Chapter 199: Upper Rank Two
"Thank you so much for your efforts, all four of you~"
All four?
Kanao’s expression froze and she looked with absolute disbelief at the girl standing beside Shinobu.
Could it be...?
Swish
Without hesitation, Kanao moved like lightning, placing herself between Shinobu and the stranger while resting her hand on the hilt of her Nichirin blade.
"Ara~ Ara~ I forgot to introduce myself."
The man stepped fully out of the door.
He removed his hat, revealing his platinum-blond hair crowned by a dark red stain.
Meanwhile, Shinobu was frozen. She kept her head raised, her body trembling faintly. From the instant that man appeared, she’d gone rigid.
"A pleasure to meet you~"
Pressing the hat to his chest, the man bent into an elegant bow. His multicolored pupils curved like crescent moons.
"Hello, my two dear girls~"
Shinobu’s pupils contracted.
The image of her sister bleeding out, collapsed in her arms, projected itself in her mind once more.
Those eyes, once sweet, losing their shine.
That smile, once warm, turning to ice.
"Shinobu... leave the Corps..."
"I just want you to live like a normal person... to grow old..."
Those had been Kanae’s last words.
From that day on, Shinobu began to smile.
She imitated her sister’s expression to hold onto life. And all of it... because of the being now standing before her.
"He’s a demon who looks like he has blood splattered on his head."
"He has seven-colored pupils, a carefree smile, and speaks with a feigned sweetness."
"He uses a pair of bladed fans."
Kanae’s voice rang loud in her ears.
Shinobu’s gaze traveled from the red stain on Douma’s head to his face, then descended to the iron fans.
The bloodstain...
The rainbow pupils...
The false smile...
The fans...
"Upper Rank Two..."
The usual calm of her face shattered completely and the veins on her forehead bulged violently; she gritted her teeth and bloodlust poured from her eyes.
"DOUMA!!!"
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!"
"Fufufu~!"
Douma blinked with childlike curiosity. "So you know me! How exciting~"
There was a trace of surprise in his voice, like a celebrity being recognized.
He put his hat back on and unfurled the fans with a theatrical flourish.
"As for why I’m here..." He made a brief dramatic pause, deepening his affected smile. "Isn’t it obvious? I came looking for my dear believers."
He pointed with the fan toward the end of the path.
"I have devotees deployed on every route to Yoshiwara. The first ones spot the slayers and pass along the warning; the last ones report to me... and the ones in the middle~" He tilted his head, offering a radiant smile. "They keep them entertained until nightfall."
He observed the old woman and the little girl lying on the ground.
"Today, thanks to their sacrifice, I got to cross paths with two such charming young ladies~"
Kanao’s pupils contracted.
Glancing sideways at the two unconscious victims, the truth struck her hard.
It wasn’t an accident!
The old woman’s deep wound, the blood in the little girl’s mouth, the wrecked cart... They’d inflicted that damage on purpose, just to buy time.
Kanao tightened her grip on her katana. No wonder Douma had said, "Thank you so much for your efforts, all four of you."
Shinobu rose and took a step forward.
Her katana was already out of its sheath, the tip angled diagonally toward the ground.
A drop of poison slid down the point, glinted under the moon, and sank into the earth.
There was nothing to discuss: between Slayer and Demon, only death existed. And all the more so before the monster who had torn her sister away from her!
Kanao positioned herself half a step behind Shinobu’s right side. Her peach-colored blade slid partway out while her eyes didn’t forgive a single movement from the enemy.
In the forest, even the chirping of the insects died out.
Douma stood firm, covering half his face with the fan.
He peered over the edge with his multicolored pupils, blinking with feigned innocence.
"Ara~ ara~" His voice came out wrapped in a twisted warmth. "Aren’t you two going to run, young ladies?"
"Why would I run?" Shinobu’s false kindness evaporated, replaced by an icy tone.
"But... but..." Douma gave a couple of taps near his eyes with the edge of the fan. "I’m Upper Rank Two... Aren’t you even a little bit scared?"
On Shinobu’s face, all that remained was an overflowing hatred.
"The one I’ve been searching for all this time is precisely Upper Rank Two!"
Kanao looked at her master’s profile and felt her heart lurch. She’d never seen her like this...
"Kanao." Shinobu’s voice was a firm breath.
"Present."
"Don’t hold anything back."
"Understood."
Douma lowered the fan, revealing his theatrically grief-stricken expression.
"How frightening~!" His tone was ridiculously light, without the slightest trace of tension. "You really want to kill me. Though I can’t quite understand where all this resentment comes from..."
The fan snapped shut with a dry click.
"...I suppose I ought to take this a little seriously too."
Swish
The echo of his words had barely died when Shinobu launched into her attack.
"Insect Breathing: Dance of the Bee Sting—"
Her silhouette traced a purple blur through the night, driving the tip of her blade straight at the demon’s face.
"—True Flutter!"
It was a thrust.
The point ran clean through Douma’s left eye, pierced the skull, and emerged out the back of his head.
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