(Extra chapter)
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"What child?"
Kiyokawa Izumi patted his face, realizing things weren't that simple.
"A child! A child was taken by a demon. That demon crawled like a beast, with an extremely long tongue!"
"Huh?"
The demon Kiyokawa Izumi just killed was different from what this Senior described.
Does that mean there are two demons here, or even more?
No wonder multiple swordsmen were dispatched.
The strength of the low-ranking swordsmen of the Demon Slayer Corps is just so-so. Fighting multiple demons alone is no different from seeking death.
'The mission isn't over yet!'
Kiyokawa Izumi gently exhaled a breath of turbid air, unable to help but reflect on himself.
There was nothing to say; it was indeed his problem.
He presumptuously thought the mission was over.
"Do you know where that demon is?"
Kiyokawa Izumi's expression became serious as he asked.
"Probably in the mountains... I saw the Kasugai Crow fly this way, so I thought the demon was here."
"In the mountains?"
Kiyokawa Izumi looked into the distance, his lips twitching, and asked faintly, "You mean, is this mountain called Natagumo Mountain? I think we need a Hashira's support!"
It wasn't cowardice; it was self-awareness.
What's the difference between asking him to fight a Lower Moon and asking him to die?
Any Hashira could easily solve it, so he wasn't willing to risk his life.
Don't blame him for overthinking; hearing about multiple demons and being in the mountains inevitably caused some stress.
"What?"
Tanaka Kentaro looked at him in surprise, "Natagumo Mountain isn't here..."
"Oh!"
Kiyokawa Izumi immediately breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't feel ashamed; instead, he said seriously, "I'm going into the mountain now. Please send those two back."
Without waiting for Tanaka Kentaro to agree, Kiyokawa Izumi had already turned and left.
As for why he didn't go with this person?
If it were a high-ranking swordsman, he would have been willing to wait.
But this one, his swordsmanship was temporarily indiscernible.
His mastery of the Breathing Technique was extremely poor.
His strength was probably even inferior to his own.
Having made such a judgment, Kiyokawa Izumi was too lazy to wait for this person to act together.
He could handle weak demons alone.
If he couldn't solve it, what good would another low-ranking swordsman do?
...The night was thick as ink, the swaying branches in the distance like ghostly figures, the cold wind howled through the mountains, and the chill was bone-piercing.
Kiyokawa Izumi, who had already entered the mountain, didn't appear particularly anxious—to be honest, the child who was taken was most likely beyond saving.
He didn't think a demon could resist eating.
"Annoying, without Tanjirou's amazing nose, or Zenitsu's special ears, finding demons is just inconvenient!"
Under the moonlight, Kiyokawa Izumi, who had been searching in the mountains for an unknown amount of time, couldn't help but feel a bit irritated.
Damn demons, can't they be more considerate?
Appear earlier, solve it earlier.
Maybe he could even make it back for a bowl of noodles!
Just then, a faint stench wafted through the air.
Chewing sounds were faintly discernible.
Kiyokawa Izumi's right hand rested on the nichirin blade at his waist. Pushing aside the obstructing bushes in front of him, a dark shadow seemed to be gnawing on something.
The sudden sound of footsteps startled the demon.
It instinctively turned its head, its crimson eyes staring intently at Kiyokawa Izumi.
Its limbs were twisted, and it lay on the ground like a lizard, its ugly head unusually flexible, and its dark tongue was as thick as an adult's arm.
"Is that you? You made me search for so long!"
Kiyokawa Izumi, filled with suppressed anger, didn't bother to waste words with the demon. Facing the tongue that shot out like an arrow from a bowstring, he showed no sign of panic. He swung his blade casually, the bluish blade tip gleaming coldly, and the demon's tongue fell to the ground in several pieces.
"Checkmate!"
Although this demon was ugly, its strength was mediocre—the number of humans it had eaten was probably less than ten. How could it be Kiyokawa Izumi's opponent?
There was nothing more to say about something that could be killed in one strike.
His peripheral vision glanced at the corpse on the ground—Kiyokawa Izumi wasn't particularly keen on looking at corpses. While he wouldn't throw up on the spot, he truly wasn't used to it.
How good could a corpse gnawed by a demon look?
Those with weaker psychological endurance would probably have nightmares.
Just that glance, Kiyokawa Izumi instantly froze.
Although it had been gnawed beyond recognition, it was vaguely discernible as an adult male.
Judging by his attire, he might have been a hunter, or perhaps a woodcutter?
His profession wasn't important; what was important was that it wasn't a child!
Kiyokawa Izumi couldn't help but get a headache—where was the child who was taken? Had he already been eaten?
And what was the situation with this adult male?
Just recently murdered?
"A bit hasty, shouldn't I have asked if there were other demons just now?"
Kiyokawa Izumi, who had casually complained, suddenly had a solemn expression. He abruptly turned around and looked at the shadows around him—there was a strange sense of being watched, a familiar feeling he had encountered during the Final Selection.
What's going on?
How many demons are there here, for crying out loud?
What puzzled Kiyokawa Izumi was why so many demons were appearing here?
Demons are not gregarious animals.
Unless there's a leading demon...
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190 energy stones-Extra chapter