finally enjoy a proper night's rest.
But the moment she heard Cold Cry planned to go alone, her expression immediately changed.
It confirmed the suspicion she had been harboring all day.
He had discovered something.
And because he believed the situation had become dangerous, he intended to face it alone.
Without hesitation, Noe shook her head.
"No."
"I'm going with you."
She looked directly into Cold Cry's eyes.
"All of the victims have been women."
"If the demon is still hunting women, then I can be the bait."
Seeing that even Noe wasn't backing down, Fukada found himself unable to remain silent.
As a grown man several years older than her, how could he hide behind a young girl?
Clenching his teeth, he forced himself to speak.
"I'll go too."
After a brief moment of silence, Cold Cry finally made his decision.
"You and I will go."
He looked at Fukada.
"You'll stay here."
Fukada wasn't a Demon Slayer.
If a battle truly broke out, he would only place himself in unnecessary danger.
Understanding this, Fukada reluctantly nodded and gave up insisting.
---
The streets of Qingshui Town were deserted beneath the moonlight.
Cold Cry and Noe walked side by side through the silent streets.
The brightly lit hot spring inn stood near the entrance of town, looking almost like a palace illuminated against the darkness.
Suddenly—
A stray cat darted out from an alley.
"Ah!"
Startled, Noe instinctively grabbed Cold Cry's arm.
Only after the cat disappeared into the darkness did she realize what she had done.
Blushing deeply, she quickly let go.
Cold Cry glanced at her.
"You're that timid, yet you still insisted on coming?"
Noe lowered her head in embarrassment and quietly tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
"There were two demons inside the hot spring inn last night."
"...Two demons?"
Noe froze.
At first, she thought he was joking.
"You're trying to scare me, aren't you?"
"I barely slept last night, but I never saw any demons."
"How could there have been two?"
Cold Cry looked at her expressionlessly.
His face clearly said one thing.
Does it look like I'm joking?
"There was one in the men's bath."
"And one in the women's bath."
"They were already there before we entered."
Noe stopped walking.
She carefully recalled everything that had happened the previous night.
Because of Cold Cry's strange behavior, she had deliberately examined the bathhouse before entering the water.
She hadn't noticed anything unusual.
Nor had she seen any demons while bathing.
Yet...
Cold Cry wasn't someone who joked about matters like this.
If he said there had been demons, then there must have been.
"I sensed them the moment we entered the courtyard."
"That's why I instinctively reached for my sword."
Only then did Noe remember.
She had asked him if he had discovered anything unusual.
His answer had simply been...
"It's nothing."
She couldn't help becoming puzzled.
If he had already known demons were hiding nearby...
Why had he chosen to keep it from them?
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