Chapter 12: A Blade Against the Demon King
[System Activated: Multiverse Life Simulator]
[Host: Alexander Stark-Wayne]
[Age: 14]
[Abilities: Master-Level Assassination Techniques, Advanced Firearms Knowledge, NZ-48 Recipe, Increased Sensory Sensitivity, Increased Mental Resilience]
[Items: Falchion Doppler Black Pearl Knife, Butterfly Knife]
[Simulation Credits: 9]
[Earn Additional Credits: Contact with Heroes/Villains (Variable Yield)]
[Description: Simulate lives in alternate worlds from movies, anime, cartoons, and games. Rewards scalable. Starts now—use to prepare for the chaos ahead.]
[Simulation Menu]
[Available Worlds: Random Selection Based on Host Knowledge]
[Option 1: Movie - Barbie (Makeup Expert) - Cost: 1 Credits]
[Option 2: Anime - Demon Slayer (Breathing styles) - Cost: 2 Credits]
[Option 3: Movie - John Wick (Assassin Path) - Cost: 1 Credits]
[Option 4: Game - Pokémon (Trainer Journey) - Cost: 4 Credits]
[Anchored Simulations Available:]
[Assassin's Creed - Templar Hunter (Level 2) - Cost: 4 Credits]
[CS:GO - Counter-Terrorist Ops (Revisit) - Cost: 2 Credits]
The weight of nine credits felt heavy in Alex's mind, a physical manifestation of a dozen future heroes. He sat at his lab desk, the glow of his monitors illuminating the two knives he had earned from the CS:GO simulation, a testament to his burgeoning skills. The system panel hummed in his vision, and he had a choice to make.
He looked at the options. John Wick was a safe bet—a guaranteed power-up for just one credit. But his gaze lingered on Demon Slayer. The cost was low now, a mere two credits, but the potential reward was astronomical: Breathing styles. This wasn't just peak human; this was superhuman. He could learn a power that let him go beyond what even Bruce Wayne had trained for. With a single, decisive mental command, he chose.
[Simulation Initiated: Anime - Demon Slayer (Breathing styles)]
[Credit Deducted: 2]
[Entering World…]
The Stark-Wayne lab dissolved in a swirl of color, and Alex felt his consciousness fall through a cosmic void before snapping back into a different body. The air smelled of woodsmoke and crisp mountain snow. He stood in a clearing, clad in simple peasant clothes. The system's voice was a whisper in his mind.
"Find the origin. Learn the breath. Defeat the Demon King."
He knew where to go. He hiked up the snowy mountain path, his heightened senses guiding him until he found a small, secluded cabin. He found the man he was looking for, a quiet, kind-faced charcoal seller with a scar on his forehead. "You are not who you seem to be, Mr. Kamado," Alex said, his voice alien in this new body. "You are Yoriichi Tsugikuni, and I need you to teach me the Sun Breathing Style."
Yoriichi's eyes widened, a flicker of ancient memory in their depths. The man had left the world of demons behind, but Alex's knowledge brought it all back. Seeing a fierce determination in Alex's eyes, Yoriichi began his training.
For days, Alex's mind, boosted by the NZ-48 recipe and the system's own enhancements, absorbed every lesson. He learned the movements, the rhythm, and the subtle control over his breath that Yoriichi taught him, each form feeling like a dance of impossible grace and power.
As his mastery grew, Alex contacted the Demon Slayer Corps, sending a message through a crow he had captured. "Muzan Kibutsuji is coming for Yoriichi Tsugikuni and his family. He plans to strike tonight."
The Demon Slayer Corps arrived in force, summoned by the urgency of the warning. The Pillars gathered in the snowy clearing, their eyes wary. A young man, a boy no older than Alex, stood before them, a crow on his shoulder.
"I need you all to teach me your breathing styles," Alex said, looking from the stoic Giyu Tomioka to the fiery Kyojuro Rengoku.
Sanemi Shinazugawa, the Wind Pillar, scoffed, his face a mask of scorn. "Who do you think you are, kid? A nobody demanding our sacred techniques?"
Alex didn't answer with words. He drew a blade and moved. His movements were a blur of coordinated precision—the speed of his Assassin's Creed training blending with the fluid footwork of John Wick's path. He disarmed Sanemi in a single, silent motion, the blade resting against the Wind Pillar's throat. Sanemi froze, his own eyes widening in shock.
"I am someone who can protect your future," Alex said calmly. He lowered the blade. The other Pillars, seeing the impossible skill and unwavering confidence, agreed to train him. He spent the remaining hours absorbing every lesson like a sponge, his 100% brain utilization allowing him to master the complex forms of every style, from Water and Flame to Stone, Serpent, and the elegant Flower. He could not yet use them to their full potential, but the knowledge was now a part of him.
At midnight, a cold wind descended. The air grew heavy with malevolent energy, and then he appeared. Muzan Kibutsuji, the Demon King, walked into the clearing, but he was not alone. Behind him was his most powerful subordinate, Kokushibo, the Upper Rank One. Muzan's eyes narrowed in confusion and rage. "The Pillars... and who is this?"
The battle was a cataclysm of light and shadow. The Pillars and Alex, each wielding their unique styles, fought in unison against the two terrifying demons. Blades flashed, breathing styles roared to life, and the snowy mountain was carved apart by their immense power. Alex weaved through the battle, a ghost in the chaos, using his new knowledge of the Thunder and Beast styles to strike with impossible speed.
The battle raged all night. The sun began to rise, painting the sky in a fiery orange. Muzan's body, already damaged from the combined assault, began to bubble and hiss. "No! I will not die!" he shrieked, a look of pure panic on his face. He tried to retreat into the shadows.
He was a second too late. As the first rays of light broke over the mountain peak, Yoriichi Tsugikuni stepped forward, his eyes burning with a fierce light. He drew his scarlet blade and performed the final form of his Sun Breathing Style. The blade, infused with the power of the rising sun, cut through the night, a final act of vengeance. Muzan Kibutsuji was burned to ash. Before anyone could react.
The world of demons was over, and Alex was back in his lab. He was covered in sweat, his body exhausted, but his mind thrumming with newfound power. He looked at his hand, and a beautifully crafted katana, its blade a deep crimson, materialized in his grasp.
[Simulation Complete: Demon Slayer - Breathing styles]
[Plot Outcome: Altered - Muzan Kibutsuji Eliminated]
[Rewards: All Breathing Styles (Sun, Water, Flame, Stone, Wind, Flower, Insect, Serpent, Love, Sound, Mist, Beast, Moon, Thunder), Katana (Made of Scarlet Crimson Iron Sand and Scarlet Crimson Ore)]
He held the blade, a smile spreading across his face. He had killed a god. He looked at the system panel.
[Host: Alexander Stark-Wayne]
[Abilities: Master-Level Assassination Techniques, Advanced Firearms Knowledge, All Breathing Styles, NZ-48 Recipe, Apple of Eden Fragment, Increased Sensory Sensitivity, Increased Mental Resilience]
[Items: Falchion Doppler Black Pearl Knife, Butterfly Knife, Katana of Scarlet Crimson Ore]
[Simulation Credits: 7]
The world of Midtown High School suddenly felt a little less chaotic, and a lot more manageable. He now had the power to face the shadows lurking in this world, and a blade to cut them down.