After resting on the boulder for a few minutes, Reiyu slowly opened his eyes and pushed himself up.
"Alright… that should do it. Time to get back to demon hunting."
The dull ache in his eyes had mostly subsided, and he nodded in satisfaction before standing. But just as he rose, a cool breeze brushed against him, followed immediately by a stench far worse than anything foul—so pungent it made him instinctively clamp his nose, forgetting he still wore his Tengu mask.
"Ugh… which demon messed itself? This smell's disgusting."
Grumbling, Reiyu slid the mask up to his forehead and pressed his hand firmly over his nose.
"Roar!"
Suddenly, a thunderous roar reverberated through the forest, dizzying in its intensity.
"Changed… it changed again! The era name's different!"
Amid the roar, a furious voice rang out, shaking even the trees. Reiyu's instincts kicked in immediately, and he dashed toward the sound. Whatever it was, it had to be a demon of considerable strength—probably stronger than anything he had faced so far.
Arriving at the source, Reiyu perched atop a large tree, observing the clearing below.
There stood a massive, entirely brown creature. From its aura, it was clearly a demon.
"Ding!"
System Notification – Hand Demon:
Personality: Unknown
Background: None
Skills: None
Combat Power: 197
Overall Rating: Rank 2
Host Affection: 0
Reiyu relaxed slightly. Hand Demon might be stronger than any demon he had fought earlier, but in his eyes, it would only take a couple of extra moves to deal with it.
"Urok! Urok! Urok!"
The demon roared incessantly, and strangely, the sound gave Reiyu a subtle sense of satisfaction.
Aside from the demon, another figure stood in the clearing: a young boy with crimson hair, wearing a blue haori and sporting a scar across his forehead. Like Reiyu, he had a Tengu mask resting at his brow.
Reiyu froze for a moment, then let a sly, slightly twisted smile cross his face. That boy… could it be his cherished little junior disciple, Kamado Tanjirou?
Tanjirou hadn't noticed Reiyu yet. His keen sense of smell was overwhelmed by the stench from Hand Demon, which completely masked Reiyu's presence.
"You… you monster!"
Clutching the Nichirin blade given to him by Urokodaki Sakonji, Tanjirou's body bore a few scratches, and his expression was grim. He was glaring at Hand Demon, having learned that this very demon had already slain more than ten of Urokodaki's disciples.
Those ten-plus disciples had been his seniors alongside Reiyu—no wonder Urokodaki had said, "I didn't want you all to enter the final selection."
Now, Tanjirou finally understood. Urokodaki's warning was because every disciple he had trained before had perished in the final selection on Fujikasane Mountain, all at the hands of this Hand Demon.
"Tanjirou, don't let your anger control you, especially in battle," Reiyu's voice cut through his thoughts just as his fury reached a boiling point. A figure, wearing a Tengu mask at the brow just like him, appeared suddenly before Tanjirou.
"Senpai Reiyu?" Tanjirou's nostrils flared as he immediately sensed Reiyu's presence.
A moment later, he exhaled in relief. Normally, taking down Hand Demon alone would have been near-impossible, but now that Reiyu—the absolute maniac—was here, he had no reason to fear for his life.
"My foolish little bean… need a hand?" Reiyu slowly drew his Nichirin blade, striking a combat-ready stance.
"Yes!" Tanjirou responded, a surge of emotion in his voice. Up until now, he had rarely seen Reiyu fight anyone besides himself, save for sparring with Urokodaki under special circumstances. But even then, the sheer aura of Reiyu's strength was obvious—after all, Urokodaki had once been a Water Hashira and one of the strongest demon slayers ever.
Hand Demon's eyes narrowed slightly at Reiyu's sudden appearance. Seeing the Tengu mask identical to Urokodaki's, it erupted into a maniacal laugh.
"Impossible… to think today I'd devour two of Urokodaki's disciples at once! If he knew, he'd die of rage!"
Tanjirou's face darkened with grim determination. He turned to Reiyu. "Senpai Reiyu… this demon killed all our senior disciples during the final selection. You have to avenge them!"
"Ah?" Reiyu raised an eyebrow, then smirked. "So that's why Urokodaki was so against me entering the final selection… and why he insisted I defeat him without drawing my blade first. Makes sense now."
"If I take this guy down for revenge, I bet Urokodaki would be thrilled too," Reiyu said, eyes instantly transforming into Mangekyō Sharingan, his Nichirin blade glowing with strange energy waves.
"Revenge? How pathetic," Hand Demon sneered, its many muscular arms writhing. "The scarred Tengu-mask guy said the same thing… and he got eaten anyway!"
Suddenly, dozens of smaller arms sprouted from Hand Demon's huge limbs, surging toward Reiyu. His expression darkened.
"Hey, you bastard… really annoying."
"Breath of Devouring – First Form: Demon Devour!"
Black energy enveloped Reiyu's blade as he swung. The energy wave didn't just cut through the small arms. Just as it was about to collide, it blossomed midair into a swirling black vortex, absorbing every one of Hand Demon's miniature limbs.