Okay, fine—Rowen admitted it. As a demon, going soft was probably a bad look. He knew that.
Even putting up with manual labor was something he could deal with. But this? This was heading in a very weird direction. Like no one was treating demons like proper people anymore! Honestly, it felt borderline sadistic!
"Nope, no, absolutely not! I'm leaving! I'm walking out right now…!"
Rowen, who'd never even been in love before, shuddered at the thought of that hellish future. He shook his head furiously, muttering to himself as if trying to lock in his resolve.
But just as he finished speaking, he felt a tug at the hem of his shirt. A soft, timid voice spoke beside him.
"Mr. Rowen… are you leaving?"
"Ah? I was just—" He looked down and met Nezuko's wide, sorrowful eyes.
She was still so young, but the way she looked up at him with such pitiful earnestness stirred something deep in his chest—a pang of guilt he couldn't quite explain.
Even though he was pretty sure he hadn't done anything bad in this world yet… or at least not yet.
The ironic part was, while Nezuko looked like she was about to cry, Rowen himself kind of wanted to break down too, just thinking about that terrifying future awaiting him.
He had literally just made up his mind, and yet here he was, struggling to nod. Instead, he forced a weak smile and said, "...Just kidding. As if I'd leave now."
"No… no, you should go, really." Nezuko looked relieved at first, but then her smile faded. Her eyes darkened with worry, and she reluctantly let go of his shirt.
Rowen blinked. "Huh?"
"Because… it's not right to keep troubling you like this. Our family is… well, like this. So…"
"—Which is exactly why I can't leave right now. I owe you all for helping me when I was down. If I just walk off now without a word, what kind of person would that make me?"
(Agh—what am I saying?! That's me cutting off my own escape route!) Rowen's words sounded all righteous and noble, but inside, he was kicking himself for once again failing to be heartless.
But he really couldn't abandon the people who'd helped him. And this precocious little girl with her bright, hopeful eyes—she always made him feel oddly protective. Like she chipped away at the resolve he was supposed to have.
He still didn't understand what the "future guided by Hell" was really about, but looking at Nezuko's smiling face again, he couldn't help thinking—maybe things right now weren't so bad?
Honestly, he was a demon. Even if his powers weren't awakened yet, he should have all the time in the world. Wasting a little wasn't a big deal. It wasn't like demons died of old age, right?
Sure, his short-term goals were going to be delayed.
But staring at the innocent, beaming little girl in front of him, Rowen could only lift his gaze to the sky and let out a long sigh.
Nezuko tilted her head and called to him gently. "Mr. Rowen?"
"...It's nothing. Don't worry about it."
He forced himself to push his worries aside, converting his sorrow and frustration into… well, appetite.
Not that food was much of a comfort right now—the rice balls were borderline inedible.
…
After stuffing himself just enough to keep going, Rowen took Nezuko's small, warm hand and led her to the trap he'd set earlier.
He wasn't expecting much—but as they got close, they heard a soft grunting noise. They glanced at each other in surprise, eyes wide, then rushed forward.
In the shallow pit—hidden with leaves and baited with salt and sweet potatoes—a juvenile wild boar was thrashing around in panic.
"No way, we actually caught one? Do I have a knack for hunting, or is this just karma finally working in my favor?" Rowen was stunned. Though, coming from a demon, saying "karma" felt a bit… off.
Nezuko tugged excitedly on his sleeve, eyes sparkling with pure awe. "Mr. Rowen! Mr. Rowen! It's a boar! A real boar! You're amazing! So amazing!"
"Yup! I think I'm amazing too!" Rowen puffed out his chest, proud of the catch. But when he noticed the boar squealing in terror, he realized something even more exciting—his long-stagnant Depravity Value was finally going up. He couldn't help but grin.
Depravity Value—the source of a demon's power, the physical manifestation of negative emotion as defined by Hell's laws. Only he could see it, displayed in his exclusive Demon Panel:
[Depravity Value: 0.253]
It was… embarrassingly low.
