Talking too much about certain things was pointless.
"I really don't get you sometimes."
Mai muttered, then followed the somber group toward their lodging in the city.
"But seriously, you're surprisingly powerful. Ever since you burned the place down, there haven't been any more weird monsters showing up."
She added as she walked beside Ryuji.
"I went out for a bit last night to check. Not a single yokai in sight. Honestly, your flames are kind of cheating. Are they like the ones from the Kusanagi clan? Some sort of special, inherited fire? Let me guess—phoenix fire?"
Mai was genuinely curious about Ryuji's flames. They could heal, and their heat was frightening.
"No, it's dragonfire. A special kind. I received it through the blessing of someone… someone who's basically a god, I guess."
Ryuji thought for a moment, recalling the power of Alexstrasza.
"Though the other flame isn't quite the same."
He casually waved his hand, conjuring a flame and a stream of water that floated above his palm.
"I visited another bizarre world afterward. In that world, people could only manipulate one of the four elements—earth, water, fire, or wind—but because of my unique constitution, I could control two."
He showed off with a hint of pride, and Mai looked at the floating water and fire with clear envy.
"That's such an unbelievable experience… You're so lucky. I wish I could wield a special, inherited flame like that…"
Mai sighed, a little dejected. Her flames were purely created by manipulating her inner energy—not anything mystical or inherited. Sometimes she had to use gunpowder to boost her attacks.
People like Kyo Kusanagi were different. Born with inherited flames and extraordinary resilience, their bodies could withstand brutal combat far better. If someone punched both of them with equal force, she'd be down for the count, but Kyo would just get up and keep fighting after catching his breath.
That's why she was considered second or third tier at best in the world of fighters.
Her physical strength and attack power simply weren't on par.
She had studied the Breathing Techniques recently. Sure, the fire generated by those techniques was slightly stronger than her regular flames—but when she got serious, she could still outmatch them.
The real issue was stamina.
To produce the same strength of fire, she might just expend some energy, but these breathing techniques would literally kill their users.
That was unacceptable to her.
Ryuji didn't dwell on her worries. Sure, he had a cheat system backing him, and most of his powers came from that mystery, but flame abilities weren't really that rare in other worlds.
He wasn't sure if Mai could adapt to powers from other worlds like he could, but if she kept traveling between worlds with him, it might just be possible.
"Well, if you can keep traveling between worlds like I do, then it's not that hard to get what you want."
His words reignited a bit of hope in Mai's heart. She glanced at him, determination sparking in her eyes. Maybe it was time she took real action.
So, she smiled confidently.
"Then tell me—what kind of enemies have you faced so far? I want to fight alongside you next time. I want to gain strength!"
Her words were so natural, she almost forgot there was a chance Ryuji might say no. But that wasn't arrogance—it came from a place deep in her subconscious.
Somehow, she just knew they were on the same side.
"Sure, I'll tell you about the ones I've run into."
Ryuji began recounting the types of monsters he'd faced to Mai.
Giant spiders. Strange, twisted creatures. He described them all in a calm, almost casual tone. His words painted a picture of him simply burning the monsters down with fire and easily defeating them.
"That easy, huh…"
Mai didn't think he was lying—but when she looked at the grieving Flame Hashira and the grim expression on Tengen's face, she pressed her lips together.
These men… she could feel their strength.
Even though she was a skilled fighter herself, she still sensed danger when facing these Swordsmen.
So, she couldn't help but glance over at Shinobu and Mitsuri.
When they returned to the Demon Slayer Corps base, Ryuji quickly freshened up and retreated to his room to rest and reflect on what he'd learned through his previous fight.
But Mai didn't leave.
After the Pillars finished their report to the nobleman in charge, Mai sought out Shinobu, who was just about to visit Ryuji's room, accompanied by Mitsuri —who was tagging along hoping for some girl talk.
"Shinobu, I have a request."
Mai's tone was serious as she looked at her.
Shinobu instinctively thought Mai wanted her help with winning Ryuji's heart—or maybe just to take good care of him—so she quickly grabbed Mai's hands.
"Of course, Mai-san! Honestly, you should be Ryuji-sama's wife. I'm just someone who—"
"What the hell are you talking about?!"
Mai felt like she was going crazy.
"How could I ever marry someone like Ryuji?! He's the kind of guy who sulks like a little kid when there's no meat in his meal, kicks off his blankets while sleeping, and acts childish all the time! He always stares at girls' chests, and even when carrying someone on his back, he bounces on purpose just to feel their boobs pressing into him! I don't know a damn thing about him, okay?! There's no way I'd ever marry some jerk who just wants women to throw themselves at him while he takes no responsibility!"
