"I don't understand you!" Kamiya Rengoku shouted as he pulled himself free from the wall Dôma had sent him crashing into with a single kick.
The energy in his voice had faded, but the rage and confusion in his eyes remained untouched.
"I… I think the problem's in *your* head," he said, resuming a fighting stance.
"W-What? The problem's in *my* head? Haha… you're just refusing to face the truth of this world," Dôma replied, a slight mocking tone in his voice.
He rested his fan against his chin.
"That's kind of hurtful~," he said, feigning offense.
"Talking more is pointless. I'm going to decapitate you here and now!"
Kamiya charged at Dôma with a speed far greater than in their previous exchange.
The man had clearly regained his fighting spirit, setting aside any thoughts about Dôma's nature.
His mind now had only one goal: to behead the demon before him.
"Flame Breathing, First Form: Sea of Fire."
The Nichirin Blade glowed with a scarlet light, like a blazing inferno, as it surged toward Dôma.
The target of the attack was clear: Dôma's neck.
But in the next instant, the blade struck nothing but air. The figure before him had vanished in a flash.
"My eyes… I couldn't even track his movements… it was like a blur?" Kamiya quickly scanned his surroundings, searching for his target.
"Is that the famous breathing technique you use to decapitate my kind?"
Dôma stood atop a nearby rooftop, smiling as he observed Kamiya's reaction.
"You're the first Demon Slayer I've met, but… I've got some bad news for you."
He adopted a serious expression.
"You can't defeat me at your current level."
Kamiya didn't respond and leaped from rooftop to rooftop, brandishing his blade once more.
Dôma had already assessed the physical gap between himself and the Demon Slayer: only Kamiya's experience fighting demons like him gave him an edge.
That's why Dôma took the initiative for close-quarters combat.
No intelligent demon would face a Demon Slayer in hand-to-hand combat without an ace up their sleeve.
It was a subtle idea planted in Kamiya's mind.
He began to believe Dôma had a power suited for close combat.
Yet the truth was that Dôma excelled primarily in ranged combat and ambushes.
"Flame Breathing, Second Form: Rising Sun Flames!"
A chill ran through Dôma. He instinctively stepped back.
The spot he'd occupied was slashed by an upward strike. The attack wasn't lethal to a demon, but Dôma could have been hit.
'Did he see me? No… his eyes clearly couldn't follow my attack.'
Dôma reached a conclusion, thanks to his rational mind and the knowledge inherited from Jay.
The Demon Slayer before him must possess one of the five senses developed to an extraordinary degree, much like Zenitsu or Tanjiro.
"Oh… I was a bit arrogant," Dôma admitted.
Without Jay's memories, he might have chalked it up to mere luck on Kamiya's part.
This situation only reinforced the importance of information in a fight.
'Now, which of his five senses is exceptional?'
He coldly analyzed the situation before adding another piece to his conclusion:
'That reaction speed… he's definitely a strong human.'
Kamiya, too, was evaluating Dôma's strength, comparing it to the information about the Lower Moons already defeated by the Demon Slayers.
'No doubt about it, Dôma's physical strength is on par with the Lower Moons.'
Unfortunately, Kamiya was mistaken.
Dôma had been holding back from the start, as he had plans other than devouring him: he wanted to recruit him.
"Ah, Kamiya-san has the strength of a Hashira~" Dôma glanced at his Nichirin Blade.
It didn't have the words "Demon Slayer" engraved on it.
He tilted his head.
"You're not a Hashira yet, are you? It'd be such a shame to die here."
Before he could finish, the Demon Slayer charged again. Dôma narrowed his eyes and flicked the folding fan in his right hand.
He wanted to cool his opponent's fervor a bit.
'Nothing can withstand a fist full of love.'
"Blood Demon Art: Ice Lotus Vines."
Icy vines with razor-sharp petals surged toward Kamiya.
But this wasn't Dôma's true attack. The lotus emitted tiny ice crystals into the air, designed to paralyze breathing techniques.
"Flame Breathing, Fourth Form: Blazing Wave!"
Kamiya's body moved swiftly, like a swirling flame, slicing through all the icy vines.
He didn't notice the ice crystals accumulating in the air, gradually lowering the temperature.
He was too focused on the fight to consider this detail.
'I… I got him!' Kamiya thought, believing he'd closed the gap with Dôma.
"Wow~ What a beautiful technique!"
Dôma complimented him with a radiant smile and waved his fan.
Sharp crystals, adorned with ice lotus flowers, scattered, forming a wave of icy dust.
Kamiya was forced to retreat, his visibility completely obscured.
"Blood Demon Art: Ice Lotus Petals."
From behind the crystal mist, Dôma immediately followed with an attack of lotus petals.
The temperature continued to drop due to the buildup of ice crystals in the air.
The few people still outside noticed the anomaly, but Dôma controlled his ice with his vector power, ensuring it didn't affect civilians.
'W-Why is it so cold?' Kamiya thought, starting to shiver and cough.
The skin on his right hand, the one holding his sword, showed signs of frostbite.
'Damn it! Did I overestimate my strength or underestimate this demon?'
That question and inner monologue no longer mattered.
If Kamiya didn't win this fight, death was inevitable.