The Kamado family, while dirt poor, was overflowing with positivity and kindness—basically the worst emotional environment for a demon.
Even the tiny decimals he had accumulated came from the frustrating journey getting here. Honestly, he found himself missing the cutthroat, backstabbing chaos of modern society.
On his panel floated a tantalizing array of abilities:
[Fel Energy Shield] – Summon the power of Hell to form a protective barrier
[Hide in Darkness] – Slip through shadows, unseen
[Enslave the Dead] – Bind the dead into loyal servants
[Fel Energy Impact] – Area attack that causes mental disturbance
[Abyss Gaze] – Inflict terror or instant death through eye contact
[Eden Reboot] – Rewrite the laws of the world through abyssal language
And that was just the start. There were others too: Devour Magic, Hell Summon, The Final Hour, Fetter of Fate, Void Collapse…
But unlocking any of those required activating his talent: Initial Awakening. That would free him from the limits of his human body and release his demon form. Even at base level, it would massively boost his physical capabilities. Sure, he'd still be a baby demon at first, and there were advanced stages beyond that… but it had to be better than this.
(Whether I want to be human or not is irrelevant—right now, I can't even gather the 500 Depravity points needed to awaken…) Rowen had all but given up hope.
But now, seeing that number rise again after so long—it gave him a flicker of determination.
Only when Nezuko reminded him did he reluctantly go find a heavy stone and knock the boar out cold.
…
It took everything he had, but Rowen eventually managed to drag the stubbornly thrashing boar back to the Kamado house.
From a distance, he spotted the Kamado family's eldest son—Tanjiro Kamado—squatting beside the charcoal kiln, tending the fire with wood that Rowen had chopped earlier.
Eldest son or not, the kid was only around ten, just a bit older than Nezuko. His skinny frame looked even smaller in the glow of the firelight.
"Mr. Rowen?!" Tanjiro's soot-covered face lit up when he saw the wild boar. He dropped the wood he was carrying and ran over in delight. "You caught a boar?! That's incredible!"
"This?" Rowen grinned, puffing out his chest with absolutely zero humility. "Stick with me, kid. I'll make sure you're eating four meals a day, three days straight!"
Just as he finished boasting, the door to the house creaked open. Two younger Kamado siblings—Hanako and Shigeru—peeked out, then broke into excited squeals the moment they saw the boar.
Next came a gentle-looking woman with her hair tied in a low bun, a white scarf over her head, and a noticeably pregnant belly—Kie Kamado, the family matriarch.
The kids immediately ran to her, chattering nonstop about the boar. Kie's eyes widened in surprise, then softened with gratitude.
But after a moment of thought, she placed her hands gently over her belly, bowed slightly, and said, "We should sell this boar… Mr. Rowen, you've already done so much for us. I don't even know how we can repay you…"
"What are you even talking about?" Rowen waved her off. "You guys need proper nutrition more than anything right now. And besides, I've been craving meat too!"
"But…"
"No buts!" Rowen stomped into the kitchen and grabbed a knife. "Not just for the baby—you've got kids who are growing, too!"
With him putting it that way, Kie didn't press further, though she still looked uncertain.
But when the knife came down, the boar didn't die—it jolted awake and let out a shrill, agonized screech.
"—Squeaaaal!!"
"Whoa, now that's a scream…"
Everyone thought he was about to end it in one blow. But Rowen just stood there, staring at the numbers on his Depravity Value steadily ticking upward. He could feel the boar's terror, thick and heavy in the air, seeping into his senses like smoke.
His knife hovered midair, unmoving.
In the reflection of the boar's eyes, a twisted, shadowy demon loomed around Rowen's body.
And the scent of that fear—raw, visceral, overwhelming—was a hundred times more intoxicating than the Kamado family's humble brown rice.