She practically shouted, her voice sharp and emotional. Shinobu and Mitsuri were left speechless, stunned by her outburst.
"Wait... doesn't that actually mean you do know him really well?"
Mitsuri murmured, genuinely confused.
Shinobu wisely chose to ignore the comment. Her situation was already awkward—technically she was the "other woman" in this scenario. So she simply kept a polite yet visibly strained smile on her face and asked calmly:
"Ahem… So, what is it you wanted to ask?"
Mai's mind was close to exploding. She knew she'd just blurted out a bunch of nonsense, but everything she said were just things she'd noticed while living alongside Ryuji. It wasn't proof she liked him—at least, that's what she insisted to herself.
"I want to know how big the power gap is—between me and you two… and also between you and Rengoku Kyojuro or Uzui Tengen."
She asked with a serious and resolute expression. She needed to understand just how wide the difference was between her and the demon slayers who had been nearly powerless against the monsters.
"Well…"
Shinobu hesitated. The request wasn't hard to fulfill, but she was clearly curious about what Mai's real goal was.
"I just want to know… if I still have the right to fight alongside Ryuji."
Strength is not easy to judge.
Mai knew full well—if she were trapped in a narrow alley by a dozen soldiers with rifles, she'd have no choice but to surrender. Her body couldn't take bullets.
But in an open space—or better yet, terrain with lots of cover—she could easily take out a dozen of them. Even tanks and heavy weapons couldn't necessarily stop her. {That's cap}
But when it came to monsters, she wasn't so sure.
"I see… Mitsuri, would you mind helping out?"
Shinobu turned to Mitsuri.
Shinobu knew her own sword skills weren't particularly strong. But Mitsuri, with her strength and technique that could rival male swordsmen—even if her unique personality made her fighting style a bit erratic—was definitely at the level of a Hashira.
In the Demon Slayer Corps, she was considered upper-mid tier.
"No problem!"
Mitsuri smiled brightly and looked at Mai with enthusiasm.
"Let's head to the training field!"
Mai nodded, and followed the humming Mitsuri to the training ground.
Unexpectedly, Tengen was already there, practicing his basic skills. After a brief greeting, he and his three wives decided to stick around and observe the sparring match.
Mai had originally planned to change into her usual Shiranui-style outfit, but as she was about to undress, she remembered something Ryuji had said. Annoyed, she simply pulled out her last two steel war fans and stood face to face with Mitsuri.
"Here I come!"
Seeing that Mai was ready, Mitsuri charged in with a powerful dash, swinging her sword at her.
As the strange trails of pink light appeared around Mitsuri, Mai's body ignited with a faint, white flame-like aura. Her inner energy flared, and her flames surged with it.
She danced with her fans, clashing against Mitsuri in a fluid exchange of strikes.
Their figures darted past each other. Mai immediately spotted an opening in Mitsuri's stance—but Mitsuri wasn't slow. Though Mai had identified a weakness, she couldn't capitalize on it immediately. Instead, she spun and redirected her fan toward Mitsuri's neck, only to have it blocked. Mitsuri deflected with ease and countered with a slash, forcing Mai to dodge backward.
That little exchange frustrated Mai.
She quickly threw both of her spinning fans—but Mitsuri blocked them again. Yet as she did, Mai closed the distance and thrust her remaining fan beneath Mitsuri's chin.
Victory.
Mitsuri blinked in surprise—then burst into a wide, beaming smile and leaped into Mai's arms.
"Wow! That was amazing!"
But Mai didn't look pleased.
She let out a small sigh as she looked at the Hashira she had just beaten with relative ease.
It only confirmed what she feared.
I really don't have what it takes to fight those monsters with Ryuji.
She had seen it clearly—Mitsuri's strength and speed were inferior to her own chi-powered Shiranui techniques. And yet…
"It's not enough."
Tengen spoke.
"Huh?"
One of his wives looked at him curiously, wondering what he meant.
"At this level, she still can't fight alongside Ryuji against demons. Miss Mai's hope will remain just that—a hope."
Tengen had seen it clearly. Mai's speed and power were indeed superior to Mitsuri's—she was without question first-tier by Demon Slayer standards.
But—it still wasn't enough.
Mai's flames weren't hot enough. When they struck against Mitsuri's blade, there wasn't even the faintest hint of it melting. Flames of that level? Even Rengoku could produce those.
Her speed was indeed impressive—nearly double Tengen's—but not to the point where it couldn't be countered.
Sure, she could easily defeat a single Hashira in a one-on-one. But faced with three? There was a high probability she'd be killed.
And even the combined strength of three or four Hashira wasn't enough to survive a battle with that monstrous woman demon. There would be no survivors.
From her combat habits alone, it was obvious—Mai was trained to fight humans, not demons. Shifting her tactics to deal with monsters would result in a drop in performance.