Then he noticed a detail on one of Dôma's fans: the mark of Lower Moon one.
Kamiya gritted his teeth, a sense of despair rising within him.
"Are you actually scared? Haha… I haven't even fully unleashed my icy mist yet," Dôma said, twirling the fan in his right hand.
"It's too dangerous for humans."
Those words were enough for Kamiya to understand the source of the dropping temperature and his coughing with each use of his breathing technique: barely visible ice crystals in the air were causing the temperature to plummet and infiltrating his body with every breath.
If this continued, Kamiya would soon be unable to use his breathing techniques, and his special sense of smell, capable of tracking Dôma, would become useless.
He'd be reduced to an ordinary human facing a Lower Moon-level demon.
'A-Am I going to die?'
The thought wasn't wrong: it was the logical conclusion for a Demon Slayer on the verge of losing to his prey.
At that moment, Kamiya caught sight of his father's silhouette, standing with his back to him.
He knew it was just a hallucination, born from his breathing difficulties, but this vision was a spark.
If he was to perish here, he would burn his life like his father's comrade had against Upper Moon One.
Kamiya took a deep breath.
"Judging by your expression, you've already figured out your situation, haven't you? Can we stop this…"
Dôma spoke in a casual tone.
He no longer felt the need to stay vigilant: his opponent shouldn't be able to fight without Total Concentration Breathing.
Yet Dôma immediately noticed something unusual.
"Where's this heat coming from?"
The question slipped out before he realized Kamiya's reckless act.
'He… he's pushing his breathing technique to its limit, a desperate attempt to generate more strength and heat.'
The idea wasn't foolish, but Kamiya risked permanently shortening his lifespan.
No… Dôma estimated the young man would suffer irreversible damage after this fight.
'I'm… sorry, Father… I won't be able to carry the title of Hashira… b-but I'll take this scum with me!'
An explosion of fighting spirit radiated from Kamiya, actual steam rising from his body as the heat of his flesh met Dôma's ice crystals.
All humor vanished from the demon's face.
Only a neutral expression remained as he watched this man burn himself out like a blazing inferno consuming all its fuel.
'Is this it? The unyielding will of humanity…'
Dôma took his opponent's desperate act seriously, as it reminded him of Akaza's pitiful state against Kyôjurô Rengoku.
Upper Moon Three had nearly been decapitated.
"Sorry… I was disrespectful toward you and your convictions," Dôma said in an emotionless voice, unfolding both his fans.
The time for negotiation or recruitment was over—this was a fight to the death.
"Let's properly introduce ourselves. I am Dôma, of the Twelve Kizuki, Lower Moon One."
Though Kamiya hesitated, it was customary to give one's name in a duel to the death.
The Demon Slayer slowly opened his mouth, gripping his Nichirin Blade again despite the frostbitten damage to his hands.
"I… I am Kamiya Rengoku… eldest son of Itori Rengoku, and now former Tsuguko Demon Slayer."
Tsuguko.
The title designates a swordsman recognized by a Hashira as a potential successor.
But there was a detail Dôma picked up on immediately.
'He speaks of his rank in the past tense…'
That small detail showed Kamiya had already resolved to die facing Dôma.
This man had nothing left to lose.
"A Tsuguko, huh… I'll remember the 'identity' of the man called Kamiya Rengoku."
The demon's icy voice signaled the final act of their battle.
"Flame Breathing… Ninth Form: Rengoku!"
Adopting a familiar stance that stirred Jay's memories, the Demon Slayer lunged, his speed surpassing anything he'd shown before.
For the first time in the fight, Dôma was caught off guard.
'Tch… too fast!'
One fan barely intercepted the Nichirin Blade, but the katana still carved its path… toward the demon's throat.
"Blood Demon Art: Vector!"
*Clang!*
The single, devastating slash reached its target… but the force Kamiya had put into it was instantly turned back against his katana.
The young man's will remained unshaken. His blade, however, couldn't bear such a burden.
Kamiya's technique was powerful enough to carve the ground along the entire path of his charge. He even managed to draw a thin red line across Dôma's neck.
"Marvelous… you're truly worthy of joining me, Kamiya-san. B-But I'm talking to myself, *sigh*…"
Dôma gazed at the headless body of the young Demon Slayer.
The moment he activated his vector power, he could no longer rely on ice: he still lacked the experience to combine both arts instinctively.
So, he had chosen to swiftly decapitate Kamiya, using only his raw demonic strength and the fan that remained intact under the Demon Slayer's strike.
A cold decision, dictated by the situation.
'The human brain ceases to function a few minutes after the heart and vital organs stop,' he thought, picking up Kamiya's head.
"Blood Demon Art: Vanity's Paradise."
Dôma intended to keep his promise.
He would remember Kamiya Rengoku, for his techniques would now live on through him.
A meager consolation… since the man himself had slipped through his grasp.
"Hm… he was about to become a father."
***
Author's note: I… I managed to hang in there, lol.
I posted two chapters a day all week, up to chapter 20.
Well… it really wore me out, especially since I have another fanfic (I even fell behind on that one… yikes).
But I held on!
So now I can slow down the pace, focus properly on my Patreon, and I'll publish a bonus if you send 70 stones to this story.