"Oh, I understand better now, you could've said so earlier," Enmu declared after listening to Doma's offer in detail.
The former doctor seemed thrilled at the prospect of becoming a demon, especially after witnessing Doma's blood demon art.
'I really didn't want to use my powers… but it's hard to convince a charlatan about the supernatural,' Doma thought, hiding his smile behind his fan.
Enmu made his living deceiving people. To convince him of the existence of demons and the supernatural, Doma had been forced to resort to using his powers.
"Sorry again for the earlier confusion. So, what do you say? Will you join me?" he asked, his tone slightly insistent.
Enmu nodded without hesitation, having grasped the full scope of Doma's proposal.
'Powers in exchange for a life away from the sun? A fair deal,' he concluded, analyzing the offer before him.
As for hell? Enmu wasn't really aware of it, and Doma didn't mention it.
It was in Doma's interest for Enmu to become a demon; the latter was neither a "good" person nor a victim of fate like Akaza.
That's why Doma didn't hesitate to withhold certain information, especially since having knowledge of the afterlife wasn't exactly normal in this world.
How could Enmu hold it against him later?
"Of course~ If I can gain abilities as miraculous as yours, then losing the sun is a small price to pay," Enmu said, his voice brimming with enthusiasm.
Doma nodded, looking satisfied.
It was the first genuine emotion he'd felt since meeting the fake doctor.
"Excellent… but don't forget." Doma paused briefly, narrowing his eyes at Enmu. "Your master isn't the ancestor of demons—it's me."
His voice had regained the gravity it held when he'd proposed the transformation.
"Naturally—" Enmu didn't have time to finish: a finger pierced his forehead.
Doma injected his blood after one final confirmation. *'I should also arrange a little safeguard against Muzan's mental commands,'* he thought.
He activated his blood demon art: Vanity's Paradise.
Doma bit Enmu's forearm as the transformation progressed, gently rearranging his chaotic mind, where dreams and memories intertwined.
Then he sealed all memories related to their agreement before the transformation and crafted false ones. It would take Muzan considerable time to notice this anomaly.
When the process was complete, Enmu awoke. His skin was paler than at their first meeting, his eyes slightly inhuman.
New markings adorned his face, and a mouth had opened in the palm of his hand.
"Lord Doma, am I to your liking~?" he asked, his tone less dreamy, the mental cleanup having taken effect.
Hearing these words, Doma realized the demon was alluding to the flesh he'd taken to perform his blood demon art.
"Enmu-san, avoid that kind of talk; people might get the wrong idea," he said, glancing at Taiga in the background.
The former demon slayer watched the scene, speechless, unable to find words.
For the first time since his reincarnation, Doma felt genuinely exhausted from interacting with someone.
…
The sun was slowly setting behind the hill, and a beautiful night descended quietly. Twenty-four hours had passed since Doma had transformed Enmu into a demon.
The former doctor was temporarily staying at the cult's monastery, but he couldn't linger there forever without incurring Muzan's wrath.
The ancestor of demons didn't allow multiple demons to gather without his approval, and Doma had received no such permission.
After all, Rui was an exception: he was one of the few who had sparked a semblance of pity in Muzan.
'Still, I might need to consider obtaining that special permission,' Doma thought as he polished his golden fans.
These were different from his usual fans: thanks to cult followers infiltrated within the Demon Slayer Corps, Doma now had access to nichirin metal.
He had chosen to reforge into weapons, convinced that combat with other demons was inevitable.
Alone in a dark room, he cleaned and prepared his equipment before facing Yuri that evening. Muzan had given him three days, but an incident within the cult had forced him to act sooner.
Kikyo had fallen ill.
The-pandoc
The neighboring region had been struck by Yuri's power, and in trying to help the locals, the cult had made a mistake: the disease was contagious.
Several members were already in quarantine.
Doma possessed considerable medical knowledge, thanks to his studies and his blood demon art: Vanity's Paradise.
But…
Yuri's diseases were no ordinary ailments.
He had underestimated the threat, considering it a minor issue he could handle at any time. In reality, the disease was extremely aggressive and adapted to every remedy.
If infected, Doma doubted he could survive without eliminating Yuri quickly.
"Hmm… It's time to request an official battle for a rank change," he murmured before contacting Muzan.