Even though neither side had gone all out in the spar—Mai held back, and Mitsuri didn't use Love breathing techniques—it was enough to judge her actual combat level.
She wasn't qualified. Just like them, the Hashira—none of them were qualified to stand shoulder to shoulder with Ryuji against those terrifying monsters.
Sure, she could take on lesser monsters. But ones like the giant spider, or that grotesque female creature?
Not a chance.
"So Mai's hopes will be dashed after all…"
Shinobu let out a soft sigh. She too had hoped Mai might be someone capable of matching Ryuji's level—but from the looks of things…
That just wasn't the case.
"Yes. Miss Mai's abilities are close to Ryuji's in terms of raw speed and power—but Ryuji is far more well-rounded. His speed, strength, endurance… and that terrifying flame of his. We might stand a chance of defeating him if we all ganged up on him—but the monsters that not even all of us combined could kill… Ryuji could probably defeat them alone."
Tengen gave his final assessment.
When it came to Ryuji's usual power level, the Demon Slayer Corps might still have a shot at overpowering him.
But with dragonfire in the equation?
Forget it. Ryuji's flame was a cheat code itself.
"Thanks, Mitsuri. I'll make you some sweets next time."
Mai retrieved her fans. She didn't need anyone to tell her—she was perfectly aware of her own limitations.
"Yay~!"
Mitsuri beamed and nodded happily—but when she saw Mai's somewhat gloomy expression, she tilted her head and asked:
"Mai-san, are you upset?"
"No… Thanks, both of you."
She looked over at Shinobu and then turned toward Uzui.
"Uzui-san, could you share the information about the demons you encountered?"
Tengen nodded solemnly.
"Of course."
And so, Tengen told her everything he and Ryuji had encountered—down to giving her a strand of the spider silk he'd recovered, so she could test its sharpness herself.
Later, Mai returned to her quarters with Shinobu and Mitsuri.
Sitting alone in her room, her heart was in turmoil.
Ryuji had told her that as long as she kept traveling through different worlds, she'd eventually gain powerful flame abilities of her own. But the truth was—both of the worlds she had seen so far were beyond her reach.
Even just listening to Shinobu's accounts made her realize—she was in the same boat as the locals here. She had to act with extreme caution.
And from Tengen's testimony, it was obvious—even if she fought alongside Ryuji, she would only be about as helpful as Tengen himself.
Useful in some ways, perhaps, but mostly as cannon fodder to test enemy moves.
"Ryuji, you liar …"
She clenched her ears shut, trying to block out the muffled sounds of Shinobu's pleading for mercy coming from the next room.
And then she sighed deeply.
In truth, she was like a downgraded version of Ryuji. The only area where she outclassed him was in fighting against humans—but in everything else, he had her beat.
Her hard-earned skills and effort felt meaningless when faced with this cruel reality.
So she continued to listen to Shinobu's sweet moans through the wall—and the longer she listened, the more pissed off she got.
Until finally—
"Whew…"
Ryuji put down the now half-conscious Shinobu. She could no longer maintain her breathing techniques, so he decided to give her a break.
He extended his fingers, channeling dragonfire to repair her heart and lungs.
Once he had tucked her into bed atop the wrecked tatami, just as he was turning to clean up—
BANG! The door slammed open.
He instinctively reached for a weapon and turned around—
Only to see a furious Mai standing in the doorway, eyes full of dissatisfaction.
"What's gotten into you? Don't tell me you got so lonely you couldn't stand it anymore?"
Ryuji relaxed, putting his weapon down, and quipped sarcastically.
"I'd have to be insane to fall for you."
Mai rolled her eyes, then stared him down with intensity.
"Thanks to you, the successor of the Shiranui-ryu has run off. So you're taking responsibility. You're going to restore the Shiranui style!"
Huh?
Ryuji's mind was full of question marks.
But before he could speak, Mai grabbed his wrist and dragged him toward the door.
"Enough of your weird sorcery crap! From now on, I'm going to teach you Shiranui-ryu martial arts. You're going to learn properly! Then, under the name of Shiranui-ryu, you're entering the King of Fighters tournament! You're going to revive our school!"
And then she flashed him a sly, devious grin.
"If you don't… I'll tell Miss Mitsuri you've been eyeing her boobs and that you're trying to sleep with her. But if you train properly… I'll help you win her over."
"Slander! I, Ryuji, am no such petty, perverted villain! That's a baseless attack on my character!"
Ryuji declared righteously.
But just to play it safe, he leaned in closer to Mai
"Anyway… considering how dangerous this world is right now, when exactly are we starting the Shiranui-ryu martial arts training?"
~~~~~~~~~~
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