Unlike the lower moons, the upper moons could communicate directly with their master. It didn't take long for a mental connection to form.
"Muzan-sama, are you there?" No response at first, though he could feel the demon king's attention.
"Speak quickly!" Muzan's irritated voice suddenly echoed in his mind.
An unpleasant sensation. "Haha, Muzan-sama is as lively as ever today, how reassuring!" Doma replied, unfazed.
Ignoring the annoyed tone, he continued casually, "Here's the situation, Muzan-sama: I wish to challenge Yuri-sama today."
"Challenge Yuri… now?"
Muzan, posing as an old man in a manor, paused his actions for a moment.
He was absentmindedly stroking his "grandson's" head and asked a servant to take him away. Then, without hesitation, he sent instructions to the other Upper Moons.
'Finally, that fool is taking action…' Muzan thought, pleased at the prospect of Yuri's antics coming to an end.
His confidence in Doma stemmed largely from Kokushibo's remarks about his progress and personal breathing style.
For over ten years, Kokushibo had given him advice, unaware that Doma often secretly challenged him using his blood demon art, Vanity's Paradise – Simulator.
For a long time, Doma had mastered Total Concentration: Constant and gained deep knowledge of all fundamental breathing styles.
He had even fought, one by one, the former comrades of the man once known as Michikatsu.
Now, he perfectly controlled his own breathing technique as well as all the ice abilities of the original Doma.
Kokushibo had eventually told Muzan, "It's a shame Doma isn't entirely a swordsman. I'm no longer qualified to advise him."
He no longer saw him as a mere demon mimicking flame breathing but as a true martial artist.
"However… Doma still has unpleasant flaws."
The mere thought of the man made a vein throb on Muzan's temple. Due to the Vanity's Paradise art, the memories he perceived from Doma were often falsified: sometimes filled with disarming innocence, sometimes with absurd images, like when he was in a… "strange" situation with Kaguya.
"Bah, he's still better than Yuri. Let's see if he can really pull it off."
Considering his utility and exceptional talent, Muzan tolerated his eccentricities. After all, one gets used to someone's quirks.
With that thought, he entered the Infinity Castle, where Doma was already waiting, observing the Upper Moons arriving one by one on an elevated platform.
"Oh, everyone's here! What a joy~ I feel like the star of the show for once!" Beaming, he raised his hands and greeted everyone enthusiastically.
Kokushibo ignored him, maintaining a distant air, while Hantengu cowered in a corner, muttering incomprehensible words.
Doma decided to tease Akaza.
The two had crossed paths over the past ten years, but their relationship remained… peculiar.
"Akaza-sama~ It's been so long since we've seen each other!" Doma said casually, raising a hand to pat his superior's shoulder.
Akaza frowned, disgust written on his face, and turned away to avoid contact. "Akaza-sama is as reserved and heartless as ever!"
In truth, Doma didn't care much for Akaza. But seeing a character he'd admired in his past life react so strongly to his "sincere" attitude stroked his sadistic side.
Sometimes, it even elicited genuine bursts of emotion from him.
Just hearing Doma's voice brought back bad memories for Akaza.
The most vivid was their first meeting.
Nakime had brought Doma to Akaza because the cult leader wanted to meet his "colleagues."
Akaza saw no harm in it, but he was in the middle of training and didn't want to be disturbed.
Yet, Dôma had already begun commenting on his session, after settling himself on a rock not far away.
The Ice Demon pointed out every minor flaw in Akaza's stance, which the latter arrogantly ignored.
Still, his curiosity was piqued. He listened closely and realized that Dôma's words were indeed accurate.
At that moment, Akaza's pride was struck.
When Akaza told Dôma to stop, the latter did the exact opposite. He lavished even more praise on each of his movements.
Because of this, the Upper Moon Three felt doubt creep into his mind regarding the martial path he had been following during the training session, and he lost all concentration.
Irritated, Akaza tried to teach him a lesson… but the ice demon was no easy opponent.
Not only did Doma escape, but he even managed to trap Akaza under layers of ice by sacrificing those Miko.
"You'd better survive, because I'm the one who's going to make you eat dirt," Akaza growled through gritted teeth.
Doma, behind him, let slip a line that nearly made him stumble: "I'm touched that Akaza-sama doesn't want me to die. He really cares about his comrade and friend